Scientists have perfected the art of growing meat in the laboratory using stem cells and believe they will be able to replicate a real burger. If all goes to plan, the first ever “test-tube hamburger” will be sold in October this year.

The gloabl demand for meat is expected to double in the next 40 years, so the mass production of  beef, pork, chicken and lamb in test tubes may prove to be the ideal solution, as well as being able to dramatically reduce the environmental damage of farming.

Only one person has tried the lab-grown meat so far: a Russian journalist who snatched a sample of pork during a visit to the lab Maastricht University where it was being grown. He declared himself unimpressed.

Full story: Daily Telegraph http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/9091628/Test-tube-hamburgers-to-be-served-this-year.html

Anyone familiar with Alton Towers or Thorpe Park will know that roller coasters are awesome. But now, BRC Imagination Arts, a Californian design firm, has proposed a roller coaster sure to eclipse any theme park experience.

It is a ride which will accelerate passengers at such magnitude that they will become “weightless” for a whole eight seconds. BRC drew inspiration from NASA’s “Vomit Comet”, the aeroplane which is used to acclimatise astronauts to the sensation of being in outer space.

Their roller coaster will achieve the same effect by accelerating up to top speed, over 100 mph, on a vertical track, and then suddenly starting to decelerate. This will throw passengers out of their seats, and then the ride will adjust its speed so that it matches the velocity of the passengers. Upon reaching the peak of the track and descending, the roller coaster will continue to match the speed of its falling passengers, prolonging the feeling of weighlessness for several seconds.

It is perhaps the closest thing you can come to experiencing being in outer space without needing to be an astronaut. 

Bob Rogers, BRC’s founder and chief creative officer, says the zero-gravity ride would cost $50 million or more, mainly due to the complexity of the precision-response propulsion system. It is still only a concept at this stage, but, if the company could acquire the necessary funds, Rogers claims that this will become a reality by the end of 2013.

Full story: POPSCI http://www.popsci.com/cars/article/2012-01/zero-gravity-roller-coaster

However, he carried on as normal and didn’t notice anything was wrong until the next day, when he began feeling nauseous. It turns out the 3.25 inch nail had penetrated his skull and embedded itself in his brain.  

It took surgeons two hours to remove the nail. Mr. Autullo took the opportunity to post his x-ray photograph to Facebook (pictured above) while in the ambulance. 

The reason why anyone can take a nail to the brain and suspect nothing is because the brain does not contain any pain-sensitive nerves, which means the brain is an organ that feels no pain. … But don’t try this at home to prove it to yourself. 

Full story: BBC News http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-16663332

Astronomers seeking to classify the exact colour of the Milky Way have reached a conclusion. Announced at the recent American Astronomical Society meeting, the answer is … white.

The scientists wanted to establish the precise colour that the Milky Way looks from the outside – which is tricky, seeing as we are stuck inside it. But, using data from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey, comprising information from about a million galaxies, the conclusion is white. Specifically, our galaxy is the colour of spring snow at an hour after sunrise or before sunset.

Determining our galxy’s colour may help us interpret its past and forecast its future evolution. “For astronomers, one of the most important parameters is actually the colour of the galaxy,” Jeffrey Newman of the University of Pittsburgh told the BBC. 

Full story: BBC News http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-16523528

Some people get a pet kitten or puppy for Christmas. Three people in Denmark have got a polar bear this year. Yes, a polar bear.

A polar bear cub born at a wildlife park in Denmark has been adopted by humans after its mother did not produce enough milk. The cub has been named Siku and will receive round-the-clock care and attention by three people who have chosen to look after him.  

It has warmed the hearts of thousands. Not only is it a sweet piece of news, but the YouTube video of  Siku yawning with his tongue out, streching, and getting stroked on the kitchen table is one of the most-viewed (and cutest) things on the internet right now. 

Full story (and video): http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-16295287

A recent survey has shown that the average Briton is drunk in over three-quarters of the photos on their Facebook profile. The average British Facebooker admits that they are under the influence of alcohol in 76% of photographs in which they are “tagged” on the social networking site. The survey also revealed that 93% of users have removed tags from photographs because they are “too embarassing”, with 8% feeling that such photos could get them into “serious trouble” at work.   

This may give the British population a reputation of being a nation of binge-drinkers, but it is worth considering that a majority of photos on Facebook are at social events or nights out – and alcohol will invariably be served at such events.

This is all part of a project called Cambridge Digital Library, which will make public the works of great scientists. Figures such as Darwin and Rutherford shall also have their manuscripts put online in due course for the world to see. 

Writing on the Digital Library’s webpage, Cambridge University Librarian Anne Jarvis says: “Cambridge University Library contains evidence of some of the greatest ideas and discoveries over two millennia. We want to make our collections accessible to anyone, anywhere in the world with an internet connection and a thirst for knowledge.”

Full story: Guardian http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2011/dec/12/isaac-newton-principia-mathematica 

Digital Library official page: http://cudl.lib.cam.ac.uk/

The robots will start work with a one-month trial, commencing in March. It will consist of three prototypes beginning their duties in a prison in the city of Pohang. The project will cost around 1bn Won (£554,000) in total.

The robots will work mainly in night-time shifts. They are able to alert human guards if they find any problems: they contain technology that is sophisticated enough to detect violence and even notice suicide attempts. They are also able to help prisoners connect with officers, as the robots have cameras mounted on their torsos which allow “remote conversation”.  

Should the trial be a success, the future of prison security may well end up being controlled by robots.

Full story: POPSCI http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2011-11/robotic-guards-will-soon-patrol-south-korean-prison

The office of National Statistics has revealed that more than 8.4 million adults in Britain (16.8% of the adult population) have never used the internet.

This is the surprising finding of official figures published this month, which also revealed a sharp increase in the number of non-internet users in the UK.

These numbers say more about a lack of accessibility, rather than a lack of technology, in Britain. For instance, 4.25 million of the 8.4 million non-internet users have a disability (36.3% of the disabled population), while 72.4% of people over 75 years of age have never ventured online.

“A growing gap exists between those who are online and those who are not, as the internet becomes more of an essential utility for consumers … The Government must provide even more targeted support to those who lose out the most,” said Jonathan Stearn of Consumer Focus.

The Government aims to have everyone in the UK using the internet by 2015.

Full Story: Telegraph http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/internet/8893705/More-than-8.4m-Britons-have-never-used-web.html

An asteroid the size of an aircraft carrier whistled past planet Earth at 30,000 miles per hour yesterday.

As you can probably tell, judging by the lack of an apocalypse on Tuesday, and the fact you are still here, the giant lump of cosmic rock did not hit our planet. However, it is the closest an asteroid has passed by planet Earth in over 200 years.

NASA had been tracking the asteroid – named 2005 YU55 – and confirmed that it had come to within 201,700 miles of our planet. That may sound somewhat distant from us – but that is well over four hundred times closer than the distance to the sun.

The next visit by a large asteroid will occur in just under 20 years: we have a regular visitor to our planetary neighbourhood named the Apophis asteroid. It has been calculated to have a near miss with Earth in the year 2029, and again in 2036.

NASA can give incredibly precise forecasts of these things. On 13 April 2029, Apophis will pass by Earth and come to within just 18,300 miles of our planet. Put a note in your diary and remember to look up at the sky.

Full story: BBC News http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-15572634