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Artist’s concept of primary tumor (credit: Barts Cancer Institute/QMUL)

Metastasis (spread of cancer) is one of the biggest challenges in cancer treatment. It is often not the original tumor that kills, but secondary growths. But a key question in cancer research has been how vulnerable cancer cells are able to survive once they break away from a tumor to spread around the body.

“Metastasis is currently incurable and remains one of the key targets of cancer research,” said lead researcher Stéphanie Kermorgant, PhD, from Barts Cancer Institut at Queen Mary University of London (QMUL). “Our research advances the knowledge of how two key molecules communicate and work together to help cancer cells survive during metastasis. We’re hoping that this might lead to the discovery of new drugs to block the spread of cancer within the body.”

Metastasizing cancer cells, as one enters a blood vessel (artist’s concept) (credit: Barts Cancer Institute/QMUL)

The study, published in an open-access paper in Nature Communications, examined the changes that occur in cancer cells as they break away from tumors in cell cultures in mice and zebrafish. The research revealed a previously unknown survival mechanism in cancer cells and found that molecules known as “integrins” could be key.

Continue reading “Unexpected discovery reveals secret of how cancer spreads in the body” | >

A new study found that higher concentrations of NAA (N-acetyl aspartate) in two areas of the brain were associated with better performance on verbal and spatial tests. NAA is a byproduct of glucose metabolism and an indicator of brain health. (credit: Julie McMahon and Erick Paul)

A new study helps explain how brain structure and chemistry relate to “fluid intelligence” — the ability to adapt to new situations and solve problems one has never encountered before.

The study, reported in an open-access paper in the journal NeuroImage, observed two facets of fluid intelligence*:

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When a nuclear technology has been kept classified since the 60s, you know that it is worth looking into. The Casaba Howitzer is one configuration for a nuclear shaped charge, that can concentrate the power of an atom bomb into a narrow cone.

In this post, we’ll look at its potential configurations, its advantages and limits, and how it can be applied to both propulsion and warfare.

Origins

Before the Casaba Howitzer, there was Project Orion.

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To start a fusion reaction, you have to create extreme conditions. A combination of stellar temperatures, incredible pressures and lightning-quick energy dumps have all been tried to create these conditions, with varying degrees of success.

In this post, we’ll look at a low-cost, low-energy method of achieving nuclear fusion. It’s not Cold Fusion, it’s Gun Fusion.

Understanding what’s difficult

Nuclear fusion, as you may already know, is the addition of two atomic nuclei to create products with a slightly lower mass. The difference in mass is released as energy. If you’ve sat through basic chemistry, you’ll know that atoms contains electrons, protons and neutrons. Two of these are charged — they act through electromagnetic forces to repel or attract each other.

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Physicists in the US presently made the most precise measurement ever made of the present rate of growth of the Universe, but there is a problem: our Universe is expanding 8 percent quicker than our present laws of physics can give details. Currently astronomers are looking over once more at their measurements and if turn out to be right, this latest measurement will automatically force us to redefine how dark substance and dark energy have been manipulating the evolution of the Universe for the past 13.8 billion years, and that can’t be done without changing or addition something in the typical model of particle Physics.

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I am glad folks are listening. To get buy in for driverless autos will require proof and campaign showing the safety features of a driverless car over non-driverless. Along with this, auto makers will/ MUST prove that these cars cannot be breeched and controlled by hackers. Until we have safety proven and presented to the public like Volvo did in the late 80s; self driving cars will not be adopted broadly; it will be limited to metro cities in the US.

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Glad to see others finding value in using Q-Dots with Graphene.

The development of photodetectors has been a matter of considerable interest in the past decades since their applications are essential to many different fields including cameras, medical devices, safety equipment, optical communication devices or even surveying instruments, among others.

Many efforts have been focused towards optoelectronic research in trying to create low cost photodetectors with high sensitivity, high quantum efficiency, high gain and fast photoresponse. This is of paramount importance especially in the short wave infrared which currently is addressed by very expensive III-V InGaAs photodetectors. The development of two main classes of photodetectors, photodiodes and phototransistors, have partially been able to accomplish these goals because even though they both have many outstanding properties, none seem to fulfill all of these requirements. While photodiodes are much faster than phototransistors, phototransistors have a higher gain and do not require low noise preamplifiers for their use.

To overcome these limitations, ICFO researchers Ivan Nikitskiy, Stijn Goossens, Dominik Kufer, Tania Lasanta, Gabriele Navickaite, led by ICREA professors at ICFO Frank Koppens and Gerasimos Konstantatos, have been able to develop a hybrid photodetector capable of attaining concomitantly better performance features in terms of speed, quantum efficiency and linear dynamic range, operating not only in the visible but also in the near infrared (NIR: 700-1400nm) and SWIR range (1400-3000nm). At the same time this technology is based upon materials that can be monolithically integrated with Si CMOS electronics as well as flexible electronic platforms. The results of this work have been recently published in Nature Communications.

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Good luck with that one Russia. Just to deadly for me.

To teleport from one place to another has, and still remains, one of the most sought-after technologies since it was first conceived in the writings of our greatest science fiction authors.

Few won’t have gawped at Star Trek’s transporter and while we’ve managed to conquer many of the technologies first outlined in the series this one has evaded us so far.

Well it looks like Russia isn’t going to let that stand any longer.

Continue reading “Russia’s Planning To Develop A Teleportation Device By 2035” | >