Neutrino 'ghost particle' sized up by astronomers

Scientists have made their most accurate measurement yet of the mass of a mysterious neutrino particle.

Neutrinos are sometimes known as "ghost particles" because they interact so weakly with other forms of matter.

Previous experiments had shown that neutrinos have a mass, but it was so tiny that it was very hard to measure.

Using data from the largest ever survey of galaxies, researchers put the mass of a neutrino at no greater than 0.28 electron volts.

This is less than a billionth of the mass of a single hydrogen atom, the scientists say.

Their nickname is fitting: a neutrino is capable of passing through a light-year (about six trillion miles) of lead without hitting a single atom.

"It is remarkable that the distribution of galaxies on huge scales can tell us about the mass of the tiny neutrinos"

-Professor Ofer Lahav UCL.......

The results are to be published in the journal Physical Review Letters and will be presented at the Weizmann UK conference at University College London (UCL) this week.

"Back in 2002, we put an upper limit on the neutrino mass of 1.8 electron volts. So this is an improvement by a factor of six," said co-author Professor Ofer Lahav, from UCL.

"It is remarkable that the distribution of galaxies on huge scales can tell us about the mass of the tiny neutrinos."

The work resulted from the PhD thesis of UCL scientist Shaun Thomas, working with Professor Lahav and Dr Filipe Abdalla.

Scientists used the largest ever 3D map of galaxies in the Universe, based on data gathered by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey.

Ocean waves

They were able to determine a new upper limit for the neutrino particle by analysing the distribution of galaxies across the Universe.

The matter in the cosmos naturally forms into "clumps" of galaxy groups and clusters.

As neutrinos are extremely light they move across the Universe at great speeds. This has the effect of smoothing out the natural "clumpiness" of matter, the research team says.

Professor Lahav likens this to ocean waves smoothing out a pile of sand on a beach.

By analysing the extent to which this "smoothing-out" of galaxies has taken place, scientists were able to work out the upper limits of neutrino mass.

Professor Lahav believes neutrinos are a minor component of cold dark matter, the mysterious "stuff" which comprises some 25% of the Universe and more than 80% of matter in the Universe.

"The neutrino is squeezed into that slice [of the Universe] that is dark matter. But it probably accounts for less than one percent of that dark matter," he told BBC News.

The neutrino particle comes in three "flavours": muon, tau and electron. In a recent experiment, physicists caught a neutrino in the act of changing from one type to another.

The Minos experiment was set up to study neutrino oscillations

The finding by researchers on the Opera experiment in Italy provides a missing piece in the puzzle that has challenged scientists for decades.

In the 1960s, US scientist Ray Davis observed far fewer neutrinos arriving at the Earth from the Sun than models predicted. Either the models were wrong, or something was happening to the neutrinos on their way.

A possible solution to the puzzle was provided in 1969, when theorists suggested that chameleon-like oscillatory changes between different types of neutrinos could be responsible for the apparent deficit.

Several experiments have observed the disappearance of muon neutrinos, confirming the oscillation hypothesis.

But until the results from Opera, no observations of the appearance of a tau-neutrino in a pure muon-neutrino beam have been observed.

Another project, called Minos, recently reported results which point to a fundamental difference between neutrinos and their anti-matter counterparts, known as "anti-neutrinos".

In the experiment, a beam of muon anti-neutrinos was fired from the Fermilab particle accelerator in Chicago through the Earth to the Soudan underground lab in Minnesota.

They found a relatively large difference in the way neutrinos and anti-neutrinos oscillated between one type and another. This difference could not be explained by the established theory of particle physics, known as the Standard Model.

Mystery Signal Faster than Speed of Light

A radio signal coming from deep space has been tracked by scientists and measured with a sideways trajectory to be moving faster than the speed of light.  The strange object is located somewhere within the nearby M82 galaxy and was first picked up last May as astronomers at the Jodrell Bank Center for Astrophyics near Macclesfield, UK were tracking a nearby stellar explosion thought to be unrelated.

The object appears to be transmitting radio waves that do not follow the patterns of traditional radio waves associated with known astronomical phenomena.  The galaxy M82 (also known as Messier 82) is approximately at RA 9h55m52.72s Dec 69'40'50.30" if one was to use an astronomical charting program or search "Messier 82."

The bright spot is baffling scientists, and many believe the signal indicates an object of artificial origin.  Could this be the life we have been searching the skies for so long?  Or could it possibly be an unknown natural phenomenon or even a hoax?  If it indeed turns out to be a hoax, scientists have been unable to determine how it could have been perpetrated for the last two years that it has been observed.

The most unexplainable aspect of this isn't that we have observed an object transmitting radio waves.  Of course any number of natural phenomena is capable of sending out radio signals.  The problem is, no one is sure how it could be emitting radio waves in the steady signal it is, if it was a micro-quasar and not be emitting X-rays as well.  A micro-quasar is an object that is created by an exploding star.  The problem with the microquasar theory, is twofold.  First, no known microquasar has ever sent out such a strong radio signal as what has been observed with the M82 anomaly.  Second, the lack of X-rays is clearly indicative of something else.  Of course what that is, exactly is entirely unknown to scientists.

