ScienceDaily: Top Technology News

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• Diamond planets may be more common than astronomers thought
• Sunsets on Titan reveal the complexity of hazy exoplanets
• A habitable environment on Martian volcano?
• Where have all the craters gone?
• NASA-funded rocket to study birthplace of stars
• Seafloor experts publish new view of zone where Malaysia Airlines flight 370 might lie
• Controlling the nano-world: Scientists unveil first method for controlling the growth of metal crystals
• Autonomous airboats monitor hippo dung in Kenya's Mara River basin
• New method discovered to protect against chemical weapons
• Google Glass adaptation opens the universe to deaf students
• Hybrid energy transfer system mimics process responsible for photosynthesis
• A new 'Kabuto-like' nickel catalyst forms bioactive frameworks from phenol derivatives
• Smaller accelerators for particle physics?
• Using thoughts to control airplanes
• Molecules do the triple twist
• Aircraft fuel consumption can be reduced by 15 per cent
• Novel home cleaning method to reduce asthma

Diamond planets may be more common than astronomers thought Posted: 27 May 2014 07:05 PM PDT Carbon-rich planets may be more common than previously thought, according to new research. Some of these planets, all located far beyond Earth's solar system, could contain vast deposits of graphite or diamonds, and their apparent abundance prompts new questions about the implications of carbon-intense environments for climate, plate tectonics, and other geological processes, as well as for life.

Sunsets on Titan reveal the complexity of hazy exoplanets Posted: 27 May 2014 03:07 PM PDT Scientists working with data from NASA's Cassini mission have developed a new way to understand the atmospheres of exoplanets by using Saturn's smog-enshrouded moon Titan as a stand-in. The new technique shows the dramatic influence that hazy skies could have on our ability to learn about these alien worlds orbiting distant stars.

A habitable environment on Martian volcano? Posted: 27 May 2014 12:47 PM PDT The Martian volcano Arsia Mons may have been home to one of the most recent habitable environments yet found on the Red Planet, geologists say. The research shows that volcanic eruptions beneath a glacial ice sheet would have created substantial amounts of liquid water on Mars's surface around 210 million years ago. Where there was water, there is the possibility of past life.

Where have all the craters gone? Posted: 27 May 2014 12:47 PM PDT Impact craters reveal one of the most spectacular geologic process known to human beings. During the past 3.5 billion years, it is estimated that more than 80 bodies, larger than the dinosaur-killing asteroid that struck the Yucatan Peninsula 66 million years ago, have bombarded Earth. However, tectonic processes, weathering, and burial quickly obscure or destroy craters. If Earth weren't so dynamic, its surface would be heavily cratered like the Moon or Mercury.

NASA-funded rocket to study birthplace of stars Posted: 27 May 2014 12:17 PM PDT In deep space, floating between the stars, lies an abundance of atoms -- carbon, oxygen, hydrogen -- that over millions of years will grow into new stars and new planets. NASA successfully launched the Colorado High-resolution Echelle Stellar Spectrograph, or CHESS, payload aboard a Black Brant IX suborbital sounding rocket on May 24, 2014, for a 15-minute flight to observe this star nursery more comprehensively and in better detail than has been done by a single instrument ever before.

Seafloor experts publish new view of zone where Malaysia Airlines flight 370 might lie Posted: 27 May 2014 11:59 AM PDT A new illustration of the seafloor, created by two of the world's leading ocean floor mapping experts that details underwater terrain where the missing Malaysia Airlines flight might be located, could shed additional light on what type of underwater vehicles might be used to find the missing airplane and where any debris from the crash might lie.

Controlling the nano-world: Scientists unveil first method for controlling the growth of metal crystals Posted: 27 May 2014 11:29 AM PDT Researchers have announced the first ever method for controlling the growth of metal-crystals from single atoms. The method, called nanocrystallometry, allows for the creation of precise components for use in nanotechnology.

Autonomous airboats monitor hippo dung in Kenya's Mara River basin Posted: 27 May 2014 09:45 AM PDT Small, autonomous airboats, disguised to look like crocodiles, helped scientists measure water quality this spring in Kenya's Mara River. An estimated 4,000 hippos use the river as a toilet with potentially deadly effects for fish living downriver.

New method discovered to protect against chemical weapons Posted: 27 May 2014 09:41 AM PDT Researchers have discovered that some compounds called polyoxoniobates can degrade and decontaminate nerve agents such as the deadly sarin gas, and have other characteristics that may make them ideal for protective suits, masks or other clothing. They could ultimately help save both military and civilian lives.

Google Glass adaptation opens the universe to deaf students Posted: 27 May 2014 09:41 AM PDT A group of deaf university students and their professor developed a system to display video narrating planetarium shows onto glasses worn by deaf students.

Hybrid energy transfer system mimics process responsible for photosynthesis Posted: 27 May 2014 09:41 AM PDT Scientists have developed a new hybrid energy transfer system, which mimics the processes responsible for photosynthesis. From photosynthesis to respiration, the processes of light absorption and its transfer into energy represent elementary and essential reactions that occur in any biological living system. In a new study, researchers demonstrate an alternate non-radiative, intermolecular energy transfer that exploits the intermediating role of light confined in an optical cavity.

A new 'Kabuto-like' nickel catalyst forms bioactive frameworks from phenol derivatives Posted: 27 May 2014 08:47 AM PDT Researchers have developed a new nickel catalyst with a 'Kabuto-like' structure that was found to catalyze the cross-coupling reaction between carbonyl compounds and readily available phenol derivatives, to form alpha-arylketones, which are found in many biologically active compounds. (A Kabuto is a helmet worn by Japanese samurai.)

Smaller accelerators for particle physics? Posted: 27 May 2014 08:43 AM PDT It took every inch of the Large Hadron Collider's 17-mile length to accelerate particles to energies high enough to discover the Higgs boson. Now, imagine an accelerator that could do the same thing in, say, the length of a football field. Or less. That is the promise of laser-plasma accelerators. Scientists have grappled with building these devices for two decades, and a new theoretical study predicts that this may be easier than previously thought.

Using thoughts to control airplanes Posted: 27 May 2014 07:14 AM PDT Pilots of the future could be able to control their aircraft by merely thinking commands. Scientists have now demonstrated the feasibility of flying via brain control -- with astonishing accuracy.

Molecules do the triple twist Posted: 27 May 2014 05:54 AM PDT They are three-dimensional and yet single-sided: Moebius strips. These twisted objects have only one side and one edge and they put our imagination to the test. Scientists have now succeeded in designing the world's first triply twisted molecule. Because of their peculiar quantum mechanical properties these structures are interesting for applications in molecular electronics and optoelectronics.

Aircraft fuel consumption can be reduced by 15 per cent Posted: 27 May 2014 05:54 AM PDT Two aircraft engine concepts, geared turbofan and open rotor, can enable a significant reduction to aircraft fuel consumption. With open rotor, the potential reduction is 15 per cent.

Novel home cleaning method to reduce asthma Posted: 27 May 2014 05:51 AM PDT Researchers received two patents for a new method to rid carpets, mattresses and other furniture of harmful allergens and pests that cause asthma. The method uses carbon dioxide to "freeze clean" home fabrics. The process deactivates proteins found in pet dander and can remove smoke residue and other allergy-causing substances.

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