chemical

What if There’s an Earth-Like Planet at One of Our Closest Stars?

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Just over four light-years away, our Solar System’s closest neighboring stars can be found. There’s red dwarf Proxima Centauri, at a distance of 4.2 light-years; and, just a little farther, at 4.37 light-years, a binary system of Sun-like stars – Alpha Centauri AB.   We don’t yet know if there are any Earth-like worlds orbiting … Read more

Cambrian explosion: First burst of animal evolution altered chemical makeup of Earth’s mantle

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The Cambrian explosion 500 million years ago saw a huge variety of animals evolve – and also led to carbon being buried in the seabed and ultimately carried into the planet’s mantle Earth 4 March 2022 By Michael Marshall The explosion of new species in the Cambrian period saw the emergence of many familiar groups … Read more

Nanotechnology: Particles can translate chemical signals from bacteria to yeast

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Particles that facilitate communication from one type of cell to another could have applications in medicine and agriculture Life 28 February 2022 By Jason Arunn Murugesu Electron microscope image of an E. coli cell dividing CNRI/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY Specially designed nanoparticles have been used to let bacteria communicate with yeast cells by “translating” chemical messages … Read more

The Mysterious Origins of King Tutankhamen’s Space Rock Dagger Just Got Clearer

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You may already know the legend of King Tutankhamen’s space dagger – an iron weapon forged from the rock of meteorites, and entombed with the ancient Egyptian pharaoh. Now a new study has revealed more details about this most fascinating and mysterious of artifacts.   A thorough chemical analysis involving high-resolution photography and X-rays has … Read more

Newly Invented Catalyst Dramatically Increases The Efficiency of Turning CO2 Into Fuel

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It took nature decades of photosynthesis, followed by eons of intense heat and pressure from geological activity to bake atmospheric carbon dioxide into the long chains of hydrocarbon that make up fossil fuels.   We don’t have the luxury of millions of years to mop up the excess carbon from our atmosphere, but advances in … Read more

A Building Block of Life May Have Formed in Cosmic Dust Clouds Before Reaching Earth

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There are few bigger questions than how life first got started on Earth, but trying to put in the detective work almost 4 billion years after the event is understandably hard going for scientists. Now it looks as though we might have found another clue.   New research focuses specifically on peptides, smaller versions of … Read more

Regenerative medicine: Frogs regrow amputated legs after treatment with a chemical cocktail

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Adult frogs can’t usually regrow a lost leg, but they can after treatment with a regenerative cocktail – and the new leg even contains functioning nerves Health 26 January 2022 By Carissa Wong Regenerated frog tissue Nirosha Murugan/Algoma University), Hannah Vigran, Kelsie Miller/Tufts University in Levin lab Adult frogs can gain the ability to regrow … Read more

We Have Breached The Safe Planetary Limit For Synthetic Chemicals, Scientists Warn

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From sea to land to sky, Earth’s systems are contaminated with synthetic substances, and scientists warn it has already pushed the integrity of our planet over the brink. Today, there are about 350,000 human-made chemicals on the market, including plastics, pesticides, industrial chemicals, cosmetic chemicals, antibiotics, and other drugs.   The fact this number continues … Read more

Mysterious Anomalies Deep Within Our Planet May Have Lingered Since Earth’s Creation

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Chemical leftovers from the very earliest days of our planet could still be present near Earth’s core, according to new research, and the discovery could improve our understanding of plate tectonics phenomena happening today.   The team behind the study compares these leftovers to clumps of flour at the bottom of a bowl of batter … Read more