One theory posits that it may be an extraterrestrial signal, the likes of which SETI has been scanning the skies looking for, for years.  They propose that the only way the speed of light could be transcended would be to create an artificial spacecraft capable of moving faster than light speed.  Then again, our understanding of this concept is only in its infant stages, and we don't even know if what we're observing is possible yet.

Another theory is that a black hole or an unknown object similar to a black hole is growing, gathering all the energy around it into itself.  If such an object were in any number of the unexplored types of environments within space, it is possible it could be moving like a chain in a way that looks like it may be traveling, but in reality could simply be creating new radio sources simultaneously over a vast distance just as the previous one dies out.  Whatever the source, we're sure to be hearing quite a bit from M82.  And perhaps in time we'll notice a pattern (either from artificial or natural origin) that could help us decode its source and purpose.

A Google paid-content system for publishers may be coming by year-end

Google (NSDQ: GOOG), which had hinted for nearly a year now that it was working on building some sort of paid content system for publishers, is reportedly set to launch such a system by year-end. According to a report in the Italian newspaper La Repubblica, Google is now reaching out to publishers to get them to sign up for the system, which it is calling Newspass.



Photo by Gauravonomics on Flickr. Some rights reserved

Google wouldn't confirm the La Repubblica report, saying "we don't pre-announce products and don't have anything to announce at this time." But the Newspass system - at least from the translation of the La Repubblica article - appears to have many elements of a paid content proposal Google made to the Newspaper Association of America last fall. Back then, Google said it was "uniquely positioned to help publishers create a scalable e-commerce system via our Checkout product and also enable users to find this content via search - even if it's behind a paywall."

La Repubblica says that, with Newspass, people will be able to log-in to the sites of participating news publishers using a single login. Publishers will be able to designate what type of payment they want to accept, including subscriptions and micropayments. People who find content from participating publishers in Google search will see a paywall icon next to that content and be able to purchase access directly from there using Checkout.

La Repubblica doesn't specify what countries Google is planning to launch Newspass in, although from the statement Google provided to us - which is included in full below - it sounds like Google would launch any system like this globally and not just in Italy.

Google has had some of its uggliest confrontations with the news industry in Italy, where publishers have complained loudly that they are not making enough money online and have talked about a lack of transparancy on Google's part in the way it handles both its search engine and Google News. Those complaints have in part prompted other actions by Google to improve its relationships with news publishers, including its recent disclosure of the percentage of AdSense revenues it shares with publishers.

Here's Google's full statement: "We've consistently said we are talking with news publishers to figure out ways we can work together, including whether we can help them with technology to power any subscription services they may be thinking of building. Our aim, as with all Google products, would be to reach as broad a global audience as possible.

We don't pre-announce products and don't have anything to announce at this time."

Internet Security generic THMB Don't Get Mugged Online - Protect yourself from internet crime

GIBRALTAR: Being smart is not enough to protect yourself from online scamming. There are fake websites popping up every day. Identity theft and IRS scams are abundant and phishing attacks are the new black of online fraud. We may not be able to completely stop it, but there are ways to significantly reduce the risk of becoming a victim.

Just last month the "Ikea, Gift Card Scam", took in over 70,000 victims. Only months before that, there was the "Koobface Worm" and the "IQ Quiz Ad". As a site grows in popularity, its chance of being hit by a scammer increases. You don't need to be an idiot to be caught off guard and fall victim to one of these scams. But there are things you can do to protect yourself when surfing the net.

When it comes to putting personal details and money online, information security is of paramount importance. One of the best ways to protect yourself is to stick to well-known websites. A reputable website will go to great lengths to ensure the safeguard of private information. Online gaming sites, for example, are at very high risk of internet fraud. http://www.casino.com takes information security a step further than most.

They recently set up a risk department solely to protect their customers' intellectual property and financial assets from harm caused by fraud and other criminal activities. When asked about the team, Manuel Rodriguez, Mansion's IT manager, commented, "Customer information is an important asset to our business. Mansion's main priority is to maintain its integrity." You don't have to understand all the technology used behind a website, but its best to understand which websites are well known and trustworthy.

About Casino.com: Casino.com offers traditional card and table games, as well as slots, video poker and progressive bonus jackpot games. The games are currently available in Adobe Flash or to download, and can be played for real money or for fun in Greek, Spanish, Italian, German, French, Swedish, Dutch, Danish and Russian. Introduced in 2009, Casino.com runs a reward scheme called Loyalty Lounge. Casino.com is owned by Mansion Limited which is licensed and operated in Gibraltar.

Indian exporters to gain from flexible yuan

India's exporters will benefit from China's decision to make its currency, yuan, more flexible, the Confederation of Indian Industries said in New Delhi on Tuesday.

"We expect our exporters to benefit from such a move (yuan appreciation)," CII Director General Chandrajit Banerjee has been quoted by a news agency.

According to him, as reported by the news agency, Indian exporters will be able to give competition to their Chinese rivals in the global market if yuan appreciates in sync with the strength of China's economy.

