Bionic’ Ear Combines Electronics and Biology Scientists at Princeton University have used conventional printing tools to create an ear that is able to “hear” frequencies far beyond the range of human hearing. The purpose was to find an effective way to merge electronics with tissue. They used 3D printing of cells and nanoparticles followed by a cell culture to combine a coil antenna with cartilage, creating a ‘bionic ear’  “In general, there are mechanical and thermal challenges with interfacing electronic materials with biological materials,”  said Michael McAlpine, an assistant professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at Princeton and the lead researcher. “Previously, researchers have suggested some strategies to tailor the electronics so that this merger is less awkward. That typically happens between a 2D sheet of electronics and a surface of the tissue. However, our work suggests a new approach — to build and grow the biology up with the electronics synergistically and in a 3D interwoven format.” The finished ear is able to hear radio waves, but the research team hope to develop this further by including pressure-sensitive electronic sensors, so the ear is able to register acoustic sounds.
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Bionic’ Ear Combines Electronics and Biology

Scientists at Princeton University have used conventional printing tools to create an ear that is able to “hear” frequencies far beyond the range of human hearing. The purpose was to find an effective way to merge electronics with tissue. They used 3D printing of cells and nanoparticles followed by a cell culture to combine a coil antenna with cartilage, creating a ‘bionic ear’ 

“In general, there are mechanical and thermal challenges with interfacing electronic materials with biological materials,”  said Michael McAlpine, an assistant professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at Princeton and the lead researcher. “Previously, researchers have suggested some strategies to tailor the electronics so that this merger is less awkward. That typically happens between a 2D sheet of electronics and a surface of the tissue. However, our work suggests a new approach — to build and grow the biology up with the electronics synergistically and in a 3D interwoven format.”

The finished ear is able to hear radio waves, but the research team hope to develop this further by including pressure-sensitive electronic sensors, so the ear is able to register acoustic sounds.

Technically, YOU are the centre of the universe. There is no centre of the universe!  According to the standard theories of cosmology, the universe started with a “Big Bang” about 14 thousand million years ago and has been expanding ever since.  Yet there is no centre to the expansion; it is the same everywhere.  The Big Bang should not be visualised as an ordinary explosion.  The universe is not expanding out from a centre into space; rather, the whole universe is expanding and it is doing so equally at all places, as far as we can tell. In 1929 Edwin Hubble announced that he had measured the speed of galaxies at different distances from us, and had discovered that the farther they were, the faster they were receding.  This might suggest that we are at the centre of the expanding universe, but in fact if the universe is expanding uniformly according to Hubble’s law, then it will appear to do so from any vantage point. (X)
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Technically, YOU are the centre of the universe.

There is no centre of the universe!  According to the standard theories of cosmology, the universe started with a “Big Bang” about 14 thousand million years ago and has been expanding ever since.  Yet there is no centre to the expansion; it is the same everywhere.  The Big Bang should not be visualised as an ordinary explosion.  The universe is not expanding out from a centre into space; rather, the whole universe is expanding and it is doing so equally at all places, as far as we can tell.

In 1929 Edwin Hubble announced that he had measured the speed of galaxies at different distances from us, and had discovered that the farther they were, the faster they were receding.  This might suggest that we are at the centre of the expanding universe, but in fact if the universe is expanding uniformly according to Hubble’s law, then it will appear to do so from any vantage point. (X)

Herschel’s journey in space comes to an end Three days ago, on April 30th 2013, the life of the Herschel observatory came to an end after running out of liquid coolant. The European Space Agency mission was launched four years ago and gave scientists the ability to see much cooler regions of the universe. “Herschel gave us the opportunity to peer into the dark and cold regions of the universe that are invisible to other telescopes,” said John Grunsfeld, associate administrator for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate at NASA headquarters in Washington. “This successful mission demonstrates how NASA and ESA can work together to tackle unsolved mysteries in astronomy.” Herschel launched in May 2009, and in its almost four year lifespan Herschel definitively detected oxygen molecules in space, opened up new views on distant galaxies, and with  NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope, Herschel discovered an asteroid belt around the star Vega. “Herschel has improved our understanding of how new stars and planets form, but has also raised many new questions,” said Paul Goldsmith, NASA Herschel project scientist at JPL. “Astronomers will be following up on Herschel’s discoveries with ground-based and future space-based observatories for years to come.”
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Herschel’s journey in space comes to an end


