TROY – Henrik Zetterberg’s wait before deciding whether to play overseas is over.
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NASA | X-ray Satellites Monitor the Clashing Winds of a Colossal Binary – Video
12-10-2012 09:00 O-type stars are among the most massive and hottest known, pounding their surroundings with intense ultraviolet light and powerful outflows called stellar winds. NASA's Swift and ESA's XMM-Newton X-ray observatories took part in a 2011 campaign to monitor the interaction of two O stars bound together in the same binary system: Cygnus OB2 #9. This video is public domain and can be downloaded at: Like our videos? Subscribe to NASA's Goddard Shorts HD podcast: Or find NASA Goddard Space Flight Center on Facebook: Or find us on Twitter:
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NASA | X-ray Satellites Monitor the Clashing Winds of a Colossal Binary - Video
NASA exoskeleton suit is half way to Iron Man
Iron Man's suit may be the most famous exoskeleton in the world right now, but NASA is giving it some real-life competition with the X1 Robotic Exoskeleton.
It's a wearable robot. Sweet.
The X1 Robotic Exoskeleton looks like a cross between the legs of a Stormtrooper and a Transformer. The suit is a spinoff from NASA's Robonaut 2 humanoid robot project.
The X1 is focused on either helping or hindering a person's legs, depending on its job description. When it's set to inhibit, the X1 resists movement and could be used to help astronauts exercise in space. When it's set to help, it could be used to assist paraplegics and others with lower body injuries with walking.
Four motorized joints and six passive joints give the 57-pound suit a good range of motion. It also gives it some nice Iron Man flavor, minus the propulsion feet.
The X1 is a joint effort from NASA, The Florida Institute for Human and Machine Cognition, and the awesomely named Oceaneering Space Systems.
It's still deep in the research and development phase, but the suit could some day be used both in space and on Earth. I'm also imagining a robotic suit like the one Ripley wears in "Aliens" to move gear and battle nasty creatures. I'm sure this is what NASA had in mind when they started on the X1 project. Somebody is going to have to step up and fight the alien queen.
(Via The Verge)
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NASA Celebrates Cassini's 15 Year Anniversary
Brett Smith for redOrbit.com Your Universe Online
As the Cassini spacecraft hurtles around Saturn along its continuing mission, NASA announced the fifteen-year anniversary of the probes launch this week.
The $3.3-billion mission lifted off the launch pad on October 15, 1997 and has traveled over 3.8 billion miles since flying past Venus twice and Jupiter once en route to entering orbit around the ringed planet in 2004.
The mission has provided a treasure trove of interplanetary data that it has transmitted from the depths of space back to Earth: 444 gigabytes of scientific data and over 300,000 images. The craft carries several instruments, including a radar mapper, an infrared spectrometer, an ultraviolet spectrograph and a cosmic dust analyzer.
Information culled from these instruments has been used in more than 2,500 published journal reports, including descriptions of ice water plumes on Saturns Enceladus, the hydrocarbon-filled lakes of Titan, and a gigantic storm in Saturns atmosphere.
As Cassini conducts the most in-depth survey of a giant planet to date, the spacecraft has been flying the most complex gravity-assisted trajectory ever attempted, said Cassini program manager Robert Mitchell in a statement. Each flyby of Titan, for example, is like threading the eye of the needle. And weve done it 87 times so far, with accuracies generally within about one mile, and all controlled from Earth about one billion miles away.
Mitchell added that 15 years of flight have had their impact on the craft; however Cassini still performs its daily tasks with precision.
Im proud to say Cassini has accomplished all of this every year on-budget, with relatively few health issues, he said. Cassini is entering middle age, with the associated signs of the passage of years, but its doing remarkably well and doesnt require any major surgery.
Cassini performs a series of maneuvers as it hurtles around Saturn. The flight instructions are sent from NASA and take into account the numerous gravitational fields in Cassinis path and its limited fuel supply, 72 pounds of radioactive plutonium.
According to NASA, the 4,700-pound craft still has a long mission ahead as it cruises though middle age. Saturns trip around the sun takes 29.7 Earth years and Cassini will have a front row seat as the gas giants northern hemisphere passes into spring. It will be the first time scientists observe the changing of Saturns seasons from such close range.
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NASA Commercial Crew Partner Blue Origin Completes Rocket Engine Thrust Chamber Test
NASA's Commercial Crew Program (CCP) partner Blue Origin has successfully fired the thrust chamber assembly for its new 100,000 pound thrust BE-3 liquid oxygen, liquid hydrogen rocket engine. As part of Blue's Reusable Booster System (RBS), the engines are designed eventually to launch the biconic-shaped Space Vehicle the company is developing.
The test was part of Blue Origin's work supporting its funded Space Act Agreement with NASA during Commercial Crew Development Round 2 (CCDev2). CCDev2 continues to bring spacecraft and launch vehicle designs forward to develop a U.S. commercial crew space transportation capability that ultimately could become available for the government and other customers.
Full Text of Space Act Agreement
"Blue Origin continues to be extremely innovative as it develops a crew-capable vehicle for suborbital and orbital flights," said Ed Mango, CCP manager. "We're thrilled the company's engine test fire was met with success."
The test took place early this month on the E-1 test stand at NASA's Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis, Miss. Blue Origin engineers successfully completed the test by powering the thrust chamber to its full power level.
"We are very excited to have demonstrated a new class of high-performance hydrogen engines," said Rob Meyerson, president and program manager of Blue Origin. "Access to the Stennis test facility and its talented operations team was instrumental in conducting full-power testing of this new thrust chamber."
As part of CCDev2, Blue Origin also completed a system requirements review of its spacecraft. During the review, engineers and technical experts representing NASA, the Federal Aviation Administration and the company assessed the spacecraft's ability to meet safety and mission requirements to low-Earth orbit. That review also included results from more than 100 wind tunnel tests of the vehicle's aerodynamic design, stability during flight and cross-range maneuverability.
All of NASA's industry partners, including Blue Origin, continue to meet their established milestones in developing commercial crew transportation capabilities.
While NASA works with U.S. industry partners to develop commercial spaceflight capabilities, the agency also is developing the Orion spacecraft and the Space Launch System (SLS), a crew capsule and heavy-lift rocket to provide an entirely new capability for human exploration. Designed to be flexible for launching spacecraft for crew and cargo missions, SLS and Orion will expand human presence beyond low-Earth orbit and enable new missions of exploration into the solar system.
For more information about NASA's Commercial Crew Program, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/commercialcrew
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NASA Commercial Crew Partner Blue Origin Completes Rocket Engine Thrust Chamber Test
NASA and United Launch Alliance Complete Space Act Agreement
NASA partner United Launch Alliance (ULA) has completed the fifth and final milestone for its Commercial Crew Development Round 2 (CCDev2) agreement with the agency's Commercial Crew Program.
Full text of Space Act Agreement
The Hazard, System Safety and Probabilistic Risk Assessment detailed how ULA's Atlas V rocket launch system hardware would ensure crew safety during launch and ascent.
"The ULA team did an outstanding job outlining how it plans to integrate its launch vehicle with completely different spacecraft designs," said Ed Mango, NASA's Commercial Crew Program manager. "We commend ULA for taking on the challenge of human spaceflight, and we look forward to learning more about their innovative and cost-saving solutions as we continue to move forward in developing a crew transportation capability for America."
During the year-long unfunded partnership, five reviews by technical experts from NASA and ULA assessed the company's design implementation plans, detailed system and sub-system analysis, qualification, certification and flight data.
"This has been a tremendous team effort between NASA, ULA and our commercial crew partners and we have made a great deal of progress toward safe, affordable human spaceflight," said George Sowers, ULA's vice president of human launch services.
As a follow on to CCDev2, NASA recently announced funded partnerships for the agency's Commercial Crew Integrated Capability (CCiCap) initiative. Two of the three recipients, The Boeing Company and Sierra Nevada Corp. (SNC), have selected ULA's Atlas V rocket as their launch vehicle.
"This baseline will be used by both Boeing and SNC as they proceed into the CCiCap phase, providing them with the confidence that the flight-proven Atlas V will be ready to safely, reliably and cost-effectively launch," said Sowers.
With the completion of the CCDev2 milestones, ULA establishes a technical foundation for potentially certifying its Atlas V rocket for crewed missions. It also marks the development of the design criteria for the rocket's emergency detection system, which would allow crew members to escape if something were to go wrong with either the launch vehicle or spacecraft. In addition, ULA established requirements for its dual-engine Centaur configuration and selected the design approaches it would take for accommodating a spacecraft and its crew at the company's launch facility in Florida, Space Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.
All of NASA's industry partners, including ULA, continue to meet their established milestones in developing commercial crew transportation capabilities.
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NASA and United Launch Alliance Complete Space Act Agreement
5 NASA Missions You Didn't Know Were Canceled
The days of big government funding of the space program are gone. At the end of World War II, a new era of competition between the United States and the Soviet Union began. Out of this Cold War came the Space Race. Each side was eager to prove its technological dominance by being the first to put a man on the moon. On July 20, 1969, Apollo 11 successfully placed two astronauts on the moon, giving the United States the edge in the Space Race.
Winning the Space Race wasn't cheap. The year of 1966 marked the largest space expenditure in government history with nearly 4.5% of U.S. government spending committed to NASA. From 1964 to 1967, more than 3% was committed to winning the Space Race.
