Technology Spain  MADRID 27/10/2015

UC3M researches simulator of human behavior

Universidad Carlos III de Madrid is investigating how to build a system that recreates human behavior

Universidad Carlos III de Madrid is investigating how to build a system that recreates human behavior. This technology could be applied to anticipate behavior in socioeconomic crises, create more human-like robots or develop avatars of artificial intelligence which are almost indistinguishable from those that represent people.

Red de personas. Imagen: UC3M.
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Technology Brazil  BRASIL 27/10/2015

Nanoparticles could be a basis for more sensitive radiation detectors

Structures produced by researchers at University of São Paulo and Harvard show potential to enhance efficiency of systems that require highly sensitive detection of light or radiation

Images captured from an electron microscope apparently show a huge number of tiny stars each with a diameter of only a few micrometers (millionths of a meter). The structures, produced by Eder Guidelli and Oswaldo Baffa at the Ribeirão Preto campus of the University of São Paulo (USP) in Brazil, in partnership with David R. Clarke of Harvard University in the United States, have a core of gold and silver particles surrounded by a “shell” of zinc oxide (ZnO). Their properties have the potential to improve the efficiencies of various systems in which it is necessary to detect light or radiation with a high degree of sensitivity.

Nanopartículas. FOTO: FAPESP
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Social Sciences Brazil  BRASIL 21/10/2015

Study of exotic stars helps understand formation of solar system

Massive stars usually end catastrophically, exploding as supernovae, ejecting vast amounts of matter into outer space, and eventually collapsing as black holes

Be stars are such strange objects that even professional astrophysicists are surprised by their description. Nevertheless, these stars are common in our galaxy, and there are several very near the solar system, at distances in the range of 100 light years, which is approximately nothing on the astronomical scale.

En la imagen se observa a la estrella desde un ángulo de 20 grados al sur de su plano ecuatorial (imagen: Daniel Moser Faes)
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Health Colombia  BOGOTÁ D.C. 20/10/2015

Approach to a tuberculosis vaccine

Universidad Nacional de Colombia (UNal) researchers are working on protein structures with bactericide properties which are fundamental for survival of tuberculosis causing microorganisms

Tuberculosis treatment consists of a combination of drugs which if used correctly successfully controls the disease. However when patients do not follow the treatment correctly or use low quality antibiotics for long periods of time, the consequence is emergence of antibiotic resistant mycobacteria (Mycobacterium tuberculosis).

El grupo de Bioquímica y Biología Molecular de las Micobacterias trabaja con compuestos naturales que el organismo utiliza para combatir las bacterias. FOTO: UN
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Nutrition Panama  PANAMÁ 16/10/2015

Star gazing from the sea floor

Brittle stars, along with starfish and sand dollars, are radially symmetrical, “spiny-skinned” animals known as echinoderms

The kiddie pool Lauren Sumner-Rooney unfolds on the dock at the Bocas Del Toro Research Station isn’t for relaxing at sundown after a long day of fieldwork. Under the midday sun, she places brittle stars on the pool’s blue plastic bottom and floats a shadow-casting disc on the water’s surface. Her experiment tests the nocturnal creatures’ poorly understood vision system. Can they “see” the disc and move into its protective shadow?

El ofiuro Ophiocoma wendtii. FOTO: STRI
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Nutrition Colombia  BOGOTÁ D.C. 15/10/2015

Mechanisms to remineralize teeth naturally

Universidad Nacional de Colombia (UNal) researchers have identified mechanisms in which chemical substances could be added into teeth enamel for remineralization processes

The results obtained by UNal Faculty of Sciences and School of Dentistry experts will help solve incipient cavity and erosion issues due to chemical effects and dental sensitivity problems. Carolina Torres Rodríguez, UNal School of Dentistry Professor and member of the Dentistry Materials Application Group (GRAMO, for its Spanish acronym says that this project focused on determining the remineralization processes through diffusion of chemical elements in teeth.