He pointed out that India's exports of textile, gems and jewellery, handicrafts and leather, which directly competes with the Chinese consignments in the western markets will gain from the decision by the Chinese government.

The CII chief said the extent to which the domestic industry benefits would depend on the degree of the rise of yuan, which soared Tuesday to its highest level against dollar since July 2005 when it was revalued.

Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee had said in Washington on Monday that China's decision to make yuan more flexible will help the world economy.

Bleeding Image

Church officials are dictating caution after an incident in Argentina leaves many people filled with awe.  An image of Christ in the small church has begun to weep what many are calling blood from a head wound from where the crown of thorns is said to have rested.  The image has been sending chills up the spines of many devout believers and giving hope to throngs of people that pray for the image will prove to be genuine and give them hope.

The church has been skeptical of new claims of holy images suddenly manifesting a form of divine revelation such as a statue or icon bleeding or otherwise displaying divine properties.  Additionally the challenges facing those who attempt to verify or debunk these cases are facing increased challenges as means of propagating hoaxes either out of genuine intentions of giving hope to people worldwide or to seek fame and profit from their fake images increases in its complexity.  The further along the craft of perpetrating hoaxes comes the more challenging it will be for those attempting to discover the truth will be in this and many other matters of a supernatural or divine nature.  As a result the church has purposefully held a sort of moratorium on divine images manifesting privately to small organizations in the hopes of not investing their time after a slew of hoaxes in 2009 and the beginning of 2010.  And it appears father Jorge Gandur is not wishing to deceive people either.  After the image was discovered he held a meeting to tell the public to be careful before declaring this image genuine.  He furthermore cautioned that there had been hoaxes elsewhere in the past and though it may be tempting to consider this incident a factual one, that it could be devastating for some who placed their faith in a miracle that never took place.

But one must admit that the image is compelling to look at.  A single gash of red flows down from the left brow past the eyes and mouth in a way many historians suggest may have been exactly like the crown of thorns.  The church has been inundated with massive amounts of visitors making the pilgrimage from all over the area and church has been subsequently held mass outside to avoid dangerous overcrowding in the building.  Streets are packed with people all wishing to catch a glimpse of the perplexing mystery.  Father Gandur has also declared himself on the side of the people saying he will not support a hoax, and that divine wisdom would in time make it apparent whether the bleeding image was a genuine miracle or not.

In 2004 a statue of the Virgin Mary was seen to be weeping oil with a perfumed smell to it.  Upon closer inspection the statue was seen to be weeping a commercially available oil that could be bought from several vendors from the area.  As further analysis was done it became apparent that the statue was likely a hoax, much to the chagrin of many believers.  There are, however, several other icons such as the one in Syracuse New York in 1949 that to this day remains largely unexplainable.

The Thirteenth Floor

Chances are if you enter a skyscraper in The United States upon looking at the elevator sequences, you will notice that the elevators jump from twelve to fourteen with no mention of how to get to the thirteenth floor.  If you leave the elevator and try to take the stairs to the thirteenth floor you will find it likewise impossible.

But if there is a 12th floor and a 14th floor there must be a thirteenth floor, right?  Many developers and engineers are told to leave out this number as investors consider it unlucky.  Part of this is superstition, but part is also pragmatism.  If a fire breaks out on the thirteenth floor the man responsible for ignoring the warnings of others often shares some of the blame for the fires even if they are told it was an accident or engineering failure.  Some superstitious people refuse to get off the elevator or even let it stop on the thirteenth floor if the elevator has thirteen or more floors.  As a result, this superstition gets in the way of progress and productivity.  The solution?  Take the 13th floor and call it something else.  Designations for the thirteenth floor range to everything from the letter M for being the 13th to designating it floor 12A or 12B.  The end result is often a feeling of relief from those suffering from triskaidekaphobia.  The mere mention of the number 13 sends those with triskaidekaphobia quickly into feeling uneasy and depending on the severity of the disease can offset outright panic.

And as a result of these numbers missing on the console of elevators, there have been a number of legends surrounding the floors as well.  One typical urban legend has it that a person new to an office building entered the elevator on his way to the 20th floor.  It was late at night and few people were still in the building, so when he saw that someone had already pressed the number thirteen on the way up he was surprised.  As he reached the thirteenth floor, however, he noticed that the doors opened upon a scene unlike anything he had ever imagined.  This is where the story varies.  Some accounts say the scene is of an abandoned building, others suggest a strange creature is seen on the thirteenth floor that inevitably notices the man and is stopped short only as the sliding doors are closed, others say a woman gets on at the thirteenth floor and then disappears halfway up the elevator ride after saying nothing.  When the man approaches someone else about the incident, the man says, “This building doesn’t have a thirteenth floor.  It goes from 12 to 14.”  The man goes back later to the elevator to confirm that the panel had been somehow changed since the incident.  This very story was even channeled in the 1999 film “The Thirteenth Floor,” though the theme changed significantly.

And what of the buildings that do have a thirteenth floor?  Whether due to bad luck or a self fulfilling prophecy that it is unlucky, the floors do have a reputation as being incredibly unlucky.  Suicides, fires, and other accidents are often taken extra note of when they occur on the thirteenth floor.