Materials Science | Science News for Students

Materials Science

a snail on a wire fence

When not on the move, snails use mucus to stick to plants and other objects.

Gabriel Pacce/iStock/Getty Images Plus

Materials Science
 
Oct 15, 2019
Reversible superglue mimics snail slime
a composite photo of the 2019 Nobel Prize for Chemistry winners; ohn B. Goodenough, M. Stanley Whittingham and Akira Yoshino

These three scientists, John B. Goodenough, M. Stanley Whittingham and Akira Yoshino (from left), have won the 2019 Nobel Prize in chemistry for their work on lithium-ion batteries.

FROM LEFT: COCKRELL SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING/UNIV. OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN; JONATHAN COHEN/BINGHAMTON UNIV.; HEINZ TROLL/EUROPEAN PATENT OFFICE

Chemistry
 
Oct 9, 2019
2019 Nobel Prize in chemistry goes for pioneering lithium-ion batteries
a little girl chasing a very large soap bubble

The science of giant soapy bubbles brings together chemistry, gravity and a material called a polymer.

EduardSV/iStock/Getty Images Plus

Physics
 
Oct 9, 2019
Scientists find the secret to colossal bubbles
a photo of a robot "hand" reaching for a jellyfish

The fingers of this robotic hand reach out to catch a delicate jellyfish.

Anand Varma

Robotics
 
Oct 2, 2019
This robot catches jellyfish with a gentle ‘hug’
an illustration of a new 18-atom carbon ring

Chemists created a new form of carbon called cyclocarbon. The 18-atom ring is illustrated here using data from an atomic force microscope. Bonds between the atoms are alternately longer and shorter, giving the ring nine sides.

IBM Research

Chemistry
 
Sep 9, 2019
Chemists have created a ring-shaped form of carbon
an illustration of an astronaut planting a plant in space

Plants loaded up with metal-organic frameworks, or MOFs, may be key to growing crops in the harshest environments, including space.

gorodenkoff/iStock/Getty Images Plus

Materials Science
 
Sep 3, 2019
High-tech crops may survive harsh conditions, even space
a woman drinking water from a plastic water bottle

Bottled water can be a source of microplastics.

AntionioGuillem/iStock/Getty Images Plus

Toxicology
 
Aug 23, 2019
Americans consume some 70,000 microplastic particles a year
a broken down plastic bag floating underwater in the ocean

Biodegradable plastic bags could help reduce plastic pollution in the environment — but only if the material actually breaks down. Most don’t.

Placebo365/iStock/Getty Images Plus

Pollution
 
Jun 28, 2019
'Biodegradable' plastic bags often don’t break down
a photo of a discarded styrofoam cup on the ground surrounded by plants

Unlike this Styrofoam cup, made from plastic, a new kind of foam is biodegradable.

tomschirtz/iStock/Getty Images Plus

Materials Science
 
Jun 24, 2019
Trees may become the key to ‘greener’ foam products
an animated image showing a bubble traveling from the bottom of a lava lamp to the top

Dry sand grains of various densities can bubble like the blobs in this lava lamp, scientists find. Just add vibrations and gas.

Ricciardi Mario/Creatas Video+/GettyImagesPlus

Physics
 
Jun 10, 2019
Dry sand can bubble like the blobs in a lava lamp