Research announcements from universities, hospitals and scientific institutions. Explore the stories, people and discoveries behind the headlines.
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European colonists dredged away an estimated 85% of Australia's coastal oyster reefs to make building lime. A new Nature study using 3D photogrammetry and field-tested concrete tiles across three Sydney estuaries has now identified the geometric attributes that maximize juvenile oyster survival - pointing to specific design specifications for effective artificial reef restoration.
Read the releasePolymer capacitors fail above 212 F, limiting their use near car engines and in data centers. A Penn State team mixed PEI and PBPDA into a self-assembling alloy that holds four times the energy of conventional capacitors across a temperature range from -148 F to 482 F, using only cheap, commercially available plastics.
Read the releaseGermanium and silicon lenses for thermal imaging cameras cost hundreds to thousands of dollars and cannot be repaired if damaged. A Flinders University team made a high-performance infrared lens from surplus elemental sulfur and an organic co-monomer moldable like plastic, repairable, recyclable, and produced for under 1 cent in raw material costs per unit.
Read the releaseUsing a drone-based 3D tracking system, University of Freiburg researchers recorded 255 honey bee flight paths across a 120-meter agricultural corridor. Each bee developed and maintained its own individualized route, deviating from its preferred path by only a few centimeters - and by fewer degrees than waggle dance directional errors, indicating navigation is far more precise than communication.
Read the releaseResearchers from the University of Sao Paulo published results in ACS Omega showing that a biopolymer derived from tara fruit (Caesalpinia spinosa) and red algae (Kappaphycus alvarezii), incorporated into shampoo, conditioner, and leave-in conditioner, forms a protective film on human hair strands that improves shine, smoothness, and combability compared to products without the biopolymer. The biopolymer film made hair slightly less elastic and slightly thicker, but researchers attribute this to durable bonding with keratin rather than damage.
Read the releaseElephant trunks carry thousands of fixed whiskers that cannot move independently, yet serve as highly sensitive tactile tools for precise manipulation. A new study using micro-CT, electron microscopy, and mechanical modeling finds that the whiskers' sensing ability derives from a material gradient - stiff and porous at the base, soft and dense at the tip - that amplifies differences in signal power along the whisker's length and helps elephants localize where contact occurs.
Read the releaseUniversity of Houston engineering professor Venkat Selvamanickam has been elected to the National Academy of Engineering, one of the highest professional honors awarded to engineers worldwide. Selvamanickam is the M.D. Anderson Chair Professor of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering and director of the Advanced Manufacturing Institute at the UH Cullen College of Engineering. He was recognized for his cutting-edge contributions to industrial-scale advanced manufacturing processes for high-temperature superconductor wires ...
Read the releaseIsrael E. Wachs, the G. Whitney Snyder Distinguished Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at Lehigh University, has been elected to the National Academy of Engineering (NAE), one of the highest professional honors in the field of engineering. Wachs was recognized “for establishing fundamental structure–activity/selectivity rules governing molecular engineering of mixed oxide catalysts” that guide the rational design of solid catalysts (materials that accelerate and control chemical reactions) for air pollution ...
Read the releaseIndustrial chemicals are essential to modern society, supporting products ranging from plastics and electronics to pharmaceuticals and agricultural supplies. However, scientists warn that many of these chemicals can transform and spread through the environment in ways that are difficult to track, creating complex pollution mixtures that threaten ecosystems and human health. A new study introduces an innovative framework designed to better understand and manage these risks across the entire life cycle of industrial chemicals. The research, published in New Contaminants, presents a concept called the "emiss-ome," a systems-based approach that links chemical production, ...
