<!--emo&:ind--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/india.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='india.gif' /><!--endemo--> Indians develop new iron using ancient technology
K.S. Jayaraman
Indian metallurgists have developed a type of corrosion-resistant iron that construction engineers would love. And vital clues for it came for Delhi's famous Iron Pillar that has been standing tall for over 1,600 years.
Developed by Ramamurthy Balasubramaniam and his former student Gadadhar Sahoo of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) in Kanpur, the iron contains phosphorus and shows remarkable resistance to corrosion, especially in concrete.
'This is a significant first step in the possible commercial (large-scale) use of these irons,' Balasubramaniam, better known as Bala, told IANS.
Most steels today contain small amounts of carbon and manganese. Modern steel makers avoid phosphorus because its segregation to grain boundaries makes the steel brittle.
But the IIT team successfully produced ductile phosphoric irons by driving the phosphorus away from grain boundaries through clever alloy design and novel heat treatment.
Ironically, Bala's material is not new. It was being made by Indian ironsmiths centuries ago. Bala says he got the clue for developing this material from the six-tonne seven-metre tall Delhi Iron Pillar - a major tourist attraction in the Qutb Minar complex -- that has been standing for centuries in the harsh weather of the capital without any corrosion.
'As a metallurgist, I was intrigued,' Bala told IANS. And his passionate quest to unravel the mystery that began in 1990s has now culminated in phosphoric irons.
The test samples developed by the IIT team remained fresh after three months of being immersed in solution, simulating the corrosive concrete environment, whereas the best commercially available steels got rusted. In another experiment, they embedded the samples in concrete to simulate actual conditions and obtained similar results.
'The work is especially important in regard to the widespread use of steels in civil structures,' said Gerhard E. Welsch, professor of Materials Science and Engineering at Case Western Reserve University (Cleveland, Ohio).
'The recent bridge collapse in Minneapolis has added new urgency,' Welsch said in a congratulatory message to Bala. Seven people died when the bridge across the Mississippi river collapsed Aug 2, 2007.
Current philosophies to tackle corrosion in concrete include the addition of inhibitors to the cement mix, use of rebars that are galvanised, epoxy coated, or micro-alloyed by the addition of small amounts of chromium, copper and nickel -- elements that are known to induce passivity in iron.
Their high cost is a disadvantage, says Bala. 'Besides, we have experimentally shown our phosphoric irons perform better.'
Bala's real break came when he found that the iron used in the Delhi pillar contained elevated amounts of phosphorus -- as much as 0.25 percent against less than 0.05 percent in today's iron. He found this was a result of the ancient process where iron ore is reduced in a single step by mixing it with charcoal, without any limestone addition.
Modern blast furnaces, on the other hand, use limestone yielding molten slag and pig iron (high in carbon) that is later converted into steel. Most phosphorus is carried away by the basic slag.
Further studies and analysing rust from the pillar showed that phosphorus catalysed the formation of a protective passive film on the surface of the pillar that acted as a barrier between the metal and rust.
Tanjore Anantharaman, author of the book 'Delhi Iron Pillar - the Rustless Wonder' and Bala's former teacher at the Benaras Hindu University, says phosphorus was long suspected to be behind the pillar's corrosion resistance. 'It was Bala who proved it.'
That was in 2000. Actual material development and corrosion tests were initiated in 2003 when Sahoo joined Bala for his PhD that he completed in 2006.
'Our papers based on the thesis are coming out now,' Bala said. All the work, he said, was done with institute funds without any external support.
'Certainly, we are not claiming that this is the end of our studies,' admits Bala. 'We have shown the usefulness of phosphoric irons for concrete reinforcement applications. Now it has to be taken up by more researchers for greater understanding.'
Bala thanks his forefathers for the success. 'I am of the firm belief that ancient Indian metallurgists had the empirical knowledge that high phosphorus content ores resulted in corrosion-resistant iron. They did not create this material by accident.'
