ScienceDaily: Matter & Energy News |
| Wearable chemical sensor is as good as gold Posted: 24 Jun 2022 06:24 AM PDT Researchers created a special ultrathin sensor, spun from gold, that can be attached directly to the skin without irritation or discomfort. The sensor can measure different biomarkers or substances to perform on-body chemical analysis. It works using a technique called Raman spectroscopy, where laser light aimed at the sensor is changed slightly depending on whatever chemicals are present on the skin at that point. The sensor can be finely tuned to be extremely sensitive, and is robust enough for practical use. |
| Boron nitride nanotube fibers get real Posted: 23 Jun 2022 12:37 PM PDT Scientists create the first boron nitride nanotube fibers using the custom wet-spinning process they developed to make carbon nanotube fibers. |
| Smart implants to monitor healing Posted: 23 Jun 2022 12:36 PM PDT Researchers are creating patient-specific 3D-printed smart metamaterial implants that double as sensors to monitor spinal healing. |
| Self-assembled, interlocked threads: Spinning yarn with no machine needed Posted: 23 Jun 2022 11:05 AM PDT Researchers unexpectedly discovered that the ability for spirals to form in nature also happens in some non-biological systems that convert chemical energy into mechanical action -- allowing two-dimensional polymer sheets to rise and rotate in spiral helices without the application of external power. This self-assembly into coherent three-dimensional structures represents the group's latest contribution in the field of soft robotics and chemo-mechanical systems. |
| Ultra-thin film creates vivid 3D images with large field of view Posted: 23 Jun 2022 11:05 AM PDT Researchers have developed a new ultra-thin film that can create detailed 3D images viewable under normal illumination without any special reading devices. The images appear to float on top of the film and can be clearly viewed from all angles. The new imaging film uses a technology known as light-field imaging, which captures the direction and intensity of all rays of light within a scene to create a 3D image. With additional development, the new glass-free approach could be used as a visual security feature or incorporated into virtual or augmented reality devices. |
| Personal health trackers may include smart face mask, other wearables Posted: 23 Jun 2022 09:26 AM PDT New research demonstrates different ways to improve wearable bioelectronic devices and materials to provide better real-time monitoring of a person's health, including vital signs. |
| Artificial photosynthesis can produce food without sunshine Posted: 23 Jun 2022 09:26 AM PDT Scientists have found a way to bypass the need for biological photosynthesis altogether and create food independent of sunlight by using artificial photosynthesis. The technology uses a two-step electrocatalytic process to convert carbon dioxide, electricity, and water into acetate. Food-producing organisms then consume acetate in the dark to grow. The hybrid organic-inorganic system could increase the conversion efficiency of sunlight into food, up to 18 times more efficient for some foods. |
| Lipid nanoparticles carry gene-editing cancer drugs past tumor defenses Posted: 23 Jun 2022 09:26 AM PDT As they grow, solid tumors surround themselves with a thick, hard-to-penetrate wall of molecular defenses. Getting drugs past that barricade is notoriously difficult. Now, scientists have developed nanoparticles that can break down the physical barriers around tumors to reach cancer cells. Once inside, the nanoparticles release their payload: a gene editing system that alters DNA inside the tumor, blocking its growth and activating the immune system. |
| Default options facilitate faster carbon offsetting in air travel Posted: 23 Jun 2022 08:10 AM PDT Economists find that many air travelers more readily choose faster, but more expensive carbon offsetting options online if selecting a slower option requires action. However, the readiness to do so decreases as the gap between the most and the least expensive option increases. |
| Scientists decontaminate heavy metal water using protein from plant waste Posted: 23 Jun 2022 06:12 AM PDT Scientists have created a membrane made from a waste by-product of vegetable oil manufacturing, which can filter out heavy metals from contaminated water. In tests, they showed that this process of attraction, called adsorption, was able to purify contaminated water to a degree that meets international drinking standards. |
| Scarless skin grafting using mussel adhesive protein Posted: 23 Jun 2022 06:12 AM PDT A professor develops a bioadhesive based on the mussel adhesive protein for sutureless skin grafting. Skin regenerative effect maximized with controlled releases of dual drugs. |
| Where once were black boxes, new LANTERN illuminates Posted: 22 Jun 2022 01:45 PM PDT A new statistical tool for predicting protein function could help with tasks ranging from producing biofuels to improving crops to developing new disease treatments. Not only could it help with the difficult job of altering proteins in practically useful ways, but it also works by methods that are fully interpretable -- an advantage over conventional AI. |
| Process to customize molecules does double duty Posted: 22 Jun 2022 01:45 PM PDT Chemists developed a method to add two fragments to an alkene molecule in a single process. The discovery could simplify drug and materials design. |
