http://www.physorg.com/ en-us Physorg.com internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. (PhysOrg.com) -- Some of the most common minerals in biology, including those in bones and shells, have a mysterious structure: Their crystals are positioned in the same orientation, making them behave as one giant crystal, even though they do not look like a faceted crystal. http://www.physorg.com/news180631288.html Chemistry Mon, 21 Dec 2009 15:25:15 EST news180631288 (PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists at Berkeley Lab's Molecular Foundry imaged the growth of protein-studded mineral surfaces with unprecedented resolution and provided a glimpse into how living systems engineer key structural materials. http://www.physorg.com/news180167089.html Nanotechnology Wed, 16 Dec 2009 06:25:41 EST news180167089 (PhysOrg.com) -- As the world`s seawater becomes more acidic due to rising atmospheric carbon dioxide, some shelled marine creatures may actually become bigger and stronger, according to a new study. http://www.physorg.com/news178904818.html Space & Earth Tue, 01 Dec 2009 15:51:26 EST news178904818 (PhysOrg.com) -- A whole microcosm of various bizarrely shaped life forms opens up when you look at diatoms, the primary component of ocean plankton, under a microscope. The regularly structured silica shells of these tiny individual life forms have attracted scientists because they are particularly interesting examples of natural hybrid materials and also demonstrate unusual mechanistic and optical properties. The mechanisms of the underlying biomineralization process are not yet fully understood, but the silica shells often provide inspiration for the synthesis of man-made nanostructures. http://www.physorg.com/news178901054.html Chemistry Tue, 01 Dec 2009 14:51:39 EST news178901054 Relatively minor increases in ocean acidity brought about by high levels of carbon dioxide have significant detrimental effects on the growth, development, and survival of hard clams, bay scallops, and Eastern oysters, according to researchers at Stony Brook University's School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences. http://www.physorg.com/news175792205.html Space & Earth Mon, 26 Oct 2009 16:10:48 EST news175792205 Deep under the sea, a fossil the size of a sand grain is nestled among a billion of its closest dead relatives. Known as foraminifera, these complex little shells of calcium carbonate can tell you the sea level, temperature, and ocean conditions of Earth millions of years ago. That is, if you know what to look for. http://www.physorg.com/news175446825.html Space & Earth Thu, 22 Oct 2009 16:15:01 EST news175446825 (AP) -- Erosion threatens to topple coastal Alaskan villages. Melting ice threatens polar bears. Now, a marine scientist says the state's marine waters are turning acidic from absorbing greenhouse gases faster than tropical waters, potentially endangering Alaska's $4.6 billion fishing industry. http://www.physorg.com/news170307662.html Space & Earth Mon, 24 Aug 2009 05:20:01 EST news170307662 Geologists of the University of Granada, Spain, have described for the first time ever the biological mechanism that explains how calcareous red algae grow on rocky substrates. http://www.physorg.com/news168352779.html Biology Mon, 03 Aug 2009 13:40:03 EST news168352779 Two new construction manuals are now available for the world's smallest lamps. Based on these protocols, scientists from the Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces have tailor-made nanoparticles that can be used as position lights on cell proteins and, possibly in the future as well, as light sources for display screens or for optical information technology. http://www.physorg.com/news165236713.html Nanotechnology Fri, 26 Jun 2009 12:50:01 EST news165236713 In Washington state, oysters in some areas haven't reproduced for four years, and preliminary evidence suggests that the increasing acidity of the ocean could be the cause. In the Gulf of Mexico, falling oxygen levels in the water have forced shrimp to migrate elsewhere. http://www.physorg.com/news163825450.html Space & Earth Wed, 10 Jun 2009 04:04:39 EST news163825450 An explosion of knowledge has been made in the last few years about the basic biology of corals, researchers say in a new report, helping to explain why coral reefs around the world are collapsing and what it will take for them to survive a gauntlet of climate change and ocean acidification. http://www.physorg.com/news162739523.html Space & Earth Thu, 28 May 2009 14:26:03 EST news162739523 Overfishing and disease have decimated shellfish populations in many of the world's temperate estuarine and coastal ecosystems. Smithsonian scientists, led by Whitman Miller, ecologist