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    Ames Lab Scientists' Surprising Discovery: Making Ferromagnets Stronger by Adding Non-Magnetic Element

    Ames Lab Scientists' Surprising Discovery: Making Ferromagnets Stronger by Adding Non-Magnetic Element

    Researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy's Ames Laboratory discovered that they could functionalize magnetic materials through a thoroughly unlikely method, by adding amounts of the virtually non-magnetic element scandium to a gadolinium-germanium alloy. It was so unlikely they called it a "counterintuitive experimental finding" in their published work on the research.

    Cut U.S. Commercial Building Energy Use 29% with Widespread Controls

    Cut U.S. Commercial Building Energy Use 29% with Widespread Controls

    The U.S. could slash its energy use by the equivalent of what is currently used by 12 to 15 million Americans if commercial buildings fully used energy-efficiency controls nationwide.

    How a Single Chemical Bond Balances Cells Between Life and Death

    How a Single Chemical Bond Balances Cells Between Life and Death

    With SLAC's X-ray laser and synchrotron, scientists measured exactly how much energy goes into keeping a crucial chemical bond from triggering a cell's death spiral.

    New Efficient, Low-Temperature Catalyst for Converting Water and CO to Hydrogen Gas and CO2

    New Efficient, Low-Temperature Catalyst for Converting Water and CO to Hydrogen Gas and CO2

    Scientists have developed a new low-temperature catalyst for producing high-purity hydrogen gas while simultaneously using up carbon monoxide (CO). The discovery could improve the performance of fuel cells that run on hydrogen fuel but can be poisoned by CO.

    Study Sheds Light on How Bacterial Organelles Assemble

    Study Sheds Light on How Bacterial Organelles Assemble

    Scientists at Berkeley Lab and Michigan State University are providing the clearest view yet of an intact bacterial microcompartment, revealing at atomic-level resolution the structure and assembly of the organelle's protein shell. This work can help provide important information for research in bioenergy, pathogenesis, and biotechnology.

    A Single Electron's Tiny Leap Sets Off 'Molecular Sunscreen' Response

    A Single Electron's Tiny Leap Sets Off 'Molecular Sunscreen' Response

    In experiments at the Department of Energy's SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, scientists were able to see the first step of a process that protects a DNA building block called thymine from sun damage: When it's hit with ultraviolet light, a single electron jumps into a slightly higher orbit around the nucleus of a single oxygen atom.

    Researchers Find New Mechanism for Genome Regulation

    Researchers Find New Mechanism for Genome Regulation

    The same mechanisms that separate mixtures of oil and water may also help the organization of an unusual part of our DNA called heterochromatin, according to a new study by Berkeley Lab researchers. They found that liquid-liquid phase separation helps heterochromatin organize large parts of the genome into specific regions of the nucleus. The work addresses a long-standing question about how DNA functions are organized in space and time, including how genes are silenced or expressed.

    The Rise of Giant Viruses

    The Rise of Giant Viruses

    Research reveals that giant viruses acquire genes piecemeal from others, with implications for bioenergy production and environmental cleanup.

    Grasses: The Secrets Behind Their Success

    Grasses: The Secrets Behind Their Success

    Researchers find a grass gene affecting how plants manage water and carbon dioxide that could be useful to growing biofuel crops on marginal land.

    SLAC Experiment is First to Decipher Atomic Structure of an Intact Virus with an X-ray Laser

    SLAC Experiment is First to Decipher Atomic Structure of an Intact Virus with an X-ray Laser

    An international team of scientists has for the first time used an X-ray free-electron laser to unravel the structure of an intact virus particle on the atomic level. The method dramatically reduces the amount of virus material required, while also allowing the investigations to be carried out several times faster than before. This opens up entirely new research opportunities.

    New Perspectives Into Arctic Cloud Phases

    New Perspectives Into Arctic Cloud Phases

    Teamwork provides insight into complicated cloud processes that are important to potential environmental changes in the Arctic.

    Illuminating a Better Way to Calculate Excitation Energy

    Illuminating a Better Way to Calculate Excitation Energy

    In a new study appearing this week in The Journal of Chemical Physics, researchers demonstrate a new method to calculate excitation energies. They used a new approach based on density functional methods, which use an atom-by-atom approach to calculate electronic interactions. By analyzing a benchmark set of small molecules and oligomers, their functional produced more accurate estimates of excitation energy compared to other commonly used density functionals, while requiring less computing power.

