There are advances being made almost daily in the disciplines required to make space and its contents accessible. This blog brings together a lot of that info, as it is reported, tracking the small steps into space that will make it just another place we carry out normal human economic, leisure and living activities.
Thursday, 4 June 2015
Tuning friction to the point where it disappears may boost development of nanomachines
Physicists have developed an experimental technique to simulate friction at the nanoscale. Using their technique, the researchers are able to directly observe individual atoms at the interface of two surfaces and manipulate their arrangement, tuning the amount of friction between the surfaces. By changing the spacing of atoms on one surface, they observed a point at which friction disappears.
via Science Daily
Discovery paves way for homebrewed drugs, prompts call for regulation
Fans of homebrewed beer and backyard distilleries already know how to employ yeast to convert sugar into alcohol.
The post Discovery paves way for homebrewed drugs, prompts call for regulation has been published on Technology Org.
#materials
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Why playing video games is good for your brain
Science Focus
original post »Whether playing video games has negative effects is something that has been debated for 30 years, in much the same way that rock and roll, television, and even the novel faced much the same criticisms in their time.
Purported negative effects such as addiction, increased aggression, and various health consequences such as obesity and repetitive strain injuries tend to get far more media coverage than the positives. I know from my own research examining both sides that my papers on video game addiction receive far more publicity than my research into the social benefits of, for example, playing online role-playing games.
However there is now a wealth of research which shows that video games can be put to educational and therapeutic uses, as well as many studies which reveal how playing video games can improve reaction times and hand-eye co-ordination. For example, research has shown that spatial visualisation ability, such as mentally rotating and manipulating two- and three-dimensional objects, improves with video game playing.
To add to this long line of studies demonstrating the more positive effects of video games is a study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences by Vikranth Bejjanki and colleagues. Their newly published paper demonstrates that the playing of action video games — the sort of fast-paced, 3D shoot-em-up beloved of doomsayers in the media — confirms what other studies have revealed, that players show improved performance in perception, attention, and cognition.
In a series of experiments on small numbers of gamers (10 to 14 people in each study), the researchers reported that gamers with previous experience of playing such action video games were better at perceptual tasks such as pattern discrimination than gamers with less experience.
In another experiment, they trained gamers that had little previous experience of playing action games, giving them 50 hours practice. It was showed that these gamers performed much better on perceptual tasks than they had prior to their training. The paper concludes:
The enhanced learning of the regularity and structure of environments may act as a core mechanism by which action video game play influences performance in perception, attention, and cognition.
In my own papers, I have pointed out many features and qualities that make video games potentially useful. For instance, in an educational context, video games can be fun and stimulating, which means it's easier to maintain a pupil's undivided attention for longer. Because of the excitement, video games may also be a more appealing way of learning than traditional methods for some.
Video games have an appeal that crosses many demographic boundaries, such as age, gender, ethnicity, or educational attainment. They can be used to help set goals and rehearse working towards them, provide feedback, reinforcement, self-esteem, and maintain a record of behavioural change.
Their interactivity can stimulate learning, allowing individuals to experience novelty, curiosity and challenge that stimulates learning. There is the opportunity to develop transferable skills, or practice challenging or extraordinary activities, such as flight simulators, or simulated operations.
Because video games can be so engaging, they can also be used therapeutically. For instance, they can be used as a form of physiotherapy as well as in more innovative contexts. A number of studies have shown that when children play video games following chemotherapy they need fewer painkillers than others.
Video games have great educational potential in addition to their entertainment value. Games specifically designed to address a specific problem or teach a specific skill have been very successful, precisely because they are motivating, engaging, interactive, and provide rewards and reinforcement to improve.
But the transferability of skills outside the game-playing context is an important factor. What's also clear from the scientific literature is that the negative consequences of playing almost always involve people that are excessive video game players. There is little evidence of serious acute adverse effects on health from moderate play.
Dr. Mark Griffiths has received research funding from a wide range of organizations including the Economic and Social Research Council, the British Academy and the Responsibility in Gambling Trust. He has also carried out consultancy for numerous gaming companies in the area of social responsibility and responsible gaming.
More from The Conversation US...
- Video games culture deserves a national archive to rival those of books and film
- Playing violent video games in 3D increases feelings of anger
- Gender segregation in e-sports is indefensible — and yet...
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» see original post http://theweek.com/articles/442243/why-playing-video-games-good-brain
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How the Indian Ocean ended up stealing the atmosphere’s heat
Science Focus
original post »If you’re climate-curious, you’ve probably seen some of the research revealing why globally averaged surface air temperatures have warmed less quickly over the last decade or so than they did in the 1990s. The oceans are the dominant heat reservoir in the climate system, and they have been in a greedy phase lately, giving up a little less warmth to the atmosphere.
This has largely been the product of a string of La Niñas in the Pacific driven by stronger easterly trade winds. In those conditions, a pool of colder deep water takes the place of warmer surface water in the eastern Pacific. The warmer water that would normally be there is instead moved westward and mixed downward.
But here’s the puzzling thing: while records show a buildup of heat below the surface, the heat's generally not in the Pacific. If that’s where so much downward mixing is taking place, where is the warm water going?
Read 7 remaining paragraphs | Comments
#science
» see original post http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~r/arstechnica/science/~3/xR77tBZhDZ8/
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Probing the secrets of the universe inside a metal box
Science Focus
original post »The Standard Model of particle physics, sometimes called “The Theory of Almost Everything,” is the best set of
The post Probing the secrets of the universe inside a metal box has been published on Technology Org.
