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. (PhysOrg.com) -- Ava Martin seems less nervous than her parents as the three sit in an audiologist`s office at UC Irvine Medical Center a few days after Labor Day. In August, the 6-year-old had surgery to place a cochlear implant in her right ear. Now Ava plays with toys while Ginger Stickney describes to Dave and Gabrielle Martin the tests that will gauge how their daughter`s auditory nerve is responding to the implant. But first Stickney must activate the device that could restore function to Ava`s right ear - an ability lost years ago due to a congenital inner-ear defect that`s also destroying the hearing in her left ear. http://www.physorg.com/news176659178.html Medicine & Health Thu, 05 Nov 2009 18:00:01 EST news176659178 (PhysOrg.com) -- In 2008, scientists built a loudspeaker made of carbon nanotubes that produced sound and music based on the thermoacoustic effect. Now, a different team of scientists has built a loudspeaker made of tiny aluminum wires suspended like a bridge between two supports, producing sound in a similar way. The new wire bridge also has the advantage of being much easier to fabricate than the nanotube device, offering the potential for a wide range of audio applications. http://www.physorg.com/news176543078.html Physics Wed, 04 Nov 2009 09:00:01 EST news176543078 Researchers at the University of York have identified a part of the brain that responds to both facial and vocal expressions of emotion. http://www.physorg.com/news176398397.html Medicine & Health Mon, 02 Nov 2009 15:34:06 EST news176398397 (PhysOrg.com) -- Computer scientists have developed a method to synthesize the sounds of cymbals, falling garbage cans and lids, and plastic water-cooler bottles and recycling bins. http://www.physorg.com/news175889668.html Technology Tue, 27 Oct 2009 19:15:37 EST news175889668 (PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers at the California Institute of Technology have created a nanoscale crystal device that, for the first time, allows scientists to confine both light and sound vibrations in the same tiny space. http://www.physorg.com/news175766229.html Nanotechnology Mon, 26 Oct 2009 08:57:51 EST news175766229 Ultrasound and underwater sonar devices could "see" a big improvement thanks to development of the world's first acoustic hyperlens. Created by researchers with the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, the acoustic hyperlens provides an eightfold boost in the magnification power of sound-based imaging technologies. Clever physical manipulation of the imaging sound waves enables the hyperlens to resolve details smaller than one sixth the length of the waves themselves, bringing into view much smaller objects and features than can be detected using today's technologies. http://www.physorg.com/news175702307.html Physics Sun, 25 Oct 2009 15:12:53 EST news175702307 (PhysOrg.com) -- A clever structure in the ear of a tropical butterfly that potentially makes it able to distinguish between high and low pitch sounds has been discovered by scientists from the University of Bristol, UK. http://www.physorg.com/news175353553.html Biology Wed, 21 Oct 2009 14:29:05 EST news175353553 (PhysOrg.com) -- Does Bo Diddley rule the world? Though he died last year, the iconic singer and guitarist of American blues and rock still rules the rhythms of the world, says computer scientist Godfried Toussaint. Toussaint uses complex algorithms to ferret where the rhythms of world music came from - in the same way an evolutionary biologist might hunt for the origins of, say, an arthropod body part. http://www.physorg.com/news175248181.html Other Sciences Tue, 20 Oct 2009 09:20:01 EST news175248181 (PhysOrg.com) -- New research on the Kitsap Peninsula, at the west edge of Washington state's Puget Sound, finds evidence that land was raised at least 6 feet by ancient earthquakes. http://www.physorg.com/news175195166.html Space & Earth Mon, 19 Oct 2009 18:20:05 EST news175195166 (PhysOrg.com) -- Biomedical researchers at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville and the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) in Little Rock have developed a special contrast-imaging agent made of gold-coated carbon nanotubes that is capable of molecular mapping of lymphatic endothelial cells and detecting cancer metastasis in sentinel lymph nodes. The findings from this study, which was led by Jin-Woo Kim, Ph.D., M.S., University of Arkansas, and Vladimir P. Zharov, Ph.D., D.Sc., M.S., UAMS, were published in the journal Nature Nanotechnology. http://www.physorg.com/news172951791.html Nanotechnology Thu, 24 Sep 2009 17:10:01 EST news172951791 Every year roads are built and repaired to the tune of several billions. Intensive efforts are underway all over the world to get 'more road for your money' by developing better methods for both design and quality control of materials. One problem is that today there are no good methods for checking how robustly and safely the roads were built. Therefore they often don't last as long as they were supposed to and more money has to go to road construction. http://www.physorg.com/news172915466.html Technology Wed, 23 Sep 2009 09:20:02 EST news172915466 (PhysOrg.com) -- Technology developed by European researchers is helping the stage production of Ben Hur Live in London's O2 arena. http://www.physorg.com/news172422174.html Technology Thu, 17 Sep 2009 16:20:01 EST news172422174 (PhysOrg.com) -- Poor image and sound quality is encountered all too frequently in the world of video and telephone conferencing, but powerful compression technologies are set to consign these problems to the past - even in the humble living room. At this year`s IFA international consumer electronics exhibition in Berlin, Germany (September 4 to 9) Fraunhofer researchers will demonstrate the power and flexibility of these new technologies by holding games sessions in which players compete against each other via the Internet. http://www.physorg.com/news171212041.html Technology Fri, 04 Sep 2009 00:00:01 EST news171212041 (PhysOrg.com) -- Bigger speakers, bigger sound - this is the music lover`s creed. Flat panel loudspeakers offer an alternative to those who would rather not or cannot clutter up their homes with speakers. These speakers can be integrated inconspicuously on walls or in furniture. At the Internationale Funkausstellung IFA in Berlin, Germany, from September 4 to 