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Published

With new experimental method, researchers probe spin structure in 2D materials for first time      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

In the study, a team of researchers describe what they believe to be the first measurement showing direct interaction between electrons spinning in a 2D material and photons coming from microwave radiation.

Biology: General Biology: Marine Biology: Zoology Ecology: Sea Life Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals Paleontology: Dinosaurs Paleontology: General
Published

Giants of the Jurassic seas were twice the size of a killer whale      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

There have been heated debates over the size of Jurassic animals. The speculation was set to continue, but now a chance discovery in an Oxfordshire museum has led to palaeontologists publishing a paper on a Jurassic species potentially reaching a whopping 14.4 meters -- twice the size of a killer whale.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: General Offbeat: Earth and Climate Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

A jumping conclusion: Fossil insect ID'd as new genus, species of prodigious leaper, the froghopper      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A fossil arthropod entombed in 100-million-year-old Burmese amber has been identified as a new genus and species of froghopper, known today as an insect with prodigious leaping ability in adulthood following a nymphal stage spent covered in a frothy fluid.

Anthropology: Cultures Anthropology: Early Humans Anthropology: General Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology
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Nose shape gene inherited from Neanderthals      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Humans inherited genetic material from Neanderthals that affects the shape of our noses, finds a new study.

Computer Science: Quantum Computers Engineering: Graphene Physics: General Physics: Quantum Computing Physics: Quantum Physics
Published

Symmetric graphene quantum dots for future qubits      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Quantum dots in semiconductors such as silicon or gallium arsenide have long been considered hot candidates for hosting quantum bits in future quantum processors. Scientists have now shown that bilayer graphene has even more to offer here than other materials. The double quantum dots they have created are characterized by a nearly perfect electron-hole-symmetry that allows a robust read-out mechanism -- one of the necessary criteria for quantum computing.

Anthropology: Cultures Anthropology: Early Humans Anthropology: General Archaeology: General Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals Paleontology: Fossils
Published

Scientists recover an ancient woman's DNA from a 20,000-year-old pendant      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

An international research team has for the first time successfully isolated ancient human DNA from a Paleolithic artefact: a pierced deer tooth discovered in Denisova Cave in southern Siberia. To preserve the integrity of the artefact, they developed a new, nondestructive method for isolating DNA from ancient bones and teeth. From the DNA retrieved they were able to reconstruct a precise genetic profile of the woman who used or wore the pendant, as well as of the deer from which the tooth was taken. Genetic dates obtained for the DNA from both the woman and the deer show that the pendant was made between 19,000 and 25,000 years ago. The tooth remains fully intact after analysis, providing testimony to a new era in ancient DNA research, in which it may become possible to directly identify the users of ornaments and tools produced in the deep past.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Zoology Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals Paleontology: Early Mammals and Birds Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

New tusk-analysis techniques reveal surging testosterone in male woolly mammoths      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Traces of sex hormones extracted from a woolly mammoth's tusk provide the first direct evidence that adult males experienced musth, a testosterone-driven episode of heightened aggression against rival males, according to a new study.

Energy: Batteries Engineering: Graphene
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Researchers design battery prototype with fiber-shaped cathode      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

In a new study, researchers made a cathode, or the positive end of a battery, in the shape of a thread-like fiber. The researchers were then able to use the fiber to create a zinc-ion battery prototype that could power a wrist watch.

Chemistry: General Chemistry: Organic Chemistry Energy: Alternative Fuels Engineering: Graphene Environmental: General Geoscience: Geochemistry Physics: Optics
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New findings pave the way for stable organic solar cells that may enable cheap and renewable electricity generation      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Organic solar cells show great promise for clean energy applications. However, photovoltaic modules made from organic semiconductors do not maintain their efficiency for long enough under sunlight for real world applications. Scientists have now revealed an important reason why organic solar cells rapidly degrade under operation. This new insight will drive the design of more stale materials for organic semiconductor-based photovoltaics, thus enabling cheap and renewable electricity generation.

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

X-ray analysis sheds new light on prehistoric predator's last meal      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

We now know more about the diet of a prehistoric creature that grew up to two and a half meters long and lived in Australian waters during the time of the dinosaurs, thanks to the power of x-rays. Researchers used micro-CT scans to peer inside the fossilized stomach remains of a small marine reptile -- a plesiosaur nicknamed 'Eric' after a song from the comedy group Monty Python -- to determine what the creature ate in the lead up to its death.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Engineering: Graphene
Published

Graphene 'tattoo' treats cardiac arrhythmia with light      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have developed the first cardiac implant made from graphene, a two-dimensional super material with ultra-strong, lightweight and conductive properties. Similar in appearance to a child's temporary tattoo, the new graphene 'tattoo' implant is thinner than a single strand of hair yet still functions like a classical pacemaker.

Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Engineering: Graphene Engineering: Nanotechnology Physics: General Physics: Quantum Computing Physics: Quantum Physics
Published

Physicists discover transformable nano-scale electronic devices      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The nano-scale electronic parts in devices like smartphones are solid, static objects that once designed and built cannot transform into anything else. But physicists have reported the discovery of nano-scale devices that can transform into many different shapes and sizes even though they exist in solid states.

Biology: General Biology: Zoology Offbeat: Earth and Climate Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
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New details of Tully monster revealed      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

For more than half a century, the Tully monster (Tullimonstrum gregarium), an enigmatic animal that lived about 300 million years ago, has confounded paleontologists, with its strange anatomy making it difficult to classify. Recently, a group of researchers proposed a hypothesis that Tullimonstrum was a vertebrate similar to cyclostomes (jawless fish like lamprey and hagfish). If it was, then the Tully monster would potentially fill a gap in the evolutionary history of early vertebrates. Studies so far have both supported and rejected this hypothesis. Now, using 3D imaging technology, a team in Japan believes it has found the answer after uncovering detailed characteristics of the Tully monster which strongly suggest that it was not a vertebrate. However, its exact classification and what type of invertebrate it was is still to be decided.

Engineering: Graphene Offbeat: General
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Wonder material graphene claims yet another superlative      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers report record-high magnetoresistance that appears in graphene under ambient conditions.

Computer Science: General Engineering: Graphene Engineering: Nanotechnology Environmental: General Environmental: Water Geoscience: Environmental Issues
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Fully recyclable printed electronics ditch toxic chemicals for water      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Engineers have produced fully recyclable printed electronics that replace the use of chemicals with water in the fabrication process. By bypassing the need for hazardous chemicals, the demonstration points down a path industry could follow to reduce its environmental footprint and human health risks.

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

Discovery of ferroelectricity in an elementary substance      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have discovered a new single-element ferroelectric material that alters the current understanding of conventional ferroelectric materials and has future applications in data storage devices.

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How were amino acids, one of the key building blocks of life, formed before the origin of life on Earth?      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The amino acid abundances of two Ryugu particles were measured and compared with their rocky components. The results demonstrate the important role that water plays in the formation of amino acids on the giant precursors of asteroids like Ryugu. Our solar system formed from a molecular cloud, which was composed of gas and dust that was emitted into the interstellar medium (ISM), a vast space between stars. On collapse of the molecular cloud, the early sun was formed, with a large disk of gas and dust orbiting it. The dusty material collided to produce rocky material that would eventually grow in size to give large bodies called planetesimals.