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| December 20, 2013 |
 Researchers Design First Battery-Powered Invisibility Cloaking Device Austin TX (SPX) Dec 20, 2013 - Researchers at The University of Texas at Austin have proposed the first design of a cloaking device that uses an external source of energy to significantly broaden its bandwidth of operation. Andrea Alu, associate professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the Cockrell School of Engineering, and his team have proposed a design for an active cloak that draws ener ... more |  |
Uranium (IV) found to be mobile in a natural wetland Lausanne, Switzerland (SPX) Dec 20, 2013 - Because they are known to mop up pollutants, artificial wetlands are considered to be an efficient strategy to contain waterborne uranium. But studying a natural wetland near a former uranium-mining site in the French region of Limousin, researchers have found that under certain circumstances, uranium can be partly remobilized into the surrounding water. In a recent publication in Nature C ... more |  |
 UTSA Institute for Economic Development researches oil, gas economic impact San Antonio TX (SPX) Dec 20, 2013 - Development of oil and natural gas in a 16-county region of West Texas added more than $14.5 billion in total economic impact during 2012, according to a study released by the Center for Community and Business Research in The University of Texas at San Antonio Institute for Economic Development. Additionally, the region supported 21,450 full-time jobs for workers in oil and gas, drilling, ... more |  |
 DNA motor 'walks' along nanotube, transports tiny particle West Lafayette IN (SPX) Dec 20, 2013 - Researchers have created a new type of molecular motor made of DNA and demonstrated its potential by using it to transport a nanoparticle along the length of a carbon nanotube. The design was inspired by natural biological motors that have evolved to perform specific tasks critical to the function of cells, said Jong Hyun Choi, a Purdue University assistant professor of mechanical engineer ... more |  |
Toward lowering titanium's cost and environmental footprint for lightweight products Washington DC (SPX) Dec 20, 2013 - A novel method for extracting titanium, a metal highly valued for its light weight, high strength, corrosion resistance and biocompatibility, could lower its cost and make it more widely accessible, for example, for producing lighter car parts to improve fuel efficiency. The method, which significantly reduces the energy required to separate it from its tightly bound companion, oxygen, app ... more |  |
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'Macrocells' influence corrosion rate of submerged marine concrete structures Houston TX (SPX) Dec 20, 2013 - Using numerical modeling, an Italian research team has discovered the role 'macrocells' play in the corrosion of hollow submerged marine concrete structures such as tunnels and parking structures. In marine environments, chloride-induced corrosion of steel can quickly take a toll on hollow submerged structures such as tunnels or parking structures by degrading their concrete and reinforced ... more |  |
Roots of the Lithium Battery Problem Berkeley CA (SPX) Dec 20, 2013 - The lithium-ion batteries that power our laptops, smartphones and electric vehicles could have significantly higher energy density if their graphite anodes were to be replaced by lithium metal anodes. Hampering this change, however, has been the so-called dendrite problem. Over the course of several battery charge/discharge cycles, particularly when the battery is cycled at a fast rate, mi ... more |  |
 Never forget a face Boston MA (SPX) Dec 20, 2013 - Do you have a forgettable face? Many of us go to great lengths to make our faces more memorable, using makeup and hairstyles to give ourselves a more distinctive look. Now your face could be instantly transformed into a more memorable one without the need for an expensive makeover, thanks to an algorithm developed by researchers in MIT's Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laborat ... more |  |
 Chile's Bachelet faces big challenges on taxation, education reform Santiago, Chile (UPI) Dec 19, 2013 - Michelle Bachelet, re-elected to a second term as Chilean president, faces major challenges seen likely to bring her into conflict with an entrenched and influential rich minority and businesses fearful of tax hikes. Outgoing President Sebastian Pinera, elected 2010, promised to bring all Chileans into the 21st century - rid the country of an enduring legacy of widespread poverty, huge ... more |  |
Iraqi Kurds pump oil to Turkey amid fears of new clash Erbil, Iraq (UPI) Dec 19, 2013 - Iraq's semiautonomous Kurdish enclave has reportedly started pumping oil direct to neighboring Turkey via a new pipeline even though Baghdad has not approved the landmark deal between the Kurds and Ankara, raising concerns of a new clash with Baghdad. But the Financial Times said Baghdad is expected to endorse the pipeline deal in negotiations now under way with the Kurdistan Regional G ... more |  |
