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The wreckage of a few ancient planets formed the asteroid belt
It's exciting to watch Japan's Hayabusa 2 craft close in on its chosen asteroid and start surveying it from up close, but we can still learn things about them from down here. A new study has determined that 85 percent of our solar system's asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter is made up of the remnants of five or six ancient small planets.
Scientists found a way to bring back lost tomato flavor
Tomatoes don't taste like they used to, because breeders have been prioritizing other traits like pest and disease resistance. To bring that lost flavor back, a team of researchers from the University of Florida went on a quest to find the chemical combinations that make tomatoes tasty. First, they sequenced the DNA and examined the flavor-associated chemicals of 398 modern, heirloom and wild tomatoes. After that, they selected 160 samples out of the 398 and had 100 subjects rank them according to taste.
ICYMI: Driving fails, global warming bacteria fix and more
#fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-252707{display:none;} .cke_show_borders #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-252707, #postcontentcontainer #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-252707{width:570px;display:block;} try{document.getElementById("fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-252707").style.display="none";}catch(e){}Today on In Case You Missed It: AAA and the University of Utah teamed up to collect data on how well driver's fare while using voice commands. The results are pretty terrible: Apparently it takes a full 27 seconds for a driver to fully concentrate after attempting to call someone while behind the wheel. Meanwhile Florida may be good for something beyond just the best Twitter account this side of the Atlantic. Researchers there found a strain of deep-sea bacteria that might be able to help fight global warming by attacking greenhouse gases. And a Spaniard got the first implanted 3D printed ribs in the world after a cancer fight. Good on him!
Most iPhone exercise apps don't give you the best workout
The next time you trust your smartphone as a fitness coach, you may want to be extra-picky about the apps you use. University of Florida researchers have tested 30 free iPhone workout apps to see how well they meet all of the American College of Sports Medicine's activity guidelines, and the results aren't exactly confidence-inspiring. Most of the apps met standards for aerobic and strength training, but most of them weren't up to snuff in flexibility exercise -- two thirds didn't meet the criteria at all. Only one, Sworkit Lite Personal Workout, hit every mark.
Scientists look at flower cells in 3D without wrecking them
Plants are delicate things, which makes them a pain to study under an electron microscope -- you'll probably damage the very cells you're trying to look at. You'll get a much better look if the University of Florida's new imaging technique catches on, though. Their approach leans on both a compound fluorescence light microscope and a camera to capture several layers of cells, creating a detailed 3D snapshot of the cellular structure of something as fragile as a flower petal. The resulting pictures may not be shocking (surprise: there are lots of globs), but they should be a big deal for biologists. Researchers would have a better sense of how animal and plant tissues work when they're untouched by humans, which could go a long way toward fighting diseases and learning about new species. [Image credit: Jacob B. Landis]
Handheld device knows when your high-end seafood dish is a little fishy
As much as we love the idea of fish police, stoically patrolling high-end restaurants, scanning plates of food and shouting "That is NOT real fugu, good sir," that's (sadly) not how this device works. Yes, this handheld machine called QuadPyre made by University of South Florida researchers can detect if someone's trying to pass off inferior fish as their more expensive counterparts. But at the moment, it can only detect if shady sellers are trying to pass off riffraff as grouper fish. See, local fishermen are apparently not capable of keeping up with grouper demand in the country, so the US has been importing metric tons from abroad.
Nanotechnology enables ultra high-def LCDs, cheaper stacked-electrode OLED screens
Pixel density enthusiasts, pay close attention, because science is ready to blow your minds -- the University of Michigan has developed an LCD technology that can display their logo in a space just nine microns high. By creating a filter made of microscopic metal gratings with differently sized holes just a few hundred nanometers wide, researchers discovered they could precisely capture wavelengths associated to red, green and blue light, producing pixels roughly eight times smaller than those in the iPhone 4's famous screen, and entire images that could practically fit inside a single dot of Kopin's microdisplay. Meanwhile, OLEDs (which don't require filters to produce their color) saw a nanotech breakthrough of their own last week, as a group at the University of Florida have discovered that carbon nanotubes can revitalize a once-inefficient but promising vertical stacking technique. Layering thin sheets of aluminum, carbon nanotubes, organic material and finally gold on top of a glass substrate, scientists have created OLEDs that promise to be cheaper, faster and require one-tenth of the power of those using polycrystalline silicon, and could theoretically be printed as a flexible display as well. Here's hoping we'll see the fruits of these fellows' labors soon -- we can't wait to pen a follow-up to this epic fight.
