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S&T
Nov 5, 2014 2:26:09 GMT 5.5
Post by Dr. Yatri Thor on Nov 5, 2014 2:26:09 GMT 5.5
Unusual third Van Allen belt explained The Van Allen radiation belts were discovered in 1958. They are gigantic donut-shaped belts of accelerated particles strung along the Earth’s magnetic field at 1,000-50,000 km above the surface. They consist of two distinct bands. The inner band consists of high-energy electrons and positive ions, and the outer band consists of high-energy electrons. In February 2013, scientists reported that there was a third previously unobserved radiation, found lurking between the two original ones. Even more puzzling, this belt vanished after a month, leaving scientists wondering about its origins. The third belt was the result of an interaction between the outer belt and an injection of ions from a solar storm in September, 2012. It was composed entirely of ultra-relativistic electrons, i.e. travelling at close to the speed of light. The other belts have such electrons, too, but are not composed exclusively of them.
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S&T
Nov 8, 2014 16:55:25 GMT 5.5
Post by Dr. Yatri Thor on Nov 8, 2014 16:55:25 GMT 5.5
Quantum cryptographyQuantum cryptography is considered extremely secure as it builds on the sensitive properties of quantum light. The BB84 protocol, which is the cornerstone of quantum cryptography. Quantum cryptography uses the fact that the properties of very dim light, ideally, single-photons of light, are disturbed, by observing them. The light can be polarised at any angle, but if a photon of light is polarised parallel to the filter that is observing it, it always goes through, and if it’s perpendicular, it always stops. But if it’s polarised at an angle – say 45 degrees – it behaves randomly. It goes through sometimes and it stops sometimes.
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Post by Dr. Yatri Thor on Nov 8, 2014 16:56:55 GMT 5.5
Albumin and Albumin Therapy
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Post by Don Quixote on Nov 13, 2014 10:00:02 GMT 5.5
Rosetta MissionThe European Space Agency's Rosetta mission successfully placed a small spacecraft (Philae) on the surface of a speeding comet (67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko) on Nov 12, 2014. The technology of landing on a comet, with its wisps of gravity, could be applied to future efforts to mine asteroids. One of the key mysteries that Rosetta will explore is whether Earth's oceans are filled with melted comets. Comets are frozen leftovers from the formation of the solar system. Rosetta is named after the Rosetta Stone, the engraved block that was crucial in deciphering Egyptian hieroglyphics, and scientists hope the spacecraft's observations will offer important clues to how the solar system came together 4.5 billion years ago. (Philae is an island where an obelisk provided clues to solving the Rosetta Stone.) Previous spacecraft missions have zoomed by comets at high speeds, providing only brief examinations. By contrast, Rosetta will be a constant companion as Comet 67P approaches the sun, swings around and heads out again, its instruments potentially providing more than two years of data. Src: www.ndtv.com/article/world/landing-on-comet-a-mission-aims-to-unlock-earth-s-mysteries-620152
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S&T
Nov 15, 2014 2:45:49 GMT 5.5
Post by Dr. Yatri Thor on Nov 15, 2014 2:45:49 GMT 5.5
A leap forward in ‘flow’ batteriesA membrane-less fuel cell may enable cheaper, large-scale renewable energy storage. Wind energy is dependent on winds that are often capricious, and solar power is suboptimal on cloudy days. Such sources cannot be connected directly to the grid but instead to batteries which store power from them and then discharge continuously. – high energy density a membrane-less hydrogen-bromine fuel cell relying on a phenomenon called laminar flow. Conventional batteries include a porous membrane between the anode and the cathode to prevent short-circuits while facilitating charge-carrying ions to move between them, Thus, a “natural” membrane is formed. However, such membranes add to the battery’s weight, reduce its efficiency and, depending on their material, bring along their share of structural defects and life-cycle limitations. Hydrogen and bromine react with the electrodes to store energy or release it via an external circuit. - Mr. Braff’s prototype (MIT).
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Post by Dr. Yatri Thor on Nov 15, 2014 2:46:48 GMT 5.5
How you get to feel what you feel Nerve cells which are responsible for sensations are unique in their architecture and function - Neurons connect with one another like in a complex electrical circuit; each axon terminal connects with the dendrite of the next neuron. Given the multiplicity of dendrites at one end and axon terminals at the other, one neuron can actually connect with hundreds of others. Neurotransmission is thus a combination of electrical signal and chemical transport. It starts out with an electric pulse that runs down a nerve cells axon. When it reaches the terminal tip, calcium ions enter the cell. Responding to this, the cell triggers the synaptic sac containing neurotransmitter molecules to burst open, much like a long needle bursting a water-filled balloon. Theneurotransmitter molecule then attaches itself to specialised receptors on the surface of the dendrite of the next neuron, with a lock and key specificity. Signal is thus passed on downstream. The task is to identify the molecules involved in these processes.
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S&T
Nov 15, 2014 2:47:58 GMT 5.5
Post by Dr. Yatri Thor on Nov 15, 2014 2:47:58 GMT 5.5
A vaccine that offers protection from kala-azar A deadly infection that affects large numbers of poor people in eastern India as well as neighbouring Nepal and Bangladesh, could be developed by crippling the disease-causing organism’s ability to access a vital iron-containing molecule, according to research from a team of Indian scientists. Kala-azar — or visceral leishmaniasis — is the most severe form of disease produced by the single-celled parasite, Leishmania. Several internal organs, such as the spleen, liver and bone marrow, get affected and the infection can be fatal if left untreated. The parasite spreads when an infected female sandfly feeds on humans. Drugs to treat the infection are toxic and expensive, and drug resistance has grown. Novaccine has yet been licensed to prevent infection. The Indian scientists have taken advantage of the Leishmania parasite’s inability to synthesise a crucial iron-containing molecule, haem, that it needs. It therefore relies on pulling in its human victim’s haemoglobin, the molecule that allows red blood cells to carry oxygen all over the body. The parasite then breaks up the haemoglobin and makes use of the haem. The parasite used a protein on its outer surface to attach and drag in the haemoglobin. This protein is known as the haemoglobin receptor. Creating a vaccine against the haemoglobin receptor.
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Post by Lisbeth Salander on Jan 15, 2015 12:21:53 GMT 5.5
Digital India: Kerala's Idukki becomes first district to join National Optic Fibre Network- Idukki in Kerala has become India's first district to be linked to the National Optic Fibre Network (NOFN), the ambitious government project to offer high-speed broadband connectivity in all the villages in the country.
- The fibre was laid by state-run Bharat Sanchar Nigam.
- The establishment of NOFN would open up new avenues to launch next generation services and spur creation of local employment opportunities.
- The government expects to connect 20,000 villages across the country through optic fibre by the end of March.
- Kerala is scheduled to become fully digitally connected by end-March. Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, also in southern India, are likely to follow next.
- The telecom department had advanced the deadline for digitally connecting the entire country to December 2016, from March 2017.
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