Umeå, Sweden (Scicasts) – A group of researchers at Umeå University in Sweden has reported a new imaging method for the study of insulin-producing cells in diabetes among other uses.

Barcelona, Spain (Scicasts) – Researchers of the Catalan Institute of Oncology (ICO) at the Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL) have developed and validated a new method to diagnose hereditary breast and ovarian cancer syndrome based on mass sequencing of BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes. The model is based on a genetic and bioinformatic analysis which has been proved very effective.

Scicasts Live is a series of interactive live webcasts, online events, and roundtable discussions from leading science and technology thought leaders, research groups, scientists, and analysts.

Hinxton, UK (Scicasts) – Researchers from the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute's cancer genome project have developed a computer model to identify the fingerprints of DNA-damaging processes that drive cancer development. Armed with these signatures, scientists will be able to search for the chemicals, biological pathways and environmental agents responsible.

Southampton, UK (Scicasts) – The University of Southampton's Optoelectronics Research Centre (ORC) is pioneering research into developing the strongest silica nanofibres in the world.

Athens, OH (Scicasts) – An international team of scientists has taken the next step in creating nanoscale machines by designing a multi-component molecular motor that can be moved clockwise and counterclockwise.

Santa Clara, CA (Scicasts) – Agilent Technologies has introduced its Infiniium 9000 H-Series high-definition oscilloscopes. The four new models come in bandwidths of 250 MHz, 500 MHz, 1 GHz and 2 GHz. They offer up to 12-bit vertical resolution, which represents 16 times the quantization levels of traditional oscilloscopes with 8 bits of resolution.

West Lafayette, IN (Scicasts) – Researchers have demonstrated a new technology that combines a laser and electric fields to create tiny centrifuge-like whirlpools to separate particles and microbes by size, a potential lab-on-a-chip system for medicine and research.

Berkeley, CA (Scicasts) – Because modern computers have to depict the real world with digital representations of numbers instead of physical analogues, to simulate the continuous passage of time they have to digitize time into small slices.

Brisbane, QLD, Australia (Scicasts) – An Australian-American team has shone light ― literally ― onto the question of whether quantum computers are actually more powerful than conventional counterparts.

Dear Scicasters,

What a year it has been. We have reported on some remarkable developments and new discoveries that could revolutionize the world of science forever. Congratulations to the amazing research teams who worked hard to achieve such critical developments.

Blacksburg, VA (Scicasts) – If the key to winning battles is knowing both your enemy and yourself, then scientists are now well on their way toward becoming the Sun Tzus of medicine by taking a giant step toward a priceless advantage – the ability to see the soldiers in action on the battlefield.

Washington, DC (Scicasts) – Optical fibres –the backbone of the Internet–carry movies, messages, and music at the speed of light. But for all their efficiency, these ultrathin strands of pristine glass must connect to sluggish signal switches, routers, and buffers in order to transmit data.

Aalto, Finland (Scicasts) –  Scientists from Aalto University, Finland, have succeeded in organising virus particles, protein cages and nanoparticles into crystalline materials. These nanomaterials studied by the Finnish research group are important for applications in sensing, optics, electronics and drug delivery.

Japan (Scicasts) – Scientists from the RIKEN Advanced Science Institute in Japan and University of California Los Angeles have reported a new nanoscale Velcro-like device that captures and releases tumour cells that have broken away from primary tumours and are circulating in the bloodstream.

Cambridge, MA (Scicasts) – Finding ways to diagnose cancer earlier could greatly improve the chances of survival for many patients. One way to do this is to look for specific proteins secreted by cancer cells, which circulate in the bloodstream. However, the quantity of these biomarkers is so low that detecting them has proven difficult.



Los Angeles, CA (Scicasts) – By using electric voltage instead of a flowing electric current, researchers from UCLA's Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science have made major improvements to an ultra-fast, high-capacity class of computer memory known as magnetoresistive random access memory, or MRAM.