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 As global demand for electricity storage grows alongside the rise of renewable energy and AI-driven data centers, researchers are racing to find battery technologies that can store large amounts of energy cheaply and safely over long periods. Soluble lead flow batteries are a strong candidate: They are inexpensive, easy to scale up and built from lead that can be recycled from the existing lead-acid battery supply chain. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-07-smarter-interfaces-longer-soluble-batteries.html Energy & Green Tech Tue, 14 Jul 2026 08:40:10 EDT news703232958 A new artificial intelligence system developed by West Virginia University engineers could help firefighters respond to wildfires sooner by enabling satellites to detect blazes and automatically adjust their positions for continued monitoring. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-07-ai-satellite-tracking-wildfires.html Hi Tech & Innovation Tue, 14 Jul 2026 07:30:03 EDT news703232945 An international team has patented a portable water filtration device designed to help communities access safer drinking water during droughts, floods and water contamination events. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-07-patented-portable-filter-climate-stressed.html Energy & Green Tech Mon, 13 Jul 2026 20:40:01 EDT news703149155 Infrared cameras can be used to spot useful information that our eyes can't see, such as gases escaping from a pipeline, chemicals in the atmosphere or heat leaking from a building. But sensing infrared light in sophisticated ways still requires expensive, bulky systems. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-07-tiny-chip-mid-infrared-gases.html Hardware Mon, 13 Jul 2026 09:40:51 EDT news703154420 Researchers in chemistry and materials science at Kiel University are working with partners to develop new water sources for the Mediterranean region. "Regions like these are facing rising temperatures and declining rainfall. Our goal is to develop an environmentally friendly technology that converts water molecules from the air into drinking water," says Professor Norbert Stock from CAU's Institute of Inorganic Chemistry. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-07-porous-material-liters-daily-dry.html Energy & Green Tech Mon, 13 Jul 2026 09:00:03 EDT news703149318 Imagine using a wearable device so thin and discreet that you'd hardly be aware you were wearing it. Now Tufts engineers have created flexible electronics that could do just that. Made of thread-based integrated circuits that can bend, coil, stretch and conform to the body's contours and movements, the devices are designed to exist free-form, sewn into clothing or wrapped around curved and movable surfaces. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-07-thread-based-electronics-conform-body.html Electronics & Semiconductors Mon, 13 Jul 2026 08:40:07 EDT news703149198 While security systems based on pseudo-random number generators (PRNGs) have been developed to secure information use, they produce sequences that are not truly random and suffer from inherent vulnerabilities and security breaches. To overcome these limitations, a true random number generator (TRNG) that exploits diverse sources of physical entropy has emerged as an alternative technology. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-07-driven-random-generator-image.html Hi Tech & Innovation Mon, 13 Jul 2026 08:00:01 EDT news703144518 For decades, manufacturing plastic-bonded high explosives, or PBXs, has relied on legacy processes like slurry coating. In this method, explosive crystals are mixed with a binder, a polymer that helps hold the material together, to form small granules called prills. Those prills are then pressed into dense explosive parts. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-07-pellet-method-safer-high-explosive.html Engineering Thu, 09 Jul 2026 17:10:01 EDT news702822260 Most people think of the waterfront as the edge of the city. A team of MIT researchers sees it as a dynamic, Lego-like construction site. Their new system, called "FloatForm," is a swarm of small square robotic boats that assemble themselves into larger structures on the water, break apart and reassemble into something new, all with minimal human direction. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-07-small-aquatic-robots-reconfigurable.html Robotics Thu, 09 Jul 2026 15:00:01 EDT news702822101 In creating a comprehensive, AI-enabled research agent for the biomedical sciences, Stanford University researchers hope to speed innovation by eliminating the tedium of scientific legwork. Biomni, an AI-powered, multiskilled biomedical research agent, is no mere chatbot. It is a full-fledged "co-scientist" capable of designing and developing complex research workflows, said Jure Leskovec, the Alfred and Rebecca Lin Professor and professor of computer science in the School of Engineering and senior author of the paper introducing Biomni in the journal Science. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-07-biomni-ai-powered-biomedical-scientist.html Hi Tech & Innovation Thu, 09 Jul 2026 14:00:05 EDT news702794170 Ladder-type oligothiophenes are an important class of sulfur-containing π-conjugated molecules. Because their fused, ladder-like structures can support efficient electronic interactions, they are widely studied as core motifs for organic semiconductors, organic field-effect transistors, flexible electronics and related molecular materials. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-07-molecular-ladders-electronics.html Electronics & Semiconductors Thu, 09 Jul 2026 10:00:12 EDT news702808415 Powered by collaborative and empathic design, the next generation of designers and engineers are working to make life easier for wheelchair and mobility device users. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-07-student-mountable-wheelchair-disability-studio.html Engineering Thu, 09 Jul 2026 07:00:03 EDT news702793321 With help from a small transistor, a team of researchers led by Professor Fengnian Xia figured out a way to make a type of thermal imaging technology dramatically more accurate. The results are published in Nature Sensors. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-07-small-transistor-sharpens-thermal-cameras.html Electronics & Semiconductors Wed, 08 Jul 2026 10:50:01 EDT news702724674 A Korean research team has developed a technology that enhances the lifespan and stability of all-solid-state batteries by using a rubber-like, elastic ion-conductive material. The research was published in Energy Storage Materials. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-07-elastic-layer-sulfide-solid-state.html Energy & Green Tech Wed, 08 Jul 2026 10:00:10 EDT news702722030 Beyond bendable and foldable displays, the era of stretchable displays—whose screens can expand freely like rubber—is now emerging. KAIST researchers have developed a core technology that allows text, images and other on-screen information to retain their original shape even when the screen is stretched by up to 15%. The achievement is expected to help solve the problem of image distortion and accelerate the commercialization of next-generation, high-quality stretchable displays. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-07-core-display-technology-image-distortion.html Consumer & Gadgets Wed, 08 Jul 2026 09:29:30 EDT news702721728 University of Utah researchers have demonstrated a new method of 3D printing that avoids the leaky seams that come with the layer-by-layer process. Using a nanoscale "mask" that diffracts laser light into a holographic pattern of the desired shape, it fuses its print material solid in one shot. The process takes about 20 seconds, a stark contrast to the hours other laser-based printing methods can take. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-07-holographic-printer-3d-shot.html Engineering Tue, 07 Jul 2026 14:20:01 EDT news702648288 Recent technological advances have opened valuable possibilities for supporting people with motor impairments or who are recovering from injuries to the brain, spinal cord or nerves. Millions of people worldwide currently experience difficulty moving their hands or other parts of their body. Some of these motor impairments are associated with progressive neurodegenerative diseases, such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), while others are the result of neurological damage caused by an injury or a stroke. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-07-soft-exoskeleton-function-people-motor.html Robotics Tue, 07 Jul 2026 10:30:01 EDT news702638755 A battery that "talks" does not use words—it communicates through data. Researchers at Kiel University have demonstrated how sensors inside a battery cell can transmit measurement data to the outside without the need for additional communication wires. Instead, the system uses the existing power connections as well as the electronics that already control the battery's charging and discharging process. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-07-talkative-batteries-battery-cells-temperature.html Energy & Green Tech Tue, 07 Jul 2026 07:40:06 EDT news702627739 When Vietnamese athlete Nguyen Thanh Hien Linh stepped into her first virtual taekwondo competition in Singapore in 2024, she had little idea what she was doing. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-07-virtual-taekwondo-debut-asian-games.html Consumer & Gadgets Tue, 07 Jul 2026 04:11:32 EDT news702616276 You're in a dance club bathed in a neon-purple glow, surrounded by ghostly silhouettes that sway to the music. A stranger at the bar greets you with a flirty wave: "Hey, you look so cute!" Sparks fly. It's all part of a virtual reality game called Rekindle, but the narrative seems real enough that you feel giddy. You break into what's known as a genuine Duchenne smile—the kind where your mouth corners lift and your eyes squint a little. The biometric software in the headset you're wearing scans your face and checks your muscle movements against the 70 that are involved in typical expressions. You're happy, and your gaming PC knows it. You sink deeper into the story. