NASA has announced the new target launch date for the fifth (although it's called Servicing Mission 4) and final mission to service the Hubble Space Telescope. Atlantis will launch for STS-125 on October 8 of this year, if all goes well. The mission was previously delayed due to NASA's need to build fuel tanks and for Endeavour to get ready. Endeavour is necessary as a back-up if a problem happens with Atlantis, as the shuttles trajectory to Hubble will make it impossible to make an emergency trip to the ISS.
If everything goes well and Endeavour is not needed for a rescue mission, then that shuttle will fly on November 10, 2008, to deliver a Multi-Purpose Logistics Module (MPLM) to the ISS.
When Servicing Mission 4 is complete, not only will Hubble's useful life be extended, but the quality of science it can achieve will be enhanced. These enhancements include new batteries to replace the batteries that have been in use since 1990 and replacement of some of the gyroscopes that keep Hubble pointed at its targets for observation.
The crew will also be repairing the Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph and some of Hubble's insulation, as well as installing a new cooling system, the Wide Field Camera 3, and the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph.
Friday, May 23, 2008
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Hey Buddy, Wanna Be an Archaeologist?
I have long been a proponent of citizen-involvement in science. Today, Alan Boyle over at MSNBC has a new blog post about opportunities that allow ordinary people like me and you to participate in archaeological expeditions. Alan has some good information about the expeditions and a list of ten places to go online to learn more about available opportunities.
So unleash your inner Indiana Jones or Lara Croft. Get out there and get your hands dirty (literally)!
So unleash your inner Indiana Jones or Lara Croft. Get out there and get your hands dirty (literally)!
TVA Facilities Vulnerable to Cyber Attacks
CNN reported yesterday afternoon about a new study conducted by the GAO that shows that the TVA is inadequately protected from cyber attacks. The TVA operates 52 power plants in the southeastern U.S., including nuclear, hydropower, and coal facilities.
The GAO found that:
Rep. James Langevin, a Rhode Island Democrat, is chairing an Emerging Threats, Cybersecurity, and Science and Technology subcommittee hearing Wednesday afternoon. Representatives of the TVA, the GAO, the federal commission and the electric reliability corporation are to appear before the subcommittee.
I find these results to be a little disturbing, but not terribly surprising. Information Systems security is a massively complex field, and changes on a daily basis. I also find it a little disturbing that we publish results detailing the exact vulnerabilities, almost as though we were trying to provide detailed attack plans to terrorists.
The GAO found that:
- The TVA's firewalls have been bypassed or are inadequately configured
- Passwords in use by TVA personnel are not effective
- Servers and work stations lack key patches and effective virus protection
- Intrusion-detection systems used by the TVA are not adequate
- Some locations lack enough physical security around control systems
Rep. James Langevin, a Rhode Island Democrat, is chairing an Emerging Threats, Cybersecurity, and Science and Technology subcommittee hearing Wednesday afternoon. Representatives of the TVA, the GAO, the federal commission and the electric reliability corporation are to appear before the subcommittee.
I find these results to be a little disturbing, but not terribly surprising. Information Systems security is a massively complex field, and changes on a daily basis. I also find it a little disturbing that we publish results detailing the exact vulnerabilities, almost as though we were trying to provide detailed attack plans to terrorists.
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Lab-Grown Meat Could Be Coming to a Grocery Store Near You
Slate has an interesting—and somewhat disturbing—article about artificial, lab-grown meat. Now, I like meat, and I'm all for things that can make it more eco-friendly and less expensive. But I'm just not sure about the idea of eating meat that was grown in a vat from stem cells.
According to the post, the current ranching and slaughtering process for beef means that for every pound of beef we consume, 36.4 pounds of carbon dioxide—the same amount as driving an average car 155 miles at 50 mph—are released into the atmosphere. Raising cattle is also horribly inefficient... it takes seven calories of grain to produce a single calorie of beef. By not having actual cows, we can eliminate waste products and free up a bunch of land that is being used for ranching right now.
However, the author of the article does make one mistake, when he suggests that we can free up the food needed for the cattle. Obviously, in order to grow protein (even in a vat) the labs will need to provide a source of glucose and amino acids. True, the process will likely consume fewer calories than actual cows, but not as little as you might think.
But I'm not sure how I feel about the idea of eating meat grown from a vat. They can probably produce something similar to beef in taste and texture, and probably even come reasonably close to the nutritional content. But we learn new things about our food all the time, and we often discover that, somewhere along the way, we've lost something that was fairly important. For example, it turns out that whole grains (like whole-wheat flour) are better for us than refined grains (like bleached flour). It would be fairly easy, I think, to make the same kind of mistake with synthetic meat.
Still, I'm willing to try just about anything once, and if I can get a fine filet for considerably less money than I'm currently paying, and with environmental benefits to boot, I'll have to really think about mixing some of this into my diet. It will be a while yet, however, as the technology is in its infancy and rather expensive. In the case of one Dutch team, the lab-grown pork would currently cost about $45,000 per pound.
