Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Botany Biology: Evolutionary Biology: General Biology: Marine Biology: Microbiology Ecology: Nature Ecology: Sea Life Environmental: Biodiversity Environmental: Ecosystems
Published

Use it or lose it: How seagrasses conquered the sea      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Seagrasses provide the foundation of one of the most highly biodiverse, yet vulnerable, coastal marine ecosystems globally. They arose in three independent lineages from their freshwater ancestors some 100 million years ago and are the only fully submerged, marine flowering plants. Moving to such a radically different environment is a rare evolutionary event and definitely not easy. How did they do it? New reference quality genomes provide important clues with relevance to their conservation and biotechnological application.

Computer Science: Quantum Computers
Published

Quantum infrared spectroscopy: Lights, detector, action!      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have incorporated an innovative ultra-broadband, quantum-entangled light source that generates a relatively wide range of infrared photons with wavelengths between 2 m and 5 m for dramatically downsizing the infrared spectroscopy system and upgrading its sensitivity. It can obtain spectra for various target samples, including hard solids, plastics, and organic solutions. This new technique uses the unique properties of quantum mechanics -- such as superposition and entanglement -- to overcome the limitations of conventional techniques.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Botany Biology: General Ecology: Animals Ecology: Invasive Species Ecology: Trees Offbeat: Earth and Climate Offbeat: General Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

Tiny ant species disrupts lion's hunting behavior      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Data gathered through years of observation reveal an innocuous-seeming ant is disrupting an ecosystem in East Africa, illustrating the complex web of interactions among ants, trees, lions, zebras and buffaloes.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Botany Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Microbiology Biology: Molecular Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry Offbeat: Earth and Climate Offbeat: General Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

The underground network: Decoding the dynamics of plant-fungal symbiosis      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The intricate dance of nature often unfolds in mysterious ways, hidden from the naked eye. At the heart of this enigmatic tango lies a vital partnership: the symbiosis between plants and a type of fungi known as arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi. New groundbreaking research delves into this partnership, revealing key insights that deepen our understanding of plant-AM fungi interactions and could lead to advances in sustainable agriculture.

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

Shining a light on the hidden properties of quantum materials      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Certain materials have desirable properties that are hidden and scientists can use light to uncover these properties. Researchers have used an advanced optical technique, based on terahertz time-domain spectroscopy, to learn more about a quantum material called Ta2NiSe5 (TNS).

Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Computer Science: Quantum Computers Engineering: Graphene Physics: General Physics: Optics Physics: Quantum Computing Physics: Quantum Physics
Published

Researchers add a 'twist' to classical material design      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers grew a twisted multilayer crystal structure for the first time and measured the structure's key properties. The twisted structure could help researchers develop next-generation materials for solar cells, quantum computers, lasers and other devices.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Botany Ecology: Nature Ecology: Research Ecology: Trees
Published

The complexity of forests cannot be explained by simple mathematical rules, study finds      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The way trees grow together do not resemble how branches grow on a single tree, scientists have discovered.

Computer Science: General Computer Science: Quantum Computers
Published

Misinformation and irresponsible AI -- experts forecast how technology may shape our near future      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

From misinformation and invisible cyber attacks, to irresponsible AI that could cause events involving multiple deaths, expert futurists have forecast how rapid technology changes may shape our world by 2040.

Computer Science: General Computer Science: Quantum Computers Mathematics: General Mathematics: Modeling Offbeat: Computers and Math Offbeat: General Physics: General Physics: Quantum Computing Physics: Quantum Physics
Published

What coffee with cream can teach us about quantum physics      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new advancement in theoretical physics could, one day, help engineers develop new kinds of computer chips that might store information for longer in very small objects.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Botany Biology: Microbiology Ecology: Endangered Species
Published

'Talking' tomatoes: How their communication is influenced by enemies and friends      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Plants produce a range of chemicals known as volatile organic compounds that influence their interactions with the world around them. In a new study, researchers investigated how the type and amount of these VOCs change based on different features of tomato plants.

