Carbon NanotubesMaterial mimics the ability of gecko feet to grip surfaces
"Researchers Improve Dry Adhesive Based on Carbon NanotubesMaterial mimics the ability of gecko feet to grip surfaces. Atlanta (October 9, 2008) —The race for the best “gecko foot” dry adhesive got a new competitor this week with a stronger and more practical material reported in the journal Science by a team of researchers from four U.S. institutions. ... In a paper published in the October 10 issue of Science, researchers from the University of Dayton, the Georgia Institute of Technology, the Air Force Research Laboratory and the University of Akron describe an improved carbon nanotube-based material that for the first time creates directionally-varied (anisotropic) adhesive force. With a gripping ability nearly three times the previous record – and ten times better than a real gecko at resisting perpendicular shear forces – the new carbon nanotube array could give artificial gecko feet the ability to tightly grip vertical surfaces while being easily lifted off when desired. " Read more at http://www.gatech.edu/newsroom/release.html?id=2192&ga=1
You may have it all planned out, but little surprises can bring big successes
" Manifest Destiny - You may have it all planned out, but little surprises can bring big successes. By Romanus Wolter | Entrepreneur Magazine - September 2008.When asked how to best expand a business, most entrepreneurs will tell you their greatest successes came from unexpected and unplanned events that arose while they built their companies. While their pre-designed strategies acted as cornerstones for their businesses, it was the random incidents, which initially seemed like diversions, that ended up producing the most amazing outcomes. ... Predicting the outcome of your actions is like forecasting the weather: Usually, you can be fairly certain about your predictions, but it's the wild storms that are the hardest to foresee and the most powerful. Serendipity and luck favor people who embrace unexpected opportunities." Read more at http://www.entrepreneur.com/magazine/entrepreneur/2008/september/196274.html
Image Analysis and Stereology
"This is the official journal of the International Society for Stereology. It promotes the exchange of scientific, technical, organizational and other information on the quantitative analysis of data having a geometrical structure, including stereology, differential geometry, image analysis, image processing, mathematical morphology, stochastic geometry, statistics, pattern recognition, and related topics. The fields of application are not restricted and range from biomedicine, materials sciences and physics to geology and geography. " Read more at http://www.wise-t.com/ias/index.php
New solar energy material captures every color of the rainbow
"New solar energy material captures every color of the rainbow. COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Researchers have created a new material that overcomes two of the major obstacles to solar power: it absorbs all the energy contained in sunlight, and generates electrons in a way that makes them easier to capture. Ohio State University chemists and their colleagues combined electrically conductive plastic with metals including molybdenum and titanium to create the hybrid material. " Read more at http://researchnews.osu.edu/archive/fullspect.htm
Transformation optics
"October 16, 200. New research field promises radical advances in optical technologies WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Numerical simulations A new research field called transformation optics may usher in a host of radical advances including a cloak of invisibility and ultra-powerful microscopes and computers by harnessing nanotechnology and "metamaterials." The field, which applies mathematical principles similar to those in Einstein's theory of general relativity, will be described in an article to be published Friday (Oct. 17) in the journal Science. " Read more at http://news.uns.purdue.edu/x/2008b/081016ShalaevTransform.html
Wavelets : Seeing the forest and the trees
"This article describes the development of the mathematical modeling technique known as wavelets, which is used in computer imaging and animation as well as by the FBI to encode its large database of fingerprints. " Read more at http://www.beyonddiscovery.org/content/view.article.asp?a=1952
Industry and environment; a quarterly review
"First published in 1978, the UNEP Industry and Environment quarterly review provides a forum for the exchange of research and experience, presenting articles written by and for industry managers, government officials and researchers in the field of sustainable industrial development. It covers policy, technological and scientific developments related to business and the environment. Each issue of the review focuses on a particular theme. It also includes features, news and developments of broad international interest. " Read more at http://www.uneptie.org/media/review/ie_home.htm