    Mountaintop Plants and Soils to Become Out of Sync

    Mountaintop Plants and Soils to Become Out of Sync

    Plants and soil microbes may be altered by climate warming at different rates and in different ways, meaning vital nutrient patterns could be misaligned.

    If a Tree Falls in the Amazon

    If a Tree Falls in the Amazon

    For the first time, scientists pinpointed how often storms topple trees, helping to predict how changes in Amazonia affect the world.

    Turning Waste into Fuels, Microbial Style

    Turning Waste into Fuels, Microbial Style

    A newly discovered metabolic process linking different bacteria in a community could enhance bioenergy production.

    Transforming Last Night's Leftovers Into Green Energy

    Transforming Last Night's Leftovers Into Green Energy

    In a classic tale of turning trash into treasure, two different processes soon may be the favored dynamic duo to turn food waste into green energy, according to a new Cornell University-led study.

    Sound Waves Direct Particles to Self-Assemble, Self-Heal

    Sound Waves Direct Particles to Self-Assemble, Self-Heal

    Berkeley Lab scientists have demonstrated how floating particles will assemble and synchronize in response to acoustic waves. Their simple experiment provides a new framework for studying how seemingly lifelike behaviors emerge in response to external forces. The work could help address fundamental questions about energy dissipation and non-equilibrium thermodynamics.

    With ARM Instruments Watching, an Extensive Summer Melt in West Antarctica

    With ARM Instruments Watching, an Extensive Summer Melt in West Antarctica

    One day in December of 2015, bound for a remote ice camp in the interior of Antarctica, Scripps Institution of Oceanography doctoral student Ryan Scott boarded a ski-equipped LC-130 turboprop transport plane at McMurdo Station at the south tip of Ross Island. It was austral summer and the temperature outside hovered around -4 degrees Celsius.

    Nickel for Thought: Compound Shows Potential for High-Temperature Superconductivity

    Nickel for Thought: Compound Shows Potential for High-Temperature Superconductivity

    Argonne researchers have identified a nickel oxide compound as an unconventional but promising candidate material for high-temperature superconductivity. The project combined crystal growth, X-ray spectroscopy and computational theory.

    Electrolytes Made From Liquefied Gas Enable Batteries to Run at Ultra-Low Temperatures

    Electrolytes Made From Liquefied Gas Enable Batteries to Run at Ultra-Low Temperatures

    Engineers at the University of California San Diego have developed new electrolytes that enable lithium batteries to run at temperatures as low as -60 degrees Celsius with excellent performance -- in comparison, today's lithium-ion batteries stop working at -20 degrees Celsius. The new electrolytes also enable electrochemical capacitors to run as cold as -80 degrees Celsius -- their current limit is -40 degrees Celsius.

    Synthetic Development of Low-Dimensional Nanomaterials Could Revolutionize Future Technologies

    Synthetic Development of Low-Dimensional Nanomaterials Could Revolutionize Future Technologies

    Javier Vela, scientist at the U.S. Department of Energy's Ames Laboratory, believes improvements in computer processors, TV displays and solar cells will come from scientific advancements in the synthesis of low-dimensional nanomaterials.

    New Research Finds a Missing Piece to High-Temperature Superconductor Mystery

    New Research Finds a Missing Piece to High-Temperature Superconductor Mystery

    An international team led by scientists from the Department of Energy's SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory and Stanford University has detected new features in the electronic behavior of a copper oxide material that may help explain why it becomes a perfect electrical conductor - a superconductor - at relatively high temperatures.

    A Seaweed Derivative Could Be Just What Lithium-Sulfur Batteries Need

    A Seaweed Derivative Could Be Just What Lithium-Sulfur Batteries Need

    Lithium-sulfur batteries have great potential as a low-cost, high-energy, energy source for both vehicle and grid applications. However, they suffer from significant capacity fading. Now scientists from the Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) have made a surprising discovery that could fix this problem.

    Small Scale, Big Improvements

    Small Scale, Big Improvements

    Chemical reactions that make improvements in water purification and batteries possible occur at scales too small to see. A team including a UD researcher has developed a way to produce real-time observations documenting the reactions that happen between liquids and solids.

    Argonne X-Rays Used to Help Identify a Key Lassa Virus Structure

    Argonne X-Rays Used to Help Identify a Key Lassa Virus Structure

    Research done at Argonne National Laboratory's Advanced Photon Source was vital to the process of identifying the structure, which provides a guide for designing a Lassa virus vaccine. Lassa virus is endemic to Africa and kills thousands of people a year; it is particularly deadly for pregnant women.