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. Single oxygen atoms dancing on a metal oxide slab, glowing brighter here and dimmer there, have helped chemists better understand how water splits into oxygen and hydrogen. In the process, the scientists have visualized a chemical reaction that had previously only been talked about. The new work improves our understanding of the chemistry needed to generate hydrogen fuel from water or to clean contaminated water. http://www.physorg.com/news156433818.html Physics Mon, 16 Mar 2009 14:51:05 EST news156433818 An international research team, involving Professor Rajeev Ahuja at Uppsala University and researchers in the USA, set out to understand the mechanism behind the catalytic effects of carbon nanomaterials. Experimental and theoretical efforts were combined in a synergistic approach and the results, published this week in the ASAP section of the journal Nano Letters, will fasten efforts to develop new catalysts. http://www.physorg.com/news156076440.html Nanotechnology Thu, 12 Mar 2009 11:34:34 EST news156076440 (PhysOrg.com) -- For millions of years, green plants have employed photosynthesis to capture energy from sunlight and convert it into electrochemical energy. A goal of scientists has been to develop an artificial version of photosynthesis that can be used to produce liquid fuels from carbon dioxide and water. Researchers with the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) have now taken a critical step towards this goal with the discovery that nano-sized crystals of cobalt oxide can effectively carry out the critical photosynthetic reaction of splitting water molecules. http://www.physorg.com/news156004532.html Chemistry Wed, 11 Mar 2009 15:36:17 EST news156004532 (PhysOrg.com) -- The creation of long platinum nanowires at the University of Rochester could soon lead to the development of commercially viable fuel cells. http://www.physorg.com/news156003211.html Nanotechnology Wed, 11 Mar 2009 15:14:29 EST news156003211 (PhysOrg.com) -- There is a lot of hope invested in hydrogen, but it also presents some problems. It is energy-rich, clean and, as a constituent of water, of almost unlimited availability. However, so far it has been difficult to access it. Scientists at the Max Planck In-stitute of Colloids and Interfaces have now found a simple, low-cost way to produce hydrogen. http://www.physorg.com/news155834961.html Physics Mon, 09 Mar 2009 16:29:52 EST news155834961 This week's Nature Materials (09 March 2009) reveals how an international team of scientists led by researchers at the London Centre for Nanotechnology (LCN) at UCL have discovered a novel one dimensional ice chain structure built from pentagons that may prove to be a step toward the development of new materials which can be used to seed clouds and cause rain. http://www.physorg.com/news155750058.html Nanotechnology Sun, 08 Mar 2009 16:54:49 EST news155750058 (PhysOrg.com) -- NASA managers completed a review Friday of space shuttle Discovery's readiness for flight and selected the official launch date for the STS-119 mission. Commander Lee Archambault and his six crewmates are now scheduled to lift off to the International Space Station at 9:20 p.m. EDT on March 11. http://www.physorg.com/news155573470.html Space & Earth Fri, 06 Mar 2009 14:52:47 EST news155573470 NASA is aiming to launch the space shuttle Discovery next month after repeated delays caused by critical valves. Shuttle managers said Wednesday they hope to launch on March 12, a full month after the original launch date of Feb. 12. http://www.physorg.com/news154866225.html Space & Earth Thu, 26 Feb 2009 10:24:18 EST news154866225 (PhysOrg.com) -- Tiny bacteria munching on and metabolizing biodegradable materials can produce electrons that could be harnessed by microbial fuel cells for energy. By taking advantage of the catalytic reactions of these microorganisms to convert chemical energy to electric energy, microbial fuel cells could be a promising method for generating hydrogen fuel. http://www.physorg.com/news154630043.html Technology Mon, 23 Feb 2009 16:47:59 EST news154630043 Wash away your gray? Maybe. A team of European scientists have finally solved a mystery that has perplexed humans