http://www.physorg.com/ en-us Physorg.com internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. University of Chicago researchers recently showed that dry granular materials such as sands, seeds and grains have properties similar to liquid, forming water-like droplets when poured from a given source. The finding could be important to a wide range of industries that use "fluidized" dry particles for oil refining, plastics manufacturing and pharmaceutical production. http://www.physorg.com/news165068691.html Physics Wed, 24 Jun 2009 13:50:01 EST news165068691 (PhysOrg.com) -- IBM scientists in collaboration with the University of Regensburg, Germany, and Utrecht University, Netherlands, for the first time demonstrated the ability to measure the charge state of individual atoms using noncontact atomic force microscopy. Measuring with the precision of a single electron charge and nanometer lateral resolution, researchers succeeded in distinguishing neutral atoms from positively or negatively charged ones. http://www.physorg.com/news164996346.html Nanotechnology Tue, 23 Jun 2009 17:19:39 EST news164996346 A University of Pennsylvania-collaboration of bioengineers studying the physical forces generated by individual cells has created a tiny micron-sized device that allows researchers to measure and manipulate cellular forces as assemblies of living cells reorganize themselves into tissues. http://www.physorg.com/news164907907.html Technology Mon, 22 Jun 2009 16:45:32 EST news164907907 Space shuttle Atlantis landed at Edwards Air Force Base in California at 11:39 a.m. EDT, completing a 13-day journey of approximately 5.3 million miles in space. http://www.physorg.com/news162390281.html Space & Earth Sun, 24 May 2009 13:25:40 EST news162390281 You can put those maps away. The US Air Force has shot down fears that the space-based Global Positioning System (GPS) is going to crash. http://www.physorg.com/news162133400.html Technology Thu, 21 May 2009 14:03:54 EST news162133400 Since Galileo Galilei and Newton, the assumption is valid that inert and heavy mass are equivalent. This is, however, questioned by new physical theories such as the String theory. Now, the equivalence principle is put to test with so far unachieved accuracy within the scope of the "Microscope" space project -- a German-French cooperation. PTB (Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt, Germany) has developed the manufacturing and measuring methods for the test masses. http://www.physorg.com/news161257625.html Physics Mon, 11 May 2009 10:47:34 EST news161257625 It is a mystery to many people why the world is running out of oil when most of the world's oilfields have only been half emptied. However some of the oil that has been located is trapped as droplets of oil in small cavities in the surrounding rock or is stuck to the walls of the underground cavity and cannot be accessed by the techniques currently used in the oil industry. http://www.physorg.com/news161257391.html Space & Earth Mon, 11 May 2009 10:45:34 EST news161257391 (PhysOrg.com) -- By modifying a commonly used commercial infrared spectrometer to allow operation at long-wave terahertz frequencies, researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology discovered an efficient new approach to measure key structural properties of nanoscale metal-oxide films used in high-speed integrated circuits. Their technique, described in a recent paper,* could become an important quality-control tool to help monitor semiconductor manufacturing processes and evaluate new insulating materials. http://www.physorg.com/news160839248.html Physics Wed, 06 May 2009 14:35:33 EST news160839248 Parachute cords, climbing ropes, and smart coatings for bridges that change color when overstressed are several possible uses for force-sensitive polymers being developed by researchers at the University of Illinois. http://www.physorg.com/news160834918.html Chemistry Wed, 06 May 2009 13:22:39 EST news160834918 (PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists know that cancerous cells and normal cells have different physical features, but the details of these differences, and why they occur, are not well understood. In a recent edition of Nature Nanotechnology, researchers report measurements of certain physical differences between the surfaces of normal and cancerous cells, suggesting a new way to characterize cancer cells and a possible route for detection. http://www.physorg.com/news160716698.html Nanotechnology Tue, 05 May 2009 04:32:02 EST news160716698 Arthritis can have significant physical and psychological repercussions that impact quality of life and for those of working age, it can affect their ability to remain employed. Compared to individuals with other types of chronic diseases or disabilities, arthritis appears to have a more profound effect on a person's ability to work. Previous studies have found that about half of those with severe forms of arthritis were not working, leading to a loss of skilled workers and increasing the personal and socioeconomic burden of the disease. Few studies have looked at sex differences in the work experiences of people with arthritis, but a new study found that women may be more likely to leave employment, while men may be more likely to remain working and report negative experiences. The study was published in the May issue of Arthritis Care & Research. http://www.physorg.com/news160322501.html Medicine & Health Thu, 30 Apr 2009 15:02:00 EST news160322501 The Large Hadron Collider is an enormous particle accelerator whose 17-mile tunnel straddles the borders of France and Switzerland. A group of physicists at the University of Nevada, Reno has analyzed data from the accelerator that could ultimately prove or disprove the possibility of a fifth force of nature. http://www.physorg.com/news160128782.html Physics Tue, 28 Apr 2009 09:13:26 EST news160128782 During the last two decades, astronomers have found hundreds of planets orbiting stars outside our solar system. New research indicates they might have found even more except for one thing - some planets have fallen into their stars and simply no longer exist. http://www.physorg.com/news160071489.html Space & Earth Mon, 27 Apr 2009 17:18:57 EST news160071489 Kansas State University engineers think the possibilities are deep for a very thin