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Scientists Discover Strange New Parasitic Wasp Species in the U.S.

The lab is contributing to a broader initiative aimed at studying the diversity of oak gall wasps and their parasites. Researchers, including faculty from Binghamton University, State University of New York, have discovered two parasitic wasp species in the United States that were previously unkn

Research into stability of foams finds a valuable test subject in a tall glass of beer

Beer is one of the world’s most popular drinks, and one of the clearest signs of a good brew is a big head of foam at the top of a poured glass. Even brewers will use the quality of foam as an indicator of a beer having completed the fermentation process. However, despite its importance, what makes a large, stable foam is not entirely understood.

In Physics of Fluids, researchers from ETH Zurich and Eindhoven University of Technology investigated the stability of foams, examining multiple types of beer at different stages of the .

Like any other foam, beer foam is made of many small bubbles of air, separated from each other by of liquid. These thin films must remain stable, or the bubbles will pop, and the foam will collapse. What holds these thin films together may be conglomerates of proteins, surface viscosity, or the presence of surfactants, which are molecules that can reduce and are found in soaps and detergents.

Sneaky swirls: ‘Hidden’ vortices could influence how soil and snow move

Researchers have shown for the first time how hidden motions could control how granular materials such as soil and snow slip and slide, confirming a long-suspected hypothesis. The knowledge could help in understanding how landslides and avalanches work and even help the construction industry in the future.

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