Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Severe Weather
Published

Our favorite vintages and their precarious mountainside homes are at risk due to climate change, environmental scientists warn      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Tucked into the hillsides of Italy, Portugal, and Spain, some of the world's most famous -- and most difficult to maintain -- vineyards are heralded for their unique flavor profiles and centuries of tradition. But as extreme weather and changing socioeconomic conditions make this so-called 'heroic viticulture' even more challenging, scientists worry these grapes and their cultural histories are at risk. Researchers argue that farmers and scientists must work together to protect some of the world's most celebrated wines.

Engineering: Nanotechnology
Published

Analogous to algae: Scientists move toward engineering living matter by manipulating movement of microparticles      (via sciencedaily.com) 

A team of scientists has devised a system that replicates the movement of naturally occurring phenomena, such as hurricanes and algae, using laser beams and the spinning of microscopic rotors.

Engineering: Nanotechnology
Published

New material could hold key to reducing energy consumption in computers and electronics      (via sciencedaily.com) 

A University of Minnesota Twin Cities team has, for the first time, synthesized a thin film of a unique topological semimetal material that has the potential to generate more computing power and memory storage while using significantly less energy.

Engineering: Biometric Engineering: Nanotechnology
Published

Researchers visualize activity of CRISPR genetic scissors      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Scientists have developed a new method to measure the smallest twists and torques of molecules within milliseconds. The method makes it possible to track the gene recognition of CRISPR-Cas protein complexes, also known as 'genetic scissors', in real time and with the highest resolution. With the data obtained, the recognition process can be accurately characterized and modeled to improve the precision of the genetic scissors.

Engineering: Nanotechnology
Published

Towards crack-resistant nanoparticle-based latex films      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Synthetic latex films are widely used across many fields, but they usually contain harmful additives to enhance their strength. In a recent study, researchers have developed a new class of latex films composed of rotaxane-crosslinked acrylic nanoparticles. These films exhibit remarkable mechanical properties, including excellent crack-propagation resistance without any additives, and are easily recyclable, paving the way for more environmentally friendly materials.

Engineering: Nanotechnology
Published

Bound states in the continuum is possible in the acoustoelastic coupling      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Professor Junsuk Rho's research team at POSTECH reveals a physical phenomenon for vibration focusing and energy storage

Energy: Alternative Fuels Geoscience: Severe Weather Mathematics: Modeling
Published

Supercomputer used to simulate winds that cause clear air turbulence      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Using Japan's most powerful supercomputer, researchers reproduced cases of clear air turbulence around Tokyo. They simulated the fine vortices responsible for this dangerous phenomenon. The usefulness of the simulation in predicting turbulence was confirmed by comparing simulation data with data from aircraft recordings. This research should improve the forecasting of turbulence.

Engineering: Nanotechnology
Published

Making headway in precision therapeutics with novel fully organic bioelectronic device      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Researchers have announced that they have developed the first stand-alone, conformable, fully organic bioelectronic device that can not only acquire and transmit neurophysiologic brain signals, but can also provide power for device operation.

Engineering: Nanotechnology
Published

Light-activated molecular machines get cells 'talking'      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Scientists have used light-activated molecular machines to induce cell-to-cell calcium signaling, revealing a powerful new strategy for drug design. This technology could lead to improved treatments for people with heart problems, digestive issues and more.

Engineering: Nanotechnology Engineering: Robotics Research
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Chemists create the microspine with shape-transforming properties for targeted cargo delivery at microscale      (via sciencedaily.com) 

With the goal of advancing biomimetic microscale materials, the research team has developed a new method to create microscale superstructures, called MicroSpine, that possess both soft and hard materials which mimic the spine structure and can act as microactuators with shape-transforming properties. This breakthrough was achieved through colloidal assembly, a simple process in which nano- and microparticles spontaneously organize into ordered spatial patterns.

Engineering: Nanotechnology Physics: Quantum Computing
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Researchers grow precise arrays of nanoLEDs      (via sciencedaily.com) 

A new platform enables researchers to 'grow' halide perovskite nanocrystals with precise control over the location and size of each individual crystal, integrating them into nanoscale light-emitting diodes.

Geoscience: Severe Weather
Published

Marine heat waves caused mass seabird die-offs, beach surveys show      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

New research uses data collected by coastal residents along beaches from central California to Alaska to understand how seabirds have fared in recent decades. The paper shows that persistent marine heat waves lead to massive seabird die-offs months later.

Energy: Batteries Engineering: Nanotechnology
Published

Nanosheet technology developed to boost energy storage dielectric capacitors      (via sciencedaily.com) 

A research group has used nanosheet technology to develop a dielectric capacitor for advanced electronic and electrical power systems. Innovations in energy storage technology are vital for the effective use of renewable energy and the mass production of electric vehicles. The capacitor has the highest energy storage density recorded. It has a short charging time, high output, long life, and high temperature stability, making it a major advancement in technology.

Environmental: Wildfires Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Severe Weather
Published

Three things to know: Climate change's impact on extreme-weather events      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers found that the effects of climate change on the intensity, frequency, and duration of extreme weather events, like wildfires, could lead to massive increases in all three.

Geoscience: Severe Weather
Published

Birds raise fewer young when spring arrives earlier in a warming world      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new study of North American songbirds finds that birds can't keep up with the earlier arrival of spring caused by climate change. As a result, they're raising fewer young. By the end of the 21st century, climate change will cause springlike weather to begin 25 days earlier, but birds will only breed about seven days earlier. That change could lead to an average reduction of 12% in breeding productivity for songbird species.

Engineering: Nanotechnology
Published

Chemists discover why photosynthetic light-harvesting is so efficient      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Chemists have measured the energy transfer between photosynthetic light-harvesting proteins. They discovered that the disorganized arrangement of light-harvesting proteins boosts the efficiency of the energy transduction.

Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Severe Weather Paleontology: Climate
Published

New study reveals abrupt shift in tropical Pacific climate during Little Ice Age      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

An El Niño event has officially begun. The climate phenomenon, which originates in the tropical Pacific and occurs in intervals of a few years will shape weather across the planet for the next year or more and give rise to various climatic extremes. El Niño-like conditions can also occur on longer time scales of decades or centuries. This has been shown to have occurred in the recent past.

Energy: Alternative Fuels Geoscience: Severe Weather
Published

Scientists propose new strategy for modern sails to help shipping sector meet its carbon reduction goals      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have identified a strategy that can offset the random and unpredictable nature of weather conditions that threaten carbon emission reduction efforts in the shipping sector.

Engineering: Nanotechnology
Published

Researchers demonstrate single-molecule electronic 'switch' using ladder-like molecules      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have demonstrated a new material for single-molecule electronic switches, which can effectively vary current at the nanoscale in response to external stimuli. The material for this molecular switch has a unique structure created by locking a linear molecular backbone into a ladder-type structure. A new study finds that the ladder-type molecular structure greatly enhances the stability of the material, making it highly promising for use in single-molecule electronics applications.

Engineering: Nanotechnology
Published

Chemists develop new method to create chiral structures      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

In trying to produce artificial chirality in the lab, chemists have found that the distribution of a magnetic field is itself chiral.