Monday 18 August 2014

Raw Data: The Intelligent-Life Lottery

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Some argue that with billions of stars in our galaxy, there must be other civilizations. But others say intelligence is so rare on Earth; why would we expect to find it elsewhere?















via New York Times

Used-cigarette butts offer energy storage solution

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A group of scientists from South Korea have converted used-cigarette butts into a high-performing material that could be integrated into computers, handheld devices, electrical vehicles and wind turbines to store energy. Presenting their findings today, 5 August 2014, in IOP Publishing’s journal Nanotechnology, the researchers have demonstrated the material’s superior performance compared to commercially available carbon, graphene and carbon nanotubes. It is hoped the material can be used to coat the electrodes of supercapacitors—electrochemical components that can store extremely large amounts of electrical energy—whilst also offering a solution to the growing environmental problem caused by used-cigarette filters. It is estimated that as many as 5.6 trillion used-cigarettes, or 766,571 metric tons, are deposited into the environment worldwide every year. Co-author of the study Professor Jongheop Yi, from Seoul National University, said: “Our study has shown that used-cigarette filters can be transformed into a high-performing carbon-based material using a simple one step process, which simultaneously offers a green solution to meeting the energy demands of society. “Numerous countries are developing strict regulations to avoid the trillions of toxic and non-biodegradable used-cigarette filters that are disposed of into the environment each year—our method is just one way of achieving this.” Carbon is the

The post Used-cigarette butts offer energy storage solution has been published on Technology Org.

 
#materials 
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Hubble eyes galaxy as it gets a cosmic hair ruffling

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(Phys.org) —From objects as small as Newton's apple to those as large as a galaxy, no physical body is free from the stern bonds of gravity, as evidenced in this stunning picture captured by the Wide Field Camera 3 and Advanced Camera for Surveys onboard the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope.



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Chandra observatory searches for trigger of nearby supernova

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(Phys.org) —New data from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory offer a glimpse into the environment of a star before it exploded earlier this year, and insight into what triggered one of the closest supernovas witnessed in decades.



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Do Work Sun! Poster

Here's a great poster featuring a beautiful image from deep space


tagged with: work, son, funny, sun, solar, system, planets, astronomy, physics, stars, space, satire

A play off of "Do Work Son"

»visit the jamierushad store for more designs and products like this
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via Zazzle Astronomy market place

Inside the mystery serum that could save Ebola victims

Science Focus

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Earlier this month, Dr. Kent Brantly and Nancy Writebol were close to death. The two American aid workers infected with the deadly Ebola virus were flown from Liberia to Atlanta, Georgia, where they were promptly sent to the Emory University Hospital. At the moment, there is no officially approved treatment or vaccine for the Ebola virus, which has a 50 to 90 percent mortality rate. But Brantly and Writebol were each given doses of an experimental anti-Ebola serum that had never been tested in humans. Soon after, according to Emory University doctors, both patients were improving.

Named after...

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#science 
 » see original post http://theweek.com/article/index/266115/inside-the-mystery-serum-that-could-save-ebola-victims
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VIDEO: The man who helped save 50 million lives

Science Focus

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Norbert Hirschhorn talks to Lizzie Crouch about the discovery of Oral Rehydration Therapy, a simple concoction of sugar, salts and water that has saved over 50 million lives worldwide. 
#science 
 » see original post http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-28585774#sa-ns_mchannel=rss&ns_source=PublicRSS20-sa
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Star Trails Over Indonesia

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Zazzle Space Gifts for young and old

Boomerang Nebula Hubble Astronomy Wall Skin

Here's a great wall decal featuring a beautiful image from deep space


tagged with: boomerang nebula, nebula, stars, nasa, astronomy, universe, outer space, hubble telescope, nature, cool space, nebulae, esa, hubble space telescope, hubble photo, cosmos, astronomical, astrophotography, cosmology, deep space, space, natural, science, space picture, space photo, space image, nebula picture, nebula photo, nebula image, blue, cool astronomy

Hubble photograph of the Boomerang Nebula

This photograph of the Boomerang Nebula was taken by the Hubble Space Telescope in 1998. It shows the bow-tie-shaped nebula in beautiful bright blue and white colours, against a dark starry background.

Credit: NASA, ESA, R. Sahai and J. Trauger (Jet Propulsion Laboratory) and the WFPC2 Science Team

You can personalise the design further if you'd prefer, such as by adding your name or other text, or adjusting the image - just click 'Customize it' to see all the options. IMPORTANT: If you choose a different sized version of the product, it's important to click Customize and check the image in the Design view to ensure it fills the area to the edge of the product, otherwise white edges may be visible.

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If you like this product, you can find more like it in my store:

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via Zazzle Astronomy market place

Mars Deep down

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Space science image of the week: Mars Express stares into the depths of the Red Planet

via ESA Space Science

http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Space_Science/Mars_Express/Mars_Deep_down

LEDs made from ‘wonder material’ perovskite

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 Colourful LEDs made from a material known as perovskite could lead to LED displays which are both cheaper and easier to manufacture in future. This technology could provide a lot of value to the ever growing flat-panel display industry Zhi-Kuang Tan A hybrid form of perovskite – the same type of material which has recently been found to make highly efficient solar cells that could one day replace silicon – has been used to make low-cost, easily manufactured LEDs, potentially opening up a wide range of commercial applications in future, such as flexible colour displays. This particular class of semiconducting perovskites have generated excitement in the solar cell field over the past several years, after Professor Henry Snaith’s group at Oxford University found them to be remarkably efficient at converting light to electricity. In just two short years, perovskite-based solar cells have reached efficiencies of nearly 20%, a level which took conventional silicon-based solar cells 20 years to reach. Now, researchers from the University of Cambridge, University of Oxford and the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität in Munich have demonstrated a new application for perovskite materials, using them to make high-brightness LEDs. The results are published in the journal Nature Nanotechnology. Perovskite is a general term used

The post LEDs made from ‘wonder material’ perovskite has been published on Technology Org.

