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Categories: Chemistry: Thermodynamics, Paleontology: Fossils
Published Fishy mystery of marine reptile solved



The identity of a prehistoric marine reptile has finally been revealed after experts discovered that some of its remains actually belonged to fish.
Published 'Missing' early sea sponges discovered



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.
Published Gigantic Jurassic pterosaur fossil unearthed in Oxfordshire, UK



A team of palaeontologists has discovered a fossil of a gigantic flying reptile from the Jurassic period with an estimated wingspan of more than three metres -- making it one of the largest pterosaurs ever found from that era.
Published Overcoming barriers to heat pump adoption in cold climates and avoiding the 'energy poverty trap'



Converting home heating systems from natural gas furnaces to electric heat pumps is seen as a way to address climate change by reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Published 'Ugly' fossil places extinct saber-toothed cat on Texas coast



This fossil looks like a lumpy, rounded rock with a couple of exposed teeth that are a little worse for wear, having been submerged and tumbled along the floor of the Gulf of Mexico for thousands of years before washing up on a beach. But when it was X-rayed a doctoral student saw there was more to the fossil that met the eye: a hidden canine tooth that had not yet erupted from the jaw bone. It was just what researchers needed to identify the fossil as belonging to a Homotherium, a genus of large cat that roamed much of the Earth for millions of years.
Published Origins of 'Welsh dragons' finally exposed by experts



A large fossil discovery has helped shed light on the history of dinosaurs in Wales.
Published Musankwa sanyatiensis, a new dinosaur from Zimbabwe



Fossils found on the shoreline of Lake Kariba in Zimbabwe represent a completely new dinosaur species. This remarkable find, named Musankwa sanyatiensis, marks only the fourth dinosaur species named from Zimbabwe.
Published Researchers create materials with unique combo of stiffness, thermal insulation



Researchers have demonstrated the ability to engineer materials that are both stiff and capable of insulating against heat. This combination of properties is extremely unusual and holds promise for a range of applications, such as the development of new thermal insulation coatings for electronic devices.
Published Bringing back an ancient bird



Using ancient DNA extracted from the toe bone of a museum specimen, biologists have sequenced the genome of an extinct, flightless bird called the little bush moa, shedding light into an unknown corner of avian genetic history. The work is the first complete genetic map of the turkey-sized bird whose distant living cousins include the ostrich, emu, and kiwi.
Published Performance of eco-friendly cooling applications enhanced



Researchers have developed a sustainable and controllable strategy to manipulate interfacial heat transfer, paving the way for improving the performance of eco-friendly cooling in various applications such as electronics, buildings and solar panels.
Published Florida fossil porcupine solves a prickly dilemma 10-million years in the making



An exceptionally rare fossilized porcupine skeleton discovered in Florida has allowed researchers to trace the evolutionary history for one of North America's rarest mammals.
Published Breakthrough discovery uses engineered surfaces to shed heat



Splash a few drops of water on a hot pan and if the pan is hot enough, the water will sizzle and the droplets of water seem to roll and float, hovering above the surface. The temperature at which this phenomenon, called the Leidenfrost effect, occurs is predictable, usually happening above 230 degrees Celsius. A team has now discovered a method to create the aquatic levitation at a much lower temperature.
Published Renewable grid: Recovering electricity from heat storage hits 44% efficiency



Closing in on the theoretical maximum efficiency, devices for turning heat into electricity are edging closer to being practical for use on the grid, according to new research.
Published Ancient people hunted extinct elephants at Tagua Tagua Lake in Chile 12,000 years ago



Thousands of years ago, early hunter-gatherers returned regularly to Tagua Tagua Lake in Chile to hunt ancient elephants and take advantage of other local resources, according to a new study.
Published 3,500-year-old Mycenaean armor was suitable for extended battle



A 3,500-year-old suit of Mycenaean armour may have been used in battle -- and not just for ceremonial purposes as previously thought -- new research reveals.
Published Strings that can vibrate forever (kind of)



Researchers have engineered string-like resonators capable of vibrating longer at ambient temperature than any previously known solid-state object -- approaching what is currently only achievable near absolute zero temperatures. Their study pushes the edge of nanotechnology and machine learning to make some of the world's most sensitive mechanical sensors.
Published New polystyrene recycling process could be world's first to be both economical and energy-efficient



Engineers have modeled a new way to recycle polystyrene that could become the first viable way of making the material reusable.
Published Researchers discover hidden step in dinosaur feather evolution



Scientists discover 'zoned development' in dinosaur skin, with zones of reptile-style scales and zones of bird-like skin with feathers. A new dinosaur skin fossil has been found to be composed of silica -- the same as glass.
Published Powering wearable devices with high-performing carbon nanotube yarns



Carbon nanotube (CNT) yarns are promising for flexible and fabric-type wearable materials that can convert waste heat into thermoelectricity. To improve the thermoelectric properties of CNT yarns, researchers dispersed CNT filaments in a highly viscous glycerol, enabling the production of CNT yarn with highly aligned bundles together with surfactants that prevent increased thermal conductivity. This innovative approach can significantly improve carbon nanotube-based thermoelectric materials, making it possible to power wearable devices using just body heat.
Published Evolutionary history of extinct duck revealed



The study's findings show mergansers arrived in the New Zealand region at least seven million years ago from the Northern Hemisphere, in a separate colonisation event to that which led to the Brazilian merganser.