Paraffin encapsulated in beach sand material as a new way to store heat from the sun

Mar. 13, 2013 ? The search for sustainable new materials to store heat captured from the sun for release during the night has led scientists to a high-tech combination of paraffin wax and sand. Their report on the heat-storing capability of this microencapsulated sand appears in ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering.

Benxia Li and colleagues explain the need for better materials that can store and release heat. These so-called "phase-change" materials" (PCMs) are essential, for instance, for storing heat from the sun for use in providing energy at night or during cloudy periods. PCMs absorb, store and release heat when changing "phases" from a solid to a liquid and vice versa. They have applications that range from expanding use of solar energy to heat-regulating greenhouses to clothing that keeps soldiers or campers warm on cold nights outdoors. Existing PCMs have disadvantages, such as the tendency to leak or catch fire, and Li's team set out to find a better material.

They describe a new approach to using paraffin as a PCM. Made from petroleum, paraffin is a waxy material that absorbs heat, melts into a liquid and releases heat as it solidifies. It involves encapsulating paraffin into tiny spheres of silicon dioxide, the stuff of beach sand. The microencapsulated paraffin has several advantages, including a large surface area that can transfer heat, less reactivity with the environment and less likelihood of leaking as it changes phases. Li's team reports successful tests of the material for 30 melting-solidifying cycles with no leaks at a temperature of 158 degrees Fahrenheit. "The high heat storage capability and good thermal stability of the composite enable it to be a potential material to store thermal energy in practical applications," the report concluded.

The authors acknowledge funding from the National Natural Science Foundation of China, the National Basic Research Program of China, and the Young and Middle-aged Backbone Teachers Fund of Anhui University of Science and Technology.

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by American Chemical Society.

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Journal Reference:

1. Benxia Li, Tongxuan Liu, Luyang Hu, Yanfen Wang, Lina Gao. Fabrication and Properties of Microencapsulated Paraffin@SiO2Phase Change Composite for Thermal Energy Storage. ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering, 2013; 1 (3): 374 DOI: 10.1021/sc300082m

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: Views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_technology/~3/WTtwUYkBn-A/130313112435.htm

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Fruit Ninja meets real Ninja with CamBoard's Pico gesture camera (video)

You can play Fruit Ninja with your fingertips, you can play it with your eyes, so it's reasonable enough that hand waving should control it too. And while gesture-sensing technology is hardly new, Teutonic outfit pmdtechnologies has been teasing a miniaturized edition of its depth camera that's ripe for embedding into small consumer electronics devices. All we've got so far is a short video (after the break) outlining its potential, but that's enough to hope someone can go head-to-head with Microsoft in the space.

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Via: TechCrunch

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/03/13/camboard-pico/

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Scientists find age-related changes in how autism affects the brain

Mar. 13, 2013 ? Newly released findings from Bradley Hospital published in the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry have found that autism spectrum disorders (ASD) affect the brain activity of children and adults differently.

In the study, titled "Developmental Meta-Analysis of the Functional Neural Correlates of Autism Spectrum Disorders," Daniel Dickstein, M.D., FAAP, director of the Pediatric Mood, Imaging and Neurodevelopment Program at Bradley Hospital, found that autism-related changes in brain activity continue into adulthood.

"Our study was innovative because we used a new technique to directly compare the brain activity in children with autism versus adults with autism," said Dickstein. "We found that brain activity changes associated with autism do not just happen in childhood, and then stop. Instead, our study suggests that they continue to develop, as we found brain activity differences in children with autism compared to adults with autism. This is the first study to show that."

This new technique, a meta-analysis, which is a study that compiles pre-existing studies, provided researchers with a powerful way to look at potential differences between children and adults with autism.

Dickstein conducted the research through Bradley Hospital's PediMIND Program. Started in 2007, this program seeks to identify biological and behavioral markers -- scans and tests -- that will ultimately improve how children and adolescents are diagnosed and treated for psychiatric conditions. Using special computer games and brain scans, including magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), Dickstein hopes to one day make the diagnosis and treatment of autism and other disorders more specific and more effective.

