A research team has successfully developed a technique to reach near-unity efficiency of SHEL by using an artificially-designed metasurface.

Disorders of the cells' energy supply can cause a number of serious diseases, but also seem to be connected to ageing. More research is needed on mitochondrial function to find future treatments. A new study shows how an important molecule inside the mitochondria affects their function in mice and fruit flies. The study adds valuable knowledge on formerly relatively unexplored protein...

Even in the world of the smallest particles with their own special rules, things cannot proceed infinitely fast. Physicists have now shown what the speed limit is for complex quantum operations. The results are important for the realization of quantum computers, among other things.

A new study, in which the Andalusian Earth Sciences Institute (IACT) (CSIC-UGR) participated, has described for the first time a key stage in the beginning of the great glaciations and indicates that it can happen to our planet in the future. The study claims to have found a new connection that could explain the beginning of the ice ages on Earth.

A gene linked to unusually long lifespans in humans protects brain stem cells from the harmful effects of stress, according to a new study.

A new study found consuming a high number of refined grains, such as croissants and white bread, is associated with a higher risk of major cardiovascular disease, stroke and early death.

Researchers have found that elevated concentrations of proteins within the droplets triggered a folding event, increasing the potential for protein aggregation -- or misfolding -- which has been linked to neurological diseases including Alzheimer's disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

Zoologists report the discovery of a trove of fossil fly larvae, and an intriguing caterpillar, encapsulated in samples of amber that are tens of millions of years old.

Experimental microbially assisted chemolithotrophy provides an opportunity to trace the putative bioalteration processes of the Martian crust. A study on the Noachian Martian breccia Northwest Africa (NWA) 7034 composed of ancient crustal materials from Mars has now delivered a unique prototype of microbial life experimentally designed on a real Martian material.

Over 70 million deaf people use sign languages as their preferred communication form. Although they access similar brain structures as spoken languages, it hasn't been identified the brain regions that process both forms of language equally. Scientists have now discovered that Broca's area in the left hemisphere, central for spoken languages, is also crucial for sign languages. This is where the...

Rather sweet than salty: In the ocean microalgae produce a lot of sugar during algae blooms. These enormous quantities of algal biomass are normally recycled rapidly by marine bacteria, degradation process that is an important part of the global carbon cycle. Especially sugars have been considered as easily digestible and therefore poor candidates for natural carbon sequestration. Now scientists...

The treatment of tuberculosis (TB) is long and demanding. In particular, in cases of resistant tuberculosis, the WHO generally recommends a standard treatment duration of at least 18 months, as there are no reliable biomarkers for an early termination. Scientists have now succeeded in identifying a biomarker that points to an individual end of therapy based on the activity of 22 genes. In many...

Researchers found that nature provides at least 18% of sanitation services in 48 cities worldwide, according to researchers in the United Kingdom and India. The study estimates that more than 2 million cubic meters of the cities' human waste is processed each year without engineered infrastructure. This includes pit latrine waste that gradually filters through the soil -- a natural process that...

Scientists have succeeded in propelling microvehicles against a fluid flow using ultrasound. In future, these tiny vehicles are set to be introduced into the human bloodstream, thereby revolutionizing the field of medicine.

The extremely precise control of nuclear excitations opens up possibilities of ultra-precise atomic clocks and powerful nuclear batteries.

A study done by physicists demonstrates that fundamental characteristics of polymeric molecules, such as their subunit composition, are sufficient to trigger selection processes in a plausible prebiotic setting.

A review of 57 studies shows people with asthma had a 14 percent lower risk of getting COVID-19 and were significantly less likely to be hospitalized with the virus.

Robotic laboratories on the bottom of Lake Erie have revealed that the muddy sediments there release nearly as much of the nutrient phosphorus into the surrounding waters as enters the lake's central basin each year from rivers and their tributaries.

The fossil of a bird that lived alongside the dinosaurs was found with some sort of rocks in its stomach. Previously, researchers thought that these rocks were swallowed on purpose to help clean its stomach, like modern birds of prey do, giving a hint at its diet. But in a new study, scientists discovered that these rocks are quartz crystals that likely formed after the bird died -- its diet is...

Researchers have detailed a mechanism in the distinctive corona of COVID-19 that could help scientists to rapidly find new treatments for the virus, and quickly test whether existing treatments are likely to work with mutated versions as they develop.

Boys who regularly play video games at age 11 are less likely to develop depressive symptoms three years later, finds a new study.

For the first time, biologically-relevant organic molecules have been detected in Archaean fluid inclusions, which most likely served as nutrients for early life on Earth.

Scientists discovered that changing the topmost layer of atoms on electrode surfaces can impact the activity of splitting water into oxygen and hydrogen -- a clean fuel.