Mobility | SilverScorpio.Com

European company develops mobile robots that are autonomous and multi-tasking

September 19, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Madrid (Spain), September 19 (ANI): An European company has developed innovative robots which are mobile, multifunctional, collaborative, autonomous and polyvalent, suitable for a wide range of work from street cleaning and rubbish collection to accompanying elderly people.

According to a report carried out in www.basqueresearch.com, this new generation of robots have been developed by TECNALIA Technological Corporation, and are a part of the European DUSTBOT research project under the remit of the VI European Framework Programme and in which TECNALIA is participating.

These latest generation robots are suitable for the monitoring of large spaces (open and closed), as guides for persons in large shopping areas (indicating to them where a particular shop or product is within a shopping centre), for accompanying elderly people or those with certain disabilities (both at home and outside), thanks to their functions of orientation, navigation, communications with others or tele-assistance centres.

They can also be used as guides in teaching spaces (museums, visitor centres), and for transport, storage and transport and goods deliveries, besides the cleaning of both open and closed surfaces, which have either difficult or easy access.

DUSTBOT has collaborative, multifunctional and autonomous robots that are capable of operating in partially destructured environments/situations based on information provided by a map.

The robots can also facilitate working in large areas, stations, airports and other types of public buildings, without being any obstacle for the activity of these places, given its reduced size, and without being a danger for members of the public, thanks to the novel system for the detection and avoidance of obstacles.

The rail station of the Euskotren company in the Bilbao neighbourhood of Atxuri in Spain was chosen for the public presentation of these devices.

The demonstration of two robot models was undertaken: the DustCart and the DustClean.

The DustCart robot, measuring 1.45 metres high and 70 Kg in weight, has a humanoid form and is designed to interact with the user and for the collection of low demand waste.

The DustClean robot, in the form of a small vehicle and measuring 96 cm high and 250 Kg in weight, cleans streets of dirt and dust. Moreover, both control the quality of air in real time.

“These robots are the solution for cleaning areas of difficult access and for the collection of rubbish at the very front door of, above all, persons who have mobility problems when moving the rubbish to the communal waste containers,” said Inaki Inzunza, Director of the Business Unit at the Tecnalia Technological Corporation. (ANI)

Filed Under: Science News Tagged With: access, activity, air, ANI, Atxuri, Autonomous Robots, avoidance, basqueresearch, bilbao, business, centre, cleaning, collection, com, company, control, corporation, danger, demand, demonstration, detection, director, dirt, door, dust, DUSTBOT, DustCart, DustClean, European Framework, Euskotren, form, framework, generation, home, humanoid, Inaki, information, interact, Inzunza, Madrid, madrid spain, map, mobile robots, mobility, monitoring, Multi Tasking, multifunctional, navigation, neighbourhood, novel, Novel System, obstacle, orientation, part, polyvalent, presentation, product, programme, project, Public, public buildings, Public Presentation, Public Thanks, quality, rail, range, remit, report, Research, robot, robot models, rubbish, Rubbish Collection, September, shop, shopping, shopping areas, Shopping Centre, size, solution, Spain, station, storage, street, system, teaching, Teaching Spaces, technological, Technological Corporation, TECNALIA, Tele Assistance, time, transport, unit, user, vehicle, VI European, visitor, waste, weight, work, www

UK fitness TV teaches bhangra workout class!

September 17, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, September 17 (ANI): A new British TV station, dedicated entirely to fitness, is offering a string of classes, including those on Bhangra.

The Fitness TV, a 24-hour station, also hosts a high heel workout class for the women who refuse to get out of their beloved stilettos. Other workouts include those based on Salsa, Hip Hop and Disco.

“Just like a personal trainer, the channel allows viewers to tailor workouts to their own levels of fitness and interests and can be easily scheduled around busy lives,” the Sun quoted a spokesman for the TV shows as saying.

“Programmes range from children’s classes including a mobility and balance workout for pre-schoolers, kids’ yoga and street dance for teenagers, while pensioners and the less mobile are offered Chairobics.

“For the more adventurous, there are boot camp-style workouts and dance-based exercise sessions for Strictly Come Dancing fans, including Bhangra, Cheerleader and 70s Disco.

“There’s even a High Heels workout for more glamorous viewers,” the spokesman added.

Fitness TV founder Luan Underwood, a former personal trainer and mum-of-two, said: “We are positioning the channel as an additional workout option, not as a replacement to gyms, fitness and wellbeing classes.

“We would like to capture the imagination of the 80 per cent of UK citizens that have never visited a gym and inspire them to do so.

“We also aim to reach people unable to visit fitness facilities, perhaps because they have young children, or time pressures that make it difficult to get to the gym for a few weeks.

“With Fitness TV, people can squeeze in a session at a time to suit them, and because the classes are constantly being updated, they’ll be more motivated to stick to them than they would an exercise DVD,” Underwood added. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: ANI, balance, Bhangra, boot, boot camp, british tv, Camp Style, cent, Chairobics, channel, cheerleader, class, dance, dancing, disco, dvd, exercise, fitness, Fitness Facilities, Fitness Workout, founder, gym, gyms, heel, heels, High, High Heel, high heels, hip, hop, hour, imagination, London, Luan Underwood, mobility, option, pensioners, personal trainer, positioning, Pre Schoolers, programmes, range, replacement, salsa, September, September 17, session, spokesman, station, street, Street Dance, string, Sun, tailor, time, Time Pressures, trainer, Tv Station, U.K, uk citizens, Wellbeing Classes, workout, workouts, yoga

Natalizumab drug improves quality of life of MS patients

September 14, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, Sept 13 (ANI): A new study has found that multiple sclerosis patients taking Tysabri (Natalizumab) experienced a significant improvement in both their physical function and psychological well-being.

“The symptoms that an MS patient deals with on a daily basis result in significant psychological and physical effects that can adversely impact their quality of life,” said Dr William Stuart, medical director of the Multiple Sclerosis Center of Atlanta.

“In a previous pivotal trial, TYSABRI not only showed a reduction in relapse rates and disability progression, but also improved quality of life.

“Results from this observational study further demonstrate the impact of TYSABRI on improving MS patients’ well-being as reported by patients who live with this disease every day,” he added.

The study assessed the health outcomes from patients’ perspectives before starting TYSABRI and after the third, sixth and 12th infusions of TYSABRI.

After six TYSABRI infusions, patients reported statistically significant improvement in disease-specific quality of life (QoL), which measures the physical impact of MS in terms of mobility and self care, as well as the psychological impact of MS in terms of anxiety/depression.

The participants also scored higher in general health-related quality of life.

