Technology

Scientists are developing a formula for success -- by studying how a new type of battery fails. The team's goal is the design for long-term storage of wind and solar energy, which are produced intermittently, enabling their broader use as reliable energy sources for the electric grid. Oak Ridge National Laboratory scientists are developing a

Chemists break down barriers between labs and institutions to join forces for a new way of doing organic synthesis. Chemists synthesized a highly complex natural molecule through a revolutionary strategy of functionalizing normally inert carbon-hydrogen (C-H). Science published the breakthrough led by chemists at Emory University and Caltech. The work is the most dramatic example

Researchers have developed an innovative technique to search for black hole light echoes. Their novel method, which will make it easier for the mass and the spin of black holes to be measured, represents a major step forward, since it operates independently of many of the other ways in which scientists have probed these parameters

Researchers have added a new dimension to the mathematics used to predict the outcomes of all manner of competitions, including sports, games and social hierarchies in both humans and animals. University of Michigan researchers have added a new dimension to the mathematics used to predict the outcomes of all manner of competitions, including sports, games

Readily available thermoelectric generators operating under modest temperature differences can power CO2 conversion, according to a proof-of-concept study by chemists. The findings open up the intriguing possibility that the temperature differentials encountered in an array of environments -- from a typical geothermal installation on Earth to the cold, desolate surface of Mars -- could power

Researchers designed bioinspired hydrogels capable of using sunlight to produce hydrogen and oxygen from water. Hydrogels contain polymer networks that facilitate energy conversion, offering a breakthrough approach to generating renewable hydrogen energy. This research shows how polymer-based systems could revolutionize sustainable energy production. Mimicking how plants convert sunlight into energy has long been a dream

Biological engineers developed a computational approach to extracting useful information from large biological datasets. They showed they could unravel interactions that determine how the immune system responds to tuberculosis vaccination and infection. Over the past two decades, new technologies have helped scientists generate a vast amount of biological data. Large-scale experiments in genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics

Researchers investigated the internal properties of low-cost materials used in perovskite solar cells, which are attracting attention for their high efficiency, using electron spin resonance (ESR) to analyze these materials at a microscopic level. The results clarify the underlying causes for reduced device performance, despite high local charge mobility, offering critical insights for designing improved

Materials scientists can now use insight from a very common mineral and well-established earthquake and avalanche statistics to quantify how hostile environmental interactions may impact the degradation and failure of materials used for advanced solar panels, geological carbon sequestration and infrastructure such as buildings, roads and bridges. Materials scientists can now use insight from a

New research into the vulnerability of power grids served by weather-dependent renewable energy sources (WD-RESs) such as solar and wind paints a hopeful picture as various countries around the globe attempt to meet their climate emissions targets -- with the research showing grids with high penetration of WD-RESs tend to have reduced blackout intensities in

Supersolids are a new form of quantum matter that has only recently been demonstrated. The state of matter can be produced artificially in ultracold, dipolar quantum gases. A team has now demonstrated a missing hallmark of superfluidity, namely the existence of quantized vortices as system's response to rotation. They have observed tiny quantum vortices in

Researchers now reveal how various physical manipulations of graphene, such as layering and twisting, impact its optical properties and conductivity. When it comes to electrically conductive nanomaterials, graphene -- stronger and lighter than steel and more conductive than copper -- has been shown to be an excellent choice for a wide range of technologies. Physicists