Rutherford's big discovery – 100 years later. In 1911 the New-Zealand-born physicist Ernest Rutherford published a paper that was to revolutionize science. Rutherford's famous alpha-particle scattering experiment transformed our understanding of the atom and it inspired the new areas of physics including the theory of quantum mechanics. The pioneering work was carried out at the University of Manchester where Rutherford held the Chair of Physics for 12 years. To mark the centenary of these landmark experiments, the university hosted a special week-long conference in August 2011. The event was organized by the UK's Institute of Physics, which publishes Physics World. In this short film, Physics World journalist James Dacey reports from the conference where he caught up with two of the keynote speakers.
In this discussion, Jenkins talks about how Rutherford's work has led to some important practical applications, including big advances in the field of medicine. Quantum Cheshire Cat: Even Weirder Than Schrödinger’s. Gene Therapy May Thwart HIV. This past year, a Berlin man, Timothy Brown, became world famous as the first—and thus far only—person to apparently have been cured of his HIV infection. Brown's HIV disappeared after he developed leukemia and doctors gave him repeated blood transfusions from a donor who harbored a mutated version of a receptor the virus uses to enter cells. Now, researchers report promising results from two small gene-therapy studies that mimic this strategy, hinting that the field may be moving closer to a cure that works for the masses. At the Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy in Chicago, Illinois, this weekend, researchers reported preliminary results from tests of a novel treatment in 15 HIV-infected people designed to free them from the need to take antiretroviral drugs.
The trial participants had T cells removed from their blood and then modified in the laboratory with a designer enzyme engineered by Sangamo BioSciences in Richmond, California. Why Intuition Makes People More Likely to Believe in God. Earthquake Scientists On Trial In Italy | Kiwis. Last updated 10:46 21/09/2011 The public will lose out if court cases like the one faced by scientists, accused of failing to warn residents about a deadly Italian earthquake, push experts into safer fields, says a New Zealand researcher. GNS scientists and quake experts are among a number of New Zealand seismologists who have signed a petition supporting the seven scientists and other experts, who are charged with manslaughter. The New Zealand scientists had joined about 5200 international researchers in signing the petition.
The seven Italian scientists and other experts are accused of giving "inexact, incomplete and contradictory information" about whether smaller tremors felt by L'Aquila residents in the six months before the April 6, 2009, magnitude 6.3 quake should have constituted grounds for a quake warning. The defendants are facing manslaughter charges over the deaths of 308 people who were killed in the tremor. He said he signed the petition "to basically say this is ridiculous". Scientists as scapegoats? | Griffin’s Gadgets. Day one of the trial of several Italian seismologists facing manslaughter charges for allegedly failing to predict an earthquake that killed more than 300 people in L’Aquila in April 2009 kicked off today. Nature has been following the situation closely and this piece gives great background on the situation the scientists have found themselves in. This is the interesting bit – what can we expect the impact to be on science as the trial plays out?
Scientists in New Zealand are naturally watching the case closely and no doubt, in some cases, reflecting on how scientific information on risk from natural hazards is disseminated and interpreted by the public here. Here’s the letter of support for the Italian seismologists many New Zealand scientists joined others around the world in signing. Here’s what Dr Mark Quigley of the University of Canterbury had to say about the trial: I couldn’t agree with him more. Lab Claims Faster-Than-Light Particle. CERN claims faster-than-light particle measured. Last updated 09:38 23/09/2011 A pillar of physics - that nothing can go faster than the speed of light - appears to be smashed by an oddball subatomic particle that has apparently made a giant end run around Albert Einstein's theories. Scientists at the world's largest physics lab said today (NZ time) they have clocked neutrinos travelling faster than light. That's something that according to Einstein's 1905 special theory of relativity - the famous E (equals) mc2 equation - just doesn't happen.
"The feeling that most people have is this can't be right, this can't be real," said James Gillies, a spokesman for the European Organisation for Nuclear Research. Gillies told The Associated Press that the readings have so astounded researchers that they are asking others to independently verify the measurements before claiming an actual discovery. Scientists at the competing Fermilab in Chicago have promised to start such work immediately. Comments. FTL neutrinos FTW! * Ahem * Well, not quite. (Note: FTL = Faster Than Light) The first image, taken in 2007, of a neutrino interaction. The neutrino, coming from the left of the figure following an interaction, produces several particles identified by their tracks in the detecting 'brick'. Credit: INFN (Italian National Institute of Nuclear Physics) Not entirely, at least.
Those of you watching the science news today may have noticed an awful lot of excited wittering about results being published today which suggest the neutrinos may have broken the speed of light. Please note the use of ‘may’ there. First, a brief note on neutrinos themselves. They’re similar to electrons, in fact, except for the intriguing characteristic of having no electrical charge. Oh, and also? Now, on to the Science of the Day. Nothing, at least according to one of Einstein’s equations (you know, the one beginning e=…), can travel faster than the speed of light in a vacuum (light travels slower in dense media***).
Notes. Happy Birthday Otzi | Digging the Dirt. Latest reconstruction of Otzi for the Otzi 20 exhibition 20 years ago today the mummified remains of a man, nicknamed Otzi, was discovered by hikers in the Italian Alps. This find has to be mentioned because it is simply fantastic and quite unique so far, and has led to many many archaeological scientists and preservation experts coming together to understand the life and culture of this one man, who lived 5,000 years ago. The days following Sept 19 1991 are also one of those periods in time that made an impact on me as a 17 year old New Zealander studying hard at Papatoetoe High School, thinking about the future, post school education… and an ancient human being discovered on the other side of the world, outside all parameters of time that the 6th form was studying that year. I wanted to be one of the people who finds out about that!
