New England stone walls deserve a science of their own
The abandoned fieldstone walls of New England are every bit as iconic to the region as lobster pots, town greens, sap buckets and fall foliage. They seem to be everywhere—a latticework of dry, lichen-crusted stone ridges separating a patchwork of o.....»»
Researchers reveal how molecular roadblocks slow the breakdown of cellulose for biofuels
Cellulose, which helps give plant cell walls their rigid structure, holds promise as a renewable raw material for biofuels—if researchers can accelerate the production process. Compared to the breakdown of other biofuel materials like corn, breakin.....»»
Sneaking science into Borderlands: Inside the game inside a game
A key to its success? Making a game that didn't look like it involved biology. Enlarge / Line up those colors and close those gaps... for science! In 2020, a new minigame appeared in the video game Borderlands 3, locate.....»»
Study demonstrate improved root growth in radio-cesium contaminated soil
Researchers at the RIKEN Center for Sustainable Resource Science (CSRS) have identified a way for plants to gain resistance to cesium, a radioactive toxin that can be found in contaminated soil. After manipulating a specific biological signaling path.....»»
Risky outdoor play can boost science education
Risky play should be incorporated into early childhood science education in nature-based settings to lay early foundations for science education, says Deakin researcher......»»
A guide for early-career researchers in computational science
In recent years, a growing number of students have embraced scientific computation as an integral component of their graduate research. Yet since many of them are new to the field, they often have little to no coding experience, or any prior knowledg.....»»
Researchers "unzip" 2D materials with lasers
In a new paper published on May 1 in the journal Science Advances, researchers at Columbia Engineering used commercially available tabletop lasers to create tiny, atomically sharp nanostructures, or nanopatterns, in samples of a layered 2D material c.....»»
Materials scientists reveal pathway for designing optical materials with specialized properties
While we usually think of disorder as a bad thing, a team of materials science researchers led by Rohan Mishra, from Washington University in St. Louis, and Jayakanth Ravichandran, from the University of Southern California, have revealed that—when.....»»
Scientists cook pancakes, Brussels sprouts and stir fry to detect an oxidant indoors for the first time
A feast cooked up by UBC researchers has revealed singlet oxygen indoors for the first time. The work is published in the journal Environmental Science: Atmospheres......»»
Art-based approaches can encourage fresh perspectives on the future
Art can contribute to futures thinking in various ways, such as inspiring alternative futures through mediums like science fiction in films and literature, encapsulating future scenarios through artistic illustrations, and posing thought-provoking qu.....»»
Identifying priorities to leverage smart digital technologies for sustainable crop production
Drones monitoring fields for weeds and robots targeting and treating crop diseases may sound like science fiction but is actually happening already, at least on some experimental farms. Researchers from the PhenoRob Cluster of Excellence at the Unive.....»»
Ultrathin samples with surface phonon polariton enhance photoinduced dipole force
A new study has been led by Prof. Xing-Hua Xia (State Key Lab of Analytical Chemistry for Life Science, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Nanjing University). While analyzing the infrared photoinduced force response of quartz, Dr. Jian Li.....»»
Math degrees are becoming less accessible—and this is a problem for business, government and innovation
There's a strange trend in mathematics education in England. Math is the most popular subject at A-level since overtaking English in 2014. It's taken by around 85,000 and 90,000 students a year......»»
Saturday Citations: Parrots on the internet; a map of human wakefulness; the most useless rare-earth element
We field a torrent of science news updates every week and on Saturday morning, we highlight three or four of them based on the observed preferences of a panel of dogs as shown by the Paired-Stimulus Preference Assessment, a standardized evaluation of.....»»
Stony coral tissue loss disease is shifting the ecological balance of Caribbean reefs
The outbreak of a deadly disease called stony coral tissue loss disease is destroying susceptible species of coral in the Caribbean while helping other, "weedier" organisms thrive—at least for now—according to a new study published in Science Adv.....»»
Law fails victims of financial abuse from their partner, research warns
Victims of financial abuse from their partner in England and Wales are being failed by an "inadequate" legal response, new research warns......»»
In medieval England, leprosy spread between red squirrels and people, genome evidence shows
Evidence from archaeological sites in the medieval English city of Winchester shows that English red squirrels once served as an important host for Mycobacterium leprae strains that caused leprosy in people, researchers report in the journal Current.....»»
Chemist explores the real-world science of Star Wars
A professor at the University of Warwick is exploring the chemistry of the galaxy far, far away this Star Wars Day, May the 4th......»»
Maya used hallucinogenic plants in rituals to bless their ball courts
eDNA analysis found traces of xtabentum, as well as lancewood, chili peppers, and jool. Enlarge / A decorative ring made from carved stone is embedded in the wall of a ballcourt in the ancient Maya city of Chichen Itza. (credit:.....»»
Mice navigating a virtual reality environment reveal that walls, not floors, define space
New research published in Current Biology sheds light on how animals create and maintain internal spatial maps based on their surroundings......»»
When scientists and K-12 teachers team up, the results can be spectacular or lackluster
The results of an in-depth review of published research on scientists conducting K-12 science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) outreach suggest that increased collaboration with K-12 educators could improve such projects......»»