IR-detecting OLED film could mean cheap night vision on everything
Night vision, once the exclusive property of military special forces and dreadlock'd aliens, has over the past few years become far more accessible for the everyman -- even everymen with small pockets. But, we could be on the verge of a green-screen revolution if research taking place at the University of Florida, led by Dr. Franky So, comes to fruition. He and his students are working on OLED film that is excited by infrared. Multiple layers of the stuff convert that light into a spectrum that we can see and, if all goes well, could be inexpensively layered onto anything from glasses to car windshields. So is indicating this film could start production in 18 months, but given the accuracy of original predictions regarding monstrously huge yet inexpensive OLED displays we won't exactly be holding our collective breath over here.
Light-activated lock could revolutionize drug delivery
The Gators may not be in the Final Four this year, but the brainiacs on campus are still toiling away, regardless. Researchers at the institution (that'd be the University of Florida) have just stumbled onto a remarkable discovery that could eventually "starve cancer tumors and prevent side effects from a wide range of drugs." The magic find? A "lock-like molecule" that clasps or unclasps based on exposure to light. Sure, we've seen our fair share of newfangled drug delivery tools, but none that have been this noninvasive or simple to activate. In tests, gurus found that they could use visible or ultraviolet light to open or close a clasp, letting blood flow or creating a clot; in theory, this could one day be used to "prevent the formation of tiny blood vessels that feed tumors." Everything about this sounds just fantastic on the surface, but seriously, can you imagine how dead we'd be if the robots ever got ahold of this?[Via Physorg, image courtesy of NanotechNow]
Researcher finds electrical stimulation key to rehabilitating paralyzed limbs
We've seen the wonders of electrical stimulation before, so it's no real shock (ahem) to hear that a University of Florida engineer has figured out a method to combine that very tactic with sophisticated computer learning technology in order to assist Earthlings in regaining "more precise, more life-like control of paralyzed limbs." Reportedly, the research could help around 700,000 Americans who suffer from strokes and 11,000 from cord injuries each year. Says the university's Warren Dixon (pictured): "It's an adaptive scheme to do electrical stimulation more efficiently, with less fatigue and more accuracy." Eventually, the dream is to build a wearable, pacemaker-sized device that could output the precise amount of stimulation at the perfect time in order to encourage natural movement, and it would also be able to adapt to each individual as it learns their habits and techniques. Not mentioned in the report, however, was just how beneficial this discovery could be to the scads of preposterously lazy Americans, too.[Via DailyTech]
Even robots love Obama
You know you've tapped into a cross section of America when even the robots come out in your support. The $250 ObamaBot stands 6-feet tall and regurgitates stump speeches by the president-elect while presumably cleansing the Earth of any naysayers. ObamaBot's University of Florida creators see the world as so imperfect, that they'd prefer to pal around with robots who would target their own planet. Run little girl, run... change is coming. [Via The Wired Campus, thanks Egloskerry]
Researchers devise neural implant that learns over time
Brain-machine interfaces have done quite a bit in helping handicapped individuals interact with prosthetic limbs, computers and other humans, but a new neural implant concocted at the University of Florida could make all those past devices look archaic. Put simply, researchers have discovered a method that would enable brain-machine interfaces to "adapt to a person's behavior over time and use the knowledge to help complete a task more efficiently." Until now, the brain was the instrument doing all the talking while the computer simply accepted commands; with this method, "the computer could have a say in that conversation, too." In all seriousness, this type of learning mechanism could be game-changing in the world of physical therapy, but we hesitate to give something mechanical inside of our body too much free will, ya dig?[Via Physorg]
WiPower touts breakthrough in wireless power
While it's far from the first to claim that wireless power is just around the corner, upstart WiPower looks to at least have some numbers to back up its boasting, and it also has the University of Florida in its corner. According to the two, their system not "approaches commercialization," but actually "exceeds the efficiency of most corded chargers." More specifically, they say that, "in a laboratory environment," their system achieves an efficiency of about 68%, a number they think could eventually reach 80%. That's opposed to the median efficiency of 58% found in many corded power supplies today, some of which drop as low as 16%, according to WiPower. While the company isn't quite ready to say exactly how close to commercialization the technology is, it apparently plans up the ante significantly within the next few months, when it says it'll "leapfrog" the competition by demonstrating the system charging a laptop computer.
