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Engineering

A quick and easy way to produce anode materials for sodium-ion batteries using microwaves

A research team has developed a process technology that enables ultrafast, 30-second preparation of hard carbon anodes for sodium-ion batteries using microwave induction heating.

Computer Sciences

New algorithm helps read QR codes on uneven surfaces

Sometimes, we try to capture a QR code with a good digital camera on a smartphone, but the reading eventually fails. This usually happens when the QR code itself is of poor image quality, or if it has been printed on surfaces ...

Engineering

Dragonfly wing pattern reinforces vaults and domes better than ancient Roman and tech-generated methods

Skoltech researchers and their colleagues from the University of Granada, Spain, have determined the most efficient ways to reinforce vaults and domes in architecture. The team compared how well various traditional and unconventional ...

Energy & Green Tech

Scientists improve catalytic converter efficiency to cut harmful pollution from hydrogen engines

Hydrogen-burning internal combustion engines offer great promise in the fight against climate change because they are powerful without emitting any earth-warming carbon. They can power heavy-duty trucks and buses and are ...

Engineering

One step closer to fire-safe, recyclable lithium-metal batteries

To power our increasingly electrified society, energy storage technology must evolve and adapt to meet the growing demand. Lithium-ion batteries, already essential to myriad technology, will require dramatic improvements ...

Robotics

'Fake' data helps robots learn the ropes faster

In a step toward robots that can learn on the fly like humans do, a new approach expands training data sets for robots that work with soft objects like ropes and fabrics, or in cluttered environments.

Robotics

Robot overcomes uncertainty to retrieve buried objects

For humans, finding a lost wallet buried under a pile of items is pretty straightforward—we simply remove things from the pile until we find the wallet. But for a robot, this task involves complex reasoning about the pile ...

Automotive

Extra 'eye' movements are the key to better self-driving cars

Andrea Benucci and colleagues at the RIKEN Center for Brain Science has developed a way to create artificial neural networks that learn to recognize objects faster and more accurately. The study, recently published in the ...

Engineering

Squid skin–inspired material is a game changer

Inside a lab in the Calit2 building, Aleksandra Strzelecka opens a drawer, pulls out a small square sheet and hands it to a visitor. The brownish, rubbery material stretches to more than double its original size.

Consumer & Gadgets

Supernumerary virtual robotic arms can feel like part of the body

Research teams at the University of Tokyo, Keio University and Toyohashi University of Technology in Japan have developed a virtual robotic limb system which can be operated by users' feet in a virtual environment as extra, ...

Computer Sciences

Researchers use GPUs to evaluate human brain connectivity

A new GPU-based machine learning algorithm developed by researchers at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) can help scientists better understand and predict connectivity between different regions of the brain.

Energy & Green Tech

New approach reduces EV battery testing time by 75%

Testing the longevity of new electric vehicle battery designs could be four times faster with a streamlined approach, researchers at the University of Michigan have shown.