/ en-us Â鶹ÒùÔº internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Â鶹ÒùÔºics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. A few years ago, researchers in Michal Lipson's lab noticed something remarkable. They were working on a project to improve LiDAR, a technology that uses lightwaves to measure distance. The lab was designing high-power chips that could produce brighter beams of light. /news/2025-10-powerful-precise-multi-lasers-chip.html Optics & Photonics Tue, 07 Oct 2025 09:22:04 EDT news679047721 A team of scientists from the University of Chicago, the University of California Berkeley, Argonne National Laboratory, and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory has developed molecular qubits that bridge the gap between light and magnetism—and operate at the same frequencies as telecommunications technology. The advance, published today in Science, establishes a promising new building block for scalable quantum technologies that can integrate seamlessly with existing fiber-optic networks. /news/2025-10-molecular-qubits-communicate-telecom-frequencies.html Optics & Photonics Quantum Â鶹ÒùÔºics Thu, 02 Oct 2025 17:02:04 EDT news678643321 This week, researchers pinned down the age of a complete Homo-genus skull found in Greece in 1960 to at least 286,000 years old. Medical researchers reported that the majority of chronic pain patients discontinue cannabis use within one year. And engineers prototyped solar trees, a new solar technology designed with natural tree morphology that can be incorporated into natural branches in the upper canopies of trees while allowing light to penetrate to underlying vegetation. /news/2025-08-saturday-citations-general-gas-giants.html Other Sat, 23 Aug 2025 08:00:03 EDT news675081846 It might start as a joke, a belief, or a rumor. At first, it's easy to dismiss. But then it gains a twist, builds momentum, and spreads like wildfire. What causes some ideas to die out while others take over the internet? /news/2025-08-cascades-ideas-beliefs-digital-age.html Mathematics Social Sciences Thu, 21 Aug 2025 17:02:03 EDT news675014521 A new study highlights how disruptions in classifieds impacted political coverage, creating opportunities for more extreme candidates. /news/2025-08-craigslist-fuel-america-political-polarization.html Economics & Business Political science Mon, 18 Aug 2025 09:46:58 EDT news674729213 Is it wizardry? Â鶹ÒùÔºicists at the University of Konstanz have succeeded in changing the properties of a material in a non-thermal way with the help of light and magnons. The new process is not only promising for information technology, but possibly for quantum research, too—at room temperature. /news/2025-07-magic-magnons-material-properties-thermally.html Quantum Â鶹ÒùÔºics Wed, 16 Jul 2025 10:38:00 EDT news671881074 Scientists from Skoltech, the Institute of Nanotechnology of Microelectronics, RAS, and other research centers have refined the understanding of how plasma treatment of carbon-based electrodes affects the key characteristics of supercapacitors. These are energy storage devices that complement batteries in electric cars, trains, port cranes, and elsewhere. /news/2025-04-nitrogen-argon-plasma-boosts-carbon.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Thu, 03 Apr 2025 11:19:04 EDT news662897941 MIT aerospace engineers have found that greenhouse gas emissions are changing the environment of near-Earth space in ways that, over time, will reduce the number of satellites that can sustainably operate there. /news/2025-03-climate-satellites-safely-orbit-space.html Space Exploration Mon, 10 Mar 2025 12:00:01 EDT news660822647 KTU researchers are proposing an innovative forest regeneration model and a sound analysis system that can predict forest conditions and detect environmental changes in real time. /news/2025-03-scientists-advanced-forest-forests-future.html Ecology Biotechnology Fri, 07 Mar 2025 11:13:16 EST news660568392 Soilless growing systems inside greenhouses, known as controlled environment agriculture, promise to advance the year-round production of high-quality specialty crops, according to an interdisciplinary research team at Penn State. But to be competitive and sustainable, this advanced farming method will require the development and implementation of precision agriculture techniques. To meet that demand, the team developed an automated crop-monitoring system capable of providing continuous and frequent data about plant growth and needs, allowing for informed crop