HEADLINES ARCHIVE
Artificial Sweetners in Groundwater Signal Contamination from Septic Systems
Researchers have determined that the presence of artificial sweeteners in rural groundwater is evidence of local septic system wastewater contamination.
Watch: A Call for Citizen Scientists in the UK
Submit or explore environmental monitoring data using the interactive maps and graphs made available by Open Air Laboratories.
Restaurant Wait Time Feature Added to Google
The days of waiting for a table at your favorite restaurant to open up may be gone forever thanks to a new feature available from Google.
It's Official: Twitter Doubles Character Limit to 280
Have twice the things to tweet? Twitter announced on Tuesday that it will oblige, doubling the number of characters per tweet from 140 to 280.
Liquid Transistor Could Enable Programmable Material
A breakthrough in the development of liquid electronics could pave the way to producing soft, flexible electronic devices.
New Ultrafast Scan Rate Miniature Spectrometer for High Speed Applications!
The Ocean FX® from Ocean Optics is a versatile spectrometer with acquisition speed up to 4,500 scans per second, onboard averaging of up to 5,000 spectra for improved signal to ratio (SNR) and minimal data transfer time. Ocean FX is an excellent choice for high-speed process applications, measurement of fast events, and reaction monitoring!
Compact and Adaptable X-ray Fluorescence Device
This versatile X-ray fluorescence instrument is optimized for coating thickness measurement and alloy analysis. It provides for precise thickness measurements in a range of configurations including use as a handheld instrument, a fully enclosed desktop instrument or whether it is integrated directly into production lines.
Large-scale Use of Driverless Vehicles Still Decades Away: Report
A new report from Netherlands-based 2getthere says totally driverless roadways are unlikely during the next few decades, and may not ever come to pass on a large scale.
Thousands of Lives Could Be Saved by Earlier Introduction of Autonomous Vehicles, According to Report
Instead of waiting until the technology behind autonomous vehicles is perfected before being widely used in the U.S., research from the RAND Corporation indicates that using the technology — imperfect though it may be — could still save thousands of lives each year.
Moving Bus Stop Locations Could Cut Riders' Pollution Exposure
Consequently, the research team believes that exposure to pollutants would be dramatically reduced by moving bus and light rail stops 120 feet from high-traffic intersections.
Students Develop Eye-activated Controller
The sensor, called Vee Vee, will be placed on the wearer’s temple and will, through commands sent via eye movement, allow the wearer to control items such as electric wheelchairs, door locks and drones.
Robotic Exploration and Settlement of Lunar Caves
Now that the existence of lunar caves has been confirmed, the caves need to be explored, mapped and characterized. Before human astronauts are sent to explore the caves, robotic explorers will be designed and sent to the moon cave because there are too many unknown factors.
China Introduces Massive Island-building Vessel
The boat is expected to be operational in June 2018 after completing a final round of tests.
Decorative Drinking Glasses Can Contain Harmful Levels of Lead, Cadmium
Using portable x-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectrometry to analyze different drinking glass types such as tumblers, beer and wine glasses, and jars, researchers determined that lead levels on some of the glassware exceeded limits — in some cases by as much as 1,000 times.
10 Percent of Meat Dishes Sold in Mexico Contain Horse Meat, According to Study
According to a study conducted by researchers from the School of Veterinary Medicine at Mexico's National Autonomous University, nearly 10 percent of the meat sold in five Mexican cities contained horse DNA.
Watch: Crops Thrive in Magenta Solar Greenhouse
Healthy plants were grown under transparent roof panels embedded with a bright magenta luminescent dye that absorbs light and transfers energy to narrow photovoltaic strips.
Optical Device May Lead to Cleaner Air and Skies
A new optical device at Sandia National Laboratories that helps image pollutants in combusting fuel sprays might lead to clearer skies in the future.
Study Looks at Consumer Feelings About Lab-grown Meat
Although complex to produce, researchers believe that developing actual meat that doesn’t require raising and killing animals might be a future solution to issues surrounding meat consumption.
Shopping with Amazon's New Augmented Reality Feature
Joining a growing number of retailers adding augmented reality (AR) features to their apps and websites, Amazon announced this week the launch of its new AR feature called AR View, which is available in the Amazon app for iOS devices.
Electric Actuators with Three-phase Power and Torque Switch Options
Hayward Flow Control's premier electric actuator product line, designed to fit applications ranging from basic control to fully optioned solutions, now includes three-phase power and torque switch options.