Developing and nurturing of human resource in Science & Technology has always been on top of the Governmentâs agenda. A number of schemes have been instituted by the Government for encouraging Young Scientists, and also for nurturing talented students in the form of SERC Programme for Young Scientists including BOYSCAST Fellowships and Fellowships like Swarnajayanthi Fellowships, Shyama Prasad Mookerjee Fellowships, KS Krishnan Fellowships, Ramanna Fellowships and J.C. Bose & Ramanujam Fellowships for practicing young scientists & technologists, and CSIR programme on Youth for leadership in Science (CPYLS), Diamond Jubilee Research Interns Award Scheme, Junior/Senior Research Fellowships (JRF/SRF), Biotechnology Post Doctoral Research Associateship & Overseas Fellowships, Kishore Vaigyanik Protsahan Yojana (KVPY), National Science Olympaid Programme etc. for attracting and retaining young talented students in R&D.
In addition, the young scientists including students have been exposed to new technologies through schools, workshops etc. to encourage them to discover and/or experiment on new technologies including the emerging fields like nanoscience & nanotechnology, biotechnology etc. Most of these schemes have been operated in a liberalized manner from time to time based on the needs of the young scientists.
In addition, the Government, in the XI Plan has launched a new scheme called INSPIRE (Innovation in Science Pursuit for Inspired Research). The main features of the proposed scheme will be:
(1) innovation funding in schools (one million young innovators);
(2) summer camp with science icons (for high performers);
(3) assured opportunity schemes for proven talent force; and
(4) retention of talent in public funded research through public-private partnerships.
Further, another new scheme on Scholarships for Science in Higher Education (SHE) is being initiated in the XI Plan under which 10,000 fellowships of Rs.1,00,000/- per year for bright students in science streams during their B.Sc/M.Sc courses would be provided. These initiatives are aimed at generating interest in youth to conduct more and more research and produce valuable results.
The Government recognizes that a large number of scientists go abroad for higher studies and/or advanced research. A majority of them do come back and contribute to growth of S&T in the country. The Government has recently launched some innovative schemes to either motivate scientists of Indian origin to come back to India or leverage their scientific expertise for growth of R&D in the country. Some such initiatives are the Ramanujan Fellowship and the Collaborative Projects with Scientists & Technologists of Indian Origin Abroad Programme (CP-STIO) of DST. K.S. Krishnan Research Associateship of Department of Atomic Energy, the Ramalingaswamy Fellowship and the Talent Search Scheme for the Non-Resident Indians of Defence Research & Development Organization (DRDO) are some of such schemes.
This information was given by Union Minister for Science & Technology and Earth Sciences, Shri Kapil Sibal, in the Lok Sabha today.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
More such scholarships and schemes will help in fastening the pace of Research & Development of new technologies in the country.
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin--><b>Discovery of certain alien species in Antartica</b> <!--emo&--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/wink.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='wink.gif' /><!--endemo-->
Tuesday, March 04, 2008
Some species of lower plant forms, not native to Antarctica, have been found. For example, a species of European grass (Agrostis stolonifera), a carnivorous beetle species, Poa annua (as seed plant) and Australian pollen taxa have been reported as alien species in Antarctica.
A total of 439 species of lichens, 111 species of mosses, 4 species of mites, 7 species of tardigrads have so far been reported from Antarctic region. However, due to phenotypic plasticity in different species, it is difficult to trace the actual centre of origin of Antarctic species. It may be possible with genomic sequencing of these species in future.
<b>The data and research undertaken by different countries on alien species are shared under the aegis of SCAR (Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research).</b> According to published reports and data available, many of these alien species have been responsible for significantly decreasing biodiversity at invaded sites and indirectly causing a change in adult body size in populations of its major prey species.
<b>Antarcticaâs harsh climate and ice cover protect against alien colonization, but on milder sub Antarctic islands like Marion Island and South Georgia Island which are getting warmer in recent decades are increasingly favorable sites for alien species to colonize and spread.</b>
This information was given by Union Minister for Science & Technology and Earth Sciences, Shri Kapil Sibal, in the Lok Sabha today.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
On Board Sagar Nidhi : It's an acquisition that would make India's deep-sea research scale new heights and the grit of scientists from National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT) indicates they are raring to put the Rs 232-crore "offshore lab" to optimum use.
Sagar Nidhi , which can carry 30 scientists at one time, is now the most sophisticated Oceanography Research Vehicle (ORV) India has.
Its unmanned camera-laden robotic submersible can dive 6,000 metres deep to perform multiple applications through an onboard remote-controlled console. It would be the maximum depth that any Indian gizmo has travelled so far.
