Nano Technology
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Nano-machines built to mimic human muscle could help power cyborgs, keep the OSI budget down
At today's prices, building a Six Million Dollar Man would cost around $31 million. Of course, being a TV show means the Office of Scientific Intelligence doesn't have too many bionic employees, but that might not the case in the future. Nicolas Giuseppone and a team at the Université de Strasbourg and CNRS have created thousands of nano-machines to replicate the movement of human muscle fibers. Weaving them all together, the machines are able to make a coordinated contraction movement that stretches and contracts. For the moment, the supramolecular polymers can only stretch a matter of micrometers, but in the future they could be used to create artificial muscles, small robots or even materials that can move. Hopefully it'll also give us the power to leap tall buildings, so we'll be outside practicing our sound effects.
Copper-nickel nanowires from Duke University could make ubiquitous printable circuits
Nanowires, although they're building steam, still have to overcome the not-so-small problem of cost -- they often have to use indium tin oxide that's not just expensive, but fragile. Duke University has developed copper-nanowire films that could remedy this in style. The choice of material is both a hundred times less expensive to make than indium and is much more durable. It's flexible, too: if layered on as a coating, the nanowires would make for considerably more viable wearable electronics that won't snap under heavy stress. The catch, as you might suspect, stems from the copper itself, which doesn't conduct as much electricity as indium. The nickel will keep your copper electronics from oxidizing faster than the Statue of Liberty, however. Any practical use could be years away, but further successes from Duke could quickly see printable electronics hit the mainstream power and power our dreams of flexible displays.
Researchers say nanorockets could deliver medicine quickly within the blood
Faster delivery is always better when it comes to pizza, Thai food and now... drugs? Doctors seem to think so as they're experimenting with a new method of delivering medicine to the bloodstream via tiny nanotubes powered by rocket fuel. By storing healing meds within the platinum-coated metal tubes, doctors have been able to propel the tiny vessels up to 200 times their own length per second -- faster than swimming bacteria. It works as such: by introducing a hydrogen peroxide/water solution, the platinum reacts, sending it zipping forward and catalyzing the peroxide into water and oxygen. The downside? Even though the fuel is only .25 percent peroxide, it's still slightly toxic -- so it looks like it's back to the drawing board until they can develop a safer alternative. Spiders, perhaps? Check out the video demonstration after the break.
Wasteland Diaries: The story of the fall
I've determined that I'll make this week's post a bit of a history lesson. How did Fallen Earth fall? I'll tell you, because if there is one thing I can't possibly fault about the Fallen Earth dev team, it's their writing. Though it's a little far-fetched (in my opinion), the background lore is pretty good. The game dialogue is second to none, but it's the lore we are going to take a closer look at. Much of the story unfolds and is fleshed out throughout the game while talking to various NPCs. But knowing the back-story will help you understand a little better about what is going on in the Grand Canyon Province, especially how the factions inter-relate. So click past the cut and let's get started.
Metamaterial printing method inches us closer to invisibility cloaks
In theory, metamaterials are all kinds of awesome -- they can boost antenna strength, focus lasers, and create invisibility cloaks. But, they've been limited to day dreams lab experiments because producing the light-interfering materials in any practical quantity has been difficult and time consuming. John Rogers, a professor at the University of Illinois has figured out a way to print a layered, nano-scale mesh that bends near-infrared light in much larger amounts than previously possible. The new method, based around a plastic stamp, has been used to create sheets of metamaterial measuring a few square inches, but Rogers is confident he can scale it up to several feet. Who knows, by the time the second installment of The Deathly Hallows hits theaters in July you could get the best Harry Potter costume -- one that lets you sneak in without shelling out $13. [Thanks, Plum G.]
Scientist cooks up adjustable strength metals
As you may know, crafting a katana is a delicate process that involves carefully constructing a razor-sharp high-carbon edge around a soft shock-absorbent core. One day though, smiths and forging fires could be replaced by electrode-wielding mad-scientists, with the technology to selectively harden and soften metal at will. At least that's what we envisioned when we read about Jörg Weißmüller's breakthrough research in the field of nanomaterials. The German scientist discovered that by placing precious metals in acid he could create tiny ducts through corrosion. Once those channels are flooded with a conductive liquid, electrical currents can be used to harden the material and, if you change your mind about the brittle results, the effect can easily be reversed to make it soft again. The tech could eventually lead to self-healing vehicle armor or scratch-resistant cellphones -- but, really, we just want to zap our way to a high-quality samurai sword.
Graphene-powered web could download 3-D movies in seconds, give MPAA nightmares
Graphene, is there anything it can't do? Researchers are already trying to put it in processors, fuel cells, and batteries -- now your internet connection might get ten-times faster thanks to the silicon successor. Researchers at UC Berkeley have created tiny, one-atom-thick modulators that could switch the data-carrying light on and off in a fiber-optic connection much faster than current technology. In addition to running at a higher frequency (the team believes it will scale up to 500GHz -- modern modulators run at about 1GHz) the smaller, 25-micron size means thinner cables could be used, reducing capacitance and further boosting speeds. Labs have already crossed the 100 terabit threshold and graphene could push that even higher, yet we're still stuck staring at a buffering screen every time we try to Netflix Degrassi.
