NAVARATRI - DASSARA - by Dr. Satyavati Kandala

NAVARATRI - DASSARA - by Dr. Satyavati Kandala

Navaratri (Nine Nights) is one of the greatest festivals of India. This festival is celebrated for nine days, (Oct 14 to 22nd) in which God is worshipped in the form of Mother.  Divine Mother (Shakti) represents Prakriti, counterpart of Purusha jointly making possible the creation of the  world according to the religious ideology of Goddess Worship.  According to Vedic scriptures (The Daksha Yajna) that Lord Vishnu had to cut the body of Sati into pieces to stop the  destruction of Shiva who was perturbed by her death. At fifty-two places these pieces fell. (See the special attachment) They are called Shakti Pithas. Through out India this festival is celebrated.

 

The beginning of summer and the beginning of winter are two very important junctions of climatic and   Solar influence. Vasanta Navaratri in spring season and Sharada Navaratri in Autumn Season are taken as sacred opportunities for the worship. The Rama Navaratri indicates them respectively in the month of Chaitra (April-May) and the Durga Navaratri in 

the month of Aswayuga (September-October)

 

The bodies and minds of people undergo a considerable change on account of the changes in Nature. This is a period of introspection and purification. Navaratri is traditionally an auspicious time for starting new ventures.

 

Durga Pooja or Navaratri commences on the first and ends on the tenth day of the bright half of Aswayuja  .It is held in commemoration of the Victory of Durga over Mashishasura, the buffalo-headed demon (who symbolizes Ego with in us).

 

In Bengal Durga Pooja is a great festival.  Goddess Durga   Image is worshipped for nine days and then cast into water. The tenth day is called Vijaya Dashami. According to Puranas the Mother of Durga (that is, the wife of the king of the Himalayas) longed to see her daughter Durga.  Durga was permitted by Lord Shiva to visit her beloved mother only for 

nine days in the year. The festival of Durga Pooja marks this brief visit and ends with the Vijaya Dashami day, when Goddess Durga leaves for Her return to Mount Kailash.

 

Durga Pooja is the greatest Hindu festival in which God is adored as Mother. Hinduism is the only religion in the world, which has emphasized to such an extent the mother hood of God. One's relationship with one's mother is the dearest and the sweetest of all human relations. Durga represents the Divine Mother. She is the energy aspect of the Lord.

Navaratri symbolizes different things in different regions besides the worship of the Mother Goddess. Ayudha puja (worship of whatever implements one may use in one's livelihood. This is an expression of gratitude to God for helping one too fulfill one's duties) and Bommala koluvu in Southern India and Rama Lila in North. Graba or Dandiya in Gujarat.

 

Navaratri is also called Dasara (Dasha Hara), which means the cutting the ten heads of Ravana (who signifies the demon Ego). The story of Sri Rama is known in almost all parts of the globe. Navaratri highlights the principles elucidated by the Ramayana. (Ramayana Navaahnam reciting the whole Ramayana in Nine days is a special feature observed these days.

 

The Following are the regular features of this Navratri  (nauratri) festival:  

 

A special ritualistic worship of the Mother Durga;  this  includes the recitation of Durga Saptashati or Devi Mahatmaya.

 

Recitation of Lalaitha Sahasrnama or Durga Sahasranama  (Laksharchana 100,000 times to repeat the name of the Divine Mother)

 

Devotees are exhorted to do the maximum number of Japa of the Navaarna Mantra AIM HREEM KLEEM CHAAMUNDAAYAI VICHHE or the Mantra JAI SHRI DURGA.

 

Some devotees observe fasting with milk and fruits only on all these nine days or at least three days. Visiting Temples and participating in-group chanting and seeking the blessings of the Divine Mother is the common feature in all these nine days.

 

 

Let us celebrate Dasara in the right spirit by making honest efforts to destroy the demon Ego, the ten headed i.e. passion, pride ,anger ,greed, infatuations, lust, hatred, jealousy, selfishness and crookedness) and  radiate peace and love wherever we go, and get the blessings of the Divine Mother.