at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center in Edgewater, Md., have discovered another serious threat to these valuable filter feeders -rising levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide that contribute to the acidification of open ocean, coastal and estuarine waters. Their findings are being published in the open-access, peer-reviewed journal PLoS ONE, May 27. http://www.physorg.com/news162625314.html Space & Earth Wed, 27 May 2009 06:42:21 EST news162625314 (PhysOrg.com) -- Many scientists currently think at least 5 percent of humanity's carbon footprint comes from the concrete industry, both from energy use and the carbon dioxide (CO2) byproduct from the production of cement, one of concrete's principal components. http://www.physorg.com/news161869002.html Space & Earth Mon, 18 May 2009 12:39:05 EST news161869002 Researchers at Eindhoven University of Technology for the first time have shown the earliest stages in biomineralization, the process that leads to the formation of bones, teeth and sea shells. http://www.physorg.com/news161518253.html Nanotechnology Thu, 14 May 2009 11:11:40 EST news161518253 A Purdue University study shows dairy has an advantage over calcium carbonate in promoting bone growth and strength. http://www.physorg.com/news160146304.html Medicine & Health Tue, 28 Apr 2009 14:05:34 EST news160146304 University of California, Berkeley, graduate student Alistair Boettiger has amassed a beautiful collection of seashells, but not by combing the beach. He created them in his computer. http://www.physorg.com/news157893715.html Physics Thu, 02 Apr 2009 12:22:23 EST news157893715 Researchers at Eindhoven University of Technology (The Netherlands) have for the first time made high-resolution images of the earliest stages of bone formation. They used the world's most advanced electron microscope to make three-dimensional images of the nano-particles that are at the heart of the process. The results provide improved understanding of bone, tooth and shell formation. For industrial applications, they promise better materials and processes based on nature itself. The findings form the cover story of Science magazine's Friday 13 March edition. http://www.physorg.com/news156089519.html Nanotechnology Thu, 12 Mar 2009 15:12:43 EST news156089519 (PhysOrg.com) -- It has a beautiful, but also an unpleasant side: crystallization determines the shape of precious stones, but also causes the lime scale in washing machines. How this comes about, has been known for a long time - or has it? Scientists at the Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces are now whittling away at the established theory, which is unable to explain numerous phenomena. The researchers investigated the crystallization of calcium carbonate, known commonly as chalk, and found that stable nanoclusters form in water with a small quantity of dissolved calcium carbonate - not how it was assumed to happen in the past. The lime scale deposits that will eventually bring a washing machine to a standstill are created from these tiny chalk particles. http://www.physorg.com/news151930674.html Physics Fri, 23 Jan 2009 10:58:50 EST news151930674 Research published today reveals the major influence of fish on maintaining the delicate pH balance of our oceans, vital for the health of coral reefs and other marine life. http://www.physorg.com/news151251557.html Space & Earth Thu, 15 Jan 2009 14:19:17 EST news151251557 Are there really plenty of fish in the sea? University of British Columbia fisheries researcher Villy Christensen gives the first-ever estimate of total fish biomass in our oceans: Two billion tonnes. http://www.physorg.com/news151251277.html Space & Earth Thu, 15 Jan 2009 14:14:37 EST news151251277 (PhysOrg.com) -- It has a beautiful, but also an unpleasant side: crystallization determines the shape of precious stones, but also causes the lime scale in washing machines. How this comes about, has been known for a long time - or has it? http://www.physorg.com/news150998079.html Chemistry Mon, 12 Jan 2009 15:54:39 EST news150998079 (PhysOrg.com) -- The teeth and bones of mammals, the protective shells of mollusks, and the needle-sharp spines of sea urchins and other marine creatures are made-from-scratch wonders of nature. http://www.physorg.com/news144343995.html Physics Mon, 27 Oct 2008 16:33:15 EST news144343995 (PhysOrg.com) -- NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander has detected snow falling from Martian clouds. Spacecraft soil tests experiments also have provided evidence of past interaction between minerals and liquid water, processes that occur on Earth. http://www.physorg.com/news141922470.html Space & Earth Mon, 29 Sep 2008 15:54:30 EST news141922470