Science & Technology

The combination of sea level rise, tides, storm surge and waves has increased the overtopping of natural and artificial coastal protection by nearly 50% in the last two decades.

For the most accurate accounting of a product’s environmental impact, scientists look at the product’s entire life cycle, from cradle to grave. It’s a grand calculation known as a life cycle assessment (LCA), and greenhouse gas emissions are a key comp…

An incredibly light new material can reduce aircraft engine noise and improve passenger comfort. The graphene oxide-polyvinyl alcohol aerogel weighs just 2.1kg per cubic meter, making it the lightest sound insulation ever manufactured.

A new study finds that convalescent plasma from recovered COVID-19 patients can dramatically improve likelihood of survival among blood cancer patients hospitalized with the virus. The therapy involves transfusing plasma from people who have recovered …

By cleverly combining complementary sequencing techniques, researchers have deepened our understanding of the function of known RNA molecules and discovered thousands of new RNAs. A better understanding of our transcriptome is essential to better under…

A new article introduces a rapid assessment framework that can be used as a guide to make conservation and nature-based solutions more robust to future climate.

The depths of the Black Sea store comparatively large amounts of organic carbon. A research team has now presented a new hypothesis as to why organic compounds accumulate in this semi-enclosed sea and other oxygen-depleted waters. Reactions with hydrog…

Babies born by Cesarean section don’t have the same healthy bacteria as those born vaginally, but a new study finds that these natural bacteria can be restored.

A research team has developed bio-inks for biosensors that could help localize critical regions in tissues and organs during surgical operations.

New research shows that nearly 28% of all electric scooters reported injuries were head and neck injuries.

Nanodecoys made from human lung spheroid cells (LSCs) can bind to and neutralize SARS-CoV-2, promoting viral clearance and reducing lung injury in a macaque model of COVID-19. By mimicking the receptor that the virus binds to rather than targeting the …

With sorghum poised to become an important crop grown by Pennsylvania farmers, researchers tested more than 150 germplasm lines of the plant for resistance to a fungus likely to hamper its production.

Physicists have used ultrashort laser pulses to probe the dynamics of photoelectron emission in tungsten crystals.

A long-term passive rewilding study has shown that natural woodland regeneration could make a significant contribution to meeting the UK’s ambitious tree planting targets – potentially at no cost and within relatively short timescales. The research fou…

Researchers studying prions — misfolded proteins that cause lethal incurable diseases — have identified the surface features of human prions responsible for their replication in the brain.

The yellow fever mosquito spreads multiple untreatable viruses in humans and is primarily controlled using a pesticide called permethrin. However, many mosquitoes are evolving resistance to the pesticide. A new study identifies mutations linked to diff…

When animals are hot, they eat less. This potentially fatal phenomenon has been largely overlooked in wild animals, explain researchers.

Weddell seals, the southernmost born mammal, are known as champion divers. But they don’t begin life that way. Researchers examined the development of diving behavior in Weddell seal pups and found that they time their dives with their mother but likel…

Once thought to be extinct, lobe-finned coelacanths are enormous fish that live deep in the ocean. Now, researchers have evidence that, in addition to their impressive size, coelacanths also can live for an impressively long time — perhaps nearly a ce…

Many diseases caused by a dysregulated immune system, such as allergies, asthma and autoimmunity, can be traced back to events in the first few months after birth. To date, the mechanisms behind the development of the immune system have not been fully …