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Issue no. 13, 2006 Published: Mar 31, 2006
Nanodots may unlock power of superconducting wires
European scientists connect neurons to silicon chips
Researchers develop ultra-thin plastic
Robust morphing materials take the strain
Paper battery developer gets funding
Your secrets are safe with quasar encryption
Video games tackle 'lazy eye'
Revolutionary jet engine tested
Laser spark plugs
Spy program snoops on cell phones

Nanodots may unlock power of superconducting wires
The next generation of superconducting wires, which could operate efficiently at the high temperatures needed to make applications such as levitating trains feasible, has been created by researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Tennessee, US. For 20 years, researchers have worked to develop the perfect superconducting wires to replace today's copper-based power grid. But the secret, it now seems, is to build flawed ones. The key may be to position non-conducting nanodots at strategic points within the wire. Electrical current flowing through superconducting materials experiences virtually no resistance, enabling wires of the material to carry high current loads very efficiently. However, such a powerful current will disrupt itself because it produces a strong, fluctuating magnetic field. By depositing lines of 10nm-wide, non-conducting dots of barium zirconate at fixed distances along the wire, the researchers have found a way disrupt current flow in just the right way to tone down these fluctuations.
New Scientist / Science Mar 30, 2006	back to top

European scientists connect neurons to silicon chips
European researchers have reported the creation of an interface between mammalian neurons and silicon chips. The ultimate applications of the technology are 'potentially limitless', according to researchers involved with the NACHIP project funded by the European Commission's Future and Emerging Technologies initiative within the IST programme. NACHIP's core achievement was to develop a working interface between the living tissue of individual neurons and the inorganic compounds of silicon chips. With the help of German microchip company Infineon, NACHIP placed 16,384 transistors and hundreds of capacitors on a chip just 1mm square. NACHIP uses special proteins found in the brain essentially to glue the neurons to the chip. The proteins also provide the link between the ionic channels of the neurons and semiconductor material in a way that neural electrical signals could be passed to the silicon chip. Once there, the signal can be recorded using the chip's transistors. The neurons can also be stimulated through the capacitors, thereby enabling the two-way communication.
VNUnet UK Mar 28, 2006	back to top

Researchers develop ultra-thin plastic
Researchers of Merck Chemicals in the UK have developed an ultra-thin plastic that allows an electrical charge to pass through it at speeds never before seen, a discovery that could dramatically drive down the cost of flat-panel monitors and other devices. The plastic, which resembles cellophane when applied to electronic components, could one day replace the chemicals used to manufacture monitors and RFID chips. Researchers have long searched for alternatives to the silicon-based material used in today's devices. The plastic material, known as liquid-crystalline polymers, have been viewed as a key contender, but until now electrical charges have not been able to travel through it at speeds required by electronic devices. But the scientists found a way to boost electrical performance in polymers six-fold, putting the substance on par with so-called amorphous silicon. The discovery could lead to new methods for making monitors and other types of electronic devices. Instead of using a costly vacuum process to coat silicon on large panes of glass, manufacturers could spray a liquid polymer on tiny plastic parts.
MSNBC / AP / Nature Mar 24, 2006	back to top

Robust morphing materials take the strain
Helicopter blades that change shape in mid-spin could be developed using a novel morphing material that works even under extreme stress and strain, according to material scientists at MIT, the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, and the University of Karlsruhe in Germany. The morphing material is made from lithium cobalt oxide and graphite. Applying a current to the material causes ions to move between the two components. The process is the same as charging a battery - with negative ions being drawn towards the graphite and positively charged ions being drawn towards the lithium cobalt oxide. This movement results in the ions becoming trapped between the lithium cobalt oxide and graphite molecules - so causing the material as a whole to expand. Reversing this chemical process reverses the shape change. In testing, researchers found the material expanded by as much as 19 per cent and was also highly resistant to pressure, withstanding up to 200 megapascals. The material could eventually be used to create morphing aircraft wings, boat hulls and car parts, the researchers suggest.
New Scientist / Advanced Functional Materials Mar 24, 2006	back to top

Paper battery developer gets funding
Enfucell, a startup founded in June 2002 as a spin-off from the Automation Laboratory of Helsinki University of Technology, has gathered EUR 600,000 in funding for the research, development and commercialisation of thin flexible paper battery technology. Building on ten years experience developing miniature power sources Enfucell scientists have invented a battery with a printable layer structure and which uses paper containing the electrolyte as the separator between anode and cathode. The SoftBattery is intended for use as a power source in disposable microelectronic equipment such as cosmetics, greetings cards, sensors, smart cards, LEDs on paper, electronic paper, bistable non-volatile displays, and active RFID tags. The paper battery converts chemical energy directly into electricity. Metal is oxidised at one side of paper and manganese oxide, or other oxides, is reduced on the reverse of the paper when the battery is connected. The metal can be zinc, aluminium, nickel and so on and the paper contains the electrolyte. The battery provides around 1.5 volts and the supply is stable over a wide temperature and humidity range.
Information Week Mar 24, 2006	back to top

