https://techxplore.com/rss-feed/hi-tech-news/ en-us The latest news on hi-tech, innovation and new inventions technology, computer news and information Combining computer graphics, wave optics and AI-based calibration, researchers at The University of Hong Kong (HKU) have developed two techniques that help holographic displays reproduce more natural changes in focus, perspective and material appearance. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-11-ai-graphics-optics-combine-realistic.html Hi Tech & Innovation Tue, 10 Nov 2026 13:40:18 EST news713539415 Researchers at North Carolina State University have developed technology that turns a smartwatch user's forearm into a trackpad, allowing the user to scroll, zoom, click on icons and so on. The system relies on a radar system that tracks the movement of a user's fingers on the forearm and monitors pressure on the skin of the forearm, providing the same level of force-touch detail available on laptop trackpads. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-11-radar-wristband-arm-smartwatch-trackpad.html Consumer & Gadgets Tue, 10 Nov 2026 12:20:25 EST news713533321 To complete many everyday tasks and chores, humans typically use both of their hands. For instance, when opening a bottle, they use one hand to hold the bottle and the other to twist its cap. Researchers at the University of California San Diego recently developed EgoThumb, a robotic thumb that could allow people to complete some tasks that generally require both hands using only one. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-11-extra-robotic-thumb-wearers-tasks.html Robotics Tue, 10 Nov 2026 09:23:22 EST news713524930 Researchers have demonstrated a new password authentication technique for use in virtual reality (VR) settings, which allows users to choose directions rather than numbers. The approach supports the same number of possible combinations as a six-digit numeric password, but is much easier for users to remember. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-11-vr-passwords-recall.html Hi Tech & Innovation Mon, 09 Nov 2026 13:40:15 EST news713449561 When a process needs a burst of heat, a steady supply may not be enough. Storing thermal energy and delivering it quickly are challenges for applications such as sterilization, cleaning or starting up distillation systems. To solve the problem, Rice University engineers turned to laser physics. By applying optics principles to heat transport in fluids, their new system accumulates heat and releases it on demand. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-11-laser-physics-demand.html Energy & Green Tech Fri, 06 Nov 2026 08:40:05 EST news713176681 A special white paint developed at the University of South Florida could offer a new way to cool buildings, reduce energy consumption and lessen reliance on air conditioning. Created in the lab of Distinguished University Professor Yogi Goswami, the innovative self-cooling paint is applied to roofs and reflects up to 98% of sunlight. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-11-newly-home-cooler-energy-bills.html Energy & Green Tech Fri, 06 Nov 2026 06:53:56 EST news713170417 What happens when additive manufacturing meets target fabrication engineering? An impossibly small, submillimeter-scale cone that can be manufactured 10 times faster than before, enabling new target configurations for experiments at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL)'s National Ignition Facility (NIF). https://techxplore.com/news/2026-11-fabrication-precision-additive.html Engineering Fri, 06 Nov 2026 06:04:47 EST news713167461 Scientists at the Brazilian Center for Research in Energy and Materials (CNPEM) in Campinas, São Paulo state, developed an instrument for the Sirius particle accelerator that can observe the interior of solar cells on a nanoscale while they are operating. Rather than analyzing isolated components in a laboratory setting, this new platform enables the evaluation of complete devices generating electricity under real operating conditions. It simulates daily exposure to light, heat and humidity. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-11-instrument-brazil-sirius-enables-solar.html Energy & Green Tech Thu, 05 Nov 2026 16:00:01 EST news713116382 According to projections, the volume of digital data created, captured, copied and consumed worldwide will reach 175 zettabytes (ZB) in 2026. This is equivalent to the storage capacity of billions of hard drives, such as those found in our laptops. With the rise of artificial intelligence, this global 'datasphere' continues to expand at an exponential rate. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-11-autonomous-microfactory-digital-dna-power.html Energy & Green Tech Thu, 05 Nov 2026 14:20:11 EST news713110023 Vitamin B12 is essential for the body's proper functioning and is found in foods of animal origin. It is produced by certain bacteria that, in addition to being found in nature, are cultivated at industrial facilities for commercial use, primarily by the food and pharmaceutical industries. It is beneficial when certain nutritional deficiencies are present, and in recent times it has become popular, along with other B vitamins, as a remedy for hangovers, as it can help reduce fatigue. