What’s hot in science? Research news for the day of Dec 1 & 2, 2021

Wed, 01 Dec 2021
Scientists fabricate material that can sense and adapt to the environment

Metamaterial is responsive and acts without external direction

Researchers at the University of Missouri and the University of Chicago, funded in part by the U.S. National Science Foundation, are developing an artificial material that can sense and respond to stimuli in the environment. The metamaterial can assess, adapt and act in response to …

Wed, 01 Dec 2021
Researchers conduct first study of passive solar energy as a residential heat source

Tapping into passive solar energy could be a step to carbon-free heating

Space heating is one of the largest contributors to climate change produced by industrialized nations, creating an urgent need for carbon-free heating. Recent advances suggest that passive solar energy as a heat source can and should be part of a sustainable …

Thu, 02 Dec 2021
Identifying proteins using nanopores and supercomputers

Proof-of-concept study shows capacity to identify proteins with single-amino acid resolution

The amount and type of proteins human cells produce provide important details about a person’s health and how the human body works. But the methods of identifying and quantifying individual proteins are inadequate to the task, scientists say. Not only is the diversity of …

Thu, 02 Dec 2021
Fate of sinking tectonic plates revealed

Scientists discover what happens when a plate disappears into the planet’s interior

Our world’s surface is a jumble of jostling tectonic plates, with new ones emerging as others are pulled under. The ongoing cycle keeps the continents in motion and drives life on Earth. But what happens when a plate disappears into the planet’s interior?

The question …