https://techxplore.com/ en-us Tech Xplore internet news portal provides the latest news on electronics, technology, and engineering. An entirely new predictive typing model can simulate different kinds of users, helping reveal ways to optimize how we use our phones. Developed by researchers at Aalto University, the new model captures the difference between typing with one or two hands and between younger and older users. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-04-team-human.html Machine learning & AI Thu, 18 Apr 2024 17:11:03 EDT news632679062 Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs), mainly used as the power of computer, communication and consumer electronic products, require higher energy density, longer cycling life, faster-charging capability, and a broader operating temperature range to meet the growing consumer demands. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-04-universal-cocktail-electrolyte-ultra-stable.html Electronics & Semiconductors Thu, 18 Apr 2024 16:41:03 EDT news632677261 Every year, the nation's aviation industry uses around 22 billion gallons of jet fuel, which produces about 1 billion tons of carbon dioxide—or 3% of the world's carbon dioxide emissions. Because of this, researchers and policymakers alike are eyeing aviation as an industry ripe with opportunity to lower emissions. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-04-garbage-quarter-petroleum-based-jet.html Energy & Green Tech Thu, 18 Apr 2024 15:47:04 EDT news632674021 Have you ever felt reluctant to share ideas during a meeting because you feared judgment from senior colleagues? You're not alone. Research has shown this pervasive issue can lead to a lack of diversity in public discourse, especially when junior members of a community don't speak up because they feel intimidated. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-04-equitable-discussions-social-media-meronymity.html Internet Thu, 18 Apr 2024 14:01:44 EDT news632667698 The energy density of supercapacitors—battery-like devices that can charge in seconds or a few minutes—can be improved by increasing the 'messiness' of their internal structure. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-04-mess-disordered-battery-devices.html Energy & Green Tech Thu, 18 Apr 2024 14:00:01 EDT news632651908 Facebook parent Meta Platforms unveiled a new set of artificial intelligence systems Thursday that are powering what CEO Mark Zuckerberg calls "the most intelligent AI assistant that you can freely use." https://techxplore.com/news/2024-04-meta-ai-peers-amped-agents.html Machine learning & AI Thu, 18 Apr 2024 13:20:01 EDT news632665024 EPFL researchers are targeting the next generation of soft actuators and robots with an elastomer-based ink for 3D printing objects with locally changing mechanical properties, eliminating the need for cumbersome mechanical joints. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-04-ink-3d-flexible-devices-mechanical.html Robotics Thu, 18 Apr 2024 13:17:50 EDT news632665068 A study, published in Nature Energy, is among the first to explore the floating photovoltaics (FPV) at the continental scale, finding that FPV installed at existing major reservoirs could produce 20–100% of the electricity expected from Africa's planned hydropower dams. Using a state-of-the-art energy planning model covering the continent's entire energy system, the researchers found that FPV is cost-competitive with other renewables and thus a key part of Africa's future energy mix. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-04-solar-potential-sustainable.html Engineering Thu, 18 Apr 2024 12:30:04 EDT news632662199 The energy demands of today's ubiquitous small electronic devices—including sensors, data transmitters, medical implants and 'wearable' consumer products such as Fitbits—can no longer be met by chemical batteries alone. This gap can be filled by energy harvesters, which turn ordinary, ambient vibrational energy into electrical energy. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-04-harvesting-vibrational-energy-noise.html Electronics & Semiconductors Thu, 18 Apr 2024 11:35:32 EDT news632658930 The light-emitting electrochemical cell (LEC) can be fabricated in a sustainable and cost-effective way on both rigid and flexible surfaces making it suitable for a broad range of applications, like illumination, health care, and signage. Despite its potential, this technology faces a significant challenge: a decrease in emission efficiency at higher electrical currents, a phenomenon known as "efficiency roll-off." https://techxplore.com/news/2024-04-energy-losses-emerging-source.html Electronics & Semiconductors Thu, 18 Apr 2024 11:34:39 EDT news632658876 A new robotic suction cup that can grasp rough, curved and heavy stone, has been developed by scientists at the University of Bristol. The team, based at Bristol Robotics Laboratory, studied the structures of octopus biological suckers, which have superb adaptive suction abilities enabling them to anchor to rock. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-04-octopus-suction-mechanism-robots.html Robotics Thu, 18 Apr 2024 09:49:03 EDT news632652542 University of Queensland researchers have built a generator that absorbs carbon dioxide (CO2) to make electricity. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-04-proof-concept-nanogenerator-sustainable-power.html Electronics & Semiconductors Thu, 18 Apr 2024 09:22:04 EDT news632650922 A team of roboticists at the University of California, Berkeley, reports that it is possible to train robots to do relatively simple tasks by using sim-to-real reinforcement learning to train them. In their study, published in the journal Science Robotics, the group trained a robot to walk in unfamiliar environments while it carried different loads, all without toppling over. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-04-sim-real-robots-simple-tasks.html Robotics Thu, 18 Apr 2024 09:09:24 EDT news632649601 A team of roboticists and mechanical and aeronautical engineers at Stanford University has developed a spider-like robot for possible use in exploring caves or lava tubes on Mars. In their paper published in the journal Science Robotics, the group describes their reasons for developing the new robot, their inspiration for the design, and how well it worked when tested in a real-world environment. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-04-spider-robot-explore-caves-mars.html Robotics Thu, 18 Apr 2024 08:59:47 EDT news632649584 Soft skin coverings and touch sensors have emerged as a promising feature for robots that are both safer and more intuitive for human interaction, but they are expensive and difficult to make. A recent study demonstrates that soft skin pads doubling as sensors made from thermoplastic urethane can be efficiently manufactured using 3D printers. