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. Publications ranging from the journal Science to Time magazine have blasted biofuels for significantly contributing to greenhouse gas emissions, calling into question the environmental benefits of making fuel from plant material. But a new analysis by Michigan State University scientists says these dire predictions are based on a set of assumptions that may not be correct. http://www.physorg.com/news151257863.html Space & Earth Thu, 15 Jan 2009 16:04:23 EST news151257863 (PhysOrg.com) -- Theorists have long wondered how massive stars--up to 120 times the mass of the Sun--can form without blowing away the clouds of gas and dust that feed their growth. But the problem turns out to be less mysterious than it once seemed. A study published this week by Science shows how the growth of a massive star can proceed despite outward-flowing radiation pressure that exceeds the gravitational force pulling material inward. http://www.physorg.com/news151252308.html Space & Earth Thu, 15 Jan 2009 14:31:48 EST news151252308 When cells are under stress, they blow off steam by releasing minute amounts of nitrogen oxides and other toxic gases. In a recent paper,* researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology described a new method for creating gas detectors so sensitive that some day they may be able to register these tiny emissions from a single cell, providing a new way to determine if drugs or nanoparticles harm cells or to study how cells communicate with one another. Based on metal oxide nanotubes, the new sensors are a hundred to 1,000 times more sensitive than current devices based on thin films and are able to act as multiple sensors simultaneously. http://www.physorg.com/news151090490.html Nanotechnology Tue, 13 Jan 2009 17:34:50 EST news151090490 Physicists at the Joint Quantum Institute (JQI) of the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the University of Maryland have proposed a recipe for turning ultracold `boson` atoms -the ingredients of Bose-Einstein condensates -into a `supersolid,` an exotic state of matter that behaves simultaneously as a solid and a friction-free superfluid. While scientists have found evidence for supersolids in complex liquid helium mixtures, a supersolid formed from such weakly interacting gas atoms would be simpler to understand, potentially providing clues for making a host of new `quantum materials` whose bizarre properties could expand physicists` notions of what is possible with matter. http://www.physorg.com/news151090051.html Physics Tue, 13 Jan 2009 17:27:31 EST news151090051 University of Oklahoma researchers believe newer, more environmentally friendly fuels produced from biomass could create alternative energy solutions and alleviate dependence on foreign oil without requiring changes to current fuel infrastructure systems. According to Lance Lobban, director of the School of Chemical, Biological and Materials Engineering, the development of "green" fuels is an important part of the world's, and Oklahoma's, energy future. http://www.physorg.com/news151082899.html Chemistry Tue, 13 Jan 2009 15:28:19 EST news151082899 As relentlessly bad as the news about global warming seems to be, with ice at the poles melting faster than scientists had predicted and world temperatures rising higher than expected, there was at least a reservoir of hope stored here in Canada's vast forests. http://www.physorg.com/news151006202.html Space & Earth Mon, 12 Jan 2009 18:10:02 EST news151006202 Navigation isn't just about getting there. It also can be about getting there green. http://www.physorg.com/news150720338.html Technology Fri, 09 Jan 2009 10:45:38 EST news150720338 The pain-relieving effects of nitrous oxide - laughing gas - may be enhanced by suggestion or hypnosis, according to a new study by UCL (University College London). The study's findings - that people are more suggestible under the gas - mean that dental patients may benefit from being coached to relax while undergoing sedation. http://www.physorg.com/news150718148.html Medicine & Health Fri, 09 Jan 2009 10:09:08 EST news150718148 Mercury pollution has already spurred public health officials to advise eating less fish, but it could become a more pressing concern in a warmer world. http://www.physorg.com/news150560491.html Space & Earth Wed, 07 Jan 2009 14:21:31 EST news150560491 (PhysOrg.com) -- The brilliant afterglow of a powerful gamma-ray burst (GRB) has enabled astronomers to probe the star-forming environment of a distant galaxy, resulting in the first detection of molecular gas in a GRB host galaxy. By analyzing the spectrum of light emitted in the GRB afterglow, the researchers are gleaning insights into an active stellar nursery in a galaxy so far away it appears as it was 10 billion years ago. http://www.physorg.com/news150478619.html Space & Earth Tue, 06 Jan 2009 15:36:59 EST news150478619 (PhysOrg.com) -- Life on a planet ruled by two suns might be a little complicated. Two sunrises, two sunsets. Twice the radiation field. http://www.physorg.com/news150383704.html Space & Earth Mon, 05 Jan 2009 13:15:04 EST news150383704 The planet Jupiter gained weight in a hurry during its infancy. It had to, since the material from which it formed probably disappeared in just a few million years, according to a new study of planet formation around young stars. http://www.physorg.com/news150383252.html Space & Earth Mon, 05 Jan 2009 13:07:32 EST news150383252 A new study examining the aftereffects of a chlorine gas disaster in a South Carolina town gives larger metropolitan areas important insight into what to expect and how to prepare emergency response systems for an accidental or terrorist release of the potentially deadly gas. The study is now available in the January 2009 issue of the American Journal of Emergency Medicine. http://www.physorg.com/news149769639.html Medicine & Health Mon, 29 Dec 2008 10:40:39 EST news149769639 (PhysOrg.com) -- A community of microbes, living in a frigid layer of gas hydrates deep beneath the Arctic permafrost, has piqued the interest of scientists who say a better understanding of that environment is important because it is both a potential fuel source and record of climate change. http://www.physorg.com/news148840618.html Space & Earth Thu, 18 Dec 2008 16:36:58 EST news148840618 New research suggests that turbulence plays a critical role in creating ripe conditions for the birth of planets. The study, to be published in The Astrophysical Journal, challenges the prevailing theory of planet