 

 

Three aspects of the eternal smother has been depicted in this Devi Sapta Shloki -The Goddess Lakshmi represents Iccha shakti  (wealth) Goddess Saraswati represents Jnana Shakti  (knowledge)and Goddess Kali represent Kriya Shakti  (strength). All three merge in one form as Durga. The glory of Durga is described in Markendeya Purana,. It is known as Devi Mahatmyam or Durga Sapta sati  (700 Mantras). Allegorical representation of the constant war going on within all of us--- between our divine and demonic natures. In the Saptasati legend   every dominant passion and vice has its special Demon representative. Shumbha is the embodiment of Lust, Nishumbha is Greed and Mashishasura represents Anger.

எப்படி தூங்குவது? தூங்கும் போது கூட யோகம்

  எப்படி தூங்குவது? 

தூங்கும் போது கூட யோகம்  பயிலும் சித்தர்கள். 

மனித உடலின் அடிப்படை ஆரோக்கியத்திற்கு தூக்கம் அவசியமான ஒன்று. ஒரு நாளின் (86400- வினாடிகள்) மூன்றில் ஒரு பங்கு நேரத்தை (28,800 விநாடிகளை) நாம் தூங்குவதில்தான் செலவழிக்கிறோம். நவீனஅறிவியலும் கூட நல்ல, ஆழ்ந்த தூக்கத்தின் அவசியத்தை வலியுறுத்துகிறது. தூங்குவதன் மூலம் உடலுக்கும் உள்ளத்திற்கும் தேவையான ஓய்வும், அமைதியும் கிடைக்கிறது.

 சித்தர் பெருமக்களும் தூக்கம் பற்றி நிறையவே கூறியிருக்கின்றனர். தூக்கம்என்பது மனிதனுக்கு மிக அவசியமானது என்றாலும் கூட சித்தர்களின்-தளத்தில்தூக்கம் என்பது உடல் தளர்வாகவும் உள்ளம் ஒரு முகமாகவும் இருக்கும் ஒருநிலையையே குறிப்பிடுகின்றனர். இதனை தூங்காமல் தூங்கும் நிலை என்கின்றனர்.சித்தர்களில்   பத்திரகிரியார் கூட இதனை பின்வருமாறு குறிப்பிடுகிறார்

ஆங்காரம் உள்ளடக்கி ஐம்புலனை சுட்டறுத்து தூங்காமல் தூங்கி சுகம் பெறுவது எக்காலம்?

 தூங்காமல் தூங்கியிருக்கும் நிலைஉயர்வான விழிப்பு நிலை. இந்த நிலையில்பிரபஞ்ச ஆற்றலோடு இணைந்து நிறைந்துஇருக்கும் நிலை என்கின்றனர். மேலும்நாம் தூங்கும் போது நம்முடைய மூச்சுவிரயமாவதாகவும் சித்தர்களின்பாடல்களில் குறிப்புகள் காணக் கிடைக்கின்றன. அகத்தியரும் கூட தனது பாடல் ஒன்றில் உண்ணும் போதும்,உறங்கும் போதும், உறவு கொள்ளும் போதும் மூச்சை விரயமாக்கலாகாது என்கிறார். சித்தர்கள் கூறிடும் இத்தகைய உறக்க நிலை மிக உயர்வான நிலையாகும். முயற்சியும் பயிற்சியும் உள்ள எவரும் இத்தகைய நிலையைஅடைய முடியும்.

 யோகப் பயிற்சியின் போதே தூக்கத்தை குறைத்துக் கொள்ள வேண்டும் என்கிற குறிப்பும் சித்தர்களின்பாடல்களில் காணக் கிடைக்கிறது. அதுவும் பகலில்தூங்கவே கூடாது என்று வலியுறுத்தப் படுகிறது. சரி,இரவில் எப்படி தூங்குவதாம்?, அதற்கும் ஒரு சூட்சும முறையை தேரையர் தனது “மருத்துவ காவியம்”என்னும் நூலில் பின் வருமாறு விளக்குகிறார்.

