SCIENCE BOND

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First scientific paper published

Appearing in Science magazine, the article is largely a collation of information already made public through media briefings and press releases. It includes the mission team’s initial impressions of Pluto and its moons: Charon, Styx, Nix, Kerberos and Hydra. And, of course, it details some of the basic numbers that can now be used to describe these far-flung objects. Every week, we have something new and wonderful to look at and speculate aboutDr John Spencer, Southwest Research Institute. One key early result from the US space agency (Nasa) probe is the precise measure of Pluto's radius, of 1,187km, plus or minus 4km. "This doesn't sound particularly exciting but you have to remember estimates of Pluto's radius varied from 1,150km to 1,200km, so this will really help those people modelling how Pluto/Charon formed, their atmospheres and the material exchange between them," said team member Dr Carly Howett from the Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) ...

Apple faces a bill of $862m (£565m) after losing a patent lawsuit

The University of Wisconsin successfully claimed that Apple used its microchip technology without permission in some iPhones and iPads. The patent, filed in 1998, is said to improve the power efficiency of microchips. The case relates to use of the technology in the iPhone 5s, 6 and 6 Plus - but an additional lawsuit making the same claim against Apple's newest models, the 6S and 6S Plus, has also been filed. The University of Wisconsin sued Intel over the same patent in 2008. The case was settled out of court for an undisclosed sum. In court papers, the university claimed Apple ignored its offers to license the patent, which would mean paying a fee for its continued use. Therefore the university said Apple was willfully infringing the patent, something which, if the court agrees, could carry a heavier fine. The precise amount Apple may have to pay will be decided at a later stage in the court proceedings. Despite recent w...

A gene-editing method can make pig organs suitable for use in people, scientists say

Prof George Church and colleagues used a technique called Crispr to alter the DNA of pig cells to create a better match for humans. The early work, in the journal Science, aims to address concerns about rejection and infection by viruses embedded in pig DNA. If successful, it could be an answer to the shortage of human donor organs. Years more research is needed before genetically modified pigs could be bred to grow organs for people. Gene editing Crispr is a relatively new scientific tool that lets scientists snip and play around with the code of life - DNA. Prof Church, from Harvard University, used it to inactivate a retrovirus present in the pig cell line.This porcine endogenous retrovirus is potentially risky because it can infect human cells - at least in the lab. In tests on early pig embryos, Prof Church was able to eliminate all 62 copies of porcine endogenous retroviruses from the pig cells using Crispr. Next, he checked i...

A crowdfunding campaign for a razor blade has been suspended by Kickstarter

Razor blade The device had attracted more than $4m (£2.6m) in funding - but reportedly did not have a working model. Backers received an email from Kickstarter saying the Laser Razor was "in violation of our rule requiring working prototypes of physical products that are offered as rewards". It has now been relisted on Indiegogo. The gadget, by a firm called Skarp Technologies, based in California, raised nearly $40,000 in pledges in its first four hours on the rival crowdfunding platform. On its Facebook page Skarp told its supporters "not to worry" and promised that the Laser Razor would be available in the spring. "They have been incredibly helpful and they believe in the Skarp Razor as much as we do," the firm said of Indiegogo. Last week, Skarp released a nine-minute video on Kickstarter, addressing backers' concerns about the product, which included safety and battery life. Some people who commented on the original fundraising ...

An image of warring foxes won 2015 Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition

Warring fox Taken by beginner Don Gutoski, the photo catches the minute a red fox pulls away the corpse of its Arctic cousin taking after a savage assault in Canada's Wapusk National Park. "It's the best picture I've ever taken in my life," Don told. "It's the heads' symmetry, the bodies and the tails - even the demeanor on the appearances." The two creatures' extents cover at Wapusk, which embraces the shore of Hudson Bay in Manitoba. What's more, if the bigger red gets a quick look at the Arctic inhabitant, it will attempt to originate before the northern species. Untamed life guides in the recreation center had talked about seeing the contention, yet this is thought to be one of the first situations where it has been archived on camera. Kathy Moran, who sat on the judging board, said the scene's awfulness was shockingly downplayed. "It doesn't appear to be bloody by any stretch of the imagination. On the off c...

Cammell Laird in Birkenhead will build polar research ship

The research ship for marine science will have floating labs and be able to despatch robotic submarines. Cammell Laird in Birkenhead competed against international companies to be named as the preferred bidder. Work is due to begin next year. The project would secure 400 jobs and create 60 apprenticeships. Cammell Laird said it was "fantastic news". Discussions with the firm will now take place ahead of the contract being awarded next month. Cammell Laird was chosen over firms in Singapore, South Korea, Spain and Norway.Cammell Laird was founded in 1828 and is a ship repair and conversion specialist with new-build capabilities. John Syvret, Cammell Laird chief executive, said: "Being selected as the preferred bidder in a global tender to undertake such an exciting and major infrastructure project is fantastic news for our workforce, the local region and the UK." Natural Environment Research Council, which selected Cammell Laird, said the ship...

Scientists at Cardiff University can explain why some people are prone to hallucinations

Researchers worked with colleagues at the University of Cambridge to study the predictive nature of the brain. They looked at the idea that hallucinations happen due to the brain's tendency to interpret the world using prior knowledge and predictions. The study examined whether the brain creating this image of the world contributes to people's psychosis. Research published on Monday in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences studied 18 people who suffered from very early signs of psychosis who had been referred to a mental health service run by the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust.They compared them to 16 healthy volunteers and asked them if they could make sense of vague black and white images. All of them were then shown the full colour original picture to improve the brain's ability to understand the ambiguous image. There was a larger performance improvement in people with early signs of psychosis compared to...