Abstract Many microorganisms live in the form of a biofilm. Although they are feared in the medical sector, biofilms that are composed of non-pathogenic organisms can be highly beneficial in many applications, including the production of bulk and fine chemicals. Biofilm systems are natural retentostats in which the biocatalysts can adapt and optimize their metabolism…

IBM physicist Olivia Lanes says quantum tech needs workers from various educational levels.Credit: IBM The first year of university is always an opportunity to explore, but William Papantoniou really took the plunge. From the start of his studies in 2021 at the University of New South Wales (UNSW) in Sydney, Australia, he signed up for…

Abstract Appearance-based gender identification of the horsehair crab [Erimacrus isenbeckii (Brandt, 1848)] is important for preventing indiscriminate fishing of female crabs. Although their gender is easily identified by visual observation of their abdomen because of a difference in the forms of their sex organs, most of the crabs settle with their shell side upward when…

Abstract X-ray ptychography offers high-resolution imaging of large areas at a high computational cost due to the large volume of data provided. To address the cost issue, we propose a physics-informed unsupervised classification algorithm that is performed prior to reconstruction and removes data outside the region of interest (RoI) based on the multimodal features present…

If humans are ever to build settlements on Mars, they will need oxygen – to breathe but also to allow rocket fuels to burn for return missions. But oxygen makes up only a tiny percentage of the Martian atmosphere, and transporting air to Mars from Earth is not a practical solution. Instead scientists have pinned…

Abstract A new sensitive method to determine polonium-210 (210Po) and lead-210 (210Pb) in a diversity of environmental samples was developed. For fresh and marine waters, Po was pre-concentrated using a titanium (III) hydroxide (Ti(OH)3) co-precipitation. Solid environmental samples were digested with nitric acid (HNO3) and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2). The alpha thin layer source was prepared…

This story was first published in KCUR’s Adventure newsletter. You can sign up to receive stories like this in your inbox every Tuesday. Kansas City is full of curious people, and it’s lucky enough to have the Kansas City Public Library, Mid-Continent Public Library, Johnson County Library, and more to fuel that curiosity. But if you…

Abstract This study aimed to examine the association of hemoglobin concentration with a 90-day mortality of young adult patients with ICH in a large retrospective cohort. A retrospective observational study was conducted between December 2013 and June 2019 in two tertiary academic medical centers in China. We defined patients with hemoglobin concentration  160 g/L as high…

Abstract Gas hydrates are crystalline inclusion compounds formed by trapping gas molecules inside water cages at high pressures and low temperatures. Hydrates are promising materials for hydrogen storage, but their potential depends on understanding their mechanical properties. This work integrates density functional theory (DFT) simulations with a geometry-inspired composite material model to explore the bulk…

Abstract The Computers Are Social Actors (CASA) theory is the most important theoretical contribution that has shaped the field of human–computer interaction. The theory states that humans interact with computers as if they are human, and is the cornerstone on which all social human–machine communication (e.g., chatbots, robots, virtual agents) are designed. However, the theory…