- ScienceDaily
- 20/7/17 20:07
Through the investigation of insect surfaces, researchers have detailed a previously unidentified nanostructure that can be used to engineer stronger, more resilient water repellent coatings.
Through the investigation of insect surfaces, researchers have detailed a previously unidentified nanostructure that can be used to engineer stronger, more resilient water repellent coatings.
Lithium-ion batteries power everything from mobile phones to laptop computers and electric vehicles, but demand is growing for less expensive and more readily available alternatives. The top candidates all hold promise, but researchers report that steep challenges remain.
Cannabis appears to be a safe and potentially effective treatment for the chronic pain that afflicts people with sickle cell disease, according to a new clinical trial.
Loss of synapses is a contributing factor to Alzheimer's disease and schizophrenia. Researchers discovered a class of proteins that inhibit synapse elimination, opening possibilities for novel therapies for the two diseases.
Information drawn from analyses of oxygen and hydrogen isotopes of materials from exposed Columbia River basalts has provided insights about how magma from volcanic eruptions millions of years ago shaped the region and why those eruptions did not trigger a global extinction event.
The research focuses on axonal transport -- the way in which vital materials travel along pathways called axons inside nerve cells, or neurons. Scientists found that HTT sometimes journeys along these roadways in cellular vehicles (called vesicles) that also carry freight including a protein called Rab4. The research also identified other materials that may be present in these shipments.
Widespread use of pesticides can speed the transmission of the debilitating disease schistosomiasis, while also upsetting the ecological balances in aquatic environments that prevent infections, finds a new study. The infection, which can trigger lifelong liver and kidney damage, affects hundreds of millions of people every year and is second only to malaria among parasitic diseases, in terms of...
A new device that relies on flowing clouds of ultracold atoms promises potential tests of the intersection between the weirdness of the quantum world and the familiarity of the macroscopic world we experience every day.
Scientists have found the interstellar organic matter could produce an abundant supply of water by heating, suggesting that organic matter could be the source of terrestrial water.
Using a data set of 2.7 million human activity records, the team showed just how extensive human use of Antarctica has been over the last 200 years.
Curcumin, a natural compound found in the spice turmeric, could help eliminate certain viruses, research has found. A study showed that curcumin can prevent Transmissible gastroenteritis virus (TGEV) - an alpha-group coronavirus that infects pigs - from infecting cells. At higher doses, the compound was also found to kill virus particles.
Everyone who uses a smartphone unavoidably generates masses of digital data that are accessible to others, and these data provide clues to the user's personality. Psychologists are now studying how revealing these clues are.
Extensive wildlife trade not only threatens species worldwide but can also lead to the transmission of zoonotic diseases. Research sheds new light on the motivations why people hunt, trade or consume different species. The research shows that more differentiated solutions are needed to prevent uncontrolled disease emergence and species decline.
Over 50 million people worldwide are affected by Alzheimer's disease and it is one of the greatest medical and social challenges of our time. Due to pathological changes in the brain, patients become increasingly forgetful and disoriented as the disease progresses. Alzheimer's is still considered incurable today. Researchers now describe a promising approach to treating Alzheimer's disease.
An international research team developed visible light communication (VLC) setup capable of a data rate of 2.2 Mb/s by employing a new type of organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs).
In low precipitation periods - where and how is the limited available water distributed and what possibilities are there for improving retention in the soil and the landscape? Researchers discovered that vegetation has a major influence on this. Using the example of the drought-sensitive Demnitzer Muehlenfliess in Brandenburg, they quantified visible and invisible water flows during and shortly...
By applying a machine-learning algorithm, scientists have developed a method to classify all gamma-ray bursts (GRBs), rapid highly energetic explosions in distant galaxies, without needing to find an afterglow - by which GRBs are presently categorized. This breakthrough, initiated by first-year B.Sc. students, may prove key in finally discovering the origins of these mysterious bursts.
New research shows that a patient's pupils can reveal if they have suffered a traumatic experience in the past. The study examined how an individual's eyes responded when shown threatening images.
Mundane behaviors such as taking a daily medication can eventually create false memories of completing the task.
Researchers using passive acoustic recordings of whale calls to track their movements have found that four of the six baleen whale species found in the western North Atlantic Ocean -- humpback, sei, fin and blue whales -- have changed their distribution patterns in the past decade. The recordings were made over 10 years by devices moored to the seafloor at nearly 300 locations from the Caribbean...
Researchers report a new method that detects positive COVID-19 cases using blood samples in about 20 minutes, and identifies whether someone has contracted the virus.
Scientists recently developed molecular films that can measure the operating temperature of electronic components on a nanometric scale. These patented temperature-sensitive molecules have the distinctive quality of being extremely stable, even after millions of uses. They could soon be deployed in the microelectronics industry.
Weather forecasts have become less accurate during the COVID-19 pandemic due to the reduction in commercial flights, according to new research. A new study finds the world lost 50 to 75 percent of its aircraft weather observations between March and May of this year, when many flights were grounded due to the pandemic.
Biodiversity and thus the state of river ecosystems can now be predicted by combining environmental DNA with hydrological methods, researchers have found. Using the river Thur as an example, the approach allows areas requiring conservation to be identified in order to initiate protective measures.
Copper that was once bound with oxygen is better at converting CO2 into renewable fuels than copper that was never bound to oxygen, according to scientists.