The Synopsis The position Otzi was found, trapped in glacial ice 14 days after discovery the first archaeological survey was conducted at the find scene. Alternative Medicine. Time for a New Scientific Revolution. Where have we been? | Open Parachute. Where have we been? A very cool picture of where we have sent probes throughout the solar system. | Geekation: where geeks go. Science Media Centre » Events. Carter Observatory : Under Carter's Stars.
NASA satellite plunges to Earth. A defunct NASA satellite, whose doomed descent gained worldwide notoriety, fell back to Earth early Saturday — but exactly when or where the fiery plunge took place could forever be a mystery. "We may never know," said Nicholas Johnson, NASA's chief orbital debris scientist. It probably plunged into the Pacific Ocean, perhaps somewhere between Hawaii and the western coast of North America. There have been no reports of discovered pieces or injuries, further suggesting the debris didn't make it to land, he said. On its final orbit of Earth, the six-ton climate satellite flew over Canada, headed south over Africa, blew south of Australia and took a turn to the northeast over the Pacific Ocean heading toward Canada. NASA officials believe the satellite then entered Earth's atmosphere at about 12:16 a.m. Eastern time over the Pacific Ocean, far west from the U.S.
"Because we don't know where the reentry actually was, we don't know where the debris field might be," Johnson said. Do People with Doctoral Degrees get Jobs in New Zealand Post Study? Key Findings This study analysed the New Zealand-based employment rate of a cohort of domestic doctoral graduates who finished studying in 2003. The results show that:around 65 percent of the doctoral cohort were employed in New Zealand four years after they last studied.
This was a lower rate of employment in New Zealand than domestic bachelors and masters graduates from the same leaving yearyounger graduates, Asians, and graduates in ‘Natural and physical sciences’ were less likely to be employed in New Zealand four years after they last studiedthe domestic employment rate of the New Zealand doctoral cohort was lower than in similar leaving cohorts in Canada and the United Kingdom.This report analysed the New Zealand-based employment rate up to four years post study of a cohort of domestic doctoral graduates who last studied in 2003.
Not surprisingly, younger doctoral graduates were less likely to be employed in New Zealand post study. Lock of hair pins down early migration of Aborigines. 23 September 2011Last updated at 01:23 By Leila Battison Science reporter A lock of hair is all that is needed to decode the history of an entire people A lock of hair has helped scientists to piece together the genome of Australian Aborigines and rewrite the history of human dispersal around the world. DNA from the hair demonstrates that indigenous Aboriginal Australians were the first to separate from other modern humans, around 70,000 years ago. This challenges current theories of a single phase of dispersal from Africa. An international team of researchers published their findings in the journal Science. While the Aboriginal populations were trailblazing across Asia and into Australia, the remaining humans stayed around North Africa and the Middle East until 24,000 years ago.
Only then did they spread out and colonise Europe and Asia, but the indigenous Aborigines had been established in Australia for 25,000 years. Tiny genetic differences Continue reading the main story “Start Quote. Cells dine on nanotubes with dire results. A new study by researchers in the US reveals that nanometre-thick strands such as nanotubes and nanowires enter biological cells head-on and almost always at a 90° angle. This orientation means that a cell mistakes the long cylinder for a sphere and tries to ingest it – with dire consequences. The findings could be important for designing safer, less-toxic nanomaterials.
Biological cells ingest objects in their environment by engulfing them, in a process known as endocytosis. The particles are taken into the cell, or "internalized", and subsequently degraded. However, things do not quite work out this way when it comes to very thin tubes, wires and fibres, say Huajian Gao and colleagues at Brown University. Optical-microscope techniques such as in situ "spinning disk confocal microscopy" have already shown that multiwalled carbon nanotubes enter cells head-on, or tip first. Similar to asbestos The researchers have also found that most nanotubes enter a cell perpendicular to it. Online gamers crack AIDS enzyme puzzle. By Agence France-PresseSunday, September 18, 2011 14:41 EDT PARIS — Online gamers have achieved a feat beyond the realm of Second Life or Dungeons and Dragons: they have deciphered the structure of an enzyme of an AIDS-like virus that had thwarted scientists for a decade.
The exploit is published on Sunday in the journal Nature Structural & Molecular Biology, where — exceptionally in scientific publishing — both gamers and researchers are honoured as co-authors. Their target was a monomeric protease enzyme, a cutting agent in the complex molecular tailoring of retroviruses, a family that includes HIV. Figuring out the structure of proteins is vital for understanding the causes of many diseases and developing drugs to block them. But a microscope gives only a flat image of what to the outsider looks like a plate of one-dimensional scrunched-up spaghetti. This is where Foldit comes in.
It is believed to be the first time that gamers have resolved a long-standing scientific problem. Galaxy Zoo | Science for Citizens. The Network for Citizen Science Projects & Resources | Science for Citizens. FoldIt Wiki. BikeLouP's Game Strategy and Tactics - FoldIt Wiki - a Wikia Gaming wiki. BikeLouP Thoughts on Strategies and Tactics for Foldit Edit Foldit is an addictive game that allows for many approaches that seem to converge on about the same solution--most of the time. Most foldit players that have been doing it for any length of time find different techniques that work for us. Many of us have applied the same or very similar methods with different results because of small nuances that are hard to describe--but we try to share here in the FoldIt Wiki. The initial puzzle and first moves. The mid-point game and rapid point runup. The eke and tweak game.
The end game. I distinguish between strategy and tactics. The Inital Puzzle and First Moves Edit The very first decision you need to make as a foldit player is whether you are going to try and noodle your solution with great technical insight or just go for it. Given you are just going to start, the main question is do you try anything before you do a global Wiggle? Set the puzzle to stub view. Global Shake Sidechains. China to launch Heavenly Palace space test unit next week. What does it feel like to fly over planet Earth?