Ever been curious about which tracer – Rhodamine B (RhB) or Fluorescein sodium (Fln) – latches onto Montmorillonite (MMT) crystals quicker in drilling fluid? Scientists have too! It turns out that MMT acts like a mini sponge, sucking up these tracers. Although RhB might get more absorbed, Fln secure
Live imaging is a powerful tool in life science, helping us see how cells and tissues work. But it comes with a hidden hazard—phototoxicity. This happens when light used for imaging damages cells. Researchers, using small intestinal epithelial cells grown in 3D, called enteroids, found that even low
Imagine you're trying to build a better machine for breaking down pollutants in water. One clever way to do this is by tweaking the machine's tiny parts, creating some missing pieces on purpose. In this case, scientists used ZnIn 2 S 4 nanosheets and left out some zinc atoms, creating what are
The James Webb Space Telescope has found some bizarre things while peeking at the far corners of the universe. It spotted ancient galaxies that are big and bright, like they've been there forever. This is weird because our usual theories say they should be small and dim, slowly pulled together by so
In the world of medicinal chemistry, creating potent drugs involves exploring different structures and their effects. One key challenge is figuring out which drug variations (analogues) to make next. Researchers have come up with a new way to predict and design powerful drugs. This method combines a
Tracking how fast organisms travel and spread, especially when it comes to health-threatening pathogens like the West Nile virus, can be tricky. The models we currently rely on often fall short. For example, the popular Brownian trajectory model doesn't even use the idea of instantaneous speed. To f
Ever wondered how some natural products get their sulfur touch? Polyketide synthases (PKSs) are like brilliant artists, painting diverse polyketide compounds. But they don't often dip into the sulfur paintbox. Enter thiocysteine lyase (SH) domains, found in the leinamycin (LNM) family. We've been st
Ever wondered how to upgrade a surface's power? Scientists just discovered a cool trick using two special compounds: N-heterocyclic carbenes and thiols. They teamed up these guys on a silver surface to create something called a self-assembled monolayer (SAM). This SAM is no ordinary one—it's like a
Did you know that our brains are super good at picking up on patterns in colors around us? Even when we're not really paying attention! Scientists wanted to see if learning these color patterns affects how quickly we spot something out of the ordinary. They did experiments where people had to find a
Ever thought about the tiny boundary where water meets air? scientists have discovered some cool stuff happening there! They found that acetonitrile, which is usually pretty stable in water, can change into a new, more active form without any harsh treatment needed. Why does this happen? The answer
