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Japan Hopes To Turn Sci-fi Into
Reality With Elevator To The Stars
From Leo Lewis in Tokyo
From cyborg housemaids and waterpowered cars to dog translators and rocket boots, Japanese boffins have racked up plenty of near-misses in the quest to turn science fiction into reality.
Now the finest scientific minds of Japan are devoting themselves to cracking the greatest sci-fi vision of all: the space elevator. Man has so far conquered space by painfully and inefficiently blasting himself out of the atmosphere but the 21st century should bring a more leisurely ride to the final frontier.
For chemists, physicists, material scientists, astronauts and dreamers across the globe, the space elevator represents the most tantalising of concepts: cables stronger and lighter than any fibre yet woven, tethered to the ground and disappearing beyond the atmosphere to a satellite docking station in geosynchronous orbit above Earth.
Can Small Wind Reap Big Rewards?
By Matthew Knight
For CNN
LONDON, England (CNN) -- Micro wind turbines are beginning to pop up all over our urban and rural landscapes. But is it worth investing your hard-earned cash in your very own wind machine? In short, it depends. Take a look at our quick guide to see if "small wind" could help you reduce your energy bills and your carbon footprint.
In the long-term a micro wind turbine could be a very sound investment.
There are plenty of small wind turbines on the market. Most are the more traditional horizontal axis -- which have two or three blades. But some are vertical-axis which look a bit like the beaters on a food mixer. Micro turbines can be as small as 100 to 500 watts and can be mounted on the side of a building. Larger models -- 2.5 kilowatts to 50 kilowatts -- need to be mast-mounted.
Futuristic tech for daily living outshines outer space
Many of the leading breakthroughs in science and cutting edge technology in 2009 were focused on improving everyday living. But the year also saw some significant otherworldly discoveries--and even offered the promise of personal exploration of outer space.
Here on Earth, academics turned heads with bright white LEDs, more efficient cooling systems for computers and car electronics, and sonic lasers. Several existing technologies got significant improvements. Bridges and airplanes stand to become safer due to a new polymer material that changes color when under physical stress. Bus stops in San Francisco and Italy got makeovers from drab rain shelters to places that offer solar power, multilingual services, real-time information, and touch-screen computers.
Funding from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency facilitated the development of putty that can used in lieu of pins and screws for broken bones. The wow factor? The putty acts as chemical scaffolding to induce regeneration of a person's own bones, and then disintegrates as it's replaced with real bone.
DARPA and defense contractors showed their visions for the future of defensive technology. This year saw the introduction of self-replicating robots, unmanned aerial vehicles running on solar power and batteries, and robots made from morphing material.
Looking toward more lofty goals, the 40th anniversary year of Neil Armstrong's moon walk passed with both awe and frustration. NASA confirmed the existence of water in the form of ice on the moon, as well as buried ice on Mars, and gave the world a view of a significant impact on Jupiter.
But the agency also spent the year waiting for politicians to make funding decisions on America's participation in the International Space Station, and a manned space flight program. There was even talk of NASA possibly being rolled into U.S. Department of Defense. As 2009 comes to a close, a final decision still has not been reached, and the direction the U.S. space program will take remains vague.
But things did become easier for average people to explore the realm beyond. Google released Google Earth maps and historic maps of Mars, as well as roaming "street" views allowing virtual exploration of the Red Planet's terrain. Microsoft updated its WorldWide Telescope, a Web-based virtual telescope, to include over 100 terabytes of high-resolution image data, putting extensive views from NASA telescopes into the hands of anyone with an Internet connection.
We also came that much closer to commercial space travel becoming a reality. Virgin Galactic unveiled the Virgin Space Ship Enterprise, a rocket/plane for suborbital flights designed by legendary aircraft designer and X Prize winner Burt Rutan. If testing goes well, expect the first flights to begin toward the end of 2010.
Finally, the Large Hadron Collider, a particle accelerator that was meant to begin work last year, finally fired up in November. And so far, it's been humming along, performing its first collisions, its first beam acceleration, and setting a new record for beam intensity.
The Truth About Crop Circles
by Ken Amis
Mekong a 'Treasure Trove' of 1,000 Newly Discovered Species By Ashley Fantz A rat believed to be extinct for 11 million years, a spider with a foot-long legspan, and a hot pink cyanide-producing "dragon millipede" are among the thousand newly discovered species in the largely unexplored Mekong Delta region. The "dragon millipede" is among the 1,068 new species discovered in the Mekong Delta region. The region, including parts of Vietnam and five other countries, is home to 1,068 species found between 1997 and 2007, according to a World Wildlife Fund report released this week. Some of the creatures were not lurking in fertile floodplains or tropical foliage. A scientist visiting an outdoor restaurant was startled to see a Laotian rock rat among the nearby wildlife. The hairy, nocturnal, thick-tailed rat, which resembles a squirrel, had been thought for centuries to be extinct. "There is a certain amount of shock because our scientists will sometimes see something that doesn't fit anything they know," said Dekila Chungyalpa, Director of the Fund's Mekong Program. "They run through a catalogue of wildlife in their brain, asking themselves, 'Have I seen this?'" Perhaps a more startling discovery than the rat was a bright green pit viper scientists spotted slithering through the rafters of a restaurant in Khao Yai National Park in Thailand. The Fund dubbed the Mekong a "biological treasure trove." The organization's report "First Contact in the Greater Mekong" says 519 plants, 279 fish, 88 frogs, 88 spiders, 46 lizards, 22 snakes, 15 mammals, four birds, four turtles, two salamanders and a toad were found. Scientists are still trying to determine if they have uncovered thousands of new invertebrate species. Scientists are discovering new species at a rate of two per week, said Chungyalpa, who said the reason for publishing the report now was twofold. |
The Fascinating, Frightening World of Insects A new book released in the UK, Unseen Companions, reveals through close-up photography the fascinating and often beautiful organisms that share our world. GO HERE for the Time magazine slide show. |
NANOTECHNOLOGY CUTTING EDGE SCIENCE CREATES STAIN FREE PANTS
Nanotechnology — the science of manipulating materials billionths of a meter wide — has emerged as a promising new field that could lead to stunning advances in years to come. Boosters claim that nanotech-derived products may someday cure disease, slow the aging process and eliminate pollution. But for now, the human race will have to settle for tennis balls that keep their bounce longer, flat-panel displays that shine brighter, and wrinkle-free khaki slacks that resist coffee stains. "People are saying, 'Geez, this isn't Star Trek yet, this is just pants that don't stain,' but you've got to start somewhere," said Howard Lovy, news editor of the nanotech industry journal Small Times. "I'm wearing nano-pants as we speak." Those stain-resistant pants and bouncy tennis balls have their advantages, thanks to a fundamental principle of small science: Different scales lead to different results. Just as a silver necklace may sparkle against your skin but tiny silver particles in your bloodstream will turn your skin blue, common substances like sunscreen and rubber take on entirely different characteristics when assembled at a molecular level. Sunscreen makers have found that zinc oxide — the dense white cream lifeguards put on their noses — turns transparent and silky when made from smaller particles, which cover the skin more thoroughly and do not reflect light. Procter and Gamble has added tiny zinc oxide particles to its Olay Complete UV Protective Moisture Lotion, a product aimed at mall matrons rather than beach bums. "It goes on really light and sheer and doesn't leave a residue, so therefore people are much more apt to use it on a daily basis," said Maria Burquest, a Procter and Gamble product spokeswoman.
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