 
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Graphene based deionization on board the EU Flagship

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The billion-euro Graphene Flagship project of the European Commission doubled in size this June. The expansion brought Spain to the second place by the number of Flagship partners, just below Germany and Italy which share the first place as countries with most project participants. Among the freshly accepted projects is GRAPHESALT, “Graphene based capacitive deionization for an energy efficient desalination system”. GRAPHESALT was proposed by the Spanish research organization Tecnalia and the French membrane maker SME Polymem.



GRAPHESALT is one of 21 projects selected from a total of 218 proposals submitted. It focuses on the development of a water desalination system based on a technique called capacitive deionization (CDI).





Image: Sketch of capacitive deionization (CDI). Courtesy of Azonano.



During CDI salt is separated from water by passing seawater between two electrically charged electrodes (anode and cathode), so that the salts are adsorbed on the surface of the electrodes, thereby obtaining drinking water. By reversing the electric charge of the electrodes, the salt is washed out, recovering part of the electric energy used in the process. Although the technology is not new, its performance can be increased dramatically by using metal oxide-graphene electrodes, achieving higher efficiency than that of reverse osmosis desalination. Reverse osmosis is the predominant method in desalination plants today, although it consumes much energy. Metal oxide in contact with graphene is also, not incidentally, the main ingredient of our recently reported efficient organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs). In GRAPHESALT, the graphene will form part of the porous material component of the filter.



Graphene water desalination and filtering is a hot research topic. Back in February, MIT researchers demonstrated a graphene film drilled with closely packed nanopores. The nanoporous graphene is a membrane material that has earlier shown, in calculation, to be ideally suited for water desalination, as salt molecules are too large to pass through the sieve. Following up on that, research that came out of the Oak Ridge National Lab demonstrated a real graphene desalination filter, with performance 100 times better than currently used technology. In that case, the approach was based on graphene oxide, or more precisely graphene oxide frameworks (GOFs). Graphene desalination filters warranted a technology review in a popular desalination online magazine.



GRAPHESALT will play on the excellent performance of metal oxide-graphene electrodes to enhance the performance of the available CDI technology. The method is expected to compete with nanoporous graphene and GOFs on the way to the desalination marketplace.




via Graphenea

Vintage Astronomy Star Chart ~ Ursa Major Poster

Here's a great poster featuring a beautiful image from deep space


tagged with: astrology, zodiac, constellations, decor, fine art, art, universe, old, world, star maps, signs, space, map, maps, world maps, vintage maps, antique map, antique maps, ancient, ancient maps, history, ancient history, artwork, vintage artwork, vintage art, unique, unusual, neat, cool, room decor, wall decor, den decor, framed prints, framed posters, framed art, canvas, the vintage vamp, thevintagevamp

A wonderful antique star chart depicting the constellation of Ursa Major. Ursa Major is a constellation visible throughout the year in most of the northern hemisphere. Its name means the Great Bear in Latin. It is dominated by the widely recognized asterism known as the Big Dipper or Plough, which is a useful pointer toward north, and which has mythological significance in numerous world cultures. This wonderful old constellation chart would be perfect for your home wall decor. Add a frame and it would make the perfect retro decoration in your bar, cafe, restaurant, home theater, office or kitchen. Framed canvas prints also make an exceptional gift for any occasion or holiday.

At The Vintage Vamp we obtain high quality images of vintage artwork. Then we use state of the art technology and editing to bring back to life the most compelling images from the past. Unlike a lot of reproductions sold on the Internet, ours have been refurbished to bring out the original colors and fix as many imperfections as possible. We use only PNG format and the largest PPI (pixels per inch) possible, which is the very best for printing. This assures that your image will print with the highest quality possible, no matter what size you choose. Credit: Library of Congress & Wikipedia




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Fascinating rhythm: Light pulses illuminate a rare black hole

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Astronomers have accurately measured -- and thus confirmed the existence of -- a rare intermediate-mass black hole about 400 times the mass of our sun in a galaxy 12 million light years from the Milky Way. The finding uses a technique never applied in this way before, and opens the door to new studies of these mysterious objects.

via Science Daily

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Crab Nebula Space As Wall Decor

Here's a great wall decal featuring a beautiful image from deep space


tagged with: nasa, esa, universe, space, astronomy, hubble telescope, astrophotography, nature, abstract, pink crab nebula, crab nebula, ngc 1952, nebula, nebulae, hubble space telescope, hubble photoh, hubble photo, cosmos, astronomical, cosmology, space photo, space picture, space image, deep space, natural, science, nebula photo, nebula picture, nebula image, pink, sky, cool space, cool astronomy

Hubble / x-ray photograph of the Crab Nebula

This photo of the Crab Nebula is a combination of optical and x-ray images from the Hubble Space Telescope and NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory, and includes rich shades of pink, red and purple.

Credits for X-ray Image: NASA/CXC/ASU/J. Hester et al. | Credits for Optical Image: NASA/HST/ASU/J. Hester et al.

You can personalise the design further if you'd prefer, such as by adding your name or other text, or adjusting the image - just click 'Customize it' to see all the options. IMPORTANT: If you choose a different sized version of the product, it's important to click Customize and check the image in the Design view to ensure it fills the area to the edge of the product, otherwise white edges may be visible.

See more in my shop
If you like this product, you can find more like it in my store:

Click here to view all the other items with this design.

Click here to see a wide range of other astronomy & space designs.

»visit the AstronomyGiftShop store for more designs and products like this
Click to customize.
via Zazzle Astronomy market place