Scientists replicate key evolutionary step in life on earth
(PhysOrg.com) -- More than 500 million years ago, single-celled organisms on Earth's surface began forming multi-cellular clusters that ultimately became plants and animals.
Jan 16, 2012 |
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Scientists grow solar cell components in tobacco plants
(PhysOrg.com) -- Over billions of years, plants have evolved very efficient sunlight-collecting systems. Now, scientists are trying to harness the finely tuned systems in tobacco plants in order to use them ...
Gemasolar solar thermal power plant supplies power for 24 hours straight
(PhysOrg.com) -- Last week, the Gemasolar power plant near Seville, Spain, became the first commercial solar thermal power plant to supply uninterrupted power for a full 24 hours, according to builders Torresol ...
European space company wants solar power plant in space
(PhysOrg.com) -- EADS Astrium, Europe's biggest space company, plans to put a solar power satellite in orbit to demonstrate the collection of solar power in space and its transmission via infrared laser to ...
Hydroelectric generator can be carried like a backpack
Bourne Energy, a company based in Malibu, California, specializes in a variety of hydropower systems. While most of its technology is for large-scale applications, with multiple units generating energy on ...
Fruit fly intestine may hold secret to the fountain of youth
One of the few reliable ways to extend an organism's lifespan, be it a fruit fly or a mouse, is to restrict calorie intake. Now, a new study in fruit flies is helping to explain why such minimal diets are ...
Nov 02, 2011 |
4.9 / 5 (17) |
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Plants may have a single ancestor
(PhysOrg.com) -- An international group of scientists has analyzed the DNA of primitive microscopic algae, and their findings suggest that all plants on Earth may have had a single ancestor.
How plants sense touch, gravity and other physical forces
(PhysOrg.com) -- At the bottom of plants' ability to sense touch, gravity or a nearby trellis are mechanosensitive channels, pores through the cells' plasma membrane that are opened and closed by the deformation ...
Oct 21, 2011 |
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New kind of solar cell could capture significantly more energy than current cells
New solar cells could increase the maximum efficiency of solar panels by over 25%, according to scientists from the University of Cambridge.
Feb 08, 2012 |
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Plants that can move inspire new adaptive structures
The Mimosa plant, which folds its leaves when they're touched, is inspiring a new class of adaptive structures designed to twist, bend, stiffen and even heal themselves. University of Michigan researchers ...
Feb 19, 2011 |
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Climate-driven heat peaks may shrink wheat crops
More intense heat waves due to global warming could diminish wheat crop yields around the world through premature ageing, according to a study published Sunday in Nature Climate Change.
Jan 29, 2012 |
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Top 10 Sci-Tech Stories Of The Decade
Discoveries, devices, and developments that have changed the way we view our world over the past ten years.
Jan 11, 2010 |
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Sewage water bacteria helps fill 'missing link' in early evolution
(PhysOrg.com) -- A common group of bacteria found in acid bogs and sewage treatment plants has provided scientists with evidence of a missing link in one of the most important steps in the evolution ...
Dec 07, 2010 |
3.9 / 5 (13) |
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Electricity from straw
Researchers have developed the first-ever biogas plant to run purely on waste instead of edible raw materials -- transforming waste into valuable material. The plant generates 30 percent more biogas than its ...
Technology / Energy & Green Tech
Feb 03, 2009 |
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Scientists say plants can remember properties of light
(PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers in Poland say plants are able to remember and react to information on light intensity and quality by transmitting information from leaf to leaf.