Jason McLachlan, an associate professor in the Department of Biological Sciences, evaluated the role evolution plays in ecosystems in the Chesapeake Bay by studying a type of grass-like plant, Schoenoplectus americanus, also called chairmaker’s bulrush. The research team used a combination of historical seeds found in core sediment samples, modern plants, and computational models to …
Understanding how plants that invaded these harsh deserts biomes were able to survive could help predict how ecosystems will fare in a drier future. An intensive study of a group of plants that first invaded emerging deserts millions of years ago concludes that these pioneers — rock daisies — did not come unequipped to deal …
With rapidly increasing heat and drought, can plants adapt? Read More »
The new research, published in Pacific Conservation Biology, examined the environmental toll of firework displays by reviewing the ecological effects of Diwali festivities in India, Fourth of July celebrations across the United States of America, and other events in New Zealand and parts of Europe. Examples included fireworks in Spanish festivals impacting the breeding success …
Short-term bang of fireworks has long-term impact on wildlife Read More »
Dimethyl sulfide (C2H6S) is a small molecule released by phytoplankton in the ocean, which can play a big role in regulating the Earth’s climate. It encourages cloud formation above the sea, and is often called an ‘anti-greenhouse gas’, since clouds block radiation from the sun and lower sea surface temperatures. At least some blocked heat …
Monitoring an ‘anti-greenhouse’ gas: Dimethyl sulfide in Arctic air Read More »
Catalytic converters, which were widely introduced in American vehicles in the 1970s, use precious metals as catalysts to help scrub deadly and harmful chemicals from combustion engine exhaust. As the price of precious metals has continued to rise, so has the number of catalytic converter thefts. In recent studies appearing in Nature Communications and the …
Researchers work to reduce the amount of precious metals in catalytic converters Read More »
Researchers of the Light Robots group at Tampere University are now researching how to make smart material fly. Hao Zeng, Academy Research Fellow and the group leader, and Jianfeng Yang, a doctoral researcher, have come up with a new design for their project called FAIRY — Flying Aero-robots based on Light Responsive Materials Assembly. They …
A fairy-like robot flies by the power of wind and light Read More »
If you’ve picked up seaweed on the beach, waded through fronds in a stream or cleaned out a grimy, green fish tank, then you’ll know what algae is. These diverse aquatic organisms thrive on water, light and nutrients and come in all sorts of shapes, colors and sizes. Microalgae are an ultrasmall type of algae …
The Goal: 20 Years Outdoor Stability However, solar modules are expected to provide stable output for at least 20 years in outdoor conditions while exposed to large temperature fluctuations. Silicon PV manages this easily, whereas the semi-organic perovskites lose performance rather fast. “Sunlight can heat up the inside of a PV cell to 80 Celsius; …
Stability of perovskite solar cells reaches next milestone Read More »
In a study published Jan. 26 in Nature Energy, UT Dallas researchers and their collaborators describe improvements to high-tech yarns they invented called “twistrons,” which generate electricity when stretched or twisted. Their new version is constructed much like traditional wool or cotton yarns. Twistrons sewn into textiles can sense and harvest human motion; when deployed …
Researchers demo new type of carbon nanotube yarn that harvests mechanical energy Read More »
Plastics, which are now ubiquitous, contain endocrine disrupting chemicals, or EDCs, that have been linked to increased risk of many chronic diseases; parental exposure to EDCs, for example, has been shown to cause metabolic disorders, including obesity and diabetes, in the offspring. Most studies have focused on the impact of maternal EDC exposure on the …
Health impact of chemicals in plastics is handed down two generations Read More »
