Astronomers discover planet made of diamonds

It is certainly what you could call a gem of a discovery.

Astronomers believe they have found an entire planet made of diamonds.

Scientists at the University of Manchester think they have unearthed a once-massive star in the Milky Way that has been transformed into a small planet made of the precious rock.

The diamond planet - the shrunken core of a once-huge
star - is a chunk of crystallised carbon measuring
40,000 miles across, five times the diameter of Earth.

The international research team first detected an unusual star, called a pulsar, and followed up their discovery with research using a telescope based in an observatory in Cheshire.

 
The findings led the scientists to discover the gravitational pull of a small companion planet orbiting the pulsar.

Pulsars are small spinning stars more than ten miles in diameter – the size of a small city – that emit a beam of radio waves.

The team, also made up of scientists from Australia, Germany, Italy and the United States, thinks that the ‘diamond planet’ is all that remains of the original star, most of whose matter was siphoned off towards the pulsar.

The companion planet is small, at less than 40,000 miles wide – about five times the diameter of Earth.

 
But it is so close to the pulsar that if it were any bigger it would be ripped apart by the gravitational force of the star, which rotates more than 10,000 times per minute and has a mass of about 1.4 times that of the sun.

Research team member Dr Michael Keith said: 'This remnant is likely to be largely carbon and oxygen, because a star made of lighter elements like hydrogen and helium would be too big to fit the measured orbiting times.'

The density means that this material is certain to be crystalline, that is, a large part of the star may be similar to a diamond.

The pulsar, dubbed PSR J1719-1438, and its planet are part of the Milky Way's plane of stars and lie 4,000 light-years away in the constellation of Serpens - the Snake.

The modulations in the radio pulses told astronomers a number of things about the planet.

It orbits the pulsar in just two hours and ten minutes, and the distance between the two objects is about 373,000 miles - a little less than the radius of our sun.

Despite its small size, the planet has slightly more mass than Jupiter.
 
About 70 per cent of millisecond pulsars have companions of some kind. 
 
Astronomers think it is the companion that, in its star form, transforms an old, dead pulsar into a millisecond pulsar by transferring matter and spinning it up to a very high speed.

The result is a fast-spinning millisecond pulsar with a shrunken companion - most often a so-called white dwarf.

source: dailymail

Tag Heuer £16,000 mobile phone

There’s a dilemma for any technology journalist reviewing a mobile phone that can cost more than £16,000 – who needs one? Nobody. Who even actively wants one? The ultra-luxury market is small. Devices such as the Link, made by Tag Heuer, should not be judged by the standards of your average iPhone or BlackBerry.

These are, after all, mostly about craftsmanship, and certainly not about what you might need – the Link features exposed screws, the one I used had an alligator skin back, and all models offer a solidity in the hand that feels weighty to the point of bombproof. A wheel, in the style of the crown of a Tag watch opens a panel on the side of the unit for access to the charging port, sim and memory cards. It operates with the kind of movement only serious money can buy.

So it’s the excellence of construction associated with watches that Tag is after – and yet mobile phones, whether it’s Samsung, Apple or BlackBerry, are all made as elegant, slim units that look extremely stylish. The Link’s conspicuous construction feels like a reaction against that, with those exposed screws demonstrating a conspicuous kind of artistry. Needless to say, this is not to everybody’s taste and most who like the usual mobile phones will not approve. There is an appeal in minimalistic design that cuts across all budgets.

There is, however, interesting technology in the Link. It is, currently, the smartest ultra-luxury smartphone on the market. A new model from rival Vertu is coming in October, but for now this is the most modern device in its rarified price bracket.

Running Android 2.2, the Link is not at the cutting edge – that’s version 2.3.3 – so it does not offer many of the features of the latest devices. But if you’re in the market for a Link, you can afford something with much better battery life, much newer software, and still have change for a brand new small car. You’re not buying one for the features.

Nonetheless, alongside a 5mp camera, the link also offers a usefully curated app store (SoApps), and impressive back-up and security features under the Tag Heuer brand, along with screensavers and wallpapers that are as stylish as you’d expect.

Indeed, with just a day of using the Link, its feel in the hand is slightly intoxicating. Angled corners and that leather back feel right, even if it does not look conventionally beautiful. The 3.5” screen is passably vivid, although it’s small and surrounded by a raised bezel that makes typing slightly difficult. The battery lasts the usual day or so of this generation of Android devices. Don’t worry that Tag give you just 256MB of ram and a 1GHz processor.

