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Gizmorama - March 19, 2014
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GopherArchives****-- Oldest known fragment of Earth's crust suggests early cooling --*MADISON, Wis. - A tiny zircon crystal from Australia, 4.4 billions years old, has been confirmed as the oldest discovered fragment of Earth's crust, scientists say. A study of the crystal, led by University of Wisconsin-Madison geoscience Professor John Valley, shows the Earth's crust first formed just 160 million years after the formation of the solar system, the university reported Monday. The research gives new insight into how Earth cooled from a ball of magma and formed continents much earlier than previously believed, Valley said. "This confirms our view of how the Earth cooled and became habitable," said Valley, whose studies of zircons, the oldest known terrestrial materials, have helped portray how the planet's crust formed during the first geologic eon. "This may also help us understand how other habitable planets would form." It strengthens the theory of a "cool early Earth," he said, where temperatures were low enough for liquid water not long after the planet's crust congealed from a sea of molten rock. "The study reinforces our conclusion that Earth had a hydrosphere before 4.3 billion years ago," and possibly life not long after, Valley said.
*-- Samsung debuts Galaxy S5, touts bigger display, fingerprint security --*BARCELONA, Spain, - Samsung unveiled its Galaxy S5 smartphone in Spain, publicizing faster data connections, bigger display, improved camera and a built-in fingerprint sensor. The South Korean smartphone giant revealed its latest standard bearer at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona sporting a 5.1-inch display HD screen and a 16-megapixel rear-facing camera, CNET reported. Improvements were more incremental than giant leaps, and that is by design, Samsung head J.K. Shin said at the event. "Our consumers do not want eye-popping technology or the most complex technology," Shin said. "Our consumers want beautiful design and performance, our consumers want a simple, yet powerful camera. Our consumers want faster and seamless connectivity, and our consumers want a phone that can help them stay fit." That was a reference to the S5's health-monitoring features centered on the newest version of S-Health, a health app that works in tandem with Samsung's new Galaxy Gear smartwatch to track meals, heart rate and workouts. As had been expected, the phone includes a built-in fingerprint sensor to let users unlock their phones with a fingerprint scan. The S5 will bring faster WiFi and "extensive" 4G LTE support for U.S. carriers AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, Verizon Wireless, MetroPCS and U.S. Cellular, Samsung said.
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