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href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/low-impact-hobbit-home/20058/" title="Low-impact Hobbit home only cost US$4,650 to build"></a></li> <li id="top_story1"><a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/steve-jobs/20063/" title="Steve Jobs dead at 56"></a></li> <li id="top_story2"><a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/us-military-throwable-robots/20052/" title="U.S military to field-test “throwable” robots in Afghanistan"></a></li> <li id="top_story3"><a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/solar-collector-runs-air-conditioner/20029/" title="Solar thermal collection system uses Sun's heat to keeps things cool"></a></li> <li id="top_story4"><a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/f-35b-jsf-vertical-landing-at-sea/20051/" title="F-35B completes first vertical landing at sea"></a></li> </ul> <ul id="titles"> <li><a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/low-impact-hobbit-home/20058/">Low-impact Hobbit home only cost US$4,650 to build</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/steve-jobs/20063/">Steve Jobs dead at 56</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/us-military-throwable-robots/20052/">U.S military to field-test “throwable” robots in Afghanistan</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/solar-collector-runs-air-conditioner/20029/">Solar thermal collection system uses Sun's heat to keeps things cool</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/f-35b-jsf-vertical-landing-at-sea/20051/">F-35B completes first vertical landing at sea</a></li> </ul> <div class="clear_both"></div> <a id="more" class="orange" href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/top_stories/">MORE TOP STORIES » </a> <div class="clear_both"></div> </div> <div id="content" class="narrow_content"><h1>Science and Education</h1> <div class="summary_item noback"> <div class="summary_details"> <div class="sd_top"> </div> <div class="clear_both"> <h2><a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/alma-telescope-first-image/20050/">ALMA opens for business: First image from world's most complex astronomical telescope</a></h2> <div class="summary_details_left"> <p>By <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/author/randolph-jonsson/">Randolph Jonsson</a></p> <p><em>23:37 October 5, 2011</em></p> </div> <div class="summary_details_right"> <p></p> <p><img src="/web/20111006133829im_/http://www.gizmag.com/images/icons/splashyIcons/image_modernist.png" alt=""/> <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/alma-telescope-first-image/20050/picture/144091/">16 Pictures</a></p> </div> </div> </div> <center><a class="noback" href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/alma-telescope-first-image/20050/"><img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20111006133829im_/http://images.gizmag.com/hero/alma_telescope_array.jpg" title="Still under construction, ALMA is the most powerful telescope of its kind in the world (Ph..." alt="Still under construction, ALMA is the most powerful telescope of its kind in the world (Ph..."/></a></center> <div class="summary"> <p>In a moment long-awaited by thousands of astronomers from around the globe, a cluster of precision radio telescopes located on the barren Chajnantor Plateau of northern Chile has finally gone operational. Although only partially complete, ALMA, or the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array, is already considered the most advanced telescope of it's type. Certainly, it's the highest, with a literally breath-taking base elevation of 16,500 feet (5000m). <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/alma-telescope-first-image/20050/">Read More</a> </p> </div> </div> <div class="summary_item "> <div class="summary_details"> <div class="sd_top"> </div> <div class="clear_both"> <h2><a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/invisibility-cloak-mirages/20048/">New cloaking device is no mirage – but it's like one</a></h2> <div class="summary_details_left"> <p>By <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/author/ben-coxworth/">Ben Coxworth</a></p> <p><em>14:44 October 4, 2011</em></p> </div> <div class="summary_details_right"> <p><img src="/web/20111006133829im_/http://www.gizmag.com/images/icons/splashyIcons/comments.png" alt=""/> <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/invisibility-cloak-mirages/20048/#comments">11 Comments</a> </p> <p></p> </div> </div> </div> <center><a class="noback" href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/invisibility-cloak-mirages/20048/"><img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20111006133829im_/http://images.gizmag.com/hero/miragecloak.jpg" title="A new 'invisibility cloak' utilizes the same effect that causes mirages to appear (Image: ..." alt="A new 'invisibility cloak' utilizes the same effect that causes mirages to appear (Image: ..."