Technology News for May 15, 2008

Cell linked to learning and memory discovered
Neuroscientists at the Queensland Brain Institute (QBI), The University of Queensland have discovered a key component of the process that regulates memory formation. ANI

To boost research, government to set up Science and Engineering board
The Union government on Thursday decided to set up a Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB) to promote basic scientific research. ANI

Net telephony latest target for hackers
Leakage of credit card and bank account details on the internet has been a regular scenario, but the latest entrant in this virtual world of identity frauds involves hackers tapping into voice-over IP telephony accounts. ANI

Pilot whales are cheetahs of the ocean
Spanish biologists have unearthed evidence that deep-sea whales, which are known to be slow and energy saving creatures, are indeed the cheetahs of the ocean. ANI

Genetically modified crops not a solution to poverty, hunger, and climate change: Report
Based on an assessment of the global agriculture scenario, experts have come to the conclusion that genetically modified (GM) crops are not a solution for poverty, hunger or climate change. ANI

Discarded PCs may provide fuel for your car someday!
Can you imagine a car being propelled by a fuel created from parts of discarded computers? Well, a team of Romanian and Turk researchers believes that it may just be possible someday. ANI

Seed aid to African farmers not meeting local communities needs: Experts
Analysts participating in a recently held international meeting of agriculture and development experts in Norwegian capital Oslo have called for alternatives to seed aid, mass handouts of seeds to crisis-stricken African farmers. ANI

Scientists capture deep-sea microorganisms that cut oceanic methane emission
A team of scientists has made a breakthrough in capturing microorganisms that are known to dramatically reduce the oceanic emission of methane into the atmosphere. ANI

Short in height? Blame your older brother
Dreaming about being tall and well built like your older brother? Well, then youre in for a bit of disappointment, for according to a new study older brothers mean smaller siblings. ANI

Fishery management actions can sometimes have unexpected outcomes
A new research has indicated that restoring fish populations such as exotic salmon and trout to the Great Lakes in America might adversely affect the health of Sea Gulls, demonstrating that fishery management actions can sometimes have very unexpected outcomes. ANI

New antennae may signal a new wave in health care provision
Soon, doctors will be able to monitor illnesses and injuries remotely through compact, wireless and power efficient body sensors, thanks to scientists at Queens University Belfast (QUB), who have developed new types of antenna that get round some limitations. ANI

Giant hole in the cosmos might not exist after all
The re-examination of a giant hole in the cosmos that shocked astrophysicists last year has indicated that the hole might not exist after all. ANI

Students innovations may improve data storage, magnetic sensors
A student of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute has come up with two innovations that may vastly improve magnetic data storage, and sense extremely low level magnetic fields in everything from ink on counterfeit currency to tissue in the human brain and heart. ANI

Robots to study growth of underwater volcanoes that build the Earths crust
Scientists from Durham University in the UK will use robots to explore the depths of the Atlantic Ocean to study the growth of underwater volcanoes that build the Earths crust. ANI

Current CO2 and methane levels highest in 800,000 years
The newest analysis of trace gases trapped in Antarctic ice cores has confirmed that current levels of concentrations of carbon dioxide and methane are the highest in 800,000 years. ANI

Aluminium oxide layer improves solar cells efficiency by over 1pc
A collaborative study by experts at Eindhoven University of Technology and Fraunhofer Institute has helped improve the efficiency of solar cells by more than one per cent. ANI

Nanowires may help to boost solar cell efficiency
Electrical engineers have created experimental solar cells spiked with nanowires that could lead to highly efficient thin-film solar cells of the future. ANI

Mechanism by which information can be recovered from black holes identified
Physicists at Penn State in the US have provided a mechanism by which information can be recovered from black holes. ANI

Robot Asimo conducts US orchestra
It was like a merger of high technology and high art when a robot conducted the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. ANI

No obvious link between violent video games and aggression in kids
It is widely believed that violent video games have a negative impact on kids, leading to increased aggression. But now a researcher at the University of Essex, England, suggest that there is no obvious link between the two. ANI

The 1930s guide to being the perfect wife
Does your wife flirt with other men at parties? Is she slow to get into bed? Or is her favourite nail polish colour red? Well, if it is so, then get set and give her a score - courtesy Marital Ratings Scale from the 1930s. ANI

Polar Bears left vulnerable after being listed as threatened, not endangered
Polar bears have been listed as threatened under the US Endangered Species Act (ESA), rather than endangered. ANI

Internal liquid ocean beneath Europas icy crust may host life
Scientists have determined that poles on Jupiters moon Europa may have wandered by almost 90 degrees, an extreme shift that suggests the existence of an internal liquid ocean beneath the icy crust, which may host life. ANI

Human-caused climate change has impacted Earths natural systems
A new NASA-led study has shown that human-caused climate change has made an impact on a wide range of Earths natural systems, including permafrost thawing, plants blooming earlier across Europe, and lakes declining in productivity in Africa. ANI

3.2 million Burmese estimated to be affected by Cyclone Nargis
Geographic risk models developed by researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Lehman College in the US have estimated that as many as 3.2 million Burmese have been affected by the devastation caused by Cyclone Nargis. ANI

Astronomers find Milky Ways youngest supernova
An international team of astronomers has found the youngest known supernova remnant in the Milky Way, which will help in understanding how often supernovae explode in our galaxy. ANI