Since the days of the Cold War, government funding of NASA has slowly declined. The 2012 projections call for only 0.5% of spending to go to NASA. Numerous missions were canceled because of the falling budget since the Cold War:
Pluto Kuiper ExpressThe Pluto Kuiper Express was a spacecraft that was planned for launch in 2004. It was slated to arrive at Pluto in 2012. The goal of the mission was to study the Kuiper Belt that sat beyond Neptune. The price tag in 2000 was $350 million. This cost was too steep for Congress to stomach. In 2006, plans to explore Pluto were again impacted when its status as a planet was removed. However, later that year NASA launched a spacecraft that will reach Pluto in 2015.
Mars Telecommunication OrbiterIn 2009, to service its growing population of rovers and other planned science vehicles, NASA was to launch an orbiter to arrive in 2010 called the Mars Telecommunication Orbiter. Its primary duty was to provide a better means of communication between Mars and Earth. Think of it as an upgrade to the planet's Wi-Fi system at a cost of $500 million. This project was canceled in 2005 because NASA shifted priorities. No longer was the anticipated volume of data enough to justify the high cost.
Comet Rendezvous and Asteroid FlybyThis project had big goals. This spacecraft, set to launch in 1995, was going to perform an asteroid flyby, but it had the loftier goal of piggybacking on an asteroid and firing a sensor into its core. The project was canceled in 1992 as a result of congressional funding cuts. Later, NASA realized some of the goals of this mission with its Stardust and Deep Impact missions.
ExoMars MissionThe ExoMars Mission was to be a collaboration between NASA and the European Space Agency that would have landed a mobile scientific platform on Mars. The craft was supposed to then drill deep into the subsurface of Mars and analyze those samples. Scientists know that because of the hostile environment of the planet, proving that life once existed on Mars would require drilling into the planet where erosion hasn't had an effect. The platform was to land on Mars between 2016 and 2018. According to Space.com, the United States will likely tell the ESA that it can no longer provide a launch vehicle for this mission due to budget cuts.
The MoonIn 2003, President George W. Bush laid out a vision to return human beings to the moon by 2020. In 2010, President Obama shifted the vision from landing astronauts on the moon to developing lower-cost vehicles that could act as space taxis. This vision included provisions to incentivize NASA and private companies to develop lower-cost vehicles to reach space. This emphasis came in the wake of the high-dollar space shuttle program that proved to be more costly and less versatile than originally planned.
The Bottom LineThe biggest of NASA's accomplishments and its failures are well known. Who could forget the "one small step for man" event or the Challenger and Columbia disasters? Opponents of the nation's space policy argue that the space program has gone backwards. Michio Kaku, professor of theoretical physics at the City University of New York, argues that NASA's priorities are in desperate need of a new vision.
Priorities are often dictated by money. In a global economy where there is little room for discretionary spending, funding for space exploration has been put on hold around the world.
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NASA deputy administrator Lori Garver tours Lockheed Martin in Denver
NASA Deputy Administrator Lori Garver, second from left, gets a tour Monday of the progress on the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution mission at Lockheed Martin Space Systems in Waterton Canyon. The mission is to launch in fall 2013. (Kristin Leigh Painter, The Denver Post)
NASA Deputy Administrator Lori Garver visited Lockheed Martin Space Systems in Jefferson County on Monday for a progress update on the next mission to Mars Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution, a.k.a. MAVEN as well as the heat shield for Orion, the next human-carrying space mission.
"These are two of our prized missions," said Garver, a Colorado College graduate who is NASA's second in command. "(MAVEN) will allow us to continue to 'follow the water.' "
In addition to designing and building the MAVEN spacecraft, Lockheed Martin will operate mission control following its planned November 2013 launch.
Garver and her team suited up and toured the cleanroom where the orbiter is being assembled. Following a briefing by the team, NASA officials found the project to be on schedule and on budget.
MAVEN is what industry insiders call an orbiter, not a lander. The solar-powered spacecraft won't have a dramatic surface landing like Curiosity but will remain in the Red Planet's orbit while studying its atmosphere.
Scientists believe that Mars was possibly once habitable but that the sun stripped away 99 percent of its atmosphere, leaving a cold, dusty environment. MAVEN will be loaded with scientific instruments to measure the compositional change over a two-year period.
Colorado is also home to the mission's principal investigator, Bruce Jakosky, from the University of Colorado at Boulder. Between the university and Lockheed Martin, there are about 175 full-time jobs dedicated to MAVEN in Colorado.
"Those are jobs all the way from high-tech down to undergraduates," said Nick Schnei-der, MAVEN's ultraviolet-spectrometer lead at CU.
With future budgetary fears for NASA swirling, Garver outlined the agency's major priorities at a news conference Monday morning. No. 1, Garver said, is the Space Launch System deep-space missions which Orion falls under.
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NASA deputy administrator Lori Garver tours Lockheed Martin in Denver
NASA's Cassini Probe at Saturn Celebrates 15 Years in Space
NASAs Cassini spacecraft marked 15 years in space Monday (Oct. 15), and the well-traveled probe wont stop studying Saturn and its many moons anytime soon.
