Author archives: César Tomé

Chemically tailoring layered 2D MXenes

Chemically tailoring layered 2D MXenes

ChemistryMaterials

By César Tomé

A new process that lets scientists chemically cut apart and stitch together nanoscopic layers of two-dimensional materials — like a tailor altering a suit — could be just the tool for designing the technology of a sustainable energy future. Researchers have developed a method for structurally splitting, editing and reconstituting layered materials, called MAX phases […]

MI weekly selection #506

MI weekly selection #506

Weekly Selection

By César Tomé

Rising seas, oxygen depletion led to mass extinction Rising seas likely contributed to high hydrogen sulfide levels and oxygen depletion that killed marine life during Earth’s Devonian period over 350 million years ago. Researchers analyzed black shale samples from the Bakken Formation underlying parts of North Dakota and Canada, finding that waters were drained of […]

Bio-mining pyrite with no oxygen

Bio-mining pyrite with no oxygen

BiochemistryBiologyChemistryGeosciences

By César Tomé

Pyrite, also known as “fool’s gold,” is an abundant iron sulphide mineral in the Earth’s crust. All organisms need iron and sulphur to grow. Because pyrite does not dissolve in oxygen-free conditions, scientists previously thought that organisms could not use pyrite in the absence of oxygen. Research shows that certain single-celled microorganisms can dissolve pyrite […]

MI weekly selection #505

MI weekly selection #505

Weekly Selection

By César Tomé

Shockwaves through the “cosmic web” spotted Astronomers have detected the first evidence of shockwaves in intergalactic magnetic fields running throughout the cosmic web. Researchers combined data from four radio wave detection sites to identify the waves resulting from merging matter in the network of filaments that weave galaxies together. Full Story: Space First wiring map […]

MI weekly selection #504

MI weekly selection #504

Weekly Selection

By César Tomé

Phytoplankton increasingly blooming on coastlines Phytoplankton blooms increased around 13% in extent and occurred 59% more often along global coastlines between 2003 and 2020. The microscopic algae are both beneficial to fisheries and potentially dangerous for marine animals in large amounts, researchers note, and the increase in phytoplankton blooms is caused by warmer ocean temperatures […]

Cadmium-106 nuclei rotate, not vibrate

Cadmium-106 nuclei rotate, not vibrate

Physics

By César Tomé

Atomic nuclei take a range of shapes, from spherical (like a basketball) to deformed (like an American football). Spherical nuclei are often described by the motion of a small fraction of the protons and neutrons, while deformed nuclei tend to rotate as a collective whole. A third kind of motion has been proposed since the […]

MI weekly selection #503

MI weekly selection #503

Weekly Selection

By César Tomé

Ancient fish that ate humans’ ancestors discovered Researchers have excavated the remains of a giant ancient bony fish species with fangs from about 350 million years ago in what is now South Africa. The findings, published in the journal PLOS One, indicate that the Hyneria udlezinye species measured up to 2.7 meters long and likely […]

High-speed star formation

High-speed star formation

Astrophysics

By César Tomé

Gas clouds in the Cygnus X Region, a region where stars form, are composed of a dense core of molecular hydrogen (H2) and an atomic shell. These ensembles of clouds interact with each other dynamically in order to quickly form new stars. The Cygnus X region is a vast luminous cloud of gas and dust […]

MI weekly selection #502

MI weekly selection #502

Weekly Selection

By César Tomé

Analysis of cell villages yields insight into Zika infections Studying cell villages, or samples from different donors in a shared environment, is an effective method “to identify genes and genetic variants that change a cell’s phenotype.” Scientists used the method along with the Dropulation and Census-seq algorithms to assess genetic variation in cell villages and […]