Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Severe Weather
Published

Social networks can influence perception of climate-change risk      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Short but severe episodes of flooding from hurricanes in Texas and Florida triggered a nationwide increase in flood insurance sign-ups depending on how socially connected a county was to the flooded counties.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: Organic Chemistry Engineering: Graphene
Published

Scientists develop new battery-free lactic acid sensor      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Scientists have created a new type of chemosensor (demonstrated for lactic acid sensing) which functions with electricity but without the need for reference electrodes or battery power.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: General Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Chemistry: Organic Chemistry Physics: General
Published

Ethylene from CO2: Building-kit catalyst      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Use of the greenhouse gas CO2 as a chemical raw material would not only reduce emissions, but also the consumption of fossil feedstocks. A novel metal-free organic framework could make it possible to electrocatalytically produce ethylene, a primary chemical raw material, from CO2. Nitrogen atoms with a particular electron configuration play a critical role for the catalyst.

Environmental: General Geoscience: Severe Weather
Published

Night-time heat significantly increases the risk of stroke      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers show that nocturnal heat significantly increases the risk of stroke. The findings can contribute to the development of preventive measures: With them, the population can better protect themselves against the risks of climate change with increasingly frequent hot nights. In addition, knowledge of the consequences of hot nights can improve patient care.

Environmental: General Environmental: Water Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geography Geoscience: Severe Weather
Published

Warming climate intensifies flash droughts worldwide      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Sudden, severe dry spells known as flash droughts are rising in intensity around the world, with a notable exception in mountainous Central Asia, where flash drought extent is shrinking, according to new research. Heat and changes to precipitation patterns caused by a warming climate are driving these trends, the study found.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Chemistry: Organic Chemistry
Published

By listening, scientists learn how a protein folds      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

By converting their data into sounds, scientists discovered how hydrogen bonds contribute to the lightning-fast gyrations that transform a string of amino acids into a functional, folded protein. Their report offers an unprecedented view of the sequence of hydrogen-bonding events that occur when a protein morphs from an unfolded to a folded state.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Botany Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: Nature Environmental: Biodiversity Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geography Geoscience: Severe Weather
Published

The impacts of climate change on food production      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new study shows that climate change has led to decreased pollen production from plants and less pollen diversity than previously thought, which could have a significant impact on food production.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: Organic Chemistry Computer Science: General Engineering: Nanotechnology
Published

Blueprints of self-assembly      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Scientists have taken a step closer to replicating nature's processes of self-assembly. The study describes the synthetic construction of a tiny, self-assembled crystal known as a 'pyrochlore,' which bears unique optical properties. The advance provides a steppingstone to the eventual construction of sophisticated, self-assembling devices at the nanoscale -- roughly the size of a single virus.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: General Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Chemistry: Organic Chemistry
Published

Seeking stronger steel, systematic look at 120 combinations of alloy elements provides clues      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Investigating ways to create high-performance steel, a research team used theoretical calculations on 120 combinations of 12 alloy elements, such as aluminum and titanium, with carbon and nitrogen, while also systematically clarifying the bonding mechanism.

Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geography Geoscience: Severe Weather
Published

U.S. drought-monitoring system outpaced by climate changes      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new study reports that the U.S. Drought Monitor's weekly maps of nationwide drought conditions -- which help direct emergency federal aid -- have captured the steady march of climate change, but the Drought Monitor has itself failed to adapt to that reality. Areas of the country are spending more and more time in severe drought conditions the Drought Monitor still considers to be rare occurrences. The consequences could be that swaths of the country -- particularly in the West -- may not receive aid in keeping with the enhanced risk of drought as periodic emergencies become persistent new realities.

Environmental: Ecosystems Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geography Geoscience: Oceanography Geoscience: Severe Weather Paleontology: Climate Paleontology: General
Published

Record low Antarctic sea ice 'extremely unlikely' without climate change      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Scientists have found that the record-low levels of sea ice around Antarctica in 2023 were extremely unlikely to happen without the influence of climate change. This low was a one-in-a-2000-year event without climate change and four times more likely under its effects.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Chemistry: Organic Chemistry Engineering: Nanotechnology Offbeat: Computers and Math Offbeat: General Physics: General Physics: Optics
Published

Diamond glitter: A play of colors with artificial DNA crystals      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Using DNA origami, researchers have built a diamond lattice with a periodicity of hundreds of nanometers -- a new approach for manufacturing semiconductors for visible light.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: General Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Chemistry: Organic Chemistry
Published

Breaking bonds to form bonds: Rethinking the Chemistry of Cations      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A team of chemists has achieved a significant breakthrough in the field of chemical synthesis, developing a novel method for manipulating carbon-hydrogen bonds. This groundbreaking discovery provides new insights into the molecular interactions of positively charged carbon atoms. By selectively targeting a specific C--H bond, they open doors to synthetic pathways that were previously closed -- with potential applications in medicine.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Botany Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Microbiology Biology: Molecular Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: General Chemistry: Organic Chemistry Ecology: Endangered Species
Published

Bioengineered enzyme creates natural vanillin from plants in one step      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Vanilla, the most widely used flavoring compound in confectionaries and cosmetics, gets its sweet flavor and aroma from the chemical compound -- 'vanillin'. However, the large-scale production of natural vanillin is impeded by the lack of microbial processes and enzymes which can commercially generate vanillin. Now, researchers have genetically engineered a novel enzyme which can convert ferulic acid from plant waste into vanillin in a one-step sustainable process.

Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Severe Weather
Published

Climate change likely to aggravate brain conditions      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Climate change, and its effects on weather patterns and adverse weather events, is likely to negatively affect the health of people with brain conditions, argue a team of researchers.

Chemistry: General Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Chemistry: Organic Chemistry Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry
Published

A novel multifunctional catalyst turns methane into valuable hydrocarbons      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The optimal design of a novel zeolite catalyst enables tandem reaction that turns greenhouse gases into value-added chemicals, report scientists. By tuning the separation between different active sites on the catalyst, they achieved the stepwise conversion of methane into methanol and then to hydrocarbons at mild conditions. These findings will help reduce energy costs and greenhouse gas emissions across various industrial fields.

Chemistry: General Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Chemistry: Organic Chemistry Environmental: General Environmental: Water Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry
Published

Next-generation sustainable electronics are doped with air      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Semiconductors are the foundation of all modern electronics. Now, researchers have developed a new method where organic semiconductors can become more conductive with the help of air as a dopant. The study is a significant step towards future cheap and sustainable organic semiconductors.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: General Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Chemistry: Organic Chemistry Energy: Alternative Fuels Geoscience: Geochemistry
Published

Promising new development in solar cell technology      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers who contributed to the development of record-breaking solar cells a few years ago, expanded their invention. The self-assembled monolayers can now be applied not only in inverted but also in regular structure perovskite solar cells.