Kilogram standard losing weight - 13-09-2007 - 11:29

Scientists are baffled by the weight loss of the international prototype for the kilogram.

The reference kilogram, a 118-year-old cylinder which is kept in a triple-locked safe at the International Bureau of Weights and Measures (IBWM) in Sevres, has mysteriously shed 50 micrograms.

Physicist Richard Davis of the IBWM told the Associated Press that scientists do not know why the standard for all kilograms around the world has got lighter.

He said: "The mystery is that they were all made of the same material and many were made at the same time and kept under the same conditions, and yet the masses among them are slowly drifting apart."

A changing kilogram could affect electrical engineers and other scientists and could ultimately affect even some non-metric measurement systems, though Mr Davis said that it would not affect people's everyday lives.

"For the lay person, it won't mean anything," he said, adding that 50 micrograms is about the weight of a fingerprint. "The kilogram will stay the kilogram, and the weights you have in a weight set will all still be correct."

Engineer leads way to Spider-Man suit - 30-08-2007 - 11:16

An Italian nanoengineer has made a breakthrough that could make Spider-Man-style wall and ceiling walking antics a possibility.

Bicola Pugno, of the Polytechnic of Turin, has calculated how to make a suit that could stick a human to a wall, using the same principle that helps geckos cling, even upside down, to surfaces as smooth as glass.

Microscopic hairs on gecko's feet take advantage of weak attractions called Van Der Waals forces, binding them to vertical surfaces.

Professor Pugno believes that similar forces could be exploited for people, using microscopic fibres called carbon nanotubes, which he says could be useful for various human endeavours.

"There are many interesting applications for our theory, from space exploration and defence to designing gloves and shoes for window cleaners of big skyscrapers," said professor Pugno.

But he is not the only person developing a super adhesive, self cleaning and hydrophobic material.

BAE systems has been conducting research into a textile it calls Synthetic Gecko.

But, even if the suit was made, professor Pugno says we may be limited in how we use it.

"We would suffer great muscle fatigue if we tried to stick to a wall for many hours," he said.

Engineers 'should co-operate to help poor' - 03-08-2007 - 11:15

Engineers have been called upon to use their "creative genius and innovative flair" to combat technological obstacles to the development of poorer countries.

Prime minister Gordon Brown used his speech to the United Nations to call upon the scientific community to take part in helping create wealth throughout the world.

He asked engineers to cooperate with development organisations to help find ways out of poverty and its associated problems.

Using the International Finance Facility for Immunisation, which aims to immunise 500 million children by 2015 and is supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation as well as European governments and those of Brazil and South Africa, the prime minister urged public-private cooperation.

Engineers of all varieties can contribute to the development of technologies that can help solve problems in the poorest countries.

Low-cost techniques for infrastructure construction, medical delivery and hygiene and water systems are among the contributions that have already been made.

Mr Brown argued that while past generations could say they didn't have the knowledge, technology, medicine or science to tackle poverty, this is an excuse which is no longer valid.

"What we now need is the unity and strength of purpose to employ the ingenuity and resources we have - and to employ them well - to help those who need it," he said.

Woman wins prestigious prize - 01-08-2007 - 17:33

Dr Molly Stevens has become the first female scientist to win the Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain's 2006 Conference Science Medal.

The prize was awarded for the first time to a woman, Dr Stevens from Imperial College's Department of Materials.

Dr Stevens, whose work on regenerative medicine, nanotechnology and tissue transplantation has been honoured before with the Phillip Leverhulme Prize for Engineering.

Her work involves developing nanomaterials which can identify disease related proteins as well as nanomaterials that arrange themselves into structures that help repair bone and cartilage.

Dr Stevens said: "It was quite a competitive field so I am really pleased to have won the award. I think it is an important milestone for women in the field."

Her achievement represents the first time in 40 years that the Conference Science Medal, which is awarded annually to recognise a track record of independent research or promise, is awarded to a woman.

Engineering diploma 'window into career' - 26-07-2007 - 16:58

Leading industry figures and secretary of state Ed Balls have praised the development of a new engineering diploma.

Speaking at the London South Bank University, Mr Balls, secretary of state for the Department for Children, Schools and Families, said that co-operation between government and major engineering employers such as British Gas, JCB, RWE npower and the Royal Academy of Engineering had created a useful way of educating future engineers.

Against a backdrop of an engineering skills shortage, he said: "Diplomas are key to our reform of the education system. I want to see the brightest and the best taking diplomas which will give them more choice and allow them to get the careers they really want."

There are five diplomas currently offered which cover construction, engineering, IT, creative media, and society, health and development.

They provide a bridge between school and employment and they will "enable young people to see the advantages of pursuing careers in industry", according to Rod Kenyon, director of British Gas Engineering Academy

UK engineering companies recruit as far as Brazil - 25-07-2007 - 17:12

The shortage of graduates with core science and technology degrees has seen UK engineer firms spread their recruitment search as far as Brazil, according to one expert.

Nigel Hirst, the managing director of engineering consultancy Haden Freeman, said that a shortfall in the number of skilled engineers is costing the industry "large sums of money" and delaying the development of new products.

With the number of applicants for these courses staying at around the 245,000 mark and dropping as a percentage of total university graduates from 11 per cent to eight per cent, it is clear that as the engineering industry tries to grow it will either be hampered or have to look further a field.

Mr Hirst said that education system has to interest students to support the engineering sector.

He added: "If the present recruitment situation continues, in ten years' time, when we need a new power station built, there will be no one to build it. The sector as a whole needs a public relations facelift to make it more appealing to young people."

Norwich 'engineering legend' recovering - 24-07-2007 - 11:20

A Norwich company labelled a "British engineering legend" is on its way to recovery after it was saved from closure last month, according to its new owners.

Laurence Scott & Electromotors' future looked bleak after cashflow problems threatened to close the company down until Austrian group ATB bought the company.

ATB has promised that the Norwich operations will continue and has seen good results, with the new company ATB Laurence Scott seeing sales of £1.3 million in June.

ATB chief executive Christian Schmidt told the Eastern Daily Press that he expected to make £9.4 million in sales over the rest of the year, which would mark an increase of 30 per cent over last year.

He said: "We were absolutely right with our initial assessment that ATB Laurence Scott has a very skilled and motivated workforce, a great customer base and a state-of-the-art product range.

"Laurence Scott is a British engineering legend that we are proud to be associated with."

He added that he expected to use the company's strengths to make a speedy recovery.

"We have a premier international position in the sector of oil and gas, power generation and defence markets and will be much more competitive."

Carillion signs up to unemployed scheme - 20-07-2007 - 15:56

Support services and construction company Carillion has signed up to the government's Local Employment Partnership to help a greater number find jobs in the sector.

The scheme is targeted to helping the long-term unemployed and those that are disadvantaged to get back in to work and has been championed by prime minister Gordon Brown.

The Local Employment Partnership will be run in partnership with Jobcentre Plus, and already has major companies such as Asda, B&Q, Marks and Spencer, Sainsbury and Tesco signed up.

Carillion will be the first company in the construction sector to sign up to the scheme.

It did so after a personal invitation from the prime minister, who met representatives from the company on Wednesday at Number 10 Downing Street on Wednesday morning.

Mr Brown highlighted the need for companies to cast the net as wide as possible in recruitment in order to remain as competitive as possible, and stressed the need for employers to foster the talent and ideas of those they hire.

Carillion held a special event on Thursday together with Jobcentre Plus to mark the start of their partnership.