To
keep up with the latest science news and views from Sciencebase add the site newsfeed to your news reader. Meanwhile, my old Spotlight column for Intute on news in the physical sciences
where I reported on all aspects of astronomy, chemistry, geology, materials,
nanotechnology, physics, and space is now archived as my own Sciencespot.
2005
Toucan play at that game [Dec 2005 - materials]
Materials scientists could soon benefit from the first ever detailed
engineering analysis of toucan beaks. Toucan beaks are incredibly tough
and have a surprising impact-absorbing sandwich structure according to
the study ...
A star
is born, a star dies [Dec 2005 - astronomy]
At this time of year, stars and other heavenly bodies are on many
people's minds. One such astronomical wonder was known to Oriental
astronomers almost a millennium past ...
Paranoid asteroid [Dec 2005 - astronomy,earth]
The Chesapeake Bay impact crater in Virginia is the largest known crater
in the United States. It was formed when a massive chunk of
extraterrestrial rock hit the earth about 35.5 million years ago ...
Weighing up the rainforest [Nov 2005 - earth]
Good news for rainforests. Canadian researchers have calculated that the
economic benefits of protecting a rainforest reserve could outweigh
costs in its conservation ...
Molecules that walk the walk could add up [Nov 2005 - physics]
A single molecule that waddles in a straight line across a surface has
been designed and synthesised by US researchers ...
Ringing the changes for e-paper [Nov 2005 - chemistry]
The development of new energy-efficient and high-resolution full-colour
displays for portable computing and communications applications, even
flexible electronic paper, will rely on finding novel organic molecules
that produce colour when a voltage is applied ...
Scientific Discoveries in 2008
Scientific Discoveries in 2007
Scientific Discoveries in 2006
Scientific Discoveries in 2005
Read earlier scientific
discoveries...
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Spotlight is a joint venture betweenwww.sciencespot.co.uk andDavid Bradley Science Writer