source: Phys.org Weyl semimetals are topological materials whose low-energy excitations obey the Weyl equation. In a Weyl semimetal, the conduction and valence bands touch at discrete points in momentum space called Weyl nodes. Weyl nodes are monopoles of the Berry curvature and are robust under generic perturbations. The quasiparticles near the Weyl nodes are analogous to Weyl fermions in high-energy physics; they exhibit linear dispersion and well-defined chirality. Read Full Article Here

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source: Phys.org From the tropics to the poles, from the sea surface to hundreds of feet below, the world’s oceans are teeming with one of the tiniest of organisms: a type of bacteria called Prochlorococcus, which despite their minute size are collectively responsible for a sizable portion of the oceans’ oxygen production. But the remarkable ability of these diminutive organisms to diversify and adapt to such profoundly different environments has remained something of a mystery.

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source: Phys.org When it comes to two-dimensional materials, it’s best to expect the unexpected. Writing in Nature, researchers at Columbia find evidence that two competing phenomena—superconductivity and ferroelectricity—can occur within the same material. “This is the first time that a tunable switch between ferroelectricity and superconductivity has ever been seen,” said corresponding author Daniel Rhodes. “We don’t fully understand it just yet, but it’s definitely there.” Read Full Article Here

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source: Phys.org Although the human body is externally symmetric across the left-right axis, there are remarkable left-right asymmetries in the shape and positioning of most internal organs, including the heart, lungs, liver, stomach, and brain. Read Full Article Here

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source: Phys.org An increasingly connected world and a strong digital economy have made it easier for multinational companies to have investments in multiple countries. This investment, where the company buys a controlling stake in a foreign company, is known as foreign direct investment. Read Full Article Here

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source: Phys.org A recurring fantasy in science fiction is the implantation of tiny elements in peoples’ brains, which would be used to control and direct our actions and emotions. Regardless of the direction that technological development may take in this sense, in nature these tricks were invented millions of years ago. Different types of parasites are able to modify the behavior of organisms that host them, forcing them to stop acting to conserve their own genes to become promoters of foreign ones.

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source: Phys.org Detection in multiple infrared (IR) regions spanning from short- and mid- to long-wave IR plays an important role in diverse fields from scientific research to wide-ranging technological applications, including target identification, imaging, remote monitoring, and gas sensing. Currently, state-of-the-art IR photodetectors are mainly dominated by conventional narrow bandgap semiconductors including In1-xGaxAs, InSb, and Hg1-xCdxTe, operating in short-wave IR (SWIR, 1-3 µm), mid-wave IR (MWIR, 3-6 µm), and long-wave IR (LWIR, 6-15 µm) spectral bands, respectively.

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source: Phys.org Weiss-Kruszka syndrome is a rare neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by craniofacial anomalies, developmental delay, and autistic features. Researchers at the Institute of Molecular Biotechnology (IMBA) of the Austrian Academy of Sciences and the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California (USC) in Los Angeles uncovered the molecular mechanism underlying Weiss-Kruszka syndrome: The causative mutation in the gene ZNF462 leads to a failure to safeguard the neural lineage specification during early embryonic development.

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source: New Scientist Science is key to addressing global health challenges, but if its advances to be implemented then researchers must work hand in glove with the arts, says Danielle Olsen Read Full Article Here

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source: Phys.org A fungus that infects salamanders contains multiple copies of the same “jumping genes”, scientists have discovered. Read Full Article Here

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source: Phys.org Subsistence communities often rely on natural resources to meet their basic needs. 90% of people globally living in extreme poverty depend on forests for at least part of their livelihoods, according to the FAO. These groups are generally not viewed as drivers of forest loss and degradation; in fact, they are traditionally linked with low environmental and carbon footprints. Read Full Article Here

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source: Phys.org Catalysts boost many types of chemical reactions, from our bodies to the industrial production of compounds and controlled fuel combustion in a car. From solid to gaseous, no matter their formula, their role is to enhance the rate of chemical reactions to make many processes easier. Read Full Article Here

