Here, seeking to identify a method to locally produce and capture renewable energy in Hawai'i and other island communities, the authors built and tested a small-scale model wave energy converter. They tested various configurations of a floated magnet surrounded by a wire coal, where the motion of the magnet due to a wave results in induction current in the coil. While they identified methods to increase the voltage and current generated, they also found that corrosion results in significant deterioration.
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Integrating microbial fuel cell with sedum green roof for stormwater retention and renewable energy generation
The authors looked at renewable energy generators and the ability to utilize green roofs as a solution to climate change.
Read More...Modeling the heart’s reaction to narrow blood vessels
Cardiovascular diseases are the largest cause of death globally, making it a critical area of focus. The circulatory system is required to make the heart function. One component of this system is blood vessels, which is the focus of our study. Our work aims to demonstrate the numeric relationship between a blood vessel's diameter and the number of pumps needed to transport blood.
Read More...Use of yogurt bacteria as a model surrogate to compare household cleaning solutions
While resources on the safety of household cleaning products are plentiful, measures of efficacy of these cleaning chemicals against bacteria and viruses remain without standardization in the consumer market. The COVID pandemic has exasperated this knowledge gap, stoking the growth of misinformation and misuse surrounding household cleaning chemicals. Arriving at a time dire for sanitization standardization, the authors of this paper have created a quantifying framework for consumers by comparing a wide range of household cleaning products in their efficacy against bacteria generated by a safe and easily replicable yogurt model.
Read More...The effect of an anthocyanin on the gut permeability of a Type 2 Diabetic Drosophila melanogaster
Anti-diabetic drugs like Metformin are known to increase gut permeability, and this has a negative impact on patient health. These authors hypothesized that this can be mitigated using purple sweet potato extract, which is high anthocyanin content, that feeds bacteria metabolism to decrease gut permeability.
Read More...Effects of cleaning agents on bacterial growth on refrigerator surfaces
Novel environmentally friendly approach to wastewater treatment eliminates aluminum sulfate and chlorination
The authors tested environmentally-friendly alternatives to wastewater treatment chemicals, including activated charcoal for filtration and citrus peels for preventing bacterial growth.
Read More... Machine learning-based enzyme engineering of PETase for improved efficiency in plastic degradation
Here, recognizing the recognizing the growing threat of non-biodegradable plastic waste, the authors investigated the ability to use a modified enzyme identified in bacteria to decompose polyethylene terephthalate (PET). They used simulations to screen and identify an optimized enzyme based on machine learning models. Ultimately, they identified a potential mutant PETases capable of decomposing PET with improved thermal stability.
Read More...Biofortification of Raphanus sativus through irrigation with Ca2+ solutions does not increase calcium content
This study is centered around developing biofortification methods: the authors test whether the amount of calcium available to growing crops translates into more calcium present in the crops.
Read More...Decreasing heart rate after consuming caffeine
The authors investigate various methods to decrease heart rate after drinking caffeine.
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