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Researchers at The University of Texas at Austin have designed a way to sense dangerous chemicals using, in part, a simple rig consisting of a smartphone and a box made from Lego bricks, which could help first responders and scientists in the field identify deadly and difficult-to-detect nerve agents such as VX and sarin. The new methodology described in a paper published Wednesday in the open-access journal ACS Central Science  combines a chemical sensor with photography to detect and identify different nerve agents — odorless, tasteless chemical weapons that can cause severe illness and death, sometimes within minutes.

A new study from the University of Waterloo highlights a low level of awareness among youth around the proper precautions they need to take when it comes to handling food.

To improve water treatment, researchers use modeling to understand how chemical byproducts form during the advanced oxidation process.

The Painted Lady, also known as the Vanessa cardui butterfly, performs a migratory cycle that can reach 12,000 km in multiple generations —  a cycle longer than that of the monarch — making it the longest migration known for any butterfly species and similar to that of many birds.

With the help of this new method, waste water can be treated faster than before, and the environmentally positive aspect is that the process leaves less solid radio-active waste.