Chemistry: General Engineering: Robotics Research Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry
Published

3D printed nanocellulose upscaled for green architectural applications      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

For the first time, a hydrogel material made of nanocellulose and algae has been tested as an alternative, greener architectural material. The study shows how the abundant sustainable material can be 3D printed into a wide array of architectural components, using much less energy than conventional construction methods.

Environmental: General Geoscience: Geochemistry
Published

MXene-coated devices can guide microwaves in space and lighten the payload      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

One of the most important components of satellites that enable telecommunication is the waveguide, which is a metal tube for guiding radio waves. It is also one of the heaviest payloads satellites carry into orbit. As with all space technology, reducing weight means reducing the amount of expensive and greenhouse gas-producing fuel it takes to launch a rocket, or increasing the number of devices carried by the same rocket to space. Researchers are trying to lighten the load by creating and testing a waveguide made from 3D-printed polymers coated with a conductive nanomaterial called MXene.

Biology: Zoology Offbeat: General Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

Spent hemp biomass: A feed use that supports milk production in dairy cows      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new study explores whether the plentiful, fibrous byproduct of CBD production holds potential promise as a nutritious, efficiency-boosting feed ingredient for the dairy sector

Chemistry: General Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Engineering: Nanotechnology Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry
Published

Researchers reveal elusive bottleneck holding back global effort to convert carbon dioxide waste into usable products      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Think of it as recycling on the nanoscale: a tantalizing electrochemical process that can harvest carbon before it becomes air pollution and restructure it into the components of everyday products. The drive to capture airborne carbon dioxide from industrial waste and make it into fuel and plastics is gaining momentum after a team of researchers uncovered precisely how the process works and where it bogs down.

Biology: Zoology Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

Ancient Australian air-breathing fish from 380 million years ago      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The rivers of Australia, which once flowed across its now dry interior, used to host a range of bizarre animals -- including a sleek predatory lobe-finned fish with large fangs and bony scales. The newly described fossil fish discovered in remote fossil fields west of Alice Springs has been named Harajicadectes zhumini by palaeontologists.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Botany Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Microbiology Ecology: Endangered Species Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry
Published

How plants obtain nitrogen by supplying iron to symbiotic bacteria      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have discovered peptide factors that function in the shoot and root systems to transport iron into the root nodules colonized by nitrogen-fixing bacteria. Moreover, these peptide factors regulate nitrogen homeostasis by maintaining a balance between nitrogen and iron concentrations in plants without rhizobial symbiosis.

Chemistry: General Energy: Alternative Fuels Energy: Fossil Fuels Environmental: General Environmental: Water Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry
Published

Ammonia attracts the shipping industry, but researchers warn of its risks      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Switching to ammonia as a marine fuel, with the goal of decarbonization, can instead create entirely new problems. This is shown in a study where researchers carried out life cycle analyses for batteries and for three electrofuels including ammonia. Eutrophication and acidification are some of the environmental problems that can be traced to the use of ammonia -- as well as emissions of laughing gas, which is a very potent greenhouse gas.

Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Microbiology Chemistry: General Offbeat: General Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

Scientists 'break the mould' by creating new colors of 'blue cheese'      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Experts have discovered how to create different colors of blue cheese. After discovering how the classic blue-green veining is created, a team of experts were able to create a variety of different fungal strains that could be used to make cheese with colors ranging from white to yellow-green to red-brown-pink and light and dark blues.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Botany Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Marine Biology: Microbiology Biology: Molecular Ecology: Sea Life Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Geochemistry Geoscience: Geography Geoscience: Oceanography
Published

Vitamin B12 adaptability in Antarctic algae has implications for climate change, life in the Southern Ocean      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The algae P. antarctica has two forms of the enzyme that makes the amino acid methionine, one needing B12, and one that is slower, but doesn't need it. This means it has the ability to adapt and survive with low B12 availability. The presence of the MetE gene in P. antarctica gives the algae the ability to adapt to lower vitamin B12 availability, giving it a potential advantage to bloom in the early austral spring when bacterial production is low. P. antarctica takes in the CO2 and releases oxygen through photosynthesis. Understanding its ability to grow in environments with low vitamin B12 availability can help climate modelers make more accurate predictions.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: General Biology: Microbiology Environmental: Ecosystems Geoscience: Geochemistry
Published

New technology unscrambles the chatter of microbes      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have developed a new search tool to that can match microbes to the metabolites they produce with no prior knowledge, an innovation that could transform our understanding of both human health and the environment.

Environmental: General Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Geochemistry
Published

Understanding how soil traps carbon      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

With 2,500 billion tons of carbon, soil is one of Earth's largest carbon sinks. Researchers used experiments and computational modeling to study interactions between carbon molecules and clay minerals in soil. New research gives clues to why some plant-based carbon molecules are sequestered in soils but others are respired as CO2. Findings show that electrostatic charges, surrounding nutrients in soil and competition from other molecules all play roles in facilitating carbon trapping.

Biology: Botany Biology: General Biology: Zoology Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: General Ecology: Nature Ecology: Research Offbeat: Earth and Climate Offbeat: General Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

Scammed! Animals 'led by the nose' to leave plants alone      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Fake news works for wallabies and elephants. Herbivores can cause substantial damage to crops or endangered or protected plants, with traditional methods to deter foraging lethal, expensive or ineffective. Biologists are now using aromas from plants naturally repellent with remarkable success to deter the animals.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Botany Biology: Evolutionary Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: Invasive Species Ecology: Nature Ecology: Trees Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

Rare 3D fossils show that some early trees had forms unlike any you've ever seen      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

In the fossil record, trees typically are preserved with only their trunks. They don't usually include any leaves to show what their canopies and overall forms may have looked like. In a new study, researchers describe fossilized trees from New Brunswick, Canada with a surprising and unique three-dimensional crown shape.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: General Biology: Microbiology Biology: Zoology Offbeat: General Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

Zebrafish navigate to find their comfortable temperature      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Zebrafish are smaller than your little finger, with a brain no more than half the size of a pinhead. Yet these animals possess an efficient navigation system that enables them to find their way back to spots in the water where the temperature suits them.

Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Environmental: Water Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry Geoscience: Geography Paleontology: Climate
Published

Permafrost alone holds back Arctic rivers -- and a lot of carbon      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new study provides the first evidence that the Arctic's frozen soil is the dominant force shaping Earth's northernmost rivers, confining them to smaller areas and shallower valleys than rivers to the south. But as climate change weakens Arctic permafrost, the researchers calculate that every 1 degree Celsius of global warming could release as much carbon as 35 million cars emit in a year as polar waterways expand and churn up the thawing soil.

Biology: General Biology: Marine Biology: Zoology Ecology: Animals Ecology: Sea Life Offbeat: General Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

Clown anemonefish seem to be counting bars and laying down the law      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

We often think of fish as carefree swimmers in the ocean, reacting to the world around them without much forethought. However, new research suggests that our marine cousins may be more cognizant than we credit them for. Fish may be counting vertical bars on intruders to determine their threat level, and to inform the social hierarchy governing their sea anemone colonies.

Biology: Marine Ecology: Nature Ecology: Sea Life Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry Geoscience: Geography Geoscience: Oceanography
Published

Tidal landscapes a greater carbon sink than previously thought      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Mangroves and saltmarshes sequester large amounts of carbon, mitigating the greenhouse effect. New research shows that these environments are perhaps twice as effective as previously thought.