ScienceDaily: Top Technology News

Researchers have developed an artificial material which can respond to its environment, independently make a decision, and perform an action not directed by a human being. For example, a drone making a delivery might evaluate its environment including wind direction, speed or wildlife, and automatically change course in order to complete the delivery safely. The material incorporates 3 main functions also displayed by materials found in nature, such as chameleons changing the color of their skin to blend into their surroundings.

Heat from a comet exploding just above the ground fused the sandy soil into patches of glass stretching 75 kilometers, a new study found.

The potential of DNA structural properties in single-molecule electronics has finally been harnessed by researchers in a single-molecule junction device that shows spontaneous self-restoring ability. Additionally, the device, based on a 'zipper' DNA configuration, shows unconventionally high electrical conductivity, opening doors to the development of novel nanoelectronic devices.

The development of transport infrastructure is a central issue for states, which spend billions to connect cities. But what is their real effect on the municipalities concerned? Researchers have looked at the evolution of the income composition of the population of cities in Switzerland once they are connected to the motorway network. By analyzing data from 1950 to 2010, they found that this new accessibility leads to substantial benefits for wealthy people, but indirect costs fall disproportionately on people with low incomes.

New research building on AI algorithms has enabled scientists to create more complete models of the protein structures in our bodies - paving the way for faster design of therapeutics and vaccines.

A team of engineers has invented new technology that could forever change the manufacturing of wearable, electronic sensors. They've figured out a way to speed up production without having to use polymer binders -- the industry standard in printing flexible sensors, which are often used to monitor vital signs in health care settings.

Researchers discovered precisely how spiders build webs by using night vision and artificial intelligence to track and record every movement of all eight legs as spiders worked in the dark. Their creation of a web-building playbook or algorithm brings new understanding of how creatures with brains a fraction of the size of a human's are able to create structures of such elegance, complexity and geometric precision.

Polyethylene is the most abundantly manufactured plastic in the world. Due to properties like durability, it has many diverse, and even long-term uses. Chemists have now incorporated polar groups in the material's molecular chains in order to expand its properties and simultaneously reduce the problematical persistence of plastic in the environment. The desired favorable properties of polyethylene remain unchanged.