பாரப்பா சிவயோகம் பண்ணும்பேர்க்கு பரிவாக நித்திரைதான் வேண்டாமப்பா நேரப்பா ராக்கால நித்திரைதான்பண்ண நிலையாகச் சூட்சமொன்று நிகழ்த்துறேன்கேள் வாரப்பா வரிசையாய்க் கால்தான்னீட்டி வகையாக நித்திரைதான் பண்ணவேண்டாம் ஓரப்பா ஒருபக்க மாகச்சாய்ந்து உத்தமனே மேற்கையை மேற்கொள்வாயே. கொள்ளப்பா ஒன்றின்மேல் சாய்ந்துகொண்டு குறிப்பா நித்திரை செய்துநீங்க அள்ளப்பா அஷ்டாங்க யோகம்பாரு அப்பனே சிவயோகம் வாசியோகம் நள்ளப்பா பிராணாய மவுனயோகம் நலமான கவுனத்தின் யோகம்பாரு வள்ளப்பா வாசியது கீழ்நோக்காது வகையாக மேனோக்கி யேறும்பாரே.

பொதுவில் நாம் எல்லோரும் தூங்குவதைப் போல மட்ட மல்லாந்து கால்களை நீட்டி நிமிர்ந்து உறங்கக் கூடாதாம். ஒரு பக்கமாக சாய்ந்து கையை தலைக்கு கீழாக வைத்து அதன்மேல் தலையை வைத்து உறங்க வேண்டுமாம். அப்படி உறங்குவதால் வாசி கீழ் நோக்கி செல்லாமல்மேல்நோக்கி ஏறுமாம். இதனால் சிவ யோகம், வாசி யோகம்,பிரணாயாமம், மவுன யோகம், கெவுன யோகம் அனைத்தும் இலகுவாக சித்திக்குமாம்.

இன்றைய பரபரப்பான வாழ்க்கை முறையில் இதெல்லாம் சாத்தியமா என்கிற கேள்வி இன்னேரத்துக்கு உங்களுக்கு நிச்சயம் வந்திருக்கும். இதன் சாத்தியஅசாத்தியங்களை விவாதிப்பதை விட தூக்கம் பற்றி இப்படியான தகவல்கள் நம் முன்னோர்களினால் அருளப் பட்டிருக்கிறது என்பதை பகிர்ந்து கொள்வதே இந்த பதிவின் நோக்கம்.

 சித்தர்களைப் பற்றி பல ஆராய்ச்சி நூல்களை மின்னூலாக பகிர்ந்தளித்த தோழி அவர்களின் “சித்தர்கள் இராச்சியம்” என்னும் வலைப்பூவில் கண்டு படித்து மகிழ்ந்ததை அன்பு நட்புக்களுக்குடன் பகிர்ந்து கொள்வதில் மிக்க மகிழ்ச்சி கொள்கின்றேன். பொதுவாகவே சித்தர்களின் சிந்தனைப்படி நாம் சுவாசிக்கும் மூச்சின் அளவினை எவ்வளவுக்கு எவ்வளவு குறைக்கின்றோமோ அந்த அளவு நமது ஆயுளும் கூடுகின்றது என்பதனை பல சூழ்நிலைகளில் பல சித்தர்களும் வலியுறுத்திக் கூறியுள்ளார்கள் என்பதனை நாம் மனதில் கொள்ள வேண்டி இருக்கின்றது. 

மேலும் பயணிப்போம் நண்பர்களே.... அன்புடன் கே எம் தர்மா....

நன்றி - பதிவு : தோழி   மற்றும் வலைபூ. 

Milky Way Galaxy Might Hold Thousands of Ticking 'Time Bombs'

New research shows that some old stars known as white dwarfs might be held up by their rapid spins, and when they slow down, they explode as Type Ia supernovae. Thousands of these "time bombs" could be scattered throughout our Galaxy. In this artist's conception, a supernova explosion is about to obliterate an orbiting Saturn-like planet. (Credit: David A. Aguilar (CfA))

Science Daily— In the Hollywood blockbuster "Speed," a bomb on a bus is rigged to blow up if the bus slows down below 50 miles per hour. The premise -- slow down and you explode -- makes for a great action movie plot, and also happens to have a cosmic equivalent.

"We haven't found one of these 'time bomb' stars yet in the Milky Way, but this research suggests that we've been looking for the wrong signs. Our work points to a new way of searching for supernova precursors," said astrophysicist Rosanne Di Stefano of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA).

New research shows that some old stars might be held up by their rapid spins, and when they slow down, they explode as supernovae. Thousands of these "time bombs" could be scattered throughout our Galaxy.

The specific type of stellar explosion Di Stefano and her colleagues studied is called a Type Ia supernova. It occurs when an old, compact star known as a white dwarf destabilizes.

