strength does not come from physical capacity, it comes from an indomitable will
Inspired by high-end racecars, MSI´s new C Series notebook computers -- the CX640, CR640, CX480 and CR480 -- even includes an F1 racecar push start power button as well as an AC-in power jack designed to resemble a racecar fuel intake.
Published Date : 04 July 2011
Solar energy may soon become easier to capture, say researchers who have developed a novel method to produce solar cells using inkjet printing.
Oregon State University researchers have come up with a technology similar to that commonly used to print documents and photos.
They say their method is quicker and less expensive than traditional solar cell manufacturing techniques.
It could also reduce raw material waste by 90%, they add.
As people move away from conventional combustion-type technologies, more attention is paid to renewable energy types, and solar energy is one of them.
It is known as a clean and sustainable form of energy, but this is offset by the manufacture of solar panels which is an expensive and complicated process.
Finding a balance between costs of production and efficiency could become key to future manufacture of solar cells, and many scientists around the world have been concentrating on developing new materials and methods to do that.
The recent inkjet approach is one of those novel methods.
"Solar energy is the most abundant and clean energy source on Earth"."This is very promising and could be an important new technology to add to the solar energy field," said Professor Chih-hung Chang, the lead author of the study, which appeared in Solar Energy Materials and Solar Cells journal.
"Considering the high price of petroleum and other fossil fuels, solar cells will definitely have a bright future."
The team used chalcopyrite - a material composed of copper, indium, gallium and selenium and also known as CIGS. It has a much greater solar efficiency than silicon, currently used to manufacture solar panels.
The researchers then printed chalcopyrite onto the surface of the cell, applying a technique similar to a common inkjet approach, but with a special type of ink.
They managed to produce solar cells of 5% efficiency - and say that in future, they will aim to increase this figure to about 12% to make the product commercially viable.
Wei Wang, one of the scientists, told BBC News that the main advantages of the method were the ease of manufacturing and low cost.
"We produced CIGS solar cells using cheap inkjet printing under normal conditions," he said.
Also, she added, there was almost no waste in the process - unlike with a more expensive method of vapour phase deposition.
Professor Chang agreed that the waste issue was crucial.
"Some of the materials we want to work with for the most advanced solar cells, such as indium, are relatively expensive," he said.
"If that's what you're using you can't really afford to waste it, and the inkjet approach almost eliminates the waste."
CIGS cells produced by conventional means typically have an efficiency of 15-18%, but the methods of manufacturing are known to be a lot more time-consuming, or involve expensive vacuum systems or toxic chemicals.
An alternative to CIGS is silicon panels.
"The best cells that we put on house roofs at the moment are conventional silicon cells and those have an efficiency from 20 to 25% routinely, but the manufacturing costs and materials costs are extremely high," said Dr Martyn McLachlan from Imperial College, London.
He thinks that, although it is less efficent, the cheap manufacturing costs of the inkjet approach means it is a "significant development".
"If efficiency and costs can be balanced, then lower efficiency cells become attractive," he said.
Anonymous targets Apple in latest hack. Apple, Anonymous, Hacking, Hackers, Steve …
With the PSN all but restored and LulzSec gone quiet, you would be forgiven for thinking that the Summer hackathon was over. Not so..it now looks like Anonymous has gone and hacked the mighty Apple.
Before you get too excited, no there wasn't any details of the iPhone 5 leaked...What Anonymous did was simply publish some encrypted usernames and passwords from an Apple SQL database. The release of the information is likely to not be of too major a concern to Apple, what will be however is that Anonymous managed to get into its computer systems. The hack was more to prove a point, that companies even as big as Apple are not untouchable.
The hack was revealed via Anonymous's Twitter account. "Not being so serious, but well (link removed) #Apple could be target, too. But don't worry, we are busy elsewhere. #AntiSec
Anonymous had targeted a currently offline Apple business intelligence website. There has also been claims by a non Anonymous of LulzSec affiliated hacker that he too has broken into Apple's system. Known as Idahc, the reportedly Lebanese hacker posted a pastebin file claiming he had used a similar attack to get into the Apple consultants network. He didn't however reveal passwords or usernames.
By Nicole Kobie
Posted on 30 Jun 2011 at 10:35
Researchers have described a botnet-building piece of malware as "the most sophisticated threat today".
The botnet and the malware that creates it are both called TDL-4, but also known as TDSS and Alureon. Once installed, TDL also infects computers with other malicious software such as adware and spambots. It has infected 4.5 million computers, a third of which are in the US, and 5% in the UK.
Researcher Sergey Golovanov said "the decentralised, server-less botnet is practically indestructible".
One reason the botnet is so difficult to take down is the communications between the infected computers and the command and control centre are encrypted, and can also be controlled via P2P in case the control servers are knocked offline.
The owners of TDL are essentially trying to create an ‘indestructible’ botnet that is protected against attacks, competitors, and antivirus companies
"The owners of TDL are essentially trying to create an ‘indestructible’ botnet that is protected against attacks, competitors, and antivirus companies," Golovanov said on the Kaspersky site.
The malware loads when the computer is booting, making it more difficult for antivirus software to spot. TDL also removes 20 other types of malware.
"TDL nimbly hides both itself and the malicious programs that it downloads from antivirus products," Golovanov said. "To prevent other malicious programs not associated with TDL from attracting the attention of users of the infected machine, TDL-4 can now delete them. Not all of them, of course, just the most common."
Infected machines can also be used by criminals to create proxy servers - which TDL's creators offer as a service for $100/month, complete with a Firefox add-on to make it easier to use.
By Nicole Kobie
Posted on 1 Jul 2011 at 12:44
The beta of the next version of Apple's iOS is reportedly causing the original iPad to overheat.
Apple announced iOS 5 last month, but the full version won't be released until this autumn. However, a beta can be downloaded by developers registered with Apple.
A PC Pro reader told us his first-generation iPad overheated after installing iOS 5, "to the point where it was almost burning". He claimed the screen reached a temperature of 65 degrees centigrade - despite being turned off - and the Wi-Fi chip stopped working.
I'm extremely concerned this is apparently a known issue and yet the iOS 5 download is still available
He was told by staff at the Apple Store in London's Regent Street that it was a "known issue" with first-generation iPads running the iOS 5 beta. "I'm extremely concerned this is apparently a known issue and yet the iOS 5 download is still available," the reader told us.
The Apple Store initially refused to replace the developer's iPad, citing the terms and conditions attached to its beta software, before finally agreeing to provide a replacement and £60 of vouchers for the App Store in compensation.
Developers who access Apple's beta software must agree to a non-disclosure agreement, however a blogger reported five days after the launch that the iOS 5 beta was causing the iPhone to overheat.
Apple declined to comment on this story.
