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The National Science Foundation provided $10.9 million to convert an old military A-10 Thunderbolt into the world’s most formidable storm-chasing research vessel, outfitted to withstand the lightning, turbulence, and hail that big clouds unleash. “The A-10 was designed to be shot at,” says Paul Smith, an atmospheric scientist at the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology, who helped acquire the aircraft. The A-10 will replace the T-28 Trojan , which retired from chasing storms in 2005. It can soar more than eight miles high compared with the T-28’s five, carrying meteorological equipment into the tops of thunderheads where lightning is generated. Optical imagers will use lasers to cast shadows, capturing the motion of rain, hail, and snow. And the A-10 can stay aloft for three hours, three times as long as the T-28, allowing researchers to observe a storm’s full life cycle. The data could improve precipitation forecasts and models of hail formation, ultimately ...

If your car is going to hit bumps in the road, it might as well get a little power. At SUNY Stony Brook, mechanical engineering professor Lei Zuo invented a shock absorber that converts the kinetic energy from vibrations into electricity. Electric and hybrid cars already convert the kinetic energy from braking in to electricity that's used to recharge the car's battery. But in those cases, the energy that's captured is the regular, predictable motion of braking. Zuo took that idea a step further, and designed a system of gears that collects the energy of irregular motion to ultimately produce electricity. He calls the device a mechanical motion rectifier, or MMR. "While working on vibration energy harvesting at large scale, I was thinking what is the fundamental challenge? What makes this different from the wind energy technology?" He told Discovery News. "It is the irregular velocity-alternating motion. Then we came up this MMR idea, to ...

In November researchers showed off the lightest material ever created: 
a strong metal mesh about 25 percent less dense than the wispiest aerogel, a foamlike material that was the 
old record holder. A brick-size piece of the new mesh would weigh less than a paper clip. Faced with a U.S. Department of 
Defense charge to manipulate well-known materials in new ways, Alan Jacobsen, a research scientist at HRL Laboratories in California, constructed delicate lattices of polymer fibers 
less than a millimeter thick. He then coated the lattices with nickel and dissolved the polymer, leaving behind the spindly metal mesh. Surprisingly, minimizing weight does not mean sacrificing strength and resilience. “I was playing with it, marveling at the weight, and I squished it between my fingers,” materials scientist Tobias Schaedler says. “It bounced right back to its original size.” The lattice can recover after being compressed to half its volume. The mesh’s low weight and high...

Samsung’s ‘Next Galaxy’ smartphone is the most anticipated Android device right now burdened with the expectations of the last successful flagship Galaxy S II. One of the main reasons Galaxy S II was loved was due to its dual-core Exynos chipset, which topped most of the performance charts. The ‘Next Galaxy’ , probably to be called the Galaxy S III is also expected to bring some superlative performance and today Samsung have gone ahead and announced the Quad-Core Exynos 4 processor which will be featuring in the ‘Next Galaxy’. The Exynos 4 is clocked at 1.4 GHz, based on the ARM Cortex A9 and Samsung is using the 32nm High-k Metal Gate (HKMG) low-power process technology and claims a 20 percent better battery performance over the 45nm Exynos Dual. The Exynos 4 Quad is pin to pin compatible which Samsung believes will allow designers to use the new chipset without altering the schematics and other makers will also be able to make the switch quite easily. The Quad-core...

Rumours of a Facebook phone have once again surfaced online. This time rumours suggest HTC is working on a device for the social networking and unlike the current Facebook-enabled phones such as HTC ChaCha and Salsa, the new Facebook phone will “have a platform exclusive to Facebook”. Moreover, it will have all the functionality present on the desktop version of the social networking site. The rumoured device is likely to launch in the third quarter of 2012. “Since Samsung has become the top vendor of Android smartphones, Google will continue to have Samsung develop its next-generation Nexus models, leveraging Samsung's innovation ability with regard to the Android platform, and its ability to control the supply of key components,” says a Digitimes report citing unnamed sources privy to the matter. The report further said that Facebook is likely to expand its investments and sources of income after becoming a public company, and the launch of self-brand smart...

