Tech
An obstacle to generating fusion reactions inside facilities called tokamaks is that producing the current in plasma that helps create confining magnetic fields happens in pulses. Such pulses, generated by an electromagnet that runs down the center of the tokamak, would make the steady-state creation of fusion energy difficult to achieve. To address the problem, physicists have developed a technique known as transient coaxial helicity injection (CHI) to create a current that is not pulsed.
Artificial light at night negatively impacts thousands of species: beetles, moths, wasps and other insects that have evolved to use light levels as cues for courtship, foraging and navigation.
Potato virus Y (PVY) is the most serious problem facing the potato industry in the United States and is the main cause for rejection of seed potato lots. The virus affects potatoes in two ways: It reduces the yield of potato tubers by 70-80% and also negatively affects the quality of the remaining tubers due to necrotic reactions.
A NASA analysis of rainfall rates shows that the once mighty Fengshen is now a depression devoid of heavy rainfall.
On Nov. 17 at 1 p.m. EST (1800 UTC), the Joint Typhoon Warning Center noted that Tropical Depression Fengshen was located near 24.8 degrees north latitude and 157.9 east longitude, approximately 585 nautical miles northwest of Wake Island, and had tracked southeastward. Maximum sustained surface winds were estimated at 30 knots (34.5 mph/55.5 kph) and weakening.
CAMBRIDGE, MD (November 18, 2019)--Most of us know nitrous oxide as "laughing gas," used for its anaesthetic effects. But nitrous oxide (N2O) is actually the third most important long-lived greenhouse gas, after carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane. Nitrous oxide is also one of the main stratospheric ozone depleting substances-- and we are releasing more of it into the atmosphere than previously thought, according to a new study published this week in Nature Climate Change.
If people are educated on recycled water, they may come to agree it's perfectly safe and tastes as good -- or better -- than their drinking water. They may even agree it's an answer to the critical water imbalance in California, where the northern third of the state holds 75% of the water despite 80% of the demand coming from the southern two-thirds.
But that doesn't mean they're going to use recycled water -- and it sure doesn't mean they'll drink it. And the reason lies in the word "disgust."
When mice learn to do a new task, their brain activities change over time as they advance from 'novice' to 'expert.' The changes are reflected in the wiring of cell circuits and activities of neurons.
In a boon to wind farms, average daily wind speeds are picking up across much of the globe after about 30 years of gradual slowing. Research led by a team at Princeton University shows that wind speeds in northern mid-latitude regions have increased by roughly 7% since 2010.
Two fundamental goals of humanity are to eradicate poverty and reduce climate change, and it is critical that the world knows whether achieving these goals will involve trade-offs. New IIASA research for the first time provides a basis to answer this question, including the tools needed to relate basic needs directly to resource use.
OAK RIDGE, Tenn., Nov. 18, 2019--A scientific team from the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Vanderbilt University has made the first experimental observation of a material phase that had been predicted but never seen. The newly discovered phase couples with a known phase to enable unique control over material properties--an advance that paves the way to eventual manipulation of electrical conduction in two-dimensional (2D) materials such as graphene.
Every day, more than 141 billion liters of water are used solely to flush toilets. With millions of global citizens experiencing water scarcity, what if that amount could be reduced by 50%?
The possibility may exist through research conducted at Penn State, released today (Nov. 18) in Nature Sustainability.
In species with sexual reproduction, no two individuals are alike and scientists have long struggled to understand why there is so much genetic variation. In a new study published in Nature Ecology & Evolution, a team of researchers from the University of Uppsala in Sweden now show that a genetic tug-of-war between the sexes acts to maintain variation.
The endangered Hawaiian duck, or koloa, the only endemic duck remaining on the main Hawaiian Islands, is threatened with genetic extinction due to interbreeding with feral mallards. This has led to the creation of hybrid forms of the koloa. But new research has found that the genetic diversity of the koloa is high, and conservation efforts on the island of Kauai have been successful.
Researchers have designed multiplayer games occupants of autonomous vehicles can play with other players in nearby self-driving cars.
A new study, led by researchers from the University of Waterloo details three games created for level three and higher semi-autonomous vehicles. The researchers also made suggestions for many exciting types of in-car games for future exploration.
Level three and higher semi-autonomous vehicles are those that have, at minimum, environmental detection capabilities and can make informed decisions for themselves.
A new wet suit material tested by Flinders marine researchers can help reduce blood loss caused by shark bites, to reduce injuries and prevent the leading cause of death from shark bites.
The study published in PLOS ONE tested two types of protective fabrics that incorporate ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fibres (UHMWPE) onto widely used neoprene material in wet suits, and compared their resistance to bites against standard neoprene without protective layers.