As the search for alternative fuels expands, scientists are exploring myriad possibilities. They revealed progress Thursday using something beachgoers try to avoid: seaweed.

A team with Bio Architecture Lab (BAL), a company based in Berkeley, Calif. announced it has found a way to extract the major sugars in seaweed and convert them into affordable renewable fuels. Its work is featured on the cover of the Jan. 20th edition of Science magazine.