Read the releaseTungsten carbide–cobalt (WC–Co) is prized for its hardness, but that same property makes it unusually difficult to shape. The current process is wasteful and expensive for the yield produced, and an economically sensible method for creating these materials is long overdue. WC-Co cemented carbides are important in fields that require high wear resistance and hardness, such as cutting and construction tools. Currently, these carbides are made using powder metallurgy, utilizing high pressure and sintering machines to combine the WC and Co powders to yield a manufactured cemented carbide. Though this method does produce highly durable and hard final products, a lot of expensive ...
Read the releaseExcess carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, polluted water, and increasingly strict environmental regulations are driving the search for materials that can efficiently trap pollutants at the molecular level. For more than two decades, this challenge has drawn scientific attention to metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) – highly advanced porous materials widely regarded as one of the most promising tools for tackling climate change and environmental pollution. The importance of this research field was recognised in 2025, when the Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded to the scientists who developed MOFs. Despite this recognition and their ...
Read the releaseEVANSTON, Ill. --- We’ve all heard the best approach to solve a problem is to “sleep on it.” It turns out there may be more truth to this adage than previously thought. While stories abound of eureka moments surfacing from dreams, scientific evidence has remained elusive, due to the challenge of systematically manipulating dreams. A new study by neuroscientists at Northwestern University validates the possibility of influencing dreams and offers a crucial step to support the theory that dreams in REM sleep — the rapid ...
Read the releaseProfessor of Electrical and Computer Engineering Lin Cai, Professor and Frank Gunsaulus Faculty Fellow in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Boris S. Pervan, and Professor Emeritus of Electrical and Computer Engineering Thomas Wong, all faculty members at Illinois Institute of Technology (Illinois Tech), have been selected as fellows of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. This distinction, reflecting their extraordinary accomplishments, is given to less than 0.1 percent of ...
Read the releaseBroadband achromatic wavefront control, a cornerstone of next-generation photonic systems that supports full-color imaging, multi-spectral sensing, has seen important progress reported in PhotoniX by the research group led by Professor Yijun Feng and Professor Ke Chen from Nanjing University. They proposed a hybrid-phase cooperative dispersion-engineering strategy that combines Aharonov–Anandan (AA) and Pancharatnam–Berry (PB) geometric phases in a single-layer metasurface to unlock independent, dual-spin achromatic wavefront control. Dispersion ...
Read the releaseIn collaboration with the National Institute of Technology (KOSEN), Oshima College, the National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS) succeeded in developing a new regenerator material composed solely of abundant elements, such as copper, iron, and aluminum, that can achieve cryogenic temperatures (approx. 4 K = −269°C or below) without using any rare-earth metals or liquid helium. By utilizing a special property called "frustration" found in some magnetic materials, where the spins cannot simultaneously satisfy each other's orientations in a triangular lattice, the team demonstrated a novel method that replaces the ...
Read the releaseThe vibrant colors in our clothes and consumer goods often come at a heavy environmental price. Organic dyes are notorious water pollutants, stubbornly resisting traditional treatment and threatening aquatic ecosystems. Now, a comprehensive review published in Carbon Research highlights a brilliant new solution: using microscopic "carbon dots" and common polymers to harness the power of light for cleaning up contaminated water. Leading this research is Professor Elena F. Krivoshapkina from ITMO University in St. Petersburg. Her team’s ...
Read the releaseSAN ANTONIO — February 3, 2026 — Dr. Barron Bichon has been promoted to vice president of SwRI’s Mechanical Engineering Division. He previously served as the director of SwRI’s Materials Engineering Department. As vice president, Bichon will lead more than 400 staff members performing research, development, testing and evaluation for a wide variety of projects. “I’m excited for the opportunity to lead our division as it continues to dedicate itself to innovation, collaboration and real-world impact,” Bichon said. “Leading this incredible team is ...
