ScienceDaily (Apr. 15, 2011) — Psychologists from The University of Auckland have just published two major studies on the diversity of the world's languages in the journals Science and Nature.
The first study, published in Science by Dr Quentin Atkinson, provides strong evidence for Africa as the birthplace of human language.
An analysis of languages from around the world suggests that, like our genes, human speech originated -- just once -- in sub-Saharan Africa. Atkinson studied the phonemes, or the perceptually distinct units of sound that differentiate words, used in 504 human languages today and found that the number of phonemes is highest in Africa and decreases with increasing distance from Africa.
The fewest phonemes are found in South America and on tropical islands in the Pacific Ocean. This pattern fits a "serial founder effect" model in which small populations on the edge of an expansion progressively lose diversity. Dr Atkinson notes that this pattern of phoneme usage around the world mirrors the pattern of human genetic diversity, which also declined as humans expanded their range from Africa to colonise other regions.
In general, the areas of the globe that were most recently colonised incorporate fewer phonemes into the local languages whereas the areas that have hosted modern humans for millennia (particularly sub-Saharan Africa) still use the most phonemes.
This decline in phoneme usage cannot be explained by demographic shifts or other local factors, and it provides strong evidence for an African origin of modern human languages -- as well as parallel mechanisms that slowly shaped both genetic and linguistic diversity among humans.
The second study, published in Nature by University of Auckland researchers Professor Russell Gray and Dr Simon Greenhill and their colleagues Michael Dunn and Stephen Levinson at the Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics in the Netherlands challenges the idea that the human brain produces universal rules for language.
"The diversity of the world's language is amazing," says Professor Gray. "There are about 7,000 languages spoken today, some with just a dozen contrastive sounds, others with more than 100, some with complex patterns of word formation, others with simple words only, some with the verb at the beginning of the sentence, some in the middle, and some at the end."
"Our work shows that the claims some linguists have made for a really strong role of the innate structure of the human mind in shaping linguistic variation have been hugely oversold," he says.
Using computational methods derived from evolutionary biology, Gray and his team analysed the global patterns of word-order evolution. Instead of universal patterns of dependencies in word-order features, they found that each language family had its own evolutionary tendencies.
"When it comes to language evolution, culture trumps cognition," Gray observes.
Africa the birthplace of human language, analysis suggests
Sunday, April 17, 2011
Lights and flat-panel displays: Researchers 'brighten' the future of organic light-emitting diode technology
ScienceDaily (Apr. 15, 2011) — Chlorine is an abundant and readily available halogen gas commonly associated with the sanitation of swimming pools and drinking water. Could a one-atom thick sheet of this element revolutionize the next generation of flat-panel displays and lighting technology?
In the case of Organic Light-Emitting Diode (OLED) devices, it most certainly can. Primary researchers Michael G. Helander (PhD Candidate and Vanier Canada Graduate Scholar), Zhibin Wang (PhD Candidate), and led by Professor Zheng-Hong Lu of the Department of Materials Science & Engineering at the University of Toronto, have found a simple method of using chlorine to drastically reduce traditional OLED device complexity and dramatically improve its efficiency all at the same time. By engineering a one-atom thick sheet of chlorine onto the surface of an existing industry-standard electrode material (indium tin oxide, ITO) found in today's flat-panel displays, these researchers have created a medium that allows for efficient electrical transport while eliminating the need for several costly layers found in traditional OLED devices.
"It turns out that it's remarkably easy to engineer this one-atom thick layer of chlorine onto the surface of ITO," says Helander. "We developed a UV light assisted process to achieve chlorination, which negates the need for chlorine gas, making the entire procedure safe and reliable."
The team tested their green-emitting "Cl-OLED" against a conventional OLED and found that the efficiency was more than doubled at very high brightness. "OLEDs are known for their high-efficiency," says Helander. "However, the challenge in conventional OLEDs is that as you increase the brightness, the efficiency drops off rapidly."
