Category archives: Technology

Earth-sun magnetic field interactions seen by NASA space probes Explosive storms spawned by interactions between the magnetic fields of Earth and the sun can endanger satellites, spacecraft and astronauts in space, as well as power grids on Earth. Now, a fleet of NASA spacecraft has for the first time directly witnessed the mysterious way in […]

Silicon surfaces of crystalline solids are part of conventional electronics, but their exploitation in novel materials combining two-dimensional electron states (2DESs) and magnetism, which play an important role in the development of next-generation electronics, still remains elusive. The appearance of 2DESs at surfaces or interfaces and their interplay with magnetic degrees of freedom may open […]

Venus flytraps’ predatory ways may have roots in defense The genes that allow Venus flytraps to be carnivores may come from defensive mechanisms carried over from their non-insect-eating ancestors. Researchers found that gene expression patterns shift radically when prey steps into the plants’ traps, signaling digestive enzymes along the same protein paths used to help […]

Amplifying Voltage If we place a large resistor in a circuit containing a transistor we can amplify the incoming voltage, since according to Ohm’s law voltage is equal to current times resistance. So a current crossing a small resistance corresponds to a small voltage. But if the same current is made to cross a much […]

Author: Leire Gartzia Rivero got a Chemistry degree and completed her Master studies in “New Materials” at the University of the Basque Country. She holds a Ph.D. in Materials Science and Technology obtained at the same university, in the Molecular Spectroscopy Laboratory, where she focused on the spectroscopic characterization of photoactive nanomaterials based on energy […]

Nonhuman primates may be involved in Zika transmission Scientists who collected biological samples from 15 wild marmosets and eight pet capuchin monkeys plus one free-ranging capuchin in Brazil found four marmosets and three capuchins had been infected with the Zika virus. The Scientist Cosmic-particle technology opens window into Bent Pyramid New cosmic-particle technology has allowed […]

Nanoparticles of certain metals, like gold or silver, have attracted substantial interest in recent years owing to their ability to support localized surface plasmon resonances (collective oscillations of conduction electrons). These plasmonic excitations allow manipulation of light at the nanoscale and have enabled technological advances ranging from improved catalytic and photovoltaic cell efficiencies to sensitive […]

What are lysosomes doing inside your cells? When I was in High School my teacher used to say that lysosomes are only the trash bin of the cell. 20 years later we have discovered a dozen new functions that make this small organelle a core component of the cell. You may already know that the […]

Dali painting used in study of how brain processes information Scientists used a painting by Salvador Dali to help them discover how the brain processes information. Researchers asked study participants to examine Dali’s 1940 work “Slave Market with the Disappearing Bust of Voltaire,” which is visually ambiguous. “We found very early on … that the […]

First images from Japan’s long-delayed Venus probe revealed Japan’s Akatsuki spacecraft has finally begun sending back images from Venus after an unexpected five-year orbit around the sun. Images show a strange curved shape moving across Venus’ atmosphere as well as clouds of sulfuric acid. The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency rescued the craft and put it […]