2012 in Science - Events, Discoveries and Inventions - October

October

• 1 October – Sea cucumbers and sea urchins are able to change the elasticity of collagen within their bodies, and could hold the key to maintaining a youthful appearance, according to scientists at Queen Mary, University of London. (Queen Mary University) (PLoS One) (Gen. Comp. Endocrinol.)
• 2 October – Under a high-emissions climate change scenario, global sea levels could rise nearly 7 metres (23 ft) by the year 3000, according to new research. (Science Daily) (Environ. Res. Lett.)
• 3 October
  • In preparation for a land speed record attempt, the British Bloodhound SSC team conducts a successful hybrid rocket test in Newquay. The rocket will operate in tandem with a Eurofighter Typhoon jet engine to propel the Bloodhound vehicle at 1,000 miles (1,600 km) per hour during its record attempt in 2014. (BBC)
  • Scientists report that the venomous black mamba produces a highly effective natural painkiller. (Los Angeles Times) (Nature)
  • A startup company demonstrates a cheap and efficient method of printing complex electronics onto flexible substrates. (TechEye)
• 4 October
  • A new genetic test can fully sequence the genome of a newborn baby in just 50 hours, a major improvement over the usual month-long sequencing process. The test can screen for 3,500 genetic diseases, allowing critically ill infants to be diagnosed and treated much more effectively. (TIME) (Sci. Transl. Med.)
  • Nissan unveils the NSC-2015, a prototype electric driverless car that can park itself, understand road markings and quickly report attempted thefts. A commercial version is planned for 2015. (BBC)
• 5 October
  • DARPA successfully tests technology which enables drones to conduct aerial refueling autonomously. (BBC) (DARPA)
  • Tokyo Institute of Technology researchers make a breakthrough in teaching a computer to understand human brain function. The scientists used fMRI datasets to train a computer to predict the semantic category of an image originally viewed by five different people. (ResearchSEA) (Front. Neuroinform.)
• 7 October – Expanding production of palm oil – a common ingredient in processed foods, soaps and personal care products – is driving rainforest destruction and massive carbon dioxide emissions, according to a new study led by researchers at Stanford and Yale universities. (EurekAlert) (Nat. Clim. Change)
• 8 October
  • SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft launches on its first operational resupply mission to the International Space Station, following a successful demonstration mission in May 2012. (BBC) (Space.com) (Space Fellowship)
  • A variant in a gene involved with inflammation and the immune response is linked with a decreased risk of lung cancer, according to researchers at the National Cancer Institute in Rockville, Maryland. (EurekAlert) (Cancer)
  • Researchers have found what they claim is the first fossil yet discovered of an ancient spider attacking prey caught in its web. The amber fossil dates back between 97 million and 110 million years. (OSU)
  • A new Alzheimer's drug, Solanezumab, slows the pace of memory loss in sufferers by 34%, according to the results of two trials. (Daily Telegraph)
  • The 2012 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine is awarded jointly to John B. Gurdon and Shinya Yamanaka, for the discovery that mature cells can be reprogrammed to become pluripotent stem cells. (Nobel Prize)