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source: Phys.org A new peer-reviewed study, which analyzes Florida housing markets battered by hurricanes, finds that affected areas tend to gentrify slightly in the years following a storm: The average income of new buyers increases while long-term demand stays stable. Read Full Article Here

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source: Phys.org Climate change requires a rethink of crop production toward varieties and crops that are better adapted to heat and drought. Soybean is an arable crop that thrives in warm conditions and provides itself with nitrogen, an important plant nutrient that farmers would otherwise have to provide through fertilizer. Read Full Article Here

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source: Phys.org The marine protected area of Sylt Outer Reef has unusually high biodiversity levels for North Sea standards: fields of hard substrates alternate with areas of gravel and coarse sand, interspersed with flat sandbanks. The stones provide a solid base for colorful reef communities of organisms such as frilled anemones, mussels, bryozoans and sponges, while the sandbanks are home to various species of brittle stars and worms. Numerous fish species thrive in these waters, among them cod, sprats and herring, as well as flatfish and rare European river lamprey.

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source: Phys.org Fossil fuels are major contributors to pollution, leading to global warming and erratic climatic fluctuations. Hydrogen fuel cells are a promising eco-friendly alternative to fossil fuels, since they use hydrogen as a source to produce electricity, releasing only water and heat in the process. Read Full Article Here

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source: Phys.org Better management on agricultural lands to reduce nitrogen losses to the environment costs only a fraction of what it provides. This could yield nearly $500 billion in societal benefits globally for both food supply and human health, ecosystems and the climate. And this at a net cost of nearly $20 billion. That’s according to a study published today in the scientific journal Nature. Read Full Article Here

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source: Phys.org Utah State University biochemists Thomson Hallmark and Ryan Jackson, along with collaborators, published two seminal papers this week. Their findings describe the structure and function of a newly discovered CRISPR immune system that—unlike better-known CRISPR systems that deactivate foreign genes to protect cells—shuts down infected cells to thwart infection. Read Full Article Here

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source: Phys.org Researchers in China have used artificial tissue to restore erectile function in pigs, a promising development for repairing penile damage in humans. Read Full Article Here

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source: Phys.org The first chromosome level genome sequences for great hammerhead and shortfin mako sharks have shown that both species have experienced major population declines over a 250,000-year history. Low genetic diversity and signs of inbreeding are concerning for Critically Endangered great hammerhead sharks, whose overfished populations have plummeted. With higher levels of genetic diversity, shortfin mako sharks may be more resilient to environmental change; that is, if the current fishing pressure on them is substantially reduced.

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source: Phys.org They’ve been pushed to the brink of extinction by dams, drought, extreme heat and even the flare of wildfires, but now California’s endangered winter-run Chinook salmon appear to be facing an entirely new threat—their own ravenous hunger for anchovies. Read Full Article Here

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source: Phys.org Working with hundreds of thousands of high-resolution images, the team at the Allen Institute for Cell Science, a division of the Allen Institute, put numbers on the internal organization of human cells—a biological concept that has to date proven exceptionally difficult to quantify. Read Full Article Here

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source: Phys.org Meat has multiple nutritional benefits and is consumed as the primary source of protein by an increasing segment of the world’s population. However, there have been significant environmental costs associated with the growing demand for meat. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) reported in 2013 that livestock production accounts for 14.5% of all greenhouse gas emissions caused by human activity. Read Full Article Here

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source: Phys.org As semiconductor devices become ever smaller, researchers are exploring two-dimensional (2D) materials for potential applications in transistors and optoelectronics. Controlling the flow of electricity and heat through these materials is key to their functionality, but first we need to understand the details of those behaviors at atomic scales. Read Full Article Here

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source: Phys.org The Seebeck effect is a thermoelectric phenomenon by which a voltage or current is generated when a temperature difference exists across a conductor. This effect is the basis of established and emerging thermoelectric applications alike, such as heat-to-electricity energy harvesters, sensing devices, and temperature control. Read Full Article Here

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