Cassini has logged more than 3.8 billion miles (6.1 billion kilometers) since its launch on Oct. 15, 1997, researchers said. The spacecraft has made many contributions since arriving at Saturn in July 2004, including discovering water-ice geysers on the moon Encelaudus and snapping the first views of the hydrocarbon lakes on Saturns largest moon Titan.
During its time in space, the Cassini probe has sent home about 444 gigabytes of scientific data, including more than 300,000 images. Researchers have published more than 2,500 papers based on Cassini data so far, NASA officials said.
"As Cassini conducts the most in-depth survey of a giant planet to date, the spacecraft has been flying the most complex gravity-assisted trajectory ever attempted," Robert Mitchell, Cassini program manager at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, Calif., said in a statement. [Gallery: Latest Photos from Cassini]
"Each flyby of Titan, for example, is like threading the eye of the needle," Mitchell added. And we've done it 87 times so far, with accuracies generally within about one mile, and all controlled from Earth about one billion miles away."
Cassinis operators have sent it to visit more than a dozen of Saturns 60-plus moons in the last eight years, and they sometimes ask the probe to get shots of the planets poles (and the poles of some of its moons).
Planning out such an ambitious flight path is complicated, especially given the gravitational influences of Saturns moons and Cassinis limited fuel supply, mission managers said.
"I'm proud to say Cassini has accomplished all of this every year on-budget, with relatively few health issues," Mitchell said. "Cassini is entering middle age, with the associated signs of the passage of years, but it's doing remarkably well and doesn't require any major surgery."
Cassini wont take it easy as it enters its golden years. Spring has just come to the northern hemisphere of Saturn and its moons, and mission managers want the spacecraft to study the changes wrought by this seasonal shift.
And then Cassini will end its life with a bang.
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Alzheimer's tech spray being developed
A nanotechnology nasal spray is being developed that could transform the early detection and treatment of Alzheimer's.
The device shoots tiny magnetic particles into the nose which enter the bloodstream and are carried to the brain.
Each particle is fused to an antibody that targets and binds to rogue molecules believed to play an early role in the disease.
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can detect both the particles and the molecules.
To date scientists have only tested the technique in the laboratory on human brain tissue cultures.
But if it can be shown to work in human patients it could lead to a major leap forward in managing Alzheimer's.
Scientists believe the changes that lead to Alzheimer's begin decades before the first symptoms appear.
By the time a patient is diagnosed the disease is already far advanced, and experts suspect that is the main reason why a number of promising drugs have failed in patient trials. Identifying the disease much earlier could make it far easier to treat.
Details of the new research were presented at the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience in New Orleans, US.
Lead scientist William Klein, from Northwestern University, Chicago, said: "We have created a probe that targets a unique marker of Alzheimer's disease. This technology is a promising tool for early AD diagnosis and for evaluating the efficacy of investigational new drugs at early stages of the disease."
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M+W Group Announced as Associate Member for Facilities and Infrastructure of Global 450 Consortium Headquartered at …
ALBANY, NY and STUTTGART, GERMANY--(Marketwire - Oct 16, 2012) - As further demonstration of Governor Andrew Cuomo's nanotechnology-driven innovation economy and its success at attracting global corporations, M+W Group (M+W) announced today that it has been selected by the College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering (CNSE) of the University at Albany, United States, associate member for facilities and infrastructure for the Global 450mm Consortium (G450C), where M+W will spearhead development of new facility and infrastructure technologies and manage building and facility suppliers selected to participate in the G450C program.
"A safe and sustainable environmental footprint is a key focus area for our facility program.The eco-friendly mandate calls for solutions that reduce energy and water consumption, and minimize generation of waste throughout the facility life cycle.Our G450C partnership allows us to align on facility standards with other industry forums and drive operational cost and duration improvements that provide a competitive advantage to the consortia members," said Rick Whitney, CEO M+W US.
"Through the vision and leadership of Governor Andrew Cuomo, as embodied by the establishment of the Global 450 Consortium at the UAlbany NanoCollege, New York is recognized globally as the leading location for nanotechnology research, development and commercialization," said CNSE Senior Vice President and CEO Alain Kaloyeros. "This effort will be further enhanced by the addition of M+W Group as an associate member of G450C for emerging building, facilities, and infrastructure technologies, bringing world-class expertise and a proven track record that will accelerate this critical technology transition to support the needs of our industrial partners."
Announced by Governor Cuomo in September 2011, the G450C's main objective is to enable the transition from existing 300mm wafer size production to the new 450mm technology.Managed by New York State through CNSE, the founding members of G450C are Intel, IBM, GLOBALFOUNDRIES, TSMC and Samsung.
M+W Group and the G450C will work with facility suppliers selected from among the top-tier providers of critical semiconductor facility components, systems, and services.These suppliers will be designated as "G450C Affiliate Participants," providing a unique opportunity to leverage the strengths of the broader membership in order to provide facility solutions that are essential to industry growth and the 450mm transformation, and lead to tens of millions in additional private investments in G450C and New York State.