The findings were presented at the 25th Congress of the European Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis (ECTRIMS). (ANI)

Filed Under: Health News Tagged With: ANI, anxiety, Anxiety Depression, atlanta, basis, care, center, committee, Congress, daily basis, day, depression, director, disability, Disability Progression, disease, dr william, Dr William Stuart, drug, ECTRIMS, European, function, Health, health outcomes, impact, improvement, life, mobility, Ms Patient, ms patients, multiple, multiple sclerosis center, Natalizumab, Observational, observational study, patient, Physical Impact, Pivotal Trial, progression, psychological impact, QoL, quality, reduction, relapse, Relapse Rates, Research, result, sclerosis, Sclerosis Patients, self, self care, Sept, significant improvement, study, treatment, trial, Tysabri, Tysabri Infusions, Washington, well-being

Oldest-known fiber materials used by humans date back to 34,000 years

September 12, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, September 11 (ANI): A team of archaeologists and paleobiologists has discovered flax fibers that are more than 34,000 years old, making them the oldest fibers known to have been used by humans.

The fibers were discovered during systematic excavations in a cave in the Republic of Georgia.

The flax, which would have been collected from the wild and not farmed, could have been used to make linen and thread, according to the researchers.

The cloth and thread would then have been used to fashion garments for warmth, sew leather pieces, make cloths, or tie together packs that might have aided the mobility of our ancient ancestors from one camp to another.

“This was a critical invention for early humans. They might have used this fiber to create parts of clothing, ropes, or baskets-for items that were mainly used for domestic activities,” said Ofer Bar-Yosef of the Harvard University, who jointly led the research with George Grant MacCurdy and Janet G. B. MacCurdy.

“We know that this is wild flax that grew in the vicinity of the cave and was exploited intensively or extensively by modern humans,” he added.

The items created with these fibers increased early humans chances of survival and mobility in the harsh conditions of this hilly region.

The flax fibers could have been used to sew hides together for clothing and shoes, to create the warmth necessary to endure cold weather.

They might have also been used to make packs for carrying essentials, which would have increased and eased mobility, offering a great advantage to a hunter-gatherer society.

Some of the fibers were twisted, indicating they were used to make ropes or strings. Others had been dyed.

Early humans used the plants in the area to color the fabric or threads made from the flax.

Today, these fibers are not visible to the eye, because the garments and items sewed together with the flax have long ago disintegrated.

Bar-Yosef, Eliso Kvavadze of the Institute of Paleobiology, and colleagues, discovered the fibers by examining samples of clay retrieved from different layers of the cave under a microscope.

Bar-Yosef and his team used radiocarbon dating to date the layers of the cave as they dug the site, revealing the age of the clay samples in which the fibers were found.

Flax fibers were also found in the layers that dated to about 21,000 and 13,000 years ago. (ANI)

Filed Under: Science News Tagged With: advantage, age, Ancient Ancestors, ANI, archaeologists, area, bar, Bar Yosef, camp, cave, clay, cloth, clothing, cold weather, date, early humans, Eliso, eye, fabric, fiber, Fiber Materials, Flax, Flax Fibers, garments, George Grant, George Grant MacCurdy, Georgia, harsh conditions, harvard, harvard university, hilly region, hunter gatherer society, Institu, institute, Invention, Janet G. B. MacCurdy, Kvavadze, leather, Leather Pieces, linen, microscope, mobility, Ofer Bar-, Oldest-known, Paleobiology, radiocarbon, region, republic, Republic Of Georgia, Research, ropes, September, site, society, survival, systematic excavations, team, thread, today, University, vicinity, warmth, Washington, weather, Yosef

Novel minimally invasive surgery for treating spinal cancer patients

September 8, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, Sep 8 (ANI): Doctors at Toronto Western Hospital have come up with a new minimally invasive, outpatient spine surgical procedure for treating cancer that has spread to the spine.

It is believed that almost 40-50 percent of metastic cancers end up in the spine and the most common primary cancers to spread to the bones of the spine are breast and lung cancer.

Spinal tumours can drastically affect a patient’s quality of life and result in pain and reduced mobility.

A spinal tumour or a growth of any kind can impinge on nerves, leading to pain, neurological problems and sometimes paralysis.

The new procedure involves a small incision in the back (the size of a loonie) in order to remove the tumour and stabilize the damaged spine.

Other than providing a shorter recovery time, its benefits also include allowing patients to receive radiation treatment shortly after surgery.

Traditional surgical methods involve a longer and more painful recovery process, thus making patients to wait weeks before resuming radiation treatment.

The combination of surgery and radiation leads to better outcomes and quality of life. (ANI)

Filed Under: Science News Tagged With: ANI, back, bones, breast, breast cancer, cancer, cancer patients, cancers, combination, growth, hospital, impinge, incision, kind, life, Loonie, lung, lung cancer, Minimally Invasive Surgery, mobility, nerves, neurological problems, novel, order, Outpatient, pain, paralysis, patient, percent, procedure, process, quality, quality of life, radiation, Radiation Treatment, recovery, recovery time, result, Sep, size, spinal, Spinal Cancer, Spinal Tumours, spine, Spine Cancer, surgery, time, toronto, Toronto Western Hospital, traditional, treatment, tumour, Washington, western

Blind people may soon be using their tongues to ‘see’

September 2, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Melbourne, Sep 2 (ANI): In a groundbreaking innovation, scientists have created an electronic device that may allow blind people to “see” using their tongues.

The extraordinary technology works by taking pictures filmed by a tiny camera, and turns the information into electrical pulses, which can be felt on the tongue.

Tests have shown that the nerves send messages to the brain, which turn these tingles back into pictures.

The tool, called the BrainPort vision device, resembles a pair of sunglasses attached by cable to a plastic lollipop.

Its users have revealed that they can make out shapes, and even read signs with fewer than 20 hours training only.

The scientists behind this innovation say that learning to picture images felt on the tongue is similar to learning to ride a bike.

The device, which collects visual data through a small digital video camera about 2.5cm in diameter, which sits in the middle of a pair of sunglasses worn by the user, could be available for sale later this year.

The information is then transmitted to a hand-held control unit, which is about the size of a mobile phone.

The unit converts the digital signal into electrical pulses and sends this to the tongue via the lollipop that sits on the tongue.

The lollipop contains a grid of 600 electrodes, which pulsate according to how much light is in that area of the picture.

The control unit allows users to zoom in and out and control light settings and electric shock intensity.

“At first, I was amazed at what the device could do. One guy started to cry when he saw his first letter,” News.com.au quoted William Seiple, research director at Lighthouse International, which has been testing it, as saying.

Robert Beckman, president of US-based Wicab which is developing the BrainPort, said: “It enables blind people to gain perception of their surroundings, displayed on their tongue. They cannot necessarily read a book but they can read a sign.”

