Compile a Hydroponics System From Source

Tending to a garden is usually a rewarding endeavor, as long as there is good soil to work with. If there isn’t, it can either get frustrating quickly having to deal with soils like sand or hard clay, or it can get expensive by having to truck in compost each …read more

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Never-before-seen “black nitrogen” plugs puzzle in periodic table

Researchers at the University of Bayreuth have created a form of nitrogen that’s never been seen before. Nicknamed “black nitrogen,” the new substance is crystalline, occurs in two-dimensional sheets, and could one day be useful in advanced electronics… Continue reading Never-before-seen “black nitrogen” plugs puzzle in periodic table

Scientists turn yeast into psychedelic psilocybin factories

With psilocybin on the cusp of becoming a clinically validated and approved medicine, scientists are exploring new ways to produce the chemical without needing to grow magic mushrooms or relying on costly synthesis techniques. A team of Danish research… Continue reading Scientists turn yeast into psychedelic psilocybin factories

DIY Closed-Cell Silicone Foam

Most of us have a junk drawer, full of spare parts yanked from various places, but also likely stocked with materials we bought for a project but didn’t use completely. Half a gallon of wood glue, a pile of random, scattered resistors, or in [Ken]’s case, closed-cell silicone foam. Wanting …read more

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Using Additives For Better Performing Epoxy

Epoxy resins are an important material in many fields. Used on their own as an adhesive, used as a coating, or used in concert with fiber materials to make composites, their high strength and light weight makes them useful in many applications. [Tech Ingredients] decided to explore how combining basic …read more

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Mercury may paradoxically use intense heat to make huge amounts of ice

Despite being the closest planet to the Sun, Mercury is home to a surprising amount of ice. Now, researchers at Georgia Tech have put forward an explanation for how at least some of it got there – and it turns out, the heat plays an important role.Cont… Continue reading Mercury may paradoxically use intense heat to make huge amounts of ice

Bullet-proofing Your Car With An Affordable Composite Armor

Remember those actions movies like The Fast and the Furious where cars are constantly getting smashed by fast flying bullets? What would it have taken to protect the vehicles from AK-47s? In [PrepTech]’s three-part DIY composite vehicle armor tutorial, he shows how he was able to make his own bulletproof …read more

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Tracking Wasted Time With A Ferrofluid Clock

We know this project is supposed to be about developing a fine-looking ferrofluid clock, and not about the value of procrastination. But after watching the video below, see if you don’t think that procrastination has taken these two students further than expected.

We first ran into [Simen] and [Amund] several …read more

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Robot vs. Superbug

Working in a university or research laboratory on interesting, complicated problems in the sciences has a romanticized, glorified position in our culture. While the end results are certainly worth celebrating, often the process of new scientific discovery is underwhelming, if not outright tedious. That’s especially true in biology and chemistry, …read more

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