Do you know Nano?

Posted at 1:57 PM on March 22, 2012 by Dan Gunderson (0 Comments)
Filed under: Education, Research, Technology

Computer chips on the mint marking of a dime show the scale of nano manufacturing. Photo courtesy North Dakota State University

Nanotechnology can be a bit confusing. Just what is it?

Essentially, science, engineering and technology development -- on a very small scale.

To increase public awareness, The Nanoscale Informal Science Education Network is sponsoring a nationwide, week-long public outreach and education effort March 24 to April 1.

Smaller than a virus, Nano particles used in manufacturing and construction are carefully designed to have unique characteristics. Nano materials are found in everything from high-tech electronics to the food we eat, the clothing we wear, the sunscreen we slather on, and medical treatments for diseases like cancer.

Nano research will likely save lives in the future. But some are concerned that the technology could harm human health and the environment.

One thing is certain, nanotech is here and rapidly growing.

Do you know what a nanotube is? How about a fullerene? A buckyball? All are components of nano manufacturing.

For the nano education campaign researchers and science educators are creating exhibits and hands on learning opportunities at more than 200 science museums and universities across the country.

Here's a list of the places in Minnesota participating in Nano Days:

Headwaters Science Center
Duluth Children's Museum
Dakota County Technical College
Science Museum of Minnesota
The Bakken Museum
Minnesota Children's Museum

To find locations in other states, check out this list on the NISE website.

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Spider webs in your computer

Posted at 11:00 AM on March 9, 2012 by Dan Gunderson (0 Comments)
Filed under: Research, Technology

Photo courtesy of the Xinwei Wang research group

An Iowa State University researcher recently made an interesting and unexpected discovery about spider webs. Xinwei Wang discovered the silk spiders use to make their webs conducts heat better than commonly used materials like silicon and aluminum.

It's unusual for biological materials to be good thermal conductors.

In a recently published paper on his research Xinwei Wang wrote, "Our discoveries will revolutionize the conventional thought on the low thermal conductivity of biological materials."

Wang also found that unlike most materials, spider silk transfers even more heat when it's stretched.

The spider silk is much thinner than a human hair, and very strong.

Wang said his research could lead to the creation of flexible, heat-dissipating parts for electronics. It could have applications in other everyday materials like hot weather clothing.

Practical applications might take awhile to develop.

Wang said there's still a lot to be learned about why spider silk is so good at conducting heat, but he thinks it has something to do with proteins that contain nanocrystals and create a molecular structure that's remarkably free of defects.

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Minnesota students compete in robotics competition

Posted at 11:02 AM on February 23, 2012 by Dan Gunderson (0 Comments)
Filed under: Education, Research, Technology

Courtesy VEX Robotics via Flickr

Minnesota students are participating this year for the first time in what organizers call the largest robotics competition in the world.

On Friday, 22 teams of about six students each from schools across northern Minnesota will compete at Northland Community and Technical College in Thief River Falls for a chance to go to the VEX Robotics World Championship later this spring in California.

There are competitions for middle school and high school age students.

By creating a robot to complete a specific task, the students learn about mechanical engineering, sensors, computer programming and problem solving, said NCTC Electronics Technology instructor Andrew Dahlen.

"These are things students don't have a lot of exposure to but really should," he said. "The aim of this entire initiative is to grow student interest in technology."

Last weekend, 23 teams from southern Minnesota met in St. Cloud. A team from Rockville, Minn., won that round of competition making them eligible for the championship in California where thousands of students from more than 20 countries compete.

The competition happens on a 12' by 12' mat. Students must move the robot around obstacles to complete tasks like picking up balls or barrels and putting them in a container. The teams receive robotics kits at the beginning of the year, and work for several months on the design.

The idea behind the competition is to increase student interest in science, technology and math.

The event is funded by the 360 Center for Applied Engineering and Manufacturing and corporate sponsors.

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FAA bill opens doors for unmanned aircraft

Posted at 12:19 PM on February 7, 2012 by Dan Gunderson (0 Comments)
Filed under: Government, Technology

photo courtesy University of North Dakota

North Dakota could receive one of six unmanned aircraft research centers mandated by the Federal Aviation Administration authorization bill passed by Congress this week.

The new centers were part of several provisions in the bill that will affect the use of unmanned aircraft.

The bill allows law enforcement agencies that meet requirements to fly very small unmanned aircraft, about four pounds or less, within 90 days of the bill being signed into law.

The bill directs the FAA to develop a comprehensive plan to integrate unmanned aircraft into the national air space within nine months, and to fully integrate unmanned aircraft into the national air space by September, 2015.

The FAA must establish the unmanned aircraft research centers within six months.

