ScienceDaily: Strange Science News

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• New dinosaur showed descendants how to dress to impress
• Salt-tolerant bacteria with an appetite for sludge make biodegradable plastics
• One's trash, another's treasure: Fertilizer made from urine could enable space agriculture
• Chance played a major role in keeping Earth fit for life
• Create a realistic VR experience using a normal 360-degree camera
• When chemistry with green light mimics what happens in life
• The moon controls the release of methane in Arctic Ocean
• Unexpected insights into early dinosaur's brain, eating habits and agility
• Challenges of fusing robotics and neuroscience

New dinosaur showed descendants how to dress to impress Posted: 14 Dec 2020 04:23 PM PST Scientists have found the most elaborately dressed-to-impress dinosaur ever described and say it sheds new light on how birds such as peacocks inherited their ability to show off.

Salt-tolerant bacteria with an appetite for sludge make biodegradable plastics Posted: 14 Dec 2020 01:43 PM PST The United States generates seven million tons of sewage sludge annually, enough to fill 2,500 Olympic-sized swimming pools. While a portion of this waste is repurposed for manure and other land applications, a substantial amount is still disposed of in landfills. In a new study, researchers have uncovered an efficient way to use leftover sludge to make biodegradable plastics.

One's trash, another's treasure: Fertilizer made from urine could enable space agriculture Posted: 14 Dec 2020 09:35 AM PST From the perspective of future societies, in extremely closed environments such as a space station, self-sufficiency in food cultivation and waste management is critical. However, the technology to achieve this is still lacking. In a new study, scientists shed light on a cheap and efficient method to make liquid fertilizer (ammonia) from simplified artificial urine, serving an ideal dual purpose of growing food and treating waste.

Chance played a major role in keeping Earth fit for life Posted: 14 Dec 2020 09:35 AM PST A study gives a new perspective on why our planet has managed to stay habitable for billions of years - concluding it is almost certainly due, at least in part, to luck. The research suggests this may shorten the odds of finding life on so-called 'twin-Earths' in the Universe.

Create a realistic VR experience using a normal 360-degree camera Posted: 14 Dec 2020 09:35 AM PST Scientists have developed a quick and easy approach for capturing 360° VR photography without using expensive specialist cameras. The system uses a commercially available 360° camera on a rotating selfie stick to capture video footage and create an immersive VR experience.

When chemistry with green light mimics what happens in life Posted: 14 Dec 2020 07:47 AM PST Taking inspiration from nature, researchers created a green light-stabilized 3D polymer structure that unfolds itself when left in darkness - the first reported example of a reversible, light-triggered process to fold polymers into single chain nanoparticles.

The moon controls the release of methane in Arctic Ocean Posted: 14 Dec 2020 07:47 AM PST The moon controls one of the most formidable forces in nature - the tides that shape our coastlines. Tides, in turn, significantly affect the intensity of methane emissions from the Arctic Ocean seafloor. High tides may even counter the potential threat of submarine methane release from the warming Arctic.

Unexpected insights into early dinosaur's brain, eating habits and agility Posted: 14 Dec 2020 06:01 AM PST A pioneering reconstruction of the brain belonging to one of the earliest dinosaurs to roam the Earth has shed new light on its possible diet and ability to move fast.

Challenges of fusing robotics and neuroscience Posted: 11 Dec 2020 08:54 AM PST Combining neuroscience and robotic research has gained impressive results in the rehabilitation of paraplegic patients. A research team was able to show that exoskeleton training not only helped patients to walk, but also stimulated their healing process. With these findings in mind, a professor wants to take the fusion of robotics and neuroscience to the next level.

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