Penguins constitute a fascinating family of flightless birds that, although somewhat clumsy on land, are extremely talented swimmers. Their incredible maneuverability in water has captivated biologists for decades, with the first hydrodynamic studies on their swimming dating back to the 1970s. Although a rare few studies have clarified some of the physics behind penguins’ dexterity, … Read more
A group of researchers recently modeled the transmission of COVID-19 within an isolation room at the Royal Brompton Hospital in London, U.K. Their goal was to explore the optimal room layout to reduce the risk of infection for health care staff. To accomplish this, they used an adaptive mesh finite-element computational fluid dynamics model to … Read more
The teeming life in the Southern Ocean, which encircles Antarctica, contributes to brightening the clouds that form there, according to a study published today in Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics. The clouds are bright because of their high density of water droplets, due in turn to a chain of atmospheric processes that eventually connects back to … Read more
“Citizen Science” gives interested citizens the chance to actively engage in scientific research. A citizen-science project conducted by AWI in the Arctic now shows just how successful this can be. In the course of five years, citizens who went on sailing cruises to the Arctic surveyed and collected plastic debris that had washed up on … Read more
Toxic chemicals were released into the air Monday from five derailed tanker cars after officials warned nearby residents to flee or remain in a potentially deadly situation. The controlled release of dangerous vinyl chloride from the five rail cars in danger of exploding came after Friday’s train derailment in a tiny Ohio village of East … Read more