Biology: Botany Biology: General Ecology: Nature
Published

World's largest database of weeds lets scientists peer into the past, and future, of global agriculture      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new database of weeds that can help scientists understand how traditional agricultural systems were managed throughout history, could also provide insights into how global trends like the climate crisis could affect the resilience of our modern day food systems.

Biology: Botany Biology: Microbiology Ecology: Extinction Ecology: Invasive Species Ecology: Nature Ecology: Trees Environmental: Biodiversity Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General
Published

Study offers rare long-term analysis of techniques for creating standing dead trees for wildlife habitat      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Ecologists have long known that standing dead trees, commonly referred to as snags, are an important habitat element for forest dwellers and act as a driver of biodiversity. They're so important that in some managed forests, snag creation is part of the conservation tool kit -- i.e., crews sometimes convert a percentage of live trees into dead ones through techniques ranging from sawing off their tops to wounding their trunks to injecting them with disease-causing fungi.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Botany Biology: General Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Innovative tech shows promise to boost rubber production in US      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

With disease and high demand posing threats to the world's primary natural rubber supply in Southeast Asia, scientists are working to ramp up the U.S. rubber market by advancing methods to extract latex from two sustainable North American plant sources: a dandelion species and a desert shrub.

Anthropology: General Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Botany Biology: Evolutionary Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Microbiology Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: Nature Environmental: Biodiversity Paleontology: Fossils
Published

Complex green organisms emerged a billion years ago      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Of all the organisms that photosynthesize, land plants have the most complex form. How did this morphology emerge? A team of scientists has taken a deep dive into the evolutionary history of morphological complexity in streptophytes, which include land plants and many green algae. Their research allowed them to go back in time to investigate lineages that emerged long before land plants existed.

Anthropology: General Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Botany Biology: Evolutionary Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Microbiology Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: Nature Paleontology: General
Published

A window into plant evolution: The unusual genetic journey of lycophytes      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

An international team of researchers has uncovered a remarkable genetic phenomenon in lycophytes, which are similar to ferns and among the oldest land plants. Their study reveals that these plants have maintained a consistent genetic structure for over 350 million years, a significant deviation from the norm in plant genetics.

Computer Science: Quantum Computers Physics: Acoustics and Ultrasound Physics: General Physics: Optics Physics: Quantum Computing Physics: Quantum Physics
Published

Towards the quantum of sound      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A team of scientists has succeeded in cooling traveling sound waves in wave-guides considerably further than has previously been possible using laser light. This achievement represents a significant move towards the ultimate goal of reaching the quantum ground state of sound in wave-guides. Unwanted noise generated by the acoustic waves at room temperature can be eliminated. This experimental approach both provides a deeper understanding of the transition from classical to quantum phenomena of sound and is relevant to quantum communication systems and future quantum technologies.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Botany Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Microbiology Biology: Molecular Ecology: Endangered Species
Published

Nearly dead plants brought back to life: Keys to aging hidden in the leaves      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Scientists have known about a particular organelle in plant cells for over a century. However, scientists have only now discovered that organelle's key role in aging.

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

Chemists create a 2D heavy fermion      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have synthesized the first 2D heavy fermion. The material, a layered intermetallic crystal composed of cerium, silicon, and iodine (CeSiI), has electrons that are 1000x heavier and is a new platform to explore quantum phenomena.

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

Higher measurement accuracy opens new window to the quantum world      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A team has developed a new measurement method that, for the first time, accurately detects tiny temperature differences in the range of 100 microkelvin in the thermal Hall effect. Previously, these temperature differences could not be measured quantitatively due to thermal noise. Using the well-known terbium titanate as an example, the team demonstrated that the method delivers highly reliable results. The thermal Hall effect provides information about coherent multi-particle states in quantum materials, based on their interaction with lattice vibrations (phonons).