/></a></center> <div class="summary"> <p>You have no doubt seen mirages on the distant surfaces of hot highways before, looking like pools of water shimmering on the asphalt. Such illusions are caused by hot air above the road, which refracts light waves coming down into it from the cooler air above – in other words, the supposed “water” is actually the sky, its image being bent toward you by the low-lying hot air. Well, scientists at the University of Texas at Dallas have put the same principle to work in the lab, and created an invisibility cloak that can be easily switched on and off. <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/invisibility-cloak-mirages/20048/">Read More</a> </p> </div> </div> <div class="summary_item "> <div class="summary_details"> <div class="sd_top"> </div> <div class="clear_both"> <h2><a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/nobel-physics-prize-awarded/20047/">Nobel Prize in Physics goes to expanding-universe researchers</a></h2> <div class="summary_details_left"> <p>By <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/author/ben-coxworth/">Ben Coxworth</a></p> <p><em>13:26 October 4, 2011</em></p> </div> <div class="summary_details_right"> <p><img src="/web/20111006133829im_/http://www.gizmag.com/images/icons/splashyIcons/comments.png" alt=""/> <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/nobel-physics-prize-awarded/20047/#comments">5 Comments</a> </p> <p></p> </div> </div> </div> <center><a class="noback" href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/nobel-physics-prize-awarded/20047/"><img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20111006133829im_/http://images.gizmag.com/hero/nobelphysics-1.jpg" title="The Nobel Prize in Physics for 2011 has been awarded to three scientists, whose research p..." alt="The Nobel Prize in Physics for 2011 has been awarded to three scientists, whose research p..."/></a></center> <div class="summary"> <p>For almost a hundred years, it has been widely accepted that the Universe is expanding, and that it’s been doing so ever since the Big Bang occurred approximately 14 billion years ago. It was initially assumed that the rate of expansion was slowly declining. What came as a surprise to many scientists, however, was the relatively recent announcement that the rate is in fact <em>increasing</em>. That was the remarkable conclusion reached by three physicists located in two countries, and it has just earned them the Nobel Prize in Physics for 2011. <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/nobel-physics-prize-awarded/20047/">Read More</a> </p> </div> </div> <div class="summary_item "> <div class="summary_details"> <div class="sd_top"> </div> <div class="clear_both"> <h2><a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/solar-collector-runs-air-conditioner/20029/">Solar thermal collection system uses Sun's heat to keeps things cool</a></h2> <div class="summary_details_left"> <p>By <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/author/ben-coxworth/">Ben Coxworth</a></p> <p><em>10:08 October 4, 2011</em></p> </div> <div class="summary_details_right"> <p><img src="/web/20111006133829im_/http://www.gizmag.com/images/icons/splashyIcons/comments.png" alt=""/> <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/solar-collector-runs-air-conditioner/20029/#comments">8 Comments</a> </p> <p></p> </div> </div> </div> <center><a class="noback" href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/solar-collector-runs-air-conditioner/20029/"><img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20111006133829im_/http://images.gizmag.com/hero/xcpc.jpg" title="Professor Roland Winston and his student team, with an array of External Compound Paraboli..." alt="Professor Roland Winston and his student team, with an array of External Compound Paraboli..."/></a></center> <div class="summary"> <p>Given that it typically gets hottest outside when the sunlight is most direct, it would make sense to have air conditioners that were powered by the thermal energy from solar rays. Unfortunately, collecting enough of that energy in a cost-effective manner can be challenging. Now, however, a team of University of California, Merced students have created a solar thermal collection system that is said to be significantly simpler, cheaper and more efficient than anything that’s come before. <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/solar-collector-runs-air-conditioner/20029/">Read More</a> </p> </div> </div> <div class="summary_item "> <div class="summary_details"> <div class="sd_top"> </div> <div class="clear_both"> <h2><a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/epteri-dish/20031/">Petri dish gets 21st Century update</a></h2> <div class="summary_details_left"> <p>By <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/author/darren-quick/">Darren Quick</a></p> <p><em>22:25 October 3, 2011</em></p> </div> <div class="summary_details_right"> <p></p> <p><img src="/web/20111006133829im_/http://www.gizmag.com/images/icons/splashyIcons/image_modernist.png" alt=""/> <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/epteri-dish/20031/picture/143883/">3 Pictures</a></p> </div> </div> </div> <center><a class="noback" href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/epteri-dish/20031/"><img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20111006133829im_/http://images.gizmag.com/hero/epetridish.jpg" title="The ePetri prototype uses an image sensor and a smartphone's LED display as a scanning lig..." alt="The ePetri prototype uses an image sensor and a smartphone's LED display as a scanning lig..."