Showing 20 articles starting at article 281
< Previous 20 articles Next 20 articles >
Categories: Anthropology: General, Energy: Batteries
Published Ritual use of human remains dating from the Neolithic



An international study has documented post-mortem bone modifications not linked to consumption.
Published One-atom-thick ribbons could improve batteries, solar cells and sensors


Researchers created nanoribbons made of phosphorus and tiny amounts of arsenic, which they found were able to conduct electricity at temperatures above -140 degrees Celsius, while retaining the highly useful properties of the phosphorus-only ribbons.
Published Sustainable energy for aviation: What are our options?


Scientists and industry leaders worldwide are looking for answers on how to make aviation sustainable by 2050 and choosing a viable sustainable fuel is a major sticking point. Aerospace engineers took a full inventory of the options to make a data-driven assessment about how they stack up in comparison. He reviewed over 300 research projects from across different sectors, not just aerospace, to synthesize the ideas and draw conclusions to help direct the dialogue about sustainable aviation toward a permanent solution.
Published Ancient Amazonians intentionally created fertile 'dark earth'



A new study suggests patches of fertile soil in the Amazon, known as dark earth, were intentionally produced by ancient Amazonians as a way to improve the soil and sustain large and complex societies.
Published Archaeologists discover world's oldest wooden structure



Half a million years ago, earlier than was previously thought possible, humans were building structures made of wood, according to new research.
Published Slow growth in crocodile ancestors pre-dated their semi-aquatic lifestyle



A groundbreaking study is reshaping our understanding of crocodile evolution by pinpointing the onset of slow growth rates to the Late Triassic period, much earlier than the previously assumed Early Jurassic timeline. The research highlights newly discovered fossil crocodile ancestors (known as crocodylomorphs) that exhibited slow growth rates, similar to modern-day crocodilians. Intriguingly, these early crocodylomorphs were not the lethargic, semi-aquatic creatures we are familiar with today; they were small, active, and fully terrestrial. The study also suggests that this slow-growth strategy was not a mere evolutionary quirk but a survival mechanism, as only the slow-growing crocodylomorphs managed to survive the End-Triassic mass extinction. This stands in stark contrast to the fast-growing dinosaurs of the same era, setting the stage for the divergent evolutionary paths that would later define their modern descendants.
Published Prehistoric fish fills 100 million year gap in evolution of the skull



X-rays of an ancient jawless fish shows earliest-known example of internal cartilage skull, unlike that of any other known vertebrate.
Published Researchers offer insights into solid-electrolyte interphases in next-gen aqueous potassium-ion batteries


Aqueous potassium-ion batteries are a promising alternative to lithium-ion batteries owing to their safety and low cost. However, not much is known about the properties of the solid-electrolyte interphases (SEI) that form between the electrode and the aqueous electrolyte. To address this knowledge gap, researchers from Japan have now conducted a study using advanced scanning electrochemical microscopy and operando electrochemical mass spectrometry. Their findings provide a deeper understanding of SEI in next-generation batteries.
Published Tiny sea creatures reveal the ancient origins of neurons



A new study sheds new light on the origins of modern brain cells. Researchers find evidence that specialized secretory cells found in placozoans, tiny sea creatures the size of a grain of sand, have many similarities to the neuron, such as the genes required to create a partial synapse. From an evolutionary point of view, early neurons might have started as something like these cells, eventually gaining the ability to create a complete synapse, form axons and dendrites and create ion channels that generate fast electrical signals -- innovations which gave rise to the neuron in more complex animals such as jellyfish. Though the complete story of how the first neuron appeared remains to be told, the study demonstrates that the basic building blocks for our brain cells were forming in the ancestors of placozoans grazing inconspicuously in the shallow seas of Earth around 800 million years ago.
Published Buried ancient Roman glass formed substance with modern applications



Researchers discover how molecules in ancient glass rearrange and recombine with minerals over centuries to form a patina of photonic crystals -- ordered arrangements of atoms that filter and reflect light in very specific ways -- an analog of materials used in communications, lasers and solar cells.
Published Pixel-by-pixel analysis yields insights into lithium-ion batteries


By mining X-ray images, researchers have made significant new discoveries about the reactivity of lithium iron phosphate, a material used in batteries for electric cars and in other rechargeable batteries.
Published Charging ahead: New electrolyte goes extra mile for faster EV charging


Researchers are taking fast charging for electric vehicles, or EVs, to new extremes.
Published Study links epigenetic changes to historic trauma in Alaska Native communities



Researchers investigated the relationship between historical traumatic events experienced by Alaska Native communities and epigenetic markers on genes that previous studies have linked to trauma. The new study found a similar pattern among Alaska Native participants, with specific epigenetic differences observed in those who reported experiencing the most intense symptoms of distress when reflecting on historic losses.
Published St Helena's 'liberated' Africans came from West Central Africa between northern Angola and Gabon



Between 1840 and 1867, thousands of enslaved Africans who had been 'liberated' from slave ships intercepted by the British Royal Navy were taken to the South Atlantic island of St Helena. But little is written in history books or otherwise known about the lives of these individuals. Now, ancient DNA analyses offer the first direct evidence for the origins of St Helena's liberated Africans.
Published 'Monstrous births' and the making of race in the nineteenth-century United States



From the Middle Ages to the Enlightenment, 'monstrous births' -- malformed or anomalous fetuses -- were, to Western medicine, an object of superstition. In 19th-century America, they became instead an object of the 'modern scientific study of monstrosity,' a field formalized by French scientist Isidore Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire. This clinical turn was positioned against the backdrop of social, political, and economic activity that codified laws governing slavery, citizenship, immigration, family, wealth, and access to resources.
Published Scientists develop new method to recover high-purity silicon from expired solar panels for upcycling into lithium-ion batteries


Scientists have devised an efficient method of recovering high-purity silicon from expired solar panels to produce lithium-ion batteries that could help meet the increasing global demand to power electric vehicles.
Published New battery holds promise for green energy


A chemist envisions a future where every house is powered by renewable energy stored in batteries. He has created a new battery that could have profound implications for the large-scale energy storage needed by wind and solar farms.
Published Human shoulders and elbows first evolved as brakes for climbing apes



Researchers report that the flexible shoulders and elbows that allow us to throw a football or reach a high shelf may have evolved as a natural braking system that let our primate ancestors get out of trees without dying. The researchers used sports-analysis software to compare the climbing movements of chimpanzees and small monkeys called mangabeys. While the animals climb up trees similarly, the researchers found that the shallow, rounded shoulder joints and shortened elbow bones that chimps have -- similar to humans -- allow them to fully extend their arms above their heads when climbing down, holding onto branches like a person going down a ladder to support their greater weight. When early humans left forests for the grassy savanna, these versatile appendages would have been essential for gathering food and using tools for hunting and defense. The findings are among the first to identify the significance of 'downclimbing' in the evolution of apes and early humans.
Published Pioneering research sheds surprising new light on evolution of plant kingdom



A new study has uncovered intriguing insights into the evolution of plant biology, effectively rewriting the history of how they evolved over the past billion years.
Published Efficient and mild: Recycling of used lithium-ion batteries


Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) provide our portable devices like tablets and mobiles -- and increasingly also vehicles -- with power. As the share of volatile renewable energy needing electricity storage increases, more and more LIBs are needed, lithium prices rise, resources dwindle, and the amount of depleted batteries that contain toxic substances increases. Researchers introduce a novel approach for the recovery of lithium from used LIBs.