Three days ago, on April 30th 2013, the life of the Herschel observatory came to an end after running out of liquid coolant. The European Space Agency mission was launched four years ago and gave scientists the ability to see much cooler regions of the universe.

“Herschel gave us the opportunity to peer into the dark and cold regions of the universe that are invisible to other telescopes,” said John Grunsfeld, associate administrator for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate at NASA headquarters in Washington. “This successful mission demonstrates how NASA and ESA can work together to tackle unsolved mysteries in astronomy.”

Herschel launched in May 2009, and in its almost four year lifespan Herschel definitively detected oxygen molecules in space, opened up new views on distant galaxies, and with  NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope, Herschel discovered an asteroid belt around the star Vega.

“Herschel has improved our understanding of how new stars and planets form, but has also raised many new questions,” said Paul Goldsmith, NASA Herschel project scientist at JPL. “Astronomers will be following up on Herschel’s discoveries with ground-based and future space-based observatories for years to come.”

New studies further prove that new drugs may be able to extend human and animal lifespan significantly Scientists in the US have found a biological command center responsible for the ageing process in a lump of brain the size of a brazil nut. The team identified the mechanism hidden deep inside the hypothalamus, and showed that they could manipulate it to increase or decrease the lifespan of animals. In an official experiment, the researches found that they could extend the lives of mice by 1/5th without suffering from muscle weakness, bone loss, or memory problems. Not only does this raise the fantastical idea of a hobbit sized lifetime, but raises the prospect of realistically being able to produce drugs on a mass scale to prevent age-related diseases such as diabetes, heart disease and Alzheimer’s. Dongsheng Cai at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine New York says -”We’re very excited about this! It supports the idea that ageing is more than a passive deterioration of different tissues. It is under control, and can be manipulated” The scientists discovered that a chemical known as NF-kB became more active in the study mice as they grew older. The researchers use drugs to block the substance, which increased their lifespan from an average of 800 days to 1,100. When they boosted the NF-kB in mice, they all died within 100 days. They also found that mice without NF-kB had a major effect on muscle mass, bone strength, capability to learn and skin health. Those with less or no NF-kB were far superior in these respects than the control mice. The researchers are now looking into the possibility that another chemical known as GnRH may play a central role in fertility and the development of sperm and eggs. When the scientists gave old mice daily jabs of GnRH, their lives were extended and even caused fresh neural pathways to grow in their brains.
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New studies further prove that new drugs may be able to extend human and animal lifespan significantly


Scientists in the US have found a biological command center responsible for the ageing process in a lump of brain the size of a brazil nut. The team identified the mechanism hidden deep inside the hypothalamus, and showed that they could manipulate it to increase or decrease the lifespan of animals.


In an official experiment, the researches found that they could extend the lives of mice by 1/5th without suffering from muscle weakness, bone loss, or memory problems. Not only does this raise the fantastical idea of a hobbit sized lifetime, but raises the prospect of realistically being able to produce drugs on a mass scale to prevent age-related diseases such as diabetes, heart disease and Alzheimer’s.


Dongsheng Cai at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine New York says -
”We’re very excited about this! It supports the idea that ageing is more than a passive deterioration of different tissues. It is under control, and can be manipulated”


The scientists discovered that a chemical known as NF-kB became more active in the study mice as they grew older. The researchers use drugs to block the substance, which increased their lifespan from an average of 800 days to 1,100. When they boosted the NF-kB in mice, they all died within 100 days. They also found that mice without NF-kB had a major effect on muscle mass, bone strength, capability to learn and skin health. Those with less or no NF-kB were far superior in these respects than the control mice. The researchers are now looking into the possibility that another chemical known as GnRH may play a central role in fertility and the development of sperm and eggs. When the scientists gave old mice daily jabs of GnRH, their lives were extended and even caused fresh neural pathways to grow in their brains.