According to the post, the current ranching and slaughtering process for beef means that for every pound of beef we consume, 36.4 pounds of carbon dioxide—the same amount as driving an average car 155 miles at 50 mph—are released into the atmosphere. Raising cattle is also horribly inefficient... it takes seven calories of grain to produce a single calorie of beef. By not having actual cows, we can eliminate waste products and free up a bunch of land that is being used for ranching right now.
However, the author of the article does make one mistake, when he suggests that we can free up the food needed for the cattle. Obviously, in order to grow protein (even in a vat) the labs will need to provide a source of glucose and amino acids. True, the process will likely consume fewer calories than actual cows, but not as little as you might think.
But I'm not sure how I feel about the idea of eating meat grown from a vat. They can probably produce something similar to beef in taste and texture, and probably even come reasonably close to the nutritional content. But we learn new things about our food all the time, and we often discover that, somewhere along the way, we've lost something that was fairly important. For example, it turns out that whole grains (like whole-wheat flour) are better for us than refined grains (like bleached flour). It would be fairly easy, I think, to make the same kind of mistake with synthetic meat.
Still, I'm willing to try just about anything once, and if I can get a fine filet for considerably less money than I'm currently paying, and with environmental benefits to boot, I'll have to really think about mixing some of this into my diet. It will be a while yet, however, as the technology is in its infancy and rather expensive. In the case of one Dutch team, the lab-grown pork would currently cost about $45,000 per pound.
Nanotubes May Be Hazardous to Your Health
Both the New York Times and the Los Angeles Times are running articles today highlighting a study reported in Nature Nanotechnology about the possible dangers of carbon nanotubes. These nano-scale structures, discovered in 1991, have potential for a massive number of industrial and commercial uses in the decades to come, but apparently come with some risks.
The researchers conducted a pilot study by injecting both long (20 micron) and short (5 micron) nanotubes into the abdominal cavities of mice. While the short nanotubes had little or no effect, the longer nanotubes caused lesions similar to those caused by asbestos, which the researchers believe would likewise cause mesothelioma, a form of cancer commonly caused by asbestos.
The results are preliminary, and the investigators point out that they did not study how easily nanotubes can become airborne or whether they become lodged in the lungs if inhaled. More research is needed into the harmfulness of nanotubes.
The researchers conducted a pilot study by injecting both long (20 micron) and short (5 micron) nanotubes into the abdominal cavities of mice. While the short nanotubes had little or no effect, the longer nanotubes caused lesions similar to those caused by asbestos, which the researchers believe would likewise cause mesothelioma, a form of cancer commonly caused by asbestos.
The results are preliminary, and the investigators point out that they did not study how easily nanotubes can become airborne or whether they become lodged in the lungs if inhaled. More research is needed into the harmfulness of nanotubes.
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Replacement Bladders Work Effectively
Popular Science reports on new artificial bladders made by a company named Tengion. The bladders are grown on biodegradable scaffolds using the patient's own cells, collected via a biopsy from the patients natural bladder.
According to the report, the neo-bladders created and implanted during their testing, after re-implantation, grew to the same size as the original bladders and functioned effectively. The company hopes to start clinical trials in 2009.
Hopefully the company will be able to extend this technology effectively to other organs, allowing the growing of replacement organs for which people currently have to spend time on a waiting list for donors.
According to the report, the neo-bladders created and implanted during their testing, after re-implantation, grew to the same size as the original bladders and functioned effectively. The company hopes to start clinical trials in 2009.
Hopefully the company will be able to extend this technology effectively to other organs, allowing the growing of replacement organs for which people currently have to spend time on a waiting list for donors.
New Process Improves Cost, Usefulness of Titanium
Researchers working with the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory have devised a new system for creating objects using titanium powder that could dramatically reduce the cost of using the material. The process uses considerably less energy for constructing parts from titanium powders because it does not involve having to melt the powders.
The researchers see new applications in armor for soldiers and vehicles, new alloys for brake rotors, more durable artificial join replacements, and more. The clearest gain is in armor for military vehicles. The titanium alloy armors do a much better job of stopping bullets and shrapnel, but are also lighter. By being lighter, the vehicles become more responsive and mobile, making them more useful to the military. And obviously, by stopping more bullets, the vehicles are clearly more useful to the soldiers inside.
Similarly, new corrosion-resistant alloys could make their way into automobiles, making them lighter and more responsive and helping improve their fuel efficiency.
The researchers see new applications in armor for soldiers and vehicles, new alloys for brake rotors, more durable artificial join replacements, and more. The clearest gain is in armor for military vehicles. The titanium alloy armors do a much better job of stopping bullets and shrapnel, but are also lighter. By being lighter, the vehicles become more responsive and mobile, making them more useful to the military. And obviously, by stopping more bullets, the vehicles are clearly more useful to the soldiers inside.
Similarly, new corrosion-resistant alloys could make their way into automobiles, making them lighter and more responsive and helping improve their fuel efficiency.
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