Materials – Page 52
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FeatureThe chemistry of the yellow jersey
Hayley Bennett tells the story of the 1948 Tour de France’s yellow jersey – and how synthetic fabrics came to dominate sportswear
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ResearchClaim that seabirds mistake plastic rubbish for food ‘oversimplified’
Study on foraging seabirds and the ‘chemical lure’ of ocean plastic waste was based on questionable data
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ResearchSensor lets facial expressions do the talking
Self-healing sensor uses hydrogen bonding network to interpret facial expressions and even speech for computers
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NewsWhy asbestos is still used around the world
Unpicking the politics of a potentially deadly material
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PodcastGallium nitride
Despite early setbacks, this conducting crystal shows great promise across a wide range of electronics
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FeatureA slice of ion beam–scanning microscopy
From brain cells to batteries, is there anything focused ion beam–scanning electron microscopy can’t study?
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Research’Gas marbles’ surprise with their strength
Robust bubbles of gas encapsulated in a microsphere–liquid shell could trap gases
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ResearchZeolite catalysts convert carbon dioxide to fuel
Two research groups have independently developed catalysts that turn CO2 and hydrogen into gasoline
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ResearchFirst atom-thin magnet attracts attention
2D magnet might lead to ultra-flat data storage solutions
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ResearchEngineered nanoparticles start up a conversation
Communicating particles a step towards co-operative behaviour
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BusinessWillow promises new medicines
Investigating tree’s metabolites throws up much more than aspirin
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ResearchSelf-healing hydrogels glow with stable structural colour
Biocompatible, jelly-like materials that can repair themselves without losing their colour could find uses in photonics or biomedicine
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ResearchShortest double-walled nanotube made
Cyclic aromatic compounds assembled into Russian doll complexes expand menagerie of curious carbon structures
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ResearchGlowing dyes move data storage beyond binary
A method to chemically save information in quaternary code using dyes could change how we approach data storage
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ResearchFloating graphene cooks up clean water
Graphene aerogel converts sunlight into heat to produce water vapour at room temperature
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ResearchMicromotors navigate tiny biochemical lab
Resistant layer protects micromotors from protein-induced breakdown when swimming through biological fluids on lab-on-a-chip device
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ResearchFractal crystals win fashion design contest
Organic compounds form peculiar geometric crystals due to inefficient molecular stacking
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ResearchWorld’s smallest diode warms-up for real-life applications
Diyne is most efficient single-molecule diode ever created