Feb 9, 2018 WRAL TechWire

New NCSU approach can help authorities respond more quickly to airborne radiological threats

Researchers from North Carolina State University have developed a new technique that uses existing technologies to detect potential airborne radiological materials in hours instead of days. “We wanted a rapid way of detecting radiological aerosols that are usually associated with the production of dirty bombs or other radiological weapons,” says Joseph Cope, a Ph.D. student… 

Feb 9, 2018 National Geographic

Venus Flytraps Have Surprising Pollinators … and They Don’t Eat Them

Researchers have been examining some parts of Venus flytraps for years, but other traits have gone unexplored. “Basically, almost all that research is focused purely on the snap traps,” says Clyde Sorenson, an entomology professor at North Carolina State University. “As charismatic as the plant is, nobody ever knew who pollinated it.” Or, at least,… 

Feb 8, 2018 The Newcastle Herald (Australia)

Venus flytraps spare useful insects: study

Elsa Youngsteadt, from North Carolina State University, said: “Venus flytrap flowers are elevated on stems that stand fairly high above the snap traps of the plant, and we found that 87 percent of the flower-visiting individuals we captured – including all three of the most important species – could fly. “But only 20 percent of… 

Feb 8, 2018 International Business Times

Ants Could Help Humans Fight Antibiotic Resistance With Their Bacteria-Killing Exoskeletons

“One species we looked at, the thief ant (Solenopsis molesta), had the most powerful antibiotic effect of any species we tested — and until now, no one had even shown that they made use of antimicrobials,” study co-author Adrian Smith said in a statement from North Carolina State University. “Finding a species that carries a… 

Feb 8, 2018 Poultry Times

Researchers develop practical solar heater for poultry houses

Dr. Sanjay Shah and colleagues at North Carolina State University recently completed the research project in which they developed and tested a low-cost solar heater for use in poultry houses. The solar collector is made from black plastic and heated by the sun. 

Feb 8, 2018 Triangle Business Journal

Which Triangle university had the highest application growth?

NC State University has had the largest application growth among the three schools. The university said its latest applicant count is 29,395, a 9.4 percent over last year’s 26,856 applications. Its 2017 first-year class consists of 4,725 students. 

Feb 8, 2018 Self Magazine

There’s an Unfortunate Outbreak of Norovirus at the Olympics This Year

Getting norovirus from food “works in the way you don’t want it to work,” Benjamin Chapman, Ph.D., an assistant professor and food safety extension specialist at North Carolina State University, tells SELF. Vomit or poop particles from an infected person can end up in food, possibly from being close to where the person got sick… 

Feb 7, 2018 New Atlas

Venus flytraps are surprisingly picky eaters

“One potential reason for this is the architecture of the plants themselves,” says Elsa Youngsteadt, a research associate at North Carolina State University and lead author of a paper on the work. “Venus flytrap flowers are elevated on stems that stand fairly high above the snap traps of the plant, and we found that 87… 

Feb 7, 2018 Huffington Post UK

Ants Could Provide The Next Generation Of Antibiotics

Researcher Dr Adrian Smith, from North Carolina State University in the U.S., said: “One species we looked at, the thief ant (Solenopsis molesta), had the most powerful antibiotic effect of any species we tested – and until now, no one had even shown that they made use of antimicrobials. Finding a species that carries a… 

Feb 7, 2018 Washington Post

Venus flytraps give insects that pollinate their flowers a break. They don’t eat them.

Flowering plants like Venus flytraps need visitors to collect and spread pollen. “Because it’s a carnivorous plant, it has this special potential for conflict that ordinary plants don’t,” said Elsa Youngsteadt, an entomologist at North Carolina State University and part of a team that conducted the first study of Venus flytrap pollinators. The scientists’ report… 

Feb 7, 2018 WUNC-FM's "State of Things"

The Brothers Who Fought Together In A War Only One Of Them Believed In

Host Frank Stasio talks with author and retired U.S. Army General Daniel Bolger, teaching assistant professor at NC State University, about the Hagel brothers’ understanding of service and their remarkable story of serving together in a war only one of them supported. 

Feb 7, 2018 Inverse Science

Scientists Just Solved the Great Mystery of How Venus Flytraps Have Sex

The key to understanding Venus flytrap reproduction, it seems, is in recognizing the differences between two very distinct parts of the plant: the notorious snapping jaw at its base, and the lesser-known flower towering on a stem above it. “Before this, we knew hardly anything about pollination in Venus fly traps,” N.C. State University entomology… 

Feb 6, 2018 Photovoltaics Magazine

Researchers develop approach to identify best organic solar cell mixtures

The new temperature-dependent parameter can say “it’s a match“ even before manufacturing organic solar cells, saving time and resources, find scientists at the North Carolina State University and the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. 

Feb 6, 2018 Philly.com

Super Bowl babies: Will Philly see more deliveries in nine months?

Did you catch that Super Bowl TV spot from Jefferson Health about delivering “super babies” in nine months? Even the NFL once claimed it was a thing. But, on average, it does not appear to be true, according to a 2016 analysis by a researcher at North Carolina State University’s Institute for Advanced Analytics. 

Feb 6, 2018 Technology Networks

Discovery Could Speed Up Identification of Best Mixtures for Organic Solar Cells

“Currently chemists modify a molecule and use trials to see if it is a good material for solar cells, but if they have the wrong processing conditions they could miss a lot of good materials,” says Harald Ade, Goodnight Innovation Distinguished Professor of Physics at NC State and corresponding author of the paper. “Our parameter measures…