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Categories: Biology: General, Offbeat: Earth and Climate
Published Clever coating turns lampshades into indoor air purifiers
(via sciencedaily.com) Indoor air pollution may have met its match. Scientists have designed catalyst-coated lampshades that transform indoor air pollutants into harmless compounds. The lampshades work with halogen and incandescent light bulbs, and the team is extending the technology so it will also be compatible with LEDs.
Published Cleaning water with 'smart rust' and magnets
(via sciencedaily.com) Pouring flecks of rust into water usually makes it dirtier. But researchers have developed special iron oxide nanoparticles called 'smart rust' that actually makes it cleaner. The magnetic nanoparticles attract different pollutants by changing the particles' coating and are removed from water with a magnet. Now, the team is reporting a smart rust that traps estrogen hormones, which are potentially harmful to aquatic life.
Published Transforming flies into degradable plastics
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Imagine using insects as a source of chemicals to make plastics that can biodegrade later -- with the help of that very same type of bug. That concept is closer to reality than you might expect. Researchers will describe their progress to date, including the isolation and purification of the insect-derived chemicals and their conversion into their bioplastics.
Published Tattoo technique transfers gold nanopatterns onto live cells
(via sciencedaily.com) For now, cyborgs exist only in fiction, but the concept is becoming more plausible as science progresses. And now, researchers are reporting that they have developed a proof-of-concept technique to 'tattoo' living cells and tissues with flexible arrays of gold nanodots and nanowires. With further refinement, this method could eventually be used to integrate smart devices with living tissue for biomedical applications, such as bionics and biosensing.
Published Drops of seawater contain traces of an ancient world
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source New research links chemical changes in seawater to volcanic activity and changes.
Published Butterflies can remember where things are over sizeable spaces
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source 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.
Published Energy-storing supercapacitor from cement, water, black carbon
(via sciencedaily.com) Engineers have created a 'supercapacitor' made of ancient, abundant materials, that can store large amounts of energy. Made of just cement, water, and carbon black (which resembles powdered charcoal), the device could form the basis for inexpensive systems that store intermittently renewable energy, such as solar or wind energy.
Published Sun 'umbrella' tethered to asteroid might help mitigate climate change
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Earth is rapidly warming and scientists are developing a variety of approaches to reduce the effects of climate change. An astronomer has proposed a novel approach -- a solar shield to reduce the amount of sunlight hitting Earth, combined with a tethered, captured asteroid as a counterweight. Engineering studies using this approach could start now to create a workable design that could mitigate climate change within decades.
Published 'Time-traveling' pathogens in melting permafrost pose likely risk to environment
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Ancient pathogens that escape from melting permafrost have real potential to damage microbial communities and might potentially threaten human health, according to a new study.
Published Bacteria as Blacksmiths
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A hot bath is a place to relax. For scientists, it is also where molecules or tiny building blocks meet to form materials. Researchers take it to the next level and use the energy of swimming bacteria to forge materials. A recent study shows us how this works and the potential sustainability benefits that may arise from this innovative approach.
Published Egg 'signatures' will allow drongos to identify cuckoo 'forgeries' almost every time, study finds
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Egg 'signatures' will allow drongos to identify cuckoo 'forgeries' almost every time, study finds. African cuckoos may have met their match with the fork-tailed drongo, which scientists predict can detect and reject cuckoo eggs from their nest on almost every occasion, despite them on average looking almost identical to drongo eggs.
Published It's sewage, not fertilizer fueling nitrogen surge in Florida's Indian River Lagoon
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Fertilizer restrictions along Florida's 156-mile-long Indian River Lagoon were intended to reduce nutrient inputs from urban and agricultural land uses. The hope was that water quality would improve by reducing the nitrogen load. While these restrictions were well-intended, a study finds fertilizer use is not the root cause of the lagoon's environmental issues. It's sewage. For decades, fertilizer use was implicated for about 71 percent of the lagoon's environmental impairments. In fact, current estimates show 79 percent of nitrogen loading is from septic systems; 21 percent is from residential fertilizer use.
Published Fungi blaze a trail to fireproof cladding
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Scientists have shown it's possible to grow fungi in thin sheets that could be used for fire-retardant cladding or even a new kind of fungal fashion.
Published Sex lives of orchids reads like science fiction
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Scientists have created a global database of pollination data for almost 3000 orchid species.
Published Why there are no kangaroos in Bali (and no tigers in Australia)
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers are using a new model to clarify why millions of years ago more animal species from Asia made the leap to the Australian continent than vice versa. The climate in which the species evolved played an important role.
Published Turning old maps into 3D digital models of lost neighborhoods
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Imagine strapping on a virtual reality headset and 'walking' through a long-gone neighborhood in your city -- seeing the streets and buildings as they appeared decades ago. That's a very real possibility now that researchers have developed a method to create 3D digital models of historic neighborhoods using machine learning and historic Sanborn Fire Insurance maps.
Published Squash bugs are attracted to and eat each other's poop to stock their microbiome
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Squash bugs, a common and difficult-to-control agricultural pest, need healthy bacteria in their gut to grow and stay alive. However, they do not acquire any bacteria from their parents when they are first born, leaving them vulnerable until their microbiome can be stocked. Researchers report that, to acquire these healthy bacteria, young bugs innately seek out and eat the poop from older squash bugs.
Published How urea may have been the gateway to life
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Urea reacts extremely quickly under the conditions that existed when our planet was newly formed. This new insight furthers our understanding of how life on Earth might have begun.
Published Dogs and humans process body postures similarly in their brains
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A new study shows that information from body postures plays a similarly important role for dogs as it does for humans. The results offer new insights into how dogs and humans perceive each other and their environment. They confirm that the temporal lobe plays a central role in social communication and perception.
Published Genetic secrets of America's favorite snack
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source In its simplest form, popcorn is pretty uncomplicated. Most supermarket varieties offer the choice of two kernel colors, yellow or white, and two kernel shapes, pointed or pearl. When popped, the flake typically expands into one of two shapes: mushroom or butterfly. But there's more to popcorn than meets the eye. New research reveals a wealth of untapped diversity lurking in popcorn's genetic code.