Chemistry
- Environment
Oil from BP spill probably sprayed out in tiny drops
Oil that gushed from the well in the 2010 Deepwater Horizon spill may have shattered into tiny droplets, with high pressures doing the work of dispersants.
- Anthropology
Kennewick Man’s bones reveal his diet
Pacific Northwest man who lived 9,000 years ago ate from an almost entirely seafood menu, a new analysis finds.
- Chemistry
Idea for new battery material isn’t nuts
Baking foam peanuts at high heat can form wee structures that lure lithium ions and could make for cheaper, more powerful batteries.
- Chemistry
Air pollution molecules make key immune protein go haywire
Reactive molecules in air pollution derail immune responses in the lung and can trigger life-long asthma.
- Chemistry
Today’s pot is more potent, less therapeutic
The medicinal qualities of marijuana may be up in smoke thanks to years of cross-breeding plants for a better buzz.
- Chemistry
New method leaves older ways of 3-D printing in its goopy wake
Finding the sweet spot in a pool of resin, chemists can create detailed 3-D objects faster than 3-D printers.
- Chemistry
Cooking up life’s ingredients, all in one pot
An interconnected series of chemical reactions with a few primordial chemicals can cook up all the necessary elements of life
- Anthropology
People moved into rainforests much earlier than thought
People lived year-round in rainforests well before previous estimates, an analysis of teeth excavated in Sri Lanka suggests.
- Chemistry
Iron nanoparticles snatch uranium
With a dash of iron nanoparticles and a magnet, researchers can quickly harvest radioactive fuel.
- Chemistry
Brute-force chemistry study retracted
The journal Science has retracted a notable 2011 chemistry study in which authors reported a brawny method to break sturdy chemical structures.
- Materials Science
Old chemistry gives jolt to modern batteries
Chemical reactions discovered in the 19th century improve the performance of futuristic batteries.
- Materials Science
Oxygen sneaks into titanium, making it brittle
Oxygen atoms trigger defects in titanium’s atomic structure, making the metal brittle.
