Drivers of petrol and diesel cars are usually aware that driving at high speed, harsh acceleration and hard braking all contribute to lowering their fuel economy. Scientists can readily explain in terms of the thermodynamics of the internal combustion engine why driving such a car more smoothly and at gentler speeds will increase significantly the [...]

Drivers of petrol and diesel cars are usually aware that driving at high speed, harsh acceleration and hard braking all contribute to lowering their fuel economy. Scientists can readily explain in terms of the thermodynamics of the internal combustion engine why driving such a car more smoothly and at gentler speeds will increase significantly the [...]

Could ageing and damaged bones be replaced with implants based on wood? That’s the question Italian researchers from the National Research Council of Italy (CNR) writing in a forthcoming issue of the International Journal of Healthcare Technology and Management hope to answer. Accidental damage, osteoporosis, osteoarthritis, bone cancer and other diseases, represent a constant threat [...]

We all perhaps know the feeling of mental exhaustion, but what does it mean physiologically to have mental fatigue? A new study carried out using brain scans could help scientists uncover the neurobiological mechanisms underlying mental fatigue. According to Bui Ha Duc and Xiaoping Li of the National University of Singapore writing in a forthcoming [...]

Onion and garlic waste from the food industry could be used to mop up hazardous heavy metals, including arsenic, cadmium, iron, lead, mercury and tin in contaminated materials, according to a research paper published in the International Journal of Environment and Pollution. Biotechnologists Rahul Negi, Gouri Satpathy, Yogesh Tyagi and Rajinder Gupta of the GGS [...]

Floods have once again wreaked havoc across the country and climate scientists and meteorologists suggest that the problem is only going to get worse with wetter winters and rivers bursting their banks becoming the norm. A team based at Newcastle University and their colleagues in China have developed a computer model that can work out [...]

A future quantum computer will be able to carry out calculations billions of times faster than even today’s most powerful machines by exploit the fact that the tiniest particles, molecules, atoms and subatomic particles can exist in more than one state simultaneously. Scientists and engineers are looking forward to working with such high-power machines but [...]

Gross domestic product (GDP) can be boosted by cloud computing, the system in which remote computers on the Internet are used to store, manage and process data rather than the users’ local machines. A report to be published in the International Journal of Technology, Policy and Management suggests that governments should collaborate to boost the [...]

Straightforward imaging with an infrared, thermal, camera for detecting breast cancer early without the discomfort or inconvenience of mammography or biomolecular tests, according to a study to be published in the International Journal of Innovative Computing and Applications. Tiago Borchartt of the Federal Fluminense University in Brazil and colleagues explain how breast thermography has up [...]

A preliminary study of 127 post-menopausal women on hormone replacement therapy in Portugal suggests that there are several risk factors associated with osteoporosis and bone fracture these include age, low bone mineral density, a sedentary lifestyle, coffee consumption and ovariectomy. Details are reported later this month in the International Journal of Medical Engineering and Informatics. [...]

Employers must have in place a strict policy regarding pornography in the workplace if they are to avoid legal action from sexual harassment and discrimination charges, according to a study by Craig Cameron of the Griffith University. Writing in the International Journal of Technology Policy and Law, Cameron identified five primary methods of what he [...]

Swedish scientists have studied models to help road and bridge maintenance engineers work out how much damage salting the roads in winter might cause to steel-reinforced concrete structures. As the winter draws in road safety becomes paramount especially in northern climes where icy roads are a perennial problem for motorists. Gritting and salting the roads [...]

A new computer algorithm can analyze the footwear marks left at a crime scene according to clusters of footwear types, makes and tread patterns even if the imprint recorded by crime scene investigators is distorted or only a partial print. Footwear marks are found at crime scenes much more commonly than fingerprints, writes a team [...]

A command doctrine used by the US military and NATO designed to warn personnel of Nuclear, Chemical and Biological (NBC) hazards could be overly conservative and degrade war fighting effectiveness or, under certain conditions, risk lives because it is susceptible to changes in wind direction and speed that happen in periods shorter than its two-hourly [...]

Biofuels will serve the interests of large industrial groups rather than helping to cut carbon emissions and ward off climate change, according to research to be published in the International Journal of Environment and Health this month. Simone Vieri of the University “La Sapienza” of Rome, Italy, explains that the European Union has focused attention [...]

The speed and degree to which the pupil of the eye responds is a standard test for alertness. It has also been used to assess how sleepy or exhausted a person is. Now, research to be published in the International Journal of Bioinformatics Research and Applications suggests that measuring pupil response alone is not enough [...]