If you want the best mobile phone on the market, then this is probably not the device for you. But if you love the brand like so many people love Apple, want a mobile phone that is obviously a piece of jewellery and can also, thanks to Google Android, be upgraded to a newer software version over time, then the Link is the best around. Measured against its own peculiar ambitions, it is hard to find real fault.


source: telegraph

Robonaut R2 tweets from outer space

The first human-like astronaut robot - Robonaut 2 or R2 - has awakened at the International Space Station - and already started tweeting.

"Those electrons feel GOOD! One small step for man, one giant leap for tinman kind," said the robot's first tweet.

R2 was brought to the ISS in February 2011 on board of space shuttle Discovery.

It has been designed to work alongside humans, helping them both inside and outside the station.

Although there were tweets sent from R2′s account (@astrorobonaut) before it "woke up", now its nearly 40,000 followers can rest assured the robot is indeed actively "tweeting" as its circuits are operational.

It is even responding to questions and sending birthday greetings.

R2 weighs 136kg (300 pounds), has a torso, two human-like arms and hands, and wears a golden helmet with a visor on its head.

The "tinman" has yet to get its legs, but for now it will stay attached to a fixed base.

At some point though NASA will supply it with one leg - for climbing through the station's corridors.

Eventually, the torso may be mounted on a four-wheeled rover called Centaur 2 for possible explorations of Lunar and Martian surfaces.

Truly humanoid
There are currently four Robonauts on Earth - but R2 is much more advanced.

According to NASA, the robot is "capable of reaching speeds more than four times faster than R1, is more compact, is more dexterous, and includes a deeper and wider range of sensing."

R2 has been primarily designed to show how dexterous robots cope in a weightless environment - but NASA hopes that eventually it will get out of the station to assist its human colleagues on spacewalks.

"R2 is the first humanoid robot in space," said NASA in a statement on its website.

"R2, now unpacked, will be initially operated inside the Destiny laboratory for operational testing, but over time, both its territory and its applications could expand."

However there was bad news for robot fans hoping to see the new superstar on its return. "There are no plans to return R2 to Earth," said Nasa.

Moon and Mars
The US space agency said that the R2 project pointed to the future of space exploration, not as a replacement for humans, but as a companion, capable of carrying out supporting roles.

"The combined potential of humans and robots is a perfect example of the sum equalling more than the parts," said John Olson, director of NASA's Exploration Systems Integration Office, quoted on the agency's website.

"It will allow us to go farther and achieve more than we can probably even imagine today."

It took NASA and General Motors 15 years to build the human-like robot.

If the mission is a success, future R2-like "droids" could be sent into space to carry out works on satellites.

They could even venture all the way to Mars - to prepare for the arrival of their human masters on the red planet.


source: bbc news

Super-massive black hole caught shredding a star to pieces for the first time

A stunning cosmic jet from a super-massive black hole which shredded then swallowed a star has been observed by astronomers for the first time.

The extremely rare phenomenon caused by stellar debris being consumed by the hole has never been observed before.

Known as 'relativistic jets', they can reach hundreds of thousands of light years in length.

This illustration shows plasma shooting out of the
black hole after it devours a star. Such an event took
place four billion light years from Earth

Swift's Ultraviolet/Optical (white, purple) and X-ray
telescopes (yellow and red) showing the bursts

Most galaxies have super-massive black holes - regions of space that suck in everything nearby with their strong gravitation pull - at their core, with masses of millions or even billions of suns.

Scientists were first alerted to the phenomenon in March after Nasa's Swift telescope detected several bursts of X-rays from a quiet patch of sky.

Teams from both Pennsylvania State University and the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in Cambridge, Massachusetts, said the bursts could be the remnants of a star pulled apart when it came too close to a black hole located 3.9billion light years away.

Dr David Burrows, from Pennsylvania State University which controls Swift, said chemical analysis of the bright flash's ultraviolet light show it comes from material being sucked into a black hole the size of a million suns.

Writing in Nature, they concluded that the Swift satellite just happened to be in the path of the jet of star remains that were shot out at 99.5 per cent the speed of light.

Dr Burrows said: 'Incredibly, this source is still producing X-rays and may remain bright enough for the Swift satellite to observe into next year. It behaves unlike anything we've seen before.'

The swallowing of a star by a black hole only happens once every one hundred million years in a galaxy. The black hole is now believed to be even more powerful because of the additional mass from the swallowed star.

