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Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on July 1, 2014 at 6:38am

Speed of light slower than thought, says US scientist
A US scientist claims to have found evidence that suggests that the speed of light as described by Einstein's theory of general relativity is slower than has been thought. The theory of general relativity suggests light travels at 299,792,458 metres/second in a vacuum.

The claim by physicist James Franson of the University of Maryland claims to have found evidence that suggests the speed of light is actually slower than has been thought. Franson's is based on observations made of the supernova SN 1987A, which exploded in 1987. Researchers on Earth picked up the arrival of both photons and neutrinos from the blast but The arrival of the photons was later than expected by 4.7 hours. Scientists at the time attributed it to a likelihood had said that this may be because the photons were from another source.

But what if that wasn't what it was, Franson has proposed that this may actually be because light slows down as it travels due to a property of photons known as vacuum polarization - where a photon splits into a positron and an electron for a very short time before recombining back into a photon. That should create a gravitational differential, Franson noted, between the pair of particles, which would have a tiny energy impact when they recombine - enough to cause a slight bit of a slowdown during travel.

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on July 1, 2014 at 6:07am

An Escherichia coli trap in human serum albumin microtubes:
Human Protein Cleans Bacteria from Drinking Water
Microtubes made from albumin filter water with nearly 100 percent efficiency
Researchers in Japan have shown that they can remove Escherichia coli from drinking water using tiny tubes made of human serum albumin.
http://pubs.rsc.org/en/Content/ArticleLanding/2014/CC/c4cc03632h#!divAbstract

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on July 1, 2014 at 6:00am

Running cures blind mice

Exercise combined with visual stimulation helps to quickly restore vision in unused eye.
Sensory experience during locomotion promotes recovery of function in adult visual cortex.
Abstract

Recovery from sensory deprivation is slow and incomplete in adult visual cortex. In this study, we show that visual stimulation during locomotion, which increases the gain of visual responses in primary visual cortex, dramatically enhances recovery in the mouse. Excitatory neurons regained normal levels of response, while narrow-spiking (inhibitory) neurons remained less active. Visual stimulation or locomotion alone did not enhance recovery. Responses to the particular visual stimuli viewed by the animal during locomotion recovered, while those to another normally effective stimulus did not, suggesting that locomotion promotes the recovery only of the neural circuits that are activated concurrent with the locomotion. These findings may provide an avenue for improving recovery from amblyopia in humans.

http://elifesciences.org/content/3/e02798/abstract-1

http://elifesciences.org/content/3/e02798

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on June 29, 2014 at 9:54am

Why we should trust scientists
Many of the world's biggest problems require asking questions of scientists — but why should we believe what they say? Historian of science Naomi Oreskes thinks deeply about our relationship to belief and draws out three problems with common attitudes toward scientific inquiry — and gives her own reasoning for why we ought to trust science.
http://www.ted.com/talks/naomi_oreskes_why_we_should_believe_in_sci...

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on June 29, 2014 at 6:07am

Smallest Force Ever Measured

What is believed to be the smallest force ever measured has been detected by researchers with the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) and the University of California (UC) Berkeley. Using a combination of lasers and a unique optical trapping system that provides a cloud of ultracold atoms, the researchers measured a force of approximately 42 yoctonewtons. A yoctonewton is one septillionth of a newton and there are approximately 3 x 1023 yoctonewtons in one ounce of force.

''Optically measuring force near the standard quantum limit''

The Heisenberg uncertainty principle sets a lower bound on the noise in a force measurement based on continuously detecting a mechanical oscillator’s position. This bound, the standard quantum limit, can be reached when the oscillator subjected to the force is unperturbed by its environment and when measurement imprecision from photon shot noise is balanced against disturbance from measurement back-action. We applied an external force to the center-of-mass motion of an ultracold atom cloud in a high-finesse optical cavity and measured the resulting motion optically. When the driving force is resonant with the cloud’s oscillation frequency, we achieve a sensitivity that is a factor of 4 above the standard quantum limit and consistent with theoretical predictions given the atoms’ residual thermal disturbance and the photodetection quantum efficiency.

http://www.sciencemag.org/content/344/6191/1486

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on June 29, 2014 at 5:59am

Scientists have discovered the secrets behind electric fish, using genetic studies that revealed how these exotic creatures developed an organ that can unleash a wicked jolt.

Researchers on 26th June, 2014, unveiled a genetic blueprint of the electric eel - a fearsome denizen of South America that can zap you with an electric field of up to 600 volts - as well as detailed genetic data on two other types of electric fish.
Even though six groups of electric fish have evolved independently in far-flung locales like the muddy waters of the Amazon and murky marine environments, they all seem to have reached into the same "genetic toolbox" to fashion their electricity-generating organ, they said.

The new study found that various electric fish rely on the same genes and biological pathways to build their electric organs from skeletal muscle despite the different appearance and body location of their organs.

Their electrical abilities stand as one of the wonders of nature alongside traits like bioluminescence in some insects and sea creatures and echolocation in bats and whales.
"This only arose in fish because water is a conductor of electricity while air is not. Thus, birds or terrestrial animals could not come up with this''.
There are hundreds of species of electric fish worldwide, with varying degrees of electric power.

Fish with weak electric power use it to navigate in dim waters and communicate with one another. Those like the electric eel - a serpentine freshwater predator up to 8 feet long (2.4 meters) that is not a true eel but rather a catfish relative - possessing a powerful jolt use it to stun or kill prey and repel enemies.
"Electric organs start out their lives as muscle precursor cells. Through a series of developmental steps, they become larger, more electrically excitable and lose their ability to contract".
All muscle cells have electrical potential because any muscle contraction releases a small amount of voltage. Certain fish exploited that by transforming ordinary muscle cells into a larger type of cell called an electrocyte that generates vastly higher voltages. The electric organ is made of these cells.