Computer users are familiar to different degrees with the operating system that gets their machines up and running, whether that is the Microsoft Windows, Apple Mac, Linux, ChromeOS or other operating system. The OS handles the links between hardware, the CPU, memory, hard drive, peripherals such as printers and cameras as well as the components [...]

A research paper to be published in the World Review of Entrepreneurship, Management and Sustainable Development suggests that despite the public pronouncements on corporate and social responsibility made by leading Internet Service Providers (ISPs) in the UK, profit and shareholders remains the greatest concern for these organisations. Peter Jones and Daphne Comfort of the Business [...]

Carbon dioxide is not the only problem we must address if we are to understand and solve the problem of climate change. According to research published this month in the International Journal of Global Warming, we as yet do not understand adequately the role played by aerosols, clouds and their interaction and must take related [...]

A computerized approach to examining patient bone X-rays for diagnosis of osteoporosis could side-step the subjectivity associated with visual examination, according to a new research paper in the International Journal of Biomedical Engineering and Technology published in October. Neelesh Kumar of the Central Scientific Instruments Organisation in Chandigarh, India, and colleagues recognized that the bone [...]

Fast algorithm extracts and compares meaning of documents – A computer program could compare two documents and work spot the differences in their meaning using a fast semantic algorithm developed by information scientists in Poland. Writing in the International Journal of Intelligent Information and Database Systems, Andrzej Sieminski of the Technical University of Wroclaw, explains [...]

A problem faced by patients seeking medical attention is often getting a clinic appointment at a time convenient to them. Conversely, cancellations and more crucially “no-shows” by patients can disrupt the day-to-day scheduling of a medical practice leading to frustration for patients and staff alike as well as affectively efficiency in a negative manner and [...]

Millions of us send billions of emails back and forth each day without much concern for their security. On the whole, security is not a primary concern for most day-to-day emails, but some emails do contain person, proprietary and sensitive information, documents, media, photos, videos and sound file. Unfortunately, the open nature of email means [...]

A computer is being taught to interpret human emotions based on lip pattern, according to research published in the International Journal of Artificial Intelligence and Soft Computing. The system could improve the way we interact with computers and perhaps allow disabled people to use computer-based communications devices, such as voice synthesizers, more effectively and more [...]

Thermal imaging technology might one day be to identify drunks before they become a nuisance in bars, airports or other public spaces. Georgia Koukiou and Vassilis Anastassopoulos of the Electronics Laboratory, at University of Patras, Greece, are developing software that can objectively determine whether a person has consumed an excessive amount of alcohol based solely [...]

An emergency communications system that could automatically piggyback on domestic wireless routers connected in urban locations could help first responders stay in touch even if cell phone towers and networks are down. Details are published in a forthcoming issue of the International Journal of Mobile Network Design and Innovation. Kamill Panitzek and colleagues in the [...]

An emergency communications system that could automatically piggyback on domestic wireless routers connected in urban locations could help first responders stay in touch even if cell phone towers and networks are down. Details are published in a forthcoming issue of the International Journal of Mobile Network Design and Innovation. Kamill Panitzek and colleagues in the [...]

Researchers in India are getting to know their cholesterol levels like the back of their hand. They have developed a cholesterol test that uses a digital camera to take a snapshot of the back of the patient’s hand rather than a blood sample. The image obtained is cropped and compared with images in a database [...]

Earthworms could be used to extract toxic heavy metals, including cadmium and lead, from solid waste from domestic refuse collection and waste from vegetable and flower markets, according to researchers writing in the International Journal of Environment and Waste Management. Swati Pattnaik and M. Vikram Reddy of the Department of Ecology and Environmental Sciences, at [...]

When you switch off your computer any passwords you used to login to web pages, your bank or other financial account evaporate into the digital ether, right? Not so fast! Researchers in Greece have discovered a security loophole that exploits the way computer memory works and could be used to harvest passwords and other sensitive [...]

Researchers in India have developed an improved expert system for the diagnosis of thyroid disease. They describe details of their approach to screening medical data in a forthcoming issue of the International Journal of Computational Science and Engineering. Thyroid disease in which either too much thyroid hormone is produced (hyperthyroidism) or too little is made [...]

Making allowances for job seekers on Facebook Your inappropriate Facebook profile, posts and photos could lose you your next job, according to an in-depth study of employers from six different industries. The conclusion of a paper to be published in the International Journal of Work Innovation this month reveals that many employers are using the [...]

Scientists in France have developed a computer program that can analyse in detail different shades of grey in medical images. Writing in a recent issue of the International Journal of Signal and Imaging Systems Engineering, they explain how the program based on the Grey Level Difference Method can improve accuracy in the diagnosis of prostate [...]

