Hi Tech & Innovation news

Electronics & Semiconductors

Single transistor design combines memory and signal processing for brain-inspired computing

As artificial intelligence moves increasingly toward edge devices, researchers are exploring electronic components that can combine memory and information processing. Memristive and synaptic devices are of particular interest ...

Hardware

Voltage-controlled photonic chip could make smart-glasses displays more efficient

Smart glasses need compact, efficient displays that can produce detailed images without drawing too much power. Laser beam scanning is one approach to meeting these requirements. Rather than using a fixed array of pixels, ...

Engineering

Flaws become reinforcements: Engineered crystal defects strengthen metals without changing their chemistry

Scientists have found a way to use defects in crystals to engineer stronger materials, according to a new study.

Hi Tech & Innovation

Mini brain organoids 'read' braille in key step toward biohybrid computing

Could computers include tiny brain organoids one day? The human brain is an incredibly energy-efficient computer, and silicon processors that try to imitate it achieve huge energy savings over traditional processors. Now ...

Engineering

Elon Musk unveils Tesla's 'flying' car

Tesla CEO Elon Musk unveiled what he described as a "flying" car, equipped with thrusters, during a livestreamed event at his SpaceX rocket company's facility on Thursday.

Engineering

AI and symmetry speed design of sound-absorbing fabrics

Woven textiles can do more than provide softness and strength. Their microscopic arrangement of yarns can also influence how sound travels through a material. However, finding suitable over-and-under yarn patterns is a difficult ...

Engineering

Metal alloys defy the deep freeze, staying tough at -253°C

Scientists have discovered a class of metal that can unexpectedly resist extreme cold using an unusual mechanism. Normally such temperatures would make similar materials brittle and vulnerable to breaking. The findings, published ...

Hi Tech & Innovation

AI can help run factories better: Thesis sharpens the 3D models

Digital twins are virtual 3D replicas of real spaces such as factories, warehouses and industrial plants. Companies use them to monitor equipment, plan maintenance and simulate changes without disrupting operations.

Hi Tech & Innovation

How bionic eyes are becoming a reality

If you've delved into the worlds of "Star Trek," "The Terminator" or William Gibson's cyberpunk novel "Neuromancer," you'll know that enhanced electronic vision is a staple of science fiction. Now, what was once futuristic ...

Energy & Green Tech

Zinc-air batteries gain new momentum with long-lasting catalyst

Zinc-air batteries can store significantly more energy than lithium-ion batteries, but until now have been virtually impossible to recharge. A team led by Professor Jörg J. Schneider from the Department of Chemistry has now ...

Electronics & Semiconductors

Innovative design unlocks resilient semiconductor materials

Semiconductors such as silicon are the cornerstone of today's essential technologies, but the variety of materials available to power devices is limited. While metal oxides are durable, only a small subset are semiconducting ...

Energy & Green Tech

ZiaCore microreactor successfully achieves criticality

The emerging technology of advanced nuclear microreactors offers solutions to many modern energy challenges. The ZiaCore design, a low-enriched uranium dioxide-fueled microreactor developed by Los Alamos National Laboratory, ...

Consumer & Gadgets

Prototype glasses can turn infrared into color vision

The human eye, as good as it is, misses out on so much of the world because it is limited in what it can perceive. It can't see X-rays, ultraviolet rays or infrared light. While X-ray goggles are still the stuff of science ...

Energy & Green Tech

Energy-efficient electric drying with superheated steam

Drying is widely used across many sectors, including the paper, cement and chemical industries. It is a key step in the production, processing and treatment of minerals, food or detergents, for example.

Hi Tech & Innovation

AI reduces sensory hallucinations, even at night or in smoke

Multimodal large language models (MLLMs), which process multiple types of sensory information, such as text, images and audio, at the same time, are rapidly expanding the range of applications for artificial intelligence ...

Robotics

Muscle radar unlocks potential for future robotic limbs

University of Queensland researchers have developed new noninvasive sensors that measure muscle forces, unlocking new possibilities for wearable robotic mobility devices. Ultra-wideband radar sensors measure electromagnetic ...

Robotics

This robot can snuff out wildfires with a cryogenic spray

About 20 years ago, Yiannis Levendis, a professor of mechanical and industrial engineering at Northeastern University, was working on an experiment to find an alternative to coal—grinding up old car and truck tires and burning ...

Engineering

Charging drones mid-flight with lasers

Wireless charging is nothing new for our phones, watches, earbuds and other tech. Now, researchers want to bring wireless power to the skies—recharging drones in flight by beaming a laser under their wings.

Hi Tech & Innovation

An AI-powered Braille learning system

In an increasingly audio-driven world, the University of Houston's Product Experience Design (PXD) Lab is creating new pathways to Braille literacy for blind and low-vision learners. With a new two-device learning system ...