Mussels have a tendency to generate byssus, or lots of sticky threads, which allow the bivalve molluscs to stick to wet rocks even when they are being pounded by water. These sticky threads are produced by squeezing a quick setting liquid protein within a groove of the muscly foot.

The mussel adhesive protein or MAPs form weak bonds with the wet rocks. A set of researchers are working on developing synthetic MAPs which may be used as surgical glues. This would require them to work within the human body.

If they are able to successfully develop the synthetic MAPs they may be used a surgical glue in operations such as knee joints and hip replacements. They would have to be hard wearing and self healing in order to survive within the body. Plus they would need to be non toxic and not have any side effects on the body.

In addition the synthetic MAPs may find a number of alternative uses. These could include fixing anti-fouling chemicals to the bottom of boats in order to prevent barnacles and mussels from sticking to them. That would be really ironic. This is a science project which would have a number of potential uses should the results be favorable.

The Big Ben is an iconic part of the London City. However the clock tower is actually known as the Elizabeth tower and the Great Clock is not really what is called Big Ben. The nickname actually refers to the huge bell within the tower which weighs 13.76 tonnes.

The clock tower is to undergo renovations. Big Ben was cast on 10th April 1858 and the Great Clock started working on 31st May 1859. Given the age of the building and the wear and tear that both have endured despite regular maintenance, the planned renovations are a good idea.

However this would require that the clock be out of action for two years and the workers will also require the bells to not chime while they are within the tower. Considering that the bell chimes at 118 decibels, it would be enough to give the works severe ear damage as per previous scientific studies.

To deactivate the bell the weights that run the mechanism will be lowered to the bottom of the tower and secured. This process takes nearly six to seven hours, making it impractical to be done everyday at the end of the worker’s shift. That’s why the Big Ben is going to be silent for about the next four years.

Gravity is the force that holds two objects with mass together. In terms of the planet Earth, we tend to refer to the gravitational force as the pull that keeps us all rooted to the planet. The theory of gravity was initially proposed by Sir Issac Newton, after an apple famously fell on his head while he was napping under it.

Later on Albert Einstein’s theory of general relativity was able to explain why things fall. And then proposed modifications to the theory made scientists suggest that the force of gravity may vary with time. This scientific theory was proposed by British physicist Paul Dirac.

Does that mean that gravity is reducing over time? What would that imply for us, the denizens of Earth? Will the gravitational pull become so weak that we would float about like cartoons float on the moon?

What about the moon? Would it eventually not be influenced by the gravity of the earth and move away from the planet for good? Thankfully, no. That is not going to happen. The gravity of the earth is more of less a constant force that will remain in effect as long as the mass of the earth does not change.

The human body has the amazing ability to regenerate it’s own cells. This means that sick cells are removed as they die off from the body and healthy cells replace them. Unfortunately this is not true for all forms of nerve repairs.

Nerves are the cells which allows the brain to collect information about what is happening to the other body organs in order to direct them to work well. The nerves are connected to muscles all along the body emanating from the spinal cord. They are surrounded by a membrane known as the myelin sheath.

The myelin sheath also helps to increase the speed of the nerve impulses. The thickness of the myelin sheath also determines if the damaged nerve will be able to repair itself. As long as the membrane surrounding the nerve bunch is intact the nerves will be able to regrow to their original target.

The nerves have the ability to grow at about 2 cm per month, so depending on the extent of nerve damage it could take months before the nerve is fully functional again. Also scientific studies have shown that  if the muscle cells have been disconnected for too long from the nerve cells, the new connection will not be accepted.

When we think of birds it’s often with them taking flight in a flock. We envy them the freedom to take to the skies whenever they want to. However not all birds can fly. There are a number of flightless birds such as the emu, ostrich, rhea, kiwi, cassowary and the penguin, to name a few.

Why can’t these birds fly? The first problem is the wing span. A herring gull has a wing span of about 1.4 m where as the fairy penguin has a wing span of merely 32 cm. So even though the two birds weight nearly the same, it is impossible for the fairy penguin to support flight on it’s short wings.

The second problem in the larger birds like the ostrich is weight. They have a decent enough wing span, but the corresponding weight of the bird is too much for the wings to support. Also their bones are filled with heavy bone marrow. Most birds which are blessed with the ability to fly don’t have bone marrow, their bones are filled with air.

Also the flightless birds have other adaptations which help them survive better in their chosen home environment. For instance any science project would agree that it is more helpful for the penguin to be able to swim than to be able to fly in order to procure food.

Have you ever flown by a passenger airline aircraft to another city? Did you notice the color of the plane when you did? Was the plane white? The likelihood of the color being white is nearly 95%. Do you wonder why that is so?

