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Tiny mirror improves microscope resolution for studying cells

A tiny mirror could make a huge difference for scientists trying to understand what's happening in the micron-scale structures of living cells.

By growing cells on the mirrors and imaging them using super-resolution microscopy, a group of scientists from universities in the United States, China and Australia have addressed a problem that has long challenged scientists: Seeing the structures of three dimensional cells with comparable resolution in each dimension. Cells are normally grown on transparent glass slides for microscopy examination.

Improving poor soil with burned up biomass

Researchers at the RIKEN Center for Sustainable Resource Science in Japan have shown that torrefied biomass can improve the quality of poor soil found in arid regions. Published in Scientific Reports, the study showed that adding torrefied biomass to poor soil from Botswana increased water retention in the soil as well as --the amount of plant growth.

Women from the Caribbean and Africa at highest risk of ICU admission during childbirth

TORONTO, June 17, 2016 - Women born in the Caribbean or Africa are two times more likely to be admitted to an intensive care unit at the time of their delivery than Canadian-born women, a new study has found.

The risk for both mom and newborn being admitted to an intensive care unit, or ICU, at the same time was also 2.75 times higher for Caribbean-born women and two times higher for African-born women. Mothers from Jamaica and Ghana each had the highest overall risk of ICU admission at the time of delivery, approximately 2.7 times higher than Canadian-born women.

New 'GreenWeb' tools aim to create an energy-efficient web

Researchers in the Cockrell School of Engineering at The University of Texas at Austin have developed a new, open-source computer programming framework that could make the web significantly more energy efficient, allowing people to save more battery power while browsing on mobile devices.

700-year-old West African soil technique could help mitigate climate change

A farming technique practised for centuries by villagers in West Africa, which converts nutrient-poor rainforest soil into fertile farmland, could be the answer to mitigating climate change and revolutionising farming across Africa.

A global study, led by the University of Sussex, which included anthropologists and soil scientists from Cornell, Accra, and Aarhus Universities and the Institute of Development Studies, has for the first-time identified and analysed rich fertile soils found in Liberia and Ghana.

Scientific gains may make electronic nose the next everyday device

Researchers at the Texas Analog Center of Excellence (TxACE) at UT Dallas are working to develop an affordable electronic nose that can be used in breath analysis for a wide range of health diagnosis.

While devices that can conduct breath analysis using compound semiconductors exist, they are bulky and too costly for commercial use, said Dr. Kenneth O, one of the principal investigators of the effort and director of TxACE. The researchers determined that using CMOS integrated circuits technology will make the electronic nose more affordable.

Special education professor advocates for steps to combat replication crisis in research

LAWRENCE -- Replication of scientific findings has been a cornerstone of validating research for generations, yet it happens so infrequently that many have claimed science is in a replication crisis. A University of Kansas special education professor has co-authored a study on replication, its effects on the field and students, and suggests a more dynamic approach to research could help address the paucity of replication.

Diverting redirection spam

Web browsers might soon use fuzzy logic to spot redirection spam and save users from being scammed, phished or opening malicious sites unwittingly, according to researchers in India writing in the International Journal of Electronic Security and Digital Forensics.

Permafrost thawing below shallow Arctic lakes

WASHINGTON, DC -- New research shows permafrost below shallow Arctic lakes is thawing as a result of changing winter climate.

Warmer winters combined with an increase in snowfall during the last 30 years have limited the growth of seasonal lake ice. In response, lakebed temperatures of Arctic lakes less than 1 meter (3 feet) deep have warmed by 2.4 degrees Celsius (4.3 degrees Fahrenheit) during the past three decades, and during five of the last seven years, the mean annual lakebed temperature has been above freezing.

Antibiotics disrupt infants' gut microbiome, studies suggest

Two new studies of more than 80 infants together offer a clearer picture of how antibiotics, along with birth mode and diet, can disrupt the development of the gut microbiome. Children repeatedly treated with antibiotics during the first few years of life not only showed lower microbial diversity, but also harbored antibiotic resistance genes, temporarily, after treatment. Further studies are needed to probe the long-term consequences of these gut microbiome disturbances, which have previously been linked to obesity, diabetes, asthma, and to allergies later in life.

Loofah-based material could give lithium batteries a boost

Today's mobile lifestyle depends on rechargeable lithium batteries. But to take these storage devices to the next level -- to shore up the electric grid or for widespread use in vehicles, for example -- they need a big boost in capacity. To get lithium batteries up to snuff for more ambitious applications, researchers report in the journal ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces a new solution that involves low-cost, renewable loofah sponges.

Using espresso machines to do chemistry

Many chemists are familiar with taking trips to the espresso machine while running late-night experiments, but until now these excursions were merely undertaken for the caffeine boost. A group recently reported in ACS' Analytical Chemistry, however, that espresso machines can quickly and inexpensively perform some complex chemistry experiments, such as testing for harmful compounds in the environment.

Making vinyl records even groovier

Audiophiles have reason to celebrate. Vinyl records are experiencing a comeback, and scientists are working to make their sound quality even better. An article in Chemical & Engineering News (C&EN), the weekly newsmagazine of the American Chemical Society, takes a look at how past inventions led to the classic vinyl record, or LP, and what the future might hold.

Let there be light

University of Utah materials science and engineering associate professor Mike Scarpulla wants to shed light on semiconductors -- literally.

Healthy plant-based diet linked with substantially lower type 2 diabetes risk

Boston, MA -- Consuming a plant-based diet--especially one rich in high-quality plant foods such as whole grains, fruits, vegetables, nuts, and legumes--is linked with substantially lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes, according to a new study from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.