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 Japan to boost financial support for Fukushima operator Tokyo (AFP) Dec 20, 2013 - Japan will nearly double financial support for the operator of Fukushima to $86 billion, as the government vowed to speed up the removal of contaminated soil and compensation for victims. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his ministers Friday held a meeting of the nuclear emergency response headquarters and adopted new guidelines they hope will speed up recovery from the disaster more than two-a ... more |  |
Fukushima's last two reactors to be decommissioned Tokyo (UPI) Dec 19, 2013 - Tokyo Electric Power Company, operator of Japan's stricken Fukushima nuclear power plant, will decommission the facility's two remaining reactors, Units 5 and 6. Reactors 1 to 4 were declared defunct in April, 2012, 13 months after the devastating 2011 earthquake and tsunami. That leaves Japan with just 48 operable nuclear reactors, all of which remain offline, pending safety ch ... more |  |
 EU extends probe of 'eco-levy' breaks given to German industry Brussels (UPI) Dec 20, 2013 - The European Commission said this week it is moving ahead with a probe of financial breaks given to German industry under the country's green energy law. European Union Energy Commissioner Gunther Oettinger and Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia earlier this year had started a preliminary probe of certain aspects of Germany's Renewable Energies Act, or EEG, a key element of Berlin ... more |  |
Breach at Target stores may have hit 40 mn accounts New York (AFP) Dec 19, 2013 - US retail giant Target said Thursday some 40 million customers may have had bank card data compromised by hackers who broke into its database as holiday shopping got underway. Target said there had been "unauthorized access" to its payment system in US stores affecting credit and debit cards. Approximately 40 million credit and debit cards may have been affected by the breach between No ... more |  |
Zuckerberg sells as Facebook offers new shares New York (AFP) Dec 19, 2013 - Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg will sell a chunk of his stake in the company, cashing in some $2.3 billion, as part of a new share offering by the huge social network. A Facebook filing Thursday said the company would sell 70 million shares in a follow-on offering to the huge initial public offering in May 2012. Of the total amount, Zuckerberg will sell around 41 million shares, mainly t ... more |  |
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S.Africa suspends offshore oil, gas exploration Port Elizabeth, South Africa (AFP) Dec 19, 2013 - South Africa has suspended oil and gas exploration off the east coast following a complaint over the impact of underwater sound pollution on sea life, an official said Thursday. The government-run Petroleum Agency of South Africa (Pasa) halted seismic surveys along a pristine stretch of coast pending discussions between international oil firms and an environmentalist who blew the whistle on ... more |  |
Cameron vows to defend Falklands after 'momentous' year London (AFP) Dec 20, 2013 - Prime Minister David Cameron vowed Friday to defend the Falkland Islands after a "momentous" year in which residents voted to remain a British overseas territory. In a Christmas message, Cameron said the world should respect the overwhelming result of a referendum in March which came in the face of increasing calls from Argentina to negotiate the island's sovereignty. "2013 will be remem ... more |  |
China cash injection fails to soothe markets Beijing (AFP) Dec 20, 2013 - A rise in China's interbank interest rates on Friday showed that markets remain uneasy despite a cash injection by China's central bank, said dealers. The rates, which serve as the funding costs for pricing and investment, have been trending higher in recent weeks as the People's Bank of China (PBoC) had recently refrained from injecting further liquidity before Thursday's move. On Frida ... more |  |
Canada oil pipeline to Pacific clears major hurdle Ottawa (AFP) Dec 19, 2013 - Canadian regulators recommended approval Thursday of a controversial Can$7.9 billion (US$7.4 billion) pipeline to move crude from Alberta's oil sands to the Pacific Coast for shipping overseas. Enbridge Inc.'s Northern Gateway project aims to move 525,000 barrels of crude per day from Edmonton, Alberta across 1,178 kilometers (732 miles) of rugged mountain landscapes to a new marine terminal ... more |  |
 Bitcoin recovers after slumping on China bank measures Shanghai (AFP) Dec 19, 2013 - The value of the volatile virtual currency Bitcoin leapt in China on Thursday, after falling nearly 50 percent one day earlier due to new restrictions reportedly imposed by the central bank. Late Thursday Bitcoins were trading at 3,430 yuan ($565) each on China's biggest trading platform BTC China, up more than 70 percent from an intra-day low of 2,011 yuan on Wednesday. But despite the ... more |  |
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