World’s longest- living vertebrate

What’s hot and what’s not in the world of science and technology.

Old shark

RESEARCHERS have discovered Earth’s longest- living vertebrate ( animals with backbones): Greenland sharks that grow older than 400 years old.

The team at the University of Copenhagen, Denmark, also found that these sharks grow one centimetre per year, and start to mate when they’re about 150 years old.

Most of the living sharks now are in their “teenage” years, and will be able to reproduce in another 100 years, they say.

See: http://bit.ly/2aYTEOL

Lighting speed

Scientists at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Saudi Arabia, have developed a new light bulb that can transfer two gigabytes ( GB) of data – the size of a movie – per second.

The device is based on li- fi: a technology that transfers data by flickering LED lights at extreme speeds.

To further boost the speed of existing li- fi speeds, which are already more than 100 times faster than that of wi- fi, the team combined the LED light with bulbs made of nanocrystals in place of phosphorus.

Once installed in our homes or offices, these bulbs could light up the area as well as connect to our computers, phones, smart TV and other devices.

See: http://bit.ly/2bgce1L

Powerful acoustics

Using acoustics, scientists have levitated a 50 millimetres polystyrene ball – the largest object to be lifted by sound alone yet.

The team at University of Edinburgh, UK, achieved this feat by placing three ultrasonic transducers in a “tripod” arrangement.

The transducers, each emitting 25 kilo-Hertz ( a frequency higher than human hearing), levitated the ball by 7 millimetres.

The team says this method can be used to lift larger objects of various sizes and at different positions, and would be useful when lifting hot materials or liquids in space.

See: http://bit.ly/2bne7O9

New sight

Researchers at the University of Melbourne, Australia, have successfully grown and implanted a layer of vision cells to restore sight.

The layer, known as the cornea, covers the front of our eyes and allows us to focus, but clouds from ageing and injuries.

In the study, the scientists grew artificial corneal cells on a hydrogen film thinner than a human hair, and implanted them into the eyes of a sheep.

This layer then broke down and disappeared within two months, allowing new cor- neal cells to grow in the area.

See: http://bit.ly/2bgq97B

Hot tunes

Zebra finches sing to their eggs to warn them of hot weather, research from Deakin University, Australia, shows.

These birds chirped whenever temperature rises above 26° C, and the resulting chicks grew more slowly than those that did not hear the calls.

The smaller sizes are an advantage as the chicks can cool down more easily than larger ones, the team says.

“I would say ( the singing) translates to ‘ it’s hot, babies, get prepared!’, says lead researcher Mylene Mariette. “It is what they are effectively telling their embryos.”

See: http://bit.ly/2bBnaYT