Researchers studying physical and chemical processes at the smallest scales, smaller even than the width of a human hair, have found that fluid circulating in a microscopic whirlpool can reach radial acceleration more than a million times greater than gravity, or 1 million Gs.

By contrast, a pilot flying a fighter jet at high speed and in relatively tight circular patterns might experience a force of 10 to 12 Gs, making the force his body feels 10 to 12 times normal.

“From a physi

Widespread crime and the rise of global terrorism have meant that security systems need to incorporate sophisticated and rapid computer recognition of human faces, as delegates will hear next week at the British Machine Vision Conference being held at the University of East Anglia (UEA).

Another side of the same coin is in making human faces that appear on computers as convincing as possible, and in particular making speech appear realistic, as a team of UEA researchers will tell the confere

A new technique to detect localised corrosion in steel and other metals could help industry avoid major repair bills. In some cases, it could even help prevent serious safety problems in industrial plants and other building structures.

This technique differs from traditional methods as it is able to detect corrosion on a much smaller level. This means that preventative action can be taken earlier, saving money, time and possibly lives.

Funded by the Swindon-based Engineering and Ph

An engineered mouse, already known to be immune to the weight gain ramifications of a high-calorie, high-fat diet, now seems able to resist the onset of diabetes.

The mouse, stripped of a gene known as SCD-1, is apparently impervious to the negative effects of the type of diet that, for many people, has significant health and social consequences.

“We think this animal model may be protected against diabetes,” says James Ntambi, a University of Wisconsin-Madison professor of bioche

Both fathers and mothers have distressing thoughts after the birth of a baby, according to a new Mayo Clinic study published in the Sept. 3 issue of the Journal of Clinical Psychology in Medical Settings.

In a survey mailed to 300 childbearing women and their partners, participants were asked to report distressing thoughts, such as “My baby is going to die from SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome)” or “What if I drown my baby while bathing her?” Overall, seven categories of thoughts were st

In the treatment of stroke, there is currently only a three-hour “window of therapeutic opportunity” to prevent additional brain cell damage and only one medication approved to improve blood flow to oxygen-deprived neurons near the injury, thereby minimizing potentially debilitating side effects.

Now, scientists from Northwestern University report that a single injection of a chemical they created — given up to six hours after brain injury or stroke — protects against additional brain cel