ScienceDaily: Top Technology News

Scooting to a new era in active transportation

Posted: 03 Mar 2022 04:14 PM PST

In recent years, shared electric scooters (e-scooters) have taken cities by storm. But how are people using this new mode of transportation? A new study has some interesting data to share on e-scooter users. Self-reported safety behaviors didn't always match with observations: the reported use of helmets (13% while riding) far outweighed researchers' observations in Salt Lake City (2% of riders) or Tucson (2% of riders).

How triple-pane windows stop energy (and money) from flying out the window

Posted: 03 Mar 2022 01:20 PM PST

Next generation triple-pane windows provide builders with lower cost options and help homeowners conserve energy, reduce noise, and lower home energy bills.

Magnetic excitations could provide information transfer without heat loss

Posted: 03 Mar 2022 01:20 PM PST

Just as electrons flow through an electrical conductor, magnetic excitations can travel through certain materials. Such excitations, known in physics as 'magnons' in analogy to the electron, could transport information much more easily than electrical conductors. An international research team has now made an important discovery on the road to such components, which could be highly energy-efficient and considerably smaller.

Temperature variation could help new touchscreen technology simulate virtual shapes

Posted: 03 Mar 2022 01:20 PM PST

High-fidelity touch has the potential to significantly expand the scope of what we expect from computing devices, making new remote sensory experiences possible. The research on these advancements could help touchscreens simulate virtual shapes.

The future of data storage is double-helical, research indicates

Posted: 03 Mar 2022 01:20 PM PST

Researchers added seven new letters to DNA's molecular alphabet and developed a precise, letter-perfect sequencing method. These innovations helped transform the double helix into a robust, sustainable data storage platform fit for the Information Age and built to last well beyond the 21st century.

Energy-harvesting wearable device made from recycled waste

Posted: 03 Mar 2022 11:12 AM PST

Wearable devices could soon be entirely made of recycled waste materials -- and powered by human movement, thanks to a new energy-harvesting device.

Physics race pits Usain Bolt against Jurassic Park dinosaur

Posted: 03 Mar 2022 11:12 AM PST

Scott Lee is a physics professor at the University of Toledo who has developed numerous learning activities to help intro-level students get enthusiastic about the topic. His latest innovative activity poses the question: Is Usain Bolt faster than a 900-pound dinosaur?

Mussels' underwater glue inspires synthetic cement

Posted: 03 Mar 2022 08:22 AM PST

Researchers have used a novel method to replicate mussel-adhesive proteins, creating a stronger glue than the material they set out to mimic.

Why some bubbles move faster

Posted: 03 Mar 2022 08:22 AM PST

Why do large gas bubbles in viscoelastic liquids (such as polymer and protein solutions) rise so much faster than expected? An open question with great relevance for industrial production processes. Researchers have now found an explanation.

Special shell protects Antarctic scallop from ice build-up

Posted: 03 Mar 2022 08:22 AM PST

Airplane wings that don't ice up or solar cells that generate electricity even in winter - ice-free surfaces are important for many applications. A team of scientists has now studied an Antarctic scallop species that opposes the icing process with the help of its shell surface. Due to their special structure, thin layers of ice adhere poorly and are easily washed away by the flow. The discovery could help in the development of ice-free bionic surfaces in the long term.

New method to produce chemically modified mRNA developed

Posted: 03 Mar 2022 08:22 AM PST

Chemists describe a new synthetically produced, highly modified messenger RNA that allows cells to more efficiently produce proteins. In the long term, this method could open up new therapeutic options.

Computer games in the classroom: Educational success depends on the teacher

Posted: 03 Mar 2022 08:22 AM PST

Future teachers see educational potential in computer games, study shows. Teacher training should therefore address their potential in the classroom.

New MRI probe can reveal more of the brain's inner workings

Posted: 03 Mar 2022 08:21 AM PST

Using a novel probe for functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), biological engineers have devised a way to monitor individual populations of neurons and reveal how they interact with each other.

Dark energy: Neutron stars will tell us if it's only an illusion

Posted: 03 Mar 2022 08:20 AM PST

Scientists provide the first simulation of neutron star collisions in extensions of general relativity relevant for cosmology, offering a new approach to test gravity.

NGI uses twist to engineer 2D semiconductors with built-in memory functions

Posted: 03 Mar 2022 07:27 AM PST

A team of researchers has demonstrated that slightly twisted 2D transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) display room-temperature ferroelectricity.