A white dwarf is a stellar remnant that has ceased nuclear fusion. It typically can weigh up to 1.4 times as much as our Sun -- a figure called the Chandrasekhar mass after the astronomer who first calculated it. Any heavier, and gravity overwhelms the forces supporting the white dwarf, compacting it and igniting runaway nuclear fusion that blows the star apart.

There are two possible ways for a white dwarf to exceed the Chandrasekhar mass and explode as a Type Ia supernova. It can accrete gas from a donor star, or two white dwarfs can collide. Most astronomers favor the first scenario as the more likely explanation. But we would expect to see certain signs if the theory is correct, and we don't for most Type Ia supernovae.

For example, we should detect small amounts of hydrogen and helium gas near the explosion, but we don't. That gas would come from matter that wasn't accreted by the white dwarf, or from the disruption of the companion star in the explosion. Astronomers also have looked for the donor star after the supernova faded from sight, without success.

Di Stefano and her colleagues suggest that white dwarf spin might solve this puzzle. A spin-up/spin-down process would introduce a long delay between the time of accretion and the explosion. As a white dwarf gains mass, it also gains angular momentum, which speeds up its spin. If the white dwarf rotates fast enough, its spin can help support it, allowing it to cross the 1.4-solar-mass barrier and become a super-Chandrasekhar-mass star.

Once accretion stops, the white dwarf will gradually slow down. Eventually, the spin isn't enough to counteract gravity, leading to a Type Ia supernova.

"Our work is new because we show that spin-up and spin-down of the white dwarf have important consequences. Astronomers therefore must take angular momentum of accreting white dwarfs seriously, even though it's very difficult science," explained Di Stefano.

The spin-down process could produce a time delay of up to a billion years between the end of accretion and the supernova explosion. This would allow the companion star to age and evolve into a second white dwarf, and any surrounding material to dissipate.

In our Galaxy, scientists estimate that there are three Type Ia supernovae every thousand years. If a typical super-Chandrasekhar-mass white dwarf takes millions of years to spin down and explode, then calculations suggest that there should be dozens of pre-explosion systems within a few thousand light-years of Earth.

Those supernova precursors will be difficult to detect. However, upcoming wide-field surveys conducted at facilities like Pan-STARRS and the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope should be able to spot them.

"We don't know of any super-Chandrasekhar-mass white dwarfs in the Milky Way yet, but we're looking forward to hunting them out," said co-author Rasmus Voss of Radboud University Nijmegen, The Netherlands. The research appears in the Astrophysical Journal

Microbes Generate Electricity While Cleaning Up Nuclear Waste

MSU microbiologist Gemma Reguera (right) and her team of researchers have unraveled the mystery of how microbes generate electricity while cleaning up nuclear waste. (Credit: Michael Steger)

Science Daily — Researchers at Michigan State University have unraveled the mystery of how microbes generate electricity while cleaning up nuclear waste and other toxic metals.

"Geobacter bacteria are tiny micro-organisms that can play a major role in cleaning up polluted sites around the world," said Reguera, who is an MSU AgBioResearch scientist. "Uranium contamination can be produced at any step in the production of nuclear fuel, and this process safely prevents its mobility and the hazard for exposure."

Details of the process, which can be improved and patented, are published in the current issue of theProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The implications could eventually benefit sites forever changed by nuclear contamination, said Gemma Reguera, MSU microbiologist.

The ability of Geobacter to immobilize uranium has been well documented. However, identifying the Geobacters' conductive pili or nanowires as doing the yeoman's share of the work is a new revelation. Nanowires, hair-like appendages found on the outside of Geobacters, are the managers of electrical activity during a cleanup.

"Our findings clearly identify nanowires as being the primary catalyst for uranium reduction," Reguera said. "They are essentially performing nature's version of electroplating with uranium, effectively immobilizing the radioactive material and preventing it from leaching into groundwater."

The nanowires also shield Geobacter and allow the bacteria to thrive in a toxic environment, she added.

Their effectiveness was proven during a cleanup in a uranium mill tailings site in Rifle, Colo. Researchers injected acetate into contaminated groundwater. Since this is Geobacters' preferred food, it stimulated the growth of the Geobacter community already in the soil, which in turn, worked to remove the uranium, Reguera said.