Beckman is hoping that the device would be used to improve people’s mobility and safety. (ANI)

Filed Under: Science News Tagged With: ANI, area, bike, book, brain, BrainPort, cable, camera, cannot, com, control, device, diameter, Digital Signal, Digital Video Camera, director, electric shock, Electrical Pulses, electrodes, electronic device, grid, Groundbreaking Innovation, guy, information, innovation, intensity, international, Learning To Ride A Bike, letter, light, Light Settings, lighthouse, Lighthouse International, Lollipop, Melbourne, middle, mobility, nerves, NEWS, pair, perception, Phone, picture, plastic, president, pulsate, Research, Research Director, Robert Beckman, safety, sale, Seiple, Sep, shock, sign, signal, size, Technology, technology works, tests, Tiny Camera, tongue, Tongues, tool, training, unit, US, us-based, user, video, vision, Vision Device, Wicab, William Seiple, year

Robots may soon be serving the elderly at home just like humans do

August 29, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, August 29 (ANI): Elderly people with limited mobility may soon come to be served by robots in a manner as if they are being served by other persons, thanks to a collaborative study by three University of Illinois at Chicago engineers and a Rush University nursing specialist.

“We want to help elderly people communicate with robots, to tell them what they need, and to perform physical activities,” said Milos Zefran, UIC associate professor of electrical and computer engineering.

The three-year study, supported by a grant of 989,000 dollars from the National Science Foundation, is aimed at developing software to allow the elderly to communicate with robots that can respond to a wide range of verbal language, non-verbal gestures, and touch.

“If we can help the elderly remain independent and continue living in their own homes, that will improve their health outlook while relieving the burden on family members and health care providers,” said Zefran, the lead researcher.

The researchers say that their communication interface software will have at its core a novel adaptive and reliable recognition methodology called Recognition by Indexing and Sequencing (RISq), which will allow the robot to comprehend speech altered by impairments and to learn and adapt to such speech.

To enable a robot to understand and correctly respond to various forms of human touch, the researchers will combine techniques from natural language processing and haptics, a scientific term to describe the computerized sense of touch.

They say that the robot will also know how to respond to the user safely when performing everyday chores, such as cooking or making a bed.

“We’ll start by observing interaction between human helpers and the elderly. We’ll identify what kind of language, physical interactions and non-verbal interactions are used. Then we’ll develop a mathematical framework to model this interaction so it can be treated by the robot as a single way of communicating,” Zefran said.

The researchers say that they will program and test a robot, in order to devise refinements, as the project progresses.

“The human-robot interface is really a long-standing, open problem that won’t be solved in three years. But we’ll have a working prototype by then, and we’ll know what additional research needs to be done,” Zefran said.

He believes that this research project may also find widespread use in delivery of institutionally based health care, where routine tasks now done by nurses could be handled by robots.

“If robots can alleviate some of the burden nurses face, they then could spend more time where they’re really needed — providing the human contact that a robot can’t replace,” he said.

Zefran has revealed that his work will include developing seminars or a new graduate or upper-level undergraduate course that considers the various factors that allow robots to perform more sophisticated tasks. (ANI)

Filed Under: Science News Tagged With: ANI, August, bed, burden, care, Chicago, collaborative study, communication, communication interface, comprehend, Computer, computer engineering, contact, cooking, core, course, delivery, developing software, engineering, Everyday Chores, face, family, Foundation, framework, gestures, graduate, grant, Health, health care providers, Health Outlook, home, illinois, indexing, interaction, interface, Interface Software, kind, language, manner, Mathematical Framework, methodology, Milos, Milos Zefran, mobility, national, national science foundation, Natural Language Processing, novel, nursing, order, outlook, Physical Interactions, problem, processing, professor, program, project, prototype, range, recognition, Research, researcher, RISq, robot, robots, rush, rush university, Science, sense, sense of touch, Sequencing, software, specialist, speech, study, term, time, touch, UIC, undergraduate, University, university of illinois at chicago, use, user, Verbal Interactions, Verbal Language, Washington, way, work

Hominids’ last supper establishes the times they lived at archaeological sites

July 15, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, July 15 (ANI): An international team of scientists has analyzed the last food that the hominids consumed, in order to establish the length of their occupations at archaeological sites.

As part of the research, the scientists analyzed the dental wear of the fossils of herbivorous animals found in the French cave of Arago, which were hunted by Homo heidelbergensis.

It is the first time that an analytical method has allowed the establishment of the length of human occupations at archaeological sites.

The key is the last food that these hominids consumed.

For many years, the mobility of the groups of hominids and how long they spent in caves or outdoors has been a subject of discussion among scientists.

Now, an international team headed by researchers from the Catalan Institute of Human Paleoecology and Social Evolution (IPHES) in Tarragona has based its studies on the dental fossils of animals hunted by hominids in order to determine the vegetation in the environment and the way of life of Homo heidelbergensis.

“For the first time, a method has been put forward which allows us to establish the relative length of the human occupations at archaeological sites as, up until now, it was difficult to ascertain the difference between, for example, a single long-term occupation and a succession of shorter seasonal occupations in the same place”, said Florent Rivals, a researcher from ICREA.

In the study, the researchers analyze the dental wear of the ungulates (herbivorous mammals) caused by microscopic particles of opaline silica in plants.

These marks appear when eating takes place and erase the previous ones. This is why they are so useful.

Thanks to the “last supper phenomenon”, the scientists have been able to analyze the last food consumed by animals such as the Eurasian wild horse, the mouflon and the reindeer. “This method allows us to confirm the seasonal nature of the occupation”, Rivals added.

According to the team, the microwear of the teeth is sensitive to seasonal changes in the diet.

The application has allowed the researchers to estimate the length of the occupation of the site from the Lower Paleolithic Age in the cave of Arago (France) by the number of marks on the fossils and, therefore, the variation in the diet of several species of herbivores, as “each season presented food resources which were limited and different in the environment”, the paleontologist clarified.

“With this method, we were able to prove that at the site, which belonged to Homo heidelbergensis, there is evidence of differing mobility, as there were highly mobile groups and others with little mobility”, said Rivals. (ANI)

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: age, ANI, application, Arago, Archaeological Sites, catalan, cave, diet, difference, discussion, environment, establishment, Eurasian, evidence, evolution, example, Florent, food, fossils, France, French Cave, herbivorous animals, hominids, Homo, homo heidelbergensis, horse, human, Human Paleoecology, ICREA, institute, IPHES, July, key, last supper, length, life, method, microscopic particles, microwear, mobility, mouflon, Nature, number, occupation, opaline, order, Paleoecology, Paleolithic, paleontologist, part, phenomenon, place, reindeer, Relative Length, Research, researcher, rivals, season, Seasonal Nature, silica, site, social, Social Evolution, study, subject, succession, supper, Tarragona, team, time, ungulates, variation, vegetation, Washington, way, wear, Wild Horse

Obesity linked to increased risk of rapid cartilage loss

July 14, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, July 14 (ANI): A new study has shown that obesity, among other factors, is strongly associated with an increased risk of rapid cartilage loss.

