ScienceDaily: Technology - January 08, 2024
Top technology research news
Inhalable sensors could enable early lung cancer detection
Using a new technology, diagnosing lung cancer could become as easy as inhaling a sensor and then taking a urine test that reveals whether a tumor is present.
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Soft robotic, wearable device improves walking for individual with Parkinson's disease
Researchers have used a soft, wearable robot to help a person living with Parkinson's walk without freezing. The robotic garment, worn around the hips and thighs, gives a gentle push to the hips as the leg swings, helping the patient achieve a longer stride. The device completely eliminated the participant's freezing while walking indoors, allowing them to walk faster and further than they could without the garment's help.
Mysterious missing component in the clouds of Venus revealed
Researchers may have identified the missing component in the chemistry of the Venusian clouds that would explain their color and splotchiness in the UV range, solving a long-standing mystery.
The pathogenic potential of inhaling the inert fibrous nanomaterials used in thermal insulation (such as asbestos or fiberglass) is actually connected not to their chemical composition, but instead to their geometrical characteristics and size. This was revealed by a study conducted on glass nanofibers.
Engineers invent octopus-inspired technology that can deceive and signal
With a split-second muscle contraction, the greater blue-ringed octopus can change the size and color of the namesake patterns on its skin for purposes of deception, camouflage and signaling. Researchers have drawn inspiration from this natural wonder to develop a technological platform with similar capabilities for use in a variety of fields, including the military, medicine, robotics and sustainable energy.
New images reveal what Neptune and Uranus really look like
Neptune is fondly known for being a rich blue and Uranus green -- but a new study has revealed that the two ice giants are actually far closer in color than typically thought. The correct shades of the planets have now been confirmed.
High-performance stretchable solar cells
Engineers have succeeded in implementing a stretchable organic solar cell by applying a newly developed polymer material that demonstrated the world's highest photovoltaic conversion efficiency (19%) while functioning even when stretched for more than 40% of its original state. This new conductive polymer has high photovoltaic properties that can be stretched like rubber. The newly developed polymer is expected to play a role as a power source for next-generation wearable electronic devices.
New theoretical framework unlocks mysteries of synchronization in turbulent dynamics
Data Assimilation (DA) is an important mathematical method for predicting turbulent flows for weather forecasting. However, the origins of the critical length scale, a crucial parameter in this method, and its dependence on the Reynolds number are not well understood. Now, researchers have developed a novel theoretical framework that treats DA as a stability problem to explain this parameter. This framework can contribute significantly to turbulence research and inspire novel data-driven methods to predict turbulence.
Conflict in full swing: Forest bats avoid large areas around fast-moving wind turbines
Not only do many bats die at wind turbines, the turbines also displace some species from their habitats over large areas. When the turbines are in operation at relatively high wind speeds, the activity of bat species that hunt in structurally dense habitats such as forests drops by almost 80 per cent within a radius of 80 to 450 meters around the turbine.
Researchers 3D print components for a portable mass spectrometer
Researchers 3D printed a mini quadrupole mass filter, a key component of a mass spectrometer, that performs as well as some commercial-grade devices. It can be fabricated in hours for a few dollars and is one step toward producing a portable mass spectrometer that could enable effective medical diagnoses or chemical analyses in remote areas.
Springs aboard -- gently feeling the way to grasp the microcosmos
The integration of mechanical memory in the form of springs has for hundreds of years proven to be a key enabling technology for mechanical devices (like clocks), achieving advanced functionality through complex autonomous movements. In our times, the integration of springs in silicon-based microtechnology has opened the world of planar mass-producible mechatronic devices from which we all benefit, via air-bag sensors for example.
Functional semiconductor made from graphene
Researchers have created the first functional semiconductor made from graphene, a single sheet of carbon atoms held together by the strongest bonds known. The breakthrough throws open the door to a new way of doing electronics.
How does corrosion happen? New research examines process on atomic level
New research reveals how corrosion happens on the atomic level.
Path-following performance of autonomous ships
With recent requirements for reducing greenhouse gas emissions of autonomous ships, an emerging body of research is focused on assessing the path-following performance of maritime autonomous surface ships (MASS) at low speeds under adverse weather conditions. To combat the poor accuracy of traditional methods, in a new study, researchers investigated the path-following performance of MASS using a free-running computational fluid dynamics model. Their findings can help ensure safer autonomous navigation with reduced propulsion power.
Magnetic fields in the cosmos: Dark matter could help us discover their origin
We don't know how magnetic fields in the cosmos formed. Now a new theoretical research tells how the invisible part of our universe could help us find out, suggesting a primordial genesis, even within a second of the Big Bang.
