Tuesday 2 July 2019

Chileans and Argentines gape at total solar eclipse

Tens of thousands of tourists and locals gaped skyward Tuesday as a rare total eclipse of the sun began to darken the heavens over northern Chile.

* This article was originally published here

Ossia suits up for new day in wireless charging

Technology advances by leaps, bounds—and stagnates in a stubborn flat line. Technology has showcased machines that can learn how to make a sophisticated pizza, identify individuals by heartbeat and bring self-driving cars to move, stop and park. We are still, however, sentenced to charging pads and holding patterns on walls to juice our devices.

* This article was originally published here

Novel computer model supports cancer therapy

Researchers from the Life Sciences Research Unit (LSRU) of the University of Luxembourg have developed a computer model that simulates the metabolism of cancer cells. They used the programme to investigate how combinations of drugs could be used more effectively to stop tumour growth. The biologists have now published their findings in the scientific journal EBioMedicine of the prestigious Lancet group.

* This article was originally published here

Heavy rainfall ends prolonged drought in Southern Plains

The rooms at Crappie King Cabins near northwestern Oklahoma's Canton Lake were mostly empty when much of the state and the rest of the Southern Plains were in the grip of a prolonged, withering drought that sent lake levels plummeting.

* This article was originally published here

Smart glasses follow our eyes, focus automatically

Though it may not have the sting of death and taxes, presbyopia is another of life's guarantees. This vision defect plagues most of us starting about age 45, as the lenses in our eyes lose the elasticity needed to focus on nearby objects. For some people reading glasses suffice to overcome the difficulty, but for many people the only fix, short of surgery, is to wear progressive lenses.

* This article was originally published here

It's dog eat dog on the canine social ladder

Climbing the social ladder is a ruff business for dogs, new research shows.

* This article was originally published here

Tiny motor can 'walk' to carry out tasks

Years ago, MIT Professor Neil Gershenfeld had an audacious thought. Struck by the fact that all the world's living things are built out of combinations of just 20 amino acids, he wondered: Might it be possible to create a kit of just 20 fundamental parts that could be used to assemble all of the different technological products in the world?

* This article was originally published here