Many businesses, from oil and gas to agriculture are waiting for permission to use
unmanned aircraft for a variety of tasks.

The FAA still needs to prove unmanned aircraft can operate safely while sharing airspace with manned aircraft, a big concern for many general aviation pilots. The technology to accomplish that integration is still being developed.

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Work continues on neutrino lab near International Falls

Posted at 10:59 AM on February 3, 2012 by Tom Robertson (0 Comments)
Filed under: Arrowhead, International Falls, Northwest Minnesota, Research, Technology

Scientists are gearing up for construction this spring of a 15,000-ton neutrino particle detector that will be housed in a facility on the Ash River Trail, about 40 miles southeast of International Falls.

The detector will be part of a scientific investigation into the role of subatomic particles in the origin of the universe, according to a story in the The Journal newspaper in International Falls.

The lab is part of the University of Minnesota's School of Physics and Astronomy. The detector will be on the receiving end of particles shot through the earth from the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory in Batavia, Ill. The Ash River site was selected because it's the furthest possible location in the United States that's in a direct line from the Illinois lab.

Researchers say the new facility will expand the University of Minnesota's international reputation as a leader in neutrino research. The university also operates the Soudan Underground Laboratory near Tower, Minn.

Project spokesman Gary Feldman, a Harvard University professor, told The Journal the facility itself is now finished and preparations have begun to build the detector. Construction will begin in April and is expected to continue over the next year and a half.

Lab officials are now in the hiring phase. There's currently a crew of 14, but the construction team will grow to 40 by this spring.

Here's a Fermilab report that explains the scientific goals of the project.

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act provided more than $40 million for the project.

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Blizzard app aims to help drivers survive storms

Posted at 11:16 AM on November 29, 2011 by Dan Gunderson (4 Comments)
Filed under: Law enforcement, Roads, Snow, Technology, Weather

MPR file photo

North Dakota State University extension is offering a mobile app for drivers who get stranded in a winter storm.

The Winter Survival Kit app is designed to determine your exact location, notify law enforcement, calculate how long your car will run on the gas in your tank, and alert you when it's time to clear the tailpipe to avoid carbon monoxide poisoning.

The app was created by Myriad Devices, a company based in the NDSU Research and Technology Park incubator in Fargo with funding from the USDA.

The Winter Survival Kit app also has tips on what to pack for winter survival gear and advice on winter driving skills. But does the app tell you when to stay off the road?

NDSU says the app is available free for Android and Apple devices.

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Measuring attitudes on wind energy

Posted at 3:24 PM on November 9, 2011 by Dan Gunderson (1 Comments)
Filed under: Environment, Northwest Minnesota, Technology, Utilities

MPR photo Dan Gunderson

About 30 people will gather in Moorhead ,Minn., on Thursday to share their thoughts on wind energy development.

The Minnesota Wind Energy Landscape Symposium is a project of Macalester College researchers. Funded by the National Science Foundation, it'ss one of three such
events scheduled across the country to sample public opinion on wind turbine development. The other Symposia were held this summer in Wyoming and Michigan.

Participants will have a chance to hear from experts on the topic of wind development. They'll also have an opportunity to respond to various development scenarios.

The goal is to develop a set of best practices for local wind development projects.

Macalester Professor Roopali Phadke also hopes to use the information in her study of
visual impact assessments for wind turbine projects, and to better understand public concern about wind turbine location.

In the past few years there's been increasing opposition to wind turbines as a growing number of people object to having wind turbines sited near them because of concerns about visual aesthetics or in some cases, noise from the turbines.

Wind energy development has slowed in recent months as a result of the stagnant economy.

There are several wind turbine projects in various stages of development in west central Minnesota.

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Making micro flying machines

Posted at 3:43 PM on August 11, 2011 by Dan Gunderson (0 Comments)
Filed under: Education, Technology

Courtesy Association for Unmanned Vehicles International

A really interesting competition is happening this week in Grand Forks, N.D. Its the 6th
International Aerial Robotics Competition, featuring 13 teams of students from around the world
built micro flying machines.

Students are competing based on a real world scenario. This year, the teams must fly into a secure building and retrieve a small computer drive filled with sensitive information.

The students spend up to a year designing and building small robotic aircraft from scratch, in hopes of successfully completing the mission.

Sponsored by the Association for Unmanned Vehicles International, this year's competition takes place at the Betty Englestad arena at the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks.

Organizers say no currently existing micro aircraft can perform this years mission, but they expect one of the teams new designs to succeed and grab the $20,000 first prize.

What these students learn from the competition might well influence the next generation of military micro unmanned aircraft.

The competition wraps up on Friday.

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