Research into online trust suggests that users who had positive experiences with services in the past and so trusted those services will be more trusting of new services they use. Details are described in a forthcoming issue of “Electronic Government, An International Journal”. Miguel Guinalíu of the University of Zaragoza, Spain, and colleagues suggest that [...]

Researchers in India are developing a new technology that will prevent truck drivers and other road users from using their cell phones while driving. The technology based on RFIDs could also be integrated with police traffic monitoring. Abdul Shabeer of the Anna University of Technology in Tamilnadu, India, and colleagues point out that globally around [...]

Entrepeneurs on social networks A preliminary analysis of the online presence and activities of entrepreneurs using online social networks can have a positive or a negative effect on the success of their start-up companies. According to the report to be published in the International Journal of Organisational Design and Engineering LinkedIn use has a positive [...]

A major collaboration between US research centers has highlighted three factors that could ultimately determine whether an outbreak of influenza becomes a serious epidemic that threatens national health. The research suggests that the numbers in current response plans could be out by a factor of two or more depending on the characteristics of the particular [...]

An international research team has developed a dynamic tool that allows you to see a map of what is “important” on Wikipedia and the connections between different entries. The tool, which is currently in the “alpha” phase of development, displays classic musicians, bands, people born in the 1980s, and selected celebrities, including Lady Gaga, Barack [...]

A simple and cost effective imaging device for breast tumor detection based on a flexible and
wearable antenna system has been developed by researchers at the Indiana University -- Purdue
University Indianapolis. The team based in the Integrated Nanosystems Development Institute
describes details in a forthcoming issue of the International Journal of Computer Aided Engineering and Technology and point out that their system holds the promise of much earlier detection than mammography [...]

The European Union implemented a cap and trade scheme in 2005 to help it fulfil its obligations under the first phase of the Kyoto Protocol for reducing carbon emissions. The Scandinavian nations had independently imposed a carbon tax in the 1990s as part of their effort to reduce carbon emissions. US researchers have tracked the [...]

The former Head of Department of Asymmetric Threats at the Joint Military Intelligence Division of Hellenic National Defense General Staff, in Athens, Greece, Ioannis Galatas, MD, and Editor-in-Chief of the “CBRNE-Terrorism Newsletter”, suggests that the 2012 Olympic Games to be held in London in July and August represent a potential terrorist threat as the successor [...]

Gender and economics effects on nuclear acceptance and awareness Researchers in Finland have found that acceptance of the site of a spent nuclear fuel repository can depend on gender and economic background. Writing in the International Journal of Environmental Technology and Management, the team reports that affluent men more often have a positive opinion on [...]

Food waste is a growing problem in many parts of the world, but discarded fruit peel, in the case of pomegranates, could be put to good use in the burgeoning field of nanotechnology according to research published in the International Journal of Nanoparticles. Punica granatum, the pomegranate is native in northern India and has been [...]

Greg Aharonian has said for many years that the patent system is bust. If it werent how could there possibly be tens of thousands of software patents given that so many of them are simply variations on the spreadsheet, word processor, file compression, and image editing? I followed Aharonians patent news service from around 1994-5 for several years and several times gave him a mention in the Feedback ...

Differences in attitudes and cultural values could have far-reaching implications for the development of a sustainable global society, according to an analysis to be published in the International Journal of the Sustainable Economy. Rune Ellemose Gulev of the University of Applied Sciences Kiel, Germany, has explored the cultural values associated with sustainability that makes some [...]

British computer scientists are taking inspiration from slime to help them find ways to calculate the shape of a polygon linking points on a surface. Such calculations are fundamental to creating realistic computer graphics for gaming and animated movies. The quicker the calculations can be done, the smoother and more realistic the graphics. Andrew Adamatzky [...]

Botswana’s Okavango Delta is a sensitive ecosystem that could be affected detrimentally by climate change. Given the Delta’s prominence in the country’s tourist industry, such negative impacts could wreak havoc on its economy and affect the lives of its inhabitants. Tourism in Botswana is the second largest economic sector, according to Wame Hambira of the [...]

Researchers in Hong Kong have analyzed the incidence of maritime piracy during the last decade and have developed a way to predict whether or not a particular vessel, with a specific cargo, shipping in a given patch of water is likely to be a target for piracy and what degree of violence might be involved. [...]

Botswana’s Okavango Delta is a sensitive ecosystem that could be affected detrimentally by climate change. Given the Delta’s prominence in the country’s tourist industry, such negative impacts could wreak havoc on its economy and affect the lives of its inhabitants. Tourism in Botswana is the second largest economic sector, according to Wame Hambira of the [...]

