In another experiment the researchers wake up sleeping mice by sending a light signal to the hypothalamus, the brain's controller of sleep-wake cycles.

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When a neutrino interacts in the NOvA detector , the particles it produces leave trails of light in their wake.

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"It doesn't matter if you're asleep or whatever, you'll wake up and you'll see that red light, and you'll look at it, " Taylor says of his BlackBerry.

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Researchers at Wake Forest University recently developed a new type of light bulb that uses field-induced polymer electroluminescent technology to create a soft white, full spectrum light that could last a decade.

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Still, there is more opportunity in an empty Newark street to loot and rob than there was in the streets of London during recent riots there and yet we see nothing even close to that in New Jersey in the wake of Irene, though obviously more will come to light as damage is assessed and the storm moves further north.

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Instead of making a loud noise at a predetermined time, the Smart Alarm gently vibrates when you're in a light sleep, somewhere around the time you'd like to wake up (up to 30 minutes before you've actually set it).

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We suddenly wake up and find ourselves disoriented, wondering where we are, and possibly mistaking a light in the distance for something completely different.

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