Researchers found that forces between individual grains are what drives changes in behavior and state of granular materials like sand or dirt, not temperature. This discovery reveals a new understanding of how granular systems equilibrate, challenging the conventional wisdom on thermodynamics.
Researchers at Max-Planck-Gesellschaft create an atomic gas that exhibits a negative Kelvin temperature, where particles possess high energies despite being thermally insulated. This phenomenon challenges traditional notions of heat and cold, with potentially groundbreaking implications for thermodynamics and quantum mechanics.
Researchers found that blackbody radiation shifts caused by surrounding chamber temperature can impose limits on atomic clock precision. The study, led by Charles Clark and Marianna Safronova, explores how ytterbium atoms are affected by this faint form of influence, crucial for future clock recalibrations.
The new textbook on thermodynamics provides a clear structure and mathematical foundations, making it easier for students to understand the subject. It combines mathematical exactness with intuitive approaches, useful for chemists, biologists, and engineers.
The study highlights the challenges of recycling specialty metals, which are essential for precise technological applications. Improving design for recycling, depositing targets, and financial incentives can enhance metal recovery.
Professor Artur Jaworski receives Royal Society Industry Fellowship to apply thermoacoustic technology to improve efficiency of energy sources. He aims to integrate devices into European Thermodynamics Ltd products to widen range and enhance performance.
Researchers at National University of Singapore have identified a novel double-stranded DNA structure, dubbed S-DNA, which has sparked a 16-year scientific debate. The team's findings suggest that S-DNA may be a potential binding substrate for DNA intercalators and proteins.
A review of recent research articles found that the South Asian summer monsoon is expected to experience more variability in rainfall due to climate change. However, regional projections for devastating droughts and floods remain uncertain due to inconsistent observations and complex thermodynamic processes.
CYGNSS will study tropical cyclones' formation and intensification by analyzing ocean surface properties, atmospheric thermodynamics, and radiation. The mission aims to advance hurricane forecasting and tracking methods.
Researchers have discovered that thermal noise can cause unidirectional motion in nanoscale systems with asymmetric structures. By considering the finite autocorrelation time of thermal noise, they show that this effect is feasible even at room temperature.
Chinese researchers develop a method to solve the specific heat-phonon spectrum inversion problem, enabling the calculation of thermodynamic functions from heat capacity data. They successfully apply this approach to the negative thermal expansion material ZrW2O8, obtaining consistent results with laws of thermodynamics.
Scientists at Brookhaven National Laboratory have developed a new electrocatalyst that efficiently generates hydrogen gas from water without using platinum. The novel nickel-molybdenum-nitride nanosheet catalyst outperforms traditional non-noble metal compounds and has the potential to unlock sustainable energy alternatives.
Researchers found that mice with intestinal bacteria from obese animals gained more weight and became more obese when fed a high-fat diet. The study suggests that specific gut microbiota profiles may promote excess weight gain and influence food intake. The findings offer hope for developing new strategies to prevent and treat obesity.
A new model, published by Anne Hofmeister and Robert Criss, presents a three-dimensional gas cloud scenario for planetary accretion. The model explains planetary orbits and spins without relying on heat production, conserving angular momentum in a cold environment.
Researchers at VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland have challenged the long-held concept of surface tension on solid materials. They found that excess surface tension on a solid material does not exist and is incompatible with thermodynamic theory.
Researchers have developed an algorithm to predict how and when proteins misfold, leading to neurodegenerative diseases. The algorithm helps scientists understand protein dynamics and may aid in developing treatments for currently incurable diseases.
Shape-memory alloys exhibit unique properties that make them suitable for earthquake-resistant construction and retrofit applications. A Georgia Tech model assesses the behavior of these alloys under loading conditions, predicting internal temperature and stress distributions.
Top bartenders are ditching trial and error for a more measured approach to cocktail making, inspired by physics techniques. Rotary evaporators and thermocouples help extract flavors and balance the taste of cocktails, such as martinis and manhattans.
Researchers Hu et al. developed a new detonation model named the least-action detonation model (LADM) that takes into account complex movement and transport effects, differing from the classical ZND model. The LADM model predicts detonation product particles to be in a stationary state, which has been observed in experiments.
Researchers have developed a magnetic logic circuit and memory that theoretically approach the Landauer limit, dissipating only 18 millielectron volts of energy per operation. This represents a huge reduction in energy consumption for electronics, potentially revolutionizing computing.