Among autism's most disabling symptoms is a disruption in social skills, so it is noteworthy that this study found significantly less brain activity in autistic children than autistic adults during social tasks, such as looking at faces. This was true in brain regions including the right hippocampus and superior temporal gyrus -- two brain regions associated with memory and other functions.

Dickstein noted, "Brain changes in the hippocampus in children with autism have been found in studies using other types of brain scan, suggesting that this might be an important target for brain-based treatments, including both therapy and medication that might improve how this brain area works."

Rowland Barrett, Ph.D., chief psychologist at Bradley Hospital and chief-of-service for The Center for Autism and Developmental Disabilities was also part of the team leading the study.

"Autism spectrum disorders, including autistic disorder, Asperger's disorder, and pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS), are among the most common and impairing psychiatric conditions affecting children and adolescents today," said Barrett. "If we can identify the shift in the parts of the brain that autism affects as we age, then we can better target treatments for patients with ASD."

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Lifespan, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.

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Journal Reference:

1. Daniel P. Dickstein, Matthew F. Pescosolido, Brooke L. Reidy, Thania Galvan, Kerri L. Kim, Karen E. Seymour, Angela R. Laird, Adriana Di Martino, Rowland P. Barrett. Developmental Meta-Analysis of the Functional Neural Correlates of Autism Spectrum Disorders. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 2013; 52 (3): 279 DOI: 10.1016/j.jaac.2012.12.012

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_health/~3/gB9Wd-Ce5UM/130313123540.htm

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Michael Boysen Captured: Police Storm Oregon Motel, Arrest Fugitive Accused Of Slaying Grandparents

"Young L.A. Girl Slain; Body Slashed in Two" -L.A.'s Daily News

On January 15, 1947, the remains of Elizabeth Short, were found in a vacant lot in Los Angeles. What made this discovery the stuff of tabloid sensation, however, was the Glasgow smile left on the aspiring actress' face--made with 3-inch slashes on each side. This, coupled with Short's dark hair, fair complexion and reputation for sporting a dahlia in her hair, dubbed her "The Black Dahlia" in headlines. What followed was a media circus filled with rumors and speculation about the promiscuous 22-year-old's checkered past. What haunts theorists to this day, apart from the victim's uniquely nightmarish visage, is that the case remains unsolved after some 200 suspects were interviewed and ultimately released--making it one of Hollywood's most lurid legends.

"I Am Not Guilty - Thus Lizzie Borden Pleads Before Judge Hammond at New Bedford." -Boston Journal

<em>"Lizzie Borden took an axe And gave her mother forty whacks. And when she saw what she had done, She gave her father forty-one."</em> So goes the lurid nursery rhyme to one of the most mystifying crimes of the century. The nature of the deaths of Andrew J. Borden and his wife, Abby, are trumped only by the identity of the alleged perpetrator: their daughter, Lizzie. Inexplicably found "not guilty" in contrast to the era's zeitgeist of swift justice, Lizzie's legacy--guilty or not--has become immortalized as one of the most perplexing cases of parricide in history.

"Texas Mother Charged with Killing Her 5 Children" -CNN

In a case of mother-gone-mad that startled a nation, Andrea Yates, to her few friends and neighbors, was known as a mere recluse suffering from postpartum depression leading up to the birth of her fifth child. That all changed on June 20, 2001, when she snapped, drowning five of her children in their home's bathtub. She was convicted in 2002 of capital murder, carrying a sentence of life in prison with possible parole. As of July 2006, however, a Texas jury found her not guilty by reason of insanity.

"Buttafuoco Admits to Sex with Amy Fisher" -New York Times

Known as the "Long Island Lolita," Fisher became involved with Joey Buttafuoco in May of 1991. Shortly after the two began a sexual relationship (she, 16, while he, 35, was married with two children), his presence and influence in her life became all she cared for. In what he's since denied to this day, Buttafuoco would go on to help an obsessive Fisher plan the murder of his wife, culminating in Fisher putting a bullet in Mary Jo Buttafuoco's head, but failing to kill her. In the highly publicized trial that ensued, Fisher accepted a plea deal for 15 years in prison in exchange for a testimony against Joey, who faced and served out charges of statutory rape.