9, Fraunhofer scientists are presenting a completely new concept for ultra-flat loudspeakers that still deliver full sound reproduction. http://www.physorg.com/news171211002.html Technology Thu, 03 Sep 2009 15:37:26 EST news171211002 An award-winning Los Alamos National Laboratory sound-wave technology is helping Solix Biofuels, Inc. optimize production of algae-based fuel in a cost-effective, scalable, and environmentally benign fashion -paving the way to lowering the carbon footprint of biofuel production. http://www.physorg.com/news171203048.html Technology Thu, 03 Sep 2009 13:40:04 EST news171203048 (PhysOrg.com) -- Manipulating tiny objects like single cells or nanosized beads often requires relatively large, unwieldy equipment, but now a system that uses sound as a tiny tweezers can be small enough to place on a chip, according to Penn State engineers. http://www.physorg.com/news170686724.html Nanotechnology Fri, 28 Aug 2009 13:59:38 EST news170686724 Under a microscope, Heterosigma akashiwo looks like a potato or a cornflake. To the naked eye, sea lettuce is a big, green sheet of seaweed. In most cases, these different algae are food for the ocean's vegetarians. http://www.physorg.com/news169838300.html Space & Earth Wed, 19 Aug 2009 02:20:01 EST news169838300 Sounds and images share a similar neural code in the human brain, according to a new Canadian study. In the online edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), scientists from the Université de Montréal and the Montreal Neurological Institute at McGill University explain how the same neural code in the brain allows people to distinguish between different types of sounds, such as speech and music, or different images. http://www.physorg.com/news169296854.html Medicine & Health Wed, 12 Aug 2009 11:54:34 EST news169296854 (PhysOrg.com) -- Music, rather than electromechanical valves, can drive experimental samples through a lab-on-a-chip in a new system developed at the University of Michigan. This development could significantly simplify the process of conducting experiments in microfluidic devices. http://www.physorg.com/news167488557.html Chemistry Wed, 22 Jul 2009 14:10:01 EST news167488557 A low-cost generator with the potential to transform lives in the world's poorest communities is now being tested across the UK and in Nepal. The Score project, led by The University of Nottingham, is developing a bio-mass burning cooking stove which also converts heat into acoustic energy and then into electricity, all in one unit. http://www.physorg.com/news167054310.html Technology Fri, 17 Jul 2009 12:59:09 EST news167054310 (PhysOrg.com) -- Biologically speaking, many animals besides dogs bark, according to Kathryn Lord at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, but the evolutionary biologist also says domestic dogs vocalize in this way much more than birds, deer, monkeys and other wild animals that use barks. The reason is related to dogs` 10,000-year history of hanging around human food refuse dumps, she suggests. http://www.physorg.com/news166808234.html Biology Tue, 14 Jul 2009 16:50:05 EST news166808234 A research paper co-written by a Virginia Tech faculty member explains a 60-year mystery behind a rare bat's nose that is unusually large for its species. The findings soon will be published in the scientific trade journal, Physical Review Letters. http://www.physorg.com/news166182701.html Physics Tue, 07 Jul 2009 12:30:07 EST news166182701 The composer Richard Wagner is well-known, even notorious, for writing operas that can challenge both performers and listeners. A new study published in the Journal of the Acoustic Society of America reveals that Wagner set his text to music in a way that uses the acoustics of the soprano voice in a manner that helps both performers and listeners. http://www.physorg.com/news165670303.html Physics Wed, 01 Jul 2009 12:32:30 EST news165670303 A front portion of the brain that handles tasks like decision-making also helps decipher different phonetic sounds, according to new Brown University research. http://www.physorg.com/news165584101.html Medicine & Health Tue, 30 Jun 2009 12:35:30 EST news165584101 It was an idea born out of curiosity in the physics lab, but now a new type of ‘laser` for generating ultra-high frequency sound waves instead of light has taken a major step towards becoming a unique and highly useful 21st century technology. http://www.physorg.com/news164454318.html Physics Wed, 17 Jun 2009 11:20:01 EST news164454318 The world is a perilous place for the endangered manatee. While the mammals are at risk from natural threats, human activity also poses a great danger to manatee numbers. Debborah Colbert, from the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, explains that many manatees die and are seriously injured in collisions with boats every year. However, little is known about how manatees perceive their environment. http://www.physorg.com/news163989196.html Biology Fri, 12 Jun 2009 06:40:01 EST news163989196 (PhysOrg.com) -- MIT engineers have built a fast, ultra-broadband, low-power radio chip, modeled on the human inner ear, that could enable wireless devices capable of receiving cell phone, Internet, radio and television signals. http://www.physorg.com/news163242050.html Technology Wed, 03 Jun 2009 10:01:26 EST news163242050 Revolutionary ultrasonic nanotechnology that could allow scientists to see inside a patient's individual cells to help diagnose serious illnesses is being developed by researchers at The University of Nottingham. http://www.physorg.com/news163160650.html Nanotechnology Tue, 02 Jun 2009 11:25:00 EST news163160650 (PhysOrg.com) -- Splash, splatter, babble, sploosh, drip, drop, bloop and ploop! http://www.physorg.com/news163090219.html Technology Mon, 01 Jun 2009 15:50:52 EST news163090219 For decades scientists have been intrigued by the variety of sounds emitted by sperm whales, partly due to a popular theory that suggests that the sounds might contain information about the animals' size. But historically it has been extremely difficult to demonstrate that these curious clicking noises can reveal information about the physical characteristics of the massive marine mammals. Now, researchers at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego are unlocking some of the mysteries of sperm whale sound production. http://www.physorg.com/news162142273.html Biology Thu, 21 May 2009 16:32:57 EST news162142273