Matter and energy from Science Daily Feed

Step into a world so tiny, it defies imagination -- the nanoscale. Picture a single strand of hair, now shrink it a million times. You've arrived. Here, atoms and molecules are the architects of reality, building properties and phenomena that challenge everything we thought we knew -- until now. Researchers have now unlocked a stunning discovery on this invisible frontier: a brand-new type of quasiparticle in all magnetic materials, no matter their strength or temperature. This groundbreaking find flips the script on magnetism, revealing it to be more dynamic than scientists once believed.

New technology could remotely identify various types of plastics, offering a valuable tool for future monitoring and analysis of oceanic plastic pollution. A new hyperspectral Raman imaging lidar system can remotely detect and identify various types of plastics, which could help address the critical issue of plastic pollution in the ocean by providing better tools for monitoring and analysis.

Researchers propose a unique numerical decision-making framework for solar panel protection against extreme weather conditions. The framework combines advanced wind simulations with machine learning to optimize individual solar panel angles under strong winds. Unlike previous methods, this new method treats panels as independent decision-makers and identifies creative, data-driven solutions to reduce stress, significantly outperforming current safeguards.

Engineers have modified lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) -- the revolutionary technology behind the COVID-19 mRNA vaccines -- to not only cross the blood-brain barrier (BBB) but also to target specific types of cells, including neurons. This breakthrough marks a significant step toward potential next-generation treatments for neurological diseases like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.

Infertility affects an estimated 186 million people worldwide, with fallopian tube obstruction contributing to 11%-67% of female infertility cases. Researchers have developed an innovative solution using a magnetically driven robotic microscrew to treat fallopian tube blockages. The microrobot is made from nonmagnetic photosensitive resin, coated with a thin iron layer to give it magnetic properties. By applying an external magnetic field, the robot rotates, generating translational motion that enables it to navigate through a glass channel simulating a fallopian tube.

A novel nanobody-based immunosensor, designed to function stably in undiluted biological fluids and harsh conditions, has been developed. Their innovative design leverages BRET -- bioluminescence resonance energy transfer -- and exhibits great potential for point-of-care testing, therapeutic drug monitoring, and environmental applications using paper-based devices.

Researchers have developed microchips using field-effect transistors that can detect multiple diseases from a single air sample with high sensitivity. The technology enables rapid testing and could lead to portable diagnostic devices for home and medical use.

New research has uncovered a potential unintended consequence of the electric vehicle transition in India and China, finding that sulfur dioxide emissions could actually increase over current levels if the countries were to fully onshore their electric vehicle supply chains. The overwhelming majority of those emissions would come from refining and manufacturing nickel and cobalt -- important minerals for today's electric vehicle batteries.

A new article sheds light on how age-related changes may affect the way we handle finances -- and how we can stay sharp as we age.

Excited state dynamics are essential for understanding fluorescence properties in molecules, impacting their application in technologies. Recent research explores how molecular structure and geometry influence light emission in aggregation-induced emission molecules. The study reveals that changes in molecular shape affect emission behavior in both solution and solid states. These insights are crucial for advancing applications like organic light-emitting diodes and bioimaging, enabling innovations in material design and energy interactions.

A research team has developed a highly efficient wearable energy harvester that can power electronic devices using only body movements.

This bioengineering breakthrough has found a way to make neurons grown in a dish react just like the real thing.

Scientists develop a high-performance photoacoustic endoscopy featuring a transparent ultrasound transducer.

Sustainable, renewable and good for the climate: Wood is the material of the future. But how much of it do we actually have and how do we make best use of it? Researchers have now analyzed the material flows of wood in Switzerland in detail -- and discovered untapped opportunities.

When analyzing artworks, understanding the visual clarity of compositions is crucial. Inspired by digital artists, researchers have created a metric to quantify clarity in digital images. As a result, scientists can accurately capture changes in structure during artistic processes and physical transformations. This new metric can improve analysis and decision-making across the scientific and creative domains, potentially transforming how we understand and evaluate the structure of images. It has been tested on digital artworks and physical systems.

When one tectonic plate sinks beneath another, it generates magmas rich in volatiles such as water, sulphur and chlorine. As these magmas ascend, they release magmatic fluids, in which sulphur and chlorine bind to metals such as gold and copper, and transport these metals towards the surface of the Earth. As the extreme conditions relevant to natural magmas are very difficult to reproduce in the laboratory, the precise role of the different forms of sulphur in metal transport remains highly debated. However, an innovative approach has demonstrated that sulphur, in its bisulphide (HS-) form, is crucial for the transport of gold in magmatic fluids.

Scientists have developed a 3D concrete printing method that captures carbon, demonstrating a new pathway to reduce the environmental impact of the construction industry.

How can we ensure that as many households as possible adopt not only solar panels, but also their own battery to store solar energy, a heat pump, and an electric car? Researchers have looked into just this question.

Scientists have developed a new blood test that could screen cancer patients to help make their treatment safer and more effective.

Researchers have discovered proteins with emulsifying action that can be readily released from yeast cell walls. One of them exhibited emulsifying activity comparable to that of casein, a milk-derived emulsifier.