Study finds topsoil is key harbinger of lead exposure risks for children
Tracking lead levels in soil over time is critical for cities to determine lead contamination risks for their youngest and most vulnerable residents, according to a new Tulane University study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Investing in love and affection pays off for species that mate for life
The males of species that form long-lasting pair-bonds, like many birds, often continue to make elaborate displays of plumage, colors and dances after they mate with a female. While their time and energy might be better spent taking care of their offspring, these displays also encourage the female to invest more of their energy into the brood.
Air pollution linked to 'missed' miscarriages in China: study
Exposure to airborne pollutants increases the risk of "missed" miscarriages in which a fetus dies without a pregnant woman experiencing any noticeable symptoms, researchers said Monday.
Shipment tracking for 'fat parcels' in the body
Without fat, nothing works in the body: Fats serve as energy suppliers and important building blocks, including for the envelopes of living cells. Numerous diseases are related to disorders in fat metabolism such as obesity and cancer. Researchers from the LIMES Institute at the University of Bonn are now demonstrating how fat metabolism can be monitored down to the individual liver cell of a...
Lakes worldwide are experiencing more severe algal blooms
The intensity of summer algal blooms has increased over the past three decades, according to a first-ever global survey of dozens of large, freshwater lakes, which was conducted by Carnegie's Jeff Ho and Anna Michalak and NASA's Nima Pahlevan and published by Nature.
Unique sticky particles formed by harnessing chaos
New research from North Carolina State University shows that unique materials with distinct properties akin to those of gecko feet—the ability to stick to just about any surface—can be created by harnessing liquid-driven chaos to produce soft polymer microparticles with hierarchical branching on the micro- and nanoscale.
2I/Borisov: Interstellar comet with a familiar look
A new comet discovered by amateur astronomer Gennady Borisov is an outcast from another star system, yet its properties are surprisingly familiar, a new study led by Jagiellonian University researchers shows. The team's findings are being published in Nature Astronomy on 14 October 2019.
Unlocking the biochemical treasure chest within microbes
Secondary metabolites—the compounds produced by microbes to mediate internal and external messaging, self-defense, and chemical warfare—are the basis for hundreds of invaluable agricultural, industrial, and medical products. And given the increasing pace of discovery of new, potentially valuable secondary metabolites, it's clear that microbes have a great deal more to offer.
Study reveals how mucus tames microbes
More than 200 square meters of our bodies—including the digestive tract, lungs, and urinary tract—are lined with mucus. In recent years, scientists have found some evidence that mucus is not just a physical barrier that traps bacteria and viruses, but it can also disarm pathogens and prevent them from causing infections.
How to control friction in topological insulators
Topological insulators are innovative materials that conduct electricity on the surface, but act as insulators on the inside. Physicists at the University of Basel and the Istanbul Technical University have begun investigating how they react to friction. Their experiment shows that the heat generated through friction is significantly lower than in conventional materials. This is due to a new...
Study shows a much cheaper catalyst can generate hydrogen in a commercial device
Researchers at the Department of Energy's SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory and Stanford University have shown for the first time that a cheap catalyst can split water and generate hydrogen gas for hours on end in the harsh environment of a commercial device.
Scientists pinpoint cause of harmful dendrites and whiskers in lithium batteries
Scientists have uncovered a root cause of the growth of needle-like structures—known as dendrites and whiskers—that plague lithium batteries, sometimes causing a short circuit, failure, or even a fire.
The nano-guitar string that plays itself
Scientists at Lancaster University and the University of Oxford have created a nano-electronic circuit which vibrates without any external force.
Astronomers use giant galaxy cluster as X-ray magnifying lens
Astronomers at MIT and elsewhere have used a massive cluster of galaxies as an X-ray magnifying glass to peer back in time, to nearly 9.4 billion years ago. In the process, they spotted a tiny dwarf galaxy in its very first, high-energy stages of star formation.
Alphabet of 140 puzzle pieces programs origami
How can a single origami crease pattern be folded into two precisely defined target shapes? Researchers at AMOLF and Leiden University have created an "alphabet" of 140 origami "puzzle pieces" that allows them to do just that, as described today in Nature Physics. This discovery could help in the construction of origami robots and toward designing smart programmable materials.
Scientists reveal mechanism of electron charge exchange in molecules
Researchers at the University of California, Irvine have developed a new scanning transmission electron microscopy method that enables visualization of the electric charge density of materials at sub-angstrom resolution.
Researchers map the evolutionary history of oaks
How oaks are related has long posed a challenge to scientists. Dr. Andrew Hipp, senior scientist at The Morton Arboretum, led an international team of 24 scientists to unravel the history of global oak diversity for the first time using DNA sequencing of 260 oak species, combined with genomic mapping and fossil data.
Commentary: As a birder, I see the effects of climate change every day. Now, Audubon has quantified the threat
For serious birders who regularly observe birds in the wild, ignoring climate change isn't possible. We have been seeing and documenting the effects of a warming climate since at least the 1950s.
Converting absorbed photons by 2-oxocarboxylic acids into highly reactive singlet oxygen
Researchers at the University of Kentucky found that when aqueous solutions with pyruvic acid, a 2-oxocarboxylic acid, were exposed to light, the generated triplet excited state could efficiently convert dissolved molecular oxygen into highly singlet oxygen. This finding is expected to contribute to areas such as environmental, life, and medical sciences in the future.
Men are harder competitors: study
In competition situations, men invest more resources than women in reducing the performance of competitors. Men overestimate sabotage against them and respond accordingly, while women assess the sabotage efforts of competitors realistically, according to a laboratory experiment carried out at KIT. A work environment that creates transparency and reduces uncertainty about the sabotage level of...
Clay minerals call the shots with carbon
Clay minerals suspended in seawater binds sedimentary organic carbon to their mineral surfaces. But the quantity of carbon that is bound and the source of that carbon very much depends on the clay mineral in question. A research team from ETH Zurich and Tongji University have shown this by studying sediments in the South China Sea.
Researchers design new material using artificial intelligence
Researchers at TU Delft have developed a new supercompressible but strong material without conducting any experimental tests at all, using only artificial intelligence (AI). "AI gives you a treasure map, and the scientist needs to find the treasure," says Miguel Bessa, first author of a publication on this subject in Advanced Materials on 14 October.
3-D integrated metasurfaces stacking up for impressive holography
Physicists and materials scientists have developed a compact optical device containing vertically stacked metasurfaces that can generate microscopic text and full-color holograms for encrypted data storage and color displays. Yueqiang Hu and a research team in Advanced Design and Manufacturing for Vehicle Body in the College of Mechanical and Vehicle Engineering in China implemented a 3-D...
US, critics split on whether tech made nuke shipments safer
The plutonium core for the first atomic weapon detonated in 1945 was taken from Los Alamos National Laboratory to a test site in the New Mexico desert in the backseat of a U.S. Army sedan.
Protein-folded DNA nanostructures offer a new building material for biotechnology
By using proteins that naturally bind and arrange DNA inside cells, a KAUST-led team has devised a plug-and-play strategy for building stable, custom-designed nanostructures.