/></a></center> <div class="summary"> <p>When it comes to laboratory equipment, it doesn’t get much more basic than the humble petri dish. Aside from moving from glass to plastic and the addition of rings on their lids and bases that allows them to be stacked, the petri dish has remained largely unchanged since its invention by German bacteriologist Julius Richard Petri and his assistant Robert Koch in the late 1800s. Now researchers at the California Institute of technology (Caltech) have dragged the petri dish into the 21st Century by incorporating an image sensor like those found in mobile phone cameras that does away with the need for bulky microscopes. <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/epteri-dish/20031/">Read More</a> </p> </div> </div> <div class="summary_item "> <div class="summary_details"> <div class="sd_top"> </div> <div class="clear_both"> <h2><a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/2011-ig-nobel-prize-winners/20013/">Celebrate the unusual, honor the imaginative: 2011 Ig Nobel Prize winners announced</a></h2> <div class="summary_details_left"> <p>By <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/author/pawel-piejko/">Pawel Piejko</a></p> <p><em>22:09 October 3, 2011</em></p> </div> <div class="summary_details_right"> <p><img src="/web/20111006133829im_/http://www.gizmag.com/images/icons/splashyIcons/comments.png" alt=""/> <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/2011-ig-nobel-prize-winners/20013/#comments">2 Comments</a> </p> <p></p> </div> </div> </div> <center><a class="noback" href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/2011-ig-nobel-prize-winners/20013/"><img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20111006133829im_/http://images.gizmag.com/hero/2011-ig-nobel-prize-winners.jpg" title="Japanese scientists received Ig Nobel for chemistry by determining the airborne density of..." alt="Japanese scientists received Ig Nobel for chemistry by determining the airborne density of..."/></a></center> <div class="summary"> <p>A Wasabi Smoke Alarm, the impact of urinary urgency on decision-making and the discovery that a certain kind of beetle copulates with beer bottles were among the achievements honored in this year's Ig Nobel Prize ceremony at Harvard University. <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/2011-ig-nobel-prize-winners/20013/">Read More</a> </p> </div> </div> <div class="summary_item "> <div class="summary_details"> <div class="sd_top"> </div> <div class="clear_both"> <h2><a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/heat-harvesting-material-microwave-oven/20007/">New heat-harvesting material made in $40 microwave oven</a></h2> <div class="summary_details_left"> <p>By <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/author/ben-coxworth/">Ben Coxworth</a></p> <p><em>14:22 September 30, 2011</em></p> </div> <div class="summary_details_right"> <p><img src="/web/20111006133829im_/http://www.gizmag.com/images/icons/splashyIcons/comments.png" alt=""/> <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/heat-harvesting-material-microwave-oven/20007/#comments">6 Comments</a> </p> <p></p> </div> </div> </div> <center><a class="noback" href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/heat-harvesting-material-microwave-oven/20007/"><img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20111006133829im_/http://images.gizmag.com/hero/heatmaterial-1.jpg" title="Researchers have created an efficient new thermoelectric nanomaterial, that could be used ..." alt="Researchers have created an efficient new thermoelectric nanomaterial, that could be used ..."/></a></center> <div class="summary"> <p>Virtually all electrical devices and industrial processes create heat as they operate, which is typically wasted. In the past several years, various thermoelectric technologies have been developed to address that situation, by <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/mit-research-harness-waste-heat/13404/" target="_blank">converting such heat into electricity</a>. The ideal material for the purpose would be one that has a high electrical conductivity, but a low thermal conductivity – that way, it could carry plenty of electricity without losing efficiency through overheating. Unfortunately, electrical and thermal conductivity usually seem to go hand in hand. With some help from an ordinary microwave oven, however, researchers from New York’s Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have created a nanomaterial that appears to fit the bill. <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/heat-harvesting-material-microwave-oven/20007/">Read More</a> </p> </div> </div> <div class="summary_item "> <div class="summary_details"> <div class="sd_top"> </div> <div class="clear_both"> <h2><a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/energy-storage-membrane-created/19996/">New material claimed to store more energy and cost less money than batteries</a></h2> <div class="summary_details_left"> <p>By <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/author/ben-coxworth/">Ben Coxworth</a></p> <p><em>14:00 September 29, 2011</em></p> </div> <div class="summary_details_right"> <p><img src="/web/20111006133829im_/http://www.gizmag.com/images/icons/splashyIcons/comments.png" alt=""/> <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/energy-storage-membrane-created/19996/#comments">26 Comments</a> </p> <p></p> </div> </div> </div> <center><a class="noback" href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/energy-storage-membrane-created/19996/"><img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20111006133829im_/http://images.gizmag.com/hero/energymembrane.JPG" title="The low-cost, high-density energy-storage membrane, created at the National University of ..." alt="The low-cost, high-density energy-storage membrane, created at the National University of ..."