Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: General Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Chemistry: Organic Chemistry Energy: Alternative Fuels Energy: Batteries Energy: Fossil Fuels Energy: Technology
Published

A 'liquid battery' advance      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A team aims to improve options for renewable energy storage through work on an emerging technology -- liquids for hydrogen storage.

Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geography Geoscience: Geology Geoscience: Oceanography Offbeat: Earth and Climate Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology
Published

A mountainous mystery uncovered in Australia's pink sands      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Deposits of deep-pink sand washing up on South Australian shores shed new light on when the Australian tectonic plate began to subduct beneath the Pacific plate, as well as the presence of previously unknown ancient Antarctic mountains.

Biology: General Biology: Marine Biology: Zoology Ecology: Sea Life Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

No bones about it: 100-million-year-old bones reveal new species of pterosaur      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

New research has identified 100-million-year-old fossilized bones discovered in western Queensland as belonging to a newly identified species of pterosaur, which was a formidable flying reptile that lived among the dinosaurs.

Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Engineering: Nanotechnology Physics: General Physics: Quantum Physics
Published

Uncovering the nature of emergent magnetic monopoles      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

To understand the unique physical phenomena associated with the properties of magnetic hedgehogs and antihedgehogs, which behave as virtual magnetic monopoles and antimonopoles respectively, it is essential to study their intrinsic excitations. In a new study, researchers revealed the dynamical nature of collective excitation modes in hedgehog lattices in itinerant chiral magnets. Their findings serve as the foundation for studying the dynamics of emergent magnetic monopoles in magnets.

Anthropology: Cultures Anthropology: General Archaeology: General Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology
Published

Ritual sacrifice at Chichén Itzá      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Rising to power in the wake of the Classic Maya collapse, Chichen Itz was among the largest and most influential cities of the ancient Maya, but much about its political connections and ritual life remain poorly understood. Close kin relationships, including two pairs of identical twins, suggests a connection to the Maya origin myths of the Popol Vuh.

Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Chemistry: Thermodynamics Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Engineering: Robotics Research Offbeat: Computers and Math Offbeat: General
Published

3D-printed mini-actuators can move small soft robots, lock them into new shapes      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have demonstrated miniature soft hydraulic actuators that can be used to control the deformation and motion of soft robots that are less than a millimeter thick. The researchers have also demonstrated that this technique works with shape memory materials, allowing users to repeatedly lock the soft robots into a desired shape and return to the original shape as needed.

Anthropology: General Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Microbiology Environmental: General Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Geochemistry Offbeat: Earth and Climate Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals Paleontology: Fossils
Published

Scientists unlock secrets of how archaea, the third domain of life, makes energy      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

An international scientific team has redefined our understanding of archaea, a microbial ancestor to humans from two billion years ago, by showing how they use hydrogen gas. The findings explain how these tiny lifeforms make energy by consuming and producing hydrogen. This simple but dependable strategy has allowed them to thrive in some of Earth's most hostile environments for billions of years.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Energy: Technology Physics: General
Published

Semiconductor doping and electronic devices: Heating gallium nitride and magnesium forms superlattice      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A study revealed that a simple thermal reaction of gallium nitride with metallic magnesium results in the formation of a distinctive superlattice structure. This represents the first time researchers have identified the insertion of 2D metal layers into a bulk semiconductor. By carefully observing materials through various cutting-edge characterization techniques, the researchers uncovered new insights into the process of semiconductor doping and elastic strain engineering.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: General Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Energy: Batteries
Published

Looking for a new battery platform? Focus on the essentials      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

In facing life's many challenges, we often opt for complex approaches to finding solutions. Yet, upon closer examination, the answers are often simpler than we expect, rooted in the core "essence" of the issue. This approach was demonstrated by a research team in their publication on addressing the inherent issues of solid-state batteries.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Chemistry: Thermodynamics Offbeat: General Offbeat: Space Physics: Optics Space: General
Published

Researchers engineer new approach for controlling thermal emission      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

If a material absorbs light, it will heat up. That heat must go somewhere, and the ability to control where and how much heat is emitted can protect or even hide such devices as satellites. An international team of researchers has published a novel method for controlling this thermal emission in Science.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Developmental Biology: Evolutionary Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Marine Ecology: Invasive Species Ecology: Nature Ecology: Research Ecology: Sea Life Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

Novel Genetic Clock discovers oldest known marine plant      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

An international research team has discovered the oldest known marine plant using a novel genetic clock. This 1400-year-old seagrass clone from the Baltic Sea dates back to the Migration Period. The research project is a significant step towards better understanding and protecting marine ecosystems.

Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Physics: General Physics: Optics Physics: Quantum Computing Physics: Quantum Physics
Published

Perturbations simplify the study of 'super photons'      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Thousands of particles of light can merge into a type of 'super photon' under suitable conditions. Physicists call such a state a photon Bose-Einstein condensate. Researchers have now shown that this exotic quantum state obeys a fundamental theorem of physics. This finding now allows one to measure properties of photon Bose-Einstein condensates which are usually difficult to access.

Chemistry: General Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Chemistry: Organic Chemistry Engineering: Nanotechnology Physics: Optics
Published

Crystal engineering modifies 2D metal halide perovskites into 1D nanowires      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Engineers have created a patent-pending method that creates layered perovskite nanowires with exceptionally well-defined and flexible cavities that exhibit a wide range of unusual optical properties beyond conventional perovskites.

Archaeology: General Biology: Biochemistry Biology: General Biology: Microbiology Ecology: Sea Life Offbeat: Earth and Climate Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

Researchers solve 2,000-year-old mystery of the shipworm      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

They bedeviled ancient Greek navies, helped shipwreck Christopher Columbus, aided in the sinking of the Spanish Armada and caused the wharves in San Francisco Bay to collapse into the sea, but until now, scientists have been unable to pinpoint exactly how shipworms -- a family of mollusks -- are able to cause such damage. A team of researchers has discovered that a population of symbiotic microbes, living in an overlooked sub-organ of the gut called the 'typhlosole,' have the ability to secrete the enzymes needed to digest lignin -- the toughest part of wood.

Biology: Marine Biology: Zoology Ecology: Animals Ecology: Sea Life Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

Fishy mystery of marine reptile solved      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The identity of a prehistoric marine reptile has finally been revealed after experts discovered that some of its remains actually belonged to fish.

Archaeology: General Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Zoology Offbeat: Earth and Climate Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

Blood sausages and yak milk: Bronze Age cuisine of Mongolian nomads unveiled      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Bronze cauldrons were used by the inhabitants of the Mongolian steppe around 2,700 years ago to process animal blood and milk. This is shown by a protein analysis of archaeological finds from this period.

Anthropology: General Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Evolutionary Biology: General Biology: Marine Ecology: Sea Life Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

'Missing' early sea sponges discovered      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Geobiologists reported a 550 million-year-old sea sponge that had been missing from the fossil record. The discovery sheds new light on a conundrum that has stumped zoologists and paleontologists for years.

Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Offbeat: General
Published

A new way of designing auxetic materials      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Auxetics defy common sense, widening when stretched and narrowing when compressed. Researchers have now made the process of using them much easier, paving the way for new types of auxetic products -- from better sneaker insoles to blast-resilient buildings.