Bili Buzz - Popular Science, Nature, Medicine, Archeology, Future & Myths

These scientific shots just might change your view of what makes a masterpiece

While these images were captured by scientists, you might as well classify them as art. They’re just as stunning, strange and thought-provoking as a masterpiece on canvas. The Wellcome Trust has just announced the 22 winners of its Image Awards, one of which is the fly [left] perched on some sugar crystals.

Other shots picked include red blood cells seeping out of a ruptured vessel, a circle of DNA, a mouse embryo with internal structures revealed, a field of red blood cells that look disconcertingly like candy, and—this one is much stranger than it sounds—crystals of oxidized vitamin C. Click here to have a look at the kinds of things today’s scientists see when they peer through the lens, or, more likely, study their computer screens.

Via MedGadget

As bacteria grow increasingly resistant to antibiotics, a synthetic molecule may be our best chance at fighting back

Humans are in an escalating battle with bacterial infections. Our last lines of antibiotic defense are increasingly becoming our only lines. Bacteria have demonstrated an adept ability to mutate and foil drugs at a pace which nearly bests our research and development efforts. However, a new class of molecules recently synthesized by researchers at Stanford University is
showing early promise in fighting off infection in a manner unlike any other.

The molecules, called peptoids, are a synthetic version of naturally occurring peptides, which attack pathogens by disrupting their cell membranes. They’re commonly found in saliva, sweat, and tears. The peptoids the scientists created function in much the same way in the face of bacteria. What is most promising about these molecules is resistance from the bacteria is rarely seen.

Typically, bacteria develop resistance by altering a drug’s binding site or working around the part of the cell the drug attacks. What is difficult for the bacteria in the case of peptoids is they are unable to modify the entirety of their outer membrane, leaving them vulnerable to infiltration. Even better news was the finding that the peptoids left mammalian cells untouched and intact.

An ultra-analytical computer might smooth the transition between human and machine teaching

Ever feel like your teacher just didn’t understand what you were going through? Well, researchers at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and Arizona State University are busy designing computerized tutors designed to teach and feel. The machines will be outfitted with sensors that pick up whether a student is angry, frustrated or bored. For instance, a computer vision system will study the subject’s facial expressions—even something like the tilt of the person’s head can be an indicator of his or her level of interest.

Inside the student’s seat [above], sensors will be able to register and flag excessive fidgeting. Even the mouse [left] will have pressure sensors that monitor stress levels. The computer analyzes all this input during teaching sessions, and adjusts accordingly, with an overall goal of keeping the student focused and interested, and conducting the lesson at the right pace. Hopefully it’s got a battery backup, too, since you have to think that particularly frustrated students would be tempted to just unplug the thing when it gets too demanding.

Via Newswise