[Chemical Physics] Tracking triplets in pentacene polymers
Singlet fission is like a two-for-one sale in a solar cell: Light absorption populates a singlet state that splits into two triplet carriers. Key questions for efficient implementation – [Read More] (Source: Editors' Choice)
Source: Editors' Choice - September 29, 2016 Category: Science Authors: Jake Yeston Tags: Chemical Physics Source Type: research
[Interstellar Medium] Reflected starlight traces dust structure
The diffuse interstellar medium (ISM) is structured on many scales. Studies of gas absorption lines have shown that structure persists all the way down to solar-system scales, contrary – [Read More] (Source: Editors' Choice)
Source: Editors' Choice - September 29, 2016 Category: Science Authors: Keith T. Smith Tags: Interstellar Medium Source Type: research
[Hematopoiesis] Transforming blood cell development
Although the transplantation of hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) enables many life-saving procedures, their limited availability prevents wider use. A better understanding of how they – [Read More] (Source: Editors' Choice)
Source: Editors' Choice - September 29, 2016 Category: Science Authors: Beverly A. Purnell Tags: Hematopoiesis Source Type: research
[Vaccination] Mapping the barriers to vaccination
Common infectious diseases are in decline thanks to increasing vaccination coverage, but this is a vulnerable triumph: UNICEF reports that nearly 22 million children remained unvaccinated – [Read More] (Source: Editors' Choice)
Source: Editors' Choice - September 29, 2016 Category: Science Authors: Caroline Ash Tags: Vaccination Source Type: research
[Cancer Therapy] Drugging an undruggable target
Transcription factors have long been viewed as “undruggable” targets for therapy; however, this concept may now need some tweaking. Cho et al. found that a small-molecule dru – [Read More] (Source: Editors' Choice)
Source: Editors' Choice - September 29, 2016 Category: Science Authors: Paula A. Kiberstis Tags: Cancer Therapy Source Type: research
[Antimicrobial Resistance] Beware of the dust
Antimicrobial chemicals are used in many soaps and other personal-care products. They are found in household dust at concentrations comparable to those in wastewater. Laboratory studies – [Read More] (Source: Editors' Choice)
Source: Editors' Choice - September 29, 2016 Category: Science Authors: Julia Fahrenkamp-Uppenbrink Tags: Antimicrobial Resistance Source Type: research
[Evolution] The importance of variation
The environment exerts powerful selective forces on species, shaping their morphology. Despite this, individuals within a species can be quite variable, suggesting that selection may – [Read More] (Source: Editors' Choice)
Source: Editors' Choice - September 28, 2016 Category: Science Authors: Sacha Vignieri Tags: Evolution Source Type: research
[Robotics] Can you feel what I feel?
By combining tactile sensations of hardness, ductility, shape, and surface texture, and then comparing these with our previous experiences, it is possible to safely grasp a random object – [Read More] (Source: Editors' Choice)
Source: Editors' Choice - September 22, 2016 Category: Science Authors: Marc S. Lavine Tags: Robotics Source Type: research
[Materials Science] Stabilized dyes as dense glasses
The photostability of organic dyes can vary greatly between different crystalline polymorphs (packing arrangements), but similar effects have not been observed in amorphous or glassy – [Read More] (Source: Editors' Choice)
Source: Editors' Choice - September 22, 2016 Category: Science Authors: Phil Szuromi Tags: Materials Science Source Type: research
[Future Faunas] Global change and tropical birds
In much of the world, terrestrial organisms face the twin challenges of climate change and land use by humans. In a survey of a variety of tropical ecosystems in Costa Rica, Frishkoff – [Read More] (Source: Editors' Choice)
Source: Editors' Choice - September 22, 2016 Category: Science Authors: Andrew M. Sugden Tags: Future Faunas Source Type: research
[Quantum Optics] Toward quantum nanophotonics
The quantum properties of light are well studied and have been extensively used to reveal some of the fundamental aspects of quantum mechanics. Efforts now are under way to leverage – [Read More] (Source: Editors' Choice)
Source: Editors' Choice - September 22, 2016 Category: Science Authors: Ian S. Osborne Tags: Quantum Optics Source Type: research
[Cellular Biochemistry] Activating chromatin by stretching
Cells are subject to many mechanical stresses. These forces can profoundly alter cellular biochemistry. Tajik et al. used a magnetic bead on the surface of a cell to apply – [Read More] (Source: Editors' Choice)
Source: Editors' Choice - September 22, 2016 Category: Science Authors: Guy Riddihough Tags: Cellular Biochemistry Source Type: research
[Host Responses] An appetite for tolerance
The proverb “feed a cold, starve a fever” may contain a kernel of truth after all. Animals from insects to humans display certain types of behaviors when they are sick, including red – [Read More] (Source: Editors' Choice)
Source: Editors' Choice - September 22, 2016 Category: Science Authors: Kristen L. Mueller Tags: Host Responses Source Type: research
[Disease Ecology] No touching, please
European badgers have been blamed for the transmission of bovine tuberculosis in the United Kingdom and, despite much evidence to the contrary, have endured regular and repeated culling – [Read More] (Source: Editors' Choice)
Source: Editors' Choice - September 21, 2016 Category: Science Authors: Sacha Vignieri Tags: Disease Ecology Source Type: research
[Microbiology] Grown in the land of the ice and snow
Although seemingly inhospitable, glaciers host a range of microbial activities. Algal blooms are common on the surfaces of snow and ice, for example, which can lower albedo and increase – [Read More] (Source: Editors' Choice)
Source: Editors' Choice - September 15, 2016 Category: Science Authors: Nicholas S. Wigginton Tags: Microbiology Source Type: research