Reguera and her team of researchers were able to genetically engineer a Geobacter strain with enhanced nanowire production. The modified version improved the efficiency of the bacteria's ability to immobilize uranium proportionally to the number of nanowires while subsequently improving its viability as a catalytic cell.

Reguera has filed patents to build on her research, which could lead to the development of microbial fuel cells capable of generating electricity while cleaning up after environmental disasters.

The research team included Dena Cologgi and Allison Speers, MSU graduate students, and Sanela Lampa-Pastirk and Shelly Kelly, post-doctoral researchers. The National Institute of Environmental Health Science and the U.S. Department of Energy funded the study.

Neurosurgeons Use Adult Stem Cells to Grow Neck Vertebrae

Dr. Kee Kim and team in surgery. (Credit: Image courtesy of University of California - Davis Health System / © UC Regents)

Science Daily — Neurosurgery researchers at UC Davis Health System have used a new, leading-edge stem cell therapy to promote the growth of bone tissue following the removal of cervical discs -- the cushions between the bones in the neck -- to relieve chronic, debilitating pain.

Removal of the cervical disc relieves pain by eliminating friction between the vertebrae and/or nerve compression. Spinal fusion is used following surgery for degenerative disc disease, where the cushioning cartilage has worn away, leaving bone to rub against bone and herniated discs, where the discs pinch or compress nerves.

The procedure was performed by associate professors of neurosurgery Kee Kim and Rudolph Schrot. It used bone marrow-derived adult stem cells to promote the growth of the bone tissue essential for spinal fusion following surgery, as part of a nationwide, multicenter clinical trial of the therapy.

"We hope that this investigational procedure eventually will help those who undergo spinal fusion in the back as well as in the neck," said Kim, who also is chief of spinal neurosurgery at UC Davis. "And the knowledge gained about stem cells also will be applied in the near future to treat without surgery those suffering from back pain."

Millions of Americans are affected by spine diseases, with approximately 40 percent of all spinal fusion surgery performed for cervical spinal fusion. Some 230,000 patients are candidates for spinal fusion, with the numbers of potential patients increasing by 2 to 3 percent each year as the nation's population ages.

"This is an exciting clinical trial to test the ability of the bone-forming stem cells from healthy donors to help patients with spinal disease," said Jan Nolta, director of the UC Davis Institute for Regenerative Cures.

"For the past 50 years, bone marrow-derived stem cells have been used to rebuild patients' blood-forming systems. We know that subsets of stem cells from the marrow also can robustly build bone. Their use now to promote vertebral fusion is a new and extremely promising area of clinical study," she said.

The stem cell procedure at UC Davis took place early in August. The patient was a 53-year-old male from the Sacramento region with degenerative disc disease.

In the surgery, called an anterior cervical discectomy, a cervical disc or multiple discs are removed via an incision in the front of the neck. The investigational stem cell therapy then is applied to promote fusion of the vertebrae across the space created by the disc removal.

The stem cells are derived from a healthy single adult donor's bone marrow, and thus are very homogenous, Kim said. They are grown in culture to high concentration with minimal chance for rejection by the recipient, he said.

Adequate spinal fusion fails to occur in 8 to 35 percent or more of patients, and persistent pain occurs in up to 60 percent of patients with fusion failure, which often necessitates additional surgery.

"A lack of effective new bone growth after spine fusion surgery can be a significant problem, especially in surgeries involving multiple spinal segments," said Schrot, co-principal investigator for the study. "This new technology may help patients grow new bone, and it avoids harvesting a bone graft from the patient's own hip or using bone from a deceased donor."

Current methods of promoting spinal fusion include implanting bone tissue from the patient's hip or a cadaver to encourage bone regrowth as well as implanting bone growth-inducing proteins. However, the Food and Drug Administration has not approved the use of bone morphogenetic proteins for cervical spinal fusion. Their use has been associated with life-threatening complications, particularly in the neck.

The leading-edge stem cell procedure is part of a prospective, randomized, single-blinded controlled study to evaluate the safety and preliminary efficacy of an investigational therapy: modified bone marrow-derived stem cells combined with the use of a delivery device as an alternative to promote and maintain spinal fusion.

