154 articles from WEDNESDAY 11.5.2022

A promising solution to improve the surface hydrophobicity of hydrophobic membranes

As many chemists know, the membrane distillation (MD) process has gained increasing popularity and attention for saline treatment, especially because of its extremely high salt rejection (the theoretical value up to 100%). In MD, the hydrophobic membrane serves as a core and significant part of realizing two-phase separation. However, the existing membrane wetting phenomenon always restricts the...

Scientists show how to store liquid fuels in polymeric gels to prevent explosions and fires

Liquid fuels with high energy density are essential in many applications where chemical energy is converted into controlled motion, such as in rockets, gas turbines, boilers, and certain vehicle engines. Besides their combustion characteristics and performance, it is also important to guarantee the safety and stability of these fuels when in use as well as during transport and storage.

For the first time, researchers have observed an X-ray explosion on a white dwarf

When stars like our sun use up all their fuel, they shrink to form white dwarfs. Sometimes such dead stars flare back to life in a super-hot explosion and produce a fireball of X-ray radiation. A research team from several German institutes including Tübingen University, and led by Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU), has now been able to observe such an explosion of X-ray...

Ancient microorganisms found in halite may have implications for search for life

Primary fluid inclusions in bedded halite from the 830-million-year-old Browne Formation of central Australia contain organic solids and liquids, as documented with transmitted light and UV-vis petrography. These objects are consistent in size, shape, and fluorescent response to cells of prokaryotes and algae, and aggregates of organic compounds. This discovery shows that microorganisms from...

Flu causes cardiac complications by directly infecting the heart

Researchers have shown for the first time in mice that heart problems associated with the flu are not caused by raging inflammation in the lungs, as has long been predicted. Instead, the electrical malfunctions and heart scarring seen in some of the sickest flu patients are caused by direct influenza infection of cardiac cells.

Higher wheat yields and protein content on the horizon

A team of international researchers has discovered a way to produce higher quality wheat. The scientists have identified a genetic driver that improves yield traits in wheat, which unexpectedly can also lead to increasing protein content by up to 25 per cent.

10-minute meditation could help reduce Brexit polarization

In a new study, a brief, audio-guided, befriending-themed meditation reduced affective polarization between people on the "Remain" versus "Leave" sides of the U.K.'s Brexit referendum. Otto Simonsson of the Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm, Sweden, and colleagues present these findings in the open-access journal PLOS ONE on May 11, 2022.

Higher wheat yields and protein content on the horizon

A team of international researchers has discovered a way to produce higher quality wheat. The scientists from the University of Adelaide and the UK's John Innes Centre have identified a genetic driver that improves yield traits in wheat, which unexpectedly can also lead to increasing protein content by up to 25 percent.

Restaurant menu design could impact carbon footprint of dining

A study employing hypothetical restaurant menus suggests that climate-friendly default options and labels indicating the carbon footprint of each dish may influence diners' dish selections and the resulting environmental effects. Ann-Katrin Betz and colleagues at Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg, Germany, present these findings in the open-access journal PLOS Climate.

Copying others can lead to greater comfort with riskier behavior

The best things in life are unlikely to occur. In many situations, taking at least moderate risks yields higher expected rewards. Yet many people struggle with taking such risks: they are overly cautious and forego high payoffs. "However, we are not alone in this struggle, but we can observe and learn from others," says Wataru Toyokawa. "We therefore wanted to find out whether social learning can...

Developing an efficient production technique for a novel 'green' fertilizer

A purely mechanical method can produce a novel, more sustainable fertilizer in a less polluting way. That is the result of a method optimized at DESY's light source PETRA III. An international team used PETRA III to optimize the production method that is an adaptation of an ancient technique: by milling two common ingredients, urea and gypsum, the scientists produce a new solid compound that...