Energy
- Science & Society
Batteries not included: This Game Boy look-alike doesn’t need them
Game Boy revolutionized the gaming industry. A newer version could help slow the rate of climate change.
- Tech
Trees power this alarm system for remote forest fires
Wind moving through tree branches is all the energy needed to power devices that can detect a remote fire before it rages into an uncontrolled inferno.
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A dirty and growing problem: Too few toilets
As the famous book says, everybody poops. That’s 7.8 billion people, worldwide. For the 2.4 billion with no toilet, the process can be complicated.
- Health & Medicine
Here’s how COVID-19 is changing classes this year
To keep students and teachers safe from COVID-19, some things in the classroom are changing — and sometimes entire schools are being kept closed.
- Materials Science
Will bacterial ‘wires’ one day power your phone?
An accidental discovery helps scientists generate electricity out of thin —but humid — air with bacteria-made protein nanowires.
- Physics
A contrast between shadows and light can now generate electricity
A new device exploits the contrast between bright spots and shade to produce a current that can power small electronics.
- Earth
Newfound ‘dunes’ is among weirdest of northern lights
There’s a new aurora dubbed the 'dunes.' It’s weird and joins the ranks of black auroras, STEVE and other odd natural light shows.
- Physics
There’s science to making great fried rice
Scientists report finding the physics that seems to explain how chefs can quickly fry rice over a hot flame without burning the food.
- Physics
How to temporarily ‘fossilize’ a soap bubble
Here’s how to freeze a soap bubble in midair. Warning: The environment needs to be frosty, and even then it can take a certain amount of trial and error.
- Materials Science
Here’s how to hide some objects from heat-sensing cameras
A special coating that conceals temperature information from heat-detecting cameras might someday be used as a privacy shield.
- Materials Science
Self-powered surface may evaluate table-tennis play
Scientists at the Georgia Institute of Technology built a 'smart' surface on which to play table tennis. It can track the location, speed and direction of the ball.
- Planets
Glass beads help scientists puzzle out how baby planets grow
Researchers have mimicked the first stages of planet formation in the lab. All they needed were glass beads and a catapult.
