http://phys.org/ en-us Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. In the Mid-South, twin-row soybean production is becoming a popular growing technique for soybean producers. An estimated 80% of the total hectares grown in the Mississippi Delta are planted in this configuration. While growers report this method increases seed yields, especially when used with specific cultivars planted in April or early May, there is no research data to support their claims. http://phys.org/news233320483.html Biology Tue, 23 Aug 2011 12:19:48 EST news233320483 Marine researchers from the Wildlife Conservation Society and other groups have created a map of the world's corals and their exposure to stress factors, including high temperatures, ultra-violet radiation, weather systems, sedimentation, as well as stress-reducing factors such as temperature variability and tidal dynamics. http://phys.org/news232299349.html Space & Earth Thu, 11 Aug 2011 16:36:08 EST news232299349 Comets are icy bodies, yet they are made of materials formed at very high temperatures. Where do these materials come from? French researchers have now provided the physical explanation behind this phenomenon. They have demonstrated how these materials migrated from the hottest parts of the solar system to its outer regions before entering the composition of comets. Their results are published in the July 2011 issue of the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics. http://phys.org/news230549625.html Space & Earth Fri, 22 Jul 2011 10:34:04 EST news230549625 A fungus that lives at extremely high temperatures could help understand structures within our own cells. Scientists at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) and Heidelberg University, both in Heidelberg, Germany, were the first to sequence and analyse the genome of a heat-loving fungus, and used that information to determine the long sought 3-dimensional structure of the inner ring of the nuclear pore. The study was published today in Cell. http://phys.org/news230481274.html Biology Thu, 21 Jul 2011 15:34:54 EST news230481274 Populations of spur-thighed tortoises (Testudo graeca), a species classified as vulnerable and at risk of extinction, can withstand fires if outbreaks occur once every three decades or more. However, the youngest tortoises are more vulnerable, and disappear after each fire. These are the results of a study by Spanish researchers, who analysed the impact of a 2004 forest fire in the Sierra de la Carrasquilla mountains in Murcia (Spain) on these reptiles. http://phys.org/news230287823.html Biology Tue, 19 Jul 2011 09:50:33 EST news230287823 A new approach to growing graphene greatly reduces problems that have plagued researchers in the past and clears a path to the crystalline form of graphite's use in sophisticated electronic devices of tomorrow. http://phys.org/news230227532.html Nanotechnology Mon, 18 Jul 2011 17:05:45 EST news230227532 (PhysOrg.com) -- Physicists at the University of California, Riverside report that they have discovered a new way to create positronium, an exotic and short-lived atom that could help answer what happened to antimatter in the universe, why nature favored matter over antimatter at the universe's creation. http://phys.org/news229623470.html Physics Mon, 11 Jul 2011 17:18:05 EST news229623470 The Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP) has announced completion of a feasibility study of drilling and coring activities that would be conducted in an ultra-deepwater environment into very high temperature igneous rocks to reach the upper oceanic mantle. http://phys.org/news229606246.html Space & Earth Mon, 11 Jul 2011 12:34:52 EST news229606246 (PhysOrg.com) -- More than 50 years ago, NYU-Poly alumni John Gilbert was asked to evaluate a newly- developed material called Teflon. His experiments using the fluorinated polymer as a surface coating for pots and pans helped usher in a revolution in non-stick cookware. Today, NYU-Poly Assistant Professor of Chemical and Biological Sciences Jin Montclare is taking the research theme in a new direction, investigating fluorinated proteins -- a unique class of proteins that may have a wide range of applications from industrial detergents to medical therapeutics. http://phys.org/news228980797.html Chemistry Mon, 04 Jul 2011 06:46:51 EST news228980797 A potentially pathogenic fungus has found a home living in extreme conditions in some of the most common household appliances, researchers have found. A new paper published in the British Mycological Society