Researchers Listen to Yeast Cells: Sounds May Be of Tiny 'Molecular Motors' Hard at Work
David Kestenbaum
A team of scientists has found a way to listen in on the strange sounds produced by a single cell. The recordings, reported in the journal Science, were made with yeast cells by using a small probe thousands of times thinner than a hair.
UCLA scientist James Gimzewski positioned a sensitive instrument called an atomic force microscope over a cell to try to detect its motion. To his surprise, the microscope picked up regular vibrations.
His team then looked for a program that would could convert the data into a sound file. Gimzewski thinks what they hear is the sound of tiny molecular motors inside the cell, moving things around.
The researcher likened it to sitting outside a living factory, and listening to the wall. When they changed the temperature, the sound would speed up or slow down, as if the cells were running faster or slower.
Researchers might one day be able to detect the early stages of diseases like cancer by listening to human cells, Gimzewski says. That seems like a long shot, but he points out there is a precedent. During the Industrial Revolution, mechanics found they could often tell what was wrong with a machine just by listening.
Music without words means leaving behind the mind. And leaving behind the mind is meditation.
Meditation returns you to the source. And the source of all is sound. — Kabir
The Healing Music Organization and The Healing Music Foundation
P.O. Box 3731, Santa Cruz, CA 95063 - 831.588.7498
Any questions, problems or suggestions please contact
us.
Healingmusic.org and "A Really Good HMO" are trademarks of The Healing Music Organization.
All other products and services mentioned are registered trademarks or trademarks of their respective organizations.
Copyright
2000-2007, Amrita Cottrell and The Healing Music Organization. All rights
reserved.
Go
to feedback form
JOIN OUR NETWORK
