Using a very simple technique involving an oculometer and a computer screen, a researcher has developed a device that makes it possible to draw and write using eye movements. The work, published in the July issue of Current Biology, could help improve the lives of patients suffering from paralysis of the limbs. -------------------------------------------------- 29 Zirconium acetate forces the crystals to grow in a spiral form. Record duration for an 80-tesla magnetic field pulse 10.2 milliseconds is the record duration obtained by a Toulouse laboratory for a magnetic field pulse exceeding 70 teslas. This was achieved by using a new electromagnet generating fields of more than 80 teslas without being destroyed by the pulse. The facility will now be used to probe the fundamental properties of matter, while its unrivalled performance should make it possible to obtain highly accurate physical measurements. The European Physical Journal - Applied Physics October 2012 online A laboratory in Lyon has won the Gold Medal for the ‘Photo Annotation’ task at the international ImageCLEF 2012 challenge. The task consisted in automatically annotating a large number of images using semantic concepts such as “day”, “night”, “landscape“, “baby”, etc. -------------------------------------------------- Towards new antifreeze compounds After discovering the surprising antifreeze properties of zirconium acetate, researchers have now described the mechanism whereby this compound controls ice crystal growth. Zirconium acetate, which is far simpler than conventional antifreeze compounds, binds to the surface of the ice through hydrogen bonding, with a periodicity corresponding to that of the ice crystal lattice. This finding could lead to the production of novel synthetic antifreeze compounds. Langmuir August 2012 online A revolutionary sound spatialization system ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- An ambitious sound spatialization system has been inaugurated at the variable acoustics hall of IRCAM (Institute for Research and Coordination in Acoustics and Music). The facility comprises a ring of 264 speakers evenly distributed around the stage and audience for WFS (Wave Field Synthesis) rendering and a dome with 75 speakers for three-dimensional diffusion in ambisonic mode. Far exceeding the capabilities of conventional spatialization systems, the facility is able to reconstruct the physical properties of the acoustic field. Listeners can therefore move around while maintaining a consistent perception of the location of the various sound sources. The facility will be dedicated to musical research and acoustic field analysis. Its potential will be illustrated by specially-designed creations, as well as by adaptations of older works by composers such as Natasha Barrett, Jacob Druckman, Rama Gottfried and Pierre Jodlowski. 2012 A year at CNRS
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