The G450C headquarters and core operations are located at CNSE's Albany NanoTech Complex, within the new NanoFab Xtension (NFX) building which is currently being constructed by M+W. NFX will provide 60,000 square feet of state-of-the-art contiguous cleanroom space, with completion scheduled for the end of 2012.
About M+W Group (www.mwgroup.net): M+W Group is the leading global engineering, construction and project management company in the fields of Advanced Technology Facilities, Life Science & Chemicals, Energy & Environment Technologies and High-Tech Infrastructure. From concept development to turnkey services the company manages projects of all sizes ensuring rapid realization, high quality standards and cost-effective completion. With its competence to link process and automation technologies and complex facilities to integrated solutions M+W Group primarily focuses on leading companies in the fields of electronics, photovoltaics, life science, chemicals, energy, automotive, security and communication, as well as research institutes and universities. M+W Group is the holding company with headquarters in Stuttgart, Germany. In 2011 the company generated an order intake of $3.6 billion and revenues of $3.5 billion with more than 7,000 employees. In 2012 M+W Group celebrates its 100th anniversary.
M+W Group is owned by the Austrian Stumpf Group that is globally successful in the areas of High-Tech Engineering, Smart & Renewable Energy, Real Estate and Technology Investments.
About CNSE. The UAlbany CNSE is the first college in the world dedicated to education, research, development and deployment in the emerging disciplines of nanoscience, nanoengineering, nanobioscience and nanoeconomics. With more than $14 billion in high-tech investments, CNSE represents the world's most advanced university-driven research enterprise, offering students a one-of-a-kind academic experience and providing over 300 corporate partners with access to an unmatched ecosystem for leading-edge R&D and commercialization of nanoelectronics and nanotechnology innovations. CNSE's footprint spans upstate New York, including its Albany NanoTech Complex, an 800,000-square-foot megaplex with the only fully-integrated, 300mm wafer, computer chip pilot prototyping and demonstration line within 85,000 square feet of Class 1 capable cleanrooms. More than 2,700 scientists, researchers, engineers, students and faculty work here, from companies including IBM, Intel, GlobalFoundries, SEMATECH, Samsung, TSMC, Toshiba, Applied Materials, Tokyo Electron, ASML and Novellus Systems. An expansion now underway, part of which will house the world's first Global 450mm Consortium, will add nearly 500,000 square feet of next-generation infrastructure, an additional 50,000 square feet of Class 1 capable cleanrooms, and more than 1,000 scientists, researchers and engineers from CNSE and global corporations. In addition, CNSE's Solar Energy Development Center in Halfmoon provides a prototyping and demonstration line for next-generation CIGS thin-film solar cells, supporting its leadership of the U.S. Photovoltaic Manufacturing Consortium (PVMC).CNSE's Smart Systems Technology and Commercialization Center of Excellence (STC) in Rochester offers state-of-the-art capabilities for MEMS fabrication and packaging. CNSE also co-founded and manages operations at the Computer Chip Commercialization Center at SUNYIT in Utica and is a co-founder of the Nanotechnology Innovation and Commercialization Excelerator in Syracuse. For information, visit http://www.cnse.albany.edu.
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Nanotechnology – 'All about doing more with less'
David Johnson, a chemistry professor and nanotechnology expert with the Center for Sustainable Materials Chemistry, displays a mobile communications device that has more information stored on it than some computers on college campuses in the 1980s. With Johnson is Andy Bedingfield, the centers director of outreach and education. BILL RAUTENSTRAUCH - The Observer
Professor visits region in effort to help Ore. companies create better products for digital marketplace
Struggling to explain the science of nanotechnology for a completely science-ignorant newspaper reporter last week, David Johnson held up a mobile communications device that fit neatly in the palm of his hand.
Theres more information stored on this than there was in the huge computers you found on college campuses in the 1980s, Johnson said. Nanotechnology is all about doing more with less.
Then he gave another example.
Think about what TVs were like 30 or 40 years ago. It used to take three people just to lift one, he said.
Johnson, a lead chemistry professor at the Corvallis-based Center for Sustainable Materials Chemistry, spent last week on the road, staging a series of Science Pubs in Eastern Oregon communities including La Grande.
He was spreading the word about the centers research and its efforts to help Oregon companies especially start-up companies make better products for todays digital marketplace.
Electronic circuits are built on a nano-scale, so those products are smaller and lighter than anything people might have imagined decades ago. Thats good for businesses, and good for consumers.
But according to Johnson, its only one part of nanotechnologys benefit.
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Penn State receives $4.2 million for nanotechnology career development
Public release date: 15-Oct-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Michael Bezilla mxb13@psu.edu 814-865-9481 Penn State
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Penn State will receive $4.2 million over the next three years from the National Science Foundation to continue the work of the National Nanotechnology Applications and Career Knowledge Network (NACK Network), founded at the University with a four-year grant from the NSF in 2008.
