A research paper by scientists at Beijing Institute of Technology proposed an efficient and safe perception method tailored for the look-and-step behavior of bipedal robots. The new research paper, published on Apr. 23 in the journal Cyborg and Bionic Systems, provide an efficient method for representing the surrounding environment as a hybrid of feasible planar regions and a heightmap. The method consists of 2 subsystems: feasible planar region extraction and heightmap construction. The look-and-step behavior of biped robots requires quickly extracting planar regions and obstacles with limited computing resources. “The look-and-step behavior is a strategy ...

New Orleans, May 19, 2025 – More than 400 underwater sites in the United States are potentially contaminated with unexploded ordnance (UXO) — weapons that did not explode upon deployment, which continue to pose a safety concern. Connor Hodges, a doctoral student at the University of Texas at Austin, studies the changes in the acoustic characteristics of these UXOs after they have been subject to corrosion and biofouling to help detect them underwater. “Many of these sites are in shallow water, potentially posing a threat to human safety, ...

Virginia Tech researchers at the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC have discovered that microscopic structural changes in the aging heart may reduce the risk of irregular heartbeats. Medically known as arrhythmias, irregular heartbeats become more common with age and can lead to health problems. But a new study in JACC Clinical Electrophysiology, a journal of the American College of Cardiology, revealed that a tiny gap between heart cells called the perinexus naturally narrows with age — an adaptation that may help stabilize heart rhythm. The discovery challenges the ...

A new study has found stark differences in the dementia care received by people in richer and poorer neighbourhoods in Quebec, despite the universal health-care system. The research was led by Dr. Claire Godard-Sebillotte, a Professor in McGill University’s Division of Geriatrics and a researcher at the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre. It is the first large-scale study in Quebec to track how social conditions relate to dementia care. The study analyzed health records from about 200,000 people newly diagnosed with dementia between 2000 and 2017. Each patient was followed for a year or until ...

Two Case Western Reserve University engineering faculty have been awarded National Science Foundation (NSF) Faculty Early Career Development Program (CAREER) grants.  Computer scientist An Wang and environmental engineer Bridget Hegarty were each awarded a five-year grant to support their research programs. Hegarty also received a $1 million grant from the Department of Housing and Urban Development. “These two faculty members pursue two very different lines of research, one around democratizing ...

Heart failure represents one of the most significant global health challenges, affecting millions worldwide and requiring subsequent hospitalization for many patients due to complications. For older adults in particular, heart failure rarely exists in isolation, often appearing alongside other chronic conditions that may compound its effects.   Because of this, the relationship between cardiovascular disease, kidney dysfunction, and metabolic disorders (such as diabetes) has gained increased attention in recent years. However, most clinical research on this topic has focused primarily on younger populations and excluded adults over 75—despite ...

Hydrogen is a promising clean energy carrier, but its adoption depends on cost-efficient production. Electrochemical water splitting is a key method, yet it relies on scarce and expensive noble metal catalyst. High-entropy metallic glasses (HEMGs) offer a promising alternative due to their amorphous structure and multi-element synergy. However, they often recrystallize during the formation of nanoporous structures via dealloying. The amorphous phase in HEMGs is vital for water splitting due to its disordered ...

Research Highlights: People who were less active, with a daily average of more than 14 hours of sedentary behavior, were more than twice as likely to have another cardiac event, including heart attack, surgery to treat heart issues (coronary revascularization), or to be hospitalized again within a year after the first cardiac event. In the study of approximately 600 people, ages 21 to 96, replacing 30 minutes of sedentary behavior with light-intensity physical activity reduced the risk of another cardiovascular event or death by 50%, and replacing 30 minutes of sedentary time with 30 minutes ...

PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — A new study by planetary scientists at Brown University and the University of Bern in Switzerland casts doubt on one of the most tantalizing clues that water might be flowing on present-day Mars. For years, scientists have spied strange streaks running down Martian cliffsides and crater walls. Some have interpreted those streaks as liquid flows, suggesting the possibility of currently habitable environments on the Red Planet. But this new study, which used machine ...

ITHACA, N.Y. - People have assumed climate change solutions that sequester carbon from the air into soils will also benefit crop yields. But a new study from Cornell University finds that most regenerative farming practices to build soil organic carbon – such as planting cover crops, leaving stems and leaves on the ground and not tilling – actually reduce yields in many situations. The computer model analysis showed that global adoption of such practices to improve soil health can benefit either ...

We need to learn our letters before we can learn to read and our numbers before we can learn how to add and subtract. The same principles are true with AI, a team of New York University scientists has shown through laboratory experiments and computational modeling. In their work, published in the journal Nature Machine Intelligence, researchers found that when recurrent neural networks (RNNs) are first trained on simple cognitive tasks, they are better equipped to handle more difficult and complex ones later on.  The paper’s authors labeled this form of training kindergarten curriculum learning as it centers on first instilling an ...

New research reveals mountain glaciers across the globe will not recover for centuries – even if human intervention cools the planet back to the 1.5°C limit, having exceeded it. The research, led by the University of Bristol in the UK and the University of Innsbruck in Austria, presents the first global simulations of glacier change up to 2500 under so-called ‘overshoot’ scenarios, when the planet temporarily exceeds the 1.5°C limit up to 3°C before cooling back down. The results, published today in Nature Climate Change, show that such a scenario could result in ...

