http://phys.org/ en-us Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. (PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers at Purdue University and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have created a device small enough to fit on a computer chip that converts continuous laser light into numerous ultrashort pulses, a technology that might have applications in more advanced sensors, communications systems and laboratory instruments. http://phys.org/news238259924.html Physics Wed, 19 Oct 2011 17:10:02 EST news238259924 Researchers in Sweden have succeeded in delivering an optical amplifier capable of amplifying light with extremely low noise. The study is published in the journal Nature Photonics. http://phys.org/news229341290.html Physics Fri, 08 Jul 2011 10:55:23 EST news229341290 The novel material graphene makes faster electronics possible. Scientists at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Information Technology at the Vienna University of Technology (TU Vienna) developed light-detectors made of graphene and analyzed their astonishing properties. http://phys.org/news228459744.html Nanotechnology Tue, 28 Jun 2011 06:03:05 EST news228459744 Electroencephalography (EEG) records the electrical signals produced by the brain using an array of electrodes placed on the scalp. Computers use an algorithm called common spatial pattern (CSP) to translate these signals into commands for the control of various devices. http://phys.org/news225975304.html Technology Mon, 30 May 2011 11:55:15 EST news225975304 Hitachi today announced the successful prototyping of a low-power CMOS gearbox LSI conforming with international standards, which was developed for optical transceivers as part of the effort to reduce power consumption in routers and network equipment to be used in the 100 gigabit (Gbit) Ethernet (henceforth, 100GbE). Optical receivers convert optical signals and electrical signals. The 100GbE CMOS gearbox LSI functions to convert the transmission rate and number of channels, converting the 4 channel × 25 gigabit per second (henceforth, Gb/s) electrical signals received from the network into 10 channels × 10Gb/s electrical signals which can be used within the equipment, and vice versa. Until now, a high-speed gearbox LSI based on SiGe process technology was used for this purpose, however, the achievement of a low-cost and low-power LSI based on the CMOS process was desired. The prototype 100 GbE gearbox LSI fabricated employs the four-phase clock circuit scheme using CMOS process technology, and achieves operation with a low power consumption of 2W, which is approximately one-quarter that of a SiGe gearbox LSI. http://phys.org/news225022576.html Technology Thu, 19 May 2011 11:20:01 EST news225022576 Fast, low-energy memory for MP3s, smartphones and cameras could become a reality thanks to University of Edinburgh scientists. http://phys.org/news220520030.html Nanotechnology Mon, 28 Mar 2011 08:34:10 EST news220520030 (PhysOrg.com) -- In a new study, Don Arnold and collaborators show that a microscopic motor drives axonal proteins to the right location in a neuron. http://phys.org/news220259048.html Medicine & Health Fri, 25 Mar 2011 08:50:01 EST news220259048 Fujitsu today announced the achievement of a 40 gigabits per second (40-Gbps) optical-fiber transmission employing an uncooled directly-modulated laser. This was realized through the combination of a structure specifically adapted to high-speed operation, and a newly-developed structure capable of lowering operating current and enabling high-temperature operation. Featuring power consumption at less than half that of commercialized 40-Gbps optical transmitters, Fujitsu's new directly-modulated laser obviates the need for a thermoelectric controller. This achievement represents a major step toward lowering the power consumption of the next generation of high-speed optical communications. http://phys.org/news218973514.html Physics Thu, 10 Mar 2011 09:58:47 EST news218973514 The sensory cells in the retina of the mammalian eye convert light stimuli into electrical signals and transmit them via downstream interneurons to the retinal ganglion cells which, in turn, forward them to the brain. The interneurons are connected to each other in such a way that the individual ganglion cells receive visual information from a circular area of the visual field known as the receptive field. Some ganglion cells are only activated, for example, when light falls on the centre of their receptive fields and the edge remains dark (ON