Lifeboat Foundation

Using supersonic gas and sound waves, researchers have shown that one of Stephen Hawking’s theories about black holes was right all along.

🔥 Absolutely beautiful video created using still images taken by the Cassini spacecraft during its flyby of Jupiter and while at Saturn. Shown is Io and Europa over Jupiter’s Great Red Spot and then Titan as it passes over Saturn and it’s edge-on rings. NASA/JPL-Caltech/SSI/CICLOPS/Kevin M. Gill.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/kevinmgill/44583965185/?fbclid…quZjFTDy_s

West virginia university takes top prize in NASA test of concepts to extract water on the moon and mars.

Continue reading “West Virginia University Takes Top Prize in Moon to Mars Ice Challenge” »

Pack your bags, we’re heading to Mars.

Barcodes are used in a new way in the MAGESTIC platform, adding a new level of precision to CRISPR gene editing.

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There’s nothing quite like a captivating image to make you want to learn more. And nowhere is that more apparent than when it comes to sometimes hard-to-understand science. Before we all get too settled into 2019, we thought we’d take a look back at some of our best pictures from 2018. If you missed these images the first time we shared them — on our website or in social media — we hope you’ll take the time this go-round to learn a little bit more about what we do.

AUTHOR’s NOTE: These images were all shared by NIST for the first time in 2018. Some may have been taken prior to that year. Images are listed below in no particular order.

Continue reading “Top NIST Images of 2018” »

Although NIST has now published the data needed to generate match statistics for NGS-based profiles, other hurdles must still be cleared before the new technology sees widespread use in forensics. For instance, labs will have to develop ways to manage the greater amounts of data produced by NGS. They will also have to implement operating procedures and quality controls for the new technology. Still, while much work remains, said Peter Vallone, the research chemist who leads NIST’s forensic genetics research, “We’re laying the foundation for the future.”

DNA is often considered the most reliable form of forensic evidence, and this reputation is based on the way DNA experts use statistics. When they compare the DNA left at a crime scene with the DNA of a suspect, experts generate statistics that describe how closely those DNA samples match. A jury can then take those match statistics into account when deciding guilt or innocence.

These match statistics are reliable because they’re based on rigorous scientific research. However, that research only applies to DNA fingerprints, also called DNA profiles, that have been generated using current technology. Now, scientists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have laid the statistical foundation for calculating match statistics when using Next Generation Sequencing, or NGS, which produces DNA profiles that can be more useful in solving some crimes. This research, which was jointly funded by NIST and the FBI, was published in Forensic Science International: Genetics.

Continue reading “NIST Builds Statistical Foundation for Next-Generation Forensic DNA Profiling” »

The microwave auditory effect, also known as the microwave hearing effect or the Frey effect, consists of audible clicks (or, with speech modulation, spoken words) induced by pulsed/modulated microwave frequencies… The cause is thought to be thermoelastic expansion of portions of the auditory apparatus.

Abstract: