Although it is essential to develop vaccines for the 2019 coronavirus, it is unlikely that any effort made at the moment will benefit patients in the current outbreak. Researchers around the world…
Author: Carolyn Gramling
Pluto’s beating heart drives icy winds
How does Pluto’s “beating heart” determine wind patterns on its surface? According to a new study from NASA, Pluto’s famous “beating heart” — the iconic Tombaugh Regio captured by the New Horizons…
Searching for a needle in the haystack: Fast screening for new catalysts
Electrocatalysts belong to a special class of catalysts that facilitate chemical reactions through the transfer of electrons. Over the past several decades, their applications have extended beyond the laboratory to creating electronic…
Bacteria engineered to protect bees from pests and pathogens
Using bacteria to combat varroa mites, a common pest that can weaken honey bees and make them more susceptible to pathogens. Bees and other pollinators form an integral part of our ecosystem,…
Bionic jellyfish to explore our oceans
Researchers at Caltech and Stanford use microelectronics to enhance jellyfish swimming. Researchers from Caltech and Stanford University have reported a tiny, microelectronic prosthetic that they have developed to enable jellyfish to swim…
Amateur astronomers discover new form of northern lights
The newly discovered auroral dunes appear as a green-tinged and even pattern of waves resembling a striped veil of clouds or dunes on a sandy beach. A new form of the northern…
Machine learning scopes out previously “invisible” microplastics
The largest percentage of marine litter consists of plastic waste, in which the biodegradation process can take decades to complete. With serious concerns related to the negative effects of plastic, especially microplastics,…
Scientists create living concrete from bacteria and sand
Regenerating bricks are created from sand, gelatin, and bacteria. Cement is one of the most widely used building materials in the world due to its low cost and longevity. While its usage…
Printing in color with photoswitchable polymers
Azopolymer material allows light-assisted imprinting of nanostructures for structurally colored surfaces. In the natural world, color is produced through pigments, bioluminescence, and structure. Though perhaps less widely known, structural colors are produced…
CRISPR cleans up DNA origami
Researchers use CRISPR-Cas12a as a DNA shredder to clean up and mobilize parts of DNA-origami structures. DNA origami is the folding of DNA strands into precise shapes on the nanoscale. The technique…