New find: Glitter makeup toxic to aquatic organisms
From Estado de São Paulo 23/08/23 A study conducted by researchers affiliated with the University of São Paulo (USP) in Brazil concluded that particles of glitter can hinder the growth of organisms at the base of aquatic ecosystems, such as cyanobacteria (blue-green algae), which play a key role in the biogeochemical cycles of water and […]
Oceans release microplastics into the atmosphere
From University of Oldenburg 21/08/23 Microplastic particles are present in the marine atmosphere even in remote parts of the world. These tiny particles come from land sources but are also re-emitted into the atmosphere from the sea, a study by a team of German and Norwegian researchers led by Dr Barbara Scholz-Böttcher of the University […]
Innovators turn dead flies into degradable bioplastics
From American Chemical Society 15/08/23 Imagine using insects as a source of chemicals to make plastics that can biodegrade later — with the help of that very same type of bug. That concept is closer to reality than you might expect. Today, researchers will describe their progress to date, including isolation and purification of insect-derived […]
Microalgae find: Breaks down toxic mercury pollution in waterways
From DOE/Oak Ridge National Laboratory 10/08/23 In the search for ways to fight methylmercury in global waterways, scientists at Oak Ridge National Laboratory discovered that some forms of phytoplankton are good at degrading the potent neurotoxin. Phytoplankton, or microalgae, are known as accumulators of methylmercury. The plankton introduce methylmercury into the food chain, where it […]
Jellyfish-like robots could one day clean up the world’s oceans
From Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems 27/07/23 Roboticists at the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems in Stuttgart have developed a jellyfish-inspired underwater robot with which they hope one day to collect waste from the bottom of the ocean. The almost noise-free prototype can trap objects underneath its body without physical contact, thereby enabling […]
Innovators achieve historic milestone in energy capacity of supercapacitors
From UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT EL PASO 19/07/23 In a new landmark chemistry study, researchers describe how they have achieved the highest level of energy storage — also known as capacitance — in a supercapacitor ever recorded. The study, led by Luis Echegoyen, Ph.D., professor emeritus at The University of Texas at El Paso, and […]
NASA space laser probes structure of rainforest canopy for biodiversity/carbon storage
From NORTHERN ARIZONA UNIVERSITY 19/07/23 We know less about the rainforest canopy, where most of the world’s species live than we do about the surface of Mars or the bottom of the ocean. However, that is about to change thanks to GEDI—a NASA space laser that has provided a detailed structure of the world’s rainforests […]
Plant-controlled machete
By Charles Carter, 04/10/22 Innovator artist David Bowen has enabled a living philodendron houseplant to control the movements of a robotic machete through the plant’s electrical signals. The piece poses the interesting question – if it were possible, should we be arming the natural world so it can protect itself against destruction? The installation was […]