As part of its Battery 500 project — an initiative started by IBM in 2009 to produce a battery capable of powering a car for 500 miles — Big Blue has successfully demonstrated a light-weight, ultra-high-density, lithium-air battery. In IBM’s lithium-air battery, oxygen is reacted with lithium to create lithium peroxide and electrical energy (pictured above). When the battery is recharged, the process is reversed and oxygen is released — in the words of IBM, this is an “air-breathing” battery. While conventional batteries are completely self-contained, the oxygen used in an lithium-air battery obviously comes from the atmosphere, so the battery itself can be much lighter. The main thing, though, is that lithium-air energy density is a lot higher than conventional lithium-ion batteries: The max energy density of lithium-air batteries is theorized to be around 12 kWh/kg, some 15 times greater than li-ion — and more importantly, comparable to gasoline. Therein lies the...

The new browser for Nokia S40 brings a host of new features that make web browsing faster, cheaper and easier, while not sacrificing quality. Nokia has announced the launch and availability of Nokia Browser 2.0, a major web browser update dedicated to its Series 40 devices. The new version reduces data consumption by up to 90 per cent, enabling websites to load up to three times faster in comparison to other devices without this new browser. Besides, the browser brings a host of new features and functionality for users. The new Nokia browser for S40 OS based phones features cloud based acceleration where web pages are loaded on Nokia servers and are optimised for devices by reducing size and quality, allowing users to experience faster and more economical web browsing. Users can now discover new web content and can enjoy one-click access to websites via Nokia Browser's start page, which can be customised. The browser has also been optimised to enable users to...

It was possible because the Navy has opened a new Laboratory for Autonomous Systems Research (LASR) on the grounds of the Naval Research Laboratory, just across the Anacostia River from downtown. "This really is a one-of-a-kind laboratory that we expect will provide future sailors and Marines with better tools to do their jobs," Rear Adm. Matthew Klunder, chief of Naval Research, told reporters after the tour of LASR. "Under this one roof are all the environments our sailors and Marines could face," Klunder said. Klunder noted that the improved autonomous systems that will come out of the new facility fit nicely with the new national strategic directive that focuses the U.S. military's efforts on the Asia-Pacific region and the "anti-access, area-denial threat." Although the admiral did not say it, that A2AD threat is poised primarily by China, although Iran is attempting to achieve similar capabilities in the Persian Gul...

Today is officially Ivy Bridge day, in case you didn't already know. Intel took the wraps off the latest member of its processor family and the internet wasted no time putting the flagship Core i7-3770K through its paces. The 3.5GHz quad-core desktop chip comes packing not only some architectural tweaks, but a brand new integrated GPU in the form of the HD 4000. Oh, and it does all this using a brand new 22nm manufacturing process and 3D "Tri-Gate" transistors. What does that mean for you, the user? Lower power consumption, better performance and, surprisingly, unbelievably fast media transcoding. When AnandTech turned its eyes towards Quick Sync, the on-die media transcode engine introduced with Sandy Bridge, the 3770K practically buried the competition. Using Cyberlink Media Espresso the new chip turned a DRM-stripped Blu-ray of Harry Potter (130 minutes of 1080p video) into an iPad friendly format in just seven minutes without taxing the CPU. At id...

Microsoft Office 15 Build 15.0.2703.1000 x86 - This is the first build of office 15 to leak and is part of the M2 branch. downlaod source forum : http://digiex.net/downloads/download-center-2-0/applications/8616-microsoft-office-15-mondo-build-15-0-2703-1000-x86-download.html Download: Download Microsoft Office 15 Build 15.0.2703.1000 x86 (Torrent 100mbit Seed) Microsoft Office 15 (Mondo) Build 15.0.2703.1000 By Digiex.net.torrent (18.4 KB) 

If you’ve ever attempted to install OS X Lion onto your PC (a process known as hackintosh), you will be aware that although the result is pretty good, the effort required to get you there is quite high in what is a rather tedious process . You have to install Snow Leopard, and follow an upgrade process in order to enjoy Apple’s famed operating system on an ordinarily Windows-based PC. Hardware wiz tonymacx86 is renowned for developing the hackintosh project, and has now made the process a whole lot simpler by introducing UniBeast all-in-one bootable USB drive. The new utility enables you to create a bootable Lion flash-based drive for hackintosh, and also eradicates the necessity of using an iBoot CD to boot. So unlike the previous method, no optical drive is needed for you to create your own hackintosh. We’re going to demonstrate how you can install OS X Lion on your hackintosh, following these recent advances. Firstly, you will need a copy of OS X Lion ( downlo...