throughout the ages: why we turn gray. Despite the notion that gray hair is a sign of wisdom, these researchers show in a research report published online in The FASEB Journal that wisdom has nothing to do with it. Going gray is caused by a massive build up of hydrogen peroxide due to wear and tear of our hair follicles. The peroxide winds up blocking the normal synthesis of melanin, our hair's natural pigment. http://www.physorg.com/news154616292.html Biology Mon, 23 Feb 2009 12:58:44 EST news154616292 Hydrogen peroxide is one of the world's most versatile and widely used chemicals. A powerful oxidizing agent, H2O2 is commonly used as a bleach, an antiseptic and a disinfectant. http://www.physorg.com/news154276303.html Nanotechnology Thu, 19 Feb 2009 14:37:52 EST news154276303 (PhysOrg.com) -- President Barack Obama's pursuit of energy independence promises to accelerate research and development for alternative energy sources -- solar, wind and geothermal power, biofuels, hydrogen and biomass, to name a few. http://www.physorg.com/news153928167.html Chemistry Sun, 15 Feb 2009 13:50:23 EST news153928167 Tomorrow's fuel-cell vehicles may be powered by enzymes that consume cellulose from woodchips or grass and exhale hydrogen. http://www.physorg.com/news153594178.html Chemistry Wed, 11 Feb 2009 17:06:29 EST news153594178 MIT researchers who study the structure of protein-based materials with the aim of learning the key to their lightweight and robust strength have discovered that the particular arrangement of proteins that produces the sturdiest product is not the arrangement with the most built-in redundancy or the most complicated pattern. Instead, the optimal arrangement of proteins in the rope-like structures they studied is a repeated pattern of two stacks of four bundled alpha-helical proteins. http://www.physorg.com/news152985503.html Nanotechnology Wed, 04 Feb 2009 15:58:50 EST news152985503 The enzyme DFPase from the squid Loligo vulgaris, is able to rapidly and efficiently detoxify chemical warfare agents such as Sarin, which was used in the Tokyo subway attacks in 1995. http://www.physorg.com/news152375661.html Chemistry Wed, 28 Jan 2009 14:35:02 EST news152375661 (PhysOrg.com) -- Models of how Saturn and Jupiter formed may soon take on a different look. http://www.physorg.com/news152208969.html Space & Earth Mon, 26 Jan 2009 16:16:41 EST news152208969 (PhysOrg.com) -- A team of scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory, in collaboration with researchers from the University of Delaware and Yeshiva University, has developed a new catalyst that could make ethanol-powered fuel cells feasible. The highly efficient catalyst performs two crucial, and previously unreachable steps needed to oxidize ethanol and produce clean energy in fuel cell reactions. Their results are published online in the January 25, 2009 edition of Nature Materials. http://www.physorg.com/news152191425.html Nanotechnology Mon, 26 Jan 2009 11:24:09 EST news152191425 Scientists at Penn State University and the Virginia Commonwealth University have discovered a way to produce hydrogen by exposing selected clusters of aluminum atoms to water. The findings are important because they demonstrate that it is the geometries of these aluminum clusters, rather than solely their electronic properties, that govern the proximity of the clusters' exposed active sites. The proximity of the clusters' exposed sites plays an important role in affecting the clusters' reactions with water. The team's findings will be published in the 23 January 2009 issue of the journal Science. http://www.physorg.com/news151856915.html Physics Thu, 22 Jan 2009 14:29:13 EST news151856915 A new theory as to how galaxies were formed in the Universe billions of years ago has been formulated by Hebrew University of Jerusalem cosmologists. The theory takes issue with the prevailing view on how the galaxies came to exist. http://www.physorg.com/news151766798.html Space & Earth Wed, 21 Jan 2009 13:27:07 EST news151766798 (PhysOrg.com) -- A multidisciplinary team at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has developed carbon nanotubes that can be used as sensors for cancer drugs and other DNA-damaging agents inside living cells. The