Science

Tired of flying coach?

Re-visit the life, accomplishments, and vision of Leonardo da Vinci with The History Channel special presentation.

DA VINCI & THE CODE HE LIVED BY, airing Sunday, December 4th at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT.

You heard right. It seems that unusual species names aren't limited to scientists' favorite rock stars or Star Wars figures—now Internet search engines are in the game. Entomologist Brian Fisher named a new species of ant, Proceratium google, in honor of the mapping program Google Earth. Fisher, who chairs the entomology department at the California Academy of

Dartmouth College researchers have created a robot so small that 200 of them could fit on the tip of your finger. The tiny machine crawls like an inchworm across a grid at the breakneck speed of 200 microns per second. Its goal: to fix really little things. Dartmouth engineer Bruce Donald says swarms of such devices could one day repair circuitry in computer chips.

Wind power is the world´s fastest-growing energy source. Existing capacity worldwide is approaching 50,000 megawatts-roughly equivalent to that of 50 nuclear power plants. But there are problems with this seemingly benign wellspring of pollution-free electricity. Aside from being noisy, the whirling turbines interfere with television reception and are generally considered terrestrial eyesores rendered useless when the wind stops.

The way Robert Liden sees it, his company is simply building an odd-looking car. It's made mostly of steel and glass, after all, and it has an engine with a radiator and a water pump. It just doesn't have wheels, seats or a Blaupunkt.

Tim Kehoe has stained the whites of his eyes deep blue. He's also stained his face, his car, several bathtubs and a few dozen children. He's had to evacuate his family because he filled the house with noxious fumes. He's ruined every kitchen he's ever had. Kehoe, a 35-year-old toy inventor from St. Paul, Minnesota, has done all this in an effort to make real an idea he had more than 10 years ago, one he's been told repeatedly cannot be realized: a colored bubble.

Addressing Climate Change
One of the greatest challenges for the 21st century is the increasing
temperature of the planet. In the last century,
the Earth's surface warmed 0.6C. The
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
estimates that temperatures could rise by between
1.4 and 5.8C by the end of this century. BP's
position on this issue is clear. Greenhouse gas
levels are rising and the balance of scientific
opinion links that rise to the increase in our
planet's surface temperatures. As a major provider
of energy, we believe we have a responsibility to

Carbon Challenge

It is increasingly accepted that rising levels of greenhouse gases are
contributing to changes in the world's climate. One of the main culprits is carbon dioxide. We exhale carbon dioxide when we breathe. Our cars, homes, factories, and the power plants that light our streets, all release carbon dioxide into the air. It's also emitted when fossil fuels are burned for energy. But that's about to change.

As a major supplier of energy, we believe we have a responsibility to be a leader in finding and implementing solutions to climate change. BP was the first major energy company to publicly acknowledge the need to take steps against climate change. We are now investing $350 million over five years to reduce our internal CO2 emissions by up to one million tonnes each year.

We're determined to build a sustainable solar business that's both profitable and environmentally beneficial.

Solar cell production has grown by around 30% annually over the past five years and cumulative world production is now more than 3,000 megawatts (MW). This still represents a small proportion of the energy used worldwide.

Back in the 1960s and '70s, legions of scientists explored technologies to zap strength from hurricanes. Those efforts were scrapped both because experiments were inconclusive and because the cost of deploying a full-scale system to regularly battle the cyclones would have been staggering. In light of
Katrina and Rita's $200-billion-plus swath of destruction-and a forecast of even more violent and catastrophic hurricanes to come-that steep price tag now seems like a bargain, and
scientists are once again entertaining schemes to mitigate monster storms.

For obese people, gastric-bypass surgery is a risky gamble to shed major pounds. Now a safer alternative is on the way: the gastric stimulator. In a reversible procedure, doctors implant Medtronic's matchbook-size Transcend II stimulator just under the skin in the abdomen. Once in place, the device sends a painless electrical pulse into the stomach wall about every six seconds. The electricity relaxes and distends the stomach, conveying signals to the brain that trigger feelings of satiety.

Blowing by the current record-holder-the French TGV, with a maximum operating speed of 186 mph-East Japan Railway´s Fastech 360 train will carry travelers at a top speed of 224 mph and is expected to hit speeds above 250 mph in test runs. This year East Japan Railway began testing a prototype with two uniquely shaped nose cones-at 52 feet, the longest ever-that reduce drag and noisy micropressure waves in tunnels. To stop quickly in an emergency, the Fastech 360 uses cat-ear-like spoiler brakes that pop out of the roof to increase air resistance.