Earth

WASHINGTON, June 19, 2012 — Scientists today described an advance toward a long-sought economical process that could turn algae, like the stuff of pond scum, into a revolutionary new and sustainable source of biodiesel and other "green" fuels. Their report on the use of an environmentally friendly process for extracting oil from algae came at a session of 16th annual Green Chemistry & Engineering Conference, being held here June 18-20 by the Green Chemistry Institute, part of the American Chemical Society (ACS), the world's largest scientific society.

Twenty years ago, world leaders met at the UN Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro and agreed that rising income inequality, environmental destruction, and unchecked human population growth called for a radical shift in how nations approach economic development.

WASHINGTON, June 19, 2012 — Like sausage, making denim jeans isn't pretty.

Some estimates suggest that producing one pair of jeans requires more than 2,500 gallons of water, nearly a pound of chemicals and vast amounts of energy. Multiply that by 2 billion — the number of jeans produced worldwide every year — and you get a snapshot of an industry that contributes a hefty share of wastewater and greenhouse gases to the environment.

CAMBRIDGE, MA. -- In the dead of a Martian winter, clouds of snow blanket the Red Planet's poles — but unlike our water-based snow, the particles on Mars are frozen crystals of carbon dioxide. Most of the Martian atmosphere is composed of carbon dioxide, and in the winter, the poles get so cold — cold enough to freeze alcohol — that the gas condenses, forming tiny particles of snow.

MANHATTAN, KAN. -- A group of three Kansas State University researchers is studying ways to help single mothers improve their relationship with their children.

Among many of their findings, they have discovered that single mothers who engage with children in daily activities -- such as reading stories or playing games -- may experience lower levels of stress.

The researchers -- Blake Berryhill, Tulsa, Okla.; Kristy Soloski, Parma, Ohio; and Rebekah Adams, Ripon, Calif. -- are all doctoral students in marriage and family therapy and work with the K-State Family Center.

At the right temperature, with the right catalyst, there's no reason a perfect single-walled carbon nanotube 50,000 times thinner than a human hair can't be grown a meter long.

That calculation is one result of a study by collaborators at Rice, Hong Kong Polytechnic and Tsinghua universities who explored the self-healing mechanism that could make such extraordinary growth possible. That's important to scientists who see high-quality carbon nanotubes as critical to advanced materials and, if they can be woven into long cables, power distribution over the grid of the future.

Using data supplied by a mobile operator, researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden have shown that population movements after the 2010 Haiti earthquake followed regular patterns. This information can be used to predict beforehand the movements of people after a disaster, and thus improves chances for aid to be delivered to the right places at the right time.

SANTA CRUZ, Ca.--A continued increase of Lyme disease in the United States, once linked to a recovering deer population, may instead be explained by a decline of the red fox, UC Santa Cruz researchers suggest in a new study.

Boulder, Colo., USA – This posting: Orange-like rocks in Utah with iron-oxide rinds and fossilized bacteria inside that are believed to have eaten the interior rock material, plus noted similarities to "bacterial meal" ingredients and rock types on Mars; fine-tuning the prediction of volcanic hazards and warning systems for both high population zones and at Tristan da Cunha, home to the most remote population on Earth; news from SAFOD; and discovery in Germany of the world's oldest known mosses.

A portion of the groundwater in the upper Patapsco aquifer underlying Maryland is over a million years old. A new study suggests that this ancient groundwater, a vital source of freshwater supplies for the region east of Washington, D.C. and Baltimore, was recharged over periods of time much greater than human timescales.

WASHINGTON, June 18, 2012 — News media and others interested in advancing the role of green chemistry can join a panel discussion on Wednesday, June 20, during the 16th annual Green Chemistry & Engineering Conference. From 9:30 to 11:45 a.m.

WASHINGTON, June 18, 2012 — The least appealing part of the world's most popular citrus fruits could soon be more alluring to cosmetic and drug manufacturers and, perhaps, eventually help heat our homes and fuel our cars.

CORAL GABLES, FL (June 18, 2012)--Researchers from the University of Miami (UM) are unveiling a novel theory for high-temperature superconductivity. The team hopes the new finding gives insight into the process, and brings the scientific community closer to achieving superconductivity at higher temperatures than currently possible. This is a breakthrough that could transform our world.

Menlo Park, Calif. — Recently analyzed data from the BaBar experiment may suggest possible flaws in the Standard Model of particle physics, the reigning description of how the universe works on subatomic scales. The data from BaBar, a high-energy physics experiment based at the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, show that a particular type of particle decay called "B to D-star-tau-nu" happens more often than the Standard Model says it should.

North Carolina State University researchers have shown that the "bulkiness" of molecules commonly used in the creation of gold nanoparticles actually dictates the size of the nanoparticles – with larger so-called ligands resulting in smaller nanoparticles. The research team also found that each type of ligand produces nanoparticles in a particular array of discrete sizes.