Purdue University News Service • 15th June 2021

Soaking Up the Sun: Artificial photosynthesis promises a clean, sustainable source of energy

Humans can do lots of things that plants can’t do. But plants have one major advantage over humans: They can make energy directly from the sun. That process of turning sunlight directly into usable energy – called photosynthesis – may soon be a feat humans are able to mimic to harness the sun’s energy for clean, storable, efficient fuel. If so, it could open a whole new frontier of clean energy.

Purdue University News Service • 2nd June 2021

A Sticky Subject: Studying shellfish for advanced adhesives

Humans have been trying to stick things to other things for millennia. But shellfish have been doing it for eons longer. And they are far better at it than humans. Which is why Purdue chemists got to wondering: Why don’t we just use whatever they’re using? Anyone who has ever tried to unstick a barnacle from a rock knows that it’s nearly impossible. That success is something Jonathan Wilker, a Purdue professor of chemistry and materials engineering, and his lab are hoping to learn from – and build on.

Purdue University News Service • 26th May 2021

On the Road Again: New solutions for old problems

Self-curing concrete, self-healing roads, and concrete that reduces the global carbon footprint. Purdue University engineers are looking at new ways to pave roads, ways to extend the life of roads and ways to make roadwork less resource- and carbon-intensive.

Purdue University News Service • 19th May 2021

Data Science Pairs with Cancer Research for Better Diagnostics, Therapies

The next generation of treatments for cancer may be found, not by scientists peering through microscopes, but by computer scientists crunching numbers. Thanks to unprecedented amounts of data, Purdue University scientists are using innovative data science techniques to better understand the genetics and cellular biology of cancer cells and tumors.

Smithsonian's National Zoo • 18th May 2021

17-year Cicadas: Bird buffet or a big disturbance?

As the emergence of 17-year cicadas, commonly referred to as Brood X, approaches, animal keepers are gearing up to keep an extra close eye on their charges, especially those that eat insects, to make sure they don't over-indulge. But of course, zoo animals aren't the only ones that eat cicadas. Local songbirds, including chickadees, bluebirds and cardinals, will take advantage of their abundance too, something Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center scientists are eager to study.

Purdue University News Service • 17th May 2021

Building the Workforce for the Quantum Age

The Stone Age. The Bronze Age. The Iron Age. The Industrial Revolution. Eras tend to be defined by their technology, and humans may be headed for a new one: the Quantum Age. As the Digital Revolution ushered in an era of computer scientists, software engineers and electrical engineers, the evolution of quantum technology needs human hands and minds to develop it.

Purdue University News Service • 3rd May 2021

Flying Among the Stars: Professor uses virtual reality to teach astronomy

A professor at Purdue University is teaching his students astronomy by letting them touch the stars. Danny Milisavljevic, assistant professor of physics and astronomy, is using innovative new technology for his students to use virtual reality headsets to explore space.

Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute • 29th April 2021

Cicada Snacks: The wild (and tasty) side of Brood X at the zoo

They slumber underground for 16 summers, nestled near tree roots, sipping xylem — the nutrient-poor water inside tree tissues. Then, as ground temperatures rise on the 17th summer, they emerge and begin blindly burrowing their way toward the surface, bursting forth to a summer of song, flight and love. It sounds like a spooky fairy tale but in fact, it’s the actual true story of the 17-year Brood X cicadas and for some Zoo animals, the beginning of a tasty bug buffet.

Purdue University News Service • 21st April 2021

Monkeys are Less Cuddly with Each Other When Dealing with an Infection

Social grooming plays an important role in vervet monkey society, helping concrete social bonds and increase an animal’s chances of reproduction. However, anthropologist Brandi Wren’s research reveals that monkeys suffering from certain gastrointestinal parasites may not participate in grooming as much as infection-free monkeys.

Purdue University News Service • 20th April 2021

‘Undruggable’ Cancer Protein Becomes Druggable, Thanks to Shrub

Inspired by a rare compound found in a shrub native to North America, Mingji Dai, professor of chemistry and a scientist at the Purdue University Center for Cancer Research, discovered a cost-effective and efficient way to synthesize it in the lab. The compound — curcusone D — has the potential to help combat a protein found in many cancers

Purdue University News Service • 6th April 2021

Biologist Uses Malaria Expertise to Track COVID-19 Variants

Giovanna Carpi’s lab studies the genomics of infectious diseases to better understand how they spread. An assistant professor of biological sciences, she focuses her research primarily on malaria. With the onset of the pandemic, her lab pivoted to study the genomic epidemiology of SARS-CoV-2, the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19, including tracking variants.

Purdue University News Service • 25th February 2021

Scientists Use Doppler to Peer Inside Cells

Doppler radar improves lives by peeking inside air masses to predict the weather. A Purdue University team is using similar technology to look inside living cells, introducing a method to detect pathogens and treat infections in ways that scientists never have before.

Purdue University News Service • 10th February 2021

New Mix Could Double Concrete’s Carbon Uptake

Cement, a component of concrete, produces 8% of the world’s carbon footprint. Looking to lower that percentage, Purdue University engineers have discovered a way to make concrete more sustainable. Their new recipe for concrete has the potential to cut carbon emissions dramatically, creating building blocks for a better world.

Purdue University News Service • 2nd February 2021

Digital Inclusion in a Time of Coronavirus

During the pandemic, internet has become more important than ever. From streaming meetings and classes, to virtual worship services and telehealth appointments, to ordering groceries and scheduling COVID tests, access to internet can feel like a literal lifeline. It is a lifeline that hundreds of thousands of Hoosiers lack.

Purdue University News Service • 14th December 2020

Physics Discovery Leads to Ballistic Optical Materials

Purdue-lead team discover ballistic optical materials, which may provide a path to drastically enhanced imaging and smaller supercomputers.

Ecological Society of America Newsroom • 29th July 2020

LED Flashlights Allow More Night Hunting in the Tropics

Increasing availability of LED flashlights changes human hunting patterns and highlights the importance of community management of resources.

Ecological Society of America Newsroom • 24th July 2020

King Crabs Colonizing Shallow Antarctic Seas

New research into the natural history of king crabs helps scientists understand their current, and changing, Antarctic ranges. A new study published in the Ecological Society of America’s journal Ecology, the culmination of more than 15 years of research, sheds light on king crabs’ natural history and implies that they may be poised to colonize naïve ecosystems.

Ecological Society of America Newsroom • 20th July 2020

Invasive Hedgehogs and Ferrets Habituate to and Categorize Smells

To catch a thief, the saying goes, you have to think like a thief. The same is true for invasive predators: to foil their depredations on native wildlife, scientists have to understand how they think. A new study published in the Ecological Society of America’s journal Ecological Applications examines how invasive mammalian predators both habituate to and generalize avian prey cues.

Global Wildlife Conservation • 16th June 2020

Lost Harlequin Toads

Our top “most wanted” lost harlequin toads include species that have been lost to science for at least a decade (and often for much longer!) and, like our top 25 “most wanted” species, may be lost for a variety of reasons. We worked with the Atelopus Survival Initiative to determine this list of lost harlequin toads. In some cases, biologists may be actively out searching—or interested in going out to search—for these species. In other cases, these species represent the kinds of compelling stories that can help raise their group’s public profile, even if nobody is out actively looking.

Purdue University News Service • 7th April 2020

Purdue researchers 3D-print minerals in order to better predict fracture formation

Purdue physics professor Laura Pyrak-Nolte and her lab team works with Purdue’s Rock Physics Research Group to better understand how and where fractures form. Being able to predict and understand fractures is vitally important to a wide range