Milky Way’s Youngest Black Hole Was Formed By Doomed Rotating Star  Nasa may have discovered the youngest black hole in our solar system. There is a highly distorted cloud of gas and material which is all that is left of a supernova which occurred 1,000 years ago. It is located 26,000 light years away and the black hole at its centre is thought to be the youngest in our galaxy. It is unusual in that the supernova was not symmetrical. Instead material near the poles of the doomed rotating star was ejected faster than that at its equator. “W49B is the first of its kind to be discovered in the galaxy,” said Laura Lopez, who led the study at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. “It appears its parent star ended its life in a way that most others don’t.”
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Milky Way’s Youngest Black Hole Was Formed By Doomed Rotating Star 


Nasa may have discovered the youngest black hole in our solar system. There is a highly distorted cloud of gas and material which is all that is left of a supernova which occurred 1,000 years ago. It is located 26,000 light years away and the black hole at its centre is thought to be the youngest in our galaxy.

It is unusual in that the supernova was not symmetrical. Instead material near the poles of the doomed rotating star was ejected faster than that at its equator.

“W49B is the first of its kind to be discovered in the galaxy,” said Laura Lopez, who led the study at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. “It appears its parent star ended its life in a way that most others don’t.”

Could Zebrafish lead the way in the future of shape shifting? In a 2012 study, researchers in Bristol created artificial muscles, an example of artificial transmogrification - the ability to ‘shape shift’ or simply to change physical appearance due to stimuli or independent thought. The ability to change physical form is shown in many animals, from bioluminescent sea dwellers to the common chameleon, It’s believed that these abilities are used to represent mood, to fend off predators, to communicate and to camouflage. The malleable artificial muscles were inspired by chromatophores, a specialist cell found in all of these animals, the chromatophores are organelles found in cells responsible for pigmentation change and light reflection. According to the development team, their artificial chromatophores may eventually evolve into artificial compliant skin which can stretch and deform, yet still operative effectively. Is this the future of medical science? Is skingrafting to be a thing of the past? Do stem cells have competition? Only time can tell.
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Could Zebrafish lead the way in the future of shape shifting?


In a 2012 study, researchers in Bristol created artificial muscles, an example of artificial transmogrification - the ability to ‘shape shift’ or simply to change physical appearance due to stimuli or independent thought. The ability to change physical form is shown in many animals, from bioluminescent sea dwellers to the common chameleon, It’s believed that these abilities are used to represent mood, to fend off predators, to communicate and to camouflage. The malleable artificial muscles were inspired by chromatophores, a specialist cell found in all of these animals, the chromatophores are organelles found in cells responsible for pigmentation change and light reflection. According to the development team, their artificial chromatophores may eventually evolve into artificial compliant skin which can stretch and deform, yet still operative effectively. Is this the future of medical science? Is skingrafting to be a thing of the past? Do stem cells have competition? Only time can tell.

The Incredible Story Of The Apollo 13 Accident “The Apollo 13 malfunction was caused by an explosion and rupture of oxygen tank no. 2 in the service module. The explosion ruptured a line or damaged a valve in the no. 1 oxygen tank, causing it to lose oxygen rapidly. The service module bay no.4 cover was blown off. All oxygen stores were lost within about 3 hours, along with loss of water, electrical power, and use of the propulsion system.” (X)
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The Incredible Story Of The Apollo 13 Accident

“The Apollo 13 malfunction was caused by an explosion and rupture of oxygen tank no. 2 in the service module. The explosion ruptured a line or damaged a valve in the no. 1 oxygen tank, causing it to lose oxygen rapidly. The service module bay no.4 cover was blown off. All oxygen stores were lost within about 3 hours, along with loss of water, electrical power, and use of the propulsion system.” (X)

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