| Organic bipolar transistor developed Posted: 22 Jun 2022 10:08 AM PDT Researchers have developed a highly efficient organic bipolar transistor. The work opens up new perspectives for organic electronics -- both in data processing and transmission, as well as in medical technology applications. |
| When the world of nanotechnology and microbreweries meet Posted: 22 Jun 2022 08:31 AM PDT Researchers have shown that microbrewery waste can be used as a carbon source to synthesize quantum dots. |
| Can robotics help us achieve sustainable development? Posted: 22 Jun 2022 08:31 AM PDT Scientists have assessed how robotics and autonomous systems might facilitate or impede the delivery of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Their findings identify key opportunities and key threats that need to be considered while developing, deploying and governing robotics and autonomous systems. |
| Posted: 22 Jun 2022 08:31 AM PDT How hard can insects bite? Having a strong chewing apparatus makes it easier to crush harder food and to succeed in fights with enemies. Biologists now present a mobile system (forceX) for measuring the bite forces of small animals, along with the software forceR to evaluate the data. This allows to understand how bite forces, for example of insects, evolved. |
| Engineers devise a recipe for improving any autonomous robotic system Posted: 22 Jun 2022 07:14 AM PDT Engineers devised a recipe for improving any autonomous robotic system. Their optimization code can automatically identify how and where to tweak a system to improve a robot's performance. |
| Optical microphone sees sound like never before Posted: 22 Jun 2022 07:14 AM PDT A camera system can see sound vibrations with such precision and detail that it can reconstruct the music of a single instrument in a band or orchestra. Even the most high-powered and directed microphones can't eliminate nearby sounds, ambient noise and the effect of acoustics when they capture audio. The novel system uses two cameras and a laser to sense high-speed, low-amplitude surface vibrations. These vibrations can be used to reconstruct sound, capturing isolated audio without inference or a microphone. 'We've invented a new way to see sound,' said Mark Sheinin, a post-doctoral research associate at the Illumination and Imaging Laboratory (ILIM) in the RI. |
| Organ storage a step closer with cryopreservation discovery Posted: 22 Jun 2022 07:13 AM PDT Scientists have taken the first step towards improved storage of human cells, which may lead to the safe storage of organs such as hearts and lungs. |
| Custom suits for worms that really deliver Posted: 22 Jun 2022 07:13 AM PDT Researchers have found that nematodes can be coated with a protective hydrogel sheath that can be engineered to carry functional cargo. This system could potentially be developed to deliver anti-cancer drugs to tumors using worms with a natural predilection for human cancer cells. |
| Topological superconductors: Fertile ground for elusive Majorana ('angel') particle Posted: 22 Jun 2022 07:13 AM PDT A new review investigates the search of Majorana fermions in iron-based superconductors. The elusive Majorana fermion, or 'angel particle' simultaneously behaves like a particle and an antiparticle -- and surprisingly remains stable rather than being self-destructive. Majorana fermions promise information and communications technology with zero resistance, addressing the rising energy consumption of modern electronics (already 8% of global electricity consumption), promising a sustainable future for computing. Majorana zero-energy modes in topological superconductors makes those exotic quantum materials the main candidate materials for realizing topological quantum computing. |
| PICASSO technique drives biological molecules into technicolor? Posted: 22 Jun 2022 07:13 AM PDT Pablo Picasso's surreal cubist artistic style shifted common features into unrecognizable scenes, but a new imaging approach bearing his namesake may elucidate the most complicated subject: the brain. Employing artificial intelligence to clarify spectral color blending of tiny molecules used to stain specific proteins and other items of research interest, the PICASSO technique, allows researchers to use more than 15 colors to image and parse our overlapping proteins. |
| Following ultrafast magnetization dynamics in depth Posted: 22 Jun 2022 07:13 AM PDT The future development of functional magnetic devices based on ultrafast optical manipulation of spins requires an understanding of the depth-dependent spin dynamics across the interfaces of complex magnetic heterostructures. A novel technique to obtain such an 'in depth' and time-resolved view on the magnetization has now been demonstrated. |
| Nanostructured surfaces for future quantum computer chips Posted: 22 Jun 2022 07:13 AM PDT Quantum computers are one of the key future technologies of the 21st century. Researchers have developed a new technology for manipulating light that can be used as a basis for future optical quantum computers. |
| Tiny fish-shaped robot 'swims' around picking up microplastics Posted: 22 Jun 2022 07:13 AM PDT Microplastics are found nearly everywhere on Earth and can be harmful to animals if they're ingested. But it's hard to remove such tiny particles from the environment, especially once they settle into nooks and crannies at the bottom of waterways. Now, researchers have created a light-activated fish robot that 'swims' around quickly, picking up and removing microplastics from the environment. |
