WEIRD SCIENCE
A police officer in Beijing adjusts his face mask, which millions in China are using in hopes of preventing coronavirus infection, on Feb. 9, 2020. The virus is causing major disruptions. AP Photo/Andy Wong. – By Christine Crudo Blackburn, Andrew Natsios, Gerald W …
By Ben Coxworth – An illustration depicting the protein nanowire film, with one of the electrodes visible at top. UMass Amherst/Yao and Lovley labs. – We’ve already heard about so-called “fog harps” that use thin wires to collect airborne water droplets, providing drinking water …
By Sarah Leupen Senior Lecturer in Biological Sciences, University of Maryland, Baltimore County – Curious Kids is a series for children of all ages. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, send it to CuriousKidsUS@TheConversation.Com. – How do we …
By William Akoto, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, University of Denver – Two CubeSats, part of a constellation built and operated by Planet Labs Inc. to take images of Earth, were launched from the International Space Station on May 17, 2016. NASA. Last month, SpaceX …
It’s red, it’s cold, it’s 4bn years old: NASA data from Arrokoth reveals ‘profound truths’ about the solar system. Hannah Devlin Science correspondent @hannahdev – An artist’s impression shows the New Horizons probe encountering Arrokoth in the Kuiper belt 1bn miles. beyond Pluto. …
By Michael Irving – Researchers have modeled how tomatoes growing in greenhouses would be affected by transparent solar cells installed on the roof. NoamArmonn/Depositphotos. Greenhouses and solar panels both need to be placed in areas with a lot of sunlight – so why …
By Ben Coxworth – A treated piece of wood resists absorbing water (left), while an untreated piece readily does so, changing color in the process (right). Allison Carter, Georgia Tech. – While lumber certainly has many desirable qualities as a building material, it typically …
Physicists propose using time crystals to bring about a quantum computing revolution. By Paul Ratner – Adobe stock. A team of scientists proposes using time crystals to power topological superconductors. The approach could lead to error-free quantum computers. Time crystals appear to break …
By Michael Irving – Researchers have found that treating drinking water with chlorine could produce previously-unknown byproducts. Shebeko/Depositphotos. – Adding chlorine is one of the most common methods of disinfecting drinking water, but just how safe is it? Researchers from Johns Hopkins have now …
By Michael Irving – From left, researchers on the study Zhiyong Xia, Matthew Logan and Spencer Langevin. Johns Hopkins APL. Clean water is all around us, and more literally than you might think – it’s floating around in the air most of …
