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New technique will accelerate genetic characterization of photosynthesis

By Guest PostMay 8, 2014Sciencebacteria, carbon, christian joyal, energy, green algae, journal of sex, life on earth, organism, photosynthesis, yeast

Stanford, CA — Photosynthesis provides fixed carbon and energy for nearly all life on Earth, yet many aspects of this fascinating process remain mysterious. For example, little is known about how it is regulated in response to changes in light intensity. More fundamentally, we do not know the full list of the parts of the molecular machines that perform photosynthesis in any organism.

A type of single-cell green algae called Chlamydomonas reinhardtii is a leading subject for photosynthesis research. Despite its importance in the research world, few tools are available for characterizing the functions of its genes. (more…)

A better water wing to harvest tidal energy

By Guest PostApril 13, 2014Sciencearpa-e, cipher256, climate change, energy, entebbe main hospital, henry waxman, kenneth breuer, midwife, prenatal care, progress, projektionseffekt, prossy alanyo, renewable, robert busingye, sheldon whitehouse, smartphone based, source of energy, ultrasound alternative, winsenga

The eternal ebb and flow of tides — 24 x 7 x 365 — makes them a dependable source of energy, but how to harness all that, especially in shallow water? Shreyas Mandre and colleagues at Brown have developed an efficient water wing and optimized its performance with a “secret sauce.”

PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — When it comes to raw power and absolute reliability, it doesn’t get much better than the tides. That’s why tidal power is such an attractive option as a renewable form of energy. But designing a device to gather tidal energy in shallow water, where the ebb and flow move fastest and the energy potential is highest, has proven problematic. (more…)

How Did Life Arise? Fuel Cells May Have Answers

By Guest PostMarch 16, 2014Scienceanswers, arise, astrobiology, biological catalysts, chimneys, chung kuang lin, development of life, energy, energy for life, fuel cells, how did life, hydrogen gas, ivria doloboff, laurie barge, metal containing enzymes, mystery, NASA, origins of life, solar system, thomas valdez, transfer of electrons

How life arose from the toxic and inhospitable environment of our planet billions of years ago remains a deep mystery. Researchers have simulated the conditions of an early Earth in test tubes, even fashioning some of life’s basic ingredients. But how those ingredients assembled into living cells, and how life was first able to generate energy, remain unknown.

A new study led by Laurie Barge of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., demonstrates a unique way to study the origins of life: fuel cells. (more…)

NASA: Warm Rivers Play Role in Arctic Sea Ice Melt

By Guest PostMarch 8, 2014ScienceArctic, arctic ocean, Arctic sea ice, beaufort sea, consumption rate, dorothy hall, drainage basins, energy, factor, ignatius rigor, mackenzie river, NASA, northern hemisphere, reflective sea ice, sea ice melt, son nghiem, united states, warm rivers, watersheds

The heat from warm river waters draining into the Arctic Ocean is contributing to the melting of Arctic sea ice each summer, a new NASA study finds.

A research team led by Son Nghiem of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., used satellite data to measure the surface temperature of the waters discharging from a Canadian river into the icy Beaufort Sea during the summer of 2012. They observed a sudden influx of warm river waters into the sea that rapidly warmed the surface layers of the ocean, enhancing the melting of sea ice. A paper describing the study is now published online in the journal Geophysical Research Letters. (more…)

Nighttime smartphone use zaps workers’ energy

By Guest PostFebruary 3, 2014Health, Technologyamericans, christopher barnes, energy, job, klodiana lanaj, knowledge based work, michigan state university, negative effect, nighttime smartphone, recovery function, russell johnson, smartphone usage, university of florida, university of washington, worker

Using a smartphone to cram in more work at night results in less work the next day, indicates new research co-authored by a Michigan State University business scholar.

In a pair of studies surveying a broad spectrum of U.S. workers, Russell Johnson and colleagues found that people who monitored their smart phones for business purposes after 9 p.m. were more tired and were less engaged the following day on the job. (more…)

A Roly-Poly Pika Gathers Much Moss

By Guest PostDecember 26, 2013Environment, Natureasia, caecal, cascade range, columbia river gorge, denise dearing, douglas fir, earth, eastern europe, energy, forest, great basin, high elevation habitat, high quality protein, jo varner, journal of mammalogy, lagomorpha, low elevation pikas, moss, mountain ranges, nevada, North America, ochotona princeps, oregon, oregon zoo, pellets, rabbit relative, recycling factory, roly poly pika, university of utah, volcanoe, warming climate

High-Fiber Salad Bar May Help Lagomorphs Survive Climate Change

In some mountain ranges, Earth’s warming climate is driving rabbit relatives known as pikas to higher elevations or wiping them out. But University of Utah biologists discovered that roly-poly pikas living in rockslides near sea level in Oregon can survive hot weather by eating more moss than any other mammal.

“Our work shows pikas can eat unusual foods like moss to persist in strange environments,” says biology professor Denise Dearing, senior author of the new study, published online on Dec. 18, 2013 in the February 2014 issue of Journal of Mammalogy. “It suggests that they may be more resistant to climate change than we thought.” (more…)

Holistic Cell Design by Berkeley Lab Scientists Leads to High-Performance, Long Cycle-Life Lithium-Sulfur Battery

By Guest PostDecember 15, 2013Scienceberkeley lab, cairns, eetd, energy, holistic cell design, lithium sulfur battery, long cycle life, min kyu song, specific energy, storage capacity loss, yuegang zhang

Battery could find use in mobile applications, and eventually, electric vehicles with 300-mile range

Researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) have demonstrated in the laboratory a lithium-sulfur (Li/S) battery that has more than twice the specific energy of lithium-ion batteries, and that lasts for more than 1,500 cycles of charge-discharge with minimal decay of the battery’s capacity. This is the longest cycle life reported so far for any lithium-sulfur battery.

Demand for high-performance batteries for electric and hybrid electric vehicles capable of matching the range and power of the combustion engine encourages scientists to develop new battery chemistries that could deliver more power and energy than lithium-ion batteries, currently the best performing battery chemistry in the marketplace. (more…)

Astronomers discover first noble gas molecules in space

By Guest PostDecember 13, 2013Science19th century, alison loll, argon 40, argon hydride ions, arh, astronomers, atom like argon, bruce swinyard, crab nebula, different molecules, energy, esa space, ghz, gigahertz, harsh environment, herschel space observatory, infrared light, isotopes, jeff hester, mike barlow, neutron star, noble gas molecules, potassium in rocks, properties, radioactive decay, Space, spectroscopic observations, supernova, supernova remnant, university of arizona, wavelengths, william ramsay

Noble gas molecules have been detected in space for the first time in the Crab Nebula, a supernova remnant, by astronomers at UCL.

Led by Professor Mike Barlow (UCL Physics & Astronomy) the team used ESA’s Herschel Space Observatory to observe the Crab Nebula in far infrared light. (more…)

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