What goes on in the sun can only be observed indirectly. Sunspots, for instance, reveal the degree of solar activity – the more sunspots are visible on the surface of the sun, the more active is our central star deep inside. Even though sunspots have been known since antiquity, they have only been documented in detail since the invention of the telescope around 400 years ago. Thanks to that, we now know that the number of spots varies in regular…
Tiny devices use samples taken directly from patients to combine in vivo and in vitro testing. Despite cancer being a leading cause of death worldwide, treatment options for many types of cancers remain limited. This is partly due to the in vitro tools used to model cancers, which cannot adequately predict the behavior of a cancer or its sensitivity to drugs. Further, animal models, like mice, biologically differ from humans in ways that play a critical role in immunotherapy, and…
Rice model may lead to better materials for aerospace, automotive, medical applications. Carbon nanotube fibers are not nearly as strong as the nanotubes they contain, but Rice University researchers are working to close the gap. A computational model by materials theorist Boris Yakobson and his team at Rice’s Brown School of Engineering establishes a universal scaling relationship between nanotube length and friction between them in a bundle, parameters that can be used to fine-tune fiber properties for strength. The model…
Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Ames Laboratory and collaborators at Brookhaven National Laboratory and the University of Alabama at Birmingham have discovered a new light-induced switch that twists the crystal lattice of the material, switching on a giant electron current that appears to be nearly dissipationless. The discovery was made in a category of topological materials that holds great promise for spintronics, topological effect transistors, and quantum computing. Weyl and Dirac semimetals can host exotic, nearly dissipationless, electron…
Shelled pteropods, microscopic free-swimming sea snails, are widely regarded as indicators for ocean acidification because research has shown that their fragile shells are vulnerable to increasing ocean acidity. A new study, published in the journal Scientific Reports, shows that pteropods sampled off the coasts of Washington and Oregon made thinner shells than those in offshore waters. Along the coast, upwelling from deeper water layers brings cold, carbon dioxide-rich waters of relatively low pH to the surface. The research, by a…
Scientists have combined NASA data and cutting-edge image processing to gain new insight into the solar structures that create the Sun’s flow of high-speed solar wind, detailed in new research published today in The Astrophysical Journal. This first look at relatively small features, dubbed “plumelets,” could help scientists understand how and why disturbances form in the solar wind. The Sun’s magnetic influence stretches billions of miles, far past the orbit of Pluto and the planets, defined by a driving force:…
Computer simulations hold tremendous promise to accelerate the molecular engineering of green energy technologies, such as new systems for electrical energy storage and solar energy usage, as well as carbon dioxide capture from the environment. However, the predictive power of these simulations depends on having a means to confirm that they do indeed describe the real world. Such confirmation is no simple task. Many assumptions enter the setup of these simulations. As a result, the simulations must be carefully checked…
Scientists at the University of Southampton and University of Edinburgh have developed a flexible underwater robot that can propel itself through water in the same style as nature’s most efficient swimmer – the Aurelia aurita jellyfish. The findings, published in Science Robotics, demonstrate that the new underwater robot can swim as quickly and efficiently as the squid and jellyfish which inspired its design, potentially unlocking new possibilities for underwater exploration with its lightweight design and soft exterior. Co-author Dr Francesco…
Scientists have discovered how bacteria commonly responsible for seafood-related stomach upsets can go dormant and then “wake up”. Vibrio parahaemolyticus is a marine bacterium that can cause gastroenteritis in humans when eaten in raw or undercooked shellfish such as oysters and mussels. Some of these bacteria are able to turn dormant in poor growth conditions such as cold temperatures – and can remain in that state of hibernation for long periods before resuscitating. University of Exeter scientists have identified a…
Pathogenic bacteria in humans are developing resistance to antibiotics much faster than expected. Now, computational research at Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden, shows that one reason could be significant genetic transfer between bacteria in our ecosystems and to humans. This work has also led to new tools for resistance researchers. According to the World Health Organisation, antibiotic resistance is one of the greatest threats to global health, food safety and development. It already causes over 33,000 deaths a year in…
Scientists at the University of Bonn have built hair-thin optical fibre filters in a very simple way. They are not only extremely compact and stable, but also colour-tunable. This means they can be used in quantum technology and as sensors for temperature or for detecting atmospheric gases. The results have been published in the journal “Optics Express”. Optical fibers not much thicker than a human hair today not only constitute the backbone of our world-wide information exchange. They are also…
ZIM cooperation network on AI-based agricultural robotics launched The recently approved ZIM cooperation network “DeepFarmbots” met virtually for its official kick-off on November 25. The central goal of the network is to develop and disseminate new agricultural robotics solutions for efficient and sustainable agriculture. In an interdisciplinary approach, agricultural robotics is to be linked with new deep learning methods and the synergy effects between the partners are to be deepened. The Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF) is participating…
Chemists at the University of Jena harness synergy effect of gallium Chemists at Friedrich Schiller University Jena have demonstrated the value of “teamwork” by successfully harnessing the interaction between two gallium atoms in a novel compound to split the particularly strong bond between fluorine and carbon. The gallium compound is also cheaper and more environmentally friendly than conventional alternatives. Sustainable and inexpensive “Such reactions are usually carried out using transition metals, such as nickel or iridium,” explains Prof. Robert Kretschmer,…
… using AI and supercomputers UT Arlington computer scientists use TACC systems to generate synthetic objects for robot training. Before he joined the University of Texas at Arlington as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering and founded the Robotic Vision Laboratory there, William Beksi interned at iRobot, the world’s largest producer of consumer robots (mainly through its Roomba robotic vacuum). To navigate built environments, robots must be able to sense and make decisions about how…
Watching the brain at work and studying its functions – this is now possible at the Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors (IfADo) by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The new three tesla MRI scanner will intensify interdisciplinary research at IfADo for the benefit and protection of working people. With the MRI scanner, researchers at IfADo will comprehensively examine brain structure and functions in different contexts. For example, they will focus on how the brain changes with age…
The great potential of building facades to capture solar energy Roofs are not the only suitable places for installing photovoltaic modules to generate electricity from the sun’s rays. Facades could also play a much more significant role in Germany’s energy transition towards renewables as well as helping to reduce land consumption for energy parks. Together with the Fraunhofer ISE, the Leibniz Institute of Ecological Urban and Regional Development has calculated the potential area of Germany’s building facades for the installation…
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