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Categories: Engineering: Nanotechnology, 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.
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.
Published Earth's first animals had particular taste in real estate
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Even without body parts that allowed for movement, new research shows -- for the first time -- that some of Earth's earliest animals managed to be picky about where they lived.
Published 'Super-resolution' imaging technology
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers describe developing a super-resolution imaging platform technology to improve understanding of how nanoparticles interact within cells.
Published Leaky-wave metasurfaces: A perfect interface between free-space and integrated optical systems
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers have developed a new class of integrated photonic devices -- 'leaky-wave metasurfaces' -- that convert light initially confined in an optical waveguide to an arbitrary optical pattern in free space. These are the first to demonstrate simultaneous control of all four optical degrees of freedom. Because they're so thin, transparent, and compatible with photonic integrated circuits, they can be used to improve optical displays, LIDAR, optical communications, and quantum optics.
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.
Published Engineers tap into good vibrations to power the Internet of Things
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source In a world hungry for clean energy, engineers have created a new material that converts the simple mechanical vibrations all around us into electricity to power sensors in everything from pacemakers to spacecraft.
Published 'Golden' fossils reveal origins of exceptional preservation
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A recent study found that many of the fossils from Germany's Posidonia shale do not get their gleam from pyrite, commonly known as fool's gold, which was long thought to be the source of the shine. Instead, the golden hue is from a mix of minerals that hints at the conditions in which the fossils formed. The discovery is important for understanding how the fossils -- which are among the world's best-preserved specimens of sea life from the Early Jurassic -- came to form in the first place, and the role that oxygen in the environment had in their formation.
Published A touch-responsive fabric armband -- for flexible keyboards, wearable sketchpads
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source It's time to roll up your sleeves for the next advance in wearable technology -- a fabric armband that's actually a touch pad. Researchers say they have devised a way to make playing video games, sketching cartoons and signing documents easier. Their proof-of-concept silk armband turns a person's forearm into a keyboard or sketchpad. The three-layer, touch-responsive material interprets what a user draws or types and converts it into images on a computer.
Published Self-folding origami machines powered by chemical reaction
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Scientists have harnessed chemical reactions to make microscale origami machines self-fold -- freeing them from the liquids in which they usually function, so they can operate in dry environments and at room temperature.
Published Fossil find in California shakes up the natural history of cycad plants
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source According to researchers, a new analysis of an 80-million-year-old permineralized pollen cone found in the Campanian Holz Shale formation located in Silverado Canyon, California, offers a more accurate cycad natural history -- one where the plants diversified during the Cretaceous.
Published Toys demonstrate how biological machines move
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source By connecting small self-propelling toys in a chain, researchers have found the key to studying the movement of microscopic organisms and molecular motors inside our cells.
Published New research redefines mammalian tree of life
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Scientists from around the globe are using the largest mammalian genomic dataset in history to determine the evolutionary history of the human genome in the context of mammalian evolutionary history. Their ultimate goal is to better identify the genetic basis for traits and diseases in people and other species.
Published Engineers 'grow' atomically thin transistors on top of computer chips
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A new method enables 2D-material semiconductor transistors to be directly integrated onto a fully fabricated 8-inch silicon wafer, which could enable a new generation of transistor technology, denser device integration, new circuit architectures, and more powerful chips.
Published Ecosystem evolution in Africa
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source New research pushes back the oldest evidence of C4 grass-dominated habitats in Africa -- and globally -- by more than 10 million years, with important implications for primate evolution and the origins of tropical C4 grasslands and savanna ecosystems across the African continent and around the world.
Published How spheres become worms
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A previously unknown form of hydrogel formation has been elucidated: chemists found unusual interactions between polymers.
Published Prehistoric scat reveals 'Waves' of extinction in Colombia
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Fungal spores found in dung have revealed that large animals went extinct in two 'waves' in the Colombian Andes.
Published Nifty nanoparticles help 'peel back the curtain' into the world of super small things
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Physicists are using nanoparticles to develop new sources of light that will allow us to 'peel back the curtain' into the world of extremely small objects -- thousands of times smaller than a human hair -- with major gains for medical and other technologies.
Published A simple paper test could offer early cancer diagnosis
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Engineers designed a nanoparticle sensor that could enable early diagnosis of cancer with a simple urine test. The sensors, which can detect many cancerous proteins, could also be used to distinguish the type of a tumor or how it is responding to treatment.
Published 'BeerBots' could speed up the brewing process
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Craft brewers are continuously upping the ante and coming up with innovative ways to make or flavor their newest beers. Now, researchers are adding a new twist of their own, speeding up the brewing process with beer-making mini-robots or 'BeerBots.' The team shows that these self-propelled, magnetic packages of yeast can make the fermentation phase go faster and cut out the need to filter the beverage.