Name of the field of biology the study of life in the universe. Exobiology?
Snippets from Nature’s past.
Category: biological
One limitation of producing biofuel is that the alcohol created by fermentation is toxic to the microbes that produce it. Now scientists are closer to overcoming this obstacle.
Researchers from the University of Cincinnati and the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory have achieved a breakthrough in understanding the vulnerability of microbes to the alcohols they produce during fermentation of plant biomass.
With the national lab’s neutron scattering and simulation equipment, the team analyzed fermentation of the biofuel butanol, an energy-packed alcohol that also can be used as a solvent or chemical feedstock.
Brain-computer interfaces have enabled people with paralysis to move a computer cursor with their mind and reanimate their muscles with their thoughts. But the performance of the technology — how easily and accurately a BCI user’s thoughts move a cursor, for example—is limited by the number of channels communicating with the brain.
Science Corporation, one of the companies working towards commercial brain-computer interfaces(BCIs), is forgoing the traditional method of sticking small metal electrodes into the brain in favor of a biology-based approach to increase the number of communication channels safely. “What can I stick a million of, or what could I stick 10 million of, into the brain that won’t hurt it?” says Alan Mardinly, Science Corp co-founder.
The answer: Neurons.
For decades, scientists have relied on electrodes and dyes to track the electrical activity of living cells. Now, engineers at the University of California San Diego have discovered that quantum materials just a single atom thick can do the job—using only light.
A new study, published in Nature Photonics, shows that these ultra-thin semiconductors, which trap electrons in two dimensions, can be used to sense the biological electrical activity of living cells with high speed and resolution.
Scientists have continually been seeking better ways to track the electrical activity of the body’s most excitable cells, such as neurons, heart muscle fibers and pancreatic cells. These tiny electrical pulses orchestrate everything from thought to movement to metabolism, but capturing them in real time and at large scales has remained a challenge.
This quantum light manipulation breakthrough paves the way for unprecedented technologies.
Scientists from the University of Basel and the University of Sydney successfully manipulated and identified interacting packets of light energy, or photons, with unprecedented precision.
This breakthrough, published in Nature Physics, marks the first-ever observation of stimulated light emission at the single-photon level—a phenomenon first predicted by Albert Einstein in 1916.
By measuring the time delay between photon interactions, researchers demonstrated how photons could become entangled in a “two-photon bound state,” opening up new possibilities for quantum computing and enhanced measurement techniques.
This discovery has profound implications for photonic quantum computing and metrology, particularly in fields like biological microscopy, where high-intensity light can damage delicate samples. Dr. Sahand Mahmoodian, a leading researcher on the project, emphasized that harnessing quantum light could lead to more precise measurements with fewer photons. Meanwhile, tech companies like PsiQuantum and Xanadu are already exploring how this research could contribute to fault-tolerant quantum computing. As scientists refine their ability to manipulate quantum light, the door opens to a future of more powerful computing, ultra-sensitive sensors, and revolutionary advancements in technology.
Researchers have developed small robots that can work together as a collective that changes shape and even shifts between solid and “fluid-like” states — a concept that should be familiar to anyone still haunted by nightmares of the T-1000 robotic assassin from “Terminator 2.”
Researchers have designed a robotic material that transforms like a living organism.
Inspired by embryos, these disk-shaped robots use magnets, motors, and light to shift between rigid and fluid states. The result? A self-healing, shape-shifting system that could change how we build and interact with materials.
Robots That Behave Like Materials
It turns out acetate-fed yeast produces about the same amount of vitamin B9 as those that eat sugar. Just 6 grams, or 0.4 tablespoon, of the harvested dried yeast meets the daily vitamin B9 requirement. The vitamin levels were measured by a team led by co-author Michael Rychlik at the Technical University of Munich, Germany.
For protein, the researchers found that the levels in their yeast exceed those of beef, pork, fish, and lentils. Eighty-five grams, or 6 tablespoons, of yeast provides 61% of daily protein needs, while beef, pork, fish, and lentils meet 34%, 25%, 38%, and 38% of the need, respectively. However, the yeast should be treated to rid compounds that can increase the risk of gout if consumed excessively. Even so, treated yeast still meets 41% of the daily protein requirement, comparable to traditional protein sources.
This technology aims to address several global challenges: environmental conservation, food security, and public health. Running on clean energy and CO2, the system reduces carbon emissions in food production. It uncouples land use from farming, freeing up space for conservation. Angenent also stresses that it will not outcompete farmers. Instead, the technology will help concentrate farmers to produce vegetables and crops sustainably. The team’s yeast may also help developing nations overcome food scarcity and nutritional deficiencies by delivering protein and vitamin B9.
Kaiming He, a professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, believes AI can create a common language that lowers barriers between scientific fields and fosters collaboration across scientific disciplines.
“There is no way I could ever understand high-energy physics, chemistry, or the frontier of biology research, but now we are seeing something that can help us to break these walls,” said He.
MIT Associate Professor Kaiming He discusses the role of AI in interdisciplinary collaborations, connecting basic science to artificial intelligence, machine learning, and neural networks.