Using their chlorinated ITO, this team of advanced materials researchers found that they were able to prevent this drop off and achieve a record efficiency of 50% at 10,000 cd/m2 (a standard florescent light has a brightness of approximately 8,000 cd/m2), which is at least two times more efficient than the conventional OLED.
"Our Cl-ITO eliminates the need for several stacked layers found in traditional OLEDs, reducing the number of manufacturing steps and equipment, which ultimately cuts down on the costs associated with setting up a production line," says Professor Zheng-Hong Lu.
"This effectively lowers barriers for mass production and thereby accelerates the adoption of OLED devices into mainstream flat-panel displays and other lighting technologies."
The results of this work are published online in the journal Science on April 14, 2011.
Lights and flat-panel displays: Researchers 'brighten' the future of organic light-emitting diode technology
In the case of Organic Light-Emitting Diode (OLED) devices, it most certainly can. Primary researchers Michael G. Helander (PhD Candidate and Vanier Canada Graduate Scholar), Zhibin Wang (PhD Candidate), and led by Professor Zheng-Hong Lu of the Department of Materials Science & Engineering at the University of Toronto, have found a simple method of using chlorine to drastically reduce traditional OLED device complexity and dramatically improve its efficiency all at the same time. By engineering a one-atom thick sheet of chlorine onto the surface of an existing industry-standard electrode material (indium tin oxide, ITO) found in today's flat-panel displays, these researchers have created a medium that allows for efficient electrical transport while eliminating the need for several costly layers found in traditional OLED devices.
"It turns out that it's remarkably easy to engineer this one-atom thick layer of chlorine onto the surface of ITO," says Helander. "We developed a UV light assisted process to achieve chlorination, which negates the need for chlorine gas, making the entire procedure safe and reliable."
The team tested their green-emitting "Cl-OLED" against a conventional OLED and found that the efficiency was more than doubled at very high brightness. "OLEDs are known for their high-efficiency," says Helander. "However, the challenge in conventional OLEDs is that as you increase the brightness, the efficiency drops off rapidly."
Using their chlorinated ITO, this team of advanced materials researchers found that they were able to prevent this drop off and achieve a record efficiency of 50% at 10,000 cd/m2 (a standard florescent light has a brightness of approximately 8,000 cd/m2), which is at least two times more efficient than the conventional OLED.
"Our Cl-ITO eliminates the need for several stacked layers found in traditional OLEDs, reducing the number of manufacturing steps and equipment, which ultimately cuts down on the costs associated with setting up a production line," says Professor Zheng-Hong Lu.
"This effectively lowers barriers for mass production and thereby accelerates the adoption of OLED devices into mainstream flat-panel displays and other lighting technologies."
The results of this work are published online in the journal Science on April 14, 2011.
Lights and flat-panel displays: Researchers 'brighten' the future of organic light-emitting diode technology
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Soon, cell phones to be powered by conversations!
Tue, Sep 14 01:05 PM
Washington, Sep 14 (ANI): The more you talk, the longer your cell phone battery will last - that's the future scientists have predicted with a new technology that converts sound to electricity.
Scientists from Korea have turned the main ingredient of calamine lotion into a tiny material that converts sound waves into electricity, reports Discovery News.
The research could lead to panels that can charge a cell phone from a conversation or provide a boost of energy to the nation's electrical grid generated by the noise during rush hour traffic.
Using zinc oxide, the main ingredient in calamine lotion, Young Jun Park, Sang-Woo Kim and their colleagues created a field of nanowires sandwiched between two electrodes.
The researchers blasted that sandwich with sound waves, which at 100 decibels were not quite as loud as a rock concert. A normal conversation is about 60-70 decibels.
The sound waves produced a mild electrical current of about 50 millivolts. The average cell phone requires a few volts to operate, several times the power this technology can currently produce.