management. /news/2025-02-vision-tracks-growth-specialty-crop.html Biotechnology Agriculture Thu, 27 Feb 2025 15:51:52 EST news659893899 Researchers successfully developed a multifunctional sensor based on semiconductor fibers that emulates the five human senses. The technology developed in the study is expected to be utilized in a variety of state-of-the-art technology fields, such as wearables, Internet of Things (IoT), electronic devices, and soft robotics. /news/2025-01-gen-fibers-smart-textile-pressure.html Nanomaterials Tue, 21 Jan 2025 12:56:02 EST news656686561 Scientists have developed the first electrically pumped continuous-wave semiconductor laser composed exclusively of elements from the fourth group of the periodic table—the "silicon group." /news/2024-12-electrically-semiconductor-laser-advances-silicon.html Optics & Photonics Mon, 09 Dec 2024 16:55:07 EST news652985695 In high school science class, we learned that plugging a cable into an electrical circuit sets off a flow of electrons, powering everything from our lights to our phones. Traditionally, we've understood how electrons behave in metals and semiconductors through this simple model: electrons are imagined as tiny, independent particles, much like cars on an open highway—each one moving freely, without interacting much with the others. /news/2024-10-viscous-electronics-fluid-electrons-tech.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Mon, 21 Oct 2024 12:33:29 EDT news648732806 One key to making portable devices more compact and energy efficient lies in the precise nanoscale form of energy-storing capacitors. Researchers in Sweden report they've cracked the challenge with a unique 3D printing method. /news/2024-10-3d-method-micro-energy-storage.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Mon, 14 Oct 2024 12:04:03 EDT news648126242 A research team has developed a double-layer dry transfer printing technology that simultaneously transfers light-emitting and electron-transferring layers onto a substrate. This technology is expected to provide a more life-like view in augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR), greatly enhancing the immersive experience. /news/2024-08-display-technologies-ultrahigh-definition-screens.html Optics & Photonics Thu, 22 Aug 2024 10:22:24 EDT news643540942 Imagine knowing your milk has gone bad without having to open your fridge. A technology called printed electronics could one day make innovations like this possible. /news/2024-08-electronics-material-current.html Analytical Chemistry Materials Science Mon, 19 Aug 2024 11:57:48 EDT news643287465 Speech recognition, weather forecasts, smart home applications: Artificial intelligence and the Internet of Things are enhancing our everyday lives. Systems based on reservoir computing are a very promising new field. /news/2024-07-possibilities-reservoir-topological-magnetic-ferroelectric.html Condensed Matter Wed, 03 Jul 2024 10:03:03 EDT news639219782 Researchers have unveiled a pioneering breeze wake-up anemometer (B-WA), employing a rolling-bearing triboelectric nanogenerator (RB-TENG) that provides a new strategy for low-energy consumption environmental monitoring. The ability of the B-WA to operate autonomously and efficiently in varying wind conditions marks a substantial advancement in the field of sustainable environmental monitoring. /news/2024-05-sensor-minimal-power-advanced-weather.html Nanomaterials Wed, 29 May 2024 16:24:26 EDT news636218664 With the growth of the Internet of Things, sustainable solutions for powering wireless sensors and devices are considered important. Thermoelectric generators, for example, which have the ability to convert waste heat into electricity, can offer a sustainable solution. Researchers around the world have been working on such solutions. /news/2024-05-powering-wearable-devices-high-carbon.html Nanomaterials Tue, 21 May 2024 11:28:03 EDT news635509681 A research team from City University of Hong Kong (CityU) recently successfully achieved lattice-mismatch-free construction of III-V/chalcogenide core-shell heterostructure nanowires for electronic and optoelectronic applications. This breakthrough addresses crucial technological challenges related to the lattice mismatch problem in the growth of high-quality heterostructure semiconductors, leading to enhanced carrier transport and photoelectric properties. /news/2024-03-lattice-mismatch-issue-advance-optoelectronic.html Nanomaterials Thu, 14 Mar 2024 09:44:03 EDT news629628242 A research team led by Professor Wang Cheng from the Department