A perovskite solar cell is a type of solar cell which includes a perovskite structured compound, most commonly a hybrid organic-inorganic lead or tin halide-based material, as the light-harvesting active layer. Perovskite materials such as methylammonium lead halides are cheap to produce and simple to manufacture. Perovskite solar cells have shown potential both in the rapid efficiency improvement (from 2.2% in 2006 to the latest record 20.1% in 2014) and in cheap material and manufacturing c...

Healing with medicinal plants is as old as mankind itself. The connection between man and his search for drugs in nature dates from the far past, of which there is ample evidence from various sources: written documents, preserved monuments, and even original plant medicines. Awareness of medicinal plants usage is a result of the many years of struggles against illnesses due to which man learned to pursue drugs in barks, seeds, fruit bodies, and other parts of the plants. Contemporary science ...

Sonoporation, or cellular sonication, is the use of sound (typically ultrasonic frequencies) for modifying the permeability of the cell plasma membrane. This technique is usually used in molecular biology and non-viral gene therapy in order to allow uptake of large molecules such as DNA into the cell, in a cell disruption process called transfection or transformation. Sonoporation employs the acoustic cavitation of microbubbles to enhance delivery of these large molecules. The bioactivity of ...

A favorite subject for science fiction authors from Isaac Asimov until now has been sentient robots. In these stories, mechanical robots interact at a human level, and have their own emotions. However, a new kind of robot has emerged into the public sphere, one that can be a first step in making intelligent robots a reality. This robot is called Roboy. Roboy is a humanoid robot that was first presented in March of 2013, and has been evolving ever since. One of the more impressive aspects ...

In the first evidence of a natural intervention triggering stem cell-based regeneration of an organ or system, a study in the June 5 issue of the Cell Stem Cell shows that cycles of prolonged fasting not only protect against immune system damage — a major side effect of chemotherapy — but also induce immune system regeneration, shifting stem cells from a dormant state to a state of self-renewal. In both mice and a Phase 1 human clinical trial involving patients receiving chemotherapy, long pe...

It’s a well-known fact that water, at sea level, starts to boil at a temperature of 212 degrees Fahrenheit, or 100 degrees Celsius. And scientists have long observed that when water is confined in very small spaces, its boiling and freezing points can change a bit, usually dropping by around 10 C or so. But now, a team at MIT has found a completely unexpected set of changes: Inside the tiniest of spaces — in carbon nanotubes whose inner dimensions are not much bigger than a few water molecule...

Neutron scattering and computational modeling have revealed unique and unexpected behavior of water molecules under extreme confinement that is unmatched by any known gas, liquid or solid states. In a paper published in Physical Review Letters, researchers at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory describe a new tunneling state of water molecules confined in hexagonal ultra-small channels – 5 angstrom across – of the mineral beryl. An angstrom is 1/10-billionth of a meter, a...

Researchers have developed a smart balaclava which warms oxygen before it’s inhaled to reduce the risk of athletes contracting chest infections in winter. Nottingham Trent University and German advanced knitting machine manufacturer Stoll GmBH created a prototype to help runners and skiers who can be exposed to increased risk of infections when exercising in the cold. The technology centres on a knitted patch of electric-conductive yarn over the nose and mouth which emits heat when cha...

Even though it is hotter than the surface of the Sun, the crystallized iron core of the Earth remains solid. A new study from KTH Royal Institute of Technology may finally settle a longstanding debate over how that’s possible, as well as why seismic waves travel at higher speeds between the planet’s poles than through the equator. Spinning within Earth’s molten core is a crystal ball – actually a mass formation of almost pure crystallized iron – nearly the size of the moon. Unde...

University of Tokyo and RIKEN researchers have identified seven genes responsible for causing mice to stay awake or fall asleep based on a theoretical model of sleep and on experiments using 21 different genetically-modified mice, some of which showed different sleep durations. Researchers hope that their research will contribute to the understanding and treatment of sleep disorders and associated neurodegenerative diseases. All animals appear to sleep for varying durations. In humans, sleep ...

Pulling strings to obtain food is an experiment often used to test the intelligence of apes and birds, but it is the first time this technique has been discovered in an insect. Moreover the cultural spread of such a technique from a single informed individual has also been described for the first time in an invertebrate animal. The results, published in PLOS Biology,  show that rare innovator bees were able to solve the problem of pulling the string to reach a sugar water reward by themsel...