journal, Fungal Biology, published by Elsevier, shows that these sites make perfect habitats for extremotolerant fungi (which includes black yeasts). Some of these are potentially dangerous to human health. http://phys.org/news227791694.html Biology Mon, 20 Jun 2011 12:28:29 EST news227791694 (PhysOrg.com) -- Hydrogen is under consideration as a promising energy carrier for a future sustainable energy economy. However, practicable solutions for the easy and safe storage of hydrogen are still being sought. Despite some progress, no generally applicable solutions that meet the requirements of industry have been found to date. In the journal Angewandte Chemie Matthias Beller and his team at the Leibnitz Institute for Catalysis (Rostock, Germany) have now introduced a new approach to hydrogen storage that is based on simple salts of formic acid and carbonic acid. http://phys.org/news227282617.html Chemistry Tue, 14 Jun 2011 15:04:01 EST news227282617 (PhysOrg.com) -- A team of researchers from the University of Chicago and the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory has demonstrated a method that could produce cheaper semiconductor layers for solar cells. http://phys.org/news226231899.html Nanotechnology Thu, 02 Jun 2011 12:00:03 EST news226231899 (PhysOrg.com) -- A class of decorative, flower-like defects in the nanomaterial graphene could have potentially important effects on the material's already unique electrical and mechanical properties, according to researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and Georgia Tech. In a new paper, the team for the first time describes a family of seven defects that could occur naturally or be induced to occur in graphene, one of which already has been observed. http://phys.org/news225539421.html Nanotechnology Wed, 25 May 2011 10:50:41 EST news225539421 QD Laser, Fujitsu Laboratories, and the Institute for Nano Quantum Information Electronics, the University of Tokyo today announced the world's first successful operation of a 1.3µm wavelength semiconductor laser at temperatures over 200°C. This was accomplished by utilizing quantum dots—nanometer-sized semiconductor artificial particles. By enabling a broader range of semiconductor laser applications, this technology shows promise for use in extremely high-temperature operating conditions, such as those encountered in oil and gas exploration. http://phys.org/news225534502.html Physics Wed, 25 May 2011 09:28:48 EST news225534502 Chemical Engineering students at Stevens Institute of Technology are transforming the way that American soldiers power their battery-operated devices by making a small change: a really small change. Capitalizing on the unique properties of microscale systems, the students have invented a microreactor that converts everyday fossil fuels like propane and butane into pure hydrogen for fuel cell batteries. These batteries are not only highly efficient, but also can be replenished with hydrogen again and again for years of resilient performance in the field. http://phys.org/news225368046.html Chemistry Mon, 23 May 2011 11:14:27 EST news225368046 A study by Duke University researchers has found high levels of leaked methane in well water collected near shale-gas drilling and hydrofracking sites. The scientists collected and analyzed water samples from 68 private groundwater wells across five counties in northeastern Pennsylvania and New York. http://phys.org/news224162575.html Space & Earth Mon, 09 May 2011 15:00:01 EST news224162575 (PhysOrg.com) -- Today the University of Chicago's Flash Center for Computational Science will release a major new version of supercomputer code, called FLASH 4-alpha. Based on previous software for simulating exploding stars, this is the first version of the FLASH code that has extensive capabilities for simulating high-energy density physics experiments. http://phys.org/news223313090.html Technology Fri, 29 Apr 2011 16:26:26 EST news223313090 Iowa State University's Malika Jeffries-EL says she's studying doing structure-property studies so she can teach old polymers new tricks. http://phys.org/news223229205.html Chemistry Thu, 28 Apr 2011 17:06:59 EST news223229205 (PhysOrg.com) -- Semiconductor nanowires are essential materials in the development of cheaper and more efficient solar cells, as well as batteries with higher storage capacity. Moreover, they are important building blocks in nanoelectronics. However, manufacturing semiconductor nanowires on an industrial scale is very expensive. The main reason for this is the high temperatures at which they are produced (600−900 C), as well as the use of expensive catalysts, such as gold. Scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems in Stuttgart, formerly the Max Planck Institute for Metals Research, have now been able to produce crystalline semiconductor nanowires at a much lower temperature (150 C) while using inexpensive catalysts, such as aluminium. In this way, nanostructured semiconductors can even be deposited directly on heat-sensitive plastic substrates. http://phys.org/news220081320.html Nanotechnology Wed, 23 Mar 2011 06:43:10 EST news220081320 Researchers need to use all available resources in an integrated approach to put agriculture on a path to solve the world's food problems while reducing pollution, according to a Penn State biologist. Changes in national and international regulations will be necessary to achieve this goal. http://phys.org/news217259659.html Biology Fri, 18 Feb 2011 14:20:03 EST news217259659 Materials scientists and engineers from six UK universities are joining forces to forecast the life expectancy of nuclear power reactors. http://phys.org/news217158329.html Technology Thu, 17 Feb 2011 10:00:07 EST news217158329 Researchers from Cardiff University are opening up a new way of using hydrocarbon feedstocks to make a range of valuable products. http://phys.org/news214152385.html Chemistry Thu, 13 Jan 2011 14:46:48 EST news214152385 Despite a 30-year warming trend, the last three years in the Bering Sea have been the coldest on record. A University of Alaska Fairbanks scientist says that the cold temperatures have helped produce larger zooplankton in the Bering Sea, which may affect the way Walleye pollock feed. http://phys.org/news211133800.html Space & Earth Thu, 09 Dec 2010 16:30:01 EST news211133800 Materials scientists from Case Western Reserve University and the Institute of Solid State Research in Julich, Germany have produced particularly clear changes in the atomic structure of sapphire following deformation at high temperatures. http://phys.org/news209917526.html Physics Thu, 25 Nov 2010 14:30:01 EST news209917526 (PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers are creating a system that harvests heat from an engine's exhaust to generate electricity, reducing a car's fuel consumption. http://phys.org/news209748739.html Technology Tue, 23 Nov 2010 15:32:52 EST news209748739 (PhysOrg.com) -- Proteins are an interesting class of drugs because they demonstrate high biological activity and are highly specific in their effects. It has become possible to produce more and more proteins with tailored pharmacological properties; however transport and controlled release of the protein drugs in the body have remained a challenge. http://phys.org/news207214233.html Chemistry Mon, 25 Oct 2010 08:30:46 EST news207214233 Measuring a fuel cell's overall performance is relatively easy, but measuring its components individually as they work together is a challenge. That's because one of the best experimental techniques for investigating the details of an electrochemical device while it's operating is x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Traditional XPS works only in a vacuum, while fuel cells need gases under pressure to function. http://phys.org/news205505617.html Physics Tue, 05 Oct 2010 13:56:33 EST news205505617 Do you remember as a kid using a magnifying glass to generate intense heat to burn a leaf? Technology has come a long way since then, and the work of Western Engineering professor Kamran Siddiqui in the area of solar energy research is taking the use of this free energy resource to new levels. http://phys.org/news204479042.html Technology Thu, 23 Sep 2010 16:45:07 EST news204479042 (PhysOrg.com) -- University of California, Berkeley, and Yale University scientists have recreated the tremendous pressures and high temperatures deep in the Earth to resolve a long-standing puzzle: why some seismic waves travel faster than others through the boundary between the solid mantle and fluid outer core. http://phys.org/news204470470.html Space & Earth Thu, 23 Sep 2010 14:21:26 EST news204470470 Hitachi, Ltd. today announced the development of Spin-polarized Scanning Electron Microscopy (spin-SEM) technology for observation of magnetic domains under high temperature conditions in a magnetic field. Using this technology, changes in the magnetic domain structure of a cobalt (Co) single crystal was visualized up to 500 degrees Celsius (C). http://phys.org/news204267645.html Physics Tue, 21 Sep 2010 06:00:56 EST news204267645