university of texas – Page 7 – Shamskm: A site to exchange knowledge and solutions

Study Determines Theoretical Energy Benefits and Potential of Algae Fuels

By Guest PostJuly 26, 2012Environment, Sciencealgae, algae fuels, algae pump, algeternal technologies, austin, austin startup, city of austin, colin beal, electricity, electromechanics, energy benefits, energy input, fertilizers, food, green source, michael webber, openalgae, pharmaceuticals, public policy, robert hebner, university of texas, viability of algae

AUSTIN, Texas — It’s theoretically possible to produce about 500 times as much energy from algae fuels as is needed to grow the fuels, according to a new study by researchers at The University of Texas at Austin.

However, limited by existing technology, the researchers found in a separate study that their algae growing facility is getting out about one-five hundredth as much energy as it currently puts in to grow the fuels.

“The search for cost-effective biofuels is one of the noble endeavors of our time, and these papers shed insight on where the boundaries are in algae research,” said Robert Hebner, a professor in the Cockrell School of Engineering and director of the Center for Electromechanics. “One of the responsibilities of a top research university is to discover and explain what the boundaries are so we can innovate within those boundaries or create ways to expand them.” (more…)

Scientists Discover New Site of Potential Instability in West Antarctic Ice Sheet

By Guest PostMay 12, 2012Environmentaircraft, Antarctica, austin, basin, british antarctic survey, computer model, don blankenship, duncan young, filchner ronne ice shelf, ice penetrating radar, ice sheet change, martin siegert, new jersey, pine island glacier, sea level, sub glacial basin, thwaites glacier, university of edinburgh, university of texas, wais, warmer ocean, weddell sea, west antarctic ice sheet

AUSTIN, Texas — Using ice-penetrating radar instruments flown on aircraft, a team of scientists from the U.S. and U.K. have uncovered a previously unknown sub-glacial basin nearly the size of New Jersey beneath the West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS) near the Weddell Sea. The location, shape and texture of the mile-deep basin suggest that this region of the ice sheet is at a greater risk of collapse than previously thought.

Team members at The University of Texas at Austin compared data about the newly discovered basin to data they previously collected from other parts of the WAIS that also appear highly vulnerable, including Pine Island Glacier and Thwaites Glacier. Although the amount of ice stored in the new basin is less than the ice stored in previously studied areas, it might be closer to a tipping point. (more…)

Seed Size is Controlled by Maternally Produced Small Rnas, Scientists Find

By Guest PostApril 14, 2012Naturearabidopsis, austin, david baulcombe, diploid, double fertilization, duplicate genome, embryo, endosperm, flowering plant, gene, maternal genome, molecular mechanism, placenta, plant, plant embryo, plant evolution, rna molecule, seed, seed production, sirnas, small, small interfering rnas, tetraploid, university of cambridge, university of texas, z jeff chen

AUSTIN, Texas — Seed size is controlled by small RNA molecules inherited from a plant’s mother, a discovery from scientists at The University of Texas at Austin that has implications for agriculture and understanding plant evolution.

“Crop seeds provide nearly 70 to 80 percent of calories and 60 to 70 percent of all proteins consumed by the human population,” said Z. Jeff Chen, the D.J. Sibley Centennial Professor in Plant Molecular Genetics at The University of Texas at Austin. “Seed production is obviously very important for agriculture and plant evolution.” (more…)

‘Runner’s High’ Played a Role in Human Evolution

By Guest PostMarch 23, 2012Scienceadam foster, aerobic activity, aerobic exercise, alexandre seillier, andrea giuffrida, anthropologist, athletes, cannabis, david raichlen, dog, endocannabinoids, gregory gerdeman, human, neurotransmitters, obesity, reward centers, runner, university of texas

Aerobic exercise triggers a reward system in the body of long-distance running creatures like humans and dogs, but not ferrets, a study led by UA anthropologist David Raichlen suggests.