cells). The opposite is the case for other ganglion cells (OFF cells). And there are also ganglion cells that are activated by light that sweeps across their receptive fields in a particular direction; motion in the opposite (null-) direction inhibits activation. http://phys.org/news218899479.html Medicine & Health Wed, 09 Mar 2011 13:24:56 EST news218899479 A UC Irvine research team led by Todd C. Holmes has discovered a second form of phototransduction light sensing in cells that is derived from vitamin B2. This discovery may reveal new information about cellular processes controlled by light. http://phys.org/news218383379.html Medicine & Health Thu, 03 Mar 2011 14:03:19 EST news218383379 (PhysOrg.com) -- Neurons are complicated, but the basic functional concept is that synapses transmit electrical signals to the dendrites and cell body (input), and axons carry signals away (output). In one of many surprise findings, Northwestern University scientists have discovered that axons can operate in reverse: they can send signals to the cell body, too. http://phys.org/news217188499.html Medicine & Health Thu, 17 Feb 2011 18:08:36 EST news217188499 Engineers at the University of California, Berkeley, have found a way to grow nanolasers directly onto a silicon surface, an achievement that could lead to a new class of faster, more efficient microprocessors, as well as to powerful biochemical sensors that use optoelectronic chips. http://phys.org/news216219966.html Physics Sun, 06 Feb 2011 13:06:21 EST news216219966 New research from the University of Sheffield has revealed that the molecular mechanism underlying deafness is caused by a mutation of a specific microRNA called miR-96. The discovery could provide the basis for treating progressive hearing loss and deafness. http://phys.org/news214830026.html Medicine & Health Fri, 21 Jan 2011 11:00:43 EST news214830026 (PhysOrg.com) -- Like the mute button on the TV remote control, our brains filter out unwanted noise so we can focus on what we're listening to. But when following our own speech, a new brain study from UC Berkeley shows that instead of one mute button, we have a network of volume settings that can selectively silence and amplify the sounds we make and hear. http://phys.org/news211039969.html Medicine & Health Wed, 08 Dec 2010 14:13:09 EST news211039969 Better known as the light sensor that sets the body's biological clock, melanopsin also plays an important role in vision: Via its messengers-so-called melanopsin-expressing retinal ganglion cells, or mRGCs-it forwards information about the brightness of incoming light directly to conventional visual centers in the brain, reports an international collaboration of scientists in this week's issue of PLoS Biology. http://phys.org/news210965726.html Biology Tue, 07 Dec 2010 18:10:01 EST news210965726 (PhysOrg.com) -- IBM scientists today unveiled a new chip technology that integrates electrical and optical devices on the same piece of silicon, enabling computer chips to communicate using pulses of light (instead of electrical signals), resulting in smaller, faster and more power-efficient chips than is possible with conventional technologies. http://phys.org/news210414804.html Technology Wed, 01 Dec 2010 08:33:50 EST news210414804 The eye is not just a lens that takes pictures and converts them into electrical signals. As with all vertebrates, nerve cells in the human eye separate an image into different image channels once it has been projected onto the retina. This pre-sorted information is then transmitted to the brain as parallel image sequences. Scientists from the Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology in Martinsried have now discovered that fruit flies process optical information in a similar way. The evidence suggests that this type of wiring is an effective energy-saving mechanism and is therefore deployed by a diverse range of animal species. (Nature, November 11, 2010) http://phys.org/news208617956.html Medicine & Health Wed, 10 Nov 2010 13:27:14 EST news208617956 Refinements to a fluorescent calcium ion indicator give scientists a powerful tool for tracking neuronal activity in the living brain http://phys.org/news206961179.html Medicine & Health Fri, 22 Oct 2010 10:13:20 EST news206961179 Software downloaded during a routine office visit cuts the risk of inappropriate shocks by 50 percent for patients with implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICD), according to research reported in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association. http://phys.org/news204827204.html