By tweaking the genes of microbes in the soil, it may be possible to make arid ecosystems more resilient to climate change and overgrazing, according to a new study. The research is in early stages, and currently consists ...
Ecology
Aug 26, 2020
0
364
Spiders produce amazingly strong and lightweight threads called draglines that are made from silk proteins. Although they can be used to manufacture a number of useful materials, getting enough of the protein is difficult ...
Biochemistry
Jul 8, 2020
0
1319
If you could borrow H.G. Wells' time machine and travel back three billion years, it would take your breath away, literally. There was no oxygen in the air. You wouldn't be able to breathe.
Cell & Microbiology
May 1, 2020
3
145
Timing is everything. A fresh example supporting the old saying has been found in connection with the systems regulated by biological clocks.
Plants & Animals
Apr 8, 2020
1
2779
Think of a train coming down the tracks to a switch point where it could go either to the right or the left—and it always goes to the right.
Materials Science
Jan 2, 2020
0
595
The existence of habitable alien worlds has been a mainstay of popular culture for more than a century. In the 19th century, astronomers believed that Martians might be using canal-based transport links to traverse the red ...
Space Exploration
Dec 13, 2019
19
747
Many medicines are twisted molecules with two mirror image versions, but the body uses only one. Inspired by photosynthetic bacteria, a team at the University of Michigan built a catalyst that guides chemical reactions toward ...
Nanomaterials
Oct 24, 2019
0
81
Powering a massive biosphere on Earth, photosynthesis is the light-mediated reaction that converts carbon dioxide and water to carbohydrates and oxygen. About 2.3 billion years ago, this reaction led to a dramatic oxygenation ...
Earth Sciences
Jul 12, 2019
19
156
Researchers facing a future with a larger population and more uncertain climate are looking for ways to improve crop yields, and they're looking to photosynthetic bacteria for engineering solutions.
Biochemistry
Jan 24, 2019
0
24
Wastewater, tourism, and trade are moving microbes around the globe at an unprecedented scale, a group of international researchers, including Professor Michael Gillings from Macquarie University, have argued. The editorial ...
Cell & Microbiology
Sep 15, 2017
0
174
