News tagged with environmental

Noxious nanotech: Water-borne nanomaterials promote multidrug-resistance gene transfer

(PhysOrg.com) -- The arms race between effective antibiotic prophylaxis and closely related strains or species of bacteria is continually escalating. Bacteria can quickly develop genetic resistance to a range ...

Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine

created Mar 30, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (3) | comments 0 | with audio podcast feature

Cellular secrets of plant fatty acid production understood; discovery could boost bioeconomy

(Phys.org) -- Research groups from Iowa State University and the Salk Institute for Biological Studies have uncovered the function of three plant proteins, a discovery that could help plant scientists boost ...

Biology / Biotechnology

created May 14, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (3) | comments 3 | with audio podcast

Innovative 3-D designs can more than double solar power generated from a given area

(PhysOrg.com) -- Intensive research around the world has focused on improving the performance of solar photovoltaic cells and bringing down their cost. But very little attention has been paid to the best ways ...

Technology / Energy & Green Tech

created Mar 26, 2012 | popularity 4.6 / 5 (13) | comments 22 | with audio podcast

Benefits of single atoms acting as catalysts in hydrogen-related reactions

A team of researchers at Tufts University's School of Arts and Sciences and School of Engineering have discovered that individual atoms can catalyze industrially important chemical reactions such as the hydrogenation ...

Chemistry / Materials Science

created Mar 08, 2012 | popularity 2.5 / 5 (2) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Mystery of monarch migration takes new turn

During the fall, hundreds of millions of monarch butterflies living in eastern North America fly up to 1,500 miles to the volcanic forests of Mexico to spend the winter, while monarchs west of the Rocky Mountains fly to the ...

Biology / Plants & Animals

created 2 hours ago | popularity not rated yet | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Volcanic super-eruptions may have surprisingly short fuses

Enormous volcanic eruptions with potential to end civilizations may have surprisingly short fuses, researchers have discovered.

Space & Earth / Earth Sciences

created 20 hours ago | popularity 4.9 / 5 (8) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Civil engineers find savings where the rubber meets the road

A new study by civil engineers at MIT shows that using stiffer pavements on the nation’s roads could reduce vehicle fuel consumption by as much as 3 percent — a savings that could add up to 273 million ...

Technology / Energy & Green Tech

created May 22, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Toxic mercury, accumulating in the Arctic, springs from a hidden source

(Phys.org) -- Environmental scientists at Harvard have discovered that the Arctic accumulation of mercury, a toxic element, is caused by both atmospheric forces and the flow of circumpolar rivers that carry ...

Space & Earth / Earth Sciences

created May 21, 2012 | popularity 3.7 / 5 (3) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Shedding light on debate over organic vs. conventional agriculture: Study calls for combining best of both approaches

(Phys.org) -- Can organic agriculture feed the world?

Biology / Other

created Apr 25, 2012 | popularity 4 / 5 (1) | comments 1 | with audio podcast

Intestinal flora of cockroaches and termites reflects these insects' family relationships, and divergent diets

Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany, have compared the microbial ecosystems in the intestines termites and cockroaches, with fascinating results. The research is published ...

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

created Apr 17, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (2) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Counting penguins from space

A new study using satellite mapping technology reveals there are twice as many emperor penguins in Antarctica than was previously thought. The results provide an important benchmark for monitoring the impact ...

Biology / Plants & Animals

created Apr 13, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (5) | comments 9 | with audio podcast

Resurfacing urban areas to offset 150 billion tons of carbon dioxide

Imagine a world where the rooftops and pavements of every urban area are resurfaced to increase the reflection of the Sun's light rays. Well, this is exactly what a group of Canadian researchers have done ...

Space & Earth / Environment

created Apr 12, 2012 | popularity 4.3 / 5 (12) | comments 23 | with audio podcast

Southern sea levels rise drastically

(Phys.org) -- Sea levels have risen about 20cm in the South West Pacific since the late 19th century, a new scientific study shows.

Space & Earth / Earth Sciences

created Apr 12, 2012 | popularity 3.9 / 5 (12) | comments 14 | with audio podcast

Radiation from Japan found in kelp off US West Coast

Radioactive iodine was found in kelp off the US West Coast following last year's earthquake-triggered Fukushima Daiichi nuclear meltdown, according to a new study.

Space & Earth / Environment

created Apr 10, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (5) | comments 3

New detector design improves gamma-ray measurements

(Phys.org) -- In the pursuit of precision measurements, nothing is simple, even when the apparatus employed appears to be utterly uncomplicated. An instructive case in point is the new ionization chamber used ...

Physics / General Physics

created Apr 06, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (4) | comments 0 | with audio podcast