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-11-rechargeable-battery-prototype-vitamin-b12.html Energy & Green Tech Thu, 05 Nov 2026 13:37:07 EST news713108153 For decades, people using 3D printers have faced a tough decision: print quickly, print parts with fine features or print materials that meet performance requirements. Light-based 3D printers are fast and precise but limited in what materials they can use. Extrusion-based techniques can handle a wider range of functional materials but sacrifice speed and fine details. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-11-3d-chain-mail-method-combines.html Engineering Thu, 05 Nov 2026 11:20:07 EST news713096341 The muscles of the human ear reveal what and how we feel. This is the finding of Dr. Farah Corona-Strauss and Sophie Bonnaire, researchers at the Systems Neuroscience & Neurotechnology Unit in Saarbrücken and Homburg. Their research shows that activity in our ear muscles indicates not only who we are listening to and how attentively, but also the intensity of our emotional response, all within a fraction of a second. The discovery could have important implications for the debate surrounding artificial intelligence, raising the question of what a machine should be permitted to do if it can recognize emotions more accurately than any human. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-11-ears-reveal-machines-super-emotional.html Hi Tech & Innovation Thu, 05 Nov 2026 10:00:08 EST news713093910 Making more efficient, longer-lasting lithium-ion batteries has been a challenge for researchers because adding more mass to the batteries restricts how fast electricity and lithium ions can move. To overcome this challenge, a research team has added graphene mesosponge to batteries to improve their performance during fast discharge. Their results show that graphene mesosponge is highly effective at improving the energy and power densities of commercial lithium-ion batteries. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-11-graphene-networks-lithium-ion-batteries.html Energy & Green Tech Thu, 05 Nov 2026 09:40:01 EST news713093282 A breakthrough has been made toward overcoming both the speed and endurance limitations of low-power memory. A research team led by professor Min Hyuk Park of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at Seoul National University College of Engineering has developed a ferroelectric capacitor that operates rapidly at a voltage as low as 0.6 V and can still distinguish between information states without electrical breakdown after 1 trillion switching cycles. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-11-voltage-capacitor-combines-rapid-trillion.html Electronics & Semiconductors Wed, 04 Nov 2026 17:40:13 EST news713033881 Most virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) displays present virtual objects at a fixed focal distance, creating a mismatch between where the eyes converge and where they focus. Researchers tested a varifocal display that adjusts focus to match virtual-object depth. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-11-focus-displays-virtual-augmented-reality.html Consumer & Gadgets Wed, 04 Nov 2026 10:40:01 EST news713010919 "Diamonds are forever." Or so the saying goes. Texas A&M University College of Engineering and Rice University researchers put that claim to the ultimate test. They forged a diamond composite, then marched it directly into the line of fire, blasting it with aluminum projectiles traveling at more than eight times the speed of sound. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-11-hypersonic-projectiles-ultra-hard-diamond.html Engineering Wed, 04 Nov 2026 05:40:02 EST news712990599 What if the dirtiest water in town could help pay for its own cleanup? That is the question that started our project. Sewage is full of hungry bacteria. It also carries leftover medicines, including antibiotics like chloramphenicol, stubborn molecules that conventional treatment can struggle to remove. Most people see a waste problem. We saw a small power plant and a chemical factory hiding in plain sight. Our study is published in the Journal of Power Sources. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-11-solutions-tackling-antibiotic-pollution-generating.html Energy & Green Tech Tue, 03 Nov 2026 18:40:09 EST news712925318 A McGill-led research team has developed a bacteria-based biocomputer that can solve large, complex problems using a small fraction of the memory and resources required by standard ("solid-state") computers. Possible applications include encryption, molecular biology and artificial intelligence, the researchers said. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-11-biocomputer-explore-multiple-solutions-bacteria.html Computer Sciences Tue, 03 Nov 2026 11:20:16 EST news712926123 What if you could see how rough an object feels, even without touching it? A KAIST research team has developed a technique that makes the roughness of virtual objects visible through changes in the outline of a virtual hand. By allowing users without haptic devices to perceive roughness information visually, the technique enables more effective collaboration in virtual reality (VR) between people using different equipment. