Author: WeWorldMedia-admin

Researchers discover why plastic sheds dangerous fragments

Published: 7 April 2025
Categories: Engineering News

RSS Feed Source: Science Daily

The world is littered with trillions of micro- and nanoscopic pieces of plastic. These can be smaller than a virus — just the right size to disrupt cells and even alter DNA. Researchers find them almost everywhere they’ve looked, from Antarctic snow to human blood. In a new study, scientists have delineated the molecular process that causes these small pieces to break off in such large quantities.

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Tiny lenses grown from bacteria and enzymes may help doctors see inside cells

Published: 7 April 2025
Categories: National Science Foundation

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A team of researchers supported by the U.S. National Science Foundation has successfully made self-growing microlenses using bacteria and enzymes found in sea sponges. Because the microlenses are created by bacterial cell factories that function at standard temperatures and pressures, they are less expensive to produce — and they are exceptional at focusing light into very bright beams. The microlenses could allow for higher-resolution image sensors that go beyond current capabilities, potentially allowing doctors to more clearly see tiny structures inside cells.

In nature, sea sponges mineralize silica-based glass at a cellular level to create their intricate and strong glass skeletons. The researchers replicated that mechanism in a lab setting. Their research was published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

“This research is the first to engineer light-focusing properties into bacteria cells, and I am excited to explore the different possibilities that our work has opened up,” says one of the study’s authors and University of Rochester researcher Anne S. Meyer.

Credit: Photo by J. Adam Fenster/University of Rochester

University of Rochester graduate student Lynn Sidor prepares a batch of bacteria cells that will self-assemble their own glass coating, in the lab of associate professor Anne S. Meyer. Meyer has worked with colleagues in optics and physics to develop a new type of

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FEMA Launches Direct to Customer Flood Insurance Premium Quoting Tool

Published: 7 April 2025
Categories: FEMA News

RSS Feed Source: Science Daily

WASHINGTON — Today, FEMA is announcing it is expanding ways people can access flood insurance products.

The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) is making it easier to access flood insurance pricing information by launching a Direct to Customer Flood Insurance Quoting Tool. Customers will be able to get a flood insurance policy quote for their property and be provided local and national carrier information to assist them in purchasing their quoted policy.  

FEMA is expanding the tools for customers to learn about their flood risk, insurance costs and to close the insurance gap to create a more resilient nation. This effort means customers have a new way to learn about flood insurance and connect with companies that service flood insurance policies. 

“I encourage Americans to visit Floodsmart.gov to get a flood insurance quote,” said Cameron Hamilton, Senior Official Performing the Duties of FEMA Administrator. “It’s quick and easy and takes just a few minutes. Insured survivors recover faster. With spring flooding and hurricane season both approaching fast, it’s important to take this first step so you can better protect the life you’ve built.”

“In this country, less than 4% of households have flood insurance, yet 99% of all communities have experienced a flood. FEMA is working to make flood insurance more accessible and promote customer choice with its Direct to Customer (D2C) initiative,” said Elizabeth Asche, Ph.D.

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U.S. propane consumption reached an 18-year record in January amid cold snap

Published: 7 April 2025
Categories: US Energy Information Administration

RSS Feed Source: Science Daily

In-brief analysis

April 7, 2025

U.S. propane consumption reached 1.48 million barrels per day (b/d) in January 2025, the most January consumption on record since January 2005 and the most for any month since February 2007, as severe cold drove up heating demand across much of the country.

U.S. propane consumption, which we measure as product supplied, is closely correlated with temperatures during the winter because propane is primarily used for space heating in the United States. January is typically the coldest month of the year. January 2025 was the coldest month recorded in the United States since January 2014, measured by heating degree days (HDDs).

January 2025 had 946 HDDs, just 26 fewer than in January 2014. Strong heating demand this winter due to cold weather caused propane prices to increase slightly, contributing to higher

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