Tech

Hydraulic fracturing, a widely used method for extracting oil and gas from otherwise impenetrable shale and rock formations, involves not only underground injections composed mostly of water, but also a mixture of chemical additives. These chemicals range from toxic biocides and surfactants, to corrosion inhibitors and slicking agents, and many are also used by other industries.

The tragedy of the commons, a concept described by ecologist Garrett Hardin, paints a grim view of human nature. The theory goes that, if a resource is shared, individuals will act in their own self-interest, but against the interest of the group, by depleting that resource.

Yet examples of cooperation and sharing abound in nature, from human societies down to single-celled bacteria.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] --New software created by Brown University computer scientists could help website owners and developers easily determine what parts of a page are grabbing a user's eye.

Stem cell therapies hold great promise in treating a variety of diseases, but in order to develop them researchers must first be able to monitor them inside the body. Enter the contrast agent.

"Often things go wrong right away when stem or therapeutic cells are injected into the body because some cells can migrate, while other dying cells are eaten by the body and expelled," says Xiao-an Zhang, an assistant professor of chemistry at U of T Scarborough.

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - A Purdue University study shows that honeybees collect the vast majority of their pollen from plants other than crops, even in areas dominated by corn and soybeans, and that pollen is consistently contaminated with a host of agricultural and urban pesticides throughout the growing season.

In the United States, the use of natural gas for electricity generation continues to grow. The driving forces behind this development? A boom in domestic natural gas production, historically low prices, and increased scrutiny over fossil fuels' carbon emissions. Though coal still accounts for about a third of US electricity generation, utility companies are pivoting to cleaner natural gas to replace decommissioned coal plants.

In 2012, Belgium scientists published a study that concluded that repeated bouts of intensive endurance exercise at the elite level may result in the pathological enlargement of the right ventricle, which, according to the article, is associated with potential health hazards including sudden cardia death. The publication was the cause of considerable debate among experts in the medical and sports communities. Sports medicine physicians at Saarland University have now tested the conclusions of the 2012 study by examining the hearts of elite master endurance athletes.

Completing a game of "Super Mario Brothers" can be hard -- very, very hard.

That's the conclusion of a new paper from researchers at MIT, the University of Ottawa, and Bard College at Simon's Rock. They show that the problem of solving a level in "Super Mario Brothers" is as hard as the hardest problems in the "complexity class" PSPACE, meaning that it's even more complex than the traveling-salesman problem, or the problem of factoring large numbers, or any of the other hard problems belonging to the better-known complexity class NP.

WASHINGTON, D.C., May 31, 2016 -- A team of American and Chinese researchers has developed a new tool that could aid in the quest for better batteries and fuel cells.

Although battery technology has come a long way since Alessandro Volta first stacked metal discs in a "voltaic pile" to generate electricity, major improvements are still needed to meet the energy challenges of the future, such as powering electric cars and storing renewable energy cheaply and efficiently.

ECDC has updated its rapid risk assessment on the outbreak of yellow fever with the latest developments, more comprehensive information on the current situation in Angola, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Uganda and an extended threat assessment for the EU.

Some of the data used in the assessment were collected during a mission to Angola in May 2016.

Current situation

BINGHAMTON, NY - The power grid is aging, overburdened and seeing more faults than ever, according to many. Any of those breaks could easily lead to prolonged power outages or even equipment damage.

Binghamton University researchers have proved that the Singular Spectrum Analysis (SSA) algorithm may be the best tool to help authorities remotely detect and locate power grid faults.

A global renewable energy project on the Galapagos Islands -- one of Earth's most fragile and important ecological treasures -- has helped avoid many tanker loads worth of risky diesel fuel imports since 2007, reduced the archipelago's greenhouse gas emissions and preserved critically endangered species.

Now, after eight successful years, the project's new operators are pursuing an ambitious expansion that would multiply the benefits of renewable energy for this remote, precious archipelago with a growing appetite for electricity.

Scientists working in the Gulf of Mexico have found that contaminants from the massive 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill lingered in the subsurface water for months after oil on the surface had been swept up or dispersed. In a new study, they also detailed how remnants of the oil, black carbon from burning oil slicks and contaminants from drilling mud combined with microscopic algae and other marine debris to descend in a "dirty blizzard" to the seafloor.

May 25, 2016, Chicago--About a third of Americans age 50 or older expect to outlive their retirement savings, according to a recent survey by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. A majority of older Americans have multiple retirement income sources, but over half say they feel more anxious than secure about the amount of savings they have set aside for retirement. A third of those who are still working are not currently saving for their retirement, and many have financial obligations that make saving a challenge.

Fat free ice cream, for all its healthy merits, melts the wrong way. Two seconds on the tongue and it's a slush of milk, flavoring and water instead of the rich glob of slowly melting cream we grew to love as kids. When it comes to taste memories, fats are forever.

Now X-ray science is contributing to the long quest to understand what makes chocolate and cheese taste so good and how the taste and "mouth feel" of yummy fats could be mimicked in healthier alternatives.