material. http://www.physorg.com/news158850916.html Nanotechnology Mon, 13 Apr 2009 14:16:07 EST news158850916 Chemists at the University of Illinois have created a simple and inexpensive molecular technique that replaces an expensive atomic force microscope for studying what happens to small molecules when they are stretched or compressed. http://www.physorg.com/news157558598.html Nanotechnology Sun, 29 Mar 2009 15:17:19 EST news157558598 (PhysOrg.com) -- No one knows exactly what a `fifth force` might be, but studies have shown that, if a long-range fifth force does exist, it could have surprising effects on the universe`s structure formation. A fifth force could reduce discrepancies between theory and observation in several areas of cosmology. http://www.physorg.com/news157292373.html Physics Thu, 26 Mar 2009 13:20:41 EST news157292373 (PhysOrg.com) -- A study conducted at UQ's Moreton Bay Research Station has found, when it comes to crayfish, size really does matter. http://www.physorg.com/news157221587.html Biology Wed, 25 Mar 2009 17:40:17 EST news157221587 (PhysOrg.com) -- Forget dancing angels, a research team from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the University of Colorado (CU) has shown how to detect and monitor the tiny amount of light reflected directly off the needle point of an atomic force microscope probe, and in so doing has demonstrated a 100-fold improvement in the stability of the instrument`s measurements under ambient conditions. Their recently reported work* potentially affects a broad range of research from nanomanufacturing to biology, where sensitive, atomic-scale measurements must be made at room temperature in liquids. http://www.physorg.com/news157206337.html Nanotechnology Wed, 25 Mar 2009 13:26:26 EST news157206337 People have always been fascinated by bats, but the scope of that interest generally is limited to how bats fly and their bizarre habit of sleeping upside down. Until now, no one had studied how bats arrive at their daytime perches. http://www.physorg.com/news156774728.html Biology Fri, 20 Mar 2009 13:32:41 EST news156774728 (AP) -- Behind Dan DeRosa's smiling face lurks a dull headache that never goes away. He suffers from memory lapses and hears a shrill ringing in his ears akin to the lingering squeal of a heavy metal concert. http://www.physorg.com/news156664195.html Medicine & Health Thu, 19 Mar 2009 06:50:34 EST news156664195 (PhysOrg.com) -- The idea of generating hydrogen from salt water has often been claimed to work effectively. However, the systems proposed so far generally require a much greater energy input than the energy they produce, making them impractical for energy generation. Now, a recently revived system may be able to cheaply generate a small amount of power. http://www.physorg.com/news156596965.html Physics Wed, 18 Mar 2009 12:09:57 EST news156596965 Tight labour market regulation increases unemployment all over the world, finds a study of 73 countries by the University of Bath. http://www.physorg.com/news156522095.html Other Sciences Tue, 17 Mar 2009 15:22:02 EST news156522095 NASA and U.S. Air Force test pilots have just dropped a 50,000-pound "dummy" rocket booster on the Arizona desert--and stopped it before it crashed. It's all part of NASA's plan to return to the Moon. http://www.physorg.com/news156441809.html Space & Earth Mon, 16 Mar 2009 17:04:01 EST news156441809 (PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists at the Naval Research Laboratory recently reported the detection of toxins with unprecedented speed, sensitivity, and simplicity. The approach can sense as few as a few hundred molecules in a drop of blood in less than 10 minutes, with only four simple steps from sample to answer. http://www.physorg.com/news156179561.html Biology Fri, 13 Mar 2009 16:14:33 EST news156179561 It's widely known Microsoft has a large contingent work force in addition to its 96,000 direct, regular employees worldwide. But the company has never publicly quantified these people, who typically work through third-party firms and do everything from mow the lawns to write software. http://www.physorg.com/news155407095.html Technology Wed, 04 Mar 2009 16:38:50 EST news155407095 A new map of the Earth`s gravitational force based on satellite measurements makes it much less resource intensive to find new oil deposits. The map will be particularly useful as the ice melts in the oil-rich Arctic regions. Ole Baltazar, senior scientist at the National Space Institute, Technical University of Denmark (DTU Space), headed the development of the map. http://www.physorg.com/news154965701.html Space & Earth Fri, 27 Feb 2009 14:02:11 EST news154965701 (PhysOrg.com) -- University of Pittsburgh researchers have created a nanoscale one-stop shop, a single platform for creating electronics at a nearly single-atom scale that could yield advanced forms of such technologically important devices as high-density memory devices and -most importantly -transistors and computer processors. This multitude of uses stems from a technique previously developed by the same team to fashion rewritable nanostructures at the interface between two insulating materials. In the Feb. 20 edition of Science, the researchers demonstrate this process' various applications. http://www.physorg.com/news154277470.html Nanotechnology Thu, 19 Feb 2009 14:53:29 EST news154277470 A task force launched by President Obama to boost America's middle class will have to help retool beleaguered U.S. workplaces facing their most sweeping changes since World War II, a University of Illinois labor expert says. http://www.physorg.com/news154097008.html Other Sciences Tue, 17 Feb 2009 12:43:54 EST news154097008 Chemists at New York University and China's Nanjing University have developed a two-armed nanorobotic device that can manipulate molecules within a device built from DNA. The device is described in the latest issue of the journal Nature Nanotechnology. http://www.physorg.com/news153927342.html Nanotechnology Sun, 15 Feb 2009 13:36:30 EST news153927342 Scientists at Rochester Institute of Technology are designing a new kind of optical sensor to fly in unmanned air vehicles, or surveillance drones, tracking suspects on foot or traveling in vehicles identified as a threat. http://www.physorg.com/news153672557.html Technology Thu, 12 Feb 2009 14:49:59 EST news153672557