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Categories: Ecology: Trees, Engineering: Nanotechnology
Published New tomato, potato family tree shows that fruit color and size evolved together
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A new family tree of the plant genus Solanum helps explain the striking diversity of their fruit color and size. This genus includes tomatoes, potatoes, eggplants, and other economically important plants.
Published Wild chimpanzees seek out medicinal plants to treat illness and injuries
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Chimpanzees appear to consume plants with medicinal properties to treat their ailments, according to a new study.
Published Wooden surfaces may have natural antiviral properties
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Viruses, including the coronavirus that causes COVID-19, can get passed from person to person via contaminated surfaces. But can some surfaces reduce the risk of this type of transmission without the help of household disinfectants? Wood has natural antiviral properties that can reduce the time viruses persist on its surface -- and some species of wood are more effective than others at reducing infectivity.
Published Researchers film energy materials as they form
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Shooting a movie in the lab requires special equipment. Especially when the actors are molecules -- invisible to the naked eye -- reacting with each other. 'Imagine trying to film tiny lava flows during a volcanic eruption. Your smartphone camera wouldn't be up to the job.
Published Novel method for measuring nano/microplastic concentrations in soil using spectroscopy
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Current techniques for measuring nano/microplastic (N/MP) concentrations in soil require the soil organic matter content to be separated and have limited resolution for analyzing N/MPs sized <1 m. Therefore, researchers have developed a novel yet simple method to measure N/MP concentration in different soil types using spectroscopy at two wavelengths. This method does not require the soil to be separated in order to detect the N/MPs and can accurately quantify N/MPs regardless of their size.
Published Golden ball mills as green catalysts
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A gold-coated milling vessel for ball mills proved to be a real marvel: without any solvents or environmentally harmful chemicals, the team was able to use it to convert alcohols into aldehydes. The catalytic reaction takes place at the gold surface and is mechanically driven. The vessel can be reused multiple times. 'This opens up new prospects for the use of gold in catalysis and shows how traditional materials can contribute to solving modern environmental problems in an innovative way,' says Borchardt.
Published Nano-immunotherapy developed to improve lung cancer treatment
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers have developed a new nanomedicine therapy that delivers anticancer drugs to lung cancer cells and enhances the immune system's ability to fight cancer. The team showed promising results for the new therapy in cancer cells in the lab and in mouse lung tumor models, with potential applications for improving care and outcomes for patients with tumors that have failed to respond to traditional immunotherapy.
Published Self-assembling and disassembling swarm molecular robots via DNA molecular controller
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers have succeeded in developing a DNA-based molecular controller. Crucially, this controller enables the autonomous assembly and disassembly of molecular robots, as opposed to manually directing it.
Published Paleontology: New fossil fish genus discovered
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Paleontologists have identified a new genus of fossil goby, revealing evolutionary secrets of a lineage that stretches back millions of years.
Published Nanosized blocks spontaneously assemble in water to create tiny floating checkerboards
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers have engineered nanosized cubes that spontaneously form a two-dimensional checkerboard pattern when dropped on the surface of water. The work presents a simple approach to create complex nanostructures through a technique called self-assembly.
Published New way to spot beetle-killed spruce can help forest, wildfire managers
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A new machine-learning system can automatically produce detailed maps from satellite data to show locations of likely beetle-killed spruce trees in Alaska, even in forests of low and moderate infestation where identification is otherwise difficult. The automated process can help forestry and wildfire managers in their decisions. That's critical as the beetle infestation spreads.
Published Swimming microrobots deliver cancer-fighting drugs to metastatic lung tumors in mice
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Engineers have developed microscopic robots, known as microrobots, capable of swimming through the lungs to deliver cancer-fighting medication directly to metastatic tumors. This approach has shown promise in mice, where it inhibited the growth and spread of tumors that had metastasized to the lungs, thereby boosting survival rates compared to control treatments.
Published Quantum dots and metasurfaces: Deep connections in the nano world
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A team has developed printable, highly efficient light-emitting metasurfaces.
Published Uncovering the nature of emergent magnetic monopoles
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source To understand the unique physical phenomena associated with the properties of magnetic hedgehogs and antihedgehogs, which behave as virtual magnetic monopoles and antimonopoles respectively, it is essential to study their intrinsic excitations. In a new study, researchers revealed the dynamical nature of collective excitation modes in hedgehog lattices in itinerant chiral magnets. Their findings serve as the foundation for studying the dynamics of emergent magnetic monopoles in magnets.
Published Early life exposure to weed pollen could increase childhood asthma risk
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A study has found children who are exposed to tree and weed pollen in urban environments are at increased risk of respiratory health problems, including asthma. While green areas in urban settings decrease exposure to air pollution, allow kids to be active, and offer positive contact to a diverse microbiota -- which in turn may help the positive development of a child's immune system -- they can also lead to the development of childhood asthma. Thankfully, trees can help mitigate this effect to some degree, thanks to their canopy.
Published Splitting hairs: Science of biomechanics to understand of bad hair days
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Academics are often accused of 'splitting hairs', but a team has now devised a machine to do just that. We all have a bad hair day from time to time, and split ends are a common problem. However, the science behind this kind of hair damage is poorly understood, which is why scientists are investigating this knotty problem.
Published Nanoparticles: Risk for babies in the womb
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Little is yet known about the health effects of nanoparticles on pregnancy. An interdisciplinary team is currently analyzing the risks for babies in the womb. Using a lab model, the researchers were able to determine that certain nanoparticles impair the release of chemical messengers in the placenta and thus the formation of blood vessels.
Published Better farming through nanotechnology
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Advanced technologies enable the controlled release of medicine to specific cells in the body. Scientists argue these same technologies must be applied to agriculture if growers are to meet increasing global food demands.
Published Crystal engineering modifies 2D metal halide perovskites into 1D nanowires
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Engineers have created a patent-pending method that creates layered perovskite nanowires with exceptionally well-defined and flexible cavities that exhibit a wide range of unusual optical properties beyond conventional perovskites.
Published Tropical forests adjust strategies to thrive even when soils are nutrient poor
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Tropical forests store a third of the world's carbon in their wood and soils. However, their future as a carbon sink has been uncertain. Scientists have long wondered whether nutrient-poor tropical soils would limit the ability of mature and recovering forests to thrive. A study offers a hopeful response, suggesting that forests have flexible strategies that help them overcome the challenge of scarce nutrients.