Dentista. FOTO: UN.
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Health Brazil  SãO PAULO 13/10/2015

Research identifies drug capable of preventing complications from hemolysis

The research was conducted with support from FAPESP during Camila Bononi de Almeida’s postdoctoral work

Patients with sickle cell anemia frequently suffer from hemolysis, the destruction of red blood cells leading to the release of hemoglobin into the blood stream.

 El grado de inflamación en los ratones se midió mediante el empleo del IVIS (In vivo imaging system) (imagen: FAPESP)
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Technology Spain  ESPAÑA 13/10/2015

From Privacy to Freedom of Expression: the Continuum in 2015 – 2020.

Hannover hosts the annual meeting of the Mapping project from 22 to 23 September

MAPPING Annual General Assembly, Hannover, September 22-23, 2015. The annual event of the MAPPING project, www.mappingtheinternet.eu, has become a recognised European platform for the exchange of views of a multi-stakeholder community. The very wide-ranging discussions this year focused on inter-related issues such as privacy, security and freedom of expression, as well as intellectual property rights.

 
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Nutrition Argentina  ARGENTINA 08/10/2015

Scientists develop innovative virtual simulation technology in Tandil

A research team created the first computer assisted virtual environment of Argentina, a system to promote professional training in different priority areas of the country

Coordinated by CONICET post-doctoral fellow Cristian García Bauza, a group of researchers, fellows and Media.Lab teachers at the PLADEMA Institute of the Universidad Nacional del Centro of the province of Buenos Aires designed, programmed and built the first Argentine CAVE (Computer Assisted Virtual Environment), called Rubika for the several possibilities of the Rubik’s cube.

CAVE es una instalación que combina software y hardware que permite al usuario sentirse inmerso en un mundo que parece real pero que es virtual. Foto: CCT Tandil.
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Nutrition Panama  PANAMÁ 07/10/2015

Frog's irrational choices could reform understanding of animal mating

The results of this study highlight the influence of context when choosing a mate, and have significant implications for scientists' understanding of sexual selection

In the attempt to choose a mate, it's no surprise that females will select the more "attractive" of two males, but now a new study reveals that female túngara frogs are susceptible to the "decoy" effect, where the introduction of a third, inferior mate results in the female choosing the less attractive of the first two options.

Rana túngara. FOTO: STRI.
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Technology Spain  MADRID 02/10/2015

New infrared camera detects gas leaks in industry

This company’s invention, supported by the Business Incubator at the UC3M Science Park, is based on technology patented by researchers from the UC3M Infrared Laboratory

A spin-off of the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (UC3M), Sensia Solutions, has developed a new low-cost infrared camera that makes it possible to quickly and efficiently detect gas leaks that can occur in different industrial facilities.

Cámara infrarroja. Foto: UC3M.
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Health Brazil  BRASIL 02/10/2015

Researchers investigate genes that endow tumor cells with stem cell-like properties

In vitro experiments were performed on cell lines derived from medulloblastoma tumors, the most common type of brain cancer in children

Researchers at the University of São Paulo’s Bioscience Institute (IB-USP) in Brazil are studying a group of human genes that, when expressed in malignant tumors, endow tumor cells with properties similar to those of stem cells, making them more aggressive and resistant to treatment.

Linajes de meduloblastoma, el tipo de cáncer cerebral más común en niños (imagen: Wikimedia Commons)
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Social Sciences Colombia  BOGOTÁ D.C. 01/10/2015

Seisms in Venus?

David Tovar a UNal Geologist and University of Minnesota Geological Sciences masters candidate is using planetary geology for researching a very small region in Venus to study global heat diffusion average in heavily fractured areas

“Despite not being able to observe the surface directly due to its dense atmosphere, there is a region called Alpha with high fracturing with faults and folds (an area of approximately 700,000 square km and similar to the size of Texas) that evidence some type of seismic activity,” said Tovar, Cofounder and Codirector of the UNal Planetary Geology and Astrobiology Research Group (TITAN, for its Spanish acronym).

Venus. FOTO: UN
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Technology Argentina  ARGENTINA 29/09/2015

Research network to optimize the development of telecommunications’ technology

Scientists at the CONICET explain how they designed the network that aims to connect studies conducted in the country

The objective of the “Research Network for the development of technology in telecommunications” is promote the joint work of scientists and technicians throughout the country in order to optimize the technological and human resources on the subject.

