The share of renewable energies in the overall energy mix is rising rapidly worldwide. With three-fi gure growth rates, photovoltaics (PV) play a major role. According to market research organizations, the PV market grew by 139 percent in the year 2010. Germany is among the world's leaders in this t...
For several months each year, Russia's Lake Baikal is covered by a thick layer of ice. Formation begins in late-December, and by mid-January the entire lake is usually blanketed. Come spring, the lake begins its long, slow melt. Patches of open water usually appear in the southern part of the lake i...
A detailed description of development of the first practical artificial leaf - a milestone in the drive for sustainable energy that mimics the process, photosynthesis, that green plants use to convert water and sunlight into energy - appears in the ACS journal Accounts of Chemical Research.
While we often think of memory as a way of preserving the essential idea of who we are, little thought is given to the importance of forgetting to our wellbeing, whether what we forget belongs in the "horrible memories department" or just reflects the minutia of day-to-day living.
Over the past several decades, scientists have faced challenges in developing new antibiotics even as bacteria have become increasingly resistant to existing drugs. One strategy that might combat such resistance would be to overwhelm bacterial defenses by using highly targeted nanoparticles to deliv...
What if materials could defy gravity, so that we could leave them suspended in mid-air? ZeroN is a physical and digital interaction element that floats and moves in space by computer-controlled magnetic levitation.
The starry mist streaking across this image obtained by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope is the central part of the dwarf galaxy known as NGC 2366. The most obvious feature in this galaxy is a large nebula visible in the upper-right part of the image, an object listed just a few entries prior in ...
The Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf fringing the Weddell Sea, Antarctica, may start to melt rapidly in this century and no longer act as a barrier for ice streams draining the Antarctic Ice Sheet.
The Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) has completed its first series of science flights using the German Receiver for Astronomy at Terahertz Frequencies (GREAT).
Dams are believed to be one of the biggest threats to freshwater organisms worldwide: They disrupt normal patterns of water and sediment flow, impede migration, and alter the character of spawning and feeding grounds. A shortage of data has until now prevented a thorough global assessment of the thr...
The Breast Health Global Initiative (BHGI) and the IAEA, through its Programme of Action for Cancer Therapy (PACT), are jointly organizing the 5th Global Summit on International Breast Health and Cancer Control which opens in Vienna on 3 October 2012.
The painted lady butterfly, with intricate orange, black and white markings resembling those of the more well-known monarch, flies with a grace that matches its beauty. It flutters through narrow passages, avoiding obstacles, changing directions, then lands softly, effortlessly.
