National Science Foundation (NSF)
41 minutes ago
The global challenges increasingly defining our modern world -- food security, emerging diseases, biodiversity loss -- require application of a more ancient principle: evolution.

A paper released today in the journal Science - whose author...s include many NSF-funded researchers - recommends using applied evolution to help direct sustainable development.

"The fact that we're changing the world means that evolutionary processes are going to be affected," says one researcher. "The question is: Do we want to be engaged in this change, or not?" http://1.usa.gov/1oy6XlK

Photo: A child in Ethiopia receives a measles vaccination. Credit: Pete Lewis, UK Department for International Development See More
Photo: The global challenges increasingly defining our modern world -- food security, emerging diseases, biodiversity loss -- require application of a more ancient principle: evolution. A paper released today in the journal Science - whose authors include many NSF-funded researchers - recommends using applied evolution to help direct sustainable development. "The fact that we're changing the world means that evolutionary processes are going to be affected," says one researcher. "The question is: Do we want to be engaged in this change, or not?" http://1.usa.gov/1oy6XlK Photo: A child in Ethiopia receives a measles vaccination. Credit: Pete Lewis, UK Department for International Development
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3 hours ago
#TBT Vizzies Quiz

This graphic soared to the top of the Visualization Challenge a few years back and the subject of the graphic is still in the news today. What was it about? Enter your guess in the comments below.

NSF's Visualization Ch...allenge, the Vizzies, is open for submissions until September 30th. Visit the contest site to submit your own photographs, illustrations, posters, graphics, videos, games and apps for the chance to win cash prizes. See More
The Vizzies
www.nsf.gov
Do you love animating data, creating science apps, or taking macrophotographs? Enter the 2014 Visualization Challenge!
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9 hours ago
NSF funded scientists and engineers at the University of Delaware research disasters like the September 11th attacks, leading to more efficient evacuation strategies, stronger building codes, and better resilience for the victims of these disasters. Learn more about their research and findings in this video.

http://youtu.be/uNkQZivo-Ag
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National Science Foundation (NSF)
Yesterday
Wish your smart phone required less frequent charging?

A team of researchers discovered a way to cool electrons to -228 °C without external means and at room temperature, an advancement that could enable electronic devices to function with... very little energy.

The new findings could potentially reduce #energy consumption of electronic devices by more than 10 times compared to the present technology when implemented in transistors, according to NSF program director Usha Varshney.

Read more: http://1.usa.gov/1uIR0x7

Imaged credit: University of Texas Arlington See More
Photo: Wish your smart phone required less frequent charging? A team of researchers discovered a way to cool electrons to -228 °C without external means and at room temperature, an advancement that could enable electronic devices to function with very little energy. The new findings could potentially reduce #energy consumption of electronic devices by more than 10 times compared to the present technology when implemented in transistors, according to NSF program director Usha Varshney. Read more: http://1.usa.gov/1uIR0x7 Imaged credit: University of Texas Arlington
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National Science Foundation (NSF)
Yesterday
David Kaplan of Tufts University is developing orthopedic implant devices made with silk rather than metal - such as silk screws to help repair bone fractures. Kaplan explains the benefits of this new technology on "The Academic Minute" - a featured podcast this week on the Science360 Radio home page: 1.usa.gov/1lH6LCp
David Kaplan, Tufts University: http://engineering.tufts.edu/bme/people/kaplan/
These are silk screws that could replace metal screws used to help repair bone fractures. They are being developed by David Kaplan and his team at Tufts University: http://engineering.tufts.edu/bme/people/kaplan/ Photo courtesy of Tufts University
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National Science Foundation (NSF)
September 9
The ability to generate spontaneous motion is a hallmark of living systems. Think of a heart (like the mammal one seen here in magnification) contracting to pump blood. Replicating and understanding this behavior, however, remains a massive... scientific challenge.

Now, scientists at Syracuse University have engineered active vesicles -- synthetic, thin sacs that can transform energy into organized, self-sustained motion. http://1.usa.gov/1weZw7T

Photo credit: Doc. RNDr. Josef Reischig, CSc; Wikimedia Commons See More
Photo: The ability to generate spontaneous motion is a hallmark of living systems. Think of a heart (like the mammal one seen here in magnification) contracting to pump blood. Replicating and understanding this behavior, however, remains a massive scientific challenge. Now, scientists at Syracuse University have engineered active vesicles -- synthetic, thin sacs that can transform energy into organized, self-sustained motion. http://1.usa.gov/1weZw7T Photo credit: Doc. RNDr. Josef Reischig, CSc; Wikimedia Commons
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National Science Foundation (NSF)
September 8
NSF-funded Paleontologists Discover New Species of Dinosaur in Tanzania.
Play Video0:44
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National Science Foundation (NSF) shared a link.
September 8
What happens when NSF, Stand Up To Cancer, V Foundation, and the National Cancer Institute pool their resources? An $11.5M public-private partnership in biophysics cancer research that could have a significant impact on cancer research and treatment! Looking forward to the NSF Ideas Lab and forthcoming potentially transformative research it will fund.
nsf.gov - National Science Foundation (NSF) News - Transformative science - US National Science...
www.nsf.gov
NSF's mission is to advance the progress of science, a mission accomplished by funding proposals for research and education made by scientists, engineers, and educators from across the country.
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National Science Foundation (NSF)
September 8
The Plum Island Estuary Long Term Ecological Research (LTER) site is providing important clues for protecting & managing estuaries. In this video, scientists are researching how the Plum Island salt marshes are holding up under climate change, land use changes and sea-level rise.
Play Video3:14
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National Science Foundation (NSF) changed their cover photo.
September 8 · Edited
A violet-green swallow, Tachycineta thalassina, near Mono Lake in California. This species lives along North America's Pacific border.