#physics
» see original post http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TechnologyOrgPhysicsNews/~3/5Lnymxk4bhU/
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A Starburst Galaxy - Messier 82 (Cigar Galaxy) Classic Round Sticker
tagged with: envelope sealers, monogram initials, galaxies and stars, hubble, messier 82, cigar galaxy, active galaxies, starburst galaxy, nasa esa, sbglxymet
Galaxies, Stars and Nebulae series This mosaic image of the magnificent starburst galaxy, Messier 82 (aka Cigar Galaxy) is a really sharp wide-angle view of M82. It is a galaxy remarkable for its webs of shredded clouds and flame-like plumes of glowing hydrogen blasting out from its central regions where young stars are being born 10 times faster than they are inside in our Milky Way Galaxy.
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image code: sbglxymet
Image credit: NASA, ESA and the Hubble Heritage Team STScI/AURA). Acknowledgment: J. Gallagher (University of Wisconsin), M. Mountain (STScI) and P. Puxley (NSF).
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via Zazzle Astronomy market place
Exiled stars explode far from home
Astronomers usually discover supernovae within large galaxies, where a star explodes perhaps once a century. Now a team of astronomers has used the sharp imaging capability of the Hubble Space Telescope to confirm that three exploding stars found in the empty regions between galaxies in a cluster were in fact lonely supernovae unattached to any galaxy at all. They were probably ripped from their host galaxies eons ago and exploded far from home.
via Science Daily
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NGC 2419 - Intergalactic Wanderer
Three objects stand out in this thoughtful telescopic image, a view toward the mostly stealthy constellation Lynx. The two brightest (the spiky ones) are nearby stars. The third is the remote globular star cluster NGC 2419, at distance of nearly 300,000 light-years. NGC 2419 is sometimes called "the Intergalactic Wanderer", an appropriate title considering that the distance to the Milky Way's satellite galaxy, the Large Magellanic Cloud, is only about 160,000 light-years. Roughly similar to other large globular star clusters like Omega Centauri, NGC 2419 is itself intrinsically bright, but appears faint because it is so far away. NGC 2419 may really have an extragalactic origin as, for example, the remains of a small galaxy captured and disrupted by the Milky Way. But its extreme distance makes it difficult to study and compare its properties with other globular clusters that roam the halo of our Milky Way galaxy.
Zazzle Space Gifts for young and old
Orion Nebula iPad Mini Retina Covers
tagged with: orion, nebula, space, image, nasa, hubble, astronomy
A lovely detail of an image of the Orion Nebula in infrared thanks to NASA/Hubble.
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The Zazzle Promise: We promise 100% satisfaction. If you don't absolutely love it, we'll take it back!
Three candidates for ESA’s next medium-class science mission
Exoplanets, plasma physics and the X-ray Universe are the topics chosen by ESA to be considered for the fourth medium-class mission in its Cosmic Vision science programme, for launch in 2025.
via ESA Space Science
http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Space_Science/Three_candidates_for_ESA_s_next_medium-class_science_mission
ESA and Chinese Academy of Sciences to study Smile as joint mission
European and Chinese scientists have recommended the Solar wind Magnetosphere Ionosphere Link Explorer as their candidate for a collaborative science mission for launch in 2021.
via ESA Space Science
http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Space_Science/ESA_and_Chinese_Academy_of_Sciences_to_study_Smile_as_joint_mission
Beautiful Green Nebula filled with Stars Poster
tagged with: nebula, nebulae, stars, star, galaxies, space, spacy, cosmos, astronomy, cosmic
Luminous and ethereal image of a green nebula far off in space. Colors mingle together in varying shades of green and blue in the deep darkness of the cosmos. Twinkling glowing stars can be seen shining all around. Great for science loving geeks,nerds and astronomers. Credit: photo courtesy of NASA and the Hubble program.
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A Starburst Galaxy - Messier 82 (Cigar Galaxy) Square Sticker
tagged with: envelope sealers, galaxies and stars, hubble, messier 82, cigar galaxy, active galaxies, starburst galaxy, nasa esa, sbglxymet
Galaxies, Stars and Nebulae series This mosaic image of the magnificent starburst galaxy, Messier 82 (aka Cigar Galaxy) is a really sharp wide-angle view of M82. It is a galaxy remarkable for its webs of shredded clouds and flame-like plumes of glowing hydrogen blasting out from its central regions where young stars are being born 10 times faster than they are inside in our Milky Way Galaxy.
more items with this image
more items in the Galaxies, Stars and Nebulae series
image code: sbglxymet
Image credit: NASA, ESA and the Hubble Heritage Team STScI/AURA). Acknowledgment: J. Gallagher (University of Wisconsin), M. Mountain (STScI) and P. Puxley (NSF).
»visit the HightonRidley store for more designs and products like this
Click to customize.
via Zazzle Astronomy market place
Orion Nebula iPad Mini Retina Cases
tagged with: orion, nebula, space, image, nasa, hubble, astronomy
A lovely detail of an image of the Orion Nebula in infrared thanks to NASA/Hubble.
»visit the annaleeblysse store for more designs and products like this
The Zazzle Promise: We promise 100% satisfaction. If you don't absolutely love it, we'll take it back!