UO E-clips, Jan. 4

Lack of gravitational wave prompts fresh look at gamma ray burst (Science Daily): An international team of physicists, including University of Oregon scientists, has concluded that last February's intense burst of gamma rays possibly coming from the Andromeda Galaxy lacked a gravitational wave. That absence, they say, rules out an initial interpretation that the burst came from merging neutron stars or black holes within Andromeda. (UO news release)

For the love of Oregon beeswax (Science Magazine, Jan. 4): Item in its entirety from Random Notes column: For the past 300 years, chunks of amber-colored beeswax, some reportedly weighing as much as 54 kilograms, have occasionally washed up on the shores of Oregon's Nehalem Bay after a storm. In a few instances, exceptionally low tides have revealed a wooden hull. But the "beeswax wreck" has long been shrouded in mystery.Now, a team of archaeologists, geologists, and historians intends to find the ship and excavate it. From radiocarbon dates of some of the wax and analyses of pieces of Chinese porcelain that have also washed up, they believe the vessel was a Spanish galleon that sank between 1650 and 1700 while plying the historic Manila-Acapulco trade route. Project leader Scott Williams of Washington state's Department of Archaeology and Historic Preservation says beeswax was a big trade item at the time, as the Catholic Church used only that substance for its candles. Because the New World lacked native honey bees, merchants shipped tons of wax made by bees in the Philippines.Team members are now using remote sensing to look for the hull of the ship, which they believe is either the Santo Christo de Burgos, which sank in 1693, or the San Francisco Xavier, which disappeared in 1705. Progress is being tracked at www.archaeologychannel.org. Jon Erlandson, director of the University of Oregon Museum of Natural and Cultural History, notes approvingly that instead of wanting to ransack Spanish galleons for gold, this team wants "to really scientifically explore it."

State universities join forces to collaborate on tech transfer (Portland Business Journal): An innovative Web portal listing new technologies developed at Oregon's universities could drive new investment and new business in the state. Technology transfer officials at Oregon Health & Science University, Portland State University, Oregon State University and University of Oregon are working together to create an online listing of all university research available for licensing at their institutions. Called the Oregon Innovation Portal, the idea is to attract investors and companies that want to find university research they can turn into lucrative products and services. The UO's Chuck Williams is quoted.  (PBJ story)