Researchers boost signal amplification in perovskite nanosheets
Perovskite nanosheets show distinctive characteristics with significant applications in science and technology. In a recent study, researchers achieved enhanced signal amplification in CsPbBr3 perovskite nanosheets with a unique waveguide pattern, which enhanced both gain and thermal stability. These advancements carry wide-ranging implications for laser, sensor, and solar cell applications, and can potentially influence areas like environmental monitoring, industrial processes, and healthcare.
Nature-inspired advanced materials achieves 99.6% solar reflectivity
Scientific researchers draw inspiration from nature's brilliance as they seek to develop transformative solutions to unresolved challenges.
Better microelectronics from coal
Coal is an abundant resource in the United States that has, unfortunately, contributed to climate change through its use as a fossil fuel. As the country transitions to other means of energy production, it will be important to consider and reevaluate coal's economic role. Coal may actually play a vital role in next-generation electronic devices.
Researchers have fabricated a new high-performance shortwave infrared (SWIR) image sensor based on non-toxic colloidal quantum dots. They report on a new method for synthesizing functional high-quality non-toxic colloidal quantum dots integrable with complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) technology.
Computational method discovers hundreds of new ceramics for extreme environments
If you have a deep-seated, nagging worry over dropping your phone in molten lava, you're in luck. Materials scientists have developed a method for rapidly discovering a new class of materials with heat and electronic tolerances so rugged that they that could enable devices to function at several thousands of degrees Fahrenheit.
Is oxygen the cosmic key to alien technology?
Astrophysicists outline the links between atmospheric oxygen and the potential rise of advanced technology on distant planets.
Using electricity, scientists find promising new method of boosting chemical reactions
Chemists found a way to use electricity to boost a type of chemical reaction often used in synthesizing new candidates for pharmaceutical drugs. The research is an advance in the field of electrochemistry and shows a path forward to designing and controlling reactions -- and making them more sustainable.
New AI tool brings precision pathology for cancer and beyond into quicker, sharper focus
Researchers developed an artificial intelligence tool to quickly analyze gene activities in medical images and provide single-cell insight into diseases in tissues and tissue micro-environments.
New method illuminates druggable sites on proteins
Scientists develop a new, high-resolution technique for finding potential therapeutic targets on proteins in living cells. The findings could lead to more targeted therapeutics for nearly any human disease.
Influencers' vulnerabilities: A double-edged sword
New research finds that social media platforms and the metrics that reward content creators for revealing their innermost selves to fans open creators up to identity-based harassment.
Designing the 'perfect' meal to feed long-term space travelers
Imagine blasting off on a multiyear voyage to Mars, fueled by a diet of bland, prepackaged meals. As space agencies plan for longer missions, they're grappling with the challenge of how to best feed people. Now, researchers have designed the optimal 'space meal': a tasty vegetarian salad. They chose fresh ingredients that meet male astronauts' specialized nutritional needs and can be grown in space.
Aptamers: lifesavers; ion shields: aptamer guardians
Aptamers, nucleic acids capable of selectively binding to viruses, proteins, ions, small molecules, and various other targets, are garnering attention in drug development as potential antibody substitutes for their thermal and chemical stability as well as ability to inhibit specific enzymes or target proteins through three-dimensional binding. They also hold promise for swift diagnoses of colon cancer and other challenging diseases by targeting elusive biomarkers. Despite their utility, these aptamers are susceptible to easy degradation by multiple enzymes, presenting a significant challenge.
Unraveling the mysteries of fog in complex terrain
While fog presents a major hazard to transportation safety, meteorologists have yet to figure out how to forecast it with the precision they have achieved for precipitation, wind and other stormy events. This is because the physical processes resulting in fog formation are extremely complex, Now researchers report their findings from an intensive study centered on a northern Utah basin and conceived to investigate the life cycle of cold fog in mountain valleys.
Breakthrough in organic semiconductor synthesis paves the way for advanced electronic devices
A research team has achieved a significant breakthrough in the field of organic semiconductors. Their successful synthesis and characterization of a novel molecule called 'BNBN anthracene' has opened up new possibilities for the development of advanced electronic devices.
Molecules exhibit non-reciprocal interactions without external forces
Researchers have discovered that molecules experience non-reciprocal interactions without external forces. Fundamental forces such as gravity and electromagnetism are reciprocal, where two objects are attracted to each other or are repelled by each other. In our everyday experience, however, interactions don t seem to follow this reciprocal law.
Revolutionary nanodrones enable targeted cancer treatment
A research team has unveiled a remarkable breakthrough in cancer treatment.
Sodium's high-pressure transformation can tell us about the interiors of stars, planets
A new study has revealed the chemical bonding behind sodium's high-pressure transformation from shiny metal to transparent insulator.