The reason has to do with our sun. Yes, the solar radiation which warms our planet is the main reason why most commercial airlines tend to paint their air-crafts white. The white paint reflects back most of the solar radiation that it receives. This makes it easier to keep the plane cool when loading and unloading passengers and their luggage at the airport.

Considering how much energy is expended to keep the inside temperature of the air-craft in a hospitable range, the airlines are willing to take any advantage that they can get. The white color also helps reflect off ultraviolet radiation when the aircraft is at a high altitude during a flight.

The ultra violet rays can be very damaging to aircraft parts made out of composite materials as per scientific observation. Thus the white paint is not just to make the aircraft look good, but also to protect it from radiation which could cause the passengers traveling on the plane an issue.

Hypersonic Speed refers to speeds of Mach 5 and above. Mach speed refers to the speed of sound. Thus when you talk about a craft travelling at hypersonic speed, it’s likely to be travelling at least five times the speed of sound. Needless to say the craft would have to be able to withstand a great deal of pressure.

Finding a material that would survive regular hypersonic speed travel is the first challenge that scientists face. So far carbon nano tubes have been used in planes for their strength and ability to withstand heat. They have proved stronger than steel, however scientists at the Binghamton University say that boron nitride nano tubes are the construction material of the future.

Boron nitride nano tubes or BNNTs are currently being manufactured solely by NASA. They are lightweight and able to withstand great pressure. While carbon nano tubes stay stable at temperatures up to 400 degrees Celsius, BNNTs stay stable till 900 degrees Celsius.

Unfortunately the production of BNNTs costs $1,000 per gram. This makes it a very expensive proposition for using in construction of a aircraft. While science experiments with the material will continue to see if hypersonic speeds can be reached in a craft made out of this material, it’s prohibitive price will not translate easily to commercial application. We may still be waiting a while to experience commercial hypersonic speed travel.

A good body massage can help the blood circulation going, relieve pain and fill you up with energy to face the day. For those suffering from pain in the back or in the knee joints, gentle massage can be a better way to deal with the pain than consuming pain killers every day. Considering all the benefits of a good massage, a startup in Singapore has come out with a robot masseur.

Known as EMMA, which is short for Expert Manipulative Massage Automation, the robot acts like the human palm and thumb while giving a massage. The robotic masseur uses advance sensors to measure tendon and muscle stiffness. Then it calculates the best possible massage technique which would benefit the patient. The Artificial Intelligence is cloud based and has the ability to track the patient’s progress over multiple treatments.

The most remarkable achievement of this science project is that EMMA has now been pressed into public service at the Traditional Chinese Medicine Clinic in Singapore. This is a first for any robot masseur. It’s human counterparts include a physician and a massage therapist. If the robotic massage expert gains popularity it will help with low cost health care options. While it’s early days yet, one doesn’t know what will happen in the future.

The digital world is at our finger tips thanks to the smartphone. This allows us access to a host of information at anytime. However It is also extremely addictive. We are now “plugged in” to some device or the other almost all the time. The extent to which this is true becomes more obvious when we consider the denim jacket a popular fashion brand is releasing this season.

The Levi Strauss denim company has collaborated with Google to offer touch controls woven into the very fabric of the denim jacket. Made of a special Jacquard fabric, the jacket can sync with smartphones wirelessly. It allows the user access to a limited set of commands using a swipe or tap action. Cyclists wearing the jacket can turn music on or off, get directions and read text messages with a simple hand gesture.

Without looking away from the road, the cyclist can access basic functions on the smartphone. This is one science project that has come up with a user product which is likely to be very popular with those on the go, wanting to stay connected. Needless to say the denim jacket expects to sell very well as far as Levi Strauss is concerned.

Devising safe passwords which can not be hacked is a robust industry. There have been all kinds of encryption devices that have come into play to protect the password of a person. Biometrics have been some of the more promising passwords. The retina scan, the fingerprint and now apparently the shape of your heart.

At the University of Buffalo researchers have come up with a low level Doppler radar that measures your heart, which unlocks your computer operating system. What’s more the radar will continue to monitor your heart so that no one else can step in and run your computer once the system has been unlocked.

Assistant Professor Wenyao Xu assures users that the strength of the radar is less than the WiFi waves and does not pose a health risk to the user. The reader is about five milliwatts which is less than 1% of the radiation that a user of a smartphone is exposed to. So constant use is not going to affect the individual’s health.

The science project is one that will ensure privacy for a person’s computer. Considering that no one but the owner is able to use the system, this could be one of the most unique ways of ensuring security for personal documents.