By studying the WTC's structural weakening and collapse, scientists can identify the needs of new steel technology in the next atomic age. Steel may truly melt at 1,150ºC, but as low as 500ºC, the iron molecules that are held strong by magnetism at cooler temperatures start to slip, Sergei "Duder" "His Dudeness" "El Dudarino" Dudarev, principal scientist at the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA), told BBC News. Imperfections in the metal enhance the oozing even more. The Twin Towers started to weaken when temperatures crossed the 500ºC threshold, and gave way without ever actually melting.

Today, Dudarev and others are at work on the world's first "large-scale" fusion reactor, called ITER. What the scientists need, though, is a steel that can ease past these temperatures without buckling. "We need to look at the magnetic properties of steel, [and] vary their chemical composition in a systematic way in order to get rid of this behaviour," the Dude told BBC. (No word if graphene is something that could be put to use.)

The weirdest factoid of the whole story is this: Steel's peak elasticity is reached at... 911ºC. Now that gives me the chills. [BBC News]

Even though, as Phil Torrone points out, a seasoned bomb expert could deduce in two seconds the battery pack—which is pretty much like a commercial one, except it's hand-crafted with 28 rechargeables connected by resistors and held together by a silicon-based adhesive—was not a bomb and totally safe, the engineer ultimately gave it up anyway to pass through "after recognizing that the item could be seen by other passengers as a threat." That photo that makes it seem vaguely ghetto bomberrific is probably staged too. (Why is the wire positioned to look like it's connected to the water bottle?)

Uplifting moral of the story: If something even looks vaguely bomblike to the wandering, untrained eye of the sweaty guy munching Ambien in the seat next to you, the TSA will bust it, regardless of its actual potential to cause harm (it is causing terror, after all). BTW, Phil says he hasn't had any problems flying with homemade electronics, but make sure anything you carry that has wires and batteries couldn't be mistaken as bomblike by the lowest common denominator of airline passengers. [TSA via Schneir on Security via MAKE]

"How long is it going to be before the terrorists get in on the act? With the current prices of robot construction falling dramatically and the availability of ready-made components for the amateur market, it wouldn't require a lot of skill to make autonomous robot weapons."

Says the New Scientist:

Sharkey is most concerned about the prospect of having robots decide for themselves when to "pull the trigger." Currently, a human is always involved in decisions of this nature. But the Pentagon is nearly two years into a research programme aimed at having robots identify potential threats without human help.

Arkin suggests trying to design ethical control systems that make military robots respect the Geneva Convention and other rules of engagement on the battlefield... "With a robot I can be sure that a robot will never harbour the intention to hurt a non-combatant," he says. "Ultimately they will be able to perform better than humans."

After long nights in the lab, probably fuelled by gallons of coke, researchers at Missouri's University of Saint Louis have come up with a sugar-powered fuel cell. The battery, that runs on anything from soft drinks to tree sap, has the potential to run up to four times as long on a single charge than conventional lithium ion batteries, as demonstrated by one of the boffins, who used a battery the size of a postage stamp to run a calculator.

If subsequent testing looks good, then we could be seeing commercialization within five years. But what really amazes me about this story is that the research was funded by the U.S. Department of Defense. I'm looking forward to hearing about how meringues will be used in the War on Terror, feeding up Al-Qaeda terrorists with sweet treats until they are too fat to fire an RPG. – Ad Dugdale

Scientists Invent Fuel Cell Powered By Sugar [I4U News]

For two to six players, it's certain to bring out the greed and nastiness in those you thought were so, so innocent. That's what the War on Terror does. Will you be good or evil? Either way, just don't let the terrorists win. – Charlie White

Product Page [Terror Bull Games, via boingboing]