"Just as speakers transform electric signals into sound, the opposite process-of turning sound into a source of electrical power -- is possible," Discovery News quoted Young Jun Park and Sang-Woo Kim, the two corresponding authors of the new article, as saying.
"Sound power can be used for various novel applications including mobile phones that can be charged during conversations and sound-insulating walls near highways that generate electricity from the sound of passing vehicles," the co-authors added.
The study has been published in the journal Advanced Materials. (ANI)
http://in.news.yahoo.com/139/20100914/862/ttc-soon-cell-phones-to-be-powered-by-co_1.html
Washington, Sep 14 (ANI): The more you talk, the longer your cell phone battery will last - that's the future scientists have predicted with a new technology that converts sound to electricity.
Scientists from Korea have turned the main ingredient of calamine lotion into a tiny material that converts sound waves into electricity, reports Discovery News.
The research could lead to panels that can charge a cell phone from a conversation or provide a boost of energy to the nation's electrical grid generated by the noise during rush hour traffic.
Using zinc oxide, the main ingredient in calamine lotion, Young Jun Park, Sang-Woo Kim and their colleagues created a field of nanowires sandwiched between two electrodes.
The researchers blasted that sandwich with sound waves, which at 100 decibels were not quite as loud as a rock concert. A normal conversation is about 60-70 decibels.
The sound waves produced a mild electrical current of about 50 millivolts. The average cell phone requires a few volts to operate, several times the power this technology can currently produce.
"Just as speakers transform electric signals into sound, the opposite process-of turning sound into a source of electrical power -- is possible," Discovery News quoted Young Jun Park and Sang-Woo Kim, the two corresponding authors of the new article, as saying.
"Sound power can be used for various novel applications including mobile phones that can be charged during conversations and sound-insulating walls near highways that generate electricity from the sound of passing vehicles," the co-authors added.
The study has been published in the journal Advanced Materials. (ANI)
http://in.news.yahoo.com/139/20100914/862/ttc-soon-cell-phones-to-be-powered-by-co_1.html
Mobile phones to be recharged wirelessly from 2012!
Thu, Sep 16 11:40 AM
London, Sep 16 (ANI): Cell phone users may soon be able to recharge their devices wirelessly.
Japanese technology company Fujitsu has developed a system capable of simultaneously charging multiple portable electronic devices such as mobile phones, digital cameras and laptop computers without the need for cable connections.
Electric cars users may also eventually be able to charge their vehicles wirelessly using the same technology according to Fujitsu, which unveiled a prototype system at an Institute of Electronics, Information and Communication Engineers conference at Osaka Prefecture University.
Claiming to be the world's first of its kind, the technology works on the basis of the transmission of electricity using magnetic fields between the charger and the electronic device.
The system enables wireless charging at distances of up to several metres, with the ultimate aim of installing public "charging spots" on the streets in order to enable easy charging around the clock.
Scientists at Fujitsu Laboratories are planning to commercially sell products incorporating the new wireless charging system as early as 2012 but did not disclose how much they would cost.
"This technology paves the way to integrating compact wireless charging functions into mobile phones and enabling multiple portable devices to be charged simultaneously without any restrictions on their position with respect to the charger," the Telegraph quoted the company as saying in a statement. (ANI)
http://in.news.yahoo.com/139/20100916/868/ttc-mobile-phones-to-be-recharged-wirele_1.html
London, Sep 16 (ANI): Cell phone users may soon be able to recharge their devices wirelessly.
Japanese technology company Fujitsu has developed a system capable of simultaneously charging multiple portable electronic devices such as mobile phones, digital cameras and laptop computers without the need for cable connections.
Electric cars users may also eventually be able to charge their vehicles wirelessly using the same technology according to Fujitsu, which unveiled a prototype system at an Institute of Electronics, Information and Communication Engineers conference at Osaka Prefecture University.
Claiming to be the world's first of its kind, the technology works on the basis of the transmission of electricity using magnetic fields between the charger and the electronic device.