Tibio-femoral cartilage is a flexible connective tissue that covers and protects the bones of the knee. Cartilage damage can occur due to excessive wear and tear, injury, misalignment of the joint or other factors, including osteoarthritis (the most common form of arthritis).

In osteoarthritis, the cartilage breaks down and, in severe cases, can completely wear away, leaving the joint without a cushion. The bones rub together, causing further damage, significant pain and loss of mobility.

The best way to prevent or slow cartilage loss and subsequent disability is to identify risk factors early.

“Osteoarthritis is a slowly progressive disorder, but a minority of patients with hardly any osteoarthritis at first diagnosis exhibit fast disease progression,” said the study’s lead author, Frank W. Roemer, M.D., adjunct associate professor at Boston University and co-director of the Quantitative Imaging Center at the Department of Radiology at Boston University School of Medicine.

“So we set out to identify baseline risk factors that might predict rapid cartilage loss in patients with early knee osteoarthritis or at high risk for the disease,” Dr. Roemer added.

The researchers recruited patients from the Multicenter Osteoarthritis (MOST) Study, a prospective study of 3,026 people, age 50 – 79, at risk for osteoarthritis or with early x-ray evidence of the disease.

Dr. Roemer’s study consisted of 347 knees in 336 patients. The patient group was comprised of 65.2 percent women, mean age 61.2, with a mean BMI of 29.5, which is classified as overweight. Recommended BMI typically ranges from 18.5 to 25. Only knees with minimal or no baseline cartilage damage were included.

Of 347 knees selected for the study, 20.2 percent exhibited slow cartilage loss over the 30-month follow-up period and 5.8 percent showed rapid cartilage loss.

Rapid cartilage loss was defined by a whole organ magnetic imaging score of at least 5, indicating a large full thickness loss of 75 percent in any subregion of the knee during the follow-up period.

The results showed that the top risk factors contributing to rapid cartilage loss were baseline cartilage damage, high BMI, tears or other injury to the meniscus (the cartilage cushion at the knee joint) and severe lesions seen on MRI at the initial exam. Other predictors were synovitis (inflammation of the membrane that lines the joints) and effusion (abnormal build-up of joint fluid).

Excess weight was significantly associated with an increased risk of rapid cartilage loss. No other demographic factors-including age, sex and ethnicity-were associated with rapid cartilage loss.

“As obesity is one of the few established risk factors for osteoarthritis, it is not surprising that obesity may also precede and predict rapid cartilage loss,” Dr. Roemer said.
he study has been published in the August issue of Radiology. (ANI)

Filed Under: Health News Tagged With: ''mean, adjunct, Adjunct Associate Professor, age, ANI, arthritis, August, author, Author Frank, baseline, Baseline Risk, bmi, Bones Of The Knee, boston, boston university school, boston university school of medicine, build-up, cartilage, center, cushion, damage, department, diagnosis, disability, disease, Disease Progression, disorder, Dr. Roemer, effusion, evidence, exam, excess, exhibit, Flexible Connective Tissue, form, Frank W. Roemer, group, imaging, Imaging Center, inflammation, injury, issue, joint, July, knee, Knee Cartilage Damage, knee osteoarthritis, lead, loss, md, medicine, membrane, minority, misalignment, mobility, month, mri, Multicenter, obesity, organ, Osteoarthritis, overweight, pain, patient, patient group, percent, period, professor, progression, Progressive Disorder, Prospective Study, Quantitative, Quantitative Imaging, Radiology, rapid, recommended, risk, risk factors, school, score, Sex, study, subregion, thickness, Tibio-femoral, tissue, University, Washington, way, wear, weight, x-ray

Genetic key to breast cancer’s ability to survive and spread identified

July 8, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, July 7 (ANI): Scientists have found a genetic function behind breast cancer cells’ ability to survive and spread to the bone years after treatment has been administered.

Led by investigators at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC), the study comes as scientists are looking for therapies to target this survival capacity and force the death of latent breast cancer cells before they get a chance to metastasize, or spread – a problem that accounts for a majority of breast cancer-related deaths.

The researchers used gene-expression profiling techniques, and found that breast cancer cells that infiltrate the bone marrow could survive over time, if they contained the gene product Src.

Src has known effects on cell mobility, invasion, and survival.

By genetically disabling Src activity in human breast cancer cells, it was possible to inhibit these cells from surviving in the bone marrow and forming metastases in mice.

The researchers also saw that treatment with the drug dasatinib inhibits the formation of bone metastasis by human breast cancer cells inoculated into mice.

“Our results should encourage oncologists to consider the study of Src inhibitors to attack reservoirs of disseminated, latent cancer cells and prevent metastasis in breast cancer patients after their tumour has been removed,” said the study’s senior author, Dr. Joan Massague.

The research has been published in the journal Cancer Cell. (ANI)

Filed Under: Science News Tagged With: ability, activity, ANI, author, bone, breast, cancer, capacity, cell, center, chance, dasatinib, death, Dr. Joan Massague, drug, formation, function, gene, genetic, invasion, journal, July, Kettering, latent, majority, Marrow, memorial, metastasize, mobility, MSKCC, problem, product, Research, sloan, spread, Src, study, survival, time, treatment, tumour, Washington

Gargantuan dinos the ‘couch potatoes’ of prehistoric world

July 7, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, July 7 (ANI): A new research has determined that due to their huge sizes, dinosaurs were the ‘couch potatoes’ of the prehistoric world.

According to a report in the Telegraph, the research was done by Dr McNab from the University of Florida.

Having easy access to food, coupled with their sedentary lifestyle when not hunting, helped the creatures grow into the biggest beasts to have ever walked the earth, according to Dr McNab.

Paleontologists have argued that dinosaurs’ size was in some way due to the way they regulated the temperature of their blood.

Dr McNab believes that the availability of food resources was more important, however.

Using a model based on a vertebrate’s energy expenditure, mass and eating habits, Dr McNab explained the body size of existing and extinct mammals, including baleen whales, an ancient rhinoceros and modern elephants.

He used the example of the larger mass found in some marine mammals which reflect greater resources in their environment.

While Dr McNab said that thermal biology differences are easily seen in small organisms, he suggested dinosaurs were neither cold nor warm blooded but maintained an intermediate temperature between mammals and reptiles, thanks to their size.

Some dinosaurs ate lizards, turtles or eggs, while others hunted other dinosaurs. The majority ate plants however.

Many of these plants, which can be seen in fossils, had edible leaves, including evergreen conifers such as pine trees, redwoods and their relatives, ferns, mosses and in the latter stages of the dinosaur age, flowering fruit plants.