"Murder of a Little Beauty" -People Magazine

With a face that graced the covers of nearly every news and gossip rag during the winter of '96, it's hard to suggest the death of child beauty pageant queen JonBen?t Ramsey had little effect outside the city of Boulder, Colorado. Found dead from a blow to the head and strangulation in the family's basement, coupled with a ransom note left on the staircase asking for $118,00 (conveniently or coincidentally, nearly the same amount Mr. Ramsey received as a bonus that year), as well as no obvious signs of forced entry into the house, the evidence was overwhelmingly stacked against parents John and Patsy, who managed to maintain their innocence throughout the investigation. The case reopened in 2010, but critics cite poor handling of the crime scene as obstructing what remains a mystery regarding the events of that Christmas day.

"F.B.I. Joins Probe in Slaughter of 8 Nurses" -Nashua Telegraph

Tattooed with "Born to Raise Hell" on his arm, Richard Speck made good on his mantra through a history of violence, theft, alcoholism, and spousal abuse, but made his infamy known to all when, on July 13, 1966, he walked into a dormitory armed with a knife. After leaving 8 student nurses dead in his wake, only one, Cora Amurao, was spared--hiding under a bed until 6 a.m. Speck was found guilty of murder and died of a heart attack in prison. As one of the most press-worthy crimes of the decade, the grim events were used most recently as the backdrop for an episode of <em>Mad Men</em>.

"Sharon Tate, Four Others Murdered" -Los Angeles Times

Perhaps the most terrifying figure in American crime to have never actually killed anyone himself, Charles Manson founded a "family" of wayward individuals who hailed him as a prophet. So strong was his manipulation, he ordered, on the night of Aug. 8, 1969, four of his followers to kill everyone at the residence of 10050 Cielo Drive--including Roman Polanski's wife, Sharon Tate, and her unborn child. Tate was stabbed 16 times, and her blood was used to write "pig" on the house's front door. The next night, Manson accompanied six of his family to the residence of supermarket executive Leno LaBianca and his wife, only to help bind them before ordering their deaths. In 1971, Manson and three of his fellow defendants were found guilty of murder in the first-degree and several other crimes. At the time, it was the longest murder trial in American history, spanning nine and a half months, as well as the most expensive, estimating $1 million. Manson was denied parole for the 12th time in April 2012.

"Lindbergh Baby Kidnapped from Home of Parents on Farm Near Princeton; Taken from His Crib; Wide Search on" -The New York Times

Used as the basis for an Agatha Christie novel (<em>Murder on the Orient Express</em>) and dubbed "the biggest story since the Resurrection" by famed journalist H.L. Mencken, the kidnapping and murder of aviator Charles Lindbergh's infant son continues to fascinate theorists today. Charles Jr. was discovered missing from his second-floor bedroom on March 1, 1932, along with a note demanding a then-unimaginable $50,000, igniting a media frenzy like no other. The tabloid pandemonium prompted many tips and leads, but none as concrete as a package containing the boy's pajamas and another message demanding the ransom. After some misdirection from the presumed kidnapper, Lindbergh's child was soon after discovered in the woods along a road near the family residence. Notwithstanding the evidence stockpiled against the easily vilified illegal German immigrant Bruno Hauptmann (who was sentenced), speculation prevails as to the true identity of the caper responsible in this tragic tale of one of America's greatest heroes.

