MC²

May 21, 2010
Researchers at Spain’s Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG) demonstrate evidence in support of the common ancestry of life, thanks to a new computational approach to study protein evolution.
The work, published in Nature, takes its inspiration from the astronomer Edwin Hubble and uses his approach to study protein evolution. The [...]

October 7, 2009
It’s often the little things that count in industrial manufacturing processes. Particles less than half the diameter of a hair in size can significantly impair quality in production. For example, there should be no particles larger than five micrometers on the packaging film of food and medicines, as these could contaminate the contents.
Tiny [...]

October 6, 2009
Small bits of metal may play a new role in solar power.
Researchers at Ohio State University are experimenting with polymer semiconductors that absorb the sun’s energy and generate electricity. The goal: lighter, cheaper, and more-flexible solar cells.
They have now discovered that adding tiny bits of silver to the plastic boosts the materials’ electrical [...]

October 5, 2009
Researchers of Eindhoven University of Technology and the Radboud University Nijmegen in The Netherlands show for the first time why ordinary graphite is a permanent magnet at room temperature. The results are promising for new applications in nanotechnology, such as sensors and detectors. In particular graphite could be a promising candidate for a [...]

October 5, 2009
Scientists at Queen’s University Belfast are developing new sensors to detect chemical agents and illegal drugs which will help in the fight against the threat of terrorist attacks.
The devices will use special gel pads to ’swipe’ an individual or crime scene to gather a sample which is then analysed by a scanning instrument [...]

October 2, 2009
Researchers have overcome a major obstacle in efforts to use tiny structures called carbon nanotubes to create a new class of electronics that would be faster and smaller than conventional silicon-based transistors.
Carbon nanotubes, which were discovered in the early 1990s, could make possible more powerful, compact and energy-efficient computers, as well as ultra-thin [...]

October 1, 2009
Scientists in the United Kingdom are reporting an advance toward overcoming one of the key challenges in nanotechnology: Getting molecules to move quickly in a desired direction without help from outside forces.
Their achievement has broad implications, the scientists say, raising the possibility of coaxing cells to move and grow in specific directions to [...]

September 29, 2009
Chemical engineers at Oregon State University have invented a new technology to deposit “nanostructure films” on various surfaces, which may first find use as coatings for eyeglasses that cost less and work better.
Ultimately, the technique may provide a way to make solar cells more efficiently produce energy.
The films reduce the reflectance of [...]

September 29, 2009
Since 2000, John Pendry’s work on metamaterials has been at the van guard of efforts to create a perfect image – images with perfect resolution that can stem from light being moved in odd directions to create, among other tricks of the light, the illusion of invisibility.
One exciting development was Pendry’s theoretically [...]

September 28, 2009
Using an RNA-powered nanomotor, University of Cincinnati (UC) biomedical engineering researchers have successfully developed an artificial pore able to transmit nanoscale material through a membrane.
In a study led by UC biomedical engineering professor Peixuan Guo, PhD, members of the UC team inserted the modified core of a nanomotor, a microscopic biological machine, into [...]