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Rattlesnake-type poisons used by superbug bacteria

Colonies of hospital superbugs can make poisons similar to those found in rattlesnake venom to attack our bodies' natural defences, scientists heard today (Monday 8 September 2008) at the Society for General Microbiology's Autumn meeting being held this week at Trinity College, Dublin.

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A Fine-Tooth Comb To Measure The Accelerating Universe

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Astronomy news // 04 September, 2008 01:04:00

Astronomical instruments needed to answer crucial questions, such as the search for Earth-like planets or the way the Universe expands, have come a step closer with the first demonstration at the telescope of a new calibration system for precise spectrographs. The method uses a Nobel Prize-winning technology called a 'laser frequency comb', and is published in this week's issue of Science.

Fermilab physicists discover "doubly strange" particle

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Tags: physics fermilab particle quarks

Physical sciences news // 03 September, 2008 01:01:00

Physicists of the DZero experiment at the U.S. Department of Energy's Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory have discovered a new particle made of three quarks, the Omega-sub-b (Ωb). The particle contains two strange quarks and a bottom quark (s-s-b). It is an exotic relative of the much more common proton and weighs about six times the proton mass.

Stanford's 'autonomous' helicopters teach themselves to fly

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Technology news // 02 September, 2008 12:55:00

Stanford computer scientists have developed an artificial intelligence system that enables robotic helicopters to teach themselves to fly difficult stunts by watching other helicopters perform the same maneuvers. The result is an autonomous helicopter than can perform a complete airshow of complex tricks on its own.

First Light for the Fermi Space Telescope

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Tags: astronomy fermi gamma rays

Astronomy news // 01 September, 2008 12:39:00

NASA's newest space telescope, formerly known as GLAST, has passed its orbital checkout with flying colors, kicking off a mission to explore the violent and unpredictable gamma ray universe.