Researchers have discovered that quantum entanglement can create a cooling effect when deleting data, which could be used to mitigate heat generation in supercomputers. By understanding the connection between information theory and thermodynamics, they found that entropy is a lack of knowledge that can be exploited for cooling purposes.
Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) offer a promising solution to the global water crisis by transforming abundant seawater into pure, clean drinking water. CNT-based reverse osmosis membranes can remove salt ions efficiently, reducing costs and energy consumption compared to traditional methods.
Researchers designed nanoparticles by engineering the support structure, exposing stable crystal faces for enhanced selectivity and yield in catalytic reactions. The discovery could lead to better catalysts with a significant impact.
Daniel Lewis, a young Rensselaer professor, has received the prestigious NSF CAREER Award to study grain growth in metallic and ceramic materials. His research aims to understand how environmental factors affect material properties and behavior.
Researchers propose a new branch of aerothermodynamics to study attached boundary layer flows, focusing on unsteadiness in vehicular environments. They have explored principles using simple models and investigated interaction characteristics between temperature and velocity fields.
Researchers have developed tiny devices that convert waste heat into electricity using pyroelectric nanowires. The devices can generate an electrical current in response to temperature changes, offering a potential solution for powering small devices and biological applications.
The new technology, thermo-spintronics, could enable integrated circuits that run on heat instead of electricity. Researchers discovered that two pieces of the material do not need to be physically connected for the effect to propagate from one to the other.
A new theoretical model accurately predicts the hydration free energy of a wide variety of organic compounds, enabling accurate prediction of compound movement in complex environments. The model has been developed using computational hydration thermodynamics and chemo-informatic techniques, requiring only 10-20 seconds on a PC.
A Purdue University researcher has used econophysics to demonstrate that under ideal circumstances, free markets promote fairness in salaries for workers. The study's findings suggest that the collective self-organizing dynamics of a free market economy lead to fairness as an emergent property.
Researchers demonstrate first full quantum control of qubit spin in tiny colloidal nanostructures, advancing quantum computing and energy generation technologies. The discovery enables precise control over light-matter interactions, paving the way for more efficient photovoltaic cells and potential breakthroughs in climate change.
Navrotsky's research reveals that particle size significantly affects the energy needed for oxidized reactions, with implications for applications such as hydrogen production and battery efficiency. The study sheds light on how nanoparticles react under different temperatures and conditions.
At the AAAS Meeting, Caltech researchers presented on various topics including linear colliders, climate change, and earthquake science. Caltech's Alice Huang will be installed as the next president of the AAAS. Researchers discussed the Second Law of Thermodynamics and its implications for our understanding of time.
A team of researchers from Virginia Commonwealth University has identified a new theoretical approach to simplify the synthesis of hydrogen fuel storage materials. An external electric field can significantly improve the thermodynamics and reversibility of the system, making it an ideal energy carrier.
The National Science Foundation has awarded a $247,553 grant to Enrique Peacock-Lopez, supporting his project on chemical self-replication and regulatory mechanisms. The research will involve undergraduate students and upgrade local high school chemistry teaching to Advanced Placement Chemistry.
A new theory proposes a method to determine fair CEO compensation using information theory and statistical thermodynamics. The ratio of CEO pay to the lowest employee salary has increased significantly in recent years, with US CEOs averaging around 344-to-1, raising questions about market efficiency.
A new study in the International Journal of Exergy provides a formula to calculate wind turbine performance and optimize energy production. The formula offers a theoretical boost of 20% efficiency at varying wind speeds, reducing wasted energy by 80%.
A new study suggests that US obesity has been largely driven by increased energy intake, rather than reduced physical activity. The research found that if Americans had only consumed their recommended daily calorie intake, they would have gained approximately 10.8 kg less weight.
Physicists at UCLA have created the world's smallest incandescent lamp, utilizing a single carbon nanotube filament that is only 100 atoms wide. The tiny lamp can study black-body radiation and its structure was imaged using an electron microscope with atomic resolution.
Scientists have developed a new equation of state for seawater based on Absolute Salinity, which is expected to provide more accurate thermodynamic calculations. The new approach aims to improve the understanding of seawater's properties and its role in the global heat engine.
James E. Hansen, NASA's longtime director of the Goddard Institute of Space Studies, has been awarded the Carl-Gustaf Rossby Research Medal for his groundbreaking work on climate change and clear communication of scientific findings to policymakers. This prestigious honor recognizes his tireless efforts to raise awareness about global ...