The NACK Network provides national coordination of workforce development programs and activities on behalf of NSF in an effort to meet industry needs for skilled micro- and nanofabrication workers.
"The continuation of NSF support reflects the successes the NACK Network has achieved in working with industry and educational institutions in finding ways to meet the growing needs for highly trained personnel," said Stephen Fonash, NACK Network director and Kunkle Chair Professor of Engineering Sciences.
The market value of U.S. products incorporating nanotechnology will total $1 trillion by the year 2020, according to an NSF report, and nanotechnology's share of the gross domestic product (GDP) will be 5.0 percent. The nation in 2020 will require 2 million people in the primary workforce engaged in nanotechnology production.
"Jobs in nanotechnology demand advanced skills and critical thinking, and offer the opportunity for so many 'gee whiz' moments that can excite students, even in secondary schools," Fonash said. "To have faculty and teachers who understand nanotechnology's workforce impact and who can create these eye-opening moments, they must be trained and have educational materials and equipment resources in hand, including web-accessed and web-operated tools. NACK's objective is to create and sustain these resources and to develop pathways from high school to skilled manufacturing careers across the country."
The NACK Network is a working, productive nanotechnology workforce development partnership involving educational institutions across the U.S. The network's mission is to enable core-skills nanotechnology education at two-year community and technical colleges and four-year universities and colleges through partnerships with research universities. It emphasizes broad student preparation and fosters sharing of such resources as course lecture information and lab materials, workshops for curricular development and faculty preparation, and industry-developed workforce skill standards.
The NACK Network currently has hubs built on this concept of nanotechnology education partnerships between a research university and other post-secondary institutions in place in seven states and Puerto Rico. Its Pennsylvania hub, for example, involves more than 30 undergraduate institutions and Penn State. Educators from all 50 states have accessed and used NACK Network materials and services, which are available at http://www.nano4me.org. A report by the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology recently cited NACK's success in "bringing meaningful core-skills nanotechnology workforce education to technical and community colleges across the nation."
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Penn State receives $4.2 million for nanotechnology career development
Ivy Tech to offer intensive nanotechnology program
SOUTH BEND, Ind. Ivy Tech Community College in South Bend next year will add an intensive, 18-credit summer nanotechnology study program that is expected to draw students from across Indiana and possibly from other states.
The new program will be funded with a $165,000 National Science Foundation grant awarded to the South Bend campus. The grant will allow the campus here to develop a Nanotechnology Application and Career Knowledge (NACK) Network teaching site hub here, one of just seven such hubs in the nation.
The teaching site here is being developed in partnership with Penn State University.
Nanotechnology involves research and technological development at a scale so tiny it's measured in nanometers -- billionths of a meter. It creates and uses structures that have novel properties because of their size, and it offers the ability to manipulate individual atoms and molecules.
Jobs prospects are expected to be good in the growing field of nanotechnology.
The initial 10-week summer program will have room for 20 students. The program will be intense: six courses, requiring class work eight hours a day, five days a week.
Ivy Tech in South Bend last year became the first -- and so far the only -- college in Indiana to offer an associate's degree program in nanotechnology.
Abdollah Aghdasi, chair of Ivy Tech's nanotechnology program, expects the summer program to draw students from Ivy Tech's other campuses around the state and also from some four-year colleges and universities.
"You don't need to be an Ivy Tech student. We can take students from Notre Dame, IUSB, Western Michigan University -- anyone who wants to come and get the exposure to nanotechnology," he told the South Bend Tribune (http://bit.ly/SVBSLT ).
Although the nanotechnology degree currently is offered only in South Bend, students at other Ivy Tech campuses could take their general education requirements at their home campus, attend the intensive summer of nanotechnology courses in South Bend, then arrange to complete requirements (including an internship) for the nanotechnology degree back at their home campus, Aghdasi said.
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Special Program at SPE ANTEC® Mumbai Will Focus on Nano-Scale Carbonaceous Materials
October 16, 2012 - Scheduled for December 6-7, 2012, SPE ANTEC Mumbai will include New Technology Forum focusing on nano-scale carbonaceous materials such as carbon nanotubes and graphenes. Some papers that will be presented include: Are Nano Composites a 21st Century Material?; Graphene-Based Composite Materials; Graphene-Based Soluble Nanocomposites; andSurface Modification Carbon Nanotubes and Nanographene Platelets for Improved Performance in Polymer Composites. Society Of Plastics Engineers 13 Church Hill Rd. Newtown, CT, 06470 USA Press release date: October 9, 2012
One Presenter Anticipates that Nanomaterials Will Have a Bigger Impact on Human Life in this Century than Polymers Did in the 1900s
NEWTOWN, CT, U.S.A.,- Nano-scale carbonaceous materials such as carbon nanotubes and graphenes will be the subject of a New Technology Forum planned for the first Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE) ANTEC conference to be held in India, it was announced today by SPE.
