Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry Geoscience: Geography Geoscience: Oceanography
Published

Human and ocean health impacts of ocean plastics      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Researchers from the fields of healthcare, ocean science, and social science have collaborated to quantify plastic's considerable risks to all life on Earth. The Minderoo-Monaco Commission on Plastics and Human Health report presents a comprehensive analysis showing plastics as a hazard at every stage of their life cycle.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Computer Science: Quantum Computers Energy: Technology Physics: General Physics: Quantum Computing Physics: Quantum Physics
Published

'Y-ball' compound yields quantum secrets      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Scientists investigating a compound called 'Y-ball' -- which belongs to a mysterious class of 'strange metals' viewed as centrally important to next-generation quantum materials -- have found new ways to probe and understand its behavior.

Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Computer Science: Quantum Computers Physics: General Physics: Quantum Computing Physics: Quantum Physics
Published

Surprise in the quantum world: Disorder leads to ferromagnetic topological insulator      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Magnetic topological insulators are an exotic class of materials that conduct electrons without any resistance at all and so are regarded as a promising breakthrough in materials science. Researchers have achieved a significant milestone in the pursuit of energy-efficient quantum technologies by designing the ferromagnetic topological insulator MnBi6Te10 from the manganese bismuth telluride family. The amazing thing about this quantum material is that its ferromagnetic properties only occur when some atoms swap places, introducing antisite disorder.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Botany Biology: General Ecology: Invasive Species Ecology: Nature Ecology: Trees Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Forest growing season in eastern U.S. has increased by a month      (via sciencedaily.com) 

The growing period of hardwood forests in eastern North America has increased by an average of one month over the past century as temperatures have steadily risen, a new study has found.

Energy: Nuclear Offbeat: General Offbeat: Space Physics: General Physics: Optics Physics: Quantum Computing Physics: Quantum Physics Space: Astrophysics Space: General Space: Structures and Features
Published

Scientists find a common thread linking subatomic color glass condensate and massive black holes      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Atomic nuclei accelerated close to the speed of light become dense walls of gluons known as color glass condensate (CGC). Recent analysis shows that CGC shares features with black holes, enormous conglomerates of gravitons that exert gravitational force across the universe. Both gluons in CGC and gravitons in black holes are organized in the most efficient manner possible for each system's energy and size.

Biology: Botany Ecology: Invasive Species Ecology: Nature Ecology: Trees Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: Water Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry
Published

Douglas-fir in Klamath Mountains are in 'decline spiral'      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Increases in mortality among Douglas-fir in the Klamath Mountains are the result of multiple factors that have the iconic tree in a 'decline spiral' in parts of the region.

Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Marine Biology: Zoology Ecology: Animals Ecology: Sea Life Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: Water
Published

Jellyfish size might influence their nutritional value      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Researchers confirmed what was already known: jellyfish eat bigger prey as they grow, which means they also occupy a higher position in the food web as they grow. They also found that some of the concentrations of 'healthy fats,' increase as jellyfish grow. These changes might be influenced by their diet, and as they feed on bigger prey with higher levels of fatty acids, the jellyfish accumulate more of these fatty acids.

Biology: General Biology: Zoology Ecology: Animals Ecology: Extinction Ecology: General Ecology: Invasive Species Ecology: Nature Ecology: Research Environmental: Ecosystems Geoscience: Geochemistry
Published

Coffee plantations limit birds' diets      (via sciencedaily.com) 

A new study explores a record of birds' diets preserved in their feathers and radio tracking of their movements to find that birds eat far fewer invertebrates in coffee plantations than in forests, suggesting that the disturbance of their ecosystem significantly impacts the birds' dietary options.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Computer Science: Quantum Computers Physics: General Physics: Optics Physics: Quantum Computing Physics: Quantum Physics
Published

Scientists open door to manipulating 'quantum light'      (via sciencedaily.com) 

How light interacts with matter has always fired the imagination. Now scientists for the first time have demonstrated the ability to manipulate single and double atoms exhibiting the properties of simulated light emission. This creates prospects for advances in photonic quantum computing and low-intensity medical imaging.

