Floating Nuke plants and Beer Generators

Source: BBC News Indian researchers have developed a hand-held scanner that is able detect potentially dangerous blot clots on the surface of the brain. These clots often expand, putting pressure on the brain, leading to death if the problem is not detected quickly enough. The device has drawn the interest of the US Navy who hope to use it to diagnose similar injuries in the battlefield.

Source: BBC News Russia is proceeding with the construction of the first floating nuclear power plant. More than a dozen countries have expressed interest in purchasing a similar plant to address their own demands for electricity. The 70-megawatt plant is expected to be completed by 2012 and will supply energy to a ship-building operation in the Russian Arctic that builds nuclear submarines. They are confident that, in the event of an accident, the radiation damage will be contained to a 1-kilometer radius.

Source: Globe and Mail Australian researchers have succeeded in splitting the beer atom.... no, not really, but they have discovered a way to generate clean energy while brewing some good Aussie suds. The process uses waste material, generated when beer is brewed, to power a microbial fuel cell. The 2,500 litre cell then converts the waste into electricity and clean water. The system is expected to generate two kilowatts of power, which is small, but can be used to reduce the electrical demands of the brewery. More importantly, the system eliminates the waste material that would otherwise have to be processed using more expensive methods.

Source: Coolest Gadgets IdeaLab's Desktop Factory is a 3D printer that fits on a desktop and can generate plastic 3D parts from model schematics supplied by a PC. The system costs about $7,000(US), not too much more than a specialty printer. The device is well suited to places like tech schools where students can design and build low-cost prototypes and mock-ups.

Source: Sci Fi Tech When making microchips, capacitance is your enemy. IBM is proposing a new process that uses self-generating polymers to create vacuum pockets around wiring, thus, eliminating the problem of capacitance. They expect to see a speed increase of 35% and a increase in energy efficiency of 15%. This means cooler, faster chips. They hope to have the process up to commercial scale by 2009.

Edit: Found a better picture for the 3D printer at Engadget.