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-04-3d-printers-robots-soft.html Robotics Wed, 17 Apr 2024 17:25:03 EDT news632593502 Wind power is a source of energy that is both affordable and renewable. However, decision-makers have been reluctant to invest in wind energy due to a perception that wind farms require a lot of land compared to electric power plants driven by fossil fuels. Research led by McGill University and based on the assessment of the land use of close to 320 wind farms in the U.S. (the largest study of its kind) paints a very different picture. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-04-air-farms-efficient-previously-thought.html Engineering Wed, 17 Apr 2024 17:06:03 EDT news632592361 Within the Netherlands, your mobile phone only uses the masts of your own provider. Other providers' masts can only be used to reach emergency services. As soon as you cross the border, you can switch on roaming to use other masts. This way, roaming enables you to call and text or use the internet while abroad. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-04-national-roaming-resilience-dutch-mobile.html Telecom Wed, 17 Apr 2024 15:30:03 EDT news632586602 A new study from NC State University combines three-dimensional embroidery techniques with machine learning to create a fabric-based sensor that can control electronic devices through touch. The paper is published in the journal Device. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-04-machine-fabric-based-sensor.html Electronics & Semiconductors Wed, 17 Apr 2024 14:52:03 EDT news632584321 Engineers at Princeton University have quantified the cooling benefits of a simple solution for beating urban heat: reflecting solar radiation back from whence it came. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-04-retro-reflectors-future-cities-cool.html Engineering Wed, 17 Apr 2024 11:43:04 EDT news632572981 Skoltech scientists and their colleagues from Shubnikov Institute of Crystallography of RAS and research centers in China, Japan, and Italy have discovered a material for chemical storage of hydrogen that can "soak up" four times as much of this hard-to-contain gas as the current top contenders. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-04-material-hydrogen-storage-confines-troublesome.html Engineering Wed, 17 Apr 2024 11:40:04 EDT news632572801 A research group led by Prof. Ge Ziyi at the Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering of the Chinese Academy of Sciences has proposed a key strategy for optimizing guest components to minimize non-radiative voltage losses and thus achieve high-efficiency ternary organic solar cells (OSCs). https://techxplore.com/news/2024-04-method-high-efficiency-guest-components.html Electronics & Semiconductors Wed, 17 Apr 2024 10:53:07 EDT news632569985 Researchers at Tohoku University and the University of California, Santa Barbara, have unveiled a probabilistic computer prototype. Manufacturable with a near-future technology, the prototype combines a complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) circuit with a limited number of stochastic nanomagnets, creating a heterogeneous probabilistic computer. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-04-energy-efficient-probabilistic-combining-cmos.html Hardware Wed, 17 Apr 2024 09:25:03 EDT news632564701 Robots with wheels could potentially navigate a variety of indoor and outdoor environments, traveling for longer distances and with fewer risks of losing balance. While some wheeled robots have achieved very promising results in recent years, most of them are unable to reliably overcome steps (i.e., surfaces that are raised above ground level). https://techxplore.com/news/2024-04-rimless-wheel-robot-reliably.html Robotics Wed, 17 Apr 2024 06:30:01 EDT news632405700 A team of engineering students at the University of Bath have achieved a world first by becoming the first undergraduates to build and successfully run a hydrogen-fueled engine. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-04-student-team-successfully-hydrogen-powered.html Engineering Wed, 17 Apr 2024 04:07:44 EDT news632545656 Most people do not give the U.S. electric grid a second thought—we flip a switch, and the lights come on. Behind the scenes are thousands of power plants and utilities linked by millions of miles of transmission lines. To make raw electricity useful, grid transformers convert high voltage to lower voltage that millions of households can plug into. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-04-cooler-electric-grid.html Engineering Tue, 16 Apr 2024 16:58:03 EDT news632505481 An international team of scientists has found a way to improve battery design that could produce safer, more powerful lithium batteries. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-04-neutron-powerful-lithium-batteries.html Energy & Green Tech Tue, 16 Apr 2024 16:23:09 EDT news632503387 A combined team of engineers from Tsinghua University and the Beijing National Research Center for Information Science and Technology, both in China, has developed a large-scale diffractive hybrid photonic AI chiplet for use in high-efficiency artificial general intelligence applications. Their paper is published in the journal Science. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-04-taichi-large-scale-diffractive-hybrid.html Hardware Tue, 16 Apr 2024 09:20:01 EDT news632477783 Bipolar membranes are a class of ion-conductive polymers comprised of two oppositely charged layers, known as the cation-exchange and anion-exchange layer. These membranes are central to the functioning of various technologies, including electrolyzers and hydrogen fuel cells. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-04-insight-principles-bipolar-membranes-future.html Energy & Green Tech Tue, 16 Apr 2024 07:50:01 EDT news632396838 Optical neural networks may provide the high-speed and large-capacity solution necessary to tackle challenging computing tasks. However, tapping their full potential will require further advances. One challenge is the reconfigurability of optical neural networks. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-04-photonic-machine-lays-foundation-reconfigurable.html Hi Tech & Innovation Tue, 16 Apr 2024 05:00:02 EDT news632398382 Samsung regained its position as the top smartphone seller, wresting back the lead from Apple as Chinese rivals close the gap on both market leaders, industry tracker International Data Corporation (IDC) reported Monday. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-04-samsung-smartphone-industry-tracker.html Consumer & Gadgets Tue, 16 Apr 2024 04:18:33 EDT news632459908