The system enables wireless charging at distances of up to several metres, with the ultimate aim of installing public "charging spots" on the streets in order to enable easy charging around the clock.
Scientists at Fujitsu Laboratories are planning to commercially sell products incorporating the new wireless charging system as early as 2012 but did not disclose how much they would cost.
"This technology paves the way to integrating compact wireless charging functions into mobile phones and enabling multiple portable devices to be charged simultaneously without any restrictions on their position with respect to the charger," the Telegraph quoted the company as saying in a statement. (ANI)
http://in.news.yahoo.com/139/20100916/868/ttc-mobile-phones-to-be-recharged-wirele_1.html
Scientists develop alternative to X-rays
Wed, Sep 22 06:09 PM
Doctors may soon be able to see a patient's innards in normal light without X-rays, as French scientists claim to have found a new way to decipher the little light that passes through opaque materials.
When light passes through materials that we consider opaque, such as paint, biological tissue, fabric and paper, it is scattered in such a complex way that an image does not come through.
But, now physicist Sylvain Gigan and his colleagues at the Industrial Physics and Chemistry Higher Educational Institution in Paris said they have that found they can actually reconstruct complex images from light passing through these barriers.
The key, they said, is to know precisely how the barriers interfere with this light, the LiveScience reported.
For their research, Gigan and his team first shone a green laser beam at a layer of zinc oxide -- a common ingredient in white paints -- that was roughly 80 microns thick, or slightly thinner than a human hair.
By analysing the pattern of light that passed through, the researchers generated a formula called a "transmission matrix" that made sense of the seemingly random way the light was scattered by the barrier.
With this knowledge, they were able to reconstruct a 32-pixel by 32-pixel image of a five-petal flower projected onto the zinc oxide.
However, the researchers said the see-through vision was not perfect as a lot of the information needed to reconstruct images gets lost when the light gets scattered, making the images look grainy.
It also won't find use in trying to look through walls, unless they are very thin indeed -- looking through a 100-millimeter wall would prove a million times harder than looking through a wall 100 microns thick.
Still, their method could one day be used to peer inside bodies, Gigan said.
That would require their system to be roughly 1,000 times faster than it currently is, to make up for all the scattering generated by the movements of living tissue.
"A microelectromechanical array that uses tiny mirrors to quickly divert laser beams back and forth over a surface to scan it should provide for the 1,000 times speed increase we are looking for," Gigan said.
The new findings are published online in the journal Nature Communications.
http://in.news.yahoo.com/48/20100922/1243/ttc-scientists-develop-alternative-to-x_1.html
Doctors may soon be able to see a patient's innards in normal light without X-rays, as French scientists claim to have found a new way to decipher the little light that passes through opaque materials.
When light passes through materials that we consider opaque, such as paint, biological tissue, fabric and paper, it is scattered in such a complex way that an image does not come through.
But, now physicist Sylvain Gigan and his colleagues at the Industrial Physics and Chemistry Higher Educational Institution in Paris said they have that found they can actually reconstruct complex images from light passing through these barriers.
The key, they said, is to know precisely how the barriers interfere with this light, the LiveScience reported.
For their research, Gigan and his team first shone a green laser beam at a layer of zinc oxide -- a common ingredient in white paints -- that was roughly 80 microns thick, or slightly thinner than a human hair.
By analysing the pattern of light that passed through, the researchers generated a formula called a "transmission matrix" that made sense of the seemingly random way the light was scattered by the barrier.
With this knowledge, they were able to reconstruct a 32-pixel by 32-pixel image of a five-petal flower projected onto the zinc oxide.
However, the researchers said the see-through vision was not perfect as a lot of the information needed to reconstruct images gets lost when the light gets scattered, making the images look grainy.
It also won't find use in trying to look through walls, unless they are very thin indeed -- looking through a 100-millimeter wall would prove a million times harder than looking through a wall 100 microns thick.
Still, their method could one day be used to peer inside bodies, Gigan said.
