Once again, the atmosphere amazes us with its diverse chemical processes. For the first time, researchers at the Leibniz Institute for Tropospheric Research (TROPOS) in Leipzig have demonstrated the existence of sulfurous acid (H2SO3) under atmospheric conditions in the gas phase. The results were published in the journal Angewandte Chemie. Where Does Sulfur in the Air Come From? A combination of natural and anthropogenic sources impacts the chemistry of the atmosphere. However, the principal natural source of the atmospheric sulfur…
Spin-off company offers a tiny solution for a big problem. The first sign of spoilage in many food products is the formation of free radicals, which reduces the shelf-life and the overall quality of the food. Until now, the detection of these molecules has been very costly for the food companies. Researchers at HZB and the University of Stuttgart have developed a portable, small and inexpensive ‘EPR on a chip’ sensor that can detect free radicals even at very low…
Researchers discover how microbial cooperation can emerge. Max Planck scientists in Marburg have used a synthetic microbial community to study the gradual evolution of mutualism. The study demonstrates for the first time in detail how an evolutionary loss of independence can occur in communities of different groups of organisms. Mutualism, an association between organisms of two different species that benefits both, is widely recognised in animals and plants, but also plays a crucial role in the microbial world, where…
Research team publishes new results of the MOSAiC project. Photosynthesis can take place in nature even at extremely low light levels, a study that investigated the development of Arctic microalgae at the end of the polar night shows. The measurements were carried out as part of the MOSAiC expedition and revealed that microalgae can build up biomass through photosynthesis in the Arctic Ocean as early as the end of March, when the sun is barely above the horizon. The results…
Researchers study cloud movement in the Arctic. Precise measurement of the warming and cooling of transported air masses for the first time. Special features of the Arctic climate, such as the strong reflection of the sun’s rays off the light snow or the low position of the sun, amplify global warming in the Arctic. However, researchers are often faced with the challenge of modelling the underlying climatic processes in order to be able to provide reliable weather forecasts. Scientists from…
𝘈𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘨𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘶𝘴 𝘧𝘶𝘮𝘪𝘨𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘴 uses a surface protein of its spores to slow down the human immune system. The mold 𝘈𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘨𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘶𝘴 𝘧𝘶𝘮𝘪𝘨𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘴 produces an enzyme on the surface of its spores with which it can attenuate the human immune response. This makes it easier for for the fungus to colonize human tissue with severe courses of infection. An international research team has now published the results in 𝘕𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘔𝘪𝘤𝘳𝘰𝘣𝘪𝘰𝘭𝘰𝘨𝘺. 𝘈𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘨𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘶𝘴 𝘧𝘶𝘮𝘪𝘨𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘴 is a mold that is found all over the world. Unlike…
MHH study investigates how effective inhalation with hypertonic saline solution is for incurable respiratory disease PCD. In primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD), our lungs are no longer able to cleanse themselves. The cause is a congenital disorder of the cilia in the bronchi. Similar to cystic fibrosis, this causes thick mucus to accumulate in the airways. People with PCD suffer from chronic bronchitis, pneumonia or enlargement of the lower airways (bronchiectasis) from an early age. There is no cure. PCD is…
A new Energy Frontier Research Center (EFRC), supported by the Department of Energy’s Office of Science and led by SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, was awarded $14.4 million over four years to advance manufacturing of microelectronics by investigating approaches to building their components in fundamentally new ways. Instead of moving electrons through conducting metallic interconnects in the miniscule and ever shrinking parts of devices such as microchips used in computers and cell phones, the researchers propose to move information via spin waves that can…
As a new degree of freedom, the orbital angular momentum of electromagnetic waves exceeds the traditional frequency, phase, and amplitude, and is expected to promote the infinite expansion of channel capacity. Recently, a team of research professor Chao-Hai Du from Peking University and Professor Xiaofei Zang’s research group from the University of Shanghai for Science and Technology have carried out in-depth cooperation. Based on the research foundation of both sides in the field of terahertz and metasurface, a new method…
University of Queensland research has revealed that informing tourists visiting the Great Barrier Reef about climate impact doesn’t negatively affect their experience and can help encourage climate action. The researchers surveyed 656 reef visitors about their experiences and behaviours during boat trips. Dr Yolanda Waters from UQ’s School of the Environment said the results showed information on climate change was positively received by visitors. “Informing visitors about the impacts climate change has had on our marine environment doesn’t diminish visitor’s enjoyment of the…
The shoebox-sized BurstCube satellite has observed its first gamma-ray burst, the most powerful kind of explosion in the universe, according to a recent analysis of observations collected over the last several months. “We’re excited to collect science data,” said Sean Semper, BurstCube’s lead engineer at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. “It’s an important milestone for the team and for the many early career engineers and scientists that have been part of the mission.” The event, called GRB 240629A, occurred…
Assorted, distinctive behavior of molten uranium salt revealed by neutrons. The Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory is a world leader in molten salt reactor technology development — and its researchers additionally perform the fundamental science necessary to enable a future where nuclear energy becomes more efficient. In a recent paper published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, researchers have documented for the first time the unique chemistry dynamics and structure of high-temperature liquid uranium trichloride (UCl3)…
Zebra Finches Defy Age-Related Learning Limits. We all know the adage, “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks.” As we age, our ability to learn new skills, like mastering a foreign language or picking up a musical instrument, seems to fade. The culprit? A decline in brain plasticity—the brain’s capacity to rewire itself and adapt to new challenges. But what if we could rewind the clock on this age-related decline? A new study led by Daniela Vallentin at the…
Thousands of light particles can merge into a type of “super photon” under certain conditions. Researchers at the University of Bonn have now been able to use “tiny nano molds” to influence the design of this so-called Bose-Einstein condensate. This enables them to shape the speck of light into a simple lattice structure consisting of four points of light arranged in quadratic form. Such structures could potentially be used in the future to make the exchange of information between multiple…
Using MeerKAT data, an international team including astronomers from MPIfR (Bonn, Germany) has compiled the largest catalog of radio sources from any MeerKAT survey to date. With this catalog, they were able to make a measurement of the cosmic radio dipole, a cosmological effect that arises from the Earth’s motion through the Universe, and provides an important test of our theories of cosmology at the largest scales. The new measurement demonstrates the value of the sensitive MeerKAT data, and shows…
Researchers from Bonn and Japan clarify how neighboring synapses coordinate their response to plasticity signals: Nerve cells in the brain receive thousands of synaptic signals via their “antenna”, the so-called dendritic branch. Permanent changes in synaptic strength correlate with changes in the size of dendritic spines. However, it was previously unclear how the neurons implement these changes in strength across several synapses that are close to each other and active at the same time. Researchers from the University Hospital Bonn…
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