PHYSICAL REVIEW FOCUS 1 December 2006 http://focus.aps.org/
David Ehrenstein, American Physical Society
Introductions to the Focus stories of the past week;
Visit http://focus.aps.org for the complete stories.
HIDDEN TWISTS AND TURNS
Many protein molecules, such as those that process DNA, execute
twisting motions, but researchers have only managed to measure the
torques in a few cases. Often the random thermal jiggling of water
molecules makes rotation hard to detect. A new analysis technique
reported in the 24 November Physical Review Letters cuts through
this noisy mess to reveal a hidden torque. Compared to other
measurements, this method achieves ten times higher torque
sensitivity. It could be applied to proteins, DNA, or even
synthetic nanomotors developed for futuristic devices.
(Giovanni Volpe and Dmitri Petrov, Phys. Rev. Lett. 97, 210603)
Link to the paper: http://link.aps.org/abstract/PRL/v97/e210603
COMPLETE Focus story at http://focus.aps.org/story/v18/st17
Also from PRL (stories from AIP's Physics News Update):
PROTEIN FOLDING IN A CURVED SPACE
Story at http://www.aip.org/pnu/2006/split/803-1.html
(Lorenzo N. Mazzoni and Lapo Casetti, Phys. Rev. Lett. 97, 218104)
FIRST DIRECT EVIDENCE OF TURBULENCE IN SPACE
Story at http://www.aip.org/pnu/2006/split/802-2.html
(Y. Narita et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 97, 191101)
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Copyright 2006, The American Physical Society.
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