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"   Brave Neutron World BY KAREN C. FOX Photograph by Ofer Wolberger This isn&amp;#039;t your father&amp;#039;s particle accelerator. When it&amp;#039;s completed this year, the $1.4 billion Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) in Oak Ridge, Tenn., will produce neutron pulses at least 10 times as intense as any other accelerator&amp;#039;s. But it&amp;#039;s not just an atom smasher. Its half mile of underground tunnels generate particle beams that can map the molecular makeup of anything from geological samples to living cells. The device fires protons into a container of liquid mercury. Excited mercury nuclei release neutrons, and detectors record how those neutrons bounce off a given substance. The end result is a detailed visualization of the sample&amp;#039;s shape and atomic structure. Biologists are looking forward to using the SNS on moving samples--we may soon see the first images of how cell membranes transport food and protect against viruses.  SPALLATION NEUTRON SOURCE STATS  Accelerator length: 2974 ft.    Temperature:  Portions of the linear accelerator are kept at minus 456 F.   Projected life span: 40 years    Maximum beam intensity:  Each beam extracted from the accumulator ring consists of 150 trillion protons, with energy equivalent to 1 billion volts. This isn&amp;#039;t your father&amp;#039;s particle accelerator. When it&amp;#039;s completed this year, the $1.4 billion Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) in Oak Ridge, Tenn., will produce neutron pulses at least 10 times as intense as any other accelerator&amp;#039;s. But it&amp;#039;s not just an atom smasher. Its half mile of underground tunnels generate particle beams that can map the molecular makeup of anything from geological samples to living cells. The device fires protons into a container of liquid mercury. Excited mercury nuclei release neutrons, and detectors record how those neutrons bounce off a given substance. The end result is a detailed visualization of the sample&amp;#039;s shape and atomic structure. Biologists are looking forward to using the SNS on moving samples--we may soon see the first images of how cell membranes transport food and protect against viruses.  SPALLATION NEUTRON SOURCE STATS  Accelerator length: 2974 ft.   Temperature:  Portions of the linear accelerator are kept at minus 456 F.  Projected life span: 40 years   Maximum beam intensity:  Each beam extracted from the accumulator ring consists of 150 trillion protons, with energy equivalent to 1 billion volts. Satellite Rescue Tug BY BARRY ROSENBERG Illustration by Cranedigital.com THE CONEXPRESS ORBITAL LIFE EXTENSION VEHICLE (CX-OLEV) is designed to extend the life span of communications satellites by six to 12 years. Developed by a consortium of European companies, the CX-OLEV will dock with client satellites whose orbits have significantly decayed, then maneuver them to more stable positions. The first orbital tug is scheduled for launch in 2008. CX-OLEV ORBITAL TUG 1: Main Thrusters Four ion thrusters--two on each deployable arm--provide multidirectional thrust. 2: Control Thrusters 20 nitrogen thrusters in four blocks handle precise adjustments. 3: Fuel Tanks Enough on-board xenon and nitrogen to stay fully operational for up to 12 years. 4: Capture Tool Extends for remote or autonomous docking with a target satellite&amp;#039;s apogee motor. An End to Car Chases? BY ERIC SOFGE  High-speed police pursuits resulted in 343 deaths in the United States in 2004--a 39 percent increase compared to 1984. This year the LAPD will begin testing an air-powered launcher that fires a GPS tracking tag onto a suspect&amp;#039;s car. In a best-case scenario the launcher would be aimed with a laser sight during a traffic stop, allowing the tag to be fired the instant the suspect hit the gas. The tracking tag, which is embedded in an epoxy that hardens to resist dislodging attempts, radios location coordinates to a central computer, allowing police to use roadblocks or other low-speed interdiction tactics. If the test goes well, police cars across the country could soon be winning car chases before they even start. Watching Malaria  ROBOTICIST Should robots that interact with humans look like ... humans? BY DANIEL H. WILSON, AUTHOR OF HOW TO SURVIVE A ROBOT UPRISING (ROBOTUPRISING.COM). A robotic arm on an assembly line doesn&amp;#039;t need to worry about its looks. But roboticists who design machines that interact with people are forced to deal with the unhappy legacy of the &amp;quot;Uncanny Valley.&amp;quot; Coined in 1970, the term refers to the repulsion felt by test subjects when presented with robots that appear almost, but not quite, human. So when MIT built Leonardo, a 21/2-ft.-tall robot, it avoided making him appear too human. &amp;quot;What gets in the way of human-robot interaction is a failure to meet expectations,&amp;quot; says Matt Hancher, a former lead roboticist on the project. &amp;quot;Leonardo shares features with dogs and cats, but to set up the right expectations he has the wide eyes and large head of a small child.&amp;quot; Leonardo looks and acts like a furry toddler--lose the fur, and he&amp;#039;d risk giving the impression of a zombie-like baby. Roboticists like David Hanson, creator of the Philip K. Dick robot (modeled after the author of Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? who died in 1982), are hoping to bridge the Uncanny Valley entirely by developing advanced humanlike behavior. Hanson&amp;#039;s android has a fully expressive face and can hold extended conversations, using phrase and facial recognition to interact convincingly. &amp;quot;People would hang out with that robot for hours, holding its hand while they talked,&amp;quot; Hanson says. &amp;quot;The interaction isn&amp;#039;t perfect, but they didn&amp;#039;t find it particularly jarring.