• 9 October
  • Microsoft tests a sensor bracelet that can quickly recognise a wide variety of human hand gestures. The invention could be used as a general-purpose remote control for electronics, allowing devices to be activated and controlled with simple hand movements. (BBC)
  • The 2012 Nobel Prize in Physics is awarded jointly to Serge Haroche and David J. Wineland "for ground-breaking experimental methods that enable measuring and manipulation of individual quantum systems". Their work may eventually help make quantum computing possible. (New York Times) (Nobel Prize)
• 10 October
  • Arizona State University researchers develop a new software system capable of estimating greenhouse gas emissions across entire urban landscapes, all the way down to roads and individual buildings. Previously, scientists quantified carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions at a much broader level. (Arizona State University)
  • SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft docks with the International Space Station, becoming the first commercially contracted re-supply vehicle to do so. (Huffington Post)
  • The 2012 Nobel Prize in Chemistry is awarded jointly to Robert J. Lefkowitz and Brian Kobilka for their work on G-protein-coupled receptors. (Nobel Prize)
  • The United States Navy begins funding the development of a versatile robot capable of adapting everyday materials to rescue trapped humans. (BBC)
• 11 October
  • In the largest-ever genetic study of cholesterol and other blood lipids, an international consortium has identified 21 new gene variants associated with risks of heart disease and metabolic disorders. The findings expand the list of potential targets for drugs and other treatments for lipid-related cardiovascular disease, a leading global cause of death and disability. (Science Daily) (Am. J. Human Gen.)
  • New research led by Yale University scientists suggests that a rocky planet twice Earth's size orbiting a nearby star is composed largely of diamond. (Science Daily) (ArXiv)
• 12 October – Europe launches the third and fourth of its Galileo navigation satellites, making it possible for the Galileo system to be fully tested prior to the start of operations in 2015. The system is planned to become fully operational, with 27 active satellites, by 2020. (BBC)
• 14 October
  • Austrian skydiver Felix Baumgartner performs the highest skydive yet attempted, jumping from a pressurized capsule 24 miles (39 km) above Roswell, New Mexico. Baumgartner became the first human to break the sound barrier without an aircraft during his jump. (BBC) (Daily Telegraph)
  • Scientists claim that water molecules found in lunar soil could be produced by the solar wind reacting with the Moon's surface. (Daily Telegraph) (Nat. Geosci.)

• 15 October
  • Astronomers have confirmed the existence of a Neptune-like exoplanet that has four suns, making it the first quadruple star system ever discovered. (io9) (ArXiv)
  • September 2012 was tied as the warmest September ever recorded globally, according to data from the National Climatic Data Center. (NOAA)
  • New research clearly shows that there is an increasing tendency for cyclones to form when the climate is warmer, as it has been in recent years. (EurekAlert) (PNAS)
  • Researchers from North Carolina State University demonstrate new techniques for stretching carbon nanotubes to create carbon composites that can be used as stronger, lighter materials in a wide variety of applications. (NC State University) (Mater. Res. Lett.)
  • NASA demonstrates its X1 powered exoskeleton, a robotic assistance suit based on its Robonaut humanoid robot. The X1 exoskeleton is designed to assist paraplegics with walking, and can also be set to provide walking exercise for able-bodied astronauts. (CNET)
• 17 October
  • A new exoplanet is discovered orbiting Earth's closest stellar neighbour, Alpha Centauri. The new planet is believed to be too hot to sustain life, but there is a high probability that the system contains other planetary bodies, including potentially Earthlike ones. (Daily Mail) (Nature)
  • Medical scientists report, on the basis of a decade-long double-blind study involving nearly 15,000 older male physicians, that subjects taking a daily multivitamin were associated with 8 percent fewer cancers compared to subjects taking a placebo. (New York Times) (JAMA)
  • A drug made from a plant known as “thunder god vine,” or lei gong teng, that has long been used in traditional Chinese medicine, wipes out pancreatic tumors in mice, and may soon be tested in humans. (Bloomberg) (Sci. Transl. Med.)
  • 83% of Madagascar’s palms are threatened with extinction, putting the livelihoods of local people at risk, according to the latest update of the Red List of Threatened Species released today by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). (IUCN)
• 18 October
  • A kidney-like organ grown from scratch in a laboratory has been shown to work in animals – an achievement that could lead to the production of spare kidneys for patients from their own stem cells. (New Scientist) (J. Am. Soc. Nephrol.)
  • Extinctions during the early Triassic period left Earth a virtual wasteland due to extreme heat, a new study suggests. (National Geographic) (Science)
  • Using a new imaging technique, based on the detection of calcium ions in neurons, neuroscientists have developed a way to monitor how brain cells coordinate with each other to control specific behaviors. (MIT) (Neuron)
  • For the first time, an assembly of nanomachines has been synthesised that is capable of producing a coordinated contraction, similar to the movements of biological muscle fibres. (ScienceDaily) Angew. Chem.
• 19 October – The European Space Agency announces that it will launch a new satellite in 2017 to study super-Earths and other large exoplanets orbiting nearby stars. The CHaracterising ExOPlanets Satellite (CHEOPS) will orbit the Earth at an altitude of about 500 miles (800 km). (Space.com)

