What are you thinking? We don't know, but we can guess by watching where you are thinking — what parts of the brain are active. That is determined by how much oxygen is used in that area's blood. It can be detected using near-infrared spectroscopy, and has helped researchers decode preference with 80% accuracy.

If you sell electronics in Europe, you must show that components contain less than certain thresholds of lead, mercury, cadmium, and other elements. Try this bench-mounted instrument for element identification. The XAN X-ray fluorescence spectrometer and software provide fast and accurate analysis of unknown materials.

In addition to materials research, this Chemistry World podcast (mp3 file) discusses analytical methods. It covers reading single strands of DNA, isolating the compounds in chocolate that are good for one's heart health, and (at about 26 minutes into the program) detecting aromatic compounds with a bioelectronic e-nose.

In general, we know what RNA does in cells. With fluorescent probes we can now more easily watch how and where single RNA molecules move in living cells and how they interact with proteins. New fluorescent probes are bright, small, bind rapidly to their targets, and last for hours. Additional details are presented in Nature Methods.

Atomic force microscopes provide surface relief detail for many materials. This AFM includes an electrical single-pass microscopy mode, enabling high-resolution Kelvin- , electron-, and phase-force microscopy, and scanning microwave microscopy. Various modes aid a range of materials science, polymers, electrical characterization, and general surface characterization applications.

Need to know how viscous your oil is? A bench top semi-automatic kinematic temperature bath viscometer, offers fast, accurate, and cost-effective analysis of used and new lubricants. It conforms to many ASTM and ISO standards, and is aimed at used oil analysis labs that need to test a wide range of lubricant viscosities.

It's not Hollywood, but the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology has a channel on YouTube. Videos include an introduction to NIST standards and measurement work, including a section on timekeeping. Other videos discuss tiny sensors that detect magnetic field changes as small as 70 femtoteslas, and nanosoccer.

Atomic fountains are used to measure gravity by recording the time it takes cold atoms to rise and fall. But precision measurements have required relatively large vertical distances. Now researchers have found a way to bounce the atoms using a laser; making the gravity-measuring instrument more compact and more precise.

The 13th Annual Green Chemistry & Engineering Conference will be held on June 23-25 in College Park, MD. Sponsored by the American Chemical Society and the National Academy of Sciences, this year's program will include keynote talks by Jean-Michel Cousteau, explorer and environmentalist, and Len Sauers, Vice President of Global Sustainability for the Procter & Gamble Company. Program tracks include lifecycle analysis, toxicology, renewable energy fuels, and managing greenhouse gasses.

No, this isn't about the chicken or the egg. But it is all about accuracy, accuracy, accuracy! Nearly 100 years after Robert Peary reported arriving at the North Pole, people are still arguing over whether he was first. Then there is the further debate as to whether he actually arrived at all. The debate hinges on the accuracy of the navigational instruments used, as well as the honesty of the researchers.

Your Thoughts About Thinking

Can you read my mind? Mind-reading technologies: are they a menace to a free society, or a specialized tool that enables communication for severely disabled people?