We usually think of crystals as composed of different atoms in certain proportions, this proportion being the molecular fórmula that represents the crystal. However, it is not surprising that any molecule could be the basis of a crystal structure, whether a simple molecule such as methane, or a complicated molecule such as a protein or […]
Graphene is a two-dimensional allotrope of carbon made of hexagons. It is a zero-gap semimetal with a tiny overlap between valence and conductance bands. Since the isolation of graphene in 2004, considerable interest has been paid to exploring its applications in a variety of fields such as electronics, composites, sensors, catalysis and energy related systems […]
Doñana National Park, at the South-western coast of Spain, is known to host several species of wading birds. These piscivorous birds nest in colonies in the neighboring woodlands, formed by cork oaks, close to the marshals where they feed. Ever since the park was opened, the population and nesting of birds, most of them endangered […]
Estrogens are steroid hormones affecting several organs including mammary glands. More precisely, these glands exert their action by means of estrogens through the e strogen receptor (ER), a transcription factor belonging to the family of nuclear receptors. So far, two types of ERs have been identified: alpha and beta. ER-beta is expressed in all mammary […]
We usually think of nature as existing completely independently of us and possessing a definite reality and behaviour even when we are not observing it. For instance, you assume that the world outside of the place where you are now sitting still exists pretty much as it was when you last observed it. Certainly this […]
Two of the hot topics in science an technology nowadays are related to Computer Science. They are Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Quantum Computing (QC). AI is a really old field, as humanity has dreamed of having autonomous machines for decades. Quantum Computing is not as old as AI. It is considered that the idea of […]
A language is a communication system that is based on the development, acquisition, maintenance and use of a series of vocal tools that allow the exchange of information between different people. All healthy human beings, with a normal development, learn how to use a language. Children learn the language or languages that are around them […]
The wave–particle dualism is a fundamental aspect of quantum mechanics. But, in order to explore this dualism properly and what it means for our image of atoms, it is necessary to review some ideas of probability. In some situations, no single event can be predicted with certainty. But it may still be possible to predict […]
A s a recent mom, I can attest to the fact that at least some humans don’t quite get enough sleep, but the thing is, independently of why my baby thinks sleep is for cowards, in a new article researchers Charles Nunn and David Charles, have shown by comparing sleep patterns of 30 species of […]
During the Cold War the competition between both sides, Russia and the United States of America, caused a quick development of military and spacial technology: while the Soviet Union was the first country responsible for an orbital launch (Sputnik 1), the first nation to ever send a man to space and pioneered spacewalks, the U […]