Discovered: An easier way to create 'flexible diamonds'

Posted: 02 Mar 2022 03:59 PM PST

As hard as diamond and as flexible as plastic, highly sought-after diamond nanothreads would be poised to revolutionize our world -- if they weren't so difficult to make. Recently, a team of scientists developed an original technique that predicts and guides the ordered creation of strong, yet flexible, diamond nanothreads, surmounting several existing challenges. The innovation will make it easier for scientists to synthesize the nanothreads -- an important step toward applying the material to practical problems in the future.

The physics of fire ant rafts could help engineers design swarming robots

Posted: 02 Mar 2022 03:59 PM PST

Fire ants survive floods by forming rafts made up of thousands of wriggling insects. New research reveals how these creepy-crawly lifeboats change shape over time.

Industrial sedimentation in the North Sea

Posted: 02 Mar 2022 03:59 PM PST

Researchers investigated changes in pollutant levels in the North Sea over an interval time. The results showed that a diverse cocktail of chemicals has been polluting the environment, especially during the last 100 years. They also found out that a decrease in pollution only became apparent in the environment decades after the substances were banned.

New study reveals small-scale renewable energy sources could cause power failures

Posted: 02 Mar 2022 12:01 PM PST

Renewable energy that feeds into the main power grid could destabilize the system and potentially cause power failures according to a new study.

Engineers reveal how to optimize processes for transforming sulfur in wastewater to valuable materials

Posted: 02 Mar 2022 10:13 AM PST

Promising technologies for converting wastewater into drinkable water produce a chemical compound that can be toxic, corrosive and malodorous. An analysis of one possible solution reveals ways to optimize it for maximum energy efficiency, pollutant removal and resource recovery.

The interplay between topology and magnetism has a bright future

Posted: 02 Mar 2022 08:30 AM PST

A new review paper on magnetic topological materials introduces the new theoretical concept that interweave magnetism and topology.

Gene Editing gets safer thanks to redesigned Cas9 protein

Posted: 02 Mar 2022 08:06 AM PST

Scientists have redesigned a key component of a widely used CRISPR-based gene-editing tool, called Cas9, to be thousands of times less likely to target the wrong stretch of DNA while remaining just as efficient as the original version, making it potentially much safer.

Taking a systems approach to cyber security

Posted: 02 Mar 2022 08:06 AM PST

A new study proposes a framework featuring a more holistic picture of the cybersecurity landscape, along with a model that explicitly represents multiple dimensions of the potential impacts of successful cyberattacks.

Cocoa does not appear to reduce exercise-related digestive distress

Posted: 02 Mar 2022 08:06 AM PST

Impressive athleticism was on display during the Winter Olympics, but being at the top of one's game doesn't necessarily protect against digestive distress resulting from exercise. Surprisingly, some people are adding cocoa to their diets to reduce these symptoms. Now, researchers report that long-term daily consumption of cocoa doesn't appear to improve exercise-related digestive issues in male athletes and induces only minimal changes to their gut microbiomes.

Mucus could explain why SARS-CoV-2 doesn't spread easily from surfaces

Posted: 02 Mar 2022 08:06 AM PST

Early in the pandemic, many people fastidiously disinfected surfaces because laboratory studies predicted that SARS-CoV-2 could be easily transmitted in this way. Now, researchers have found a possible explanation for why the predictions didn't pan out: Sugar-decorated proteins in mucus could bind to the coronavirus on surfaces, keeping it from infecting cells. The findings could also hint at why some people are more vulnerable to COVID-19 than others.

Powerful warm winds seen blowing from a neutron star as it rips up its companion

Posted: 02 Mar 2022 08:05 AM PST

Black holes and neutron stars are some of the most extreme objects in the Universe, ripping up neighboring stars. But they are messy eaters and much of they take in gets flung back into space. Scientists have now observed a neutron star blasting out warm and cold wind as it devoured another star. The findings shed new light on the behavior of these stellar cannibals and how they influence the evolution of galaxies.

Plasma accelerators recover in a FLASH

Posted: 02 Mar 2022 08:05 AM PST

Scientists have demonstrated at the FLASHForward experiment that in principle it is possible to operate plasma accelerators at the repetition rates desired by particle physicists and photon scientists. This opens the opportunity to utilize such high-gradient accelerators as booster stages in existing high-repetition-rate facilities, such as the large-scale X-ray free-electron lasers FLASH and European XFEL, in order to significantly increase the energy of long trains of particles in short distances.

A solar illusion: Coronal loops may not be what they seem

Posted: 02 Mar 2022 06:27 AM PST

Many coronal loops -- ropey strands of plasma that scientists have long thought existed in the sun's atmosphere -- may actually be optical illusions, according to a new paper that challenges prevailing assumptions of what we know, and don't know, about the sun.

