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Categories: Biology: Botany, Computer Science: Quantum Computers

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Car tires contain hundreds of chemical additives that can leach out of them. This is how they end up in crops and subsequently in the food chain. Researchers have now detected these chemical residues in leafy vegetables for the first time. Although the concentrations were low, the evidence was clear, a finding that is also known for drug residues in plant-based foods.

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A study has found that frequent mowing of Solanum elaeagnifolium, also known as silverleaf nightshade, may help create a 'superweed.' A professor of entomology and plant pathology has been studying silverleaf nightshade for more than a decade. New findings have shown that the more silverleaf nightshade was mowed, the more it developed ways to avoid destruction. The taproot went down further, nearly 5 feet deep, in the first generation of mowed plants. More spikes popped out on the stem as a defense against caterpillars feeding on the flowers. The flowers became more toxic to caterpillars, leading to less pressure from natural predators.

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Scientists have discovered some of the molecular mechanisms controlling how plants -- including important crops like soybean and rice -- will respond to rising global temperatures, finding higher temperatures make root systems grow faster, but sustaining this increased growth speed depends on high levels of nitrogen and phosphorus in the soil. The discoveries point to the necessity of nitrogen and phosphorus-rich soil to promote crop growth and create nutritious crops, in addition to aiding a mission to create more resilient crops in the face of climate change.

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An international research team has sparked interest in the scientific community with results in quantum physics. In their current study, the researchers reinterpret the Higgs mechanism, which gives elementary particles mass and triggers phase transitions, using the concept of 'magnetic quivers.'

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Physicists describe the successful creation of a molecular Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC). Made up of dipolar sodium-cesium molecules that were cooled with the help of microwave shielding to just 5 nanoKelvin and lasted for up to two seconds, the new molecular BEC will help scientists explore a number of different quantum phenomena, including new types of superfluidity, and enable the creation of quantum simulators to ecreate the enigmatic properties of complex materials, like solid crystals.

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Lenses are used to bend and focus light. Normal lenses rely on their curved shape to achieve this effect, but physicists have made a flat lens of only three atoms thick which relies on quantum effects. This type of lens could be used in future augmented reality glasses.

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Plants and the animals that eat them have evolved together in fascinating ways, creating a dynamic interplay of survival strategies. Many plants have developed physical and chemical defenses to fend off herbivores. A well-known strategy in flowering plants is to produce nectar to attract 'ant bodyguards.' Recent research explores the evolution of this same defense strategy in ferns.

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Research work on symbiosis -- a mutually beneficial relationship between living organisms -- is pushing back against the newer theory of a 'single-origin' of root nodule symbiosis (RNS) -- that all symbiosis between plant root nodules and nitrogen-fixing bacteria stems from one point--instead suggesting a 'multiple-origin' theory of sybiosis which opens a better understanding for genetically engineering crops.

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Researchers recently published findings that could lay the groundwork for applying quantum computing methods to protein structure prediction.

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Researchers demonstrated a quantum algorithmic speedup with the quantum approximate optimization algorithm, laying the groundwork for advancements in telecommunications, financial modeling, materials science and more.

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Researchers demonstrated a scalable, modular hardware platform that integrates thousands of interconnected qubits onto a customized integrated circuit. This 'quantum-system-on-chip' (QSoC) architecture enables them to precisely tune and control a dense array of qubits.

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Researchers involved in cataloguing the world's plant species are hunting for answers as to what makes some groups of plants so successful. One of their major goals is to predict more accurately which lineages of flowering plants -- some of which are of huge importance to people and to ecosystems -- are at a greater risk from global climate change.

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Orchid plants nurture their seedlings via an underground fungal network, new research has revealed.

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A widely found gene in plants has been newly identified as a key transporter of a hormone that influences the size of corn. The discovery offers plant breeders a new tool to develop desirable dwarf varieties that could enhance the crop's resilience and profitability.

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Plant hydraulics drive the biological process that moves fluids from roots to plant stems and leaves, creating streaming electric potential, or voltage, in the process. A study closely examined the differences in voltage caused by the concentrations of ions, types of ions, and pH of the fluid plants transport, tying the voltage changes to the plant's circadian rhythm that causes adjustments day and night. According to the authors, this consistent, cyclic voltage creation could be harnessed as an energy source.

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Maize is one of the world's most widely grown crops and is essential to global food security. But like other plants, its growth and productivity can be limited by the slow activity of Rubisco, the enzyme responsible for carbon assimilation during photosynthesis. Scientists have now demonstrated a promising approach to enhancing Rubisco production, thus improving photosynthesis and overall plant growth.

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Many of today's quantum devices rely on collections of qubits, also called spins. These quantum bits have only two energy levels, the '0' and the '1'. However, spins in real devices also interact with light and vibrations known as bosons, greatly complicating calculations. Researchers now demonstrate a way to describe spin-boson systems and use this to efficiently configure quantum devices in a desired state.

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In an interdisciplinary study, researchers discovered that symbiotic bacteria communicate with legume plants through specific molecules and that this communication influences which bacteria grow near the plant roots. The findings provide insights into how plants and soil bacteria form beneficial partnerships for nutrient uptake and resilience. These results are a step towards understanding how communication between plants and soil bacteria can lead to specific beneficial associations providing plants with nutrients.

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Scientists describe a new method to make very thin crystals of the element bismuth -- a process that may aid the manufacturing of cheap flexible electronics an everyday reality.

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A new study found evidence that Indigenous groups in the Pacific Northwest were intentionally harvesting edible camas bulbs at optimal stages of the plant's maturation as far back as 3,500 years ago.