21 Apr Machine learning paves way for rapid rocket engine design

"It’s not rocket science" may be a tired cliché, but that doesn’t mean designing rockets is any less complicated. Time, cost and safety prohibit testing the stability of a test rocket using a physical build "trial and error" approach. But even computational simulations are extremely time consuming. A single analysis of an entire SpaceX Merlin rocket engine, for example, could take weeks, even months, for a supercomputer to provide satisfactory predictions.

One group of researchers at The University of Texas at Austin is developing new "scientific machine learning" methods to address this challenge. Scientific machine learning is a relatively new field that blends scientific computing with machine learning. Through a combination of physics modeling and data-driven learning, it becomes possible to create reduced-order models – simulations that can run in a fraction of the time, making them particularly useful in the design setting.

Sourced through Scoop.it from: www.eurekalert.org

17 Apr How Apple and Google’s coronavirus-tracking technology works

The companies will build tech into their mobile software to help authorities track the spread of coronavirus. But will a critical mass of users trust them?

Sourced through Scoop.it from: www.fastcompany.com

17 Apr The planet’s climate scorched in the first 3 months of 2020

In 2020, Earth has either broken historic monthly climate records, or come close, as the planet continues its relentless warming trend.

The American economy has seriously sputtered during the coronavirus pandemic, but the planet’s relentless warming trend hasn’t. After Earth experienced its second-hottest year in 140 years of record-keeping in 2019, the first few months of this year have either broken historic monthly records, or come close. January 2020 was the warmest January on record. February 2020 was the second hottest such month on record. And on Monday, the European Union’s climate monitoring agency EU Copernicus reported that March 2020 was "on par" with the second and third warmest Marches on record. 

Sourced through Scoop.it from: mashable.com

17 Apr 60 seconds Rapid Point-of-Care Diagnostics for CoVID19 using a novel multiplexed immuno-biosensor

Sourced through Scoop.it from: www.hememics.com

10 Apr NASA’s new Jupiter images are stunning

Some 484 million miles from coronavirus-beleaguered Earth lies the gas giant Jupiter, and its stormy, magnificent atmosphere. One of the latest images NASA’s Juno spacecraft sent back to Earth shows a view of the planet’s churning northern region. Juno captured it on Feb. 17, during a "close" swing by Jupiter — which means Juno was some 15,610 miles above these clouds.

Of particular interest amid the swirling clouds and spinning storms are the thin, hazy bands, which run from top to bottom in the image. They are atmospheric particles floating above Jupiter’s famous, tumultuous clouds. "Scientists don’t yet know exactly what these hazes are made of or how they form," writes NASA. 

A full suite Juno’s imagery of Jupiter — "the king of planets" — can be found here.

Sourced through Scoop.it from: www.nasa.gov

10 Apr NYT: The Virus Changed the Way We Internet

With many stuck at home during the pandemic, Americans have been spending more of their lives online. This is how our habits have changed.

Stuck at home during the coronavirus pandemic, with movie theaters closed and no restaurants to dine in, Americans have been spending more of their lives online. But a New York Times analysis of internet usage in the United States from SimilarWeb and Apptopia, two online data providers, reveals that our behaviors shifted, sometimes starkly, as the virus spread and pushed us to our devices for work, play and connecting.

In the past few years, users of these services were increasingly moving to their smartphones, creating an industrywide focus on mobile. Now that we are spending our days at home, with computers close at hand, Americans appear to be remembering how unpleasant it can be to squint at those little phone screens.

Facebook, Netflix and YouTube have all seen user numbers on their phone apps stagnate or fall off as their websites have grown, the data from SimilarWeb and Apptopia indicates. SimilarWeb and Apptopia both draw their traffic numbers from several independent sources to create data that can be compared across the internet.

Sourced through Scoop.it from: www.nytimes.com

10 Apr 30 Year Anniversary: The ‘Pale Blue Dot’ Revisited

For the 30th anniversary of one of the most iconic images taken by NASA’s Voyager mission, a new version of the image known as "the Pale Blue Dot."

Planet Earth is visible as a bright speck within the sunbeam just right of center and appears softly blue, as in the original version published in 1990 (see PIA00452). This updated version uses modern image-processing software and techniques to revisit the well-known Voyager view while attempting to respect the original data and intent of those who planned the images.

In 1990, the Voyager project planned to shut off the Voyager 1 spacecraft’s imaging cameras to conserve power and because the probe, along with its sibling Voyager 2, would not fly close enough to any other objects to take pictures. Before the shutdown, the mission commanded the probe to take a series of 60 images designed to produce what they termed the "Family Portrait of the Solar System." Executed on Valentine’s Day 1990, this sequence returned images for making color views of six of the solar system’s planets and also imaged the Sun in monochrome.

Sourced through Scoop.it from: www.jpl.nasa.gov

07 Apr Tiger At New York Zoo Tests Positive For COVID-19

A tiger at Bronx Zoo has tested positive to SARS-CoV-2 and it seems six other big cats also have mild COVID-19. What does this mean for other animals, part

Sourced through Scoop.it from: www.iflscience.com