How to make a 'computer' out of liquid crystals

Posted: 02 Mar 2022 06:27 AM PST

Researchers have shown for the first time how to design the basic elements needed for logic operations using a kind of material called a liquid crystal -- paving the way for a completely novel way of performing computations.

Bonding exercise: Quantifying biexciton binding energy

Posted: 02 Mar 2022 06:27 AM PST

A rare spectroscopy technique directly quantifies the energy required to bind two excitons together. The experiment harnessed interactions between real and virtual states to 'switch' the electronic state of an atomically-thin (2D) material. As well as improving fundamental understanding of biexciton dynamics and exotic new quantum materials, the study aids work towards biexciton-based devices such as compact lasers and chemical-sensors, and the search for future low-energy electronics based on topological materials.

Mammoths, meet the metaverse

Posted: 02 Mar 2022 06:27 AM PST

Paleontologists from La Brea Tar Pits develop a whole herd of scientifically accurate extinct animals to use in AR and VR.

'Closest black hole' system found to contain no black hole

Posted: 02 Mar 2022 06:27 AM PST

In 2020, astronomers reported the closest black hole to Earth, located just 1000 light-years away in the HR 6819 system. But the results of their study were contested by other researchers. In a new paper, these two teams have united to report that there is in fact no black hole in HR 6819, which is instead a 'vampire' two-star system in a rare and short-lived stage of its evolution.

A 'greener' way to clean wastewater treatment filters

Posted: 02 Mar 2022 06:26 AM PST

Membrane filters don't require much energy to purify water, making them popular for wastewater treatment. To keep these materials in tip-top condition, they're commonly cleaned with large amounts of strong chemicals, but some of these agents destroy the membranes in the process. Now, researchers have developed reusable nanoparticle catalysts that incorporate glucose to help efficiently break down contaminants inside these filters without damaging them.

Ultrathin films for stretchable and sturdy bioelectronic membranes

Posted: 01 Mar 2022 05:56 PM PST

Researchers have developed a unique design of ultrathin films for highly flexible yet mechanically robust bioelectronic membranes that could pave the way for diagnostic on-skin sensors that fit precisely over the body's contours and conform to its movements.

New research advances wearable medical sensors

Posted: 01 Mar 2022 05:54 PM PST

Monitoring vitals and diagnosing ailments can be clunky, painful and inconvenient. But researchers are now working to improve health monitoring by creating wearable sensors that collect data for clinicians while limiting discomfort for patients.

Deciphering algorithms used by ants and the Internet

Posted: 01 Mar 2022 04:24 PM PST

Scientists found that ants and other natural systems use optimization algorithms similar to those used by engineered systems, including the Internet. These algorithms invest incrementally more resources as long as signs are encouraging but pull back quickly at the first sign of trouble. The systems are designed to be robust, allowing for portions to fail without harming the entire system. Understanding how these algorithms work in the real world may help solve engineering problems, whereas engineered systems may offer clues to understanding the behavior of ants, cells, and other natural systems.

Did rapid spin delay 2017 collapse of merged neutron stars into black hole?

Posted: 01 Mar 2022 01:20 PM PST

Continuing X-ray observations by Chandra of the kilonova from the merger of two neutron stars to form a black hole hint at new processes. Initially, a gamma-ray burst and subsequent X-ray emissions told of a jet of material produced by the merger, but X-rays from this jet should be dimming. They're not, suggesting that ejecta from the merger, given an extra bounce from the merged neutron stars a second before collapse, is also generating X-rays.

Three critical factors in the end-Permian mass extinction

Posted: 01 Mar 2022 10:12 AM PST

252 million years ago, volcanic eruptions led to massive climate changes. Around the globe, roughly 75 percent of all land-based organisms and roughly 90 percent of all marine organisms died out as a result. Researchers have now used a new form of machine learning to unravel the causes of the mass extinction in the oceans.

Small water samples can find really big animals

Posted: 01 Mar 2022 10:11 AM PST

Scientists used an emerging genetic tool that analyzes DNA in water samples to detect whales and dolphins in New York waters.

Green chemistry: Scientists develop new process for more eco-friendly liquid crystals

Posted: 01 Mar 2022 10:11 AM PST

Liquid crystals could soon be produced more efficiently and in a more environmentally friendly way. A new process has been developed. Compared to conventional methods, it is faster, more energy-efficient and promises a high yield. Liquid crystals are used in most smartphone, tablet and computer displays.