According to Dr McNab, “Like couch potatoes sitting within easy reach of high calorie foods, the gargantuan size of dinosaurs most likely stems from the abundance of resources available, coupled with low energy expenditures.”

“Some dinosaurs reached masses that were at least eight times those of the largest, ecologically equivalent terrestrial mammals,” he said.

“The factors most responsible for setting the maximal body size of vertebrates are resource quality and quantity, as modified by the mobility of the consumer, and the vertebrate’s rate of energy expenditure,” he added. (ANI)

Filed Under: Science News Tagged With: abundance, access, age, ANI, availability, baleen, Baleen Whales, biology, blood, body, calorie, Conifers, Consumer, couch, Couch Potatoes, dinosaur, Dinosaur Age, Dr McNab, Earth, energy, Energy Expenditure, energy expenditures, environment, equivalent, evergreen, example, expenditure, Extinct Mammals, Florida, food, Food Resources, fruit, fruit plants, High Calorie Foods, hunting, July, Latter Stages, Lifestyle, London, majority, Marine Mammals, mass, maximal, mobility, model, Paleontologists, pine trees, Prehistoric World, quality, quantity, rate, reach, report, Research, resource, sedentary lifestyle, size, Telegraph, temperature, Terrestrial Mammals, the, Thermal Biology, University, University of Florida, vertebrate, way, world, World London

In quest for supremacy, IAF inducts AWACS

May 28, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

New Delhi, May 28 (ANI): The Indian Air Force’s eye in the sky, AWACS (Airborne Warning and Control System) platform fitted on IL-76 aircraft, was formally inducted by Defence Minister A K Antony today.

The IAF has raised a new squadron of AWACS, which will be called ‘Squadron 50′. Two more AWACS will be inducted in the squadron by the end of the next year.

The planes will especially be used to reinforce maritime security in the wake of 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks. India is one of the few countries to have inducted the AWACS in their air forces.

Antony described the induction of AWACS as a milestone, and added that it would help to improve the country’s security apparatus.

IAF chief Air Chief Marshal Fali H Major said: “AWACS will enable the Air Force to project itself as a formidable force. Integration of this sophisticated platform with our Air Defence Network will add a new dimension to the IAF’s capability to guard the Indian skies.”

“AWACS will be a dynamic asset in the air, which can be mobilised in a quick time to counter an emerging threat and tilt the balance in India’s favour. It will provide defence in depth and enable the friendly forces to neutralise the adversary before it can pose a serious danger,” he added.

The first of three Indian Air Force AWACS arrived in Jamnagar, Gujarat on May 25. It took off from Israel’s Ben-Gurion Airport on Sunday, first for Ovda in the southern Israeli coastal town of Eilat. At night, it flew from Eilat to Jamnagar, reaching India on Monday.

The Israeli-built system is mounted on a Russian-built IL-76 transport aircraft as a part of the tripartite agreement between India, Israel and Russia.

The AWACS are slated to operate from the Agra airbase under the Central Air Command. India’s most potent force multiplier, AWACS, is capable of tracking down incoming missiles. The all weather system is capable of engaging 60 targets simultaneously and has a range of 400 km.

It has a radar that can help detect cruise missiles or aircrafts at ranges much beyond the capabilities of present systems. It can also collate information about troop movements and missile launches on ground and even intercept highly secured communication networks of the enemy.

The IAF AWACS would help pilots find hitherto unconceivable space and room for tactical manoeuvres in the air under controlled directions that would give them an edge over their adversaries at all times.

AWACS, a potent force-multiplier, would significantly enhance the effectiveness of both offensive and defensive operations. The swift mobility that it provides would help neutralise any threat, as it could be moved anywhere at a very short notice. By Praful Kumar Singh (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: adversary, agra, agreement, air, air chief marshal, Air Chief Marshal Fali, air defence, airbase, airborne, aircraft, ANI, antony, apparatus, asset, AWACS, balance, ben, Ben Gurion airport, capability, central, collate, command, communication, control, country, cruise, danger, defence, defence network, depth, dimension, Dynamic Asset, edge, effectiveness, Eilat, end, enemy, eye, Eye In The Sky, favour, force, Force Integration, force multiplier, ground, Gujarat, H Major, hitherto, iaf, il, Incoming Missiles, India, Indian, Indian Air Force, Indian Skies, induction, information, integration, intercept, Israel, Israeli-built, Jamnagar, Kumar Singh, maritime, maritime security, May, milestone, Minister A. K. Antony, missile, mobility, Monday, multiplier, Mumbai, network, neutralise, New Delhi, night, notice, Ovda, part, platform, potent force, praful, quest, radar, range, room, Russia, Russian-built, security, security apparatus, Serious Danger, sky, Sophisticated Platform, southern Israeli, space, squadron, sunday, supremacy, system, terror, threat, time, today, town, transport, tripartite, Tripartite Agreement, troop, wake, warning, weather, Weather System, year

Scientists reveal secrets of graphene’s extraordinary properties

May 15, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, May 15 (ANI): In a new analysis, scientists have directly measured the unusual energy spectrum of graphene, which adds new detail to help explain the extraordinary properties of the material.

The analysis was done by researchers from the Georgia Institute of Technology and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).

Graphene’s exotic behaviors present intriguing prospects for future technologies, including high-speed, graphene-based electronics that might replace today’s silicon-based integrated circuits and other devices.

Graphene apparently owes its enhanced mobility to the fact that its electrons and other carriers of electric charges behave as though they do not have mass.

In conventional materials, the speed of electrons is related to their energy, but not in graphene.

Although they do not approach the speed of light, the unbound electrons in graphene behave much like photons, massless particles of light that also move at a speed independent of their energy.

This weird massless behavior is associated with other strangeness.

When ordinary conductors are put in a strong magnetic field, charge carriers such as electrons begin moving in circular orbits that are constrained to discrete, equally spaced energy levels.

In graphene, these levels are known to be unevenly spaced because of the “massless” electrons.

The Georgia Tech/NIST team tracked these massless electrons in action, using a specialized NIST instrument to zoom in on the graphene layer at a billion times magnification, tracking the electronic states while at the same time applying high magnetic fields.

The custom-built, ultra-low-temperature and ultra-high-vacuum scanning tunneling microscope allowed them to sweep an adjustable magnetic field across graphene samples prepared at Georgia Tech, observing and mapping the peculiar non-uniform spacing among discrete energy levels that form when the material is exposed to magnetic fields.

The team developed a high-resolution map of the distribution of energy levels in graphene.

In contrast to metals and other conducting materials, where the distance from one energy peak to the next is uniformly equal, this spacing is uneven in graphene.

