Technology
press releases.

Technology23 Aug 2023

SwRI investigates the efficiency impact of smart-technology-enabled vehicles

SAN ANTONIO — August 23, 2023 — A Southwest Research Institute project funded by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has demonstrated an average of 15% energy savings when vehicles outfitted with connected and automated vehicle systems, or CAVs, are introduced into traffic. CAVs use wireless smart technology to communicate with other CAVs and traffic infrastructure. SwRI’s eco-driving framework uses custom software and predictive powertrain algorithms to enable human drivers to make more efficient driving ...

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Technology23 Aug 2023

Artificial intelligence can now estimate rice yields, according to new study

With the rise in global demand for staple crop products projected to substantially increase by 2050 due to population growth, rising per capita income, and the growing use of biofuels, it is necessary to adopt sustainable agricultural intensification practices in existing croplands to meet this demand. However, estimation processes currently employed in the global South remain inadequate. Traditional methods like self-reporting and crop cutting have their limitations, and remote sensing technologies are not fully utilized in this context. However, recent advancements in artificial intelligence and machine learning, particularly deep learning with convolutional ...

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Technology23 Aug 2023

AI recommendation vs. user subscription: analyzing in-feed digital advertising performance on platforms like Twitter, Google News, and TikTok

Researchers from Lehigh University, University of Hong Kong, and Wuhan University published a new Journal of Marketing article that examines in-feed advertising’s performance across subscription versus AI recommended news feeds. The study, forthcoming in the Journal of Marketing, is titled “Tales of Two Channels: Digital Advertising Performance Between AI Recommendation and User Subscription Channels” and is authored by Beibei Dong, Mengzhou Zhuang, Eric (Er) Fang, and Minxue Huang. How ...

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Technology23 Aug 2023

Guiding the design of silicon devices with improved efficiency

Silicon is one of the most pervasive functional materials of the modern age, underpinning semiconductor technologies ranging from microelectronics to solar cells. Indeed, silicon transistors enable computing applications from cell phones to supercomputers, while silicon photovoltaics are the most widely deployed solar-cell technology to date. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) reports that nearly 50% of new electric generation capacity in 2022 came from solar cells, and according to the International Energy Agency (IEA), silicon has a 95% market share. Yet despite silicon’s ...

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Technology22 Aug 2023

Automate or informate? Firms must invest in specific types of IT to improve working capital management

The management of working capital — or a firm’s current assets minus its current liabilities — aids organizations in making efficient use of their existing assets and maximizing cash flow. The relationship between efficient working capital management and firm performance can be complex due to globally dispersed supply chains, number of suppliers and product variety, and technological uncertainty, among other factors. New research from the University of Notre Dame shows that information technology represents a critical investment that ...

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Technology22 Aug 2023

Advances in quantum emitters mark progress toward a quantum internet

– By Alison Hatt The prospect of a quantum internet, connecting quantum computers and capable of highly secure data transmission, is enticing, but making it poses a formidable challenge. Transporting quantum information requires working with individual photons rather than the light sources used in conventional fiber optic networks. To produce and manipulate individual photons, scientists are turning to quantum light emitters, also known as color centers. These atomic-scale defects in semiconductor materials can emit single photons of fixed wavelength or color and allow photons to interact with electron spin properties in controlled ways. A team ...

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Technology22 Aug 2023

JMIR Nursing Call for Papers Theme Issue on Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Nursing

JMIR Nursing Editor-in-Chief: Elizabeth Borycki RN, PhD, FIAHIS, FACMI, FCAHS and theme editor Kenrick Dwain Cato, PhD, RN, CPHIMS, FAAN welcome submissions to a special theme issue examining "Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Nursing." AI is revolutionizing health care. Nurse informaticist developers, researchers, practitioners, clinicians, educators, and innovators have designed, developed, implemented, and used AI to support patients, their families, nurses and health care activities. AI has been used to support ...

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Technology22 Aug 2023

Heat sensor protects the Venus flytrap from fire

The Venus flytrap can survive in the nutrient-poor swamps of North and South Carolina because it compensates for the lack of nitrogen, phosphate and minerals by catching and eating small animals. It hunts with snap traps that have sensory hairs on them. If an insect touches these hairs two times, the traps shut and digests the prey. In its location in the swamp, the carnivorous plant is often not visible because it is overgrown by grass. In summer, the grass dries up. Then it can catch fire from the frequent lightning storms typical of North Carolina – ...