ANTEC Mumbai will take place December 6-7, 2012 at the Renaissance Mumbai Convention Centre Hotel and consist of more than 100 presentations, chiefly technical, in sessions devoted to six major topic areas. One of these sessions will be the New Technology Forum on carbonaceous nanomaterials.
It is expected that nanomaterials and nanocomposites will have bigger impact on human life in the current century than has been the impact of polymers to date, said one of the Forum presenters, Dr. Satish Kumar, in a abstract of his paper.
The papers and their presenters in the New Technology Forum will include:
Are Nano Composites a 21st Century Material? Satish Kumar, School of Materials Science and Technology, Georgia Institute of Technology.
Graphene-Based Composite Materials. Nikhil Koratkar Department of Mechanical, Aerospace, and Nuclear Engineering, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.
Graphene-Based Soluble NanocompositesA Viable Route to Solution Processable Device Fabrication. Arindarupa Chunder, IBM Almaden Research Center.
Surface Modification Carbon Nanotubes and Nanographene Platelets for Improved Performance in Polymer Composites. Srinagesh K. Potluri, Zyvex Technologies.
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Special Program at SPE ANTEC® Mumbai Will Focus on Nano-Scale Carbonaceous Materials
Call to assess safety of nano particles
The Hindu R. Muralidharan (second right), Director, Solid State Physics Laboratory, and Pradeep Haldar, professor, College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering, University At Albany, State University of New York, at a seminar on organised by the PSG Institute of Advanced Studies in Coimbatore on Monday. R.Rudramoorthy (second left), principal, PSG College of Technology and Magnus Bergkvist, Assistant Professor of Nano-bioscience, University at Albany, are in the picture. Photo: K. Ananthan
Although there is not enough evidence to state that nano particles are per se toxic, it is necessary for scientists to bring to the table all advantages and disadvantages so that it does not face the same debate that Genetically Modified crops and products are facing, R. Muralidharan, Director of Solid State Physics Laboratory, Defence Research and Development Organisation, said in Coimbatore on Monday.
Inaugurating a two-day seminar on Nanotechnology for Energy, Environment and Health, organised jointly by the PSG Institute of Advanced Studies and University at Albany State University of New York, the U.S., he said that if in the race to claim industrial funding and to reap commercial advantages, the flipside was swept under the carpet, society would view the scientists with suspicion.
Nano technology is being thought of as a messiah for challenges that humanity is facing. There are various debates and discussions on whether nano technology is a hype or hope. The best way to view it is as a technology platform that can be used to increase the efficiency of the present technology and not as an independent entity, Mr. Muralidharan said.
Assuming that nano technology would become a viable production level technology, it was essential to asses the challenges it brought with it. It was known that particles could penetrate the skin and cross the olfactory system to spread to the brain and also enter the bloodstream. Though this may not necessarily pose a health risk, it needed to be thoroughly investigated, he urged.
R. Rudramoorthy, principal of PSG College of Technology, spoke on the possible uses of nano technology in augmenting alternative sources of energy for electricity generation that could address power problems arising out of use of conventional sources.
The seminar would deliberate upon the latest advancements and challenges in the development of multifunctional nano-materials and their applications in areas such as energy, smart textiles, printed electronics, environment and health.
Professors Pradeep Halder, Makoto Hirayama and Magnus Bergkvist from the University at Albany, State University of New York, the U.S., delivered special lectures.
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iFixit opens up the new iPod nano
In recent weeks, iFixit has cracked open the iPhone 5 and the fifth-generation iPod touch. Next in line for their classic teardown analysis is the seventh-generation iPod nano. The first thing the group noticed about the new iPod nano is its long and thin profile, made possible by Apple's new Lightning connector and clever internal cable engineering. It's a significant difference from the sixth-generation nano which was short and squat because of its included clip.
Similar to the iPod touch, the nano is not easy to self-repair. Many internal parts, like the battery, Lightning connector, button cable and headphone jack are soldered onto to the logic board and several others use adhesive. On iFixit's scale of one to 10, the iPod nano seventh generation is given a repairability score of five.
As noted by iDownload blog, iFixit uncovered several Apple-branded chips that have unknown functions. You can read more about the iPod nano's innards in the full analysis at iFixit's website.
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KYOCERA Introduces New Milling Cutters For CNC Machining Featuring Inserts with Proprietary MEGACOAT NANO Technology
HENDERSONVILLE, N.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
Kyocera Industrial Ceramics Corporation, Cutting Tool Division recently introduced its new MEW M-Four and MFWN M-Six Milling Cutters, both featuring unique advantages and inserts with MEGACOAT NANO, Kyoceras new proprietary coating technology for stable cutting and extended tool life.
