Showing 20 articles starting at article 621
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Categories: Biology: Botany, Energy: Technology
Published Gene required for root hair growth, nitrate foraging found in grasses
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Scientists have found a plant gene that drives the growth of root hairs, the tiny structures that help plants find water and nutrients in the soil. The gene, dubbed 'BUZZ,' causes faster-growing, denser webs of roots and may also determine how plants find and use nitrates, a prime source of nitrogen essential to plant growth. Nitrates are also used in fertilizers that can pollute the environment as runoff, and this genetic discovery could ultimately help plant scientists find ways to grow crops more sustainably.
Published Combustion powers bug-sized robots to leap, lift and race
(via sciencedaily.com) Researchers combined soft microactuators with high-energy-density chemical fuel to create an insect-scale quadrupedal robot that is powered by combustion and can outrace, outlift, outflex and outleap its electric-driven competitors.
Published Cheap and efficient catalyst could boost renewable energy storage
(via sciencedaily.com) Storing renewable energy as hydrogen could soon become much easier thanks to a new catalyst based on single atoms of platinum.
Published Engineers grow full wafers of high-performing 2D semiconductor that integrates with state-of-the-art chips
(via sciencedaily.com) Researchers have grown a high-performing 2D semiconductor to a full-size, industrial-scale wafer. In addition, the semiconductor material, indium selenide (InSe), can be deposited at temperatures low enough to integrate with a silicon chip.
Published How wind turbines react to turbulence
(via sciencedaily.com) The output of wind turbines can rise or fall by 50 per cent in a matter of seconds. Such fluctuations in the megawatt range put a strain on both power grids and the turbines themselves. A new study presents a new stochastic method that could help to mitigate these sudden swings and achieve a more consistent electricity production.
Published Predictive model could improve hydrogen station availability
(via sciencedaily.com) Consumer confidence in driving hydrogen-fueled vehicles could be improved by having station operators adopt a predictive model that helps them anticipate maintenance needs, according to researchers.
Published Canopy gaps help eastern hemlock outlast invasive insect
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Creating physical gaps in the forest canopy give eastern hemlocks more access to resources and help those trees withstand infestation by an invasive insect.
Published Tracking down the formation of cardenolides in plants
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Scientists are investigating the previously largely unknown biosynthetic pathway that leads to the formation of cardenolides in plants. In a new study, they present two enzymes from the CYP87A family as key enzymes that catalyze the formation of pregnenolone, the precursor for the biosynthesis of plant steroids, in two different plant families. The discovery of such enzymes should help to develop platforms for the cheap and sustainable production of high quality steroid compounds for medical use.
Published Golden future for thermoelectrics
(via sciencedaily.com) Researchers discover excellent thermoelectric properties of nickel-gold alloys. These can be used to efficiently convert heat into electrical energy.
Published Mitochondrial genome editing technique yields useful traits
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Tweaks to the mitochondrial genome hold the potential for better hybrid seed production or to introduce seedless fruits.
Published Study shows replanting logged forests with diverse mixtures of seedlings accelerates restoration
(via sciencedaily.com) • Twenty-year experiment finds that active replanting beats natural recovery for restoring logged tropical forests. • The higher the diversity of replanted tree species, the more quickly canopy area and biomass recovered. • Results emphasize the importance of preserving biodiversity in pristine forests and restoring it in recovering logged forest.
Published Pollination by more than one bee species improves cherry harvest
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source To obtain the biggest cherry harvest, trees should be pollinated by both honey bees and mason bees. This new study shows yet another benefit of biodiversity.
Published Researchers make strides in harnessing low-grade heat for efficient energy conversion
(via sciencedaily.com) A research team has achieved significant breakthroughs in harnessing low-grade heat sources (<100 °C) for efficient energy conversion.
Published Battery-free robots use origami to change shape in mid-air
(via sciencedaily.com) Researchers have developed small robotic devices that can change how they move through the air by 'snapping' into a folded position during their descent. Each device has an onboard battery-free actuator, a solar power-harvesting circuit and controller to trigger these shape changes in mid-air.
Published Electrifying vehicles in Chicago would save lives, reduce pollution inequities
(via sciencedaily.com) If the Chicago region replaced 30% of all on-road combustion-engine vehicles -- including motorcycles, passenger cars and trucks, buses, refuse trucks and short- and long-haul trucks -- with electric versions, it would annually save more than 1,000 lives and over $10 billion, according to a new study.
Published Mysterious family of microbial proteins hijack crops' cellular plumbing
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Some crop pathogens use a clever trick to multiply and spread infection: they hijack the plant's cellular plumbing. In a new study, researchers unveil a class of bacterial proteins that fold into a straw-like shape and insert themselves into the plant cell membrane, allowing the inside of the leaf to become waterlogged. The researchers also figured out a possible way to block the water channel proteins and prevent infection.
Published Nature's great survivors: Flowering plants survived the mass extinction that killed the dinosaurs
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A new study by researchers from the University of Bath (UK) and Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (Mexico) shows that flowering plants escaped relatively unscathed from the mass extinction that killed the dinosaurs 66 million years ago. Whilst they suffered some species loss, the devastating event helped flowering plants become the dominant type of plant today.
Published Disease-resistant rice and wheat plants may modulate disease susceptibility in their neighbors
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Growing several plant varieties in the same field for disease resistance is a longstanding agricultural practice, but can have unpredictable results. A study suggests that plant-to-plant interactions may confer disease immunity in both wheat and rice.
Published New methodology reveals health, climate impacts of reducing buildings' energy use
(via sciencedaily.com) Increasing energy efficiency in buildings can save money -- and it can also decrease the carbon emissions and air pollution that lead to climate change and health harms. But the climate and health benefits of reducing buildings' energy consumption are rarely quantified. Now, researchers have developed a new method for calculating the health and climate impacts of these energy savings.
Published Auxin signaling pathway controls root hair formation for nitrogen uptake
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Root hairs represent a low-cost strategy to enhance nutrient uptake because they can significantly increase the nutrient-acquiring surface of plant roots. While primary and lateral roots are stimulated to elongate when plants grow under mild nitrogen deficiency, the existence of such a foraging response for root hairs and its underlying regulatory mechanism remain elusive. Now, researchers have revealed a framework composed of specific molecular players meditating auxin synthesis, transport and signaling that triggers root hair elongation for nitrogen acquisition.