/></a></center> <div class="summary"> <p>Researchers from the National University of Singapore’s Nanoscience and Nanotechnology Initiative (NUSNNI) have created what they claim is the world’s first energy-storage membrane. Not only is the material soft and foldable, but it doesn’t incorporate liquid electrolytes that can spill out if it’s damaged, it's more cost-effective than capacitors or traditional batteries, <em>and</em> it's reportedly capable of storing more energy. <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/energy-storage-membrane-created/19996/">Read More</a> </p> </div> </div> <div class="summary_item "> <div class="summary_details"> <div class="sd_top"> </div> <div class="clear_both"> <h2><a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/reconstructing-visual-stimuli/19934/">Scientists reconstruct visual stimuli by reading brain activity</a></h2> <div class="summary_details_left"> <p>By <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/author/ben-coxworth/">Ben Coxworth</a></p> <p><em>13:27 September 23, 2011</em></p> </div> <div class="summary_details_right"> <p><img src="/web/20111006133829im_/http://www.gizmag.com/images/icons/splashyIcons/comments.png" alt=""/> <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/reconstructing-visual-stimuli/19934/#comments">7 Comments</a> </p> <p></p> </div> </div> </div> <center><a class="noback" href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/reconstructing-visual-stimuli/19934/"><img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20111006133829im_/http://images.gizmag.com/hero/visualstimuli.jpg" title="Scientists have created a system that is able to visually reconstruct images that people h..." alt="Scientists have created a system that is able to visually reconstruct images that people h..."/></a></center> <div class="summary"> <p>In the 1983 film <em>Brainstorm</em>, Christopher Walken played a scientist who was able to record movies of people's mental experiences, then play them back into the minds of other people. Pretty far-fetched, right? Well, maybe not. Utilizing functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) and computer models, researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, have been able to visually reconstruct the brain activity of human subjects watching movie trailers - in other words, they could see what the people's brains were seeing. <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/reconstructing-visual-stimuli/19934/">Read More</a> </p> </div> </div> <div class="summary_item "> <div class="summary_details"> <div class="sd_top"> </div> <div class="clear_both"> <h2><a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/neutrinos-faster-than-light/19933/">Faster-than-light travel observed ... of neutrinos, maybe</a></h2> <div class="summary_details_left"> <p>By <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/author/ben-coxworth/">Ben Coxworth</a></p> <p><em>10:48 September 23, 2011</em></p> </div> <div class="summary_details_right"> <p><img src="/web/20111006133829im_/http://www.gizmag.com/images/icons/splashyIcons/comments.png" alt=""/> <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/neutrinos-faster-than-light/19933/#comments">18 Comments</a> </p> <p></p> </div> </div> </div> <center><a class="noback" href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/neutrinos-faster-than-light/19933/"><img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20111006133829im_/http://images.gizmag.com/hero/cernneutrinos.jpg" title="The idea of matter traveling faster than light may no longer be limited to the realm of sc..." alt="The idea of matter traveling faster than light may no longer be limited to the realm of sc..."/></a></center> <div class="summary"> <p>According to Einstein’s restricted theory of relativity, nothing can travel faster than light in a vacuum. Up until today, that had pretty much seemed to be the case, too. Early this morning, however, researchers from the Geneva-based OPERA project announced that the results from one of their recent experiments indicate that neutrinos can in fact outrun light particles. <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/neutrinos-faster-than-light/19933/">Read More</a> </p> </div> </div> <center class="snap_noshots"> <div class="next_prev"><strong> <span>1</span> <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/scienceandeducation/2/">2</a> <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/scienceandeducation/3/">3</a> <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/scienceandeducation/4/">4</a> <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/scienceandeducation/5/">5</a> <a href="/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/scienceandeducation/2/">Next </a> » </strong></div> </center> <div class="dotsontop">  <div id="search_form_bottom"> <form action="https://web.archive.org/web/20111006133829/http://www.gizmag.com/search/" id="cse-search-box-bottom"> <span class="title">Looking for something? 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