Medicine & Health Mon, 27 Sep 2010 17:40:03 EST news204827204 Impulsive behaviour can be improved with training and the improvement is marked by specific brain changes, according to a new Queen's University study. http://phys.org/news204301537.html Medicine & Health Tue, 21 Sep 2010 15:26:20 EST news204301537 (PhysOrg.com) -- A new study has discovered that animal cells communicate electrically with each other via tunneling nanotubes (TNTs). The membrane tubes contain a protein called F-actin and connect cells over long distances to enable the exchange of molecules and organelles between the cells. http://phys.org/news204264379.html Nanotechnology Tue, 21 Sep 2010 06:40:01 EST news204264379 Atrial fibrillation is a heart disorder that affects more than two million Americans, and is considered a key contributor to blood clots and stroke. Now researchers from North Carolina State University are developing a new computerized catheter that could make the surgical treatment of atrial fibrillation faster, cheaper and more effective - while significantly decreasing radiation exposure related to the treatment. http://phys.org/news203761841.html Medicine & Health Wed, 15 Sep 2010 09:30:53 EST news203761841 Chemists and engineers at Harvard University have fashioned nanowires into a new type of V-shaped transistor small enough to be used for sensitive probing of the interior of cells. http://phys.org/news200825986.html Nanotechnology Thu, 12 Aug 2010 14:00:02 EST news200825986 By combining origami and electrical engineering, researchers at MIT and Harvard are working to develop the ultimate reconfigurable robot -- one that can turn into absolutely anything. The researchers have developed algorithms that, given a three-dimensional shape, can determine how to reproduce it by folding a sheet of semi-rigid material with a distinctive pattern of flexible creases. To test out their theories, they built a prototype that can automatically assume the shape of either an origami boat or a paper airplane when it receives different electrical signals. The researchers reported their results in the July 13 issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. http://phys.org/news200218506.html Technology Thu, 05 Aug 2010 09:15:51 EST news200218506 A unique device based on sniffing -- inhaling and exhaling through the nose -- might enable numerous disabled people to navigate wheelchairs or communicate with their loved ones. Sniffing technology might even be used in the future to create a sort of 'third hand,' to assist healthy surgeons or pilots. http://phys.org/news199371073.html Technology Mon, 26 Jul 2010 15:00:01 EST news199371073 (PhysOrg.com) -- Most scientists have viewed electrical fields within the brain as the simple byproducts of neuronal activity. However, Yale scientists report in the July 15 issue of the journal Neuron that electrical fields can also influence the activity of brain cells. http://phys.org/news198350025.html Medicine & Health Wed, 14 Jul 2010 18:50:13 EST news198350025 (PhysOrg.com) -- While the laws of physics weren't made to be broken, sometimes they need revision. A major current law has been rewritten thanks to the three-port transistor laser, developed by Milton Feng and Nick Holonyak Jr. at the University of Illinois. http://phys.org/news192896884.html Physics Wed, 12 May 2010 15:28:38 EST news192896884 Neuroscience researchers have zeroed in on a novel mechanism that helps control the firing of electrical signals among neurons. By isolating the molecular and electrical events that occur when this control is disrupted, the new research sheds light on epileptic seizures and potentially on other prominent diseases involving poorly regulated brain activity. http://phys.org/news191416200.html Medicine & Health Sun, 25 Apr 2010 13:00:10 EST news191416200 A cat can recognize a face faster and more efficiently than a supercomputer. That's one reason a feline brain is the model for a biologically-inspired computer project involving the University of Michigan. http://phys.org/news190483253.html Nanotechnology Wed, 14 Apr 2010 17:01:43 EST news190483253 A mutation in a brain protein gene may trigger irregular heart beat and sudden death in people with epilepsy, according to new research in the April 14 issue of The Journal of Neuroscience. People with epilepsy who are otherwise healthy are more than 10 times more likely to die suddenly and unexpectedly than the general population. http://phys.org/news190397868.html Medicine & Health Tue, 13 Apr 2010 17:40:01 EST news190397868