Researchers from Tokyo Metropolitan University have developed a new technology which allows non-contact manipulation of small objects using sound waves. They used a hemispherical array of ultrasound transducers to generate a 3D acoustic field that stably trapped and lifted a small polystyrene ball from a reflective surface. Their technique employs a method similar to laser trapping in biology, but...

A new study has found plastic accumulation in foods may be underestimated. There is also concern these microplastics will carry potentially harmful bacteria such as E. coli, which are commonly found in coastal waters, up the food chain.

As California endures an increasingly brutal second year of drought, state water regulators are considering an emergency order that would bar thousands of Central Valley farmers from using stream and river water to irrigate their crops.

When Erin Babnik awoke on the morning of Nov. 8, 2018, in Paradise, California, she thought the reddish glow outside was a hazy sunrise.

The COVID-19 pandemic and the politicization of health-prevention measures such as vaccination and mask-wearing have highlighted the need for people to accept and trust science.

An international team of researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Plant Breeding Research and the University of Aarhus in Denmark have discovered that bacteria from the plant microbiota are adapted to their host species. In a newly published study, they show how root-associated bacteria have a competitive advantage when colonizing their native host, which allows them to invade an already...

Using ESA's XMM-Newton telescope, a team of French astronomers has conducted an X-ray study of a supercluster known as PLCK G334.8-38.0. Results of this research, published July 16 on the arXiv pre-print server, deliver important insights into the nature of this structure.

Citrus fruits from the mandarin family are popular throughout the world for their tasty and healthy characteristics. Within Japan, the tiny shiikuwasha and the ornamental tachibana are of special cultural and historical importance. However, the origin of these two varieties, and other East Asian citrus, was something of a mystery until now.

Croatia's plan to put famous inventor Nikola Tesla on its euro coins has sparked criticism in Serbia, whose central bank said Monday it would take the issue to the EU.

A strong, shallow underwater earthquake shook central Indonesia on Monday but no serious damage was immediately reported and no tsunami warning was issued.

Quantum computers hold the potential to out-perform all conventional computing systems. Two promising physical implementations for the storage and manipulation of quantum information are the electromagnetic modes of superconducting circuits and the spins of small numbers of electrons trapped in semiconductor quantum dots.

Research published in the International Journal of Product Lifecycle Management has looked at the concept of obsolescence. A. Sánchez-Carralero and C. Armenta-Déu of the Universidad Complutense de Madrid in Spain explain how they have developed a model to simulate the obsolescence process that leads to the need to replace durable goods.

A research team at the University of Cadiz (Spain), together with researchers from the University of Aveiro (Portugal) from the research group Biopol4fun, have developed a bioactive or functionalised plastic made from nanofibrillated cellulose and mango leaf extracts that preserves food longer than non-functionalised plastics.

Scientists at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital are studying liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS), a biophysical process through which proteins and nucleic acids in a cell are compartmentalized without a membrane. The work provides new insight into how the strength of the forces that drive phase separation are linked to the speed at which it occurs. The findings were published today in Nature...

How do you control ice formation on a plane, even when it's in flight? Jonathan Boreyko, associate professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering, is leading a team working with Collins Aerospace to develop an approach using ice itself. In a study published in Physical Review Letters, they created a de-icing method that exploits how frost grows on pillar structures to suspend ice as it...

Breakthrough experiments conducted at ASC's deep submarine maintenance facility in Adelaide have demonstrated how electrically charged surface coatings can eliminate marine bio-fouling, or sea organism growth, potentially improving the operation and maintenance of naval vessels.

When a star like our sun gets to be old, in another seven billion years or so, it will no longer be able to sustain burning its nuclear fuel. With only about half of its mass remaining it will shrink to a fraction of its radius and become a white dwarf star. White dwarf stars are common; over 95% of all stars will become white dwarfs. The most famous one is the companion to the brightest star in...

A University of Arkansas research team, in conjunction with researchers at the Max Planck Institute of Microstructure Physics and Beijing Academy of Quantum Information Sciences, has discovered polarization vortices in two-dimensional (2D) ferroelectrics.

Anthropogenic climate change is already affecting the marine plankton populations present in the western Mediterranean Sea. This is the result of a study led by the Institute of Environmental Science and Technology of the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (ICTA-UAB) thatwarns on the increasing surface ocean temperature lowering organic matter production (primary production), which has negative...

Scientists from Cambridge University and NTU Singapore have found that slow-motion collisions of tectonic plates drag more carbon into Earth's interior than previously thought.

The return of wolves to Yellowstone National Park in 1995 popularized the idea of reintroducing long-lost species to modern habitats. While scientists are still trying to fully understand the ecological consequences, the wolf's reintroduction likely benefited other species, illustrating how conservation can not just slow biodiversity loss, but even reverse it.

The Paris Agreement adopted a target for global warming not to exceed 1.5°C. This sets a limit on the additional carbon we can add to the atmosphere—the carbon budget. Only around 17% of the carbon budget is now left. That is about 10 years at current emission rates.

The intense colors of flowers have inspired us for centuries. They are celebrated through poems and songs praising the red of roses and blue of violets, and have inspired iconic pieces of art such as Vincent Van Gogh's sunflowers.

Olympians spend years training to be the best of the best. Scientists and sportspeople have spent decades researching the mechanics of the human body to ensure our elite athletes are always reaching higher, faster and stronger.