Good vibes: Coupling electron spin states and carbon nanotube vibrations

(Phys.org) -- An electron’s spin is separate from its motion, and is suitable for use in both highly-precise magnetic sensing as well as a qubit in quantum computing. Recently, scientists at the University ...

Physics / General Physics

created 18 hours ago | popularity 5 / 5 (4) | comments 1 | with audio podcast feature

Dopant gives graphene solar cells highest efficiency yet

(Phys.org) -- By taking advantage of graphene’s favorable electrical and optical properties, and then adding an organic dopant, researchers have achieved the highest power conversion efficiency yet for ...

Nanotechnology / Nanophysics

created May 21, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (10) | comments 14 | with audio podcast feature

Friendly Fungi: Elucidating the fungal biosynthesis of stipitatic acid

(Phys.org) -- In a tale worthy of Sherlock Holmes, scientists in the School of Chemistry at the University of Bristol, UK have solved a biochemical mystery that had previously proven elusive for 70 years: ...

Biology / Biotechnology

created May 18, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (2) | comments 1 | with audio podcast feature

New inexpensive, environmentally friendly solar cell shines with potential

The limitations of conventional and current solar cells include high production cost, low operating efficiency and durability, and many cells rely on toxic and scarce materials. Northwestern University researchers have developed ...

Technology / Energy & Green Tech

created 14 hours ago | popularity 4.8 / 5 (12) | comments 3 | with audio podcast

Newly discovered sensory organ in the chin of baleen whales allows them to be world's largest hunters

Lunge feeding in rorqual whales (a group that includes blue, humpback and fin whales) is unique among mammals, but details of how it works have remained elusive. Now, scientists from the Smithsonian Institution ...

Biology / Plants & Animals

created 14 hours ago | popularity 4.8 / 5 (4) | comments 1 | with audio podcast

Hacking code of leaf vein architecture solves mysteries, allows predictions of past climate

(Phys.org) -- UCLA life scientists have discovered new laws that determine the construction of leaf vein systems as leaves grow and evolve. These easy-to-apply mathematical rules can now be used to better ...

Biology / Plants & Animals

created 22 hours ago | popularity 3.8 / 5 (9) | comments 1 | with audio podcast

Leap Motion creates finger-happy gesture control (w/ Video)

(Phys.org) -- Developers and end users both have been indicating they are ready to start saying long goodbyes to mouse and keyboard. In this touchscreen generation of mobile users, the big stir among gadget ...

Technology / Hi Tech & Innovation

created 22 hours ago | popularity 4.4 / 5 (7) | comments 9 | with audio podcast report

The older we get, the less we know (cosmologically)

(Phys.org) -- The universe is a marvelously complex place, filled with galaxies and larger-scale structures that have evolved over its 13.7-billion-year history. Those began as small perturbations of matter ...

Space & Earth / Astronomy

created May 22, 2012 | popularity 3.5 / 5 (15) | comments 11 | with audio podcast

Availability of hydrogen controls chemical structure of graphene oxide

A new study shows that the availability of hydrogen plays a significant role in determining the chemical and structural makeup of graphene oxide, a material that has potential uses in nano-electronics, nano-electromechanical ...

Nanotechnology / Nanomaterials

created May 22, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (3) | comments 1 | with audio podcast

Raspberry Pi to add camera later this year

(Phys.org) -- The Raspberry Pi, a uniquely priced, no casing computer that plugs into your TV and a keyboard., will be given a camera accessory later this year. That may be “oh-so-what” news if this ...

Electronics / Hardware

created May 22, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (4) | comments 1 | with audio podcast report

SpaceX private rocket blasts off for space station (Update)

A first-of-its-kind commercial supply ship rocketed toward the International Space Station following a successful liftoff early Tuesday, opening a new era of dollar-driven spaceflight.

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

created May 22, 2012 | popularity 4.9 / 5 (22) | comments 38

Today's environment influences behavior generations later: research

Researchers at The University of Texas at Austin and Washington State University have seen an increased reaction to stress in animals whose ancestors were exposed to an environmental compound generations earlier. The findings, ...

Biology / Plants & Animals

created May 21, 2012 | popularity 4.4 / 5 (5) | comments 2 | with audio podcast

Study finds modern dog breeds genetically disconnected from ancient ancestors

Cross-breeding of dogs over thousands of years has made it extremely difficult to trace the ancient genetic roots of today's pets, according to a new study led by Durham University.

Biology / Plants & Animals

created May 21, 2012 | popularity 4.7 / 5 (7) | comments 1 | with audio podcast

Squid ink from Jurassic period identical to modern squid ink, study shows

(Phys.org) -- An international team of researchers, including a University of Virginia professor, has found that two ink sacs from 160-million-year-old giant squid fossils discovered two years ago in England ...

Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils

created May 21, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Totally rad: Scientists create rewritable digital data storage in DNA

(Phys.org) -- Scientists from Stanford's Department of Bioengineering have devised a method for repeatedly encoding, storing and erasing digital data within the DNA of living cells.

Biology / Biotechnology

created May 21, 2012 | popularity 4.9 / 5 (15) | comments 9 | with audio podcast