Newly-Discovered Gene Enhances Photosynthetic Efficiency and Plant Productivity
Biologists have identified a new gene in California poplar trees (Populus trichocarpa) — named BOOSTER — that enhances photosynthesis and can boost tree height. Transgenic hybrid poplar with increased expression levels of BSTR enhanced photosynthesis efficiency and biomass under greenhouse conditions. Image credit: Feyissa et al., doi: 10.1016/j.devcel.2024.11.002. “Historically, a lot of studies have focused
Astronomers Observe Starspots on Surface of Giant Star
XX Trianguli, a bright K0-type giant star in a binary system located in the constellation of Triangulum, exhibits chaotic, non-periodic star spot behavior, according to a team of astronomers from the Leibniz-Institute for Astrophysics Potsdam, the University of Potsdam and Konkoly Observatory. Starspots on the surface of XX Trianguli. Image credit: HUN-REN RCAES / Zs.
Trump Taps Jared Isaacman, Billionaire and Private Astronaut, to Lead NASA
December 3, 2024 4 min read Who Is Jared Isaacman, President-Elect Trump’s Pick to Lead NASA? NASA’s presumptive next leader, billionaire private astronaut Jared Isaacman, already has big plans for the space agency By Lee Billings Jared Isaacman, billionaire entrepreneur, philanthropist and private astronaut, is President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to lead NASA. Patrick T. Fallon/AFP
Researchers Create Smallest Walking Robot Yet
A team of researchers at Cornell University has created a new class of magnetically controlled microscopic robots (microbots) that operate at the visible-light diffraction limit. Termed diffractive robots, these microbots can interact with waves of visible light and still move independently, so that they can maneuver to specific locations to take images and measure forces
Hawaiian Crows Return to the Wild, Where They Are ‘Guides to Souls’
December 4, 2024 4 min read Hawaiian ‘Soul Guide’ Crow Returns to the Wild in Conservation Win The Hawaiian crow, or ‘alalā, has been extinct in the wild since 2002. A new effort to reintroduce birds of this species—considered important guides to the souls of the dead in Hawaiian tradition—is underway By Elizabeth Anne Brown
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