All Stories by Aimee Cunningham
- Chemistry
Fish Killer Caught? Ephemeral Pfiesteria compound surfaces
Scientists claim to have found an elusive algal toxin implicated in massive fish kills along the Mid-Atlantic coast in the 1990s.
- Chemistry
Switch Hitters: Antibacterial compounds target new mechanism to kill microbes
Recently discovered ribonucleic acid segments, called riboswitches, may become prime targets for new antibacterial drugs.
- Chemistry
For sweat’s sake
Soldiers and emergency crews may one day find comfort as well as safety in their chemical-protection gear, now that researchers have created a breathable, chemical-blocking composite material.
- Humans
European chemical legislation adopted
A groundbreaking chemical law, passed by the European Parliament on Dec. 13, is set to fundamentally change the evaluation and production of chemicals used throughout the European Union. The Registration, Evaluation and Authorization of Chemicals (REACH) law, which will go into effect in June 2007, takes a different approach than current U.S. policy does. It […]
- Earth
Spread Out: Organic matter scatters carbon nanotubes in water
Although carbon nanotubes usually clump in water, they readily disperse when the water contains natural organic matter.
- Health & Medicine
Salad Doubts
Researchers are looking into new ways to sanitize harvested produce and prevent foodborne pathogens from infecting people.
- Ecosystems
Going Native: Diverse grassland plants edge out crops as biofuel
Biofuels made from mixtures of plants native to prairies can yield more net energy than do biofuels derived from corn and soybeans.
- Chemistry
Together and apart
Chemists report the first chemical reaction that can split apart and recombine the two atoms in molecular hydrogen without using an expensive metal catalyst.
- Tech
Safety practices surveyed
Nanotechnology companies and laboratories largely rely on the same safety practices that they use when working with conventional chemicals, an international survey reports.
- Chemistry
Chemical Pop-Up Books
Chemists and engineers have designed two-dimensional structures that self-fold into functional, three-dimensional objects, such as miniature chemistry laboratories and drug-delivery devices.
- Tech
Cleanup Speedup: Device improves oil-spill recovery
By adding grooves to the surface of a common oil-skimming device, researchers recovered up to three times as much oil as they do with smooth-surfaced devices.
- Chemistry
Were Viking landers blind to life?
The Viking landers may have missed potential signs of life when they explored Mars in 1976.
