News in Brief

  1. Oceans

    Tiny plastic debris is accumulating far beneath the ocean surface

    Floating trash patches scratch only the surface of the ocean microplastic pollution problem.

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  2. Animals

    Tiny structures in dragonfish teeth turn them into invisible daggers

    The teeth of deep-sea dragonfish are transparent because of nanoscale crystals and rods that let light pass through without being scattered.

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  3. Environment

    How one fern hoards toxic arsenic in its fronds and doesn’t die

    To survive high levels of arsenic, a fern sequesters the heavy metal in its shoots with the help of three proteins.

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  4. Physics

    This tabletop device turns the quantum definition of a kilogram into a real mass

    The mini Kibble balance will measure 10 grams to an accuracy of a few ten-thousandths of a percent.