The researchers also probed and spatially mapped graphene’s hallmark “zero energy state,” a curious phenomenon where the material has no electrical carriers until a magnetic field is applied.

The measurements also indicated that layers of graphene grown and then heated on a substrate of silicon-carbide behave as individual, isolated, two-dimensional sheets.

On the basis of the results, the researchers suggest that graphene layers are uncoupled from adjacent layers because they stack in different rotational orientations.

This finding may point the way to manufacturing methods for making large, uniform batches of graphene for a new carbon-based electronics. (ANI)

Filed Under: Science News Tagged With: action, Analysis, ANI, basis, behavior, charge, charge carriers, Circular Orbits, conducting, contrast, Conventional Materials, detail, Discrete Energy Levels, distance, distribution, Electric Charges, Electronic States, energy, Energy Spectrum, Extraordinary Properties, fact, field, form, Future Technologies, Georgia, georgia institute of technology, graphene, hallmark, institute, instrument, Integrated Circuits, Intriguing Prospects, layer, magnification, manufacturing, map, mass, Massless Particles, material, May, microscope, mobility, move, national, national institute of standards and technology, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), NIST, Nist Team, peak, phenomenon, rotational, scanning tunneling microscope, spectrum, speed, Speed Of Electrons, standards, state, strangeness, substrate, team, Tech, Technology, time, today, unbound, uniform, Uniform Spacing, Washington, way

Taliban using voter cards as ‘visas’ in southern Afghanistan

May 13, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Kandahar (Afghanistan), May 13 (ANI): Taliban fighters are using recently acquired voter identification cards as makeshift passports to smooth border crossings from Pakistan and ease travel between cities in Afghanistan’s southern provinces, reports the Globe and Mail.

When produced, the voter registration cards give fighters an appearance of legitimacy, they say, and help them “trick” Afghan security and international forces into allowing them to sail through police and army checkpoints set up to limit the militants’ mobility.

Interviews with several mid-level Taliban commanders and low-level fighters spread across southern Kandahar province, including the Taliban-dominated villages of Mushan and Zangabad, revealed that insurgents have no intention of using their voter registration cards to participate in the coming election.

The militants interviewed said they had applied for the cards on the advice of senior commanders in Quetta, Pakistan.

It was suggested that the cards might help insurgents traverse southern Afghanistan’s dangerous highways, which are controlled by Afghan troops in some sections and by Taliban in others.

A Canadian military spokesman deferred comment on the issue to Afghan officials.

Kandahar Governor Tooryalai Wesa said he has not had any reports of Taliban using voter registration cards as if they are travel visas.

“This is propaganda. They’re just putting words out. They cannot fight face to face, so this is what they do. They put words in the media,” he told the paper. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: advice, afghan officials, Afghanistan, ANI, appearance, army, border, border crossings, cannot, checkpoints, Dangerous Highways, Election, face, fight, globe, Globe And Mail, governor, identification, intention, issue, kandahar, Kandahar Afghanistan, Kandahar Province, legitimacy, mail, May, Mid Level, military spokesman, mobility, Mushan, Pakistan, paper, passports, police, propaganda, province, quetta, quetta pakistan, registration, SAIL, security, southern afghanistan, Southern Kandahar, southern provinces, spokesman, Taliban, Taliban fighters, Taliban-dominated, Tooryalai, travel, Travel Visas, traverse, trick, voter, Voter Identification Cards, Voter Registration Cards, Wesa, Zangabad

Daimler executive Grube to take helm at Deutsche Bahn

May 3, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Essen – Ruediger Grube, a top executive at car company Daimler, was nominated Saturday as the new head of German state-owned railway company Deutsche Bahn. The 57-year-old Grube replaces Hartmut Mehdorn, who quit last month after Deutsche Bahn had admitted to illicit surveillance of its employees.

“I look forward to the new task,” Grube said after a special meeting convened by Deutsche Bahn’s management on Saturday. He is to take over the role on May 1.

Grube also pledged that by June 1 he would “immediately, quickly and unconditionally resolve” the data surveillance scandal which forced Mehdorn’s departure, after ten years at the head of one of Germany’s last large state-owned corporations.

Deutsche Bahn had been forced to admit that details of up to 170,000 employees were monitored, supposedly to fight corruption within the company.

Grube, whose appointment was proposed by the government, has been a board member of Daimler since 2001.

Grube is to head the holding company as well as Deutsche Bahn subsidiary DB Mobility Logistics, responsible for the railway transport of people and goods.

Deutsche Bahn had plans to privatize, before the financial crisis hit last autumn. (dpa)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: appointment, autumn, Bahn, board, board member, car, Car Company, company, corporations, corruption, crisis, Daimler, departure, Deutsche, deutsche bahn, DPA, essen, executive, financial crisis, German state, Germany, Government, Grube, Hartmut Mehdorn, head, helm, holding company, June, last autumn, logistics, management, May, may 1, meeting, member, mobility, month, railway, Railway Company, Railway Transport, role, Ruediger, Saturday, scandal, subsidiary, surveillance, task, top executive, transport

New gen of POWER KNEE can help amputees walk again

April 22, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, April 22 (ANI): Ossur, a global leader in non-invasive orthopaedics, has developed second generation of the POWER KNEE, the first technology to use sensors, power, artificial intelligence and actuators to provide amputees with the ability to walk naturally and safely without even thinking about it.

In 2006, working in partnership with Victhom Human Bionics, Ossur introduced the POWER KNEE, representing the most advanced technology of its kind with the ability to replace lost muscle function and provide increased safety.

Used mostly within the Department of Defense and the Veterans Healthcare Administration, the POWER KNEE marked a new milestone in amputee mobility, safety and advancing natural motion through a powered gait process.

After three years, working closely with Walter Reed Army Medical Center (WRAMC) and in collaboration with partner Victhom Human Bionics, the next generation of the POWER KNEE has been developed.

“The second generation is smaller, sleeker, quieter, lighter and is expected to become widely used by both unilateral and dual amputees,” said Lt. Col. (Dr.) Paul F. Pasquina, chief, Integrated Department of Orthopaedics and Rehabilitation at Walter Reed and the National Naval Medical Center, according to Inside Nova.

