Science News 1/9/09

Have an apple little girl?
Research from the University of Auckland found the DNA code that makes the red pigment in apple flesh. The pigments that are made by most plants are called anthocyanins, and they include making an array of colours from red to purple to blue. Anthocyanins are also powerful antioxidants. This means that as we exploit the pigments to make apples prettier, we are also improving their nutrition! Scientists are implanting the pigment into the flesh and skin if the apples.

Hole in the Ozone is no laughing matter
Nitrous oxide is the most dangerous greenhouse gas to our ozone says New Zealand research published in August in Science magazine. This is quite a breakthrough considering nitrous oxide is not covered by the Montreal Protocol, which is an international protocol designed to cut the use of ozone-depleting substances like chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs). Nitrous oxide is made from agriculture, and the authors of the research suggest that restricting N2O emissions can increase recovery of the Earth’s ozone layer, and assist with combating climate change. The authors calculated that if N2O levels continue to increase at current rates, by 2050 they would cause more than 30 per cent of the ozone depletion that was caused by CFCs at their peak in 1987 due to CFCs.

Things are looking sunnier
A team of Australian and US researchers have set a new record for solar cell efficiency. Their multi-cell array were 43% efficient which beats the previous world record by whopping 0.3%. University of New South Wales (UNSW) Professor Martin Green, led the Aussie contribution to the record breaking design. Solar cells only convert a fraction of the energy from sunlight into electricity because the particles in sunlight have different energy, and some of these energies aren’t enough to free up electrons in the solar cells and create energy. This cell combines five different cells that are matched to different energies in the light. "Each cell has the maximum efficiency for one particular colour," says Green. Using filters, the solar cell splits the incoming light into its different wavelength bands and sends it to the different cells.

Episode S2E10: Space

This week on the Petri Dish, we're heading for the stars and the land of science fiction. We've got:

Science News

Remember This Fact?: Gravity

Science Controversy: The Asian Space Race

Science Interview: Dr. Lawrence Krauss, astrophysicist and author, who is also helping us out with our Film of the Week, Star Trek.

Enjoy!