The objective of the Network is the constant interaction of scientists and technicians of all the country to optimize technological and human resources. Illustration: CONICET Design
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Technology Spain  MADRID 21/09/2015

A UC3M study analyzes the “virality” of Twitter in electoral processes

there are two levels of conversation with scarcely any points of connection: on one level are the politicians, on the other are the citizens

Research carried out at the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (UC3M) analyzes the participation and receptivity of the messages emitted during the last European elections in 2014. The main conclusion the study reached is that there are two levels of conversation with scarcely any points of connection: on one level are the politicians, controlled by the parties and candidates; on the other are the citizens, freer in their structure and the subjects dealt with.

Política en Twitter. Imagen: UC3M.
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Nutrition Panama  PANAMÁ 18/09/2015

Biologists discover skydiving spiders in South American forests

Arachnophobes fearful of spiders jumping, creeping or falling into their beds now have something new to worry about. Some spiders might also glide in through the window

A group of biologists working in Panama and Peru have discovered a type of nocturnal hunting spider, about two inches across that is able to steer while falling, much like a wingsuit flyer, in order to return to the tree from which it fell.

La araña, del género Selenops. FOTO: STRI.
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Nutrition Spain  MADRID 17/09/2015

Analyzing the keys to environmental mobilization through social networks

Recognizing an opportunity, defining a clear message and reacting; these are the three keys

Recognizing an opportunity, defining a clear message and reacting; these are the three keys to the success of environmental campaigns on social networks, according to research by Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (UC3M) and INGENIO, a joint center of the Universidad Politécnica de Valencia and CSIC, which also received an international award for the best article about entrepreneurship.

Cadáver de albatros con residuos en su interior. Foto: Chris Jordan.
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Social Sciences Argentina  ARGENTINA 15/09/2015

Catalysis: the key to the success of chemical processes

Researchers at the CONICET study materials to make chemical reactions more efficient in the petrochemical and oleo chemical industry

At a single glance, an exhaust pipe and a washing powder seem to have nothing in common; however, they both contain therein substances, catalysts, which accelerate the rate of a chemical reaction without changing the end product. From the times of the old alchemists to this time, scientists have studied the mixtures of products that increase the efficiency of the new compounds that are produced from them. Nowadays, more than 80% of the industrial products we consume are produced from catalysis.

Daniel Damiani, investigador principal, María Luján Ferreira, investigadora principal y Gabriela Tonetto, investigadora independiente del CONICET. Foto: CONICET Fotografía.
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Social Sciences Chile  ATACAMA 10/09/2015

ALMA discover how lowly dwarf galaxy becomes star-forming powerhouse

An international team of astronomers has discovered an unexpected population of compact interstellar clouds hidden within the nearby dwarf irregular galaxy

A nearby dwarf galaxy poses an intriguing mystery: How is it able to form brilliant star clusters without the dusty, gas-rich environments found in larger galaxies? The answer, astronomers believe, lies in densely packed and previously unrecognized nuggets of star-forming material sprinkled throughout the galaxy.

ALMA descubrió una inesperada población de nubes interestelares compactas dentro de la galaxia enana irregular WLM. Créditos: B. Saxton (NRAO/AUI/NSF); M. Rubio et al., Universidad de Chile, ALMA (NRAO/ESO/NAOJ); D. Hunter y A. Schruba, VLA (NRAO/AUI/N
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Nutrition Panama  PANAMÁ 07/09/2015

New reef fish found off Curaçao

The fish takes its name, published in the journal 'ZooKeys', from Substation Curaçao’s Curasub, a submersible that caters to tourists, adventurers and researchers

Discoveries keep bubbling up from the Caribbean Sea as Carole Baldwin and Ross Robertson of the Smithsonian Institution’s Deep Reef Observation Project name a fourth new tropical fish, the yellow-spotted sand goby, Coryphopterus curasub.

Gobio de arena amarillo con manchas, el Coryphopterus curasub. FOTO: STRI.
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