Lieutenant Colonel Greg Gadson has become the first person in the world to receive the commercially-ready prosthetic knees and will soon be followed by other patients at WRAMC. (ANI)

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: ability, administration., Advanced Technology, amputee, ANI, April, Army Medical Center, Artificial Intelligence, Bionics, center, Col., collaboration, defense, department, First Technology, function, gait, Gen, generation, Greg Gadson, Healthcare, Healthcare Administration, human, Human Bionics, Increased Safety, Integrated, intelligence, kind, knee, leader, lieutenant colonel, Lieutenant Colonel Greg Gadson, medical, milestone, mobility, motion, muscle, Muscle Function, national, National Naval Medical Center, Natural Motion, naval, Naval Medical Center, New, Nova, orthopaedics, Ossur, partner, partnership, Paul F. Pasquina, person, power, process, Prosthetic Knees, quieter, Reed Army Medical Center, rehabilitation, safety, sleeker, Technology, veterans, Victhom, Walter Reed, Walter Reed Army, Walter Reed Army Medical, Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Washington, world, WRAMC

Acer announces new notebooks from its Aspire series

April 19, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

The leading computer manufacturer in the world – Acer has announced two new laptops from its Aspire series. The Taipei, Taiwan based company has announced Acer Aspire 3935-6504 and Acer Aspire 8935G notebooks.

The Acer Aspire 3935-6504 is 13-inch ultraportable slim easy-to-carry notebook; it weighs about 2 kg (4.1 pounds). The Aspire 3935 notebook features 13.3-inch HD Acer CineCrystal LED screen, with 1368 x 768 resolution, multi-touch trackpad, and nice keyboard. The Aspire 3935 comes with 2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7350 processor, 3MB L2 cache and 1066MHz FSB.

The Aspire 3935 notebook is also equipped with the Intel Mobile GM45 Express chipset and Intel GMA 4500MHD. The Aspire 3935 has the 3072MB DDR2 1066MHz RAM and comes with Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium with Service Pack 1 over a 250GB SATA HDD. The notebook also features a dual-layer DVD SuperMulti drive, WiFi (802.11 a/g/n), 3 USB ports, a 5-in-1 card reader, and a 4-cell battery. The Acer Aspire 3935-6504 is priced at $899 (approximately Rs. 45,000).

The Acer Aspire 8935G is a larger multimedia notebook featuring a big 18.4-inch HD Acer CineCrystal LED screen and weighing around 4.6 kg (10.1 pounds). The Aspire
8935G notebook is powered by Intel Core 2 Duo and ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4670 graphics card. The Aspire 8935G runs Windows Vista Home Premium with SP1. The notebook features trackpad and a dual-layer combo Blu-ray drive. The other features of the notebook include Wifi (802.11 a/g/n), and an 8-cell battery. The company hasn’t yet disclosed the price of the Aspire 8935G, which is expected to be available in June, in United States.

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: Acer, Acer Notebooks, aspire, Ati, battery, blu ray, cache, card, Card Reader, cell, Cell Battery, chipset, CineCrystal, combo, company, Computer, Computer Manufacturer, core, DDR, drive, Dual Layer, duo, dvd, Express, FSB, ghz, gma, Graphics Card, hd, hdd, home, in, inch, intel, June, keyboard, Leading Computer, led, manufacturer, MHD, mhz, microsoft, Microsoft Windows Vista, Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium, Mobile, mobility, Mobility Radeon, Multimedia Notebook, new laptops, notebook, pack, premium, price, processor, Radeon, ram, reader, resolution, sata, Sata Hdd, screen, series, service, service pack 1, SuperMulti, Taipei, Taipei Taiwan, taiwan, trackpad, United States, usb, USB ports, vista, wifi, windows, world

World’s largest solar boat under construction in Germany

April 12, 2009 By admin 1 Comment

Washington, April 12 (ANI): A team of scientists, engineers, and yachtsmen are making what they say will be the largest solar boat ever built, with a view to making a trip around the world.

Planet Solar is being built at the Knierim Yacht Club in Kiel, Germany.

The 13-million-dollar revolutionary vessel will be 98 feet long and 50 feet wide. That climbs to 114 feet and 82 feet when the solar panels are fully unfurled.

It will feature 5,059 square feet of photovoltaic cells.

Rivendell Holding AG, a Swiss firm that invests in renewable energy, is funding the project.

The objective behind this project is to prove that the shipping industry can reduce its dependence on fossil fuel.

The team plans to circumnavigate the globe at the equator in 120 days at an average speed of 10 knots.

Should they succeed, Planet Solar will set a maritime milestone because no one has circumnavigated the globe in a solar electric boat thus far.

“Solar boats are a viable form of transportation for the future. Our society is too dependent on fossil fuels, which are in limited supply and which are causing measurable negative effects on the earth’s atmosphere.

It’s now time to demonstrate the potential that renewable energies have to offer in the area of mobility,” Wired.com quoted Delia Collardi, a spokeswoman for the project, as saying.

Work on the solar cat’s hulls is almost complete, but the project still has a long way to go.

A press kit says the boat will weigh 60 tons and feature 470 square meters – 5,059 square feet – of photovoltaic cells that offer 22 percent efficiency.

Collardi says that the vessel will have enough power to carry skipper Raphael Domjan, the 37-year-old founder of Planet Solar, and navigator Gerard d’Aboville, both of whom are accomplished sailors and adventurers.

The route is still being worked out, but Planet Solar will set sail from Marseilles, France, sometime next year and cross the Atlantic, then cut through the Panama Canal to cross the Pacific.

From there she’ll head south through the South China Sea to the Indian Ocean before crossing the Indian Ocean and Red Sea. Then it’s through the Suez Canal and across the Mediterranean Sea and back home.

Stops in New York, Shanghai, Singapore, Abu Dhabi and Monaco are among those being considered.

Collardi has revealed that supporters and well-wishers will be welcomed aboard, and that 50 people can fit inside the catamaran for short jaunts.

Immo Stroher, founder and president of Rivendell Holding, has dibs on Solar Planet at the end of the journey. (ANI)

Filed Under: Science News Tagged With: Aboville, Abu Dhabi, ANI, April, area, atlantic, atmosphere, Average Speed, boat, cat, catamaran, circumnavigate, club, com, construction, Delia Collardi, dependence, Earth, efficiency, Electric Boat, end, energy, equator, feature, firm, form, Fossil Fuel, fossil fuels, founder, France, fuel, future, Gérard, Germany, globe, holding, home, Immo, indian ocean, industry, journey, Kiel, Kiel Germany, Kit, Knierim, Limited Supply, maritime, Marseilles, Marseilles France, Mediterranean Sea, milestone, mobility, monaco, navigator, New York, objective, offer, pacific, Panama Canal, percent, Photovoltaic Cells, planet, potential, power, president, press, project, Raphael Domjan, Red Sea, renewable energies, Rivendell, route, SAIL, shanghai, Shipping Industry, Singapore, skipper, society, solar, Solar Boat, Solar Boats, solar panels, south china sea, speed, spokeswoman, square feet, square meters, stops, Stroher, Suez Canal, supply, Swiss Firm, team, time, transportation, trip, Trip Around The World, vessel, view, Washington, way, Wired, work, world, yacht, yacht club, yachtsmen, year

Intel announces two new Atoms and other products

April 8, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

The inventor of the x86 series of microprocessors – Intel, observing the first anniversary of its Atom processor, announced two new versions of its Atom processor, confirmed to launch Nehalem-based mobile processors later this year, and introduced new chip codenamed “Jasper Forest”. The Santa Clara, California based chipmaker disclosed about the launch of its upcoming Moorestown chip platform at its Developer Forum in Beijing, on Wednesday.

