- Robinson Fulweiler
Ocean deadzones are triggered by nitrogen-fuelled bursts of microorganisms. So how does this happen and what can we do to combat it? In her third article in this series, Robinson Fulweiler dives beneath the waves to explore the chemistry of denitrification...
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- Robinson Fulweiler
Disruption of the nitrogen cycle can wreak havoc on ocean ecosystems for which oxygen is in short supply. Robin Fulweiler explores the formation of 'dead zones' in part II of The Nitrogen Story.
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- Emma Easton
Dating codes are placed on food to indicate the food is safe to eat before this date. But how are these dates decided, and what do they really mean? Emma Easton explains...
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- Kara Majerus
It’s pretty easy to get lost when you venture deep into the Jungle of Lambusango on the Isle of Buton, just off the South East coast of Sulawesi in Indonesia - a fact that I discovered more than once and to the amusement of the local guides with whom I worked during my summer on the Island. The purpose of my trip was to investigate the ranging behaviour of a small carnivore called a Malay civet. This species (and in particular the population I was studying) makes for a very good study model as they are the largest mammalian predator on Buton Island...
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- Laurie Winkless
Almost 70% of the energy produced by a car engine is lost, mostly in the form of heat that exits along the exhaust pipe. But by using some old fashioned physics and some new engineering, it's possible to capture and reuse some of this heat energy. Thermoelectric Generators (TEGs) convert wasted heat into electricity, without the need for complex moving parts. They've been used in the space industry for 40 years to power space probes and now the car industry is finally starting to catch up. Laurie Winkless finds out how...
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- Katrina Stewart
Rare genetic mutations have been known to abolish pain, or to cause permanent agony. But what if subtle differences in genes mean that everyone has a different pain threshold that is hard-wired into their genetics?
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- Rachel Dentinger
In September 2010, the BBC reported an “Urgent call on EU to stop billion-euro 'alien invasion'”. But for all the talk of "invasion", the "aliens" at issue were none other than the organisms that we humans have taken on our voyages around the globe and relocated. What makes these species "invaders", rather than migrants? According to a group of critics from within ecology, it's our own prejudice against biotic outsiders. On a planet rife with biological change, much of it wrought by ourselves, it's time to reconsider the categories that define some species as "natives" and others as "invaders".
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- Jeannie Moulton
A massive star ends its life with a BANG – a supernova - seen on Earth as bursts of energy in the form of light, including ultraviolet, x-rays and gamma rays. But what can we learn by studying these stellar death throes? Jeannie Moulton ventures into a supernova to find out...
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- Harriet Dickinson
Everyone can contribute to the work of scientists. Harriet Dickinson explains how you can get involved, and why Science Needs YOU!
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- Chris Smith
“Love is the drug and I need to score,” sang Bryan Ferry in the seventies, earning him a smash hit and a small fortune. But apart from being a catchy song lyric, this line is also looking like a scientifically-accurate fact of life. So what is the real chemistry that happens when two people click? Chris Smith finds out...
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