B. Montgomery Pettitt, a UH chemistry professor, has been recognized as an American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Fellow for his distinguished work in computational and theoretical chemistry. He is one of only three researchers at UH to receive this honor.
Wake Forest University chemistry professors Mark Welker and Dilip Kondepudi were elected as 2008 AAAS Fellows for their significant contributions to the fields of non-equilibrium chemistry and organometallic chemistry. The recognition highlights their scientifically distinguished efforts to advance science.
A new study by Rice University bioengineers provides a comprehensive mathematical analysis of virus evolution, incorporating gene swaps and recombination. The results suggest that designing drugs that force viruses to mutate themselves out of existence may be possible, potentially eradicating disease.
Researchers found that frequent temperature measurements can alter the behavior of quantum systems, allowing them to heat up when hotter than the bath and cool down when colder. This effect is due to decoupling from the heat bath during measurement, introducing energy into the system and altering its temperature.
The updated GREET model allows researchers to simulate new fuel pathways, including ethanol from Brazilian sugarcane and bio-butanol production. The model also evaluates the energy consumption required for producing aluminum in sport utility vehicles.
Researchers at the University of Texas at Austin have discovered a new method to control fluid particle motion in tiny channels. By arranging particles in layers aligned with channel boundaries, they can promote faster particle transport and improve the efficiency of micro- and nano-scale technologies.
The algorithm introduces a new method for predicting RNA pseudoknots using heuristic modeling with mapping and sequential folding. It identifies information about flexibility and suggests that many biological RNA molecules are optimized by natural selection to fold correctly.
Researchers at University of Warwick have discovered that female cells use thermodynamics to randomly select one X chromosome, resulting in an evolutionary advantage. This process is crucial for survival and has implications for understanding genetic diseases.
Researchers argue that calculating a global temperature is mathematically impossible due to the complexity of the Earth's climate system. The concept relies on averaging multiple temperatures from different locations, which can lead to misleading conclusions about climate trends.
Denmark's researchers claim anesthetics are based on sound pulses rather than electrical impulses. The membrane of the nerve is similar to olive oil and can change state with temperature, allowing concentrated sound pulses to propagate without heat.
Scientists at the University of Edinburgh have created a nanomachine that traps molecules as they move in a specific direction, powered by light. This breakthrough builds on previous work and could lead to lasers moving objects remotely using molecular force.
A new web-based system, ThermoML, has demonstrated improved data quality and access for researchers in thermodynamics. The system catches and corrects errors in about 10% of journal articles, enhancing the overall research experience.
A new theory suggests that life emerged in environments with unique biochemistry, such as oxygen-free sediment. The microbe Methanosarcina acetivorans produces both methane and acetate, shedding light on early metabolism and the evolution of microbial production of methane.
Researchers Paolo De Los Rios and Pierre Goloubinoff identified a simple mechanism for molecular chaperones to facilitate protein folding and translocation, resolving a long-standing controversy. Their 'Entropic Pulling' theory combines thermodynamic principles with the laws of physics to explain Hsp70's activity.
Researchers have developed DNA-wrapped carbon nanotube sensors that can detect low concentrations of mercury ions in whole blood, opaque solutions, and living mammalian cells. The sensors work by detecting changes in the DNA's shape structure, which is triggered by the presence of target ions.
Climate models project significant changes in global water availability by 2050, with varying trends across regions. The study highlights the complex relationship between climate and water resources, noting that warmer temperatures can lead to both increased and decreased water supply in different parts of the world.
A three-year course in the stock market and investing resulted in improved attendance and academic performance among at-risk middle school students. The program, which allowed students to buy shares of stock by improving their grades and attendance, showed statistically significant gains in vocabulary, reading comprehension, and applie...
A study published in the Royal Society journal explores the impact of global warming on common bird populations. The research demonstrates that the force distributions in random materials can be accurately described by an analogue of the Second Law of Thermodynamics, revealing new applications for this fundamental principle.
A new thermodynamic theory, Constructal Law, enables designers to balance flow resistances in complex systems, leading to more efficient designs. The law provides a mental vision of design evolution and helps engineers make informed decisions about resources and money.
Marlan Scully's new engine design uses a quantum heat bath to produce power, driving a piston with less wasted energy than in the Carnot model. The engine employs lasers, mirrors, and quantum coherence to capture energy from exhaust gases, improving efficiency.