Chemistry
- Chemistry
A new catalyst turns greenhouse gas into jet fuel
The catalyst is an improvement over its predecessors. Made of cheap materials like iron, it produces jet fuel in a single step.
- Health & Medicine
Let’s learn about taste
Taste tells us what’s good to eat, but scientists are still learning about how it works.
- Chemistry
Scientists Say: Molecule
A molecule is a group of atoms linked with chemical bonds. It’s the smallest particle of a substance that has all of its chemical properties.
- Tech
Bye-bye batteries? Power a phone with fabric or a beacon with sound
New piezoelectric systems produce electricity in unusual ways, such as when a certain nylon bends or underwater ceramics vibrate.
- Chemistry
A soil-based ‘concrete’ could make buildings green, even on Mars
A new soil-based material offers an alternative to concrete for 3-D printing environmentally friendly buildings.
- Tech
Flexible devices may help clothes solar power your screens
A fluorescent polymer duo boosts the efficiency of solar cells. One day this material may coat your jacket, hat or backpack to provide power on the go.
- Chemistry
Here’s how to make flip-flops biodegradable
Innovative flip-flops made from an algae-based plastic decompose in soil or compost. The comfy shoes also avoid use of fossil fuels.
- Earth
Explainer: Our atmosphere — layer by layer
Earth’s five layers extend from the ground up and into outer space. Each has its own distinct features and serves as the site of different activities and phenomena.
- Tech
Ordinary paper turns into flexible human-powered keypad
Engineers have figured out how to turn sheets of paper into rugged, low-cost electronic devices, such as a computer keypad.
- Plants
Explainer: How photosynthesis works
Plants can take in light, water and carbon dioxide, and send out sugar and oxygen. Here’s how it works.
- Chemistry
2020 chemistry Nobel goes for CRISPR, the gene-editing tool
Only eight years after its development, CRISPR has revolutionized genetics. It also just brought Emmanuelle Charpentier and Jennifer Doudna acclaim.
- Chemistry
Study acid-base chemistry with at-home volcanoes
Baking soda volcanoes are a fun demonstration, and with a few tweaks they can be an experiment, too