• 22 October
  • Engineers develop an ultra-high-density form of magnetic tape, using barium ferrite particles to store up to 100 terabytes of data in a single tape cartridge. The invention is intended to store the huge volumes of astronomical data that the Square Kilometre Array will generate upon its inception in 2024. (Gizmodo)
  • British doctors use the remote-controlled Da Vinci Surgical System to perform the UK's first robotic open-heart surgery. (BBC)
• 24 October
  • As much as 44 billion tons of nitrogen and 850 billion tons of carbon stored in Arctic permafrost could be released over the next century, according to a new study led by the U.S. Geological Survey. This is roughly the amount of carbon already stored in the atmosphere today. (USGS) (Geophys. Res. Lett.)
  • Binge drinking – drinking less during the week and more on the weekends – significantly reduces the structural integrity of the adult brain, according to a new study. (Science Daily) (Neuroscience)
  • A new gene therapy method to prevent the inheritance of certain genetic diseases has been successfully demonstrated in human cells. It is believed that this research, along with other efforts, will pave the way for future clinical trials in human subjects. (Science Daily) (Nature)
  • The world's first commercial vertical farm opens in Singapore. The farm maximizes its growing space by using 120 high-rise cultivation towers, and can produce half a ton of vegetables a day. (Channel News Asia)
• 25 October – Microsoft launches Windows 8, the most fundamental update to its Windows operating system in 17 years. (The Guardian)
• 26 October
  • The oldest Mayan tomb yet discovered is found in Guatemala. The ancient tomb is believed to date back to between 400 BC and 700 BC. (BBC)
  • Scientists have recovered the sounds of music and laughter from the oldest playable American recording, dating back to 1878. (The Atlantic)
• 27 October – Women who give up smoking by the age of 30 will almost completely evade the risks of dying young from tobacco-related diseases, according to a study of more than a million women. (BBC)
• 28 October
  • The unmanned SpaceX Dragon spacecraft successfully completes its first fully operational resupply mission to the International Space Station (ISS), landing intact in the Pacific Ocean after over two weeks docked with the ISS. (BBC)
  • British scientists invent a simple liquid-based test that can accurately diagnose diseases such as cancer or HIV by detecting small concentrations of biomarkers such as anomalous proteins. (BBC) (Nat. Nanotechnol.)
  • IBM researchers demonstrate the initial steps toward commercial fabrication of carbon nanotubes as a successor to silicon-based electronics. (IBM) (Nat. Nanotechnol.)
• 30 October
  • Britain's first 4G mobile network is launched, offering high-speed mobile data services in 11 major cities. (The Guardian)
  • NASA scientists report that the Curiosity Mars rover has performed the first X-ray diffraction analysis of Martian soil at the "Rocknest" site. The results from the rover's CheMin analyzer revealed the presence of several minerals, including feldspar, pyroxenes and olivine, and suggested that the Martian soil in the sample was similar to the "weathered basaltic soils" of Hawaiian volcanoes. (NASA)
  • IBM's Watson supercomputer is to help train doctors at a medical school in Cleveland, Ohio. (IBM) (BBC)
  • Amonix, a leading designer and manufacturer of concentrator photovoltaic (CPV) solar power, has achieved a milestone in the industry by successfully converting more than a third of sunlight into electricity. Its figure of 33.5% efficiency broke the previous record of 30.3%. (Amonix)
  • Pollen counts in the US will be more than double today's level by 2040, according to a new study. (NewsWise)
• 31 October – Scientists in the Netherlands have demonstrated a form of self-healing concrete that uses limestone-producing bacteria. (BBC) (TU Delft)