… by developing full-color fiber LEDs based on perovskite quantum wires. A research team led by the School of Engineering of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) has developed full-color fiber light-emitting diodes utilizing perovskite quantum wires (PeQWs), paving the way for innovative wearable lighting and display devices. Fiber light-emitting diodes (Fi-LEDs) stand out as a key component in the realm of flexible LEDs because of their compatibility with textile fabrication and excellent spatial luminance uniformity. Metal…
Darwin was puzzled by cooperation in nature—it ran directly against natural selection and the notion of survival of the fittest. But over the past decades, evolutionary mathematicians have used game theory to better understand why mutual cooperation persists when evolution should favour self-serving cheaters. At a basic level, cooperation flourishes when the costs to cooperation are low or the benefits large. When cooperation becomes too costly, it disappears—at least in the realm of pure mathematics. Symbiotic relationships between species—like those…
… comes together with PPPL’s contributions. First plasma is coming soon to the University of Seville’s compact spherical tokamak called SMART. Like atoms coming together to release their power, fusion researchers worldwide are joining forces to solve the world’s energy crisis. Harnessing the power of fusing plasma as a reliable energy source for the power grid is no easy task, requiring global contributions. The Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) — a U.S. national laboratory funded by the Department of Energy (DOE) — is leading several efforts on this…
Carnegie Mellon University’s EgoTouch creates simple interfaces for virtual and augmented reality. The new generation of augmented and virtual reality controllers may not just fit in the palm of your hand. They could be the palm of your hand. A recent paper by researchers in Carnegie Mellon University’s Human-Computer Interaction Institute introduces EgoTouch, a tool that uses AI to control AR/VR interfaces by touching your skin with a finger. The team wanted to ultimately design a control that would provide tactile feedback using only…
Researchers from the Organoid group (previously Clevers group) at the Hubrecht Institute have developed a new organoid that mimics the human fetal pancreas, offering a clearer view of its early development. The researchers were able to recreate a complete structure that includes the three key cell types in the pancreas, which previous organoids couldn’t fully mimic. Notably, the team identified a new stem cell that develops into the three cell types. These findings, published in Cell on December 2nd, could help…
Foundation for new cancer treatment strategies. A team led by researchers at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) has, for the first time, grown tumor organoids – three-dimensional miniature tumors in the laboratory – that mimic the different structures and characteristics of pancreatic cancer. The scientists investigated how the various tumor organoids react to established and novel treatments. This opens the door to the development of effective new therapies. Pancreatic cancer ranks among the most lethal cancers, with an exceptionally…
Salt pollution in freshwater is a growing global concern. Excessive salt harms plants, degrades soil, and compromises water quality. In urban areas, road salts used for de-icing during winter often wash into stormwater systems, posing health concerns and challenges for infrastructure. Specifically, salts can impact the processes like filtration and contaminate retention basins that are used to manage and treat urban stormwater runoff. Megan Rippy, assistant professor in civil and environmental engineering, is on a mission to understand how salt affects plants in…
UCalgary scientist says it’s important to determine what happened and what can be learned Experts from the global Earth science community – including a scientist from the University of Calgary – have pieced together what happened during the massive Sikkim flood to try to help others prepare for similar disasters. On Oct. 3, 2023, a multi-hazard cascade in the Sikkim Himalaya, India, was triggered by a permanently frozen (permafrost) lateral moraine – debris from erosion along a glacier – collapsing…
Potential new therapy for childhood brain cancer is effective in infiltrating, killing tumor cells in preclinical models in mice Brain cancer is the second-leading cause of death in children in the developed world. For the children who survive, standard treatments have long-term impacts on their development and quality of life, particularly in small children and infants. Research out of Emory University and QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute in Queensland, Australia, has shown that a potential new targeted therapy for childhood brain cancer is…
A new international study highlights the severity of climate change impacts across African mountains, how farmers are adapting, and the barriers they face – findings relevant to people living in mountain regions around the world. “Mountains are the sentinels of climate change,” said Julia Klein, a Colorado State University professor of ecosystem science and sustainability and co-author of the study. “Like the Arctic, some of the first extreme changes we’re seeing are happening in mountains, from glaciers melting to extreme…
