Citizen scientists have the chance to join world-renowned microplastic experts on an expedition off the Atlantic coast.

University of Staffordshire’s Professor Claire Gwinnett and colleagues have joined forces with Basking Shark Scotland to conduct four expeditions this September – and members of the public can sign up to take part.

Lasting four days, each trip will leave from Inverness in Scotland and focus on monitoring microplastic pollution in feeding sites of endangered basking sharks.

A groundbreaking study explores Ba-Si orthosilicate oxynitride-hydride (Ba₃SiO_5−xN_yH_z) as a sustainable catalyst for ammonia synthesis, offering a potential alternative to traditional transition metal-based systems. Synthesized through low-temperature solid-state reactions and enhanced with ruthenium nanoparticles, these compounds demonstrated improved catalytic performance under milder conditions, providing a more energy-efficient route to ammonia production. This approach also addresses the environmental challenges associated with conventional methods, signaling a shift toward greener industrial practices in ammonia production.

Scientists at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai have developed a lipid nanoparticle system capable of delivering messenger RNA (mRNA) to the brain via intravenous injection, a challenge that has long been limited by the protective nature of the blood-brain barrier. The findings, in mouse models and isolated human brain tissue, were published in the February 17 online issue of Nature Materials. They demonstrate the potential of this technology to pave the way for future treatments for a wide range of conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, brain cancer, and drug addiction.