"We had been waiting for this world-class vehicle because many ongoing ocean projects could not fructify. Built with global partnership, this vessel would make our scientists resolve the mysteries of the ocean bed," science and technology minister Kapil Sibal told TOI.
The country's first technology demonstrator vessel would be put to immediate use in deep sea mining, desalination, scooping up polymetallic nodules and finding gas hydrates on the ocean bed. The "ice-classed" vehicle can cruise for 45 days at a stretch and would expectedly help in the country's Antarctica research mission as well, besides supporting underwater observation system.
The fully air-conditioned Sagar Nidhi comes with an onboard tsunami warning buoy which, Sibal said, would pass on warning of any impending storm to people within 10 minutes through a system of ground stations and satellites.
Among the best equipped vessels of its kind globally, the prize possession, built in Italy, can also be used as an assisting vehicle during distress situations on the sea due to its salvage and tow capacity. NIOT director S Kathiroli, who led the team of scientists on board, said the vehicle would open new vistas for researchers as it was the most sophisticated so far.
"We hope to announce some primary outcomes very soon. The vehicle is expected to conduct wide-ranging experiments in due course," he said.
NIOT is also banking on the vessel in finding alternative sources of energy like methane. The ship's dynamic positioning system gives it much higher on-sea manoeuvrability than other vehicles in the category, globally.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
ISRO has developed Automatic Weather Stations (AWS), capable of collecting in-situ weather data such as pressure, temperature, humidity, wind and rainfall on an hourly basis, and transmitting the same to a Central Station through INSAT communication satellites.
360 Automatic Weather Stations have been set up so far covering monsoon regions of South India and disaster-prone regions of North East.
This information was given by the Minister of State in the Prime Ministerâs Office, Shri Prithviraj Chavan, in the Lok Sabha today.
The Minister also informed that the Indo-Australian Workshop on remote sensing was held at Banglore in December 2007 under the aegis of Indian National Academy of Engineering (INAE) and the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering (AATSE).
The workshop recommended joint working between scientists of the two countries in areas including calibration and validation activities; data assimilation in numerical weather prediction models; and hyperspectral data processing and analysis.
<!--emo&:tv--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/tv_feliz.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='tv_feliz.gif' /><!--endemo--> Teleportation won't be sci-fi by end of century'
5 Apr 2008, 0000 hrs IST,ANI
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MELBOURNE: Your dream of posessing an invisibility cloak or a ray gun could become a scientific reality in this century, according to a leading physicist.
In an article written in the latest issue of New Scientist, professor Michio Kaku revealed that concepts taken from science fiction such as invisibility cloaks, force fields, ray guns, basic forms of teleportation and telepathy are all within the reach of scientists and conform to the known laws of physics.
"History has shown that it is always dangerous to declare something impossible," News.com.au quoted him as saying. "Unless there is a law of physics forbidding a technology, then it is not only possible, it is sure to be built someday," he added.
Kaku categorized his ideas into three categories. The first included technologies that could possibly be developed within coming decades; second included those that could be theoretically possible but would take hundreds or thousands of years to develop; and the third comprised of impossible ideas.
"What Class I impossibilities have in common is that they could be achieved in the foreseeable future using the known laws of physics, but may require sophisticated engineering," he said.
"These include invisibility, force fields, ray guns, psychokinesis, starships, antimatter engines and even certain forms of teleportation and telepathy.
"It may also be possible that people would be able to read each other's mind. In the future, researchers may be able to compile a 'dictionary of thought' â a one-to-one correspondence between brain signals and specific thoughts," he added.
Scientists are currently working on developing brain-reading gadgets. A San Francisco Company Emotiv Systems has already launched an EPOC headset that allows gamers to control on-screen action only by thinking. Scientists have already been teleporting single photons over distances of 600m, and can also teleport whole caesium and beryllium atoms.
Great day for Indian Scientist. <b>PSLV places record 10 satellites into orbit</b> <!--emo&:beer--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/cheers.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='cheers.gif' /><!--endemo-->
I hope they get success in placing them in right orbit.
<b>Setting a record, India's Polar rocket today successfully placed ten satellites, including the country's remote sensing satellite, into orbit in a single mission.</b>
The ten pack launch of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) saw the 230-tonne Polar Satellite launch Vehicle (PSLV-C9) carry the heaviest luggage--824 kgs--and put into orbit an Indian Mini Satellite and eight foreign nano satellites besides the Cartosat-2A remote sensing satellite.