Previous exposures to older flu strains prime the immune system to produce antibodies against H5N1, and children would likely benefit the most from H5N1 vaccinations Prior exposures to specific types of seasonal influenza viruses promote cross-reactive immunity against the H5N1 avian influenza virus, according to new research from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. Older adults who were exposed to seasonal flu viruses that circulated prior to 1968 were found to be more likely to have…
Rice University’s Scott Solomon, a biologist, science communicator and teaching professor in the Department of Biosciences, has been named a 2025 Piper Professor by the Minnie Stevens Piper Foundation, one of the most prestigious accolades awarded to educators in Texas. The award honors professors for exceptional teaching and service to students and is given annually to 10 faculty members from colleges and universities across the state. Each recipient receives a $5,000 honorarium and a place in the distinguished roster of Piper Professors, which…
A small deletion in a gene on the X-chromosome lies behind the fiery coats of ginger tabbies and the splotchy orange patches of calicos and tortoiseshell cats. Fukuoka, Japan – From Tama, Japan’s most famous stationmaster calico cat, to the lasagna-loving, ginger Garfield, cats with orange fur are both cultural icons and beloved pets. But their distinctive color comes with a genetic twist-most orange tabbies are male, while calicos and tortoiseshells are nearly always female. This pattern points to an…
SAN ANTONIO — August 18, 2025 — A team led by Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) has confirmed decades-old theoretical models of magnetic reconnection — the explosive process that releases stored magnetic energy and powers solar flares, coronal mass ejections, and other space weather events. The breakthrough comes from data gathered by NASA’s Parker Solar Probe (PSP), the first spacecraft to fly directly through the Sun’s upper atmosphere. Understanding Magnetic Reconnection Magnetic reconnection occurs when magnetic field lines in plasma break…
Embargo until September, 6 2001
E-BioSci is a new, next generation scientific information service initiated by EMBO to meet the future needs of researchers in the life sciences and funded by the European Commission with 2,4 million Euro over three years. The service – aimed at establishing Europe’s leadership in one of the most important and fast moving scientific fields of our day – will offer scientists and other researchers new forms of navigation through the dramatically increasing floo
Researchers find two new leads for anti-anthrax drugs.
As fears over bioterrorism attacks spiral, researchers are making progress towards better anthrax drugs – but these are unlikely to reach the drugstore soon.
Of ten confirmed anthrax cases in the United States by Monday, four have been of the severe, inhaled form against which antibiotics often fail. By the time drugs destroy the bacteria responsible, Bacillus anthracis, the organisms have released enough lethal toxin t
A balanced portfolio of programs could mean a faster quantum computer.
Strategies from the world of finance could help get the best out of quantum computers, say US researchers 1 . The right portfolio of programs could solve a problem many times faster than a single strategem.
Quantum computers – purely hypothetical as yet – would be fast, but you could never be sure whether a program was going to work or not. You would have to keep running the program until
Astronomers from the University of Pennsylvania, in collaboration with an international team of researchers, have made the first direct detection and measurement of the properties of a dark matter object in the Milky Way.
This observation of a gravitational microlensing event — a temporary increase in the brightness of a background star during the time it takes dark matter to pass in front of it — is reported in today’s issue of Nature.
“By measuring its mass, distance and velocity, w
A fast, sensitive laboratory test that measures the molecular components involved during the critical moment when HIV infects a normal cell has been developed.
The advance was made by researchers in the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine and VA San Diego Healthcare System.
Described in the December 2001 issue of the Journal of Biological Chemistry (JBC), the test makes it possible to study and design new compounds to block the action of these molecular componen
Knitted pullovers protect penguins from oil discharge
Knitters around the world have pulled together to save thousands of oil-soaked little penguins on Phillip Island, southern Australia.
Ten thousand penguin-sized, pure-wool jumpers have flooded into the offices of the Tasmanian Conservation Trust in response to their call for emergency insulation for a vulnerable population of world’s smallest penguins – sometimes known as fairy penguins.
In mid-December 2001 a cru