"Not Guilty as Sin" -NY Post

Still fresh in the minds of many and not to easily be forgotten, the trial of Casey Anthony turned Orlando, Florida into anything but the "happiest place on earth." Following a series of lies, misdirection and manipulation by then-22 year old Casey, Caylee's skeletal remains were found five months into the investigation, setting the stage for what could only be described as the most incessantly publicized and shocking trial in recent memory. The media had a field day that went on for months: Highlighting the young, pretty, party girl image used against her in court as the prosecution tore apart an aimless defense--or so it seemed. After resorting to throwing her family under the bus, incriminating people entirely made-up ("Zanny the Nanny"), and fabricating elaborate stories for the police, Casey was found not guilty of murder due to evidence deemed mostly circumstantial and not meeting the burden of "beyond reasonable doubt," inciting much debate regarding whether true justice was served.

"An American Tragedy" -TIME

Known and heralded as the "trial of the century," former football star and actor O.J. Simpson found himself in the middle of the nation's biggest, most-televised trial following the deaths of his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ron Goldman, but not before fleeing an all-points bulletin in his Ford Bronco with 20 units in tow, interrupting game 5 of the NBA Finals. By enlisting a dream team including Johnnie Cochran, Robert Shapiro, and Robert Kardashian, the defense claimed Simpson was merely a victim of police fraud with regard to contaminated DNA evidence, while famously quipping "If it [the glove] doesn't fit, you must acquit." On October 3, 1995, an estimated 100 million people from around the world tuned in to watch the jury hand down a verdict of not guilty, consequently resulting in an estimated loss of $480 million in productivity and inciting an ongoing discussion of race in the judicial system that continues to this day.

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/03/13/michael-boysen-captured_n_2864899.html

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Anti-secrecy group posts secret Bradley Manning audio

An anti-secrecy group, the Freedom of the Press Foundation, has released a recording of Bradley Manning's courtroom statement, in which he admits to illegally giving WikiLeaks hundreds of thousands of government documents. NBC's Michael Isikoff reports.

By Michael IsikoffNational Investigative Correspondent, NBC News

An anti-secrecy group on Tuesday released a secretly made audio recording of Army Pfc. Bradley Manning's recent hour-long statement to a military judge in which he openly admitted leaking hundreds of thousands of government documents to WikiLeaks as part of an effort to "spark a domestic debate on the role of the military" and "help document the true cost of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan."

?"In an era where government secrecy is at an all-time high, we believe Bradley Manning's actions should? be commended rather? than condemned," said Trevor Timm, executive director of the Freedom of the Press Foundation, the group that obtained the audio recording and posted it on its website. "In our minds, Bradley Manning is absolutely a whistleblower."

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The group -- whose board members include Daniel Ellsberg, who leaked the Pentagon Papers in 1971 -- said it obtained the recording from a source it declined to identify. Manning?s statement was made in open court but the group acknowledges the recording? was? made in violation of military? rules which explicitly forbid ?photographs, video and sound recordings? of the proceedings. ?

During the Feb. 28 session at Fort Meade, Md., Manning pleaded guilty to 10 of the lesser charges he is facing, including? unauthorized possession and transmission of "protected information." He is still facing a military court martial in June on 12 more serious charges that include "aiding the enemy" and which could result in a life sentence.

Prosecutors have signaled they intend to call a Navy Seal who participated in the raid that killed Osama bin Laden in an apparent move to establish that some of the material that Manning leaked wound up in the al-Qaida leader's compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan.

P.J. Crowley, the State Department's former top spokesman who lost his job after criticizing the U.S. military's treatment of Manning, who was kept in solitary confinement for 10 months, told NBC News? he nonetheless believes the Army private's actions remain indefensible.

"It's nonsense to call Bradley Manning a political prisoner," Crowley said. "He is a member of the military? who was serving in an active war zone and took it on himself to compromise hundreds of thousands of documents."

In his statement to the court, Manning spoke about how as a low-level intelligence analyst in Iraq, he came across material that disturbed him and made him question U.S. policy. He cited a 2007 aerial video of a U.S. helicopter attack that killed innocent civilians and two Reuters journalists.

?The most alarming aspect of the video to me?was the seeming delightful blood lust the Aerial Weapons Team seemed to have,? Manning said. ?They dehumanized the individuals they were engaging and seemed to not value human life, and referred to them as quote, unquote, ?dead bastards.???

