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Categories: Engineering: Biometric, Geoscience: Geochemistry

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Plants use photosynthesis to harvest energy from sunlight. Now researchers have applied this principle as the basis for developing new sustainable processes which in the future may produce syngas (synthetic gas) for the large-scale chemical industry and be able to charge batteries.

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Researchers from the fields of healthcare, ocean science, and social science have collaborated to quantify plastic's considerable risks to all life on Earth. The Minderoo-Monaco Commission on Plastics and Human Health report presents a comprehensive analysis showing plastics as a hazard at every stage of their life cycle.

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A recent study that examined the relationship between artificial intelligence (AI) and law enforcement underscores both the need for law enforcement agencies to be involved in the development of public policies regarding AI -- such as regulations governing autonomous vehicles -- and the need for law enforcement officers to better understand the limitations and ethical challenges of AI technologies.

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A team has experimentally confirmed that nitrate, a compound common in fertilizers and animal waste, can help transport naturally occurring uranium from the underground to groundwater. The new research backs a previous study showing that aquifers contaminated with high levels of nitrate -- including the High Plains Aquifer residing beneath Nebraska -- also contain uranium concentrations far exceeding a threshold set by the Environmental Protection Agency. Uranium concentrations above that EPA threshold have been shown to cause kidney damage in humans, especially when regularly consumed via drinking water.

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Increases in mortality among Douglas-fir in the Klamath Mountains are the result of multiple factors that have the iconic tree in a 'decline spiral' in parts of the region.

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Fewer parasites in U.S. waters might be seen by many as a good thing, but a biologist says the trend signals potential danger for fish and other wildlife.

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Researchers found they could separate blended cotton and polyester fabric using enzymes -- nature's tools for speeding chemical reactions. Ultimately, they hope their findings will lead to a more efficient way to recycle the fabric's component materials, thereby reducing textile waste.

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A new study explores a record of birds' diets preserved in their feathers and radio tracking of their movements to find that birds eat far fewer invertebrates in coffee plantations than in forests, suggesting that the disturbance of their ecosystem significantly impacts the birds' dietary options.

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Researchers show that rivers in the Andean mountains contribute 35% and 72% of riverine emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2 ) and methane (CH4 ) in the Amazon basin, the world's largest river.

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New research has looked at the long-term environmental impact of different methods to control Japanese knotweed. Different ways of trying to control the invasive species have developed over the years but now, as sustainability becomes increasingly important, understanding the effect of these management methods is vital.This new study examines at the entire life cycle and long-term impacts of different management approaches.

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Leading edge technology has uncovered secrets about a world-renowned fossil hoard that could offer vital clues about early life on Earth. Researchers who analyzed the 400 million-year-old cache, found in rural north-east Scotland, say their findings reveal better preservation of the fossils at a molecular level than was previously anticipated.

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A research team has developed a crocodile-skin-inspired omnidirectionally stretchable pressure sensor.

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Researchers have reported a novel method of harvesting water from naturally occurring sources such as fog and dew.

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A pioneering global study has found deforestation and forests lost or damaged due to human and environmental change, such as fire and logging, are fast outstripping current rates of forest regrowth.

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In a step forward for genetic engineering and synthetic biology, researchers have modified a strain of Escherichia coli bacteria to be immune to natural viral infections while also minimizing the potential for the bacteria or their modified genes to escape into the wild.

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A research team demonstrates that increased levels of ozone resulting from anthropogenic air pollution can degrade insect sex pheromones, which are crucial mating signals, and thus prevent successful reproduction. The oxidizing effect of ozone causes the carbon-carbon double bonds found in the molecules of many insect pheromones to break down. Therefore, the specific chemical mating signal is rendered dysfunctional. The researchers show this effect in the vinegar fly Drosophila melanogaster and nine other species of the genus Drosophila. Most remarkably, the disrupted sexual communication also led to male flies exhibiting unusual mating behavior towards ozonated males of their own species.

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With the aid of some sea slugs, chemists have discovered that one of the smallest conceivable tweaks to a biomolecule can elicit one of the grandest conceivable consequences: directing the activation of neurons. The team has shown that the orientation of a single amino acid -- in this case, one of dozens found in the neuropeptide of a sea slug -- can dictate the likelihood that the peptide activates one neuron receptor versus another. Because different types of receptors are responsible for different neuronal activities, the finding points to another means by which a brain or nervous system can regulate the labyrinthine, life-sustaining communication among its cells.

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Extremely long tail provides structural window into how bacteria-infecting viruses called phages assemble.

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Practical carbon capture technologies are still in the early stages of development, with the most promising involving a class of compounds called amines that can chemically bind with carbon dioxide. Researchers now deploy an algorithm to study amine reactions through quantum computing. An existing quantum computer cab run the algorithm to find useful amine compounds for carbon capture more quickly, analyzing larger molecules and more complex reactions than a traditional computer can.

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The agriculture industry is under pressure to adopt sustainable and precise agricultural practices that enable more efficient use of resources due to worsening environmental conditions resulting from climate change, an ever-expanding human population, limited resources, and a shortage of arable land. As a result, developing delivery systems that efficiently distribute micronutrients, pesticides, and antibiotics in crops is crucial to ensuring high productivity and high-quality produce while minimising resource waste. However, current and standard practices for agrochemical application in plants are inefficient. These practices cause significant detrimental environmental side effects, such as water and soil contamination, biodiversity loss and degraded ecosystems; and public health concerns, such as respiratory problems, chemical exposure and food contamination.