University of Florida students grumble over Cingular service
While Cingular has claimed that its GSM network integration with AT&T Wireless is complete (thus more reliable), and throws out a bajillion advertisements gloating about the "independent research" proving the company's lack of dropped calls, you'd probably have a hard time convincing the Florida Gators that those statements are entirely accurate. While we know that Engadget has been banned from Cingular's forums, there's no denying the bevy of complaints from UF students regarding the atrocious service around the Gainesville campus. Things got so bad that students rallied around the issue of Cingular improving its service, finally escalating it to the Student Senate, where unfortunately it was voted down after "fierce debate." The resolution called the carrier's service on campus "unacceptable," and cited problems ranging from consistently dropping calls to receiving error messages when trying to dial out. When local Cingular representatives were asked to comment on the outcry, they reportedly blamed the students "lack of reporting problems" as the culprit, curiously omitting the entire debacle that just went down. Nevertheless, we don't expect the members of the Swamp to take this subpar play laying down, but you may want to think twice about which provider to snap up if you're headed to UF next fall.[Thanks, Anthony]
University of Florida scientists build a faster supercomputer for spacecraft
Haven't you ever sat in your space shuttle/module/station and said to yourself, "Gee, I wish that we had faster computers like those terrestrial scientists do." No? Well our actual astronauts apparently have. See, while you've got your current dual-core (soon to be quad- or oct-core) desktop PC, computers in space have to endure a great deal more stress -- you know, like that whole launching into space thing, not to mention cosmic radiation, and a whole host of other rugged requirements, which takes a toll on what processors can be used. Engineers at the University of Florida (including Alan George, a professor of electrical and computer engineering, pictured at right) and Honeywell Aerospace announced late this week that a new supercomputer 100 times faster than any current space-bound computer (that's 20 processors at a combined power of 100 gigaflops) is under development. If all goes according to plan, it'll get hitched to an unmanned NASA rocket aboard a test mission in 2009.[Via Roland Piquepaille]
B.O.S.S. shopping cart follows you around
If you're scouting out colleges to showcase your robot crafting skills, make sure the University of Florida is given some very strong consideration. Fresh off of a second straight victory at the Autonomous Underwater Vehicle Competition, the kids in Gainesville are flaunting another robotic creation that can make shopping a lot easier (and a lot safer). Gregory Garcia, a graduate student in mechanical engineering, developed a shopping cart that not only follows you around the store, but keeps a steady pace while cruising and throws on the brakes before clipping someone's heels. Garcia got the inspiration for the B.O.S.S. (Battery Operated Smart Servant) from his (presumably mischievous) little sister, who enjoyed ramming into his legs as a child while manning the buggy. A number of sensors aid the cart's maneuvering techniques, including a color sensor which allows the shopper to hold a piece of fabric behind them for the B.O.S.S. to keep track of -- it apparently accelerates and decelerates based on the speed and distance of the fabric ahead, and Garcia made quite certain that the shopping cart could stop on a dime in order to prevent those awkward heel injuries. While we're not sure how the cart would perform during the madness of holiday shopping, especially if it tried to follow every white (or green, or red) article of clothing around, but we're sure Gregory had a grand 'ole time finally showing that heel-biting cart who's boss.