sensors, made of carbon nanotubes wrapped in DNA, can detect chemotherapy drugs such as cisplatin as well as environmental toxins and free radicals that damage DNA. http://www.physorg.com/news151345478.html Nanotechnology Fri, 16 Jan 2009 16:24:38 EST news151345478 (PhysOrg.com) -- A new version of an environmentally friendly, energy efficient technology that could replace combustion engines in cars and batteries in mobile devices such as phones and laptops is being researched by Aberdeen experts. http://www.physorg.com/news151076750.html Technology Tue, 13 Jan 2009 13:45:50 EST news151076750 Researcher Kristina Djanashvili has developed a substance that enables doctors to get better MRI scans of tumours. On Tuesday 13 January, Djanashvili will be soon awarded a doctorate by TU Delft, Netherlands, for her work in this field. http://www.physorg.com/news151064287.html Medicine & Health Tue, 13 Jan 2009 10:18:07 EST news151064287 (PhysOrg.com) -- Squeeze it hard enough and hydrogen, the most abundant and lightest element in our Universe, strangely takes on a metallic nature. During this state, as it loses hold of its electrons, hydrogen is believed to display unique characteristics including high-temperature superconductivity and properties that could be useful in developing new methods of energy production using nuclear fusion and alternative fuels. Creating this drastic phase change, however, is difficult, requiring extremely high temperatures and pressures. http://www.physorg.com/news150732210.html Physics Fri, 09 Jan 2009 14:03:30 EST news150732210 (PhysOrg.com) -- The nuclei of ordinary hydrogen atoms contain only a single proton. If a neutron is added, the hydrogen becomes deuterium. In principle, molecules that contain deuterium in place of hydrogen atoms are chemically identical. However, there can be significant differences. Thus `heavy water`, water with molecules that contain deuterium in place of hydrogen, is toxic because it disrupts highly sensitive biochemical processes in the body and leads to metabolic failure. http://www.physorg.com/news150561487.html Chemistry Wed, 07 Jan 2009 14:38:07 EST news150561487 (PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists have created an entirely natural and renewable method for producing hydrogen to generate electricity which could drastically reduce the dependency on fossil fuels in the future. http://www.physorg.com/news150472856.html Chemistry Tue, 06 Jan 2009 14:00:56 EST news150472856 (PhysOrg.com) -- Venus Express has made the first detection of an atmospheric loss process on Venus's day-side. Last year, the spacecraft revealed that most of the lost atmosphere escapes from the night-side. Together, these discoveries bring planetary scientists closer to understanding what happened to the water on Venus, which is suspected to have once been as abundant as on Earth. http://www.physorg.com/news148816159.html Space & Earth Thu, 18 Dec 2008 09:49:19 EST news148816159 Scientists have discovered where they believe would be the best place to find ice on the moon. http://www.physorg.com/news148805928.html Space & Earth Thu, 18 Dec 2008 06:58:48 EST news148805928 (PhysOrg.com) -- Solar flares are the most powerful explosions in the solar system. Packing a punch equal to a hundred million hydrogen bombs, they obliterate everything in their immediate vicinity. Not a single atom should remain intact. At least that's how it's supposed to work. http://www.physorg.com/news148570868.html Space & Earth Mon, 15 Dec 2008 13:41:08 EST news148570868 (PhysOrg.com) -- Some marine bacteria produce hydrogen sulphide, which is toxic to animals. Scientists have now discovered that bacteria also protect marine animals from this toxic gas. A bacterial bloom detoxified a vast expanse of hydrogen sulphide-containing water off the coast of Namibia, before it could unfold its full deadly impact. (Nature, early online edition, December 11th, 2008) http://www.physorg.com/news148229254.html Biology Thu, 11 Dec 2008 14:47:34 EST news148229254 Something vital is missing in the far distant reaches of the Universe: hydrogen - the raw material for stars, planets and possible life. http://www.physorg.com/news146740325.html Space & Earth Mon, 24 Nov 2008 09:12:05 EST news146740325