The study includes 10 investigational centers nationwide. The UC Davis Department of Neurological Surgery anticipates enrolling up to 10 study participants who will be treated with the stem cell therapy and followed for 36 months after their surgeries. A total of 24 participants will be enrolled nationwide.

The study is one of several clinical trials under way in the UC Davis Spine Center and led by Kim. He anticipates launching a clinical trial soon to study the safety of injecting stem cells into disc tissue to repair degenerated discs.

The current study is sponsored by Mesoblast, Ltd., of Melbourne, Australia, which is developing adult universal-donor stem cell products built upon the discovery of adult-derived mesenchymal precursor cells. Kim and Schrot will not be compensated for their participation in the study.

Breakthrough Could Double Wireless Capacity With No New Towers

Rice University graduate student Melissa Duarte with a "full-duplex" test device. The technology, which allows wireless devices to "talk" and "listen" to networks on the same frequency, could double throughput on wireless phone networks. (Credit: Jeff Fitlow/Rice University)

Science Daily  — The days of waiting for smartphones to upload video may be numbered. Rice University engineering researchers have made a breakthrough that could allow wireless phone companies to double throughput on their networks without adding a single cell tower.

"Our solution requires minimal new hardware, both for mobile devices and for networks, which is why we've attracted the attention of just about every wireless company in the world," said Ashutosh Sabharwal, professor of electrical and computer engineering at Rice. "The bigger change will be developing new wireless standards for full-duplex. I expect people may start seeing this when carriers upgrade to 4.5G or 5G networks in just a few years."Rice's new "full-duplex" technology allows wireless devices like cell phones and electronic tablets to both "talk" and "listen" to wireless cell towers on the same frequency -- something that requires two frequencies today.In 2010, Sabharwal and Rice colleagues Melissa Duarte and Chris Dick published the first paper showing that full-duplex was possible. That set off a worldwide race to demonstrate that the technology could actually be used in a real network. This summer, Sabharwal and Rice's Achaleshwar Sahai and Gaurav Patel set new performance records with a real-time demo of the technology that produced signal quality at least 10 times better than any previously published result."We showed that our approach could support higher throughput and better link reliability than anything else that's been demonstrated, which is a plus for wireless carriers," Sabharwal said. "On the device side, we've shown that we can add full duplex as an additional mode on existing hardware. Device makers love this because real estate inside mobile devices is at a premium, and it means they don't have to add new hardware that only supports full duplex."To explain why full-duplex wireless was long thought impossible for wireless networks, Sabharwal uses the analogy of two people standing far apart inside an otherwise empty arena. If each shouts to the other at the same time, neither can hear what the other is saying. The easy solution is to have only one person speak at a time, and that's what happens on two-way radios where only one person may speak at a given time. Cell phones achieve two-way communications by using two different frequencies to send and listen.Rice's team overcame the full-duplex hurdle by employing an extra antenna and some computing tricks. In the shouting analogy, the result is that the shouter cannot hear himself, and therefore hears the only other sound in the arena -- the person shouting from far away.

"We send two signals such that they cancel each other at the receiving antenna -- the device ears," Sabharwal said. "The canceling effect is purely local, so the other node can still hear what we're sending."

He said the cancellation idea is relatively simple in theory and had been proposed some time ago. But no one had figured a way to implement the idea at low cost and without requiring complex new radio hardware.

"We repurposed antenna technology called MIMO, which are common in today's devices," Sabharwal said. "MIMO stands for 'multiple-input multiple-output' and it uses several antennas to improve overall performance. We took advantage of the multiple antennas for our full-duplex scheme, which is the main reason why all wireless carriers are very comfortable with our technology."

Sabharwal said Rice is planning to roll its full-duplex innovations into its "wireless open-access research platform," or WARP. WARP is a collection of programmable processors, transmitters and other gadgets that make it possible for wireless researchers to test new ideas without building new hardware for each test. Sabharwal said adding full-duplex to WARP will allow other researchers to start innovating on top of Rice's breakthrough.

"There are groups that are already using WARP and our open-source software to compete with us," he said. "This is great because our vision for the WARP project is to enable never-before-possible research and to allow anyone to innovate freely with minimal startup effort."

Sabharwal's team has gone one step further and achieved asynchronous full-duplex too -- that is one wireless node can start receiving a signal while it's in the midst of transmitting. Asynchronous transmission is import for carriers wishing to maximize traffic on their networks, and Rice's team is the first to demonstrate the technology.

