International cooperation between materials science and medicine develops gel patches from a 3D printer that can be activated individually. Circulatory disorders, diabetes or lying in the same position for extended periods can all lead to chronic wounds that do not heal. There are hardly any effective treatment options. A materials science research team from Kiel University (CAU), together with colleagues from the University Medical Center Schleswig-Holstein (UKSH), Harvard Medical School, USA, and Dankook University in South Korea, has developed a…
Ultrafast electron microscope opens up new avenues for the development of sensors and quantum devices. Everyone who has ever been to the Grand Canyon can relate to having strong feelings from being close to one of nature’s edges. Similarly, scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory have discovered that nanoparticles of gold act unusually when close to the edge of a one-atom thick sheet of carbon, called graphene. This could have big implications for the development…
New study in “Nature”… The tropical mountain forests of Africa store more carbon per hectare in their above-ground biomass than all other tropical forests on earth. With this great storage capacity, which was previously estimated by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) to be considerably lower, they have made a major contribution to climate protection. This is the conclusion of a study published in Nature by an international network of researchers who are urging for the preservation of these…
High-voltage direct current cables which can efficiently transport electricity over long distances play a vital role in our electricity supply. Optimising their performance is therefore an important challenge. With that aim in mind, scientists from Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden, present a new insulation material up to three times less conductive, offering significant improvements to the properties and performance of such cables. If we are to transition to a world powered by renewable energy, efficient long-distance transport of electricity is…
The analogy between the behaviour of different quantum particles which have the same quantum nature is one of the most fascinating aspects of science. A simple but prominent example is the analogy between the behaviour of electrons (fermions) in a one-dimensional metal and spinons (fermions) in a one-dimensional quantum magnet. But, what are spinons? It is generally known that magnetic fluctuations in conventional magnets can be seen as a wave of deflection of the magnetic moments out of the equilibrium….
Fossil site in Lower Austria provides deep insights into Austria’s earth history. Over 6000 unique fossils of the alpine Triassic period have been investigated by NHM Vienna-Palaeontologist Alexander Lukeneder and Palaeontologist Petra Lukeneder from the University of Vienna have investigated. The spectacular remnants are witnesses of one of most severe ecological disasters in the Earth History, the Carnian Crisis. This phase was characterized by a climate change 233 Million years ago, which lead to a gigantic global mass extinction in…
System consisting of two Penning traps connected to an electrical resonant circuit transmits the cooling power of laser-cooled ions. For the first time, physicists have succeeded in successfully realizing a new method for cooling protons using laser-cooled ions – in this case beryllium ions. The innovative feature of the new system is that the two particle types are located in spatially separated traps. This means it is now possible to provide the cooling effect with the help of an electrical…
International research team isolates DNA from modern human buried 7,000 years ago on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi. The oldest genome of a modern human from the Wallacea region – the islands between western Indonesia and Papua New Guinea – indicates a previously undescribed ancient human relationship. Researchers were able to isolate sufficient genetic material from the skull of an individual buried more than 7,000 years ago on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi. It belonged to a hunter-gatherer society and…
A beam of light can only be seen when it hits matter particles and is scattered or reflected by them. In a vacuum, however, it is invisible. Physicists at the University of Bonn have now developed a method that allows laser beams to be visualized even under these conditions. A beam of light can only be seen when it hits matter particles and is scattered or reflected by them. In a vacuum, however, it is invisible. Physicists at the University…
Combining exceptional crystal-growing skills with theoretical predictions, University of Texas at Dallas scientists and their collaborators have revealed new insights into materials called topological insulators. Topological insulators (TIs) behave like insulators in their interiors but are conductors on their exteriors. There are distinctive families of topological insulators: strong TIs, which are common in nature; weak TIs, which are rare and difficult to produce in the lab; and another rare class called higher-order TIs. In a cube-shaped, strong topological insulator, for example,…
Study points to mechanism of post-viral lung damage; suggests targets of intervention. The deadliest time in a viral respiratory illness sometimes is actually after the virus is cleared from the body. Destructive processes that are set in motion during an infection crest in the weeks after the virus is defeated, leading to organ damage that can cause chronic illness or even death. After an initial bout of COVID-19, for example, some people struggle with persistent cough, difficulty breathing and shortness…
At the second “AI for Laser Technology Conference” on September 28 and 29, 2021, participants will discuss how artificial intelligence is currently being applied in laser materials processing. Researchers and plant engineers, software developers and machine builders will meet here to exchange ideas. In addition to the technical presentations, the laboratories at the Fraunhofer Institute for Laser Technology ILT will be opened for virtual tours. Due to current regulations, the conference will take place online. At the first “AI for…
Neurons phosphorylate their proteins in order to sense and respond to changes in network activity. Homeostatic scaling is a form of synaptic plasticity that allows neurons to stabilize network activity in response to large perturbations. To sense such changes in overall activity levels, neurons must have molecular mechanisms to sense and implement the scaling response on timescales ranging from minutes to days. Scientists at the Max Planck Institutes for Brain Research and Biophysics in Frankfurt now studied a form of…
Soap molecules reversibly open specific channel proteins in bacteria. These channels are also interesting from a medical point of view, as they are part of the defense mechanisms of bacteria. A Würzburg research group published these results in the renowned journal PNAS. Bacteria use special channel proteins through which they can channel fluid and ions out of the cell in case they need to protect themselves from bursting. The research group led by Prof. Dr. Bettina Böttcher of the Rudolf…
Rice-led team toggles side- and edge-conduction states in bismuth iodide crystals. A Rice University team and its collaborators have discovered a room-temperature transition between 1D and 2D electrical conduction states in topological crystals of bismuth and iodine. Researchers found they could toggle the material, crystalline chains of bismuth iodide (Bi4I4), between low- and high-order conduction states at a transition temperature around 80 degrees Fahrenheit. The research is available online this week in the American Physical Society journal Physical Review X and was conducted by physicists…
Carbon dioxide from the atmosphere can dissolve in oceans, lakes and ponds, forming bicarbonate ions and other compounds that change water chemistry, with possible harmful effects on aquatic organisms. In addition, bicarbonate can reenter the atmosphere as carbon dioxide later, contributing to climate change. Now, researchers have developed tiny “nanojars,” much smaller than the width of a human hair, that split bicarbonate into carbonate and capture it, as well as certain toxic anions, so the ions can be removed and…
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