Hi Tech & Innovation news

Energy & Green Tech

Three-mode smart window cut indoor temperature by 27°C and eliminate urban glare

In the building sector, which accounts for approximately 40% of global energy consumption, heat ingress through windows has been identified as a primary cause of wasted heating and cooling energy.

Energy & Green Tech

Photosynthetic living material uses bacteria to capture CO₂ in two different ways

Researchers are developing a living material that actively extracts carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Photosynthetic cyanobacteria grow inside it, forming biomass and solid minerals and thus binding CO2 in two different ...

Electronics & Semiconductors

Tiny gallium nitride transistors boost chip speed and efficiency in new 3D design

The advanced semiconductor material gallium nitride will likely be key for the next generation of high-speed communication systems and the power electronics needed for state-of-the-art data centers.

Electronics & Semiconductors

Perovskite-based image sensors promise higher sensitivity and resolution than silicon

Image sensors are built into every smartphone and every digital camera. They distinguish colors in a similar way to the human eye. In our retinas, individual cone cells recognize red, green and blue (RGB). In image sensors, ...

Telecom

The transatlantic race to create the television

Number 1519 Connecticut Avenue lies just north of Dupont Circle, just over a 20-minute walk from the White House in Washington DC. In 1921, the inventor Charles Francis Jenkins set up his laboratory and offices there, upstairs ...

Electronics & Semiconductors

World's first non-silicon 2D computer developed

Silicon is king in the semiconductor technology that underpins smartphones, computers, electric vehicles and more, but its crown may be slipping, according to a team led by researchers at Penn State.

Energy & Green Tech

Window-sized device taps the air for safe drinking water

Today, 2.2 billion people in the world lack access to safe drinking water. In the United States, more than 46 million people experience water insecurity, living with either no running water or water that is unsafe to drink. ...

Hi Tech & Innovation

Uber to launch driverless taxis in London next year

Ride-hailing firm Uber will launch self-driving taxis in London next year when England trials new driverless services, the firm and the UK government said on Tuesday.

Robotics

Light and AI drive precise motion in soft robotic arm

Researchers at Rice University have developed a soft robotic arm capable of performing complex tasks such as navigating around an obstacle or hitting a ball, guided and powered remotely by laser beams without any onboard ...

Engineering

Wearable device helps blind people detect obstacles

Researchers from the São Paulo State University (UNESP) and the Federal University of Espírito Santo (UFES) in Brazil have developed a wearable device to help visually impaired people move around. The technology has tactile ...

Energy & Green Tech

Interlocked electrodes push silicon battery lifespan beyond limits

As demand surges for batteries that store more energy and last longer—powering electric vehicles, drones, and energy storage systems—a team of South Korean researchers has introduced an approach to overcome a major limitation ...

Hi Tech & Innovation

Baidu plans self-driving taxi tests in Europe this year

Chinese tech giant Baidu plans to start testing self-driving taxis in Europe for the first time by the end of this year, a source with knowledge of the matter confirmed to AFP on Wednesday.

Energy & Green Tech

UK lab promises air-con revolution without polluting gases

The soft, waxy "solid refrigerant" being investigated in a UK laboratory may not look very exciting, but its unusual properties promise an air-conditioning revolution that could eliminate the need for greenhouse gases.

Engineering

'Countersnapping' structures shrink when pulled

When you pull something—like a rubber band—you expect it to get longer. But what if it did the opposite? What if it suddenly shrank instead? In a study published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, researchers ...