At the end of the 52-hour countdown, the PSLV-C9, with a lift-off mass of 230 tonne, blasted off from the launch pad at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre and soared into the clear sky in a textbook launch at 9:23 am. <b>Fourteen minutes after lift off, the fourth stage of the ISRO's workhorse launch vehicle, in its 13th flight, injected the ten satellites, into the 635 km polar Sun Synchronous Orbit (SSO).
This is for the first time that ISRO has put ten satellites in orbit in a single launch. This is also PSLV's twelfth successful flight.</b>
A Russian rocket last year delivered 16 satellites in the outer space but the Russian launch vehicle carried a lesser payload of only around 300 kg. Besides the 690 kg Indian remote sensing satellite CARTOSAT-2A and the 83 kg Indian Mini Satellite (IMS-1), the rest eight Nano Satellites were from abroad.
This is the third time, the PSLV has been launched in the core alone version, without the six solid propellant first stage strap-on motors. Terming the launch "satisfactory", ISRO Chairman G Madhavan Nair said "all parameters worked wonderfully well.
The perfect launch of 10 satellites, two Indian and eight foreign, simultaneously by the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle C-9 has catapulted the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) into a new orbit. The world record mission not only demonstrates capability to launch small satellites but also puts ISROâs commercial arm, Rs 660-crore Antrix Corporation, in a competitive position to capture a portion of the over $3-billion global satellite launch business. But if ISRO seeks to tap this market aggressively, it will have to shift focus to launch bigger rockets and heavier satellites.
Satellite launch for applications spanning direct-to-home (DTH) services, global positioning systems (GPS), education, telecom, weather monitoring and others is increasing worldwide. But the launch costs are prohibitively-high. Here, ISROâs satellite launch services at about 60-70% cheaper costs could provide a boost to Indiaâs space programme. âToday, PSLV is one of the proven vehicles to carry satellites. We will offer more launch products in the global market,â Antrix Corp ED KR Sridhara Murthi told ET over phone from the Sriharikota rocket launch site.
However, the challenge will be to demonstrate capability to launch heavy satellites, weighing over four tonnes. Indian rocket scientists say that such capability will be available by 2009 when ISRO readies its heavier rocket GSLV Mark-III. âPSLV is good for small satellites. The GSLV rocket is capable of carrying 2 to 2.2-tonne satellite. The Mark III GSLV vehicle and future launch vehicles will help us capture 10-15% of the market,â adds Mr Murthi.
The cluster of satellites lifted by PSLV C-9 in its 13th mission included two Indian satellites, Cartosat-2A weighing 690 kg and a 83 kg mini satellite and eight nano satellites weighing 16 kg to 27 kg from Canada, Netherlands, Denmark and Germany. At present India has the capability of carrying small satellites of less than 100 kg to nearly 2.25 tonnes capacity, an area dominated by Russia, China, Ukraine and the European Space Agency.
Globally, the 720-tonne Ariane 5 rocket built by Arianespace of France can effectively put a five-tonne satellite into orbit. But the one way fare is a whopping $120 million. ``Rockets that can carry a very heavy payload will be in demand to put the next generation of super-sized satellites into space,ââ says an expert.
Other rockets capable of putting heavy satellites into space like Atlas V of Americaâs United Launch Alliance (ULA) can take up to eight tonnes into orbit, but are rarely available for non-US missions. Likewise, the Delta IV rocket built by the ULA is primarily for US military use. Most commercial satellites weigh between three tonnes and five tonnes and Ariane 5 can carry two into space at once.
Where India could score is the low cost of putting satellites into designated orbits. ``Launch market is a risky business requiring big investments. Countries around the world are looking for low launch cost options and this is where we could play,ââ says Mr Murthi. In the $250 billion global space market, launch vehicles account for two-thirds of the total cost. The remaining goes into building satellites and ground support for monitoring and maintaining them.
ISRO and Antrix Corp could potentially target all areas. Making rockets to lift heavier satellites successfully could provide the boost to go for a bigger share of this pie.