The M-Four Endmills feature negative inserts that utilize Kyoceras unique insert-forming technology which reduces cutting forces to levels equivalent to positive inserts. The double-sided, four-edge inserts offer low cutting forces for reduced chatter, improved surface finishes, and minimized vibration. The 90-degree cutting angle features an obtuse edge for increased cutting edge toughness. The M-Four lineup offers three newly developed chipbreakers to cover a wide range of applications.
The M-Six Shell Mill features a double-sided, six-edge, extra-thick insert with tough cutting edges and sharp cutting performance. The thick-edge design of the M-Six insert also produces reduced chattering and superior fracture resistance. The M-Six features neutral inserts applicable for shouldering, plunging, and facing, and four different chipbreakers to cover a variety of applications.
Both the M-Four and M-Six Milling Cutters feature MEGACOAT NANO, Kyoceras proprietary multi-layered coating technology that enables stable milling and extends tool life by reducing wear and fracture with its high hardness and superior oxidation resistance.
Kyoceras new M-Four and M-Six Milling Cutters are being introduced via kit-style promotions featuring a cutter and 10 MEGACOAT NANO inserts of the customers choice.
For additional information on these or other Kyocera Cutting Tool products, please contact:
website: kyocera.com/cuttingtools
About Kyocera
Kyocera Industrial Ceramics Corporation (http://www.kyocera.com/kicc), headquartered in Hendersonville, NC, specializes in applying advanced materials and components to solve the most demanding engineering challenges. It is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Kyocera International, Inc. of San Diego, the North American holding company for Kyocera Corporation.
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New hope for leukemia patients
Kochi, Oct 15 (UNI)
Amrita Centre for Nanosciences and Molecular Medicine, part of the Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences and Research Centre has claimed to have discovered a potential cure for drug resistant leukemia.
Chronic Myeloid Leukemia (CML) responds well to a drug named 'Imatinib', however, when drug resistance sets in, which is in about 20-25 per cent of the cases, the patients has little chance of survival, a press release said here today.
Drug resistance was due to certain point mutations in the leukemia cells as a result of which the cells find an alternative pathway for survival, preventing the drug from killing the cancer cells, it said.
The Centre has developed a nanomedicine which had shown significant ability to kill the drug reststant cancer cells.
The nanomedicine was developed over the past three years and has shown success in in-vitro (or cell line based) studies, it added.
The Centre was now conducting animal trials or pre-clinical studies of the drug, it said, adding that it is expected that if pre-clinical trials are successful the new nano medicine can be submitted for clinical trial after approval from the government.
This was the first such discovery in the world of nanomedicine that effectively solves the problem of severe drug resistance in blood cancers.
The senior scientists involved in the research and development was Dr Manzoor Koyakutty, Professor and Dr Shantikumar Nair, Centre Director and Dean of Research.
Clinicians from the hospital who are involved in the research are Dr Pavithran, Dr Neeraj and Dr Prabhu. The PhD student who has worked on this as part of her PhD thesis is Archana Ratnakumari, it added.
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Dr. Don Cleveland of Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research elected to Institute of Medicine
Public release date: 15-Oct-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Rachel Steinhardt rsteinhardt@licr.org 646-371-7394 Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research
New York, NY, October 15, 2012Don W. Cleveland, PhD, Member of the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research and chair of the UC San Diego Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine has been elected to the Institute of Medicine (IOM). Election to the IOM is one of the highest honors in the fields of health and medicine.
Established in 1970 by the National Academy of Sciences, the IOM serves as an advisory organization to Congress and policy makers on important health questions. During the past year projects included health IT and patient safety, treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder, nutrition rating systems and graphics on food packaging, and studies of environmental factors in breast cancer.
Cleveland's pioneering discoveries of the mechanisms of chromosome movement and cell-cycle control during normal cellular division, as well as of the principles of neuronal cell development and their relationship to the defects that contribute to inherited neurodegenerative disease, led to his being named to the American Academy of Arts & Sciences and the National Academy of Sciences in 2006.
Most recently, his research has achieved a significant breakthrough in treating Huntington's disease, an inherited and degenerative brain disorder for which there is no cure. A one-time injection of a new DNA-based drug treatment known as ASO (short for antisense oligonucleotide) blocked the activity of the gene whose mutation causes the disease. A single treatment silenced the mutated gene responsible for the disease, slowing and partially reversing progression of the fatal neurodegenerative disorder in animal models.
Cleveland received his Ph.D. in biochemistry from Princeton University. Following his post-doctoral work at UC San Francisco, he was a professor at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine until joining the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research at UC San Diego in 1995.
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About the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research
The Ludwig Institute is an international non-profit organization committed to improving the understanding and control of cancer through integrated laboratory and clinical discovery. Leveraging its worldwide network of investigators and the ability to sponsor and conduct its own clinical trials, the Institute is actively engaged in translating its discoveries into applications for patient benefit. Since its establishment in 1971, the Institute has expended more than $1.5 billion on cancer research. http://www.licr.org
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Dr. Don Cleveland of Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research elected to Institute of Medicine