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Technology22 Aug 2023

Digital real estate listings with more photos, descriptions earn higher sale prices

AMES, IA — Buying a home is a time-consuming process, in part because it requires balancing financial realities with a long checklist of expectations and desires. People care about a solid foundation and certain number of bedrooms. But a property’s curb appeal, neighbors and proximity to work or good schools also matter. For most house-hunters in the U.S., setting up filters and scrolling listings on Zillow has become a crucial first step. “Digital real estate platforms like Zillow help people see what’s available, ...

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Technology22 Aug 2023

Exascale revolution: Supercomputers unleash a new era in biophysics discovery

In a recently published article featured on the cover of the Biophysical Journal, Dr. Rafael Bernardi, assistant professor of biophysics at the Department of Physics at Auburn University, and Dr. Marcelo Melo, a postdoctoral researcher in Dr. Bernardi's group, shed light on the transformative capabilities of the next generation of supercomputers in reshaping the landscape of biophysics. The researchers at Auburn delve into the harmonious fusion of computational modeling and experimental biophysics, providing a perspective for a future in which discoveries ...

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Technology21 Aug 2023

Unmanned aerial vehicle tech aims to help first responders

A University of Texas at Arlington researcher is constructing an open-networked airborne computing platform to enable unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to help first responders better coordinate their efforts during emergency or disaster responses. UT Arlington also is developing a universal plug-in hardware unit that can fit into any UAV to allow for this computing platform to be used. The National Science Foundation (NSF) is funding the research through a $1.8 million grant to UTA, University of ...

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Technology21 Aug 2023

University breaks ground on one-of-a-kind semiconductor facility

The University of Arkansas celebrated an important milestone with the groundbreaking on a building that Chancellor Charles Robinson suggested might someday rival the U of A’s most iconic structure, Old Main, in significance to the university and the state of Arkansas. Robinson and other university leaders, including University of Arkansas System President Don Bobbitt and members of the U of A System Board of Trustees, as well as researchers and industry leaders, gathered at the Arkansas Research and Technology Park in South Fayetteville to celebrate construction of the national Multi-User Silicon Carbide ...

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Technology21 Aug 2023

Argonne receives funding to use AI and machine learning for nuclear physics research

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced $16 million for 15 projects that will implement artificial intelligence (AI) methods to accelerate scientific discovery in nuclear physics research. DOE’s Argonne National Laboratory will lead two of those projects and be a collaborator on another. These projects will use AI and Machine Learning (ML) tools and methods for nuclear physics experiments, simulation, theory and accelerator operation to expand and accelerate scientific reach. “Artificial intelligence has the potential to shorten the timeline ...

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Technology21 Aug 2023

Schintler & collaborators to study perceptions of efficiency & bias in algorithmic versus human peer review

Laurie Schintler, Associate Professor, Schar School of Policy and Government, is set to receive funding for the project: "Perceptions of Efficiency and Bias in Peer Review: Algorithmic versus Human Decision Making." This project is a collaboration between the Schar School of Policy and Government (GMU) and the Department of Sociology and Anthropology (CHSS-GMU). The investigators on the team include: PI Laurie A. Schintler; Co-PI Connie L. McNeely, Professor, Schar School of Policy and ...

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Technology21 Aug 2023

New “bandit” algorithm uses light for better bets

How does a gambler maximize winnings from a row of slot machines? This is the inspiration for the "multi-armed bandit problem," a common task in reinforcement learning in which "agents" make choices to earn rewards. Recently, an international research team led by Hiroaki Shinkawa at the University of Tokyo developed an extended photonic reinforcement learning scheme that moves from the static bandit problem towards a more challenging dynamic environment. This study was published July 25 in Intelligent Computing, a Science Partner Journal. The success of ...

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Technology21 Aug 2023

Antil receives funding for workshop on digital twins

Harbir Antil, Director, Center for Mathematics and Artificial Intelligence, and Professor, Mathematical Sciences, received funding for: "Mathematics for Digital Twins (MATH-DT)." This award will provide support for a workshop titled "Mathematical Opportunities in Digital Twins" to be held on Dec. 11-13, 2023, at George Mason University's campus in Arlington, VA. The workshop will bring together key experts working in many aspects of mathematics, key application fields, and industry with the goal of determining ...

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Technology19 Aug 2023

An aid to ecological management and decision-making ES supply and demand dynamics

Ecosystem services (ESs) provide a variety of services and benefits for human well-being, but the supply-demand mechanism of ecosystem services under different spatio-temporal scales is unclear. The Taihu Lake Basin (TLB) is a microcosm of degraded and unsustainable ecosystem services. Rapid industrialization and urbanization poses a great threat to the environment and ecology. Therefore, it is urgent to assess the changes in supply and demand for TLB ecosystem services from a spatio-temporal and multi-stakeholder perspective, and ...

