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Molecular scale resolution achieved in polymer nanoimprinting technique
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Scientists using molds derived from carbon nanotubes have approached the ultimate resolution – defined by molecular scale dimensions – in a widely used polymer nanoimprinting technique. By accurately replicating features with nanometer dimensions, the technique could play future roles in fabricating structures in fields as diverse as microelectronics, nanofluidics and biotechnology. Polymer […]
Researchers to discuss potential of swine as models for human disease
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Biomedical scientists from around the world will discuss the potential of swine as models for understanding and treating a variety of human diseases when they gather for the Swine in Biomedical Research Conference on Jan. 27-29 at the Fairmont Hotel, 200 N. Columbus Road, in Chicago. The conference will open with a […]
Super-star clusters may be born small and grow by coalescing
Super-star clusters may be born small and grow by coalescing James E. Kloeppel, Physical Sciences Editor 217-244-1073; kloeppel@illinois.edu 1/7/2005 Story. Lower right: a blue image of the spiral galaxy M101 from the Second Palomar Observatory Sky Survey. The box marks the location of NGC 5461.Lower left: A false color image of NGC 5461 made from […]
Portable sampling cart monitors emissions from wood-burning cookstoves
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – A new method of measuring emissions from cookstoves could help improve human health and enhance the accuracy of global climate models. Wood-fueled cooking stoves are commonly used in Central America and other Third World nations. Producing copious amounts of noxious smoke, the stoves can be detrimental to human health. Lack of knowledge […]
Selective coatings create biological sensors from carbon nanotubes
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Protein-encapsulated single-walled carbon nanotubes that alter their fluorescence in the presence of specific biomolecules could generate many new types of implantable biological sensors, say researchers from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign who developed the encapsulation technique. In a paper accepted for publication in the journal Nature Materials, and posted on its […]
Shutdown of circulation pattern could be disastrous, researchers say
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – If global warming shuts down the thermohaline circulation in the North Atlantic Ocean, the result could be catastrophic climate change. The environmental effects, models indicate, depend upon whether the shutdown is reversible or irreversible. “If the thermohaline shutdown is irreversible, we would have to work much harder to get it to restart,” […]
Goal of project is development of petroleum-free fuel
Developing a petroleum-free fuel from corn byproducts is one of the goals of a newly funded research project at the UI. Eight research laboratories will pool their expertise, attacking the problems from different directions in order to work to improve the efficiency of bioconversion of plant fibers into fuels and other value-added products. This is […]
Abundance of protein in infected swine may result in reduced muscle mass
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – A study looking at chronic infectious respiratory diseases that affect most swine during their critical growing stage has shed new light on the reasons for restricted weight gain and reduced muscle mass. In the November issue of the Journal of Nutrition, scientists at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign report that the […]
New transistor laser could lead to faster signal processing
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have demonstrated the laser operation of a heterojunction bipolar light-emitting transistor. The scientists describe the fabrication and operation of their transistor laser in the Nov. 15 issue of the journal Applied Physics Letters. “By incorporating quantum wells into the active region of a light-emitting […]
Molecular technique shows promise in destroying drug resistance in bacteria
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – A new approach to outwit resistance to antibiotics has been discovered by a team of researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. By inserting a naturally occurring molecule into an antibiotic-resistant bacterium, the team was able to gradually destroy the machinery responsible for the resistance. “Multidrug-resistant bacteria are now ubiquitous in […]
Study shows hands-free cell phones dangerously distracted drivers’ attention
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Driving with one hand on the wheel and another on a cell phone has led to legal restrictions and proposals to require drivers to use hands-free phones. Hello? Researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have tested the hands-free approach and found that drivers – young and old – struggled to […]
Distinguished German astrophysicist to present public talk
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Reinhard Genzel, director of the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics in Garching, Germany, will discuss black holes during a talk Nov. 17 at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Genzel, who also is a professor of physics at the University of California at Berkeley, will present the seventh talk in the […]