Category archives: Science

Topological insulators are materials with special universal properties, which are protected against perturbations. Such properties are theoretically described by topology, a branch of mathematics concerned with the properties of geometrical objects that are unchanged by continuous deformations. Concretely, topological insulators are electronic materials that have a bulk band gap like an ordinary insulator but have […]

Applicability or some usefulness is the mantra of new I+D research. However, in trying to obtain results or confirm an application we often forget to check or study the conditions and methods used. One example could be the different methodologies that we can be used to define antioxidant capacity. An antioxidant is a molecule that […]

A class of materials of utmost fundamental and applied interest is that of semicrystalline polymers. Actually, all solid synthetic polymers are, in general, partly crystalline and partly amorphous. The degree of crystallinity depends on the polymer structure and on how the solid is prepared. Rapid cooling of the molten polymer favors formation of an amorphous […]

Author: Iker Badiola is an assistant professor in the Department of Cell Biology and Histology, Faculty of Medicine and Nursery, University of Basque Country (UPV/EHU). Colorectal cancer is the third most frequently occurring cancer and a common cause of cancer-related death worldwide. The origin of colorectal cancer is usually a malignant polyp developed in the […]

The scattering of conduction electrons in metals owing to impurities with magnetic moments is known as the Kondo effect, after Jun Kondo, who analysed the phenomenon in 1964. This scattering increases the electrical resistance and has the consequence that, in contrast to ordinary metals, the resistance reaches a minimum as the temperature is lowered and […]

The haploid human genome contains approximately 3,000,000,000 base pairs of DNA packaged into 23 chromosomes. Most cells in the body, except for eggs and sperm, are diploid, with 23 pairs of chromosomes. That makes a total of 6,000,000,000 base pairs of DNA per cell that, if they were to be put in a straight line […]

Metal complexes are typically regarded as catalysts that convert organic substrates into more valuable compounds; however, to date, catalytic transformations of metal complexes are practically unknown and represent a complete new way of thinking in catalysis. Their development can expand the scope of bioorthogonal chemical reactions to inorganic substances and metal-based prodrugs, fostering the creation […]

Both the depletion of fossil fuels and the environmental concerns are a powerful drive for the development of sustainable routes to commodity chemicals. Lignocellulose, comprised of lignin, cellulose and hemicellulose, is the ideal candidate, but its inherent complexity hampers its transformation to value-added chemicals. The group of Katalin Barta at the University of Groningen has […]

Research in general, and mathematical one in particular, sometimes reminds to the lyrics that Cole Porter wrote for the Down in the depths song: And here am I Facing tomorrow Alone with my sorrow Down in the depths on the ninetieth floor. Nevertheless, sometimes you manage to get down in the depths and achieve a […]

Imagine a bucket filled with hard spheres. As these spheres are free to pack together as closely as geometry allows they tend to adopt a close-packed structure, a structure in which there is least unfilled space. X-ray diffraction studies reveal that many metallic elements have close-packed structures. This simple fact explains a couple of very […]