formation. http://www.physorg.com/news148315121.html Space & Earth Fri, 12 Dec 2008 14:38:41 EST news148315121 Found in the nearby Large Magellanic Cloud, 30 Doradus is one of the largest massive star forming regions close to the Milky Way. Enormous stars in 30 Doradus, also known as the Tarantula Nebula, are producing intense radiation and searing winds of multimillion-degree gas that carve out gigantic bubbles in the surrounding cooler gas and dust. http://www.physorg.com/news148224290.html Space & Earth Thu, 11 Dec 2008 13:24:50 EST news148224290 Contrary to earlier projections, few developing countries will be able to afford more efficient technologies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the next few decades, new research concludes. The study, by researchers at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) and the University of Colorado, warns that continuing economic and technological disparities will make it more difficult than anticipated to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and it underscores the challenges that poorer nations face in trying to adapt to global warming. http://www.physorg.com/news148051272.html Space & Earth Tue, 09 Dec 2008 13:21:12 EST news148051272 (PhysOrg.com) -- A new image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope shows a turbulent star-forming region, where rivers of gas and stellar winds are eroding thickets of dusty material. http://www.physorg.com/news147973511.html Space & Earth Mon, 08 Dec 2008 15:45:11 EST news147973511 (PhysOrg.com) -- The nanobubbles that develop on submerged surfaces should not really be able to exist. Because of the enormous internal pressure, they should disappear within a short time. Nevertheless, they sometimes last for hours: an unexplained phenomenon. http://www.physorg.com/news147454736.html Nanotechnology Tue, 02 Dec 2008 15:38:56 EST news147454736 (PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists have discovered that a type of hard mineral called zeolite can provide a high rate of gas flow in a micro-scale gas pump. Because the pump is based simply on temperature differences and has no moving parts, it could provide reliable and precise control of gas flow for a variety of applications, such as gas-sensing breath analyzers and warfare agent detectors. http://www.physorg.com/news147094299.html Physics Fri, 28 Nov 2008 11:31:39 EST news147094299 Something vital is missing in the far distant reaches of the Universe: hydrogen - the raw material for stars, planets and possible life. http://www.physorg.com/news146740325.html Space & Earth Mon, 24 Nov 2008 09:12:05 EST news146740325 Chemists at the University of Liverpool have developed a way of converting methane gas into a powder form in order to make it more transportable. http://www.physorg.com/news146398407.html Chemistry Thu, 20 Nov 2008 10:13:27 EST news146398407 Of all the possible ways of reducing future greenhouse gas emissions, one of the most immediately feasible is carbon dioxide "sequestration," which involves compressing the gas into a liquid and piping it deep underground instead of releasing it into the atmosphere. The Earth has abundant geological formations known as saline aquifers that would seem to be ideal storage bins for such sequestered carbon. http://www.physorg.com/news146333682.html Physics Wed, 19 Nov 2008 16:14:42 EST news146333682 (PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists appear to have the rock-solid evidence that suggests carbon dioxide can be safely and permanently sequestered in deep, underground basalt rock formations, without risk of it eventually escaping to the atmosphere. The findings have potential implications for sequestering carbon in other reservoir systems as well. http://www.physorg.com/news146158855.html Space & Earth Mon, 17 Nov 2008 15:40:55 EST news146158855 (PhysOrg.com) -- Nissan Motor Company Inc. has announced a new ultra-low precious metal catalyst that will cut in half the amount of precious metals used by car manufacturers. The new catalyst will be introduced in the new "Cube" compact car that will be announced on November 19, 2008. According to Motohiko Hamada, Nikkei Automotive Technology, the new ultra-low precious metal catalyst which purifies exhaust gas is the first in the world. http://www.physorg.com/news146156671.html Technology Mon, 17 Nov 2008 15:04:31 EST news146156671 In submitted testimony to the British Parliament, climate scientist Ken Caldeira of the Carnegie Institution said that while steep cuts in carbon emissions are essential to stabilizing global climate, there also needs to be a backup plan. Geoengineering solutions such as injecting dust into the atmosphere are risky, but may become necessary if emissions cuts are insufficient to stave off catastrophic warming. He urged that research into the pros and cons of geoengineering be made a high priority. http://www.physorg.com/news145288568.html Space & Earth Fri, 07 Nov 2008 13:56:08 EST news145288568 (PhysOrg.com) -- A powerful greenhouse gas is at least four times more prevalent in the atmosphere than previously estimated, according to a team of researchers at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego. http://www.physorg.com/news143979287.html Space & Earth Thu, 23 Oct 2008 11:14:47 EST news143979287 The practice of no-till has increased considerably during the past 20 yr. The absence of tillage coupled with the accumulation of crop residues at the soil surface modifies several soil properties but also influence nitrogen dynamics. Soils under no-till usually host a more abundant and diverse biota and are less prone to erosion, water loss, and structural breakdown than tilled soils. Their organic matter content is also often increased. In addition, no-till is proposed as a measure to mitigate the increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration. To assess the net effect of no-till on greenhouse gas emissions, other gases also have to be examined. http://www.physorg.com/news143892747.html Space & Earth Wed, 22 Oct 2008 11:12:27 EST news143892747 A bit of serendipity has given astronomers a surprise view of a never-before-observed event in the birth of a galaxy. http://www.physorg.com/news143820225.html Space & Earth Tue, 21 Oct 2008 15:03:45 EST news143820225 Johns Hopkins scientists report that high levels of a noxious gas from stoves can be added to the list of indoor pollutants that aggravate asthma symptoms of inner-city children, especially preschoolers. http://www.physorg.com/news143200831.html Medicine & Health Tue, 14 Oct 2008 11:00:31 EST news143200831