Nitrous oxide has a much stronger effect on the climate than carbon dioxide. Soils, peatlands and rivers are potential nitrous oxide sources. However, when, where and how much nitrous oxide is emitted into the air has not yet been sufficiently researched. A team led by Gesa Schulz, a doctoral student at the Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon, has now studied nitrous oxide production in the Elbe estuary in greater detail and discovered real hotspots. The results, which were recently published in the journal…
Machine learning for customised particle beams. A team of researchers has been using machine learning to teach a compact particle accelerator to produce customised beams for a number of different applications. This technique expands the conceivable range of applications for so-called laser-plasma accelerators, innovative compact next-generation accelerators that are currently under development. The scientists led by DESY researcher Sören Jalas are presenting their technique in the journal Physical Review Accelerators and Beams. Particle accelerators are used in many different applications,…
Groups report evidence that the cosmos is filled with a background of gravitational waves likely due to mergers of supermassive black hole binaries. The universe is humming with gravitational radiation — a very low-frequency rumble that rhythmically stretches and compresses spacetime and the matter embedded in it. That is the conclusion of several groups of researchers from around the world who simultaneously published a slew of journal articles in June describing more than 15 years of observations of millisecond pulsars within…
New observations and simulations of three spiral arms of gas feeding material to three protostars forming in a trinary system have clarified the formation of multi-star systems. Most stars with a mass similar to the Sun form in multi-star systems together with other stars. So an understanding of multi-star system formation is important to an overall theory of star formation. However, the complexity and lack of high-resolution, high-sensitivity data left astronomers uncertain about the formation scenario. In particular, recent observations…
University of Melbourne researchers have developed a fast, inexpensive and scalable method for engineering blood vessels from natural tissue. Co-led by ARC Future Fellow Associate Professor Daniel Heath and Redmond Barry Distinguished Professor and Shanahan Chair in Frontier Medical Solutions Andrea O’Connor, both from the Department of Biomedical Engineering, the researchers employed a novel approach to ‘tissue engineering’ blood vessels. By combining multiple materials and fabrication technologies, they developed a method to create blood vessels with complex geometries like native…
New research could spark future diamond discoveries. An international team of scientists led by the University of Southampton has discovered that the breakup of tectonic plates is the main driving force behind the generation and eruption of diamond-rich magmas from deep inside the Earth. Their findings could shape the future of the diamond exploration industry, informing where diamonds are most likely to be found. Diamonds, which form under great pressures at depth, are hundreds of millions, or even billions, of…
Heliconius butterflies are capable of spatial learning, scientists have discovered. The results provide the first experimental evidence of spatial learning in any butterfly or moth species. The findings, published today in Current Biology, also suggest Heliconius butterflies may be able to learn spatial information at large scales, consistent with the apparent importance of long-range spatial learning for traplining, which involves foraging within a home range of a few hundred square metres. Spatial learning is known in insects, but much of…
New technology could provide early warnings for health problems. Engineers have developed nanoscale tattoos—dots and wires that adhere to live cells—in a breakthrough that puts researchers one step closer to tracking the health of individual cells. The new technology allows for the first time the placement of optical elements or electronics on live cells with tattoo-like arrays that stick on cells while flexing and conforming to the cells’wet and fluid outer structure. “If you imagine where this is all going…
Researchers with the University of Oklahoma’s Natural Products Discovery Group recently published findings that indicate a novel breakthrough treatment for fungal infections. Fungal infections are killing thousands of Americans each year, some with a morbidity rate of nearly 80%. To make matters worse, only a handful of antifungal treatments are available, and even those are becoming less effective as fungi become more resistant. However, University of Oklahoma researchers recently published findings in the Journal of Natural Products indicating that a…
Catalytic molecules can form metabolically active clusters by creating and following concentration gradients – this is the result of a new study by scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Dynamics and Self-Organization (MPI-DS). Their model predicts the self-organization of molecules involved in metabolic pathways, adding a possible new mechanism to the theory of the origin of life. The results can help to better understand how molecules participating in complex biological networks can form dynamic functional structures, and provide a…
Scripps Research scientists discovered the unique molecular structure, which could have implications in age-related diseases like neurodegeneration. Often referred to as the “powerhouses of the cell,” mitochondria are well known for their role as energy suppliers, but these organelles are also critical for maintaining our overall health. Mitochondrial stress is associated with aging and age-related diseases, including neurodegeneration, but there has been a limited understanding of the molecular mechanisms behind this mitochondrial stress signaling. Now, a study by Scripps Research…
The negative outlook of mid-July has been confirmed: The values of the Kiel Trade Indicator for world trade and for the trade of the major economies are all negative in July compared to June (adjusted for price and seasonal effects). Ship movements in the first half of the month already did not bode well, and the forecast is even worse now that the data for the full month is available. The main reason for this is likely to be the…
Scientists at TU Wien (Vienna) succeeded in keeping a rather unstable system consisting of many particles stable and then releasing its energy all at once. Very special diamonds are being experimented on at TU Wien (Vienna): Their crystal lattice is not perfectly regular; it contains numerous defects. In places where one would usually expect two neighboring carbon atoms, there is one nitrogen atom and an empty place without any atom. Microwaves can be used to switch these defects between two…
Macquarie University engineers have developed a new technique to make the manufacture of nanosensors far less carbon-intensive, much cheaper, more efficient, and more versatile, substantially improving a key process in this trillion-dollar global industry. The team has found a way to treat each sensor using a single drop of ethanol instead of the conventional process that involves heating materials to high temperatures. Their research, published yesterday in the Journal of Advanced Functional Materials, is titled, ‘Capillary-driven self-assembled microclusters for highly performing…
How does it work? Scientists from the Universities of Leicester and Nottingham have received nearly £600,000 to research how sexual development and gene shuffling within the malaria parasite could help to control malaria transmission. Scientists from the Universities of Leicester and Nottingham have received nearly £600,000 to research how sexual development and gene shuffling within the malaria parasite could help to control malaria transmission. Led by Dr David Guttery from the University of Leicester and Professor Rita Tewari from the…
Device uses nano-sized polyoxometalates. Scientists are looking for ways to use the low-value energy widely distributed in natural environments to generate electricity. A research team has created a power generator that collects the natural atmospheric humidity and produces continuous electrical signals. This is the first humidity generator designed using a nano-sized material called polyoxometalates. It holds the potential of being a new research direction for polyoxometalates in the sustainable utilization of low-value energy. The team’s work is published in the…
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