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Saturday, May 12, 2012

ScienceDaily: Top Science News

ScienceDaily: Top Science News


In metallic glasses, researchers find a few new atomic structures

Posted: 11 May 2012 10:37 AM PDT

Drawing on powerful computational tools and a state-of-the-art scanning transmission electron microscope, materials science and engineering researchers have discovered a new nanometer-scale atomic structure in solid metallic materials known as metallic glasses.

Low-cost nanosheet catalyst discovered to split hydrogen from water

Posted: 11 May 2012 09:22 AM PDT

Scientists have developed a new electrocatalyst that overcomes the high cost of platinum, generating hydrogen gas from water with abundant and affordable metals. The unexpected and high-performing nanosheet structure of the catalytic nickel-molybdenum-nitride compound offers a promising new model for effective hydrogen catalysis.

First satellite tag study for manta rays reveals habits and hidden journeys of ocean giants

Posted: 11 May 2012 09:22 AM PDT

Using the latest satellite tracking technology, conservationists have completed a ground-breaking study on a mysterious ocean giant: The manta ray.

Newly discovered bacterium forms intracellular minerals

Posted: 11 May 2012 07:13 AM PDT

A new species of photosynthetic bacterium has come to light: it is able to control the formation of minerals (calcium, magnesium, barium and strontium carbonates) within its own organism. This is a new type of biomineralization, whose mechanism is still unknown. This finding has important implications for the interpretation of the ancient fossil record.

How nature shapes the birth of stars

Posted: 11 May 2012 07:12 AM PDT

Using state of the art computer simulations, a team of astronomers have found the first evidence that the way in which stars form depends on their birth environment.

An incisive design solution: The spider's venomous fang

Posted: 11 May 2012 07:12 AM PDT

Among the factors that make spiders successful predators is the ingeniously composed and structured material of their fangs.

Asteroid Vesta looks like a little planet, complete with craters, mountains and landslides

Posted: 10 May 2012 07:49 PM PDT

Vesta looks like a little planet. "We didn't find gold on Vesta, but it is still a gold mine," said the principal investigator of NASA's Dawn mission. Scientists have discovered two large craters, a mountain more than twice as large as Mount Everest, and landslides, detailed in six new articles.

Greater insight into earthquake cycles

Posted: 10 May 2012 11:20 AM PDT

For those who study earthquakes, one major challenge has been trying to understand all the physics of a fault -- both during an earthquake and at times of "rest" -- in order to know more about how a particular region may behave in the future. Now, researchers have developed the first computer model of an earthquake-producing fault segment that reproduces the available observations of both the fault's seismic and aseismic behavior.

Scientists identify protein that stimulates brown fat to burn calories

Posted: 10 May 2012 09:28 AM PDT

Scientists have identified a protein which regulates the activation of brown fat in both the brain and the body's tissues.

Potential instability in West Antarctic Ice Sheet from newly discovered basin size of New Jersey

Posted: 10 May 2012 07:05 AM PDT

Scientists have uncovered a previously unknown sub-glacial basin nearly the size of New Jersey beneath the West Antarctic Ice Sheet near the Weddell Sea. The location, shape and texture of the mile-deep basin suggest that this region of the ice sheet is at a much greater risk of collapse than previously thought.

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