When is an internal combustion engine not an internal combustion engine? When it’s been transformed into a modular reforming reactor that could make hydrogen available to power fuel cells wherever there’s a natural gas supply available. By adding a catalyst, a hydrogen separating membrane and carbon dioxide sorbent to the century-old four-stroke engine cycle, researchers have demonstrated a laboratory-scale hydrogen reforming system that produces the green fuel at relatively low temperature i...

Engineers and biologists at MIT have teamed up to design a new “living material” — a tough, stretchy, biocompatible sheet of hydrogel injected with live cells that are genetically programmed to light up in the presence of certain chemicals. In a paper published this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the researchers demonstrate the new material’s potential for sensing chemicals, both in the environment and in the human body. The team fabricated various wearable sensor...

Around 35-40 per cent of a child’s BMI – how fat or thin they are – is inherited from their parents, a new study has found. For the most obese children, the proportion rises to 55-60 per cent, suggesting that more than half of their tendency towards obesity is determined by genetics and family environment. The study, led by the University of Sussex, used data on the heights and weights of 100,000 children and their parents spanning six countries worldwide: the UK, USA, China, Indonesia, Sp...

Disney Research created a method to wirelessly transmit power through a room, allowing electronic devices to charge quickly via connected Wi-Fi hotspots, removing the need for electrical cords and charging cradles. Wireless power delivery has the potential to seamlessly power our electrical devices as easily as data is transmitted through the air. However, existing solutions are limited to near contact distances and do not provide the geometric freedom to enable automatic and un-aided chargin...

The neurodegeneration that occurs in Parkinson’s disease is a result of stress on the endoplasmic reticulum in the cell rather than failure of the mitochondria as previously thought, according to a study in fruit flies. It was found that the death of neurons associated with the disease was prevented when chemicals that block the effects of endoplasmic reticulum stress were used. Some inherited forms of early-onset Parkinson’s disease have typically been blamed on poorly functioning mitochondr...

Researchers at the University of Tokyo have demonstrated that “codons,” the units of the genetic code that specifies the sequence of amino acids in proteins, also determine the stability of maternally derived messenger RNA (mRNA) in fertilized eggs. This discovery has revealed a previously unknown function of the genetic code and its importance in animal development. In animals, mRNAs derived from the maternal genome (maternal mRNAs) are stored in fertilized eggs and act as templates to produ...

Ever since humans began to invent, we were trying to find ways to go faster. From creating saddles and horse drawn carriages to creating cars and airplanes, we always have striven for faster and faster means of transportation. The current fastest mode of commercial transportation is air transportation, with the average speed of a passenger plane being 540 miles per hour. However, inventor Elon Musk, founder of Tesla and SpaceX, proposed an idea back in late 2012 for a new mode of transportation ...

Optogenetics is a biological technique which involves the use of light to control cells in living tissue, typically neurons, that have been genetically modified to express light-sensitive ion channels. It is a neuromodulation method employed in neuroscience that uses a combination of techniques from optics and genetics to control and monitor the activities of individual neurons in living tissue—even within It is a neuromodulation method employed in neuroscience that uses a combination of tech...

We don’t know the full causes of stillbirth, but in about half of cases it is caused by the placenta not working properly. The placenta feeds and oxygenates the baby so when it isn’t working well babies become growth restricted. Fetuses that are growth restricted are at 3-4 times increased risk of stillbirth. So, finding a test that accurately flags babies that are growth restricted and intervening early may be the key to reducing stillbirths. But it is surprisingly hard to identify such grow...

In autoinflammatory diseases, the innate immune system, for unknown reasons, becomes activated and triggers inflammation. This part of the immune system is the body’s rapid first line of defense against infection. The short-term heat, swelling, and redness of inflammation are a normal part of the body’s protective response to injury or infection. But prolonged inflammation can seriously damage the body. Recent research suggests that diet can affect certain autoimmune diseases. A team led by D...

Genomic testing of biopsies from patients with deadly, treatment-resistant cancerous blood syndromes called histiocytoses allowed doctors to identify genes fueling the ailments and use targeted molecular drugs to successfully treat them. Researchers from the Cincinnati Children's Cancer and Blood Diseases Institute report their data in Journal of Clinical Investigation Insight (JCI Insight). They recommend the regular use of comprehensive genomic profiling at diagnosis to positively impact cl...

Operating rooms are stepping into the 21st century thanks to a robotic arm that can assist surgeons in non-invasive, endoscopic procedures. Computer Motion, Inc., in Santa Barbara, California, originally performed research under a NASA Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contract from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory to develop AESOP,® (Automated Endoscopic System for Optimal Positioning). NASA hopes to make use of the technology powering the robotic arm of AESOP to service satellites and ...