Showing 20 articles starting at article 1341
< Previous 20 articles Next 20 articles >
Categories: Chemistry: Thermodynamics, Environmental: Ecosystems
Published Researchers develop superfast new method to manufacture high-performance thermoelectric devices
(via sciencedaily.com) Aerospace and mechanical engineers have developed a machine-learning assisted superfast new way to create high-performance, energy-saving thermoelectric devices.
Published Sea urchins keep on trucking while other marine life languishes in the Florida Keys
(via sciencedaily.com) A litany of negative environmental pressures have had little to no effect on sand dollars and heart urchins in the Florida Keys, a new study shows. Scientists arrived at this unexpected conclusion after surveying 27 sites along a 20-mile stretch of coast near Long Key island. Five of the seven most common species known to inhabit the Florida Keys were present and accounted for in the survey and formed robust populations at varying depths.
Published Plant fibers for sustainable devices
(via sciencedaily.com) Plant-derived materials such as cellulose often exhibit thermally insulating properties. A new material made from nanoscale cellulose fibers shows the reverse, high thermal conductivity. This makes it useful in areas previously dominated by synthetic polymer materials. Materials based on cellulose have environmental benefits over polymers, so research on this could lead to greener technological applications where thermal conductivity is needed.
Published The importance of light for grassland plant diversity
(via sciencedaily.com) Plants need light to grow. However, due to excess nutrients and/or the absence of herbivores less light can reach lower vegetation layers in grasslands. Consequently, few fast-growing species dominate and plant diversity declines. So far, this relationship has been established indirectly through experiments, but never directly by means of experimentally adding light in the field. Now biologists have been able to experimentally demonstrate the dominant role of light competition.
Published Invasive fruit fly may pose threat to forest ecosystems
(via sciencedaily.com) The invasive spotted wing drosophila (SWD) is a well-known pest in agriculture. A recent study by Swiss scientists now shows that the forest ecosystem is also affected by this alien insect. SWD infests the fruits of various forest plants and competes with other fruit-eating species. The decay of fruits attacked by SWD leads to a loss of resources, which can cause considerable ecological damage.
Published Clear window coating could cool buildings without using energy
(via sciencedaily.com) As climate change intensifies summer heat, demand is growing for technologies to cool buildings. Now, researchers report that they have used advanced computing technology and artificial intelligence to design a transparent window coating that could lower the temperature inside buildings, without expending a single watt of energy.
Published Antarctic summer thaw starts earlier, ends later than previously believed
(via sciencedaily.com) New research changes our understanding of seasonal thawing in parts of Antarctica, as scientists have learned that summer thawing occurs nearly a month earlier, and stays thawed for a full two months longer than previously believed.
Published Socio-economic factors shown to drive mangrove losses and gains
(via sciencedaily.com) New research into the drivers of mangrove loss over the past 20 years has revealed that most of the degradation can be attributed to socio-economic and biophysical factors, with mangrove cover increasing in some areas.
Published Vegetation regulates energy exchange in the Arctic
(via sciencedaily.com) Global warming is changing the Arctic by causing permafrost thaw, glacier melt, droughts, fires and changes in vegetation. These developments are strongly linked to the energy exchange between land and the atmosphere. Researchers have now shown that different plant communities in the tundra play a key role in this energy exchange but are not taken into account in climate models.
Published NASA laser project benefits animal researchers
(via sciencedaily.com) NASA's Global Ecosystem Dynamics Investigation (GEDI) mission can provide valuable information about the world's forests for wildlife scientists.
Published Companies' 'deforestation-free' supply chain pledges have barely impacted forest clearance in the Amazon, researchers say
(via sciencedaily.com) More companies must make and implement zero-deforestation supply chain commitments in order to significantly reduce deforestation and protect diverse ecosystems, say researchers.
Published El Niño increases seedling mortality even in drought-tolerant forests
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Scientists conducted a 7-year study on seedling recruitment and mortality in a national park in Chiang Mai, in northern Thailand. During the study period, an extremely strong El Niño event occurred, leading to a stronger and longer drought than normal. Seasonally dry tropical forests (SDTFs), which experience an annual dry season, are considered drought-tolerant. Nevertheless, the study found that seedling mortality increased in SDTFs when severe and prolonged drought occurred.
Published Looking to sea urchins for stronger ceramic foams
(via sciencedaily.com) New research has unlocked a mystery in the porous microstructures of sea urchin exoskeletons that could lead to the creation of lightweight synthetic ceramics.
Published Plant processes may be key to predicting drought development
(via sciencedaily.com) Based on new analyses of satellite data, scientists have found that hydrologic conditions that increase flash drought risk occur more often than current models predict. The research also shows that incorporating how plants change soil structures can improve Earth system models.
Published High-res maps of entire polar regions provide new clues for climate researchers
(via sciencedaily.com) A team of researchers has released four more years of high-resolution imagery data, which has been added to eight years of previous data, to create the most detailed polar region terrain maps ever created.
Published Scientists discover material that can be made like a plastic but conducts like metal
(via sciencedaily.com) Scientists have discovered a way to create a material that can be made like a plastic, but conducts electricity more like a metal. The research shows how to make a kind of material in which the molecular fragments are jumbled and disordered, but can still conduct electricity extremely well. This goes against all of the rules we know about for conductivity.
Published Forests in protected Indigenous lands are healthier, scientists find
(via sciencedaily.com) Over the last two centuries, human actions have resulted in rising temperatures, a massive carbon imbalance, and tremendous biodiversity loss. However, there are cases in which human stewardship seems to help remediate this damage. Researchers examined tropical forests across Asia, Africa, and the Americas and found that the forests located on protected Indigenous lands were the healthiest, highest functioning, most diverse, and most ecologically resilient.
Published Life cycle of tree roots
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Scientists have developed a method for the direct observation of fine roots, which control the uptake of nutrients and water by trees. This provides a valuable addition to the existing knowledge of carbon and nutrient cycling in the forest floor, leading to further understanding of the carbon cycle from the view point of initial carbon input into the soil and aiding forest management and soil conservation.
Published Researchers create lunar regolith bricks that could be used to construct Artemis base camp
(via sciencedaily.com) As part of NASA's Artemis program to establish a long-term presence on the moon, it aims to build an Artemis base camp that includes a modern lunar cabin, rover and mobile home. This fixed habitat could potentially be constructed with bricks made of lunar regolith and saltwater, thanks to a recent discovery.
Published The next wonder semiconductor
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source In a study that confirms its promise as the next-generation semiconductor material, researchers have directly visualized the photocarrier transport properties of cubic boron arsenide single crystals.