A pple has enjoyed a healthy market share when it comes to tablets. They’ve dominated pretty much from the beginning with their iPad. Google’s Android-based tablets have dented the market share but they haven’t been successful at snatching the majority from Apple. Microsoft and Intel however, are hoping they can do it. There’s a lot happening between Intel and Microsoft and there’s a whole bunch of tablets being launched by the end of the year. Intel hopes to launch its Atom-powered Medfield platform in the market, in time for Microsoft’s Windows 8 OS launch sometime in October this year. Microsoft and Intel are both trying to gain lost ground in the tablet space. ARM-based processor manufacturers by companies such as Qualcomm, Samsung and NVIDIA have dominated the market, leaving Intel completely lost. The same has been the case with the OS market, where Microsoft hasn’t had a competing product to take on Google’s Android and Apple’s iOS platforms. Digitimes has re...

The original iPhone made a breakthrough in the world of touchscreens with the incorporation of Gorilla Glass technology, which promised that your screen will not get scratched. The next iPhone from Apple might usher in a similar new leap in technology with the use of “in-cell” touch panels. According to a new report from DigiTimes, Apple is thinking of adopting the in-cell touch panel developed by Sharp and Toshiba Mobile Display. The company’s current touch panel supplier, TPK Holdings, has been said to be working on an alternate tech called ‘Touch on Lens’. What Is An In-Cell Touch Panel? Without getting into the technicalities of what makes an in-cell touch panel superior, the brief explanation is that the properties of the capacitive touchscreen are performed by the pixels themselves. This is possible due to a new circuit inside the panel that is capable of detecting capacitive change. Traditional touchscreens work when the panel detects either a change in ...

Superior Intel technology and Lava’s innovation come together to bring you the new XOLO X900, the first smartphone with Intel Inside®. Experience fast web browsing with the 1.6 GHz Intel processor. Based on Intel patented Hyper Threading technology this processor also enables smooth multi-tasking with optimum battery usage. A 4.03” hi-resolution LCD screen, dedicated HDMI output, full HD 1080p playback and dual speakers ensure an unmatched multimedia experience. Click upto 10 photos in less than a second on the 8MP HD camera which boasts of certain DSLR like features. With XOLO X900’s 400 MHz Graphics Processing Unit, 3D and HD gaming turn immersively realistic. Everything you have always wanted, and more, now comes in a blink into your pocket. Features Discover what makes the XOLO X900 an awe-inspiring experience. Lightning Fast Processor The core of a computer in your pocket With a 1.6 GHz Intel Atom processor and 1G...

The BlackBerry Curve 9220 is a device that RIM hopes will boost sales in developing markets that will stem the downfall of the once great smartphone maker. The Curve 9220 attempts to up the ante from the BlackBerry Curve 8520, a smartphone that has been hugely popular in Indian market. Lets see if the Curve 9220 has the chops to take on the low budget Android army. Read on for my first impressions. At first glance the Curve 9220 is a very attractive device. It has a very plasticky finish, but the quality of the plastic is rock solid and the glossy finish definitely adds to the luster of the device. The device like most BlackBerry smartphones is very comfortable to hold. At 12.7 mm, it is neither too bulky nor too slender. Frankly I believe RIM has nailed the sweet spot. Apart from this, the device also has a dedicated BBM key on left-hand side for quick access to the service. When I tried out the keyboard, the keys felt a tad stiff, however this is par for the course,...

In the world of gaming things do not get bigger than Halo. Microsoft has announced that Halo 4 will hit the shelves on November 6 and has confirmed the iconic Master Chief will return. The game will be set four years after the events of Halo 3 and the Master Chief will return to confront his destiny and face an ancient evil that threatens the fate of the entire universe. At the end of Halo 3, there were many unanswered questions regarding the fate of the Master Chief and his AI companion Cortana. Many believed that the ending in Halo 3 signaled the death of the Master Chief, however this is clearly not true anymore. The Master Chief is among the most iconic gaming characters in gaming history. He is right up there with the likes of Mario, Zelda, Snake, Commander Shepard, Gordon Freeman and Sonic the Hedgehog. Halo is undoubtedly the most popular video game franchise on the XBOX 360 platform and Microsoft believes that with Halo 4 coming this year, 2012 could perhap...