The absorption of large mass such as stars or even other black holes is what gives black holes growth and spawn the existence of super-massive black holes.Super-massive black holes could contain up to billions of solar masses. By comparison, the sun is just one solar mass and the Earth is 1/332,950th of a solar mass.


source: dailymail

Steve Jobs resigns from Apple as CEO

Silicon Valley legend Steve Jobs on Wednesday resigned as chief executive of Apple Inc in a stunning move that ended his 14-year reign at the technology giant he co-founded in a garage.

Steve Jobs takes the stage to discuss the iCloud
service at the Apple Worldwide Developers
Conference in San Francisco June 6, 2011

Apple shares were suspended from trade before the announcement. They had gained 0.7 percent to close at $376.18.

The pancreatic cancer survivor and industry icon, who has been on medical leave for an undisclosed condition since January 17, will be replaced by COO and longtime heir apparent Tim Cook.

"I have always said if there ever came a day when I could no longer meet my duties and expectations as Apple's CEO, I would be the first to let you know. Unfortunately, that day has come," he said in a brief letter announcing his resignation.

The 55-year-old CEO had briefly emerged from his medical leave in March to unveil the latest version of the iPad and later to attend a dinner hosted by President Barack Obama for technology leaders in Silicon Valley.

Jobs' often-gaunt appearance has sparked questions about his health and his ability to continue at Apple.

"I will say to investors: don't panic and remain calm, it's the right thing to do. Steve will be chairman and Cook is CEO," said BGC Financial analyst Colin Gillis.


source: reuters

'Bulletproof Human Skin' Lives Up to Name, Sort Of

Take a pinch of Spider-Man's webbing, add some human skin cells, and you just may end up with skin worthy of Superman. A Dutch team created a piece of "bulletproof" skin from special, U.S.-made spider silk and human skin cells and found that it indeed can repel bullets ̶ as long as they're not traveling too fast.

The bulletproof skin showed its superiority over normal human skin by stopping a bullet fired at a reduced speed. But it fell short of surviving a shot at normal speed from a .22 caliber rifle, the benchmark for protection for a Type 1 bulletproof vest.

A bulletproof human skin managed to repel
low-velocity bullets.

The result did not discourage Jalila Essaidi, the Dutch artist who, along with the Forensic Genomics Consortium Netherlands, created the skin. She just wanted an art project demonstrating the relative concept of safety.

The result did not discourage Jalila Essaidi, the Dutch artist who, along with the Forensic Genomics Consortium Netherlands, created the skin. She just wanted an art project demonstrating the relative concept of safety.

"Even with the 'bulletproof' skin being pierced by the faster bullet, the experiment is, in my view, still a success," Essaidi said. "The art project is based on and leads to a debate on the question, 'Which forms of safety are socially important?'"

The special brand of spider silk came from genetically modified goats and worms at Utah State University in Logan. U.S. researchers have spent years harvesting the spider silk protein from the goat milk to try to make new types of super-strong fibers.

Essaidi combined the spider silk with human skin cells from Leiden University Medical Center in the Netherlands.

Such skin is still a long way from adding practical protection to humans, but it gives a glimpse of what future soldiers or would-be superheroes might expect. After all, the U.S. military and other armed forces have continually sought new ways to bulletproof their warriors on the battlefield, and also have shown interest in discovering the ultimate warrior genes.


source: technewsdaily

Fenerbahce kicked out of Champions League

The Turkish Football Federation has decided to ban domestic champions Fenerbahce from this season's European Champions League.

European football's governing body UEFA called for the move amid a match-fixing investigation involving the top Istanbul club, the federation said.

It said it took the decision at an extraordinary board meeting on Wednesday ahead of Thursday's Champions League draw.

UEFA had promised that any club found guilty of corrupting matches would be kicked out of its marquee competition and have results wiped from the record.

"UEFA is working very hard behind the scenes to ride the game of these threats," general secretary Gianni Infantino said at the playoffs draw this month.

"We will not hesitate to prosecute any individual, any official or any club."

It was unclear how UEFA will allocate Fenerbahce's place in the draw.

Turkish league runners-up Trabzonspor were eliminated in the qualifying rounds and could be reinstated, yet have also been implicated in the match-fixing probe.

Spanish rivals Barcelona and Real Madrid will join England's elite clubs Manchester United and Chelsea among the top seeded teams.

Inter Milan also heads one of eight four-team groups to be drawn in Monaco.

AC Milan need Serie A rivals Udinese to eliminate high-ranked Arsenal in Wednesday's playoffs for the seven-time European champions to avoid dropping into the pot of number two seeded teams.


source: Aljazeera