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Technology18 Aug 2023

DOE funds Gulf Coast-focused direct air capture hub feasibility study

The U.S. Department of Energy has awarded an LSU-led consortium a $4.9 million grant to support the first phase of the Pelican Gulf Coast Carbon Removal project. The Pelican Consortium, which includes Shell and the University of Houston, will evaluate the feasibility of building a direct air capture (DAC) hub in Louisiana. DAC technologies capture carbon dioxide directly from the atmosphere. The captured carbon dioxide can then be used to manufacture products or be permanently stored in deep geological formations. The project will leverage existing regional infrastructure in one of the highest emitting areas in the Gulf Coast, benefit the local energy workforce, and support ...

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Technology18 Aug 2023

Largest U.S. study of e-cigarettes shows their value as smoking cessation aid

E-cigarettes do have value as a smoking cessation aid, according to a new study just released by a team of MUSC Hollings Cancer Center researchers. Whether e-cigarettes should be considered for smoking cessation is a hotly debated topic, and different countries have taken different approaches. E-cigarettes contain harmful chemicals, which has led many public health advocates to shun them. But they are less harmful than traditional cigarettes, which can cause a dozen types of cancer as well as heart disease, stroke, diabetes and chronic obstructive ...

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Technology18 Aug 2023

Cutting-edge UAV technology: New method for dynamic target tracking in GPS-denied environments

A study published in Engineering introduces a novel image-based visual servoing (IBVS) method for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to track dynamic targets in GPS-denied environments. Titled "Dynamic Target Tracking of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles Under Unpredictable Disturbances," the research article presents a comprehensive approach that addresses the challenges of estimating target velocities, image depth estimation, and tracking stability in the presence of external disturbances. The proposed method utilizes a constructed virtual camera to derive simplified and decoupled image dynamics for underactuated UAVs. By considering ...

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Technology18 Aug 2023

Auburn University hosts the 60th edition of the Renowned Computational Biophysics Workshop

AUBURN, AL – In July, as many enjoyed the hot weather at Alabama's gulf coast beaches, in the Leach Science Center, Auburn University's Department of Physics hosted an engaging scientific event. For the first time since 2016, the southern USA was home to the “Hands-On Workshop on Computational Biophysics” with Auburn University, for the first time, as its esteemed host. Under the guidance of Prof. Rafael Bernardi from Auburn University's Department of Physics and Prof. Emad Tajkhorshid of the Beckman Institute at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, the workshop showcased expertise from ...

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Technology18 Aug 2023

Looking at the latest in Life Sciences Discovery and Technology

Oak Brook, IL – The August 2023 issue of SLAS Technology, the open access journal emphasizing scientific and technical advances across the life sciences, is now available. Volume 28, Issue 4, contains a review from the literature and eight full-length articles covering nanodiamonds, automated buffer exchange, epidermal growth factor (EGF) and other laboratory automation-related research. From the Literature Life sciences discovery and technology highlights The authors examine several areas of research within the literature to highlight significant developments ...

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Technology17 Aug 2023

Sean Jones appointed Argonne’s Deputy Laboratory Director for Science and Technology

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory has named Sean Jones as deputy laboratory director for science and technology. Jones will begin his new role on October 9, serving as Argonne’s senior science strategist, advisor and chief research officer. Jones will join Argonne from the National Science Foundation (NSF). In his current role as Assistant Director of the NSF’s Mathematical and Physical Sciences directorate, he oversees a $1.86 billion portfolio that includes five science divisions, domestic and international research facilities, and ...

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Technology17 Aug 2023

Unlocking chaos: Ultracold quantum gas reveals insights into wave turbulence

While for physical systems in equilibrium, thermodynamics is an invaluable tool to make predictions about their state and behaviour without needing access to many details, finding similarly general and concise descriptions of non-equilibrium systems is an open challenge. A paradigmatic example of non-equilibrium systems are turbulent systems, which are ubiquitous both in natural and synthetic settings, from blood flow to airplanes. Especially wave turbulence is known to be a very difficult problem, challenging to calculate and not easy to measure, as waves of so many different wavelengths are involved. Now scientists based at the University ...

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Technology17 Aug 2023

To improve solar and other clean energy tech, look beyond hardware

To continue reducing the costs of solar energy and other clean energy technologies, scientists and engineers will likely need to focus, at least in part, on improving technology features that are not based on hardware, according to MIT researchers. They describe this finding and the mechanisms behind it in Nature Energy. While the cost of installing a solar energy system has dropped by more than 99 percent since 1980, this new analysis shows that “soft technology” features, such as the codified permitting practices, supply chain management techniques, and system design processes that go into deploying a solar energy plant, contributed only 10 to 15 percent of total ...

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