Checking the heart of the unborn baby usually involves a stethoscope. However, an inexpensive and accurate Bluetooth fetal heart rate monitoring system has now been developed by researchers in India for long-term home care. Details are reported in a forthcoming issue of the International Journal of Computers in Healthcare. Vijay Chourasia of the LNM Institute [...]

Researchers in Spain have developed a new analytical system that allows them to assess the gender gap in the adoption of information and communications technology (ICT). They have used their approach to publish a ranking of 31 European nations in the International Journal of Society Systems Science. Juan Martín Fernández and José Luis Martínez Cantos [...]

Researchers at the University of Turku believe that flexible, lightweight and inexpensive dyes could be used to harvest the power of the sun rather than our relying on costly and fragile semiconductor solar panel that use crystalline silicon. Writing in the International Journal of Technology, Policy and Management this month, Jongyun Moon and colleagues Aulis [...]

The creation of a social media videoconferencing platform geared towards healthcare might pave the way for enhanced use of social media in the world of healthcare according to a study published this month in the International Journal of Electronic Finance. Peter DeVries of the Department of Finance, Accounting, and CIS, at the University of Houston [...]

Computer scientists in India have developed a two-pronged algorithm that can detect the presence of a botnet on a computer network and block its malicious activities before it causes too much harm. The team describes details of the system in a forthcoming issue of the International Journal of Wireless and Mobile Computing. One of the [...]

China’s economic growth will continue to be energy-intensive and highly polluting for the foreseeable future with emissions and efficiency far below capital growth on the agenda, according to a study published in the International Journal of Global Energy Issues. Economist Yanqing Xia of Dongbei University of Finance and Economics and the Northeast Branch of the [...]

A European study of students using online social networking shows that users tend to make new connections via their own more attractive friends regardless of whether they are male or female. Writing in the International Journal of Web Based Communities, Christina Jaschinski and Piet Kommers of the University of Twente, The Netherlands, explain how they [...]

Retina and iris scans, fingerprint and palm logins rely on possession of unique anatomical characteristics that you cannot forget as you might a password. But, Kenneth Revett of the British University in Egypt, in El-Sherouk City, reviews the state of the art in an alternative approach to user authentication in the inaugural issue of the [...]

How do you make yourself comfortable without bumping up your energy consumption on domestic heating and air conditioning the face of climate change and more extreme weather? Despite the rising global average temperatures that climate change is bringing, there is still a need to keep warm in our homes especially when it’s cold outside. However, [...]

An approach to cutting domestic energy consumption based on playing a game – Energy Battle – can lead to household savings of up to 45% on electricity consumption and lead to better energy-saving habits, says a study published in the Journal of Design Research. Daphne Geelen, David Keyson, Stella Boess and Han Brezet of Delft [...]

Forget there being “9 million bicycles in Beijing, that’s not a fact. Indeed, motor vehicle traffic is fast becoming a big problem that has led to unsustainable pollution and draconian rules in some parts of the city. Now, Nan Ji of the Hebei United University in China and colleagues have developed an algorithm to help [...]

There is an increasing need for stronger accountability of government and thus greater demands on transparency of the diplomatic and national security apparatus. However, despite the advent of WikiLeaks, which purports to expose cover-ups, exploitation and corruption by making the evidence publicly available, there are still many political and bureaucratic obstacles to overcome on the [...]

Nanoparticles containing chitosan have been shown to have effective antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus saprophyticus and Escherichia coli. The materials could be used as a protective wound-healing material to avoid opportunistic infection as well as working to facilitate wound healing. Chitosan is a natural, non-toxic and biodegradable, polysaccharide readily obtained from chitin, the main component of [...]

Forget being “in the pink”, in the Blue(tooth) is just what the doctor ordered and now there’s an app on its way for personal vital signs monitoring. Researchers in New Zealand have developed a prototype Bluetooth-enabled medical monitoring device that can be connected wirelessly to your smart phone and keep track of various physiological parameters, [...]

The next generation of smart phone could combine the data from its gyroscopes with a built-in compass to allow you to track your movements when indoors even without GPS. Such a system could be useful for shopping mall managers, factory bosses for worker safety and security and office workers hoping to manage the flow of [...]

In the world of marketing, people who are thinking about sharing product information they find in online advertising are likely to first consider whether the information is relevant to friends and family in their social networks. The notion of a piece of information, a video clip, amusing photo or informative email going “viral” was initially [...]

Bus and truck companies could cut their fuel bills by more than 7% simply by training their drivers on more efficient driving techniques and offering a financial reward to those who improve fuel economy. A study published in the International Journal of Sustainable Society, suggests that training and financial reward improves efficiency by 7.3% whereas [...]

