ChEnected Posts by Douglas B. Clark

The Seattle-based Allen Institute for Brain Science has unveiled a $55 million digital atlas of the human brain, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal. Available online to researchers, this interactive guide is the first tool to use computer technology to combine detailed anatomical information with findings with extensive genetic information.

IBM researchers are developing nanoparticles that kill bacteria by poking holes in them. The hope is that bacteria will be less successful at developing a resistance to these types of drug, leaving doctors with a powerful tool in the fight against antibiotic-resistant microbes.

Whenever cancer is discussed, a familiar phrase is often heard: the earlier it's caught, the better the chances of survival. Early detection is the next best thing to avoiding cancer altogether, and now researchers are hoping to have discovered a safe, new method of detection that relies on a newcomer in the fight for early detection: the nanoparticle. More specifically, MIT's Tech Review reported last week that researchers are beginning early-stage clinical trials on infrared-emiting nanoparticles that they hope will prove effective in detecting early-stage melanoma.

In the search for biofuels, algae shows great potential. In a TEDx talk, Dr. Kimberly Ogden takes on the subject of algae-based biofuels as an alternative energy source. Her talk can be viewed in the video panel at right.

This week we were introduced to this Lady Gaga parody, thanks to the people at NPR's Science Friday and Talking Science. According to Talking Science, the star of the video is Josephine Coburn, a freshman from from UC Berkeley. As Lady Gallium, she transforms Lady Gaga's song "Telephone" into a great lesson on genetics, titled "Chromosome."

2011 AIChE President Dr. Maria Burka will speak about two passions of hers, research and innovation, at the Inaugural Virtual Section Meeting. Dr. Maria K. Burka is the program director of the Process and Reaction Engineering (PRE) program in the Chemical, Bioengineering, Environmental and Transport Systems (CBET) Division of the National Science Foundation.