of Electrical Engineering (EE) at City University of Hong Kong (CityUHK) has developed a world-leading microwave photonic chip that is capable of performing ultrafast analog electronic signal processing and computation using optics. /news/2024-02-world-microwave-photonics-chip-high.html Optics & Photonics Wed, 28 Feb 2024 11:00:01 EST news628247695 In the pursuit of sustainable energy solutions, the quest for more efficient solar cells is paramount. Organic photovoltaic cells have emerged as a promising alternative to traditional silicon-based counterparts due to their flexibility and cost-effectiveness. However, optimizing their performance remains a significant challenge. /news/2024-02-harnessing-hemispherical-shells-photovoltaics.html Optics & Photonics Fri, 16 Feb 2024 14:04:41 EST news627314679 Biological computing machines, such as micro and nano-implants that can collect important information inside the human body, are transforming medicine. Yet, networking them for communication has proven challenging. Now, a global team, including EPFL researchers, has developed a protocol that enables a molecular network with multiple transmitters. /news/2023-11-networking-nano-biosensors-wireless-communication-blood.html Bio & Medicine Wed, 22 Nov 2023 12:42:01 EST news619879318 The next generation of 2D semiconductor materials doesn't like what it sees when it looks in the mirror. Current synthesizing approaches to make single-layer nanosheets of semiconducting material for atomically thin electronics develop a peculiar "mirror twin" defect when the material is deposited on single-crystal substrates like sapphire. The synthesized nanosheet contains grain boundaries that act as a mirror, with the arrangement of atoms on each side organized in reflected opposition to one another. /news/2023-08-mirror-twins-defect-plaguing-generation.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Fri, 04 Aug 2023 08:08:42 EDT news610355318 Fast data transmissions could be delivered in homes and offices through light-emitting diodes (LED) bulbs, complementing existing communication technologies and networks. /news/2023-07-future-internet-transmission.html Optics & Photonics Tue, 25 Jul 2023 10:03:27 EDT news609498205 Neuromorphic computers do not calculate using zeros and ones. They instead use physical phenomena to detect patterns in large data streams at blazing fast speed and in an extremely energy-efficient manner. /news/2023-07-team-neuromorphic.html Condensed Matter Mon, 24 Jul 2023 10:23:04 EDT news609412981 An elastic material that changes color, conducts electricity, can be 3D printed and is also biodegradable? That is not just scientific wishful thinking: Empa researchers from the Cellulose & Wood Materials laboratory in Dübendorf have produced a material with these exact properties on the basis of cellulose and carbon nanotubes. The work is published in the journal Advanced Materials Technologies. /news/2023-07-3d-biodegradable-color-changing-material-cellulose.html Nanomaterials Wed, 05 Jul 2023 15:42:14 EDT news607790532 In recent years, scientists have been studying special materials called topological materials, with special attention paid to the shape, or topology, of their electronic structures (electronic bands). Although it is not visible in real space, their unusual shape in topological materials produces various unique properties that can be suitable for making next-generation devices. /news/2023-06-features-band-topology-amorphous-thin.html Analytical Chemistry Materials Science Fri, 30 Jun 2023 09:38:02 EDT news607336681 A new study led by Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) brings into sharper focus the structural details of the COVID-19 virus, revealing an elliptical shape that "breathes," or changes shape, as it moves in the body. The discovery, which could lead to new antiviral therapies for the disease and quicker development of vaccines, is featured in the journal Structure. /news/2023-03-team-uncovers-sars-cov-.html Cell & Microbiology Molecular & Computational biology Thu, 30 Mar 2023 12:28:06 EDT news599398080 In their recent publication in the Journal of Human Evolution, UConn Department of Anthropology Professor Christian Tryon and Shara Bailey, Director of the Center for the Study of Human Origins at New York University, detail new findings about 40,000-year-old teeth unearthed in the 1930s from a site called Ksâr 'Akil in Lebanon. /news/2023-03-archaeological-rediscovery-clues-distant-human.html Archaeology Tue, 28 Mar 2023 14:01:05 EDT news599230861