Earth
The Lyding Group recently developed a technique that can be used to build carbon-nanotube-based fibers by creating chemical crosslinks. The technique improves the electrical and mechanical properties of these materials.
The paper, "Enhanced Electrical and Mechanical Properties of Chemically Cross-Linked Carbon-Nanotube-Based Fibers and Their Application in High-Performance Supercapacitors," was published in ACS Nano.
A team at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has developed a tool to monitor changes in widely used composite materials known as fiber reinforced polymers (FRPs), which can be found in everything from aerospace and infrastructure to wind turbines. The new tool, integrated into these materials, can help measure the damage that occurs as they age.
"This gives us the ability to develop better, more fatigue-resistant composites," said NIST chemist Jeff Gilman. "We can see when the fiber starts to break. We now have a way to quantify the damage."
The development of next generation solar power technology that has potential to be used as a flexible 'skin' over hard surfaces has moved a step closer, thanks to a significant breakthrough at The University of Queensland.
UQ researchers set a world record for the conversion of solar energy to electricity via the use of tiny nanoparticles called 'quantum dots', which pass electrons between one another and generate electrical current when exposed to solar energy in a solar cell device.
The collaborative team including an expert of statistical physics from mechanical engineering science (Prof. Hanasaki) and physical chemists (Prof. Sugiyama and Prof. Yoshikawa) developed a new approach that can detect a sign of crystallization in solution before crystals were actually formed. These scientists used the optical trapping to induce crystals in solution at a location where laser was focused. Then a process of crystallization was live recorded through optical microscopy.
SAN DIEGO--One of the ocean's loudest creatures is smaller than you'd expect--and will get even louder and more troublesome to humans and sea life as the ocean warms, according to new research presented here at the Ocean Sciences Meeting 2020.
A recent study carried out by an international group of building scientists showed that Estonia is among the countries with the most energy efficient buildings in Europe. The analyses of the NZEB energy performance requirements and reference apartment buildings in four countries (Estonia, Norway, Finland and Sweden) showed that the nearly zero energy buildings constructed in Estonia are most energy-efficient, i.e. their energy consumption is the lowest.
ROCHESTER, Minn. - An approach based on artificial intelligence (AI) may allow EKGs to be used to screen for hypertrophic cardiomyopathy in the future. With hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, the heart walls become thick and may interfere with the heart's ability to function properly. The disease also predisposes some patients to potentially fatal abnormal rhythms. Current EKG technology has limited diagnostic yield for this disease.
Over 14 million U.S. adults have chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and many face barriers to using inhaled medications regularly and effectively. Although inhaled medications can improve daily life and long-term outcomes, only 25 to 43% of people with COPD use them regularly. In addition, inhalers can be complex to use--requiring users to master a series of six to eight steps that differ across devices. Physicians and health teams have not yet found a solution to bring COPD medication adherence to the level of other chronic diseases.
Okazaki, Japan - Mosquitos are hazardous insects for human, and many researchers are investigating the way to prevent from a mosquito bite. The activation of sensory receptors triggers the avoidance behaviors in animals including insects. Therefore, the researchers focused on a sensory receptor called TRPA1 which is expressed in sensory neurons and perceives noxious stimuli such as heat and chemicals in this study.
A two degree Centigrade increase in global average temperature will lead to catastrophic consequences for the planet. Humanity has a maximum of 20 to 30 years to prevent this.
The emergence of superresolution (SR) fluorescence microscopy has rejuvenated the search for new cellular sub-structures and dynamic intermediates. However, limited by the broad emission spectrum of fluorophores and excessive phototoxicity, SR fluorescence microscopy can only be used to highlight a handful of biomolecules simultaneously and is incapable of providing a holistic map of the cellular environment and landscape.
The cause of a disease often affects its treatment plan. The need to fill this gap in our understanding of disease biology is further exaggerated in the case of 'rare' diseases.
Conversion of energy is a constant process but measuring the efficiency of this conversion is not an easy task. Quantifying the heat emission of the object that absorbs energy has been proven to be a good indicator. Scientists have now devised a technique that can perform this measurement easily and accurately, and this novel technology can shed light on the energy transfer processes in systems ranging from plants to solar cells.
The Swedish Malaise Trap Project (SMTP) was launched in 2003 with the aim of making a complete list of the insect diversity of Sweden. Over the past fifteen years, an estimated total of 20 million insects, collected during the project, have been processed for scientific study.
ITHACA, N.Y. - Doctors prescribe more branded medications after marketing visits by the makers of those drugs, new research co-authored by a Cornell University economist confirms.
But while the 4% average monthly increase in sales of those drugs in the year following such marketing represents a substantial return on investment, it is well below what some previous studies have suggested, said Colleen Carey, assistant professor of policy analysis and management at Cornell.