Matter and energy from Science Daily Feed

Water oxidation offers a promising path to achieve sustainable energy by efficiently generating oxygen. This study investigates how optimizing Ru(II) photosensitizers, metal oxide catalysts, and pH conditions can enhance water splitting efficiency. By introducing a simplified method to estimate catalyst performance, researchers make it easier to design more effective systems. These findings provide crucial insights for advancing clean energy solutions and accelerating the transition to renewable energy.

A fragment of 'lost' music found in the pages of Scotland's first full-length printed book is providing clues to what music sounded like five centuries ago. Scholars have been investigating the origins of the musical score -- which contains only 55 notes -- to cast new light on music from pre-Reformation Scotland in the early sixteenth-century. Researchers say the tantalizing discovery is a rare example of music from Scottish religious institutions 500 years ago, and is the only piece which survives from the northeast of Scotland from this period.

Researchers have developed a molecule that allows an important ion channel to be regulated -- a breakthrough with therapeutic potential.

To guard against harmful waterborne pathogens, many consumers, including managers of health-care facilities, install antimicrobial silver-containing showerheads. But researchers now report that these fixtures are no 'silver bullet.' In real-world showering conditions, most microbes aren't exposed to the silver long enough to be killed. However, the composition of rare microbes in water from these showerheads varied with each type of fixture tested.

Scientists have developed swarms of tiny magnetic robots that work together like ants to achieve Herculean feats, including traversing and picking up objects many times their size. The findings suggest that these microrobot swarms -- operating under a rotating magnetic field -- could be used to take on difficult tasks in challenging environments that individual robots would struggle to handle, such as offering a minimally invasive treatment for clogged arteries and precisely guiding organisms.

Researchers can now fabricate a 3D chip with alternating layers of semiconducting material grown directly on top of each other. The method eliminates thick silicon substrates between the layers, leading to better and faster computation, for applications like more efficient AI hardware.

Physicists have created a new and long-lasting magnetic state in a material, using only light. The results provide a new way to control and switch antiferromagnetic materials, which are of interest for their potential to advance information processing and memory chip technology.

Atomic clocks that excite the nucleus of thorium-229 embedded in a transparent crystal when hit by a laser beam could yield the most accurate measurements ever of time and gravity, and even rewrite some of the fundamental laws of physics. Thorium-229-doped crystals are both scarce and radioactive. A thin film using a dry precursor of thorium-229 shows the same nuclear excitation as the crystal, but its low cost and radioactivity, and smaller size mean its production could be more easily scaled up to make smaller, less expensive, more portable atomic clocks.

A new study offers hope for people who are blind or have low vision (pBLV) through an innovative navigation system that was tested using virtual reality. The system, which combines vibrational and sound feedback, aims to help users navigate complex real-world environments more safely and effectively.

A team of researchers has created an innovative drug delivery system with outstanding potential to improve drug development.

A future where lightweight car parts can be made with a 3D printer is here, thanks to multi-material additive manufacturing research.

Another advance has been made by experts in nano-scale chemistry to propel further development of sustainable and efficient generation of hydrogen from water using solar power. Experts have now identified a novel solar cell process to potentially use in future technologies for photocatalytic water splitting in green hydrogen production.

Researchers developed a fully open-source biomolecular structure prediction model that achieves state-of-the-art performance, at the level of AlpahFold3, in an effort to democratize biomedical research and drug development.

String theory remains elusive as a 'provable' phenomenon. But a team of physicists has now taken a significant step forward in validating string theory by using an innovative mathematical method that points to its 'inevitability.'

If the experience of watching a FIFA World Cup soccer final is intense, spare a thought for the players, who are competing at an ever increasing intensity, according to a new study.

Engineers have reported a significant advancement in engineering biology and clean energy. A team of researchers has developed an innovative light-driven hybrid nanoreactor that merges natural efficiency with cutting-edge synthetic precision to produce hydrogen -- a clean and sustainable energy source.

Researchers have demonstrated the high accuracy of their newly developed typhoon observation device that can be dropped from an aircraft into the eye of a typhoon. This kind of device, called a dropsonde, measures storm's atmospheric conditions as it falls from altitude to the ocean surface. The new dropsonde is lightweight and is made mainly of a biodegradable material. It can descend without a parachute unlike conventional dropsondes.

The quantum Hall effect, a fundamental effect in quantum mechanics, not only generates an electric but also a magnetic current. It arises from the motion of electrons on an orbit around the nuclei of atoms. These results can potentially be used to develop new types of inexpensive and energy-efficient devices.

Pile up blocks until the tower collapses. But why does the tower always end up collapsing? Is it possible that it can be built ad infinitum? A new study explores the fascinating and complex dynamics of the stacking of blocks subjected to hazards.

The holidays are in full swing and people are shopping, wrapping and packing to visit loved ones. Along with the extra fees for checked baggage and seat upgrades, some airlines are also considering weight-based pricing. A recent study looked at how people felt about weighing their baggage and themselves to help reduce emissions and found while over half of travelers are not keen about hopping on the scale, some would be open to the idea -- especially if it aligns with their own interests in the environment.