That would require their system to be roughly 1,000 times faster than it currently is, to make up for all the scattering generated by the movements of living tissue.
"A microelectromechanical array that uses tiny mirrors to quickly divert laser beams back and forth over a surface to scan it should provide for the 1,000 times speed increase we are looking for," Gigan said.
The new findings are published online in the journal Nature Communications.
http://in.news.yahoo.com/48/20100922/1243/ttc-scientists-develop-alternative-to-x_1.html
Soon, swipe cell phone to pay for shopaholics' purchases
Thu, Sep 23 05:26 PM
A mobile phone that can be swiped at the till to make instant purchases may soon end the need to carry cash or even a wallet.
Although it has yet to go into full commercial use, after five months of a six-month trial in the Spanish resort of Sitges near Barcelona, the results of the hi-tech new payment method look impressive.
Locals were given 1,500 Samsung phones fitted with special SIM cards and security chips for use at 500 businesses, reports the Sun.
And more than half of users are still regularly paying by phone, with the average sale an impressive 31 euros (26.50 pounds).
The innovation is the result of collaboration between payment company Visa, mobile operator Telefonica - the owners of O2 - and Spanish bank la Caixa.
For anything under 20 euros, the retailer just keys in the amount or scans the barcode before the phone is swiped across the front of a sensor.
Larger purchases require a four-digit PIN number, which adds security should the phone fall into the wrong hands.
Phones can be pre-loaded with cash or linked directly to a bank account.
As well as being a payment system, security passes for work, gym membership or even Oyster cards for London commuters can also be added.
However there are still some major obstacles. For the system to work, the mobile needs to use a SIM card with a payment function built in, plus a supporting secure chip similar to a top-up memory card. And there needs to be enough financial incentive for the mobile operators to join in.
http://in.news.yahoo.com/48/20100923/1243/ttc-soon-swipe-cell-phone-to-pay-for-sho.html
A mobile phone that can be swiped at the till to make instant purchases may soon end the need to carry cash or even a wallet.
Although it has yet to go into full commercial use, after five months of a six-month trial in the Spanish resort of Sitges near Barcelona, the results of the hi-tech new payment method look impressive.
Locals were given 1,500 Samsung phones fitted with special SIM cards and security chips for use at 500 businesses, reports the Sun.
And more than half of users are still regularly paying by phone, with the average sale an impressive 31 euros (26.50 pounds).
The innovation is the result of collaboration between payment company Visa, mobile operator Telefonica - the owners of O2 - and Spanish bank la Caixa.
For anything under 20 euros, the retailer just keys in the amount or scans the barcode before the phone is swiped across the front of a sensor.
Larger purchases require a four-digit PIN number, which adds security should the phone fall into the wrong hands.
Phones can be pre-loaded with cash or linked directly to a bank account.
As well as being a payment system, security passes for work, gym membership or even Oyster cards for London commuters can also be added.
However there are still some major obstacles. For the system to work, the mobile needs to use a SIM card with a payment function built in, plus a supporting secure chip similar to a top-up memory card. And there needs to be enough financial incentive for the mobile operators to join in.
http://in.news.yahoo.com/48/20100923/1243/ttc-soon-swipe-cell-phone-to-pay-for-sho.html
India switches over to cleaner petrol, diesel
Thu, Sep 23 05:45 PM
New Delhi, Sep 23 (PTI) The country has fully switched over to cleaner Euro-III and Euro-IV petrol and diesel as of yesterday and well ahead of the October one deadline, Minister of State for Petroleum Jitin Prasada said today. "We launched Euro-IV grade petrol and diesel in 13 big cities from April 1 and Euro-III grade fuel was to be introduced in the rest of the country in phases by October one.
We introduced Euro-III petrol and diesel in North Eastern states (the last of the regions) yesterday," he told reporters here. With this, the launch of ultra low sulphur and benzene fuel has been completed ahead of schedule, he said.
