Supersolidity flows back

By Eugenie Samuel Reich

Supersolids--bizarre quantum solids that flow effortlessly, as they have no friction--have come back into the limelight. [More]

Physics - People - Theoretical - Quantum Computing - Quantum Mechanics

Graphic Content | Thurston Moore's Indie Books

Worms for brains: Can genes point the way to the cerebral cortex's common ancestor with marine annelids?

Marine worms might seem like lowly, slow-witted creatures, but new gene mapping shows that we might share an ancient brainy ancestor with them. [More]

Gene - Annelid - Cerebral cortex - Common descent - Worms

60 MPG Is Good Deal for Consumers, Environment and Jobs

By Roland Hwang

Today, a consumer group, Consumer Federation of America, released a new study that clearly shows stronger pollution and fuel efficiency standards that result in 60 miles per gallon by 2025 is good for consumers’ pocketbooks. But not only do consumers win, it also means less pollution, less oil dependency, and a stronger, more competitive auto industry. It’s one of the best examples of why good environmental and clean energy policy goes hand-in-hand with lowering consumer fuel bills and restoring American industry to a leadership position.

Achieving 60 mpg by 2025 can be done by using and improving on technologies that already exist, such as hybrid electric cars and electric vehicles. In fact, according to a new study released yesterday by the University of Michigan, the technical potential is to triple fuel economy to 74 mpg, even before considering plug-in hybrids and electric vehicles. We have learned from cell phones, microwaves, and computers that higher volumes can lead to dramatic improvement in innovation and drive down costs.

Raising standards to 60 mpg is good for consumers, good for the environment and good for jobs. Here are the top three reasons why we...

In Otherwise Dismal Month, Fusion Hybrid Doubles Sales

Ford Fusion Hybrid

The U.S. auto market experienced its weakest August sales since 1983. Overall sales dropped by 21 percent compared to last August, when the Cash for Clunkers programs gave an all-too-brief boost to car sales.

Gas-electric hybrids, which disproportionately benefited from Clunkers a year ago, took a harder fall in August, dropping by 38 percent compared to last year. In a rare bright spot, the Ford Fusion Hybrid—a vehicle that racked up numerous “Car of the Year” awards in 2010—saw big gains in sales in August. Ford sold 3,010 Fusion Hybrids—up from 1,226 a year ago and nearly double from last month’s sales.

As usual, any single month’s sales figures—whether way up or down—should not be taken as a long-term trend.

Yet, August once again proved that the fortunes of the hybrid market are dominated by the Toyota Prius. Sales of the iconic hybrid model fell by nearly 38 percent compared to a year ago—the same percentage drop as the overall hybrid market. Toyota sold 11,799 Priuses, well below the nearly 19,000 sales from August 2009, when the vehicle was one of the most popular models during Cash for Clunkers.

Physics of free kicks: The hidden advantage of long-distance soccer shots

When Brazilian defender Roberto Carlos struck a powerful free-kick from about 30 meters out in a 1997 international match against France, he could not have known that scientists would still be discussing his feat more than a dozen years later. Indeed, he could not even have known that the ball would improbably find the back of the net . But find the net it did, swinging well wide of a wall of French defenders, hooking viciously to the left, and glancing off the inside of the goalpost. The French goalkeeper could only turn and watch in apparent disbelief as the ball came to rest in his goal. [More]

Roberto Carlos - Physics - France - Association football - Goalkeeper

Design and Geoscience Collaborate

Rabbit Rest: Can Lab-grown Human Skin Replace Animals in Toxicity Testing?

It likely comes as no surprise that many common household chemicals and medical products as well as industrial and agricultural chemicals, may irritate human skin temporarily or, worse, cause permanent, corrosive burns. In order to prevent undue harm regulators in the U.S. and beyond require safety testing of many substances to identify their potential hazards and to ensure that the appropriate warning label appears on a product. Traditionally, such skin tests have been done on live animals--although in recent decades efforts to develop humane approaches , along with ones that are more relevant to people have resulted in new models based on laboratory-grown human skin.

The most recent chapter of this ongoing effort was written on July 22 when the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)--an international group that, among other things, provides guidelines to its 32-member countries on methods to assess chemical safety--officially approved three commercially available in vitro models of human skin for use in chemical testing. Specifically, the new guideline ( OECD Test No. 439 ) stipulates that the models can serve as an alternative to animals in tests for skin irritation, one of several human health endpoints for which chemicals are tested. Similar 3-D models were...