<b>Scientists in joy: âBaby is healthyâ - From hindu</b>
Chennai, April 28
Within seconds of Cartosat-2A was placed into orbit by the PSLV-C9 mission, the Spacecraft Control Centre in Bangalore, set up exclusively to monitor its signals, started receiving feedback.
According to a senior Isro scientist, the signals were amazing. "The âbabyâ is healthy and vibrant," said the scientist who did not want to be named. A team of senior scientists led by Dr V. Jayaram, director, earth observation system, Isro, were closely following each and every movement associated with the Cartosat-2A at the SCC. The next couple of days will see the satellite getting positioned in the predetermined orbit and sending pictures.
The mission control room, the nerve centre Crowds jubilant, scientists emotional:of the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota, reverberated with thunderous applause from more than 250 veteran launch specialists as the PSLV-C9 rose majestically from the second launch pad.
"It was a launch with computer precision. I feel the ideal term should be âlaptop liftoffâ," said C. Venugopal, vehicle director, PSLV-C9 mission. Mr Venugopal, a PSLV specialist, told this newspaper that the mission was a total success.
"This is yet another proof that PSLV has graduated into the major league. It is the most efficient and costâeffective launch vehicle in its class," said Mr Venugopal, who is also associate project director, PSLV. While Mr Venugopal, a mechanical engineer turned scientist, donned the role of vehicle director for the second time, Mr George Koshy, project director, PSLV, was mission director for Mondayâs launch. It was the Koshy-Venugopal team which led the previous PSLV mission which put an Israeli satellite into space.
All the engineers assembled at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre are returning to their respective headquarters for strategic meetings and brainstorming sessions. "We will be back in SDSC shortly because our hands are full with launch missions," said one of the space scientists.
<!--emo&:beer--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/cheers.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='cheers.gif' /><!--endemo--> Make your ethanol at home
10 May 2008, 0043 hrs IST,REUTERS
NEW YORK: A new company hopes drivers will kick the oil habit by brewing ethanol at home that won't spike food prices. E-Fuel Corp unveiled on Thursday the "MicroFueler"touting it as the world's first machine that allows homeowners to make their own ethanol and pump the brew directly into their cars.
The portable unit that sells for $10,000 resembles a gasoline station pump and nozzle minus the slot for a credit card, or the digital "SALE"numbers that whir ever faster at retail pumps as global demand pushes fuel prices to record levels.
Instead of tapping gasoline from an underground tank, the pump's back end plugs into home power and water supplies to make ethanol for as little as $1 a gallon (3.8 litres), according to E-Fuel.
The company says one of the machine's top selling points is its sweet tooth. It ferments fuel from sugar, the price of which is historically cheap as global supplies are glutted.
That means it avoids the Achilles heel of today's US ethanol system - reliance on corn - which has been blamed for helping to spike global food prices. "There's no mother in America crying that their kids aren't getting enough sugar,"Tom Quinn, CEO and founder of E-Fuel said in an interview.
Regular table sugar alone is too expensive, so E-Fuels says it will link customers to cheaper surplus supplies, including inedible sugar from Mexico that sells at a fraction of the price. It also hopes to get users to help pay for feedstock by selling carbon credits for using the machine, since making ethanol from sugar emits fewer greenhouse gases than making it from corn.
"We will break the traditional ethanol system,"said Quinn a California computer and computer games inventor, who has bankrolled the company with what he calls "millions, but not multimillion"of dollars. He said despite the steep upfront costs, the machines will pay for themselves quickly.
<!--emo&:eager--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/lmaosmiley.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='lmaosmiley.gif' /><!--endemo--> What say you India-forum?
Kids will download lessons directly into their brains within 30 years
31 May, 2008, 1755 hrs IST, AGENCIES
LONDON: Sitting down and learning something will be a thing of the past very soon, for thirty years down the line, kids will learn by downloading information directly into their brains, predicts the head of Britain's top private schools organisation.
While speaking to the Times Educational Supplement, Chris Parry, the new chief executive of the Independent Schools Council, made a startling forecast that "Matrix-style" technology would actually make traditional lessons outdated.
"It's a very short route from wireless technology to actually getting the electrical connections in your brain to absorb that knowledge," The Telegraph quoted him, as telling the publication.
