Can you crumple up two sheets of paper the exact same way? Probably not—the very flexibility that lets flexible structures from paper to biopolymers and membranes undergo many types of large deformations makes them notoriously ...
New research by the University of Oslo provides experimental evidence that populations of ancient primitive cells could have autonomously assembled on minerals under early Earth conditions, and on the ancient crust of Mars.
In a landmark discovery, University of Wollongong (UOW) researchers have realized the non-contact manipulation of liquid metal.
Magnetically responsive microtextured surfaces have the advantage of being controlled remotely (i.e., no contact is required) at ambient conditions and short response times. Previously, synchronized bending or twisting