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Scientists turn human kidney cells into tiny biocomputers
A team of scientists from Boston University have found a way to hack into mammalian cells -- human cells, even -- and make them follow logical instructions like computers can. While they're not the first researchers to program cells to do their bidding, previous successful studies mostly used Escherichia coli, which are much easier to manipulate. These researchers were able to program human kidney cells into obeying 109 different sets of instructions, including responding to particular environmental conditions and following specific directions.
ICYMI: Science Spiderman would love and more
#fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-344199{display:none;} .cke_show_borders #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-344199, #postcontentcontainer #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-344199{width:570px;display:block;} try{document.getElementById("fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-344199").style.display="none";}catch(e){}Today on In Case You Missed It: A team of researchers from Boston University have figured out how to 3D print metals in a free-form style while Oxford University discovered that spider silk strands can recoil themselves when compressed to create stretchable circuit boards. A company called Otto is working on kits to retrofit 16-wheelers into self-driving autonomous rigs. And a menstrual startup wants women to attach a clip at the waist with extra long-stringed tampons clipped into the device. As always, please share any great tech or science videos you find by using the #ICYMI hashtag on Twitter for @mskerryd.
Boston University sues Apple over chip technology patent
We usually associate Boston University with brain studies and bat-chasing UAVs; we'll have to add technology patent lawsuits to the list. Following similar claims versus the likes of Amazon and Samsung, the university has sued Apple for allegedly infringing on a 1997 patent for making gallium nitride thin films used in semiconductors. The university wants both financial compensation (likely the real objective) and a ban on US sales of the purportedly offending iPad, iPhone 5 and MacBook Air. Neither side is commenting on the case, although we suspect that it will end with a whimper, not a bang. Like many big tech firms, Apple tends to fight patent lawsuits when it expects to win, and settle out of court when it doesn't. We'd add that the patent expires in 2015 -- a Boston University victory would have relatively little effect on Apple's future.
BU wizards find success in unconscious neurofeedback learning, announce plans for secret lair
You will learn French this week, even if you're not aware that it's happening. Neuroscientists at Boston University have discovered that patients can quickly learn new skills while having their brain patterns modified via decoded functional magnetic resonance imaging. The group found that pictures gradually build up inside a person's brain, appearing first as lines, edges, shapes, colors and motion in early visual areas with the brain then filling in greater details as needed to complete the object. From there, a correlation was confirmed between increased visual learning and fMRI neurofeedback, repetitions of the activation pattern leading to long-lasting performance improvement. Interestingly, the approach worked even when test subjects were not aware of what they were learning... which is why that sweater you unconsciously knitted last night should fit Johnny Boy like a glove.
New research says e-cigarettes are safer than real ones, no cigarettes safer still
Research swayed back and forth on the health risks associated with e-cigarettes since their debut in the US about three years ago. The faux cigs, which are essentially nicotine inhalers intended to help smokers kick the actual smoking habit while still getting their dose of nicotine, the main addictive ingredient in tobacco. In the first truly comprehensive study of the somewhat controversial nicotine replacement method, researchers at Boston University's School of Public Health has found that not only are e-cigarettes much safer to "smoke" than normal ones, they may also aid in kicking the addictive habit altogether. According to the researchers, "few, if any" of the chemicals found in e-cigarettes pose serious health risks, and carcinogen levels in them are up to 1,000 times lower than in actual tobacco. This research, of course, disagrees with the FDA's findings that essentially, the chemicals found in e-cigarettes were risky and unknowable. The FDA has yet to evaluate e-cigarettes the way that they have done with all medications and other nicotine replacement products, so we can't be sure, but it's looking more and more possible that if you just need to smoke, an e-cigarette may be a safer route... for everything but your dignity, of course.
BU researchers develop tube robot for tricky operations (video)
When performing keyhole surgery, the instruments come in one of two varieties: long and straight and not very maneuverable, or extremely flexible and not very useful -- but this is about to change. Researchers at Boston University have developed something called a concentric tube robot, which uses a series of telescoping curved tubes to twist itself around the inside of the human body, while still being able to deliver enough force for medical procedures. It's been used to perform heart surgery on pigs, but it has a long way to go before it's ready to be used on human beings. You know, we weren't entirely thrilled about letting a robot draw blood -- we can't imagine a scenario where we let one of these things operate on our heart. Video after the break.