"The roll-over happened without a glitch. There are no disruptions of fuel (supplies) anywhere in the country.
" When Euro-IV grade fuel was launched in April, petrol prices were increased by Rs 0.50 a litre and diesel by Rs 0.26 per litre. For introduction of Euro-III grade, petrol prices have been raised by Rs 0.26 per litre and diesel by Rs 0.21 a litre in phases as the fuels were introduced throughout the country.
"There will be no further increase in prices as a result of introduction of Euro-III fuel. Whatever had to be done, has already been done," Prasada said.
He said public sector firms spent over Rs 32,000 crore in upgrading refineries to produce higher quality fuel. "This (introduction of Euro-III and IV grade fuel) will considerably improve the air quality with reduction in emission of pollutants in fuels.
" As against the approved scheduled of introducing Euro-III fuel by October one, introduction of higher grade petrol was advanced in 20 states and that of diesel in 23 states. In the last leg, Bharat Stage-III (the India equivalent of Euro-III) petrol and diesel has been introduced in the seven North Eastern States on September 22, he said.
The government had already introduced BS-IV (the India equivalent of Euro-IV grade) petrol and diesel in all 13 identified cities (NCR of Delhi, Agra, Kanpur, Lucknow, Kolkata, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Surat, Pune, Solapur, Chennai, Bangalore and Hyderabad) on a single day effective April 1, 2010. The Auto Fuel Policy had prescribed a road map for introduction of BS-IV and BS-III grades of petrol and diesel (equivalent to Euro III and Euro-IV Petrol and Diesel) in the country.
http://in.news.yahoo.com/20/20100923/1416/tnl-india-switches-over-to-cleaner-petro.html
New Delhi, Sep 23 (PTI) The country has fully switched over to cleaner Euro-III and Euro-IV petrol and diesel as of yesterday and well ahead of the October one deadline, Minister of State for Petroleum Jitin Prasada said today. "We launched Euro-IV grade petrol and diesel in 13 big cities from April 1 and Euro-III grade fuel was to be introduced in the rest of the country in phases by October one.
We introduced Euro-III petrol and diesel in North Eastern states (the last of the regions) yesterday," he told reporters here. With this, the launch of ultra low sulphur and benzene fuel has been completed ahead of schedule, he said.
"The roll-over happened without a glitch. There are no disruptions of fuel (supplies) anywhere in the country.
" When Euro-IV grade fuel was launched in April, petrol prices were increased by Rs 0.50 a litre and diesel by Rs 0.26 per litre. For introduction of Euro-III grade, petrol prices have been raised by Rs 0.26 per litre and diesel by Rs 0.21 a litre in phases as the fuels were introduced throughout the country.
"There will be no further increase in prices as a result of introduction of Euro-III fuel. Whatever had to be done, has already been done," Prasada said.
He said public sector firms spent over Rs 32,000 crore in upgrading refineries to produce higher quality fuel. "This (introduction of Euro-III and IV grade fuel) will considerably improve the air quality with reduction in emission of pollutants in fuels.
" As against the approved scheduled of introducing Euro-III fuel by October one, introduction of higher grade petrol was advanced in 20 states and that of diesel in 23 states. In the last leg, Bharat Stage-III (the India equivalent of Euro-III) petrol and diesel has been introduced in the seven North Eastern States on September 22, he said.
The government had already introduced BS-IV (the India equivalent of Euro-IV grade) petrol and diesel in all 13 identified cities (NCR of Delhi, Agra, Kanpur, Lucknow, Kolkata, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Surat, Pune, Solapur, Chennai, Bangalore and Hyderabad) on a single day effective April 1, 2010. The Auto Fuel Policy had prescribed a road map for introduction of BS-IV and BS-III grades of petrol and diesel (equivalent to Euro III and Euro-IV Petrol and Diesel) in the country.
http://in.news.yahoo.com/20/20100923/1416/tnl-india-switches-over-to-cleaner-petro.html
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