Your secrets are safe with quasar encryption
Intergalactic radio signals from quasars could emerge as an exotic but effective new tool for securing terrestrial communications against eavesdropping. Scientists at the National Institute of Information and Communications Technology in Tokyo, Japan, have come up with a method for encrypting messages using the distant astronomical objects, which emit radio waves and are thought to be powered by black holes. The researchers believe quasars could make an ideal cryptographic tool because the strength and frequency of the radio pulses they emit is impossible to predict. Randomness provides a simple means of high-security information encryption, providing two communicating parties have access to the same source of random information. Genuine randomness is hard to generate artificially. The researchers suggest using an agreed quasar radio signal to add randomness to a stream cipher - a method of encrypting information at high speed. Each communicating party would only need to know which quasar to monitor and when to start in order to encrypt and decrypt a message. Without knowing the target quasar and time an eavesdropper should be unable to decrypt the message.
New Scientist Mar 29, 2006	back to top

Video games tackle 'lazy eye'
Playing virtual reality computer games may help treat the condition known as amblyopia, or lazy eye, say researchers. In patients with amblyopia, one eye works better than the other. Because the amblyopic eye is inferior for some reason, the brain decides to use the good eye. Over time, the neural connection to the bad eye becomes gradually weaker in favour of the good eye. The traditional way of fixing the problem is for patients to force the bad eye to work harder by wearing a patch over the good eye. The treatment usually involves patching for around 400 hours and can cause the eyes not to work together, resulting in double vision. Researchers at Nottingham University say that an experimental treatment using virtual reality (VR) encourages the lazy eye to be more active and gets both eyes to work together. The team has been trying out a racing game where the computer sends images of the player's own car to the amblyopic eye, but the other cars go to the good eye. Obstacles on the track are sent alternately to each eye, so both eyes team up to get the patient through the game. The researchers are encouraged by the results.
BBC News Mar 28, 2006	back to top

Revolutionary jet engine tested
A new jet engine designed to fly at seven times the speed of sound appears to have been successfully tested. The scramjet engine, the Hyshot III, was launched at Woomera in Australia, on the back of a two stage Terrier-Orion rocket. Once 314km up, the Hyshot III fell back to Earth, reaching speeds analysts hope will have topped Mach 7.6 (9,000km/h). It is hoped the Hyshot III will pave the way for ultra fast, intercontinental air travel. An international team of researchers is presently analysing data from the experiment, to see if it met its objectives. The scientists and engineers had just six seconds to monitor its performance before the engine crashed into the ground. The Hyshot tests will bring the idea of a commercial scramjet one step closer to reality. In the first instance, these would probably be used to launch satellites into low-Earth orbit but many have speculated that they could also allow passenger airlines to fly between London and Sydney in just two hours.
BBC News Mar 25, 2006	back to top

Laser spark plugs
The spark plugs inside an internal combustion engine erode and need to be replaced regularly because high voltages are required to ignite the engine fuel. Colorado State University in the US hopes to create longer-lasting plugs by replacing electrical ignition with pulsed laser light, fed into the cylinders by glass fibres. But so much energy is needed to ionise gas and create a spark that conventional optical fibres disintegrate. So the university is patenting a new fibre that promises to be strong enough to feed laser power to spark plugs. The fibre is hollow, 700 micrometres in diameter and filled with helium. The internal surface of the tube is coated with reflective silver. The silver coating should stop light from escaping and the inert helium should prevent the creation of any sparks inside the fibre. Infrared light from a laser is fired into the tube, which carries it round bends and into the engine cylinders where a lens focuses all the energy onto a fine spot. This triggers the electrical breakdown of gas inside the cylinder and generates a plasma spark that ignites the fuel.
New Scientist Mar 28, 2006	back to top

Spy program snoops on cell phones
New software that hides on cell phones and captures call logs and text messages is being sold as a way to monitor kids and spouses. The FlexiSpy application captures call logs, text messages and mobile internet activity, among other things. The software is advertised by Thailand-based Vervata as a tool to monitor kids and unfaithful spouses. The data captured is sent to Vervata's servers and is accessible to customers via a special website. Similar surveillance software for PCs already exists and has raised the ire of groups fighting domestic violence, who fear it may be used by abusive spouses. FlexiSpy has attracted a different kind of criticism from security company F-Secure, which has labelled the software a Trojan, or a malicious program that disguises itself as something innocuous. Vervata is still working on 'FlexiSpy Pro,' which will log e-mail and multimedia messages, in addition to the other data, according to the company's website. That version will also include a 'monitoring' feature that lets the user call the target cell phone from a preset number and listen in on what is going on in the background.
ZDNet / CNET Mar 29, 2006	back to top