SciGlow | All Science News In One Place
SciGlow is a newsletter of science stories from the major research labs. Headlines link to in-depth articles and editorials. SciGlow keeps scientists and others up-to-date on current research.
The novel reactor, described today in the prestigious academic journal Nature Chemistry, avoids mixing reactant gases by transferring oxygen between reactant streams via a solid state oxygen reservoir. This reservoir is designed to remain close to equilibrium with the reacting gas streams as they follow their reaction trajectory and thus retains a ‘chemical memory’ of the … Read more
Scientists from the University of British Columbia, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the University of Maryland, the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, and Google are conducting a multi-year investigation into cold fusion, a type of benign nuclear reaction hypothesized to occur in benchtop apparatus at room temperature. A progress report published today in Nature publicly discloses … Read more
Recent archaeological finds of ancient preserved apple seeds across Europe and West Asia combined with historical, paleontological, and recently published genetic data are presenting a fascinating new narrative for one of our most familiar fruits. In this study, Robert Spengler of the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History traces the history of … Read more
Having multiple-birth babies can be a time of wonder and excitement, however, according to the first-ever international collaborative report released today, these babies and their families can face serious disadvantages compared to parents of single-birth babies. Led by Twins Research Australia based at the University of Melbourne, the report identifies common challenges facing these families, … Read more
Space vehicles like SpaceX’s Falcon 9 are designed to be reusable. But this means that, like Olympic gymnasts hoping for a gold medal, they have to stick their landings. Landing is stressful on a rocket’s legs because they must handle the force from the impact with the landing pad. One way to combat this is … Read more
Measles was declared eradicated in the United States in 2000, but has reappeared in recent months in the form of outbreaks in several states. Of the 704 people in the U.S. infected with this highly contagious virus in 2019, 500 were never vaccinated and the remainder are likely to have never received a second follow … Read more
University of Exeter scientists compared the colour patterns of common shore crabs (Carcinus maenas) from rock pools with those living on mudflats. They found that crabs from mudflats closely matched the appearance of the mud they live on, while rockpool crabs did not match the background but instead relied on “disruptive colouration” – the use … Read more
Leonardo da Vinci produced some of the world’s most iconic art, but historical accounts show that he struggled to complete his works. 500 years after his death, King’s College London researcher Professor Marco Catani suggests the best explanation for Leonardo’s inability to finish projects is that the great artist may have had Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder … Read more
Chemical signatures imprinted on tiny stones that form inside the ears of fish show that two of Alaska’s most productive salmon populations, and the fisheries they support, depend on the entire watershed. Sockeye and Chinook salmon born in the Nushagak River and its network of streams and lakes in southwest Alaska use the whole basin … Read more
Scientists have long sought to understand how coral reefs support such an abundance of fish life despite their location in nutrient-poor waters. According to a new study published May 23 in the journal Science, an unlikely group fuels these communities: tiny, mostly bottom-dwelling creatures called “cryptobenthic” reef fishes. The study shows that these fishes perform a … Read more