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-11-vr-method-visual-cues-collaboration.html Engineering Tue, 03 Nov 2026 10:40:17 EST news712924621 It's hard to ignore the difference: You can fill a car's tank with gas in mere minutes. Charging the battery of an electric vehicle (EV) can take 30 minutes or more. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-11-redesigning-batteries-ultrafast-evs.html Energy & Green Tech Mon, 02 Nov 2026 12:40:12 EST news712841905 Solar cells, devices that can convert sunlight into electricity, are now widely used in many countries worldwide. While most cells on the market today are primarily made of silicon, energy engineers have been exploring the potential of other materials that produce an electrical voltage when light is directed at them. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-10-coating-approach-aligns-molecules-upright.html Energy & Green Tech Mon, 02 Nov 2026 07:00:01 EST news712572145 A moth-shaped robot used an artificial circulatory system to deliver chemical building blocks through its body and grow a light sensor where UV light struck. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-10-robot-moth-uv-sensor-artificial.html Robotics Fri, 30 Oct 2026 13:00:01 EDT news712583401 For decades, event cameras, which emulate the biological retina by continuously monitoring changes in light intensity, have promised to revolutionize how robots perceive the world by allowing them to react faster and operate more reliably than conventional cameras permit. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-10-fast-feature-field-link-event.html Robotics Fri, 30 Oct 2026 11:20:10 EDT news712577402 When electronics need to stretch, bend or flex, like a wearable sensor or a shape-changing robot, liquid metal often carries the electricity that makes them work. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-10-current-liquid-metal-electrical-pathways.html Engineering Thu, 29 Oct 2026 11:20:13 EDT news712491361 Curtin University researchers may have found a new way to help police trace 3D-printed firearms, after developing a new method of analyzing the plastic used to make them. Homemade plastic weapons present a growing challenge for law enforcement globally, due to being privately manufactured without the serial numbers and registration used to trace conventional firearms. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-10-police-3d-ghost-guns.html Hi Tech & Innovation Thu, 29 Oct 2026 09:40:06 EDT news712484461 A joint research team has developed self-powered fibers using a simple spray-coating process that blends two different polymers, eliminating the need for high-voltage equipment. The paper is published in the journal Advanced Composites and Hybrid Materials. The technology is expected to simplify complex conventional fiber fabrication processes and facilitate the manufacturing of smart sensors and wearable electronic devices based on triboelectricity. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-10-spray-coating-power-generating-fibers.html Electronics & Semiconductors Wed, 28 Oct 2026 12:40:10 EDT news712407421 MIT researchers have developed a new type of origami-based construction method that could be used to build complex structures that are cheaper and easier to assemble and use less material than those built with some conventional techniques. This scalable system simplifies the process of designing lightweight, rigid structural shells from modular components that can be fabricated from flat sheets of material and then folded into shape. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-10-origami-based-method-yields-lightweight.html Engineering Tue, 27 Oct 2026 09:40:08 EDT news712312381 Researchers have covered robotic fingers with a new artificial skin that allows the hand to grasp fragile pencil lead and pull away from a needle before it punctures the covering. Both actions depend on more than sensitive sensors. The robot must also receive and interpret their signals quickly enough to respond. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-10-artificial-skin-robots-grasp-pencil.html Robotics Tue, 27 Oct 2026 07:10:02 EDT news712216487 Smartphones and computers process information by switching the current that flows inside semiconductors on and off. The gate electrode delivers the signal that controls this switching. Until now, gate electrodes have typically been made from metals whose electronic properties are fixed. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-10-tunable-gate-electrodes-semiconductors-voltages.html Electronics & Semiconductors Mon, 26 Oct 2026 15:40:16 EDT news712247941 Researchers from China have developed a new 3D-printing process capable of building titanium-alloy rods more than a meter (3.3 feet) tall composed entirely of a single crystal. The new method, described in the team's recently published study in Nature, eliminates some of the constraints associated with conventional crystal-growing methods and opens up new opportunities for technical applications, ranging from reactor components to laser mirrors. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-10-pulsed-3d-resistant-crystals-meter.html Engineering Mon, 26 Oct 2026 12:40:13 EDT news712234833