In the last century, something unexpected happened: Humans became sedentary. We traded in our active lifestyles for a more immobile existence.

But these were not the conditions under which we evolved – our hunter-gatherer predecessors were long-distance endurance athletes. (more…)

Iridescent, Feathered Dinosaur Offers Fresh Evidence That Feathers Evolved to Attract Mates

By Guest PostMarch 9, 2012Scienceaerodynamic functions, anchiornis, archaeopteryx, austin, catapults, color, dinosaurs, evolution of feathers, feather pattern, feathers, fossil, four winged dinosaur, julia clarke, living birds, mark norell, mate attracting, matt shawkey, mick ellison, microraptor, modern birds, peking university, pigment, quanguo li, rui pei, thermoregulation, university of akron, university of texas, velociraptor

AUSTIN, Texas — A team of American and Chinese researchers has revealed the detailed feather pattern and color of Microraptor, a pigeon-sized, four-winged dinosaur that lived about 120 million years ago. A new specimen shows the dinosaur had a glossy iridescent sheen and that its tail was narrow and adorned with a pair of streamer feathers, suggesting the importance of display in the early evolution of feathers, as presented in the March 9 edition of the journal Science.

The research was conducted by scientists at the Beijing Museum of Natural History, Peking University, The University of Texas at Austin, the University of Akron, and the American Museum of Natural History. (more…)

Mapping Tool Analyzes How Climate Change, Conflict and Aid Intersect in Africa

By Guest PostMarch 3, 2012Environmentafrica, aiddata, austin, brigham young university, ccaps data, climate change, dynamic mapping tool, dynamics, francis j gavin, ken lipenga, malawi, minerva initiative, patterns of conflict, policymakers, stability in africa, university of texas, world bank

AUSTIN, Texas — Researchers have developed a new dynamic mapping tool that will help policymakers and other groups determine a country’s vulnerabilities to climate change and conflicts and show how these two issues intersect in Africa.

The pilot version of the tool was released this month by the Robert S. Strauss Center for International Security and Law at The University of Texas at Austin and additional data tools are expected to come online starting this spring. (more…)

Computer Scientist Developing Intersections of The Future With Fully Autonomous Vehicles

By Guest PostFebruary 21, 2012Science, Technologyaaas, ai driver agents, artificially intelligent, austin, austin robot technology, autonomous car, autonomous cars, british columbia, chaotic flow, computer scientist, computing system, coordinate, intersection, marvin, peter stone, simulation, stop sign, university of texas, vancouver, virtual intersection system, virtual traffic controller, wyatt mcspadden

AUSTIN, Texas — Intersections of the future will not need stop lights or stop signs, but will look like a somewhat chaotic flow of driverless, autonomous cars slipping past one another as they are managed by a virtual traffic controller, says computer scientist Peter Stone.

“A future where sitting in the backseat of the car reading our newspaper while it drives us effortlessly through city streets and intersections is not that far away,” says Stone, a professor of computer science at The University of Texas at Austin. (more…)

New Molecule Has Potential to Help Treat Genetic Diseases and HIV

By Guest PostFebruary 13, 2012Scienceamy rhoden smith, austin, base molecule, brent iverson, cells, chromosome, DNA, dna sequence, double helix, garen holman, georgetown, hiv, kenneth johnson, legos, maha zewail foote, molecule, naphthalenetetracarboxylic diimide, ndi, protease inhibitors, sequence of genes, southwestern university, spiral staircase, university of texas, viral dna

AUSTIN, Texas — Chemists at The University of Texas at Austin have created a molecule that’s so good at tangling itself inside the double helix of a DNA sequence that it can stay there for up to 16 days before the DNA liberates itself, much longer than any other molecule reported.

It’s an important step along the path to someday creating drugs that can go after rogue DNA directly. Such drugs would be revolutionary in the treatment of genetic diseases, cancer or retroviruses such as HIV, which incorporate viral DNA directly into the body’s DNA. (more…)

Tag Archives: university of texas