Dear Reader ,
Here is your customized Phys.org Newsletter for week 16:
First potentially habitable Earth-sized planet confirmed: It may have liquid water
The first Earth-sized exoplanet orbiting within the habitable zone of another star has been confirmed by observations with both the W. M. Keck Observatory and the Gemini Observatory. The initial discovery, made by NASA's Kepler Space Telescope, is one of a handful of smaller planets found by Kepler and verified using large ground-based telescopes. It also confirms that Earth-sized planets do exist in the habitable zone of other stars.
Last Week's Best—Quantum mechanics breakthrough, 3-D printed human heart, and paraplegia therapy
(Phys.org) —Hello readers—we'd like to try something new here at Phys.org and Medical Xpress: offer a weekly summary every Monday highlighting what we feel are the most important stories of the past week. Here, then, is the first of what we hope will be a successful series:
Astronauts to reveal sobering data on asteroid impacts
This Earth Day, Tuesday, April 22, three former NASA astronauts will present new evidence that our planet has experienced many more large-scale asteroid impacts over the past decade than previously thought… three to ten times more, in fact. A new visualization of data from a nuclear weapons warning network, to be unveiled by B612 Foundation CEO Ed Lu during the evening event at Seattle's Museum of Flight, shows that "the only thing preventing a catastrophe from a 'city-killer' sized asteroid is blind luck."
Casual marijuana use linked to brain abnormalities in students
Young adults who used marijuana only recreationally showed significant abnormalities in two key brain regions that are important in emotion and motivation, scientists report. The study was a collaboration between Northwestern Medicine and Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical School.
How to test the twin paradox without using a spaceship
Forget about anti-ageing creams and hair treatments. If you want to stay young, get a fast spaceship. That is what Einstein's Theory of Relativity predicted a century ago, and it is commonly known as "twin paradox".
Scientists gain new insight into mysterious electronic phenomenon
(Phys.org) —For more than a quarter of a century, high-temperature superconductors – materials that can transmit electric current without any resistance – have perplexed scientists who seek to understand the physical phenomena responsible for their unique properties.
Team finds electricity can be generated by dragging saltwater over graphene
(Phys.org) —A team of researchers at China's Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, studying graphene properties, has discovered that the act of dragging saltwater over a piece of graphene can generate electricity. In their paper published in the journal Nature Nanotechnology, the team describes how in seeking to turn the idea of submerging carbon nanotubes in a flowing liquid to generate a voltage on its head, they came upon the idea of simply dragging water droplets across graphene instead.
A homemade solar lamp for developing countries
(Phys.org) —The solar lamp developed by the start-up LEDsafari is a more effective, safer, and less expensive form of illumination than the traditional oil lamp currently used by more than one billion people in the world. An integral part of this young start-up from Lausanne is an educational three-day workshop organized locally and led by globetrotters trained by the start-up to educate and train the beneficiaries.
Astronomers discover first self-lensing binary star system
(Phys.org) —A pair of astronomers at the University of Washington has discovered the first known instance of a self-lensing binary-star system. In their paper published in the journal Science, Ethan Kruse and Eric Agol describe how they happened across the previously theorized system while looking for undiscovered planets.
Researchers model world's first carbon-based 'spaser'
(Phys.org) —A new version of "spaser" technology being investigated could mean that mobile phones become so small, efficient, and flexible they could be printed on clothing.
With neutrons, scientists can now look for dark energy in the lab
It does not always take a huge accelerator to do particle physics: First results from a low energy, table top alterative takes validity of Newtonian gravity down by five orders of magnitude and narrows the potential properties of the forces and particles that may exist beyond it by more than one hundred thousand times. Gravity resonance spectroscopy, a method developed at the Vienna University of Technology, is so sensitive that it can now be used to search for Dark Matter and Dark Energy.
Researchers find tin selenide shows promise for efficiently converting waste heat into electrical energy
(Phys.org) —A team of researchers working at Northwestern University has found that tin selenide (SnSe) has the highest Carnot efficiency for a thermoelectric cycle ever found, making it potentially a possible material for use in generating electricity from waste heat. In their paper published in the journal Nature, the team describes work they've conducted on SnSe and how their discovery might lead to even more efficient materials. Joseph Heremans gives a short history of thermoelectric research in a News & Views companion piece and offers some insights into why SnSe might be so efficient and how it might lead the way to the discovery of even better materials.
Cosmologists weigh cosmic filaments and voids
(Phys.org) —Cosmologists have established that much of the stuff of the universe is made of dark matter, a mysterious, invisible substance that can't be directly detected but which exerts a gravitational pull on surrounding objects. Dark matter is thought to exist in a vast network of filaments throughout the universe, pulling luminous galaxies into an interconnected web of clusters, interspersed with seemingly empty voids.
Scientists capture ultrafast snapshots of light-driven superconductivity
A new study pins down a major factor behind the appearance of superconductivity—the ability to conduct electricity with 100 percent efficiency—in a promising copper-oxide material.
MRI, on a molecular scale: Team develops system that could peer into atomic structure of individual molecules
For decades, scientists have used techniques such as X-ray crystallography and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) imaging to gain invaluable insight into the atomic structure of molecules. Such efforts have long been hampered by the fact that they demand large quantities of a specific molecule, often in ordered and crystalized form, to be effective—making it all but impossible to peer into the structure of most molecules.
Switchable material could harness the power of the sun—even when it's not shining
It's an obvious truism, but one that may soon be outdated: The problem with solar power is that sometimes the sun doesn't shine.
From conspiracy theories to climate change denial, a cognitive psychologist explains
Stephan Lewandowsky, chair of cognitive psychology at the University of Bristol, answered questions posed by the public on Reddit. The Conversation has curated the highlights.
SRI microrobots show fast-building factory approach (w/ video)
(Phys.org) —SRI International, a research center that conducts client-sponsored research and development for government and other organizations, is attracting attention for work on what micro-factories might accomplish in the future, with micro-robots coordinated to go to work building products. SRI's ant-like microrobots in large numbers can reliably handle solid and liquid materials, including electronics. The micro-robots were designed to suggest a better way to assemble components and small structures.
Researchers create methylation maps of Neanderthals and Denisovans, compare them to modern humans
(Phys.org) —A team of Israeli, Spanish and German researchers has for the first time created a map of gene expression in Neanderthals and Denisovans and has compared them with modern humans. In their paper published in the journal Science, the team describes how they applied epigentics to the study of our two closest known ancestors and discovered variations that might account for their differences in body shape and susceptibility to some modern neurological diseases.
There's something ancient in the icebox
Glaciers are commonly thought to work like a belt sander. As they move over the land they scrape off everything—vegetation, soil, and even the top layer of bedrock. So scientists were greatly surprised to discover an ancient tundra landscape preserved under the Greenland Ice Sheet, below two miles of ice.
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