Chemistry: General Chemistry: Thermodynamics Energy: Batteries
Published

Revolutionary method developed for mass-producing polymer solid electrolytes      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Scientists have unveiled a groundbreaking technique for mass-producing polymer solid electrolytes, crucial components in batteries.

Chemistry: Thermodynamics
Published

Supply chain disruptions will further exacerbate economic losses from climate change      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Global GDP loss from climate change will increase exponentially the warmer the planet gets when its cascading impact on global supply chains is factored in, finds a new study.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: General Chemistry: Thermodynamics Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry
Published

Molecular simulations of ammonia mixtures support search for renewable fuels      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Ammonia is an important molecule with many applications. The end product of the famed Haber-Bosch process, it is commonly synthesized to capture nitrogen for fertilizers, and is used for refrigeration, in cleaning products, and in the production of pharmaceuticals. Recently, this modest molecule has also attracted interest as a potential resource for addressing one of today's most pressing challenges -- the need for reliable and abundant renewable fuels.

Biology: Botany Biology: Marine Biology: Zoology Paleontology: Dinosaurs Paleontology: Early Mammals and Birds Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

Alaska dinosaur tracks reveal a lush, wet environment      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A large find of dinosaur tracks and fossilized plants and tree stumps in far northwestern Alaska provides new information about the climate and movement of animals near the time when they began traveling between the Asian and North American continents roughly 100 million years ago.

Chemistry: General Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Chemistry: Thermodynamics Energy: Technology Engineering: Graphene Engineering: Nanotechnology Physics: General
Published

Spiral wrappers switch nanotubes from conductors to semiconductors and back      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

By wrapping a carbon nanotube with a ribbon-like polymer, researchers were able to create nanotubes that conduct electricity when struck with low-energy light that our eyes cannot see. In the future, the approach could make it possible to optimize semiconductors for applications ranging from night vision to new forms of computing.

Chemistry: Thermodynamics Energy: Nuclear Physics: General
Published

Preventing magnet meltdowns before they can start      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

High-temperature superconductor magnets have the potential to lower the costs of operating particle accelerators and enable powerful new technologies like fusion reactors. But quenches -- the sudden, destructive events wherein a part of the material loses superconductivity -- are a major barrier to their deployment. Scientists have developed an approach to prevent quenches altogether, rather than simply trying to manage them after they occur.

Biology: General Biology: Zoology Ecology: Extinction Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals Paleontology: Dinosaurs Paleontology: Early Mammals and Birds Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

Fossil named 'Attenborough's strange bird' was the first in its kind without teeth      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new fossil, named 'Attenborough's strange bird' after naturalist and documentarian Sir David Attenborough, is the first of its kind to evolve a toothless beak. It's from a branch of the bird family tree that went extinct in the mass extinction 66 million years ago, and this strange bird is another puzzle piece that helps explain why some birds -- and their fellow dinosaurs -- went extinct, and others survived to today.

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

Slimming down a colossal fossil whale      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A 30 million year-old fossil whale may not be the heaviest animal of all time after all, according to a new analysis by paleontologists. The new analysis puts Perucetus colossus back in the same weight range as modern whales and smaller than the largest blue whales ever recorded.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: General Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Chemistry: Thermodynamics Energy: Alternative Fuels Energy: Technology Environmental: General Geoscience: Geochemistry
Published

Physicists develop more efficient solar cell      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Physicists have used complex computer simulations to develop a new design for significantly more efficient solar cells than previously available. A thin layer of organic material, known as tetracene, is responsible for the increase in efficiency.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: General Biology: Zoology Ecology: Animals Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Geography Paleontology: Early Mammals and Birds Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

Panama Canal expansion rewrites history of world's most ecologically diverse bats      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

In a new study, paleontologists describe the oldest-known leaf-nosed bat fossils, which were found along the banks of the Panama Canal. They're also the oldest bat fossils from Central America, preserved 20-million years ago when Panama and the rest of North America were separated from southern landmass by a seaway at least 120 miles wide.

Chemistry: Thermodynamics Energy: Technology Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Benefits of heat pumps      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Millions of U.S. households would benefit from heat pumps, but the cost of installing the technology needs to come down to make their use a more attractive proposition.

Biology: Cell Biology Chemistry: Thermodynamics Energy: Technology Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Eco-friendly way to generate power from waste wood      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new study by researchers has revealed a sustainable method of efficiently converting waste heat into electricity using Irish wood products, while minimizing costs and environmental impact.

Anthropology: General Biology: Evolutionary Biology: General Biology: Zoology Ecology: Nature Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals Paleontology: Dinosaurs Paleontology: Early Mammals and Birds Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

The hidden rule for flight feathers -- and how it could reveal which dinosaurs could fly      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Scientists examined hundreds of birds in museum collections and discovered a suite of feather characteristics that all flying birds have in common. These 'rules' provide clues as to how the dinosaur ancestors of modern birds first evolved the ability to fly, and which dinosaurs were capable of flight.

Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Chemistry: Thermodynamics Physics: General Physics: Quantum Physics Space: Astrophysics Space: General
Published

Physicists capture the first sounds of heat 'sloshing' in a superfluid      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

For the first time, physicists have captured direct images of 'second sound,' the movement of heat sloshing back and forth within a superfluid. The results will expand scientists' understanding of heat flow in superconductors and neutron stars.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Evolutionary Biology: General Biology: Zoology Paleontology: Dinosaurs Paleontology: Early Mammals and Birds Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

Scientists pinpoint growth of brain's cerebellum as key to evolution of bird flight      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Evolutionary biologists report they have combined PET scans of modern pigeons along with studies of dinosaur fossils to help answer an enduring question in biology: How did the brains of birds evolve to enable them to fly?

Chemistry: Thermodynamics
Published

BESSY II: Local variations in the atomic structure of High-Entropy Alloys      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

High-entropy alloys can withstand extreme heat and stress, making them suitable for a variety of specific applications. A new study at the X-ray synchrotron radiation source BESSY II has now provided deeper insights into the ordering processes and diffusion phenomena in these materials.

Anthropology: Early Humans Anthropology: General Archaeology: General Biology: Evolutionary Paleontology: Early Mammals and Birds Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

How did humans learn to walk? New evolutionary study offers an earful      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new study, which centers on evidence from skulls of a 6-million-year-old fossil ape, Lufengpithecus, offers important clues about the origins of bipedal locomotion courtesy of a novel method: analyzing its bony inner ear region using three-dimensional CT-scanning. The inner ear appears to provide a unique record of the evolutionary history of ape locomotion.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Cell Biology Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: Thermodynamics Energy: Technology Engineering: Nanotechnology
Published

Locusts' sense of smell boosted with custom-made nanoparticles      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Scientists have harnessed the power of specially made nanostructures to enhance the neural response in a locust's brain to specific odors and to improve their identification of those odors.