In the quest to understand how the brain turns sensory input into behavior, scientists have crossed a major threshold. Using precisely-targeted lasers, Harvard researchers have taken over an animal’s brain, instructing miniature nematode worms Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) to turn in any direction they choose by manipulating neurons in the worms’ “brain.”
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Amateur scientists build Lego-style synthetic BioBricks in public lab — Joel Winston —Wired — Sep 24, 2012
While some may believe that science is better left to scientists, hundreds of amateur biologists around the world have been setting-up makeshift biology labs in their homes, garages and community centres. Some of these "biohackers" or "DIY biologists" have political motivations to open up science for all, a few attempt to address an absence of research in rare genetic diseases, some are curious and have a desire to learn, while others are taking part just for the sheer fun of it all. [More]
High-Power Microwave Weapons Start to Look Like Dead-End — Sharon Weinberger —Scientific American — Sep 12, 2012
For 50 years, the U.S. and other countries have been spending money trying to develop high-powered microwave (HPM) and electromagnetic pulse weapons but progress has remained elusive. [More]
Wind could meet many times the world’s total power demand by 2030, Stanford reseachers say — KurzweilAI.net — Sep 11, 2012
Researchers at Stanford University’s School of Engineering and the University of Delaware have used what they call the “most sophisticated weather model available” to meet many times the world’s total power demand by 2030 — in fact, enough to exceed the total demand by several times, even after accounting for reductions in wind speed caused by turbines. [More]
Artificial Universe Similar to Ours Built with Supercomputer — Charles Q. Choi —Space.com — Aug 28, 2012
Building a universe from scratch that brims with galaxies resembling those around us is now possible on supercomputers for the first time, researchers say. [More]
Lowest US carbon emissions won't slow climate change — Michael Marshall —New Scientist — Aug 20, 2012
It looks like good news, but it's not. The US has recorded a sharp fall in its greenhouse gas emissions from energy use. Thanks to a rise in the use of natural gas, emissions are at their lowest since 1992. The fall will boost the natural gas industry, but in reality the emissions have simply been exported. [More]
More than 20,000 pieces of space junk are orbiting planet Earth, putting our communications satellites in serious danger. At last, The Pentagon is taking it seriously, with the military finally tracking hundreds of satellites to watch for collisions. Is it too little, too late, or is the Pentagon onto something? [More]
U.S. 'Decades Behind' on Space Debris Threat, Official Says — Clara Moskowitz —Space.com — Nov 05, 2009
The chief of U.S. Strategic Command said recently that in regards to the orbital debris problem. America is "decades behind where we should be" and needs better tools to monitor what is up there and plan to avoid collisions with valuable satellites. [More]
The Chinese foreign ministry clarified that it would never participate in any kind of arms race in the outer space, in response to remarks from Xu Qiliang, commander of the People's Liberation Army Air Force that "space warfare was inevitable". [More]
China's recent cloud seeding effort has some researchers and international legal experts considering whether there should be more discussion now on extending existing international law and agreements (ex. the 1976 Environmental Modification Convention) to control the effects of unilateral geoengineering. [More]