For new insights into aerodynamics, scientists turn to paper airplanes

Posted: 01 Mar 2022 10:11 AM PST

A series of experiments using paper airplanes reveals new aerodynamic effects, a team of scientists has discovered. Its findings enhance our understanding of flight stability and could inspire new types of flying robots and small drones.

These solar panels pull in water vapor to grow crops in the desert

Posted: 01 Mar 2022 10:10 AM PST

Using a unique hydrogel, scientists have created a solar-driven system that successfully grows spinach by using water drawn from the air while producing electricity. The proof-of-concept design offers a sustainable, low-cost strategy to improve food and water security for people living in dry-climate regions.

Machine learning improves human speech recognition

Posted: 01 Mar 2022 10:10 AM PST

To understand how hearing loss impacts people, researchers study people's ability to recognize speech, and hearing aid algorithms are often used to improve human speech recognition. Researchers explore a human speech recognition model based on machine learning and deep neural networks. They calculated how many words per sentence a listener understands using automatic speech recognition. The study consisted of eight normal-hearing and 20 hearing-impaired listeners who were exposed to a variety of complex noises that mask the speech.

Cloth masks inferior for protection against airborne viral spread

Posted: 01 Mar 2022 10:10 AM PST

A new study examines the efficacy of particle filtration by woven fabric, which consists of fibers twisted together into yarns. There are, therefore, two lengthscales: the diameters of the fiber and the yarn. Using 3D imagery produced by confocal microscopy to see the air flow channels, the scientists simulate the airflow through these channels and calculate filtration efficiency for particles a micrometer and larger in diameter. The study concludes for particles in this size range, the filtration efficiency is low.

Seeing below the surface of bimetallic nanoparticles

Posted: 01 Mar 2022 10:10 AM PST

Researchers reported an acoustic method for the real time tracking of metal deposition in the formation of bimetallic core-shell nanoparticles. The shape of the formed particles indicated the internal structure and was determined from changes in the acoustic resistance of a piezoelectric resonator owing to interparticle distance variation. It is hoped that the control of nanoparticle structure made possible by the analysis method will allow the preparation of bespoke materials for sensing.

Double locked: Polymer hydrogels secure confidential information

Posted: 01 Mar 2022 10:10 AM PST

The development of highly secure but simple and inexpensive encryption technology for the prevention of data leaks and forgeries is decidedly challenging. A research team has now introduced a 'double lock' based on thermoresponsive polymer hydrogels that encrypts information so that it can only be read at a specific window in temperature and time.

What’s happening in the depths of distant worlds?

Posted: 01 Mar 2022 10:10 AM PST

The physics and chemistry that take place deep inside our planet are fundamental to the existence of life as we know it. But what forces are at work in the interiors of distant worlds, and how do these conditions affect their potential for habitability? New work uses lab-based mimicry to reveal a new crystal structure that has major implications for our understanding of the interiors of large, rocky exoplanets.

Researchers develop procedure to interpret x-ray emission spectra of liquid water

Posted: 01 Mar 2022 06:37 AM PST

Water is an abundant and essential compound, found everywhere on Earth. Yet despite its familiarity and simple structure, water displays many unusual physical properties. For more than a century, scientists have turned their attention to the study of water, attempting to better interpret its structure.

Tiny tire particles inhibit growth of organisms in freshwater, coastal estuaries, studies find

Posted: 01 Mar 2022 06:36 AM PST

Small particles from tires inhibited the growth and caused adverse behavioral changes in organisms found in freshwater and coastal estuary ecosystems, two new research papers found.

Ultrasound scan can diagnose prostate cancer

Posted: 28 Feb 2022 03:40 PM PST

An ultrasound scan can be used to detect cases of prostate cancer, according to new research.

New approach to flexible robotics and metamaterials design mimics nature, encourages sustainability

Posted: 28 Feb 2022 12:06 PM PST

A new study challenges the conventional approach to designing soft robotics and a class of materials called metamaterials by utilizing the power of computer algorithms. Researchers can now build multimaterial structures without dependence on human intuition or trial-and-error to produce highly efficient actuators and energy absorbers that mimic designs found in nature.

Team uses MRI to image epigenetics in the brain

Posted: 28 Feb 2022 12:06 PM PST

A multidisciplinary team has devised a new approach to 3D imaging that captures DNA methylation, a key epigenetic change associated with learning in the brain. The scientists say their proof-of-concept study in pigs will easily translate to humans, as the new method relies on standard MRI technology and biological markers already in use in human medicine.