| Sniffing out your identity with breath biometrics Posted: 22 Jun 2022 07:13 AM PDT Researchers have developed an artificial 'nose' that can identify individuals from their breath. Built with a 16-channel sensor array that can detect different compounds found in a person's breath, the olfactory sensor system has the potential to become another option in the biometric security toolkit. Combined with machine learning, the 'artificial nose' was able to authenticate up to 20 individuals with an average accuracy of more than 97%. |
| Technology helps self-driving cars learn from own 'memories' Posted: 22 Jun 2022 07:13 AM PDT Researchers have developed a way to help autonomous vehicles create 'memories' of previous experiences and use them in future navigation, especially during adverse weather conditions when the car cannot safely rely on its sensors. |
| Researchers make virus-fighting face masks Posted: 21 Jun 2022 03:45 PM PDT Researchers have developed an accessible way to make N95 face masks not only effective barriers to germs, but on-contact germ killers. The antiviral, antibacterial masks can potentially be worn longer, causing less plastic waste as the masks do not need to be replaced as frequently. |
| Quantum sensor can detect electromagnetic signals of any frequency Posted: 21 Jun 2022 03:44 PM PDT Researchers developed a method to enable quantum sensors to detect any arbitrary frequency, with no loss of their ability to measure nanometer-scale features. Quantum sensors detect the most minute variations in magnetic or electrical fields, but until now they have only been capable of detecting a few specific frequencies, limiting their usefulness. |
| Researchers derive new theory on behavior of new class of materials Posted: 21 Jun 2022 03:44 PM PDT Researchers have derived the governing equations that describe and explain the macroscopic mechanical behavior of elastomers filled with liquid inclusions directly in terms of their microscopic behavior. |
| Researchers harness the power of a new solid-state thermal technology Posted: 21 Jun 2022 12:51 PM PDT Researchers have discovered a way to make a versatile thermal conductor, with promise for more energy-efficient electronic devices, green buildings and space exploration. They have demonstrated that a known material used in electronic equipment can now be used as a thermal regulator, too, when it is in a very pure form. This new class of material gives engineers the ability to make thermal conductivity increase or decrease on demand, changing a thermal insulator into a conductor and vice versa. |
| Modern wind turbines can more than compensate for decline in global wind resource Posted: 21 Jun 2022 12:51 PM PDT Wind energy contributes significantly to the energy sector's sustainable, low-CO2 transformation. However, the efficiency of wind turbines depends on available wind resources and the technical characteristics of the turbines. |
| Robotic lightning bugs take flight Posted: 21 Jun 2022 11:18 AM PDT Inspired by fireflies, researchers created soft actuators that can emit light in different colors or patterns. These artificial muscles, which control the wings of featherweight flying robots, light up while the robot is in flight, which provides a low-cost way to track the robots and also could enable them to communicate. |
| SeqScreen can reveal 'concerning' DNA Posted: 21 Jun 2022 11:17 AM PDT Computer scientists have developed a program to screen short DNA sequences, whether synthetic or natural, to determine their toxicity. |
| Sensor imperfections are perfect for forensic camera analysis Posted: 21 Jun 2022 07:56 AM PDT In a project aimed at developing intelligent tools to fight child exploitation, computer scientists have developed a system to analyze the noise produced by individual cameras. This information can be used to link a video or an image to a particular camera. |
| Natural mineral hackmanite can change color almost indefinitely enabling numerous applications Posted: 21 Jun 2022 07:56 AM PDT While investigating hackmanite, a natural wonder material, researchers found that it, in addition to two other minerals, can change their color upon exposure to UV radiation repeatedly without wearing out. The results show that the inexpensive hackmanite, which is easy to synthesise, is also an excellent material because of its high durability and applicability for different purposes. |
| Magnetic superstructures resonate with global 6G developers Posted: 21 Jun 2022 06:14 AM PDT Scientists have detected collective resonance at remarkably high and broad frequency bands. In a magnetic superstructure called a chiral spin soliton lattice (CSL), they found that resonance could occur at such frequencies with small changes in magnetic field strength. The findings suggest CSL-hosting chiral helimagnets as promising materials for future communication technologies. |
| Fifth of global food-related emissions due to transport Posted: 20 Jun 2022 09:23 AM PDT Food transport constitutes 19 percent of food emissions, equivalent to 6 percent of emissions from all sources. High-income countries are responsible for nearly half of these emissions, leading researchers to conclude that among the rich, eating locally should be prioritised. |
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