A carbon nanotube-coated smart yarn that conducts electricity could be woven into soft fabrics that detect blood and monitor health, engineers at the University of Michigan have demonstrated. Currently, smart textiles are made primarily of metallic or optical fibers, which are fragile and uncomfortable; metal fibers also corrode. The new material is more sensitive and selective, as well as more simple and durable than other electronic textiles. Clothing that can detect blood could be useful in high-risk professions.

To make these e-textiles, the researchers dipped 1.5-millimeter thick cotton yarn into a solution of carbon nanotubes in water, and then into a solution of a special sticky polymer in ethanol. After being dipped just a few times into both solutions and dried, the yarn was able to conduct enough power from a battery to illuminate a light-emitting diode device. The yarn turned black, due to the carbon, but it remained pliable and soft. The researchers added the antibody anti-albumin to the carbon nanotube solution since the antibody reacts with albumin, a protein found in blood.

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#5: Researchers at Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft in Germany are working on a thermoelectric generator that converts the heat from car exhaust fumes into electricity. The thermoelectric module feeds the energy into the car’s electronic systems, reducing fuel consumption and carbon dioxide from vehicles. Click here.

#4: A silicon surface treated with a new reflective coating developed by researchers at Rensselaer absorbs 96.21 percent of sunlight. The nanoengineered coating also allows those panels to absorb the entire spectrum of sunlight from any angle, regardless of the sun’s position in the sky. Click here.

#3: Ohio State University researchers invented a new material that will make cars even more efficient by converting heat wasted through engine exhaust into electricity. The material, thallium-doped lead telluride, is most effective between 450 and 950 degrees F. Click here.

#2:NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope found an answer to a long-standing puzzle by resolving giant but delicate filaments shaped by a strong magnetic field around the active galaxy NGC 1275. The amount of gas contained in a typical thread is around one million times the mass of our own Sun. Click here.

And the Number 1 story of 2008: University of Maryland researchers created a process to convert large volumes of plant products, from leftover brewer’s mash to paper trash, into ethanol and other biofuel alternatives to gasoline. Scientists estimate the technology could potentially produce 75 billion gallons of carbon-neutral ethanol annually. Click here.

Each month, the editors of NASA Tech Briefs choose a Product of the Month – a new product with exceptional technical merit and practical value for the engineering community. Now is your chance to vote for the one product among those 12 Products of the Month that you feel was the most significant new product in 2008. The product receiving the most votes will be named NASA Tech Briefs’ Readers’ Choice Product of the Year. To cast your vote, visit www.techbriefs.com/poy and fill out your ballot by January 23, 2009.

A Stanford University-led research team has developed a prototype blood scanner that can find cancer markers in the bloodstream in early stages of the disease, potentially allowing for earlier treatment and dramatically improved chances of survival. Based on MagArray biodetection chips, the device uses magnetic nanotechnology to spot the cancer proteins. It can find cancer-associated proteins in a blood serum sample in less than an hour, and with much greater sensitivity than existing commercial devices.

The scanner’s sensors capture antibodies by grabbing specific cancer-related proteins as they float by and hold onto them. Then, a second batch of antibodies is added to the mix. They latch onto magnetic nanoparticles as well as the cancer biomarkers that are being held captive by the sensors. Thus, when the MagArray sensors detect the magnetic field of nanoparticles, they’ve found cancer markers as well.

“This is essentially a proof-of-concept study showing that now we have a chip and a reader that can find multiple biomarkers in a sample at a concentration much lower than the standard that is commercially available,” said Shan Wang, a Stanford professor of materials science and of electrical engineering. Wang is optimistic that the technology will someday save lives by detecting cancer early or by helping doctors select more effective therapy. “This could be especially helpful for lung cancer, ovarian cancer, and pancreatic cancer, because those cancers are hidden in the body.”

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As the year comes to a close, we highlight the ten INSIDER stories that have generated the highest number of click-throughs. These are the ten stories in which INSIDERs were most interested in 2008. Today’s INSIDER highlights numbers 10 through 6. Thursday’s INSIDER will highlight the top five stories of 2008.

#10 University of Virginia scientists have researched the use of magnetic therapy for treating multiple conditions. After simulating tissue injuries on the hind paws of anesthetized rats, the scientists found that applying magnets can significantly reduce swelling if applied immediately after tissue trauma.
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#9 Carnegie Mellon University researchers have found that listening to a cell phone while driving causes significant distraction, leading some drivers to commit some of same types of driving errors that occur under the influence of alcohol. Click here.

#8 A supercomputer-powered ‘virtual earthquake’ program developed at San Diego State University calculates realistic three-dimensional simulations that describe the possible impacts of megathrust quakes on the Pacific Northwest region. Click here.

#7 Ohio State University chemists created a material that overcomes two of the major obstacles to solar power: it absorbs all the energy contained in sunlight, and generates electrons in a way that makes them easier to capture. The researchers combined electrically conductive plastic with metals, including molybdenum and titanium, to create the hybrid material. Click here.

#6 A research team at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) is using asphalt to develop a solar collector that could turn roads and parking lots into ubiquitous – and inexpensive – sources of electricity and hot water. Click here.