"Each electric organ cell makes only a small voltage, similar in magnitude to our own muscles. The secret of electric organs is that the cells are aligned in stacks and electrically insulated so that the voltages add like batteries in a series," University of Texas neuroscience professor Harold Zakon said.

The six groups include: South American knife fishes, African electric catfish, African elephant fish, stargazers, some skates and some rays. Scientists think the electric organ first appeared in a fish 150 million to 200 million years ago.

The study was published in the journal Science.

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on June 27, 2014 at 10:08am

Mobile phones carry the personal microbiome of their owners

Most people on the planet own mobile phones, and these devices are increasingly being utilized to gather data relevant to our personal health, behavior, and environment. During an educational workshop, we investigated the utility of mobile phones to gather data about the personal microbiome — the collection of microorganisms associated with the personal effects of an individual. We characterized microbial communities on smartphone touchscreens to determine whether there was significant overlap with the skin microbiome sampled directly from their owners. We found that about 22% of the bacterial taxa on participants’ fingers were also present on their own phones, as compared to 17% they shared on average with other people’s phones. When considered as a group, bacterial communities on men’s phones were significantly different from those on their fingers, while women’s were not. Yet when considered on an individual level, men and women both shared significantly more of their bacterial communities with their own phones than with anyone else’s. In fact, 82% of the OTUs were shared between a person’s index and phone when considering the dominant taxa (OTUs with more than 0.1% of the sequences in an individual’s dataset). Our results suggest that mobile phones hold untapped potential as personal microbiome sensors.

Meadow JF, Altrichter AE, Green JL. (2014) Mobile phones carry the personal microbiome of their owners. PeerJ 2:e447 http://dx.doi.org/10.7717/peerj.447

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on June 27, 2014 at 6:02am

Tech titans  to make winners of the 'Oscars of science' into instant millionaires - but is it the right thing to do?
Silicon Valley hosts lavish ceremony for Breakthrough prize that aims to give scientists celebrity status and inspire interest in life's 'big questions'.

Now a handful of billionaire engineers have turned their attention to a social blight that affects their own kind: the lack of appreciation (and funding) for scientists.

This is among the most lucrative awards in science, almost triple the size of the Nobel prize, and bigger than the $1.7m Templeton prize. It's expected to be bigger and bolder than the last similar ceremony.

Breakthrough prize and the Fundamental Physics prize

with focus on the very short-term problems that have an immediate impact on our lives.

It's easy to see why science has struggled to get the public recognition it deserves till now: much of it goes over everyone's heads.

With the right combination of celebrity endorsement and cash, scientists touting the most complex theories can become modern-day celebrities - making people realize the importance of science.

However, there is criticism too:

Perhaps not surprisingly, Milner's prizes have come under some criticism from scientists and even a few Nobel prizewinners, who claim they benefit the egos of their founders more than anything else. They are, says one physicist quoted in Nature magazine, "buying the prestige of Nobel". After scientist Alexander Polyakov received his orb-like Fundamental Physics prize from Morgan Freeman last March, and instantly became a millionaire, he told Nature backstage that it was all an "interesting experiment. Such big prizes could have a positive impact," he added, "or they can be very dangerous."

Some also complain that these well-heeled prizes focus on established researchers who don't need lavish funding as much as peers in other, more obscure realms of science. They also don't give credit to the wide, collaborative networks of researchers whose collective efforts lead to breakthroughs as much as the work of lone geniuses. Criticism for lavishing so much money on a few researchers  rather than spreading the money more widely, and for downplaying collaboration is the main objection.

But the supporters say- these prizes inspire young people to follow in these scientists' footsteps. If they know recognition and large sums of money are within their grasp, even if it does take a big stroke of luck, they'll be more likely to start exploring those big questions themselves.

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on June 26, 2014 at 8:11am

'Biggest prize in science' announced
The Breakthrough Prizes are awarded for recent achievements in fundamental physics, life sciences and mathematics.

The organisers describe them as the "biggest science awards in the world" as they offer the most prize money - $3m (£1.76m) for each.
such awards were important because they help to attract the "the best brains into science".

"Science has an undeserved reputation of being dry and unglamorous so anything that can be done to change that image is to be welcomed.
The Breakthrough Prizes were launched by a group of philanthropic technology billionaires including Sergey Brin, co-founder of Google, and Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook, Jack Ma, founder of Alibaba Group, and Yuri Milner, founder of investment firm Digital Sky Technologies.

Mr Milner said the aim of the prize was to "cultivate a positive image of science and rationalism, and an optimistic view of humanity's future".

"Outside the field of entertainment, intellectual brilliance is under-capitalized in our society. 58 years ago, one of the most famous men on earth was not an actor, athlete or musician, but a theoretical physicist. Albert Einstein's face was on magazine covers, in newspapers and on television, worldwide,"
His name was synonymous with genius. Yet most of today's top scientists - despite opening new windows onto the Universe, curing intractable diseases and extending human life - are unknown to the general public. The greatest thinkers of our age should be superstars, like the geniuses of screen and stadium."
- http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-27926950
( I have been saying these words ever since I entered the field of science. Now others too realized the importance of science and scientists.  A recognition of value of  both! What a wonderful news! - Krishna)

With Prizes Like This, Who Needs a Nobel?

Five mathematicians, working in a field spurned by the Nobel academies as a matter of course, will receive $3-million awards of their own

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/with-awards-like-the-brea...

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on June 26, 2014 at 7:00am

Top 9 Causes of Fatigue
http://www.quickanddirtytips.com/health-fitness/prevention/medical-...

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