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When cave crickets go out for dinner, they really go, researchers say
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Cave crickets travel farther from their homes to forage – by about double – than their previously reported range, researchers have discovered. In Texas, that means protective buffer areas around caves may need to be extended to protect endangered invertebrate species that live inside and depend on the crickets. Reporting in the […]
Climate change will affect carbon sequestration in oceans, model shows
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – An Earth System model developed by researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign indicates that the best location to store carbon dioxide in the deep ocean will change with climate change. The direct injection of carbon dioxide deep into the ocean has been suggested as one method to help control rising […]
New techniques study the brain’s chemistry, neuron by neuron
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – The human brain is composed of billions of cells, each a separate entity that communicates with others. The chemical interaction of those cells determines personality, controls behavior and encodes memory; but much remains to be understood. Researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have developed tools for studying the chemistry of […]
Earth’s core rotates faster than its crust, scientists say
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Scientists have ended a 9-year-old debate by proving that Earth’s core rotates faster than its surface, by about 0.3 to 0.5 degree per year. “Extraordinary claims require extraordinary proof,” said Xiaodong Song, a professor of geology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and corresponding author of a paper to appear in […]
New center at Illinois will examine how to safeguard nation’s power grid
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign will be the home of a national center that will address the challenge of how to protect the nation’s power grid, the National Science Foundation announced today. The NSF has awarded $7.5 million over five years to the project, which will be led by the U. […]
Cells direct membrane traffic by channel width, scientists say
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – For a glycerol molecule, a measly angstrom’s difference in diameter is a road-closed sign: You can’t squeeze through unless you are a sleek, water-molecule-sized sports car, say scientists at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The roadway is in aquaporins, a class of proteins that form trans-membrane channels in cell walls in […]
‘Cookbook recipes’ would cure disease with nontoxic DNA delivery systems
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Scientists studying the structure and interaction of negatively charged lipids and DNA molecules have created a “cookbook” for a class of nontoxic DNA delivery systems that will assist doctors and clinicians in the safe and effective delivery of genetic medicine. As reported in the Aug. 9 issue of the Proceedings of the […]
Catalyst support structures facilitate high-temperature fuel reforming
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — The catalytic reforming of liquid fuels offers an attractive solution to supplying hydrogen to fuel cells while avoiding the safety and storage issues related to gaseous hydrogen. Existing catalytic support structures, however, tend to break down at the high temperatures needed to prevent fouling of the catalytic surface by soot. Now, researchers […]
Comparative chromosome study finds breakage trends, cancer ties
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Breakages in chromosomes in mammalian evolution have occurred at preferred rather than random sites as long thought, and many of the sites are involved in human cancers, an international team of 25 scientists has discovered. The researchers, reporting in the July 22 issue of the journal Science, also found that chromosomal evolution […]
Microreactor efficiently regenerates cofactors for biocatalysis
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — One of the longstanding challenges in the synthesis of pharmaceuticals, cosmetics and food additives is the continuous regeneration of molecules called cofactors that permit the synthesis through inexpensive and environmentally friendly biocatalytic processes. Now, a team of researchers from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and the Université Paul Sabatier in Toulouse, […]
Cultural mindset a factor in forming responses to challenges
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – When faced with a challenging situation, a bicultural person may decide how to respond based on the cultural mindset that is active at the time, researchers have concluded. College students in Hong Kong, for example, who were prompted ahead of time with icons of Chinese culture were more likely to cooperate with […]
Illinois chemists spray their way to better catalysts
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Using a technique called ultrasonic spray pyrolysis, researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have created an improved catalyst for removing smelly sulfur-containing compounds from gasoline and other fossil fuels. The improved catalyst is a form of molybdenum disulfide, most commonly recognized as the black lubricant used to grease automobiles and […]