Read the releaseAortic Hemiarch Reconstruction Safely Matches Complex Aortic Arch Reconstruction for Acute Dissection in Older Adults NEW ORLEANS—February 1, 2026—Ascending aortic hemiarch reconstruction offers the same long-term benefits to patients over age 65 with acute type A aortic dissection (ATAAD) as more complex extended arch reconstruction procedures, according to a study presented today at the 2026 Society of Thoracic Surgeons Annual Meeting. The finding came from a risk-adjusted analysis of 3,562 patients examining long-term survival and surgical reintervention for aortic disease following initial operation for ATAAD. Patient data came from the STS ...
Read the releaseThe lower hinge of immunoglobulin G (IgG), an overlooked part of the antibody, acts as a structural and functional control hub, according to a study by researchers at Science Tokyo. Deleting a single amino acid in this region transforms a full-length antibody into a stable half-IgG1 molecule with altered immune activity. The findings provide a blueprint for engineering next-generation antibody therapies with precisely tailored immune effects for treating diseases such as cancer and autoimmune diseases. Antibodies are Y-shaped proteins that help the immune system recognize and eliminate foreign threats such as bacteria and viruses. ...
Read the releaseResearchers from Drexel University who discovered a versatile type of two-dimensional conductive nanomaterial, called a MXene, nearly a decade and a half ago, have now reported on a process for producing its one-dimensional cousin: the MXene nanoscroll. The group posits that these materials, which are 100 times thinner than human hair yet more conductive than their two-dimensional counterparts, could be used to improve the performance of energy storage devices, biosensors and wearable technology. Their finding, which was recently published in the journal Advanced Materials, offers a scalable method for producing the nanoscrolls from a MXene precursor with precise control over their shape ...
Read the releaseResearchers have developed a new method for 3D printing objects with very different properties, including levels of hardness and transparency, on a pixel-by-pixel basis while using commonly available materials and inexpensive 3D printers. The method, described today in the journal Science by researchers from The University of Texas at Austin, Sandia National Laboratories and two other national laboratories, could lend itself to the creation of realistic models of body parts for medical students to practice surgery on or new types of personal ...
Read the releaseOn Hainan Island, centuries-old masonry supports an unexpectedly rich diversity of epilithic, or rock-dwelling, plants, highlighting a close intersection between cultural heritage and natural biodiversity. By integrating island-wide field surveys with statistical modeling, the team demonstrates how geographic gradients, architectural features, and human activities jointly shape these often-overlooked plant communities, offering new scientific evidence to support more balanced and ecologically informed strategies for heritage conservation. Rapid urbanization across China has placed increasing pressure on historic architecture, particularly in tropical ...
Read the releaseHidden behind every successful career story is the reality that progression isn’t often a smooth and easy path. Rejections, setbacks, and the doubts they seed are rarely shared - leaving us to believe that they don’t happen to other people the way they happen to us. Adrian Liston, Professor of Pathology at the University of Cambridge, mentors hundreds of scientists early in their careers, and repeatedly hears them worry that they’re not up to the task. He has decided it’s time to share the truth behind the ...
Read the releaseStuttgart – Building things so small that they are smaller than the width of a human hair was previously achieved by using a method called two-photon polymerization, also known as 2PP – today’s state-of-the-art in 3D micro- and nanofabrication. Tiny sculptures such as a miniature replica of the Eiffel Tower or the Taj Mahal made the headlines. While such creations are impressive to look at, their impact reaches much further. 3D micro- and nanofabrication techniques are important for many scientific fields, such as medicine, engineering and of course robotics. However, there has been one major limitation up to now: miniature 3D objects can usually only be made ...
Read the releaseIn the world of modern medicine, most people focus on the active pharmaceutical ingredients, which are the chemicals that specifically fight a disease’s symptoms or causes. However, the unsung heroes of pharmacy are excipients—substances formulated alongside the active ingredients to ensure they reach the right part of the body at the right time. Simply put, excipients are as vital as the drugs themselves because they provide a controllable means of administration. A prominent example is thermoresponsive compounds that enable in situ gelling. These smart liquids, once administered to the body, transform into a solid gel in response to body heat, enabling the medication ...
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