"We've also developed a preliminary theory <http://arxiv.org/abs/1107.1276> that explains why our system is working the way that it is," Sabharwal said. "That's also important for carriers and device makers, because engineers aren't likely to implement something like this without a clear understanding of fundamental tradeoffs."

Rice's research has been funded by the National Science Foundation, the Roberto Rocca Education Program and Xilinx Incorporated.

Novel Magnetic, Superconducting Material Opens New Possibilities in Electronics

Julie Bert, the paper's first author, and a graduate student at the Stanford Institute for Materials and Energy Science (SIMES), adjusts imaging equipment used to make a startling discovery of two properties that normally can't co-exist. The finding was made by Bert and colleagues at SIMES, a joint institute of the Department of Energy's SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory and Stanford University. They sandwiched two nonmagnetic insulators together and saw magnetic and superconducting regions at the layer where the two materials met. (Credit: Photo by Steve Gladfelter)

Science Daily — Scientists have reached a crucial milestone that could lead to a new class of materials with useful electronic properties. In research reported in the Sept. 5 issue of Nature Physics, the team sandwiched two nonmagnetic insulators together and discovered a startling result: The layer where the two materials meet has both magnetic and superconducting regions -- two properties that normally can't co-exist.

The discovery, made by researchers at the Stanford Institute for Materials and Energy Science (SIMES), a joint institute of the Department of Energy's SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory and Stanford University, opens "exciting possibilities for engineering new materials and studying the interplay of these normally incompatible states," said Kathryn A. "Kam" Moler, the SLAC/Stanford researcher who led the imaging studies.

Technologists have long hoped to find a way to engineer magnetism in this class of materials, called complex oxides, as a first step in developing a potential new form of computing memory for storage and processing.

A critical next step: Figuring out whether the superconductivity and magnetism co-exist within the material in an uneasy truce, or whether this marks the discovery of an exotic new form of superconductivity that actively interacts with magnetism, said Moler. Superconducting materials, which conduct electricity with no resistance and 100 percent efficiency, normally expel any magnetic field that comes near them.

"Our future measurements will indicate whether they're fighting one another or helping one another," Moler said.

Independently, researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology announced in the same issue of Nature Physicsthat they had confirmed the existence of magnetism at the interface between the two materials using an alternative means of measurement.

In a commentary accompanying both papers, Columbia University physicist Andrew J. Millis, who was not involved in the research, wrote that the work could introduce a new class of materials with "interesting, controllable, novel and perhaps useful collective electronic properties." While this goal is far off, he said, the new findings indicate that "the field has passed a crucial milestone."

SIMES graduate student Julie Bert, the paper's first author, and her colleagues made their observations on a thin film of lanthanum aluminate that had been laid onto a strontium titanate substrate. The structures were grown by researchers working with applied physicist Harold Hwang, who recently moved with his group from the University of Tokyo to join SIMES and now serves as deputy director. The atomic layer where the two oxides meet becomes metallic and allows current to flow with no resistance at temperatures close to absolute zero.

Researchers are starting experiments to see whether anything changes when the material is compressed, or when an electrical field is applied, said Moler. Additional research now must be done, she added, to determine the physical properties that contribute to forming both the magnetism and superconductivity in these oxides.

"Modern technology gives us the amazing ability to grow materials atomic layer by atomic layer," said Moler. "The message of our work is that by doing so we can create new materials with surprising new properties."

The Stanford Institute for Materials and Energy Science, SIMES, is a joint institute of SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory and Stanford University. Research at SIMES is supported in part by the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Science.

New NASA Photos Show Footprints on the Moon

By Paul Adams

Footprints on the Moon NASA/LRO

In new photographs taken by the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, we can see the landing sites of some lunar craft, as well as the tracks left by those who flew in them. What creatures left these prints? A semi-dormant species known as the Earth astronaut; to be precise, Alan Bean and Pete Conrad, the crew of the Apollo 12 mission in 1969.

The windless moon preserves tracks in dust pretty nicely. In addition to this Apollo 12 shot (click to see it with labels), NASA has released images of the Apollo 14 and Apollo 17 landing sites.

[NASA]