Terahertz radiation and metamaterials combine to form super X-Ray specs
It looks like somebody actually coughed up the extra dollar for the De Luxe model X-Ray specs in the back of Mad Magazine, then reverse-engineered 'em in the name of science. That somebody is Richard Averitt, whose team at Boston University has come up with a way to use metamaterials and terahertz transmissions to see through you. We've seen metamaterials plenty of times before, typically being used for nefarious deeds on the opposite end of the spectrum: invisibility cloaks. Here they form pixels for a digital imager that can be activated by THz radiation. If you're not familiar with THz radiation, it's a (supposedly perfectly safe) form of energy waves that pass through materials -- much like X-Rays but without all the nasty DNA-shattering effects on the way through. There's just one problem: nobody (not even this guy) has made a powerful enough THz emitter just yet, meaning we're all safely naked under our clothes for at least another few years.
Baby incubators made from Toyota 4Runner, Aunty Entity would be proud
Developing nations are often the recipients of used, donated baby incubators, as new ones cost about $40,000 each. Often lacking either the technicians or the parts to fix them, however, most of the incubators don't actually work. Enter Jonathan Rosen of Boston University's School of Management, who's ingeniously devised an incubator out of the very abundant Toyota 4Runner. The device is cobbled together using headlights as the heating source, the filters for air purification and the door alarm for emergency notification. The resulting incubator costs about $1,000 to make and can be repaired by auto mechanics, which is obviously good news for hospitals in need. The bad news? Dr. McDreamy's in the garage, "fixing" your car.
Light bulb networks could be the next WiFi
If researchers at Boston University's College of Engineering have their way, light bulbs of the future may be the highway your data gets carried along. A team at the school is working on low-power LEDs which could utilize an optical communication system to carry data wirelessly. Using a technique which rapidly switches the LEDs on and off data transmissions could be made via imperceptible -- yet undoubtedly brain-scrambling -- flickering patterns, and each light would be its own network entry point at speeds of 1 to 10Mbps. The concept is more secure than current RF techniques because it requires linked devices be in line-of-sight, and the technology would draw far less energy than conventional radios. Says professor Thomas Little, "Imagine if your computer, iPhone, TV, radio and thermostat could all communicate with you when you walked in a room just by flipping the wall light switch and without the usual cluster of wires." Yes... and talk about you behind your back. And plot your "accidental" death after taking out a large life insurance policy on you. You won't get away with this LED network! [Thanks, Travis]
Silicon wafer directs and filters out cancer cells
Normally we get excited when a slab of silicon makes our games run at 60 frames per-second, but in this case we're impressed with a new chip that filters out cancer cells. The device, created by some impressive souls at Princeton and Boston University, directs and focuses streams of cells in a liquid. Like a change sorter, it then separates regular cells form unusual ones. The silicon wafer is tacked with tiny pillars that catch abnormal cells that are, in the end, potentially cancerous. The device hasn't been used to any major extent, but we'll keep an eye on this promising discovery.
DARPA's zombie-shark trainer looking at non-military applications
Earlier this year we brought you news of an exciting DARPA-funded project whose goal was to take your common, household shark and turn it into a remote-controllable spy capable of gathering critical military intelligence such as the location of enemy mines and submarines. And sure enough, Boston University's Jelle Atema and his team learned how to crudely guide these kings of the sea using either electrical stimulation to mimic their natural neural processes or -- our favorite -- little gadgets attached to their noses that release delicious-smelling squid juice on cue. While Professor Atema was able to make a good deal of headway in his research, biologists still have a long way to go before they fully understand how sharks use odor stimuli to navigate, and DARPA funding ran out before any more progress could be made at BU: the zombie-shark project recently got sucked into the black hole that is classified military research. Despite the lack of support from Uncle Sam, however, Atema is eager to raise fresh funding in order to leverage his achievements into useful civilian applications; remote-control sharks could potentially be used to track fish populations, changes in ocean temperature, or chemical spills. But consider yourself warned: once we're able to lead these creatures around by the nose, so to speak, it's only a matter of time before some mad scientists (read: DARPA) equip them with bionic limbs, turning them into deadly, mythical land sharks; i.e. next time someone rings your doorbell and you hear a little voice whisper "candygram" from the other side, you'd better call animal control and then run like hell to grab that harpoon you keep in the attic. For more details about this project (but unfortunately, no mention of that land shark aspect we fabricated), check out the mini-documentary at the Read link... [Via Defense Tech]
Podcast Academy at Boston University
You're not going out tonight until you've completed your podcast homework, mister! BU's Podcast Academy is a two-day event scheduled for April 28th and 29th that focuses on the creation, distribution and use of podcasts. Workshop topics include how to get started, choosing the right equipment and how to get listed in iTunes and elsewhere. It definitely sounds like fun and should be worthwhile for anyone who is really serious about getting the most out of this new medium.Register before March 15 and pay $250. After that, add fifty bucks.