ROCHESTER, Minn. — A new discovery by Mayo Clinic researchers could mean more donor hearts are available for heart transplant, giving more people a second chance at life. In findings published in Nature Cardiovascular Research, a team led by Mayo Clinic cardiac surgeon Paul Tang, M.D., Ph.D., identified a biological process that contributes to donor heart injury during cold storage. The researchers found that a drug already used to treat heart conditions can prevent this damage. Heart transplantation is the most effective treatment for end-stage heart failure, yet fewer than ...

Fertilizer might be stronger than we thought. A new international study featuring faculty at Binghamton University, State University of New York found that fertilizer can help plants survive short-term periods of extreme drought, findings which could have implications for agriculture and food systems in a world facing climate stressors. “Resources such as nutrients and water have been fundamentally altered by humans on a global scale, and this can disrupt how plants grow,” said Amber Churchill, an assistant professor of ecosystem science at Binghamton University and ...

Researchers have discovered a new molecular process that occurs when donor hearts are preserved in cold storage which contributes to failure after transplant, a study in both humans and animals shows. The team, a collaboration between Michigan Medicine and Mayo Clinic, also found a therapy to reduce that damage using medication that is typically prescribed for high blood pressure.  Investigators say the therapeutic solution can significantly improve the function of donor hearts and increase the distance they can be transported in cold storage. They also believe the mechanism behind the new therapy could be applied ...

Captions  //  Photos on Flickr  //  Video on Youtube    Underwater or aerial vehicles with dimples like golf balls could be more efficient and maneuverable, a new prototype developed at the University of Michigan has demonstrated.   Golf ball dimples cut through pressure drag—the resistance force an object meets when moving through a fluid—propelling the ball 30% further than a smooth ball on average. Taking this as inspiration, a research team developed a spherical prototype with adjustable surface dimples and tested its aerodynamics in a controlled wind tunnel.   "A ...

Francis Crick Institute press release Under strict embargo: 10:00hrs BST Monday 19 May 2025 Peer reviewed Experimental study Cells Family of parasite proteins presents new potential malaria treatment target Researchers from the Francis Crick Institute and the Gulbenkian Institute for Molecular Medicine (GIMM) have shown that the evolution of a family of exported proteins in the malaria-causing parasite Plasmodium falciparum enabled it to infect humans. Targeting these proteins may hold promise for ...

Reform voters enjoy more success on dating apps than Conservative voters, according to new research from the University of Southampton and Harvard University. The study, published in the Journal of Politics found that even left-wing voters are more likely to swipe right (‘like’) on a Reform voter’s profile than a Conservative voter. Dating preferences were heavily split along the left-right divide, with left-wing voters more likely to reject someone on the right than vice-versa. Researchers say increasing polarisation is ...

Pacifiers and thumb-sucking can help soothe babies and ease them to sleep but some parents struggle with knowing when and how to stop these habits, a new national poll suggests. About half of parents say their child currently or previously used a pacifier while a quarter say their child sucked their thumb or fingers, according to the University of Michigan Health C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital National Poll on Children’s Health. Experts point to many benefits of pacifier use and thumb-sucking, with the American Academy of Pediatrics recommending offering pacifiers during sleep to help reduce the risk of sudden infant death syndrome, or SIDS. But some parents polled feel they ...

A new frontier into advancing treatments for children and adults with bone marrow failure, leukaemia and other blood disorders will be achieved under a new partnership between Murdoch Children’s Research Institute (MCRI) and US biotechnology company Retro Biosciences. MCRI, a flagship member of the Melbourne Biomedical Precinct and the Melbourne arm of the international research consortium, the Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Stem Cell Medicine, reNEW, has today announced a significant research and commercial licensing agreement with Retro Biosciences. The agreement will advance a blood ...

Propaganda is not simply a tool of manipulation, and in fact a professor of communication suggests it may even be a necessary skill for any citizen to address global challenges. After carrying out extensive research examining the role of mass persuasion in an era of viral videos, social media campaigns, and global messaging, Professor Nathan Crick says propaganda has become an inescapable part of modern life. In Propaganda: The Basics, Professor Crick suggests propaganda is not merely a tool of deception and instead should be understood as a fundamental aspect of mass communication in a technological society. Redefining propaganda for the digital ...

Press release    Under embargo until 05:01 BST/00:01 ET ‎19th May    Robots learning without us? New study cuts humans from early testing    Humans no longer have exclusive control over training social robots to interact effectively, thanks to a new study from the University of Surrey and the University of Hamburg.     The study, which will be presented at this year’s IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA), introduces a new simulation ...

A powerful new short film, from the FutureNeuro Research Ireland Centre and RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences sheds light on the urgent need to address the impact of climate change on brain health. Produced in collaboration with the International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE) Climate Change Commission, the film calls for urgent action to address the risks posed by rising global temperatures to people living with neurological conditions such as epilepsy, multiple sclerosis and dementia. The film features leading experts including Professor David ...

From cut flowers to felled timber, and from caught fish to butchered meat, we value nature most when it’s dead. But if we can change economic systems and mindsets in support of nature, our planet may start to recover – this is the message from a global team of experts. The authors warn that a lack of an economic and market value for the living natural world has given free rein for the exploitation and destruction of the environment, at a huge cost for animals, plants, Indigenous Peoples, and ultimately, all life on Earth. A forthcoming book, ...

About The Study: A new chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) diagnostic schema integrating respiratory symptoms, respiratory quality of life, spirometry, and structural lung abnormalities on computed tomographic imaging newly classified some individuals as having COPD. These individuals had an increased risk of all-cause and respiratory-related death, frequent exacerbations, and rapid lung function decline compared with individuals classified as not having COPD. Some individuals with airflow obstruction ...