Computer engineers in the US writing in the International Journal of Communication Networks and Distributed Systems have reviewed the research literature to get a clear picture of cloud computing, its adoption, use and the security issues it faces. Cloud computing is the use of remote computers accessed via the Internet to store, manage, and process [...]

A new approach to disentangling the complexities of biological networks, such as the way in which proteins interact in our body's cells has been developed by researchers in China. The team's algorithm could allow biologists and biomedical researchers to unravel new clues about how cells work and what goes awry with such networks in various [...]

The invention of a long-lasting incandescent light bulb in the 19th century spurred on the second wave of the industrial revolution, illuminating homes, extending leisure time and bringing us to the point today where many millions of people use a whole range of devices from mood lighting to audiovisual media centers, microwave ovens to fast-freeze [...]

A life cycle assessment of growing crops for fuel as opposed to refining and using fossil fuels has revealed that substitution of gasoline by bioethanol converted from energy crops has considerable potential for rendering our society more sustainable, according to a Japanese study published in the International Journal of Foresight and Innovation Policy. Kiyotada Hayashi [...]

What brand dragons can learn from the contrasting personas, personalities and personal brands of soccer stars David Beckham and Ryan Giggs. An analysis of the marketing and brand campaigns of internationally renowned footballers David Beckham and Ryan Giggs could provide marketing executives with insights into how brands can be built and marketed more effectively. Writing [...]

RFID tags are becoming ubiquitous, shops, warehouses, libraries and others use them for stock and inventory control and to reduce the risk of theft. Now, a team in Dubai has developed the concept of an IPURSE, a mobile platform that keeps track of tiny RFID tags you stick to or insert into your personal possessions, [...]

Who goes there? We are all used to logging into networks where we have a unique identity, verified by the network server and associated with our account for other members of the network to see. Such an identity-based network system is useful because it is relatively simple. However, there are three major drawbacks including loss [...]

Making play sets more interactive and giving children with autism greater opportunities to control and add content of their own to the game could improve cooperative play with other children as well as giving them greater confidence in understanding how objects interact. William Farr and Nicola Yuill of the University of Sussex, UK and Steve [...]

A study published in the International Journal of Electronic Security and Digital Forensics this month suggests that parents and carers could be putting children at risk if they upload digital photos that are automatically "geotagged" by their camera. Joanne Kuzma of the University of Worcester, England, has analysed photos that clearly show children’s faces on [...]

Tiny metallic nanoparticles that shimmer in the light like the scales on a butterfly’s wing are set to become the colour-change components of a revolutionary new approach to point-of-care medical diagnostics, according to a study published in International Journal of Design Engineering. Thomas Schalkhammer and colleagues at Attophotonics Biosciences GmbH in Austria are working with [...]

Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags are an essential component of modern shopping, logistics, warehouse, and stock control for toll roads, casino chips and much more. They provide a simple way to track the item to which the tag is attached. Now, researchers in France have developed a way to deposit a thin aluminium RFID tag [...]

Researchers in The Netherlands are investigating how bicycle infrastructure might be improved to increase cyclist visibility and the ability of the cyclist to navigate the cycle path or road. The aim is to reduce accidents particularly for older users and cyclists with visual impairments, such as presbyopia. Details are reported in the International Journal of [...]

Facebook really is a community, the proof is in the algorithms. Researchers in Italy have used two high-speed computer algorithms to analyse the connections between a large sub-set of the more than half a billion users of the social networking site Facebook to reveal that the system has a very strong structure. The study, published [...]

Ultra wideband (UWB) technology has potential for short-range wireless communications, particularly in the healthcare sector. Researchers from the Centre for Wireless Communications, University of Oulu, Finland, have carried out simulations of wireless body area networks (WBANs) that use UWB to investigate how such technology might be used in a real hospital environment. The research, to [...]

A global environmental crisis is gradually bubbling to the surface. It may not be apparent to those suffering the rainy seasons or annual floods, but to those in areas where fresh water is in short supply the insidious nature of the crisis is increasingly obvious: Human activities have disturbed the water cycle in ways we [...]

A short burst of low voltage alternating current can effectively eradicate E. coli bacteria growing on the surface of even heavily contaminated beef, according to a study published in the International Journal of Food Safety, Nutrition and Public Health. The technique offers an inexpensive and easy to implement approach to reducing the risk of food [...]

We should all be eating more dietary fiber to improve our health – that’s the message from a health review by scientists in India. The team has looked at research conducted into dietary fiber during the last few decades across the globe and now suggests that to avoid initial problems, such as intestinal gas and [...]