Chemistry
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Life
To cook up life, just add citrate
The theory that RNA spawned the first organisms gets a boost from a common compound.
- Materials Science
Material inspired by dragonfly wings bursts bacteria
Silicon studded with nanostructures could act as antimicrobial coating on medical devices.
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- Chemistry
Why death smells so deadly
Pinning down animals' odor detectors gives researchers a way to study aversion or attraction to certain objects. And understanding how these behavioral responses work will help researchers clarify why humans feel disgust.
- Materials Science
Qingsongite
This newly christened mineral has an atomic structure that’s similar to diamond and nearly as hard.
- Chemistry
Floating beads of water act as tiny test tubes
Chemists exploit pH and ion charge in superheated water drops to create nanoparticles.
- Chemistry
Oxygen shapes growth of graphene
The number of atoms on a copper surface changes the size and rate of the material's crystal development.
- Chemistry
Water squishes into stable shapes, no container required
Nanoparticles lock together to hold water in place for more than a month.
- Planetary Science
Carbonation may have grounded Mars’ atmosphere
The chemical interaction could have forced Red Planet’s atmospheric carbon dioxide into the dirt.
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- Chemistry
Simulating reactions in cyberspace earns Nobel Prize in chemistry
Computer models that meld quantum and classical calculations have earned three scientists the 2013 Nobel Prize in chemistry.