Offering the live demonstration of its next-generation Atom-based platform, codenamed “Moorestown” for the first time, Intel stated that the new platform will come with a new Moblin software version, a Linux-based operating system (OS) that Intel develops for small devices. According to Intel, the new version of Moblin software will enable a PC-like Internet experience along with cellular voice capabilities.

Officially, Intel is aiming Moorestown platform including energy efficient set of chips for mobile Internet devices (MIDs) or small computers, focusing on basic online use and media playback, which can fit well in pockets. The set of cips will be based on the company’s Lincroft system-on-chip (SoC) that includes an Atom microprocessor core and a memory controller hub. The coming with chipset is code named Langwell. The Atom power-efficient Moorestown chip platform is expected to work well in smartphones. The family of chips in Moorestown platform will also come with 3G cellular capabilities. It will also provide optional support for both WiMax and HSPA (High Speed Packet Access) cellular networks.

Anand Chandrasekher, the Intel’s senior vice president and general manager of the Ultra Mobility Group, demonstrated a device with Moorestown consuming 10 times less power. The company earlier stated that Moorestown would be released in late 2009 or early 2010, but at the Developer Forum in Beijing, Intel firmly fixed 2010 as the launch target.

Intel also announced Atom Z550 and Atom Z515 – the two new Atom processors for mobile Internet devices. Of the two Atom updates, the Atom Z550 is the fastest. The Atom Z550 enhances the Atom line’s performance to 2GHz, while the Atom Z515, equipped with the Intel Burst Performance Technology (Intel BPT), can work at 1.2GHz when required. The Atom Z550 includes Hyperthreading to simulate dual cores while still consuming the same 2.4W of typical power as a 1.86GHz processor. The Atom Z515 normally runs at the same 800MHz and consumes just 0.65W of energy, but it can work up to 1.2GHz, consuming 1.4W.

In a keynote speech at the Intel Developer Forum, Anand Chandrasekher also talked about upcoming processors for laptops based on the Nehalem architecture, which will be released in the 2nd half of this year as part of the “Calpella” platform. According to Mr. Chandrasekher, these processors, which will come equipped with technologies like Intel Hyper-Threading Technology and Intel Turbo Boost Technology, will be more powerful than their predecessors.

Mr. Chandrasekher also discussed Intel’s ultra low-voltage (ULV) processors. He also disclosed how the company is developing a category of ultra-thin laptops less than one inch thick. According to Mr. Chandrasekher, the company will release lower-priced versions of these processors by early summer.

Finally, the senior vice president and general manager of the Digital Enterprise Group, Intel, Pat Gelsinger, for the first time, uncovered the Nehalem-EP based processor codenamed “Jasper Forest,” which is specifically designed for embedded and storage applications.

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: access, Anand Chandrasekher, anniversary, architecture, atom, Atom-based, atoms, BEIJING, BPT, burst, California, Calpella, category, Cellular Networks, Cellular Voice, chip, chipmaker, chipset, Clara, code, company, consuming, controller, core, demonstration, developer, device, digital, energy, enterprise, experience, family, forum, Gelsinger, ghz, group, half, High, HSPA, hub, Hyper, Hyperthreading, inch, intel, inventor, Jasper Forest, keynote, Langwell, launch, Lincroft, line, Linux-based, manager, Media Playback, memory, Memory Controller Hub, mhz, microprocessor, Microprocessor Core, Microprocessors Intel, MIDs, Mobile Internet Devices, Mobile Processors, mobility, Mobility Group, Moblin, Moorestown, Mr. Chandrasekher, Nehalem, Nehalem-based, New Chip, Online, Optional Support, packet, part, pat, pc-like, PC-like Internet, performance, platform, playback, power, president, processor, santa, Santa Clara California, senior vice president, series, set, Small Computers, SoC, software, speech, Speed Packet, storage, summer, support, system, target, Technology, Threading, time, Time Intel, turbo, ultra, ULV, use, version, vice, voice, Voice Capabilities, Wednesday, WiMAX, win, year, Z550

Ignou to offer engineering courses

April 5, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

NEW DELHI: With over 10 lakh students registering for the AIEEE in 2009, up from 8.62 lakh in 2008, it may not be possible for all to get a seat in
existing engineering colleges. Keeping the shortage of seats in mind, Indira Gandhi National Open University (Ignou) has collaborated with Chennai-based Sri Angala Parameshwari Education Trust (SAPET) to offer certificate, diploma and degree programmes in various engineering branches including, civil, mechanical, electrical engineering, electronics and communication technologies and computer science.

The programmes, which will commence from January 2010, will help students who have completed their class XII with physics, chemistry and mathematics (PCM) and are interested to pursue engineering but have not got opportunity to study in the conventional institutes or engineering colleges.

The diploma holders in engineering subjects will also be given lateral entry to the third-year in any engineering disciplines.

“The new programmes will also help bright students who fail to get admission into engineering colleges due to weak socio-economic conditions or lack of awareness or non-availability of higher technical institutions in areas they live,” said Latha Pillai, pro-vice chancellor, Ignou.

According to SAPET officials, the programmes will follow the need-based assessments of the industry, profession and service sectors. Adviser to the SAPET, Premendra Raj Mehta said: “The programmes and their courses will be prepared according to the needs and demands from the industry. Students can enter at different levels and credits will be offered to them from what they already studied. The programmes will offer four levels of entries out of six years. Students can enter after passing out class X, the ITI exams, class XII, acquiring a multiple diplomas and also B Sc degree. The programmes are being restructured offering vertical mobility.”

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: admission, adviser, AIEEE, Angala, awareness, Bright Students, certificate, Certificate Diploma, Chancellor, chemistry, Chennai-based, class, Class Xii, commence, communication, Computer, degree, diploma, Diploma Holders, Education, education trust, engineering, Engineering Colleges, Engineering Disciplines, Engineering Subjects, entry, gandhi, Ignou, indira, Indira Gandhi, Indira Gandhi National Open University, industry, institutes, ITI, January, lack, lakh, lateral, Lateral Entry, Latha, mathematics, Mehta, mind, mobility, national, New Delhi, new programmes, offering, open, opportunity, Parameshwari, PCM, physics, pillai, Premendra, profession, raj, Raj Mehta, SAPET, Sc Degree, Science, seat, service, service sectors, shortage, sri, Technical Institutions, trust, University, Vertical Mobility, vice chancellor, xii