&amp;quot; When a robot&amp;#039;s looks and behavior are consistent, neither approach--Leonardo&amp;#039;s cuddly humanity or Philip K. Dick&amp;#039;s full-bore mimicry--is inherently creepier. But building a sufficiently realistic android remains one of the biggest challenges a roboticist can tackle. Which is all the more reason to do it. HOW DO THEY KNOW ... The temperature of the sun? BY DANIEL ENGBER  BY ANALYZING THE COLOR of the visible light emitted by the sun, scientists have determined that its surface is around 10,000 F. The halo surrounding the surface is harder to see and much more dynamic, with solar flares and magnetic loops that are measured with X-ray and ultraviolet-detecting telescopes. Temperatures here can top 1.8 million F. The hottest part of the sun--its core-- is impossible to measure directly. In recent years space- and ground-based telescopes have been able to measure patterns of vibrations on the solar surface. Those patterns indicate internal fusion reactions powerful enough to generate temperatures of 27 million F at the very center of the sun. RESIDENT ROBOTICIST Should robots that interact with humans look like ... humans? BY DANIEL H. WILSON, AUTHOR OF HOW TO SURVIVE A ROBOT UPRISING (ROBOTUPRISING.COM). A robotic arm on an assembly line doesn&amp;#039;t need to worry about its looks. But roboticists who design machines that interact with people are forced to deal with the unhappy legacy of the &amp;quot;Uncanny Valley.&amp;quot; Coined in 1970, the term refers to the repulsion felt by test subjects when presented with robots that appear almost, but not quite, human. So when MIT built Leonardo, a 21/2-ft.-tall robot, it avoided making him appear too human. &amp;quot;What gets in the way of human-robot interaction is a failure to meet expectations,&amp;quot; says Matt Hancher, a former lead roboticist on the project. &amp;quot;Leonardo shares features with dogs and cats, but to set up the right expectations he has the wide eyes and large head of a small child.&amp;quot; Leonardo looks and acts like a furry toddler--lose the fur, and he&amp;#039;d risk giving the impression of a zombie-like baby. Roboticists like David Hanson, creator of the Philip K. Dick robot (modeled after the author of Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? who died in 1982), are hoping to bridge the Uncanny Valley entirely by developing advanced humanlike behavior. Hanson&amp;#039;s android has a fully expressive face and can hold extended conversations, using phrase and facial recognition to interact convincingly. &amp;quot;People would hang out with that robot for hours, holding its hand while they talked,&amp;quot; Hanson says. &amp;quot;The interaction isn&amp;#039;t perfect, but they didn&amp;#039;t find it particularly jarring.&amp;quot; When a robot&amp;#039;s looks and behavior are consistent, neither approach--Leonardo&amp;#039;s cuddly humanity or Philip K. Dick&amp;#039;s full-bore mimicry--is inherently creepier. But building a sufficiently realistic android remains one of the biggest challenges a roboticist can tackle. Which is all the more reason to do it. How to Stop a Bomb BY DANIEL ENGBER Illustration by Locografix Terrorists have detonated bombs in public trash cans in London and Paris, but never in North America. Now, U.S.-based companies specializing in blast-resistant receptacles are preparing for the worst. Call it fear-mongering or foresight, but the U.S. market for bomb-resistant garbage cans has become increasingly competitive since 9/11. As an alternative to the costly practice of reinforcing trash bins with enough metal to fully contain a blast--whether from a run-of-the-mill pipe bomb or a sophisticated C4 charge--two top makers of &amp;quot;blast mitigating&amp;quot; containers use special minerals that can partially absorb the force of a blast. The Maryland-based Mistral Group embeds its mixture in the walls of its trash cans to help them withstand the horizontal force of the shock wave, while the rest of the pressure--along with any shrapnel and thermal energy--shoots skyward out of a hole in the top. &amp;quot;We don&amp;#039;t care about the ceiling tiles,&amp;quot; says Susan Roland, director of sales for Mistral. &amp;quot;We care about the human life.&amp;quot; Florida-based BlastGard has a different approach, relying on its own layer of materials to essentially smother an explosion. Called BlastWrap, this lining consists of multiple pockets filled with salts and minerals. Instead of redirecting an explosion, the can disrupts the shock wave and quenches the fireball in a matter of milliseconds. Blastgard&amp;#039;s cans cost $3400 to $4600; the company has signed deals with Amtrak and the Department of Homeland Security. Mistral&amp;#039;s cans run from $1000 to $2500, and also have been bought by Amtrak and by Chicago&amp;#039;s O&amp;#039;Hare Airport. While both approaches worked in the companies&amp;#039; own tests, there&amp;#039;s currently no regulated procedure for testing blast-containment systems. The 259-ft.-dia. accumulator ring intensifies incoming proton pulses 1000-fold before ejecting them to the next stage in the particle-acceleration process. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/gadgets/a5532/2646201/>