Cal researchers create 'energy-scavenging nanofibers,' look to energize your next A&F sweater
We've seen the magic of piezoelectrics before, but if a team of Cal Bears can really deliver, their spin on things will actually make a difference in the retail realm. Engineers at the University of California, Berkeley have concocted so-called "energy-scavenging nanofibers," which could one day be "woven into clothing and textiles" in order to convert into electricity the energy created through mechanical stress, stretches and twists. If everything works out, these movement-lovin' clothes could theoretically power your phone and / or PMP as you walk, and for those concerned with cost, we're told that the organic polyvinylidene fluoride materials use to make the nanofibers are easy and cheap to manufacture. Too bad there's no direct confirmation that PVDFs are machine washable, but hey, that's why you've got the local dry cleaners on speed dial.
Tiny, printable batteries promise to change the face of obnoxious greeting cards forever
Researchers at the Fraunhofer Research Institution for Electronic Nano Systems ENAS in Chemnitz led by Prof. Dr. Reinhard Baumann have unveiled tiny, printable batteries that they hope to put into production for pennies apiece. The new battery prototype is primarily composed of a zinc anode and a manganese cathode that can be screen printed and covered with a non-printed template cover. Each mercury-free battery weighs less than one gram, and can individually produce about 1.5 volts of electricity. By placing several batteries side by side, however, up to 6 volts can be generated. The institute has already produced these little power houses in the lab, and hopes to see them into production by the end of the year. The batteries have a relatively short lifespan, making them suitable for applications such as powering greeting cards. All we can say is that this battery would have made the card we got two years ago that sang "Word Up" much, much awesomer. [Via Physorg]
Scientists develop 'coin sorter' for nanoparticles, first-ever nanofluidic device with complex 3D surface
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and Cornell University have banded together and formed what they're touting is the first nanoscale fluidic device with a complex three-dimensional surface. The staircase-shaped prototype is 10nm at its tiniest and 620nm at its tallest -- all smaller than the average bacterium, and a departure from the usual flat, rectangular-shaped fare. According to the press release, it can manipulate nanoparticles by size, similar to how coin sorters separate your pocket change. Potential uses includes helping to measure nanoparticle mixtures for drug delivery or gene therapy, or the isolation / confinement of individual DNA strands. Don your science caps and hit up the read link for the more technical details[Via PhysOrg]
MIT builds battery from bacterial virus, humans to power machines by 2012
We've been tracking MIT professor Angela Belcher's attempt to build batteries and nano-electronics from viruses since 2006. Scientifically speaking, the so-called "virus" is actually a bacteriophage, a virus that preys only on bacteria while leaving humans of diminishing scientific knowledge alone to doubt that claim. Now, in a new report co-authored by Belcher, MIT research documents the construction of a lithium-ion battery (pictured after the break) with the help of a biological virus dubbed M13. M13 acts as a "biological scaffold" that allows carbon nanotubes and bits of iron phosphate to attach and form a network for conducting electricity. Specifically, MIT used the genetically engineered material to create the battery's negatively charged anode and positively charged cathode. Best of all, MIT's technique can be performed at, or below room temperature which is important from a manufacturing perspective -- a process that MIT claims will be "cheap and environmentally benign." Already MIT has constructed a virus-battery about the size of that found in a watch to turn on small lights in an MIT lab. Belcher claims that just a third of an ounce (about 10 grams) of the viral battery material could power an iPod for 40 hours. In time and with enough effort MIT expects to scale the technology to power electronic vehicles. Remember, when the time comes choose the red pill.[Via Scientific American, Thanks James]
Morpho Towers: ferrofluid sculptures that groove to the music
There's just something irresistible about random objects that get down to surrounding beats, and the Morpho Towers: Two Standing Spirals installation is quite the eye-catcher indeed. The pair of ferrofluid sculptures were deigned to stand in a platter of ferrofluid and move "synthetically to music," which translates into a magnetic field being generated by sound and creating autonomous art. Subsequently, the towers react by attracting "spikes of ferrofluid" from the bottom-up, which can mold itself and transform into a variety of stunning shapes. The spikes themselves are designed to "rotate around the edge of the spiral cone, becoming large or small depending on the strength of the magnetic field," and by utilizing time series metadata ingrained in the music, the designers can create (and control) more dramatic scenes on the towers' sides. So if you're interested in what a magnetic Christmas tree might look like, be sure to take a peek after the jump for the artwork in motion.[Via SciFiTech]
MIT developing hairy capacitors, Energizer Bunny weeps
Check it grandpa, 'cause your 18th century inventions are set to change modern portable electronics in a big way. Those neomaxizoomdweebies over at MIT have discovered a process whereby capacitors -- those little stored energy devices knocking dim-witted TV tinkerers on their asses for decades -- can be slathered at the electrodes with nanotubes thereby increasing the surface density to store more energy. So just like a thick fuzzy towel soaks up more slop than a bedside sock, these new capacitors can be kept small and store the equivalent energy of today's chemical batteries. Why do you care? Well, the device could potentially be recharged hundreds of thousands of times and in only a matter of seconds saving you time and the environment, heartburn. Prototypes are expected within the next few months with actual product hitting the market in less than five years. Fuel cells, fool cells, bring on the capacitors!