Source: http://openchannel.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/12/17276268-defying-courts-rules-anti-secrecy-group-posts-tape-of-bradley-manning-statement?lite

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Ben Heck combines PS3, Xbox 360 and Wii U into one console to rule them all (video)

Most TV stands don't have the space for the litany of home entertainment equipment we have these days, much less three different gaming consoles. Well, Ben Heck has decided to do something about it in a special three-part series: by cobbling together a PlayStation 3, an Xbox 360 and a Wii U and housing them in an all-in-one custom enclosure that would set any gamer's heart aflutter. The first step to this "Ultimate Combo Gaming System" is to tear everything apart, which is what Heck does in part one of the series, available to view downstairs. Let's just hope he'll repeat the process once he finally gets his hands on that mythical PS4...

Filed under: Gaming

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Source: element14

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/UOzKuYwIH5w/

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Leap jumps to capture next step in motion control

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) ? In a bustling tent set up in a parking lot here at the South By Southwest Interactive Festival, people are pointing their hands and gesturing with chopsticks as they guide various actions on a dozen computer screens.

Some of the sharpest minds in technology have gathered in Austin, Texas, to ponder the ever-connected nature of the modern world. A big theme this year focuses on how to create more seamless interactions between people and technology, finding ways to control devices that go beyond mice, trackpads and touchscreens.

That's where the Leap Motion a computer controller comes in. It's the gadget's first public appearance. On display are popular games such as the fruit-chopping "Fruit Ninja," and a more challenging one involving a maze. One man paints a picture by moving his fingers a few inches from a computer screen.

Greg Dziem, who works in data management in Austin, is using the controller to play the maze game. "It's pretty sensitive," he says. "You have to go slow. You have to be calm, steady."

The best-known motion controller to date has been Microsoft Corp.'s Kinect, which is used primarily for video games. People stand at least six feet from the device, which is usually mounted on or near a TV set. Cameras in the Kinect track users' movements and transmit them to the computer. But while Kinect is meant for living rooms and dancing games, Leap Motion is designed for people to use while seated and moving their hands just a few inches from the screens of laptops and personal computers.

"The technology was born out of the deep frustration of interacting with computers," says CEO and co-founder Michael Buckwald. While computers are "vastly different" than they were 30 years ago, he says, the way people interact with them hasn't really evolved.

Leap hopes to change that, allowing people to use natural hand movements to control games, complete office tasks, paint, create 3-D objects, and edit music and video. Leap's creators don't like to use the word "gesture" because that implies a set of pre-determined hand movements to control the screen. Instead, they like to think of their technology as more seamless than that.

Buckwald talks about the barrier that exists between computers and their users and says the best way to get rid of it is to harness "people's natural ability to interact" with the machine.

"Every day we reach out and grab things," he says. "It's very natural, but very complicated. We want people to reach into the computer."

Using Leap may take a little getting used to, if only because people who are accustomed to touchscreens may be tempted to poke at the monitor instead of sweeping and flicking their hands a few inches away from it.

In a demonstration, Leap's vice president of product marketing, Michael Zagorsek, showed off a yet-to-be named photo application that lets people browse through the photos on their computer using Leap. In another app, users can strum on-screen strings to make music. A demo-only program designed to show Leap's properties lets users mold a piece of virtual clay using their hands and a chopstick. There was no noticeable lag between the off-screen action and the on-screen movement.

The device itself is a bit longer and narrower than a matchbox. It works using three infrared LED lights and two cameras to track users' hands. It plugs into a PC or a Mac and sits between the user and the keyboard.

The controllers will cost $80 and will be sold in Best Buy stores beginning on May 19. Leap will have an app store, called Airspace, with free and paid apps available in areas that range from gaming to 3-D modeling to travel to business and finance.

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Online: www.leapmotion.com

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/495d344a0d10421e9baa8ee77029cfbd/Article_2013-03-12-South%20By%20Southwest-Leap%20Motion/id-e79b6aeaa2a34774a25d87083ff8b0e9

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