Already, Parry, a former Rear Admiral, has given three years to find out the future strategic context for the military in a senior role at the Ministry of Defence. And now, he is ow preparing the ISC's 1,300 private schools, which collectively teach half a million children, for a high-tech future.
He said that in 30 years time the Keanu Reeves thriller, might not be seen as a piece of science fiction.
"Within 30 years, sitting down and learning something will be a thing of the past. I think people will be able to directly access, Matrix-style, all the vocabulary you need for a foreign language, leaving you just to clear up the grammar," said Parry.
Talking cars save each other from theft
6 Jun 2008, 1831 hrs IST,ANI
LONDON: Stealing a car will not be a cake-walk for car thieves anymore, for now a new type of car alarms would enable the vehicles themselves to look after each otherâs safety - just like a herd of animals under any potential threat from predators.
In this novel security system, cars will be talking to their neighbours constantly via hidden wireless transmitters, and if in case a thief tries to sweep it off, the cars would raise the alarm in a matter of seconds.
The system called SVATS (Sensor-network-based Vehicle Anti-theft System) has been designed by Hui Song from Frostburg State University, Maryland, US, in collaboration with colleagues at Pennsylvania State University.
"Multiple sensors hidden within the car would make it difficult, if not impossible, for a car thief to disable the system in a short period of time," New Scientist quoted Song, as saying.
In fact, this new model would also omit those false alerts, characteristic of traditional car alarms.
The system starts when the driver of the vehicle switches on the transmitters fitted inside using a remote control, at the time of leaving the car. Then the car sends out a "join" message to all the nearby cars. The cars chooses its nearest neighbours to act as its sentinels and prefers partners that need the lowest signal strength for communication, so that the system does not consume less of the car's battery. The car continues sending out periodic "alive" signals to these watchers, till the time the owner returns and it finally sends a "goodbye" message.
However, in case the "alive" messages die out without a "goodbye" message, then the cars acting as watchers would report a theft by transmitting a message to a central base station. This would intern trigger the alarm which in turn would notify the security guard of the car park, the owners of the vehicle, or the police.
In fact, the system will also sense if a car is moving unexpectedly by measuring the signal strength of any "alive" messages. And if that happens, it transmits a warning message to other cars that are keeping a check on the same vehicle, because it is likely to be moving.
But, a theft alarm message will only be sent to the base station if a watching car gets more than three such warning signals from different sources. This would decrease the chances of any false alarms known for anti-theft systems.
The researchers themselves drove off some cars to test how the system works, and found that SVATS detected all such "thefts" in a matter of just 4 to 9 seconds. The system was apparently resistant to false alarms caused by weather, or people walking around the car park, both of which can affect the signals between sensors.
Hence those who are interested to register themselves can still do it at the old rates before 28th July 2008,
beyond which you will have to pay extra.
click on this link to register now www.googlekhoj.in
(registration fee is Rs. 1500)
<!--emo&:cool--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/specool.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='specool.gif' /><!--endemo--> WASHINGTON: An Indian-American scientist has devised tiny, shock-absorbing carbon nano springs to protect delicate electronic devices like mobile phones from damage.
Apparao Rao, physicist at Clemson University, who led the researchers, working with California University collaborators, showed that layers of these tiny coiled carbon nanotubes, a thousand times smaller than a human hair, can act as resilient shock absorbers.
<!--emo&:thumbsup--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/thumbup.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='thumbup.gif' /><!--endemo--> The mettle of Indian scientists was such that CERN, otherwise a closed European scientific association with taxing entry standards, granted India "observer" status, a laurel that China hasn't got so far.
Indian scientists had been collaborating with CERN for the LHC experiment since 1991 and over the years, they proved their worth so much so that all precision-made jacks on which the entire machine rests were made in India.
In a sense, the jacks, which can be adjusted to 10-20 micron level, form the very foundation of the collider. Amit Roy, director of the Inter University Accelerator Centre, said the experiments have certainly proved the calibre of the Indian scientific community which is already part of the very best in nuclear physics.
<b>Chandrayaan-1 gets ready for launch</b>
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->SRIHARIKOTA: If all goes well, Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft, to be launched by the Polar Satellite Vehicle (PSLV-C11) on October 22 at 6.20 a.m. from the Sriharikota space port, will reach the lunar orbit on November 8, according to M.Y.S. Prasad, Associate Director, Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota.
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