Computer Science: Virtual Reality (VR) Offbeat: Computers and Math Offbeat: General Physics: Optics Physics: Quantum Physics
Published

Holographic message encoded in simple plastic      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Important data can be stored and concealed quite easily in ordinary plastic using 3D printers and terahertz radiation, scientists show. Holography can be done quite easily: A 3D printer can be used to produce a panel from normal plastic in which a QR code can be stored, for example. The message is read using terahertz rays -- electromagnetic radiation that is invisible to the human eye.

Computer Science: General Computer Science: Virtual Reality (VR) Physics: Optics
Published

An innovative mixed light field technique for immersive projection mapping      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A novel mixed light field technique that utilizes a mix of ray-controlled ambient lighting with projection mapping (PM) to obtain PM in bright surroundings has been developed by scientists. This innovative technology utilizes a novel kaleidoscope array to achieve ray-controlled lighting and a binary search algorithm for removing ambient lighting from PM targets. It provides an immersive augmented reality experience with applications in various fields.

Computer Science: Virtual Reality (VR) Environmental: Ecosystems Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geography
Published

Virtual reality better than video for evoking fear, spurring climate action      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Depicting worst-case climate scenarios like expanding deserts and dying coral reefs may better motivate people to support environmental policies when delivered via virtual reality, according to a research team that studied how VR and message framing affect the impact of environmental advocacy communications. The study findings may help advocacy groups decide how best to frame and deliver their messages.

Computer Science: Virtual Reality (VR) Engineering: Robotics Research
Published

Opening new doors in the VR world, literally      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Recreating the action of opening doors in the virtual world requires engineering ways in which to provide the equivalent haptic feedback and steer users away from walls in the real world. A research group has done just this; developing RedirectedDoors+, which employs door robots and rotation to create a more realistic experience.

Computer Science: General Computer Science: Virtual Reality (VR) Engineering: Robotics Research
Published

Straightening teeth? AI can help      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new tool will help orthodontists correctly fit braces onto teeth. Using artificial intelligence and virtual patients, the tool predicts how teeth will move, so as to ensure that braces are neither too loose nor too tight.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: General Biology: Zoology Chemistry: Biochemistry Computer Science: Virtual Reality (VR)
Published

Natural history specimens have never been so accessible      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have painstakingly taken computed topography (CT) scans of more than 13,000 individual specimens to create 3D images of more than half of all the world's animal groups, including mammals, fishes, amphibians and reptiles.

Anthropology: General Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Evolutionary Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Microbiology Biology: Molecular Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

Modeling the origins of life: New evidence for an 'RNA World'      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Scientists provide fresh insights on the origins of life, presenting compelling evidence supporting the 'RNA World' hypothesis. The study unveils an RNA enzyme that can make accurate copies of other functional RNA strands, while also allowing new variants of the molecule to emerge over time. These remarkable capabilities suggest the earliest forms of evolution may have occurred on a molecular scale in RNA, and also bring scientists one step closer to re-creating autonomous RNA-based life in the laboratory.

Anthropology: Early Humans Anthropology: General Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Botany Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Evolutionary Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Microbiology Ecology: Endangered Species Geoscience: Geochemistry
Published

An evolutionary mystery 125 million years in the making      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Plant biologists have uncovered an evolutionary mystery over 100 million years in the making. It turns out that sometime during the last 125 million years, tomatoes and Arabidopsis thaliana plants experienced an extreme genetic makeover. Just what happened remains unclear. But the mystery surrounds CLV3, a gene key to healthy plant growth and development.

Anthropology: General Archaeology: General Environmental: General Geoscience: Geography Geoscience: Oceanography Geoscience: Severe Weather Paleontology: Climate
Published

Climate change threatens thousands of archaeological sites in coastal Georgia      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Thousands of historic and archaeological sites in Georgia are at risk from tropical storm surges, and that number will increase with climate change, according to a new study.

Anthropology: Cultures Anthropology: General Archaeology: General
Published

Experiment captures why pottery forms are culturally distinct      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Potters of different cultural backgrounds learn new types differently, producing cultural differences even in the absence of differential cultural evolution. The research has implications for how we evaluate the difference of archaeological artifacts across cultures.

Anthropology: Cultures Anthropology: General Archaeology: General
Published

Plant seed and fruit analysis from the biblical home of Goliath sheds unprecedented light on Philistine ritual practices      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

While many aspects of Philistine culture are well-documented, the specifics of Philistine religious practices and deities have long remained shrouded in mystery. A recent study contributes valuable new data to our understanding of the Philistine's ritual practices. The discovery of numerous plants in two temples unearthed at the site unraveled unprecedented insights into Philistine cultic rituals and beliefs -- their temple food ingredients, timing of ceremonies, and plants for temple decoration.

Anthropology: General Archaeology: General Environmental: Water Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Earthquakes Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geology Geoscience: Oceanography Geoscience: Volcanoes Paleontology: Climate
Published

Biggest Holocene volcano eruption found by seabed survey      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A detailed survey of the volcanic underwater deposits around the Kikai caldera in Japan clarified the deposition mechanisms as well as the event's magnitude. As a result, the research team found that the event 7,300 years ago was the largest volcanic eruption in the Holocene by far.

Anthropology: Cultures Anthropology: Early Humans Anthropology: General Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology
Published

Did neanderthals use glue? Researchers find evidence that sticks      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Neanderthals created stone tools held together by a multi-component adhesive, a team of scientists has discovered. Its findings, which are the earliest evidence of a complex adhesive in Europe, suggest these predecessors to modern humans had a higher level of cognition and cultural development than previously thought.

Computer Science: General Computer Science: Virtual Reality (VR) Mathematics: Modeling Physics: General
Published

Plasma scientists develop computer programs that could reduce the cost of microchips and stimulate American manufacturing      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Fashioned from the same element found in sand and covered by intricate patterns, microchips power smartphones, augment appliances and aid the operation of cars and airplanes. Now, scientists are developing computer simulation codes that will outperform current simulation techniques and aid the production of microchips using plasma, the electrically charged state of matter also used in fusion research. These codes could help increase the efficiency of the manufacturing process and potentially stimulate the renaissance of the chip industry in the United States.

Anthropology: General Archaeology: General Paleontology: Fossils
Published

Ancient DNA reveals Down syndrome in past human societies      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

By analysing ancient DNA, an international team of researchers have uncovered cases of chromosomal disorders, including what could be the first case of Edwards syndrome ever identified from prehistoric remains.

Anthropology: General Biology: Evolutionary Biology: General Ecology: Nature Paleontology: Dinosaurs Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

A lighthouse in the Gobi desert      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new study explores the weight great fossil sites have on our understanding of evolutionary relationships between fossil groups and quantified the power these sites have on our understanding of evolutionary history. Surprisingly, the authors discovered that the wind-swept sand deposits of the Late Cretaceous Gobi Desert's extraordinarily diverse and well-preserved fossil lizard record shapes our understanding of their evolutionary history more than any other site on the planet.

Anthropology: General Archaeology: General Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology
Published

Anthropologists' research unveils early stone plaza in the Andes      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Located at the Callacpuma archaeological site in the Cajamarca Basin of northern Peru, the plaza is built with large, vertically placed megalithic stones -- a construction method previously unseen in the Andes.

Anthropology: Early Humans Anthropology: General
Published

Vittrup Man crossed over from forager to farmer before being sacrificed in Denmark      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Vittrup Man was born along the Scandinavian coast before moving to Denmark, where he was later sacrificed, according to a new study.