Physics: General Physics: Optics Physics: Quantum Computing Physics: Quantum Physics
Published

Instrument adapted from astronomy observation helps capture singular quantum interference effects      (via sciencedaily.com) 

By adapting technology used for gamma-ray astronomy, researchers has found X-ray transitions previously thought to have been unpolarized according to atomic physics, are in fact highly polarized.

Computer Science: General Computer Science: Quantum Computers Physics: General Physics: Quantum Computing Physics: Quantum Physics
Published

Superconducting amplifiers offer high performance with lower power consumption      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Researchers have devised a new concept of superconducting microwave low-noise amplifiers for use in radio wave detectors for radio astronomy observations, and successfully demonstrated a high-performance cooled amplifier with power consumption three orders of magnitude lower than that of conventional cooled semiconductor amplifiers. This result is expected to contribute to the realization of large-scale multi-element radio cameras and error-tolerant quantum computers, both of which require a large number of low-noise microwave amplifiers.

Computer Science: Quantum Computers Physics: General Physics: Optics Physics: Quantum Computing Physics: Quantum Physics
Published

Sculpting quantum materials for the electronics of the future      (via sciencedaily.com) 

The development of new information and communication technologies poses new challenges to scientists and industry. Designing new quantum materials -- whose exceptional properties stem from quantum physics -- is the most promising way to meet these challenges. An international team has designed a material in which the dynamics of electrons can be controlled by curving the fabric of space in which they evolve. These properties are of interest for next-generation electronic devices, including the optoelectronics of the future.

Computer Science: General Computer Science: Quantum Computers Computer Science: Virtual Reality (VR) Physics: General Physics: Quantum Computing Physics: Quantum Physics
Published

Qubits put new spin on magnetism: Boosting applications of quantum computers      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Research using a quantum computer as the physical platform for quantum experiments has found a way to design and characterize tailor-made magnetic objects using quantum bits, or qubits. That opens up a new approach to develop new materials and robust quantum computing.

Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Marine Biology: Zoology Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: Water
Published

Noise harming ocean invertebrates and ecosystems      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Noise from human activities is harming ocean invertebrates and ecosystems, new research shows.

Biology: Zoology Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: Extinction Ecology: Invasive Species Ecology: Nature Ecology: Trees Environmental: Biodiversity Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geography
Published

Mountain forests are being lost at an accelerating rate, putting biodiversity at risk      (via sciencedaily.com) 

More than 85% of the world's bird, mammal, and amphibian species live in mountains, particularly in forest habitats, but researchers report that these forests are disappearing at an accelerating rate. Globally, we have lost 78.1 million hectares (7.1%) of mountain forest since 2000 -- an area larger than the size of Texas. Much of the loss occurred in tropical biodiversity hotspots, putting increasing pressure on threatened species.

Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Botany Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: Nature Environmental: Biodiversity Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geography
Published

How can we tackle the biggest challenges? Ask a plant      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Without plants, we'd have no air to breathe or food to eat, yet plant science lingers in the shadowy wings while other fields take center stage. With the goal of shining the spotlight on plants, a new study presents the field's top 100 most pressing questions for research to address the greatest challenges facing humanity.

Biology: Microbiology Environmental: Ecosystems Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Geochemistry Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

Fossil site is 'Rosetta Stone' for understanding early life      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Leading edge technology has uncovered secrets about a world-renowned fossil hoard that could offer vital clues about early life on Earth. Researchers who analyzed the 400 million-year-old cache, found in rural north-east Scotland, say their findings reveal better preservation of the fossils at a molecular level than was previously anticipated.

Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Microbiology Environmental: Ecosystems Geoscience: Earth Science
Published

Study shines new light on ancient microbial dark matter      (via sciencedaily.com) 

An international research team produced the first large-scale analysis of more than 400 newly sequenced and existing Omnitrophota genomes, uncovering new details about their biology and behavior.