Research News
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Nanomaterials help spiders spin the toughest stuff
Spiders’ silk is already tough stuff – just ask your friendly neighbourhood Spiderman. But now, researchers in Italy and the UK have found a way to make Spidey’s silk a lot stronger, using various different spider species and carbon nanotubes or graphene. The research team, led by Professor Nicola Pugno at the University of Trento, […]
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Cognitive hearing aid filters out the noise
US engineers have made a major advance in helping hearing-impaired people follow a conversation in a noisy environment, with a new method that brings cognitive hearing aids a step closer to reality. People who are hearing impaired have a difficult time following a conversation in a multi-speaker environment such as a noisy restaurant or a […]
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Analysis highlights failings in US’s advanced nuclear program
Despite repeated promises over the past 18 years, the US Office of Nuclear Energy (NE) is unlikely to deliver on its mission to develop and demonstrate an advanced nuclear reactor by the mid-21st century. That is the conclusion of a new study from the University of California, San Diego and Carnegie Mellon University, published today […]
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Colour-shifting electronic skin could have wearable tech and prosthetic uses
The ability of some animals, including chameleons, octopus, and squid, to change their skin colour for camouflage, temperature control, or communication is well known. While science has been able to replicate these abilities with artificial skin, the colour changes are often only visible to the naked eye when the material is put under huge mechanical […]
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Networking is key for cells during bone formation
A new study into the way bone cells organise during bone formation could open the door to a better understanding of diseases such as osteoporosis. The research, led by the Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces in Potsdam, Germany, used an interdisciplinary approach combining biology, medicine and physics to analyse the osteocyte lacuno-canalicular network […]
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Mathematical modelling could help with personalised cancer care
A new study from the University of Southern California could pave the way for improving personalised lung cancer care and treatment. The research used mathematical modelling to examine if there was a link between the molecular and anatomical properties of lung cancer metastases, and whether this has an influence on how they spread through the […]
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Robots take inspiration from insects to track targets
The way insects visualise and hunt their prey could help improve autonomous robotic technology, according to a pioneering new study conducted by a team of engineers and neuroscientists from The University of Adelaide and Lund University. The research, published today in the Journal of Neural Engineering, developed an autonomous robot to test a target and […]
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The most effective individual steps to tackle climate change aren’t being discussed
Governments and schools are not communicating the most effective ways for individuals to reduce their carbon footprints, according to new research. Published today in the journal Environmental Research Letters, the study from Lund University, found that the incremental changes advocated by governments may represent a missed opportunity to reduce greenhouse gas emissions beneath the levels […]