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-07-vr-game-tracks-player-emotions.html Consumer & Gadgets Mon, 06 Jul 2026 18:40:01 EDT news702552980 Over the past few decades, engineers have developed various devices that can create holograms, three-dimensional (3D) or two-dimensional (2D) images produced by precisely controlling the shape and direction of traveling light waves. Holograms are now widely used to produce visual representations of objects and to measure their physical properties, authenticate documents or bank cards, and serve as visualization tools in some educational settings. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-07-programmable-metasurface-generates-dozens-holograms.html Engineering Mon, 06 Jul 2026 08:00:01 EDT news702543501 Researchers from Skoltech have devised a way to detect infrared radiation across a wide range without cooling the detector. This promises cheaper and smaller contactless thermometers and sensors for medicine, industry, fire and chemical hazard monitoring. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-07-carbon-nanotube-infrared-sensors-thermal.html Engineering Mon, 06 Jul 2026 06:56:21 EDT news702539753 Superconductivity, a phenomenon in which electricity flows without resistance, is considered the core of quantum computers and next-generation power technologies. However, the exact states electrons undergo before superconductivity emerges have not yet been fully elucidated. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-06-superconductivity-unveiling-hidden-electrons.html Electronics & Semiconductors Sat, 04 Jul 2026 08:00:06 EDT news702032602 Lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries combine the abundance and affordability of sulfur with an energy storage capability far beyond that of current lithium-ion technologies. Practical deployment, however, has been slowed by a longstanding challenge known as polysulfide shuttling, whereby dissolved sulfur intermediates migrate within the battery, leading to active-material loss and premature performance decay. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-07-cof-graphene-hybrid-horizons-lithium.html Energy & Green Tech Fri, 03 Jul 2026 09:00:10 EDT news702287281 Additive manufacturing, such as 3D printing, provides an excellent opportunity to design metamaterials: materials with an engineered structure that leads to desired properties such as, for instance, resistance to vibrations. However, a major challenge was that the predicted metamaterial response often failed to match real-world behavior. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-07-blame-machine-3d-metamaterials.html Engineering Thu, 02 Jul 2026 17:00:01 EDT news702229802 Rowan University researchers have demonstrated a new method for repairing damage in advanced composite materials, offering a faster, more effective alternative to conventional repair techniques used in industries such as aerospace, automotive, infrastructure, maritime and energy production. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-07-polymer-cold-spray-strength-composite.html Engineering Thu, 02 Jul 2026 13:40:03 EDT news702217622 Solving complex optimization problems is central to many modern technologies, from logistics and financial modeling to chip design, communications and artificial intelligence (AI). However, as these problems grow in size, conventional computers often require substantial time and energy to search for good solutions. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-07-spintronic-hardware-faster-energy-optimization.html Hardware Thu, 02 Jul 2026 12:00:06 EDT news702211388 Businesses are facing an increasing shortage of skilled workers. In some industries, like the logistics sector, specialists are so scarce that many companies have to rely on career changers and unskilled workers. What's more, the sector is characterized by high staff turnover and the need to hire additional temporary staff to handle seasonal peaks. Training new, inexperienced staff members in complex work processes can be time-consuming. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-07-laser-based-workers-warehouses.html Business Wed, 01 Jul 2026 22:00:01 EDT news702117332 In the underwater world, sound is the primary means of communication, as light quickly fades. A Korean research team has developed an underwater acoustic lens capable of focusing sound precisely at a desired point while reducing weight by about 40% compared with conventional designs. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-07-cavity-based-underwater-lens-focuses.html Engineering Wed, 01 Jul 2026 15:20:01 EDT news702136381 Most prosthetic hands today still struggle with a fundamental problem: No two amputees are the same, yet most devices are designed as if they are. That mismatch makes natural, intuitive control difficult, often turning what should feel like a seamless extension of the body into something that requires constant learning and adjustment. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-07-custom-prosthetic-user-decoding-gestures.html Engineering Wed, 01 Jul 2026 11:00:20 EDT news702121762