Birds" dazzling iridescence tied to nanoscale tweak of feather structure
The iridescent shimmer that makes birds such as peacocks and hummingbirds so striking is rooted in a natural nanostructure so complex that people are only just beginning to replicate it technologically. The secret to how birds produce these brilliant.....»»
Birds of a feather flocking together: Research shows storks prefer to fly with conspecifics during migration
With long legs and large wings, the white stork is a prominent star of the pageant that is animal migration. Flying from Europe towards Africa in autumn, and then back again in spring, birds can be seen taking to the sky in conspicuous flocks that he.....»»
Researchers find babbling by zebra finch chicks is important step to memorizing songs
When babies learn to talk or birds learn to sing, the same principle applies: listen and then imitate. This is how the first babble becomes the first word or vocalization. Male zebra finch chicks initially memorize the song of an adult bird. Later, t.....»»
NASA observations find what helps heat roots of "moss" on sun
Did you know the sun has moss? Due to its resemblance to the earthly plants, scientists have named a small-scale, bright, patchy structure made of plasma in the solar atmosphere "moss." This moss, which was first identified in 1999 by NASA's TRACE mi.....»»
From defects to order: Spontaneously emerging crystal arrangements in perovskite halides
Perovskites are among the most extensively studied materials in modern materials science. Their often unique and exotic properties, which stem from perovskite's peculiar crystal structure, could find revolutionary applications in various cutting-edge.....»»
Cut light pollution and treat glass to help migrating birds, say researchers
Spring bird migration has begun. Under cover of darkness, 2.5–3.5 billion birds will fly northward to their breeding grounds in the United States and Canada. According to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, now is one of the most important times of yea.....»»
Apple wants to make grooved keys to stop nasty finger oil transfer to MacBook Pro screens
Apple is researching a novel way to keep MacBook Pro displays clean — by changing the structure of keys on the keyboard.Every key would have a groove or gully around it to collect dirt and keep it off the top of the keysApple has previously issued.....»»
New time-resolved ultraviolet photodissociation mass spectrometry strategy for target protein stability analysis
How mutations impact protein stability and structure dynamics is crucial for understanding the molecular mechanism of the disease and the targeted drug design. However, probing the molecular details of mutation-induced subtle structure dynamics is st.....»»
Scientists develop maleic acid-treated bacterial cellulose gel for enhancing bone repair
The field of bone tissue engineering (BTE) is a promising avenue for addressing bone injuries and defects by constructing artificial scaffolds with bionic functionalities. Due to its unique 3D network structure, impressive mechanical properties, and.....»»
Researchers control quantum properties of 2D materials with tailored light
A team of scientists has developed a method that harnesses the structure of light to twist and tweak the properties of quantum materials. Their results, published today in Nature, pave the way for advancements in next generation quantum electronics,.....»»
Tropical forests can"t recover naturally without fruit eating birds, carbon recovery study shows
New research from the Crowther Lab at ETH Zurich illustrates a critical barrier to natural regeneration of tropical forests. Their models—from ground-based data gathered in the Atlantic Forest of Brazil—show that when wild tropical birds move fre.....»»
A molecular moon lander: Insight into molecular motion on surfaces at the nanoscale
For years, scientists have been intrigued by how molecules move across surfaces. The process is critical to numerous applications, including catalysis and the manufacturing of nanoscale devices......»»
What do bird dreams sound like?
For more than 20 years, researchers have known that areas of birds' brains dedicated to singing show neural patterns during sleep akin to the ones they use while awake and singing......»»
Scientists find blue light makes buildings more deadly to migrating birds
Bird collisions with buildings are nothing new, but a new study by scientists at The University of New Mexico sheds light on a potential cause......»»
Nanoscale movies shed light on one barrier to a clean energy future
Left unchecked, corrosion can rust out cars and pipes, take down buildings and bridges, and eat away at our monuments. Corrosion can also damage devices that could be key to a clean energy future. And now, Duke University researchers have captured ex.....»»
Rock permeability, microquakes link may be a boon for geothermal energy
Using machine learning, researchers at Penn State have tied low-magnitude microearthquakes to the permeability of subsurface rocks beneath the Earth, a discovery that could have implications for improving geothermal energy transfer......»»
Nothing is everything: How hidden emptiness can define the usefulness of filtration materials
Voids, or empty spaces, exist within matter at all scales, from the astronomical to the microscopic. In a new study, researchers used high-powered microscopy and mathematical theory to unveil nanoscale voids in three dimensions. This advancement is p.....»»
Making ultra-fast electron measurements in multiple directions to reveal the secrets of the aurora
The energetic electrons that drive the aurora borealis (the northern lights) have a rich and very dynamic structure that we currently do not fully understand. Much of what we know about these electrons comes from instruments that have fundamental lim.....»»
New protein imaging method supports the design of innovative new cancer drugs
Scientists have successfully used a new imaging technique to determine the structure and interactions of a protein complex that plays a significant part in the initiation and progression of cancer. They showed that it was possible to use a high-resol.....»»
Scientists reconstruct assembly of the human centriole, image by image, for the first time
Cells contain various specialized structures—such as the nucleus, mitochondria or peroxisomes—known as "organelles." Tracing their genesis and determining their structure is fundamental to understanding cell function and the pathologies linked to.....»»
Researchers map structure of mitochondria at different life stages
Mitochondria, organelles with an inner and outer membrane, are responsible for creating the energy that cells use to survive, and their morphology is key to accomplishing this task. The inner mitochondrial membrane contains folds, called cristae, tha.....»»