Minor faults in catalyst impose an obstacle to the chemical industry

One of the most important catalysts in the modern chemical industry is a troublemaker. The building blocks of zeolite ZSM-5 crystals, which are a sort of Swiss cheese with molecular size holes, are not joined together perfectly. The materials that have to pass through the crystals therefore often get stuck and don't react well. A researcher has discovered the deviations in the miniscule but indispensable particles.

CyberOptics Semiconductor Taps Agent Hermes-Epitek Singapore to Support Growth of WaferSense Brand in Southeast Asia

CyberOptics Semiconductor, a subsidiary of CyberOptics Corp., announced today that it has tapped leading Asian semiconductor agent Hermes-Epitek Singapore to support growth of its WaferSense brand in the region and represent the line of wireless metrology devices for wafer processing equipment throughout Southeast Asia, including Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines.

UniPixel to Demonstrate Display and Film Technologies at CES in Las Vegas

Uni-Pixel, Inc., the developer of a color display technology called Time Multiplexed Optical Shutter and thin-film materials branded under the name Opcuity, today announced that it will provide private scheduled demonstrations of its latest developments in both display systems and Opcuity films during the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, from Thursday, January 7 through Saturday, January 9, 2010.

No-sweat pressure sensors

Microelectronic chips used to take pressure readings are very delicate. A new technology has been developed that makes pressure sensors more robust, enabling them to continue operating normally at temperatures up to 250 degrees Celsius.

Sniffing out terrorists

A new intelligent system has been developed to help identify terrorists carrying explosives. Sensitive electronic noses capture the smell of the explosives; the system processes the acquired data, correlates it with individuals' movements - and ultimately tracks down the suspects.

Ceres Nanosciences Launches Nanotrap ESP Particles for Protein Enrichment in Complex Biological Samples

Ceres Nanosciences, a biotechnology company using its proprietary Nanotrap capture particle technology to develop diagnostics and research products, announced today that it has launched the first release of Nanotrap ESP Particles designed to improve complex biofluid sample processing allowing for the detection of low-abundance proteins that would not otherwise be detected.

WD’s First USB 3.0 Hard Drive Is Incredibly Fast, and You Want One [Storage]

Thank God for USB 3.0. I was getting really tired of staring at the progress bar for seconds (seconds!) while my shit transfers. WD just announced their first MyBook external drive with 3.0, and it looks great.

The MyBook 3.0 drive is available in either a 1TB or 2TB capacity, and in either a drive-only or a kit that includes a USB 3.0 card (since, you know, not very many people have one of those yet). They're surprisingly affordable, really—the 1TB drive is $180, and the kit adds another $20, while the 2TB drive's (and kit's) price has yet to be announced. Both drives are capable of getting 5Gb/s speeds, which is significantly faster than USB 2.0 (around 5-10 times faster). It's backwards compatible with USB 2.0, so no worries about attaching it to older hardware if need be. The 1TB drive is available now, and the 2TB should come later this month. [WD]