Science Portal

Mars was too salty to support life forms. To such conclusion came experts from National Aeronautics and Space Administration, informs BBC News. Experts found the assumption using the data received from Mars rover Opportunity.
Studying of mining rocks with signs of water in them in the past has shown, that atmosphere of the Mars was acid and salty. Too high content of minerals in water on the Mars made impossible existence of even the steadiest to the hostile environment microbes.

According to the participant of the NASA project, Doctor Andrew Noll, results of the researches “tightened the noose around the hypothesis of life” on the Mars.

Earlier scientists believed in the opportunity of life on the Mars by virtue of water presence. Then water evaporated and the planet lost an opportunity to keep biosphere.

Corporation IBM has developed the technology, which allows the network equipment, consuming electric energy as 100 watt bulb, to transmit the information with a speed up to eight Tbit per second, informed TG Daily.
The new technology is called green optical link. Instead of wires the prototype uses light. Researchers have been talking about replacement of wires with light pulses since December, 2007.

The corporation actively works above optical data transmission and asserts that has considerably moved forward in commercialization of the channel. It has already replaced the majority of devices’ parts with components from outside suppliers.

The new technology is expected to be used for transfer of HD video and the medical data.

An electric fountain or fountain from light was opened on February, 27 in New York on Manhattan, informed organizers of this ceremony from Art Production Fund.
The sculpture from light 10×10 meters belongs to a duet of sculptors - Tim Noble and Sue Webster, who have used for its creation half-kilometer of neon tubes, creating a hypnotic illusion of running water.

The neon fountain will function till April, 5 and its further destiny is unknown.

Not so long ago Noble and Webster have pleased London inhabitants with a light sculpture Sacrificial heart, which represented a huge rotating bleeding heart from hundreds glowing bulbs.

Basque scientists in cooperation with the colleagues from Japan and Australia in the chemical way have given magnetic properties to atoms of gold, silver and copper, informs portal Basque Research referring to an article in magazine Nanoletters.
Gold, silver and copper do not have magnetic properties in the nature (as against iron, for example).

Researchers, nevertheless, claim that they have managed to obtain gold nanoparticles covered with thiols (sulfur-bearing organic compounds) with the help of controlled chemical reaction. These nanoparticles behave as constant (and rather strong) magnets at room-temperature measurement. The same effect was achieved with the particles of silver and copper covered with dodecantiol.

Researchers consider that this method can be used to give magnetic properties to other non-magnetic elements. They emphasize, that new magnets - one of the smallest ever created magnets - keep the properties at room and higher temperatures. This is the historical moment in studying of magnetism, marks Basque Research.

Corporation Apple has started deliveries the preordered devices called Time Capsule, which allows to carry out reserve copying of the data through a wireless network, writes The Register.

Time Capsule is intended first of all for work with the new system of reserve copying Time Machine which has been built-in in the operational system Mac OS X Leopard.

Physically Time Capsule is Apple Airport Extreme’s POP and a server hard disk. Cost of the device with the 500 GB winchester in the USA makes 300 dollars, and with 1 TByte - 499 dollars. According to the edition, every Time Capsule gives Apple hardly more than 40 dollars.

Time Capsule has been presented by Steve Jobs on Mac Expo on January, 15 together with a weaving 1.1.3 for iPhone and superthin laptop MacBook Air.

Cisco Systems has presented the first in the given branch completely integrated and programmed network chipset - 40-nuclear processor QuantumFlow.

According to the founders, QuantumFlow can process simultaneously up to 160 processes, as it has 800 million transistors, while its predecessor Cisco SPP had only 185 million transistors.

Cisco, which is one of the leading manufacturers of telecommunication equipment and network software, has worked above creation of the new processor for about five years.

Japanese company Thanko has created the device which combines the computer mouse and a vacuum cleaner, writes Register Hardware.
New cleaner-mouse, with the dimensions 62×115x40 millimeters, can collect fine garbage and crumbs through a small whole in the base. It feeds through USB-port.

The novelty is also equipped with two buttons and a scroll. It can be bought in online-shops at the price of about 30 dollars for a copy.

Let’s remind, that it not the first hybrid of the popular manipulator - earlier Japanese have already created optical computer mouse Genius which could be transformed in a gamepad.

Internet-dependence is a new illness of the century. It passes from mental sphere to physical one, as orthopedists have started to talk about extension of computer mouse syndrome - occupational disease of computerniks.

Psychologists warn that online-dependence can destroy human life. For today only in Germany about 2 million people suffer from Internet-dependence: they perceive virtual life as a real one.

According to the experts, cell phone has its own role in development of new media dependence. For example, physicians mark, that if the person takes the phone everywhere, it is already a disturbing symptom.

Experts inform, that approximately 10 % of computer gamers need medical aid, and one of the symptoms of thirst for a computer, is so-called computer mouse syndrome (RSI-syndrome) which quite often affect office workers - disturbances of hands, shoulders and neck work, because of monotonous office work.

To prevent RSI-syndrome and Internet-dependence doctors advise to do exercises once in an hour and do not spend all free time in front of the monitor.

Japanese software company FIT has created the game for mobile phones named Ippon Zuri or Fishing, owner of which receives real fish or crabs, which he has caught.
The main point of the game is that the player cast the line with a hook and bait in the virtual sea and waits, when the fish bites.

In that case if the fish swallows a bait, on the screen appears a tiny slot-machine – in case of three identical figures the information about the catch goes to local seafood shop AkiraSuisan, which sends the certain amount of fish directly to the player’s house.

The company-developer informs users should be registered beforehand on a site of the game. Cost of a new service - $9,3 for three performances.

Over three millions webs-pages on 180 thousand sites try automatically install on the user’s computer malicious software, is said in the report “All your iframe are point to us” made by Google safety experts.
The most part of malicious software is stored on the Chinese webs-servers. On some of such servers Google has found out up to 21 thousand links from other sites (also Chinese).

It is necessary to note, that about two percent of the infected sites could potentially distribute malicious software through advertising networks.

Google experts have also checked up the vulnerability of server-based software. They have found out that 38% of Apache-based webs-servers and the same share of PHP language installations, frequently used for creation of sites, are outdated and can be subject to attacks from the outside.