ScienceDaily: Matter & Energy News

Researchers have developed a protocol for using robotic pets with older adults with dementia. The protocol uses a low-cost robotic pet, establishes ideal session lengths, and identifies common participant responses to the 'pets' to aid in future research.

Physicists have demonstrated how simulations using quantum computing can enable observation of a distinctive state of matter taken out of its normal equilibrium. Such novel states of matter could one day lead to developments in fast, powerful quantum information storage and precision measurement science.

Microbiologists have shed light on the structure of an enzyme that produces formic acid from molecular hydrogen (H2) and carbon dioxide (CO2). The enzyme of the bacterium Thermoanaerobacter kivui was discovered a few years previously by microbiologists, and the scientists have recently presented its potential for liquid hydrogen storage. The filamentous structure of the enzyme, now described at atomic level for the first time, acts like a nanowire and is evidently responsible for the extremely efficient conversion rates of the two gases.

Computers and smartphones have different kinds of memory, which vary in speed and power efficiency depending on where they are used in the system. Typically, larger computers, especially those in data centers, will use a lot of magnetic hard drives, which are less common in consumer systems now. The magnetic technology these are based on provides very high capacity, but lack the speed of solid state system memory. Devices based on upcoming spintronic technology may be able to bridge that gap and radically improve upon even theoretical performance of classical electronic devices.

New research could form the basis of aviation innovation. Artificial whiskers, built as models of whiskers from sea lions, can work as an array of antennae to locate the source of hydrodynamic wakes, similar to the way sea lions use their whiskers.

Direct air capture technology removes carbon dioxide from the air and compresses it for sequestration or utilization and promises to help us meet net-zero emissions goals. However, the process of direct air capture can be energy and land intensive and expensive. To design a direct air capture process that uses less energy and less land, a multi-disciplinary team outlines a plan to retrofit train cars to remove carbon from the air at a much lower than average cost per ton.

Researchers have designed a fuel production system that uses water, carbon dioxide (CO2), and sunlight to produce aviation fuel. They have implemented the system in the field, and the design could help the aviation industry become carbon neutral.

New findings have endorsed what millions of people around the world believe: fitness trackers, pedometers and smart watches motivate us to exercise more and lose weight.

Neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's disease or Parkinson's disease are caused by folding errors (misfolding) in proteins or peptides, i.e. by changes in their spatial structure. This is the result of minute deviations in the chemical composition of the biomolecules. Researchers have now developed a simple and effective method for detecting such misfolding at an early stage of the disease. Misfolding is revealed by the structure of dried residue from protein and peptide solutions. The method involves analyzing micrographs with neural networks and has a predictive accuracy of over 99 percent.

Managers face a confusing storm of new technology hype but the key to navigating through the endless promises made for technologies such as drones, blockchain or artificial intelligence is to focus on real uses for the innovations, new research shows.

As more and more wind turbines (WTs) are installed in the course of the energy transition and distance regulations to human settlements are tightened, suitable locations are becoming increasingly difficult to find. As a result, wind turbines are increasingly being erected in forests -- to the detriment of forest specialists among bats.

Many people and companies worry about sensitive data getting hacked, so encrypting files with digital keys has become more commonplace. Now, researchers have developed a durable molecular encryption key from sequence-defined polymers that are built and deconstructed in a sequential way. They hid their molecular key in the ink of a letter, which was mailed and then used to decrypt a file with text from a classic story.

Magnesium diboride ceramic superconductors have garnered interest owing to their ease of fabrication, light weight, and low cost. However, a cheap and efficient technique for boron refinement is required before MgB2 superconductors can be produced widely for use. To this end, scientists have developed a novel technique to refine boron via ultrasonication. Their method provides a rapid and cost-effective means to produce MgB2 for superconductor production.