Credit: D.W. Winkler, Cornell University
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National Science Foundation (NSF)
September 7
Ushuaia and Fairbanks are cities near the tips of the world. The capital of Argentina's Tierra del Fuego province and the Alaskan metropolis don't have much in common. Except for a cluster of simple wood boxes on poles, and the scientists a...nd swallows who flock there.

Both animals are part of Golondrinas de las Américas, an international research project studying the slight, swift swallow to answer larger questions about biological patterns. http://1.usa.gov/1qsEMJz

Photo credit: D.W. WInkler, Cornell University See More
Photo: Ushuaia and Fairbanks are cities near the tips of the world. The capital of Argentina's Tierra del Fuego province and the Alaskan metropolis don't have much in common. Except for a cluster of simple wood boxes on poles, and the scientists and swallows who flock there. Both animals are part of Golondrinas de las Américas, an international research project studying the slight, swift swallow to answer larger questions about biological patterns. http://1.usa.gov/1qsEMJz Photo credit: D.W. WInkler, Cornell University
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September 7
Who knew industrial nitrogen fixation could be so fun?

While a graduate chemistry student at the University of Southern California, Candy Hwang made a vibrant, animated 90-second video "The Secrets of Nitrogenase," all about how nitrogen can be converted into ammonia, thus made more available for use as a nutrient. In this ScienceLives interview, she talks about her path to chemistry.
nsf.gov - Multimedia Gallery - US National Science Foundation (NSF)
nsf.gov
NSF's mission is to advance the progress of science, a mission accomplished by funding proposals for research and education made by scientists, engineers, and educators from across the country.
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National Science Foundation (NSF)
September 6
Producing liquid fuel from algae is being done... one of the main challenges now is getting the cost down. Stephen Mayfield, director of the California Center for Algae Biotechnology, describes how that can be done in his interview with "The Science Show," featured on the home page @Science360 Radio: 1.usa.gov/1lH6LCp
Photo: Producing liquid fuel from algae is being done... one of the main challenges now is getting the cost down. Stephen Mayfield, director of the California Center for Algae Biotechnology, describes how that can be done in his interview with "The Science Show," featured on the home page @Science360 Radio: 1.usa.gov/1lH6LCp
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National Science Foundation (NSF)
September 5
Know an outstanding #mentor who has brought underrepresented students into science and engineering? Nominations close Oct. 3 for the 2015 Presidential Awards for Excellence in Science, Mathematics and Engineering Mentoring. #PAESMEM awardee...s come to Washington, D.C., and receive a $10,000 award. Webinars are available for those who’d like help with the nomination package. Go to http://nsf.webex.com/, click "browse meetings" and enter PAESMEM in the search bar to register. Upcoming webinars are Sept 10, 17 and 24 at 6:00 p.m. EDT. More info at go.usa.gov/8RE9 See More
Photo: Know an outstanding #mentor who has brought underrepresented students into science and engineering? Nominations close Oct. 3 for the 2015 Presidential Awards for Excellence in Science, Mathematics and Engineering Mentoring. #PAESMEM awardees come to Washington, D.C., and receive a $10,000 award. Webinars are available for those who’d like help with the nomination package. Go to http://nsf.webex.com, click "browse meetings" and enter PAESMEM in the search bar to register. Upcoming webinars are Sept 10, 17 and 24 at 6:00 p.m. EDT. More info at go.usa.gov/8RE9
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National Science Foundation (NSF)
September 4
After remaining stagnant in 2012, federal funding for basic research at universities and colleges is projected to grow in 2014, according to the latest InfoBrief from the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics.

Universiti...es and colleges received half of the $31 billion in federal obligations for basic research and accounted for about 11 percent of total research and development obligations in FY 2012. Learn more: www.nsf.gov/statistics/infbrief/nsf14318/ See More
Photo: After remaining stagnant in 2012, federal funding for basic research at universities and colleges is projected to grow in 2014, according to the latest InfoBrief from the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics. Universities and colleges received half of the $31 billion in federal obligations for basic research and accounted for about 11 percent of total research and development obligations in FY 2012. Learn more: www.nsf.gov/statistics/infbrief/nsf14318/
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National Science Foundation (NSF) shared a link.
September 4
#TBT Vizzies Quiz
This entry ran away with the Interactive Games category a few years ago and is still making positive contributions to science and society - most recently by helping to tackle challenges in preventing and curing Ebola. Name... that app! Enter your answer in the comments below.
NSF's Visualization Challenge, the Vizzies, is open for submissions until September 30th. Visit the contest site to submit your own photographs, illustrations, posters, graphics, videos, games and apps for the chance to win cash prizes.
 See More
The Vizzies
www.nsf.gov
Do you love animating data, creating science apps, or taking macrophotographs? Enter the 2014 Visualization Challenge for the chance to win cash prizes!
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National Science Foundation (NSF)
September 4
NSF-funded researchers uncover a 77-million year old, plant eating, super-massive Titanosaur The dinosaur was discovered in Patagonia, Argentina.
Play Video1:36
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National Science Foundation (NSF) shared a link.
September 4
Wildfire suppression costs in the United States have averaged $1.54 billion annually for the last 10 years. So how are we becoming more prepared for these disasters?

The NSF supported “WIFIRE” initiative, led jointly by the University o...f California (UC), San Diego, and the University of Maryland, will better monitor, predict and mitigate wildfires in the future. Take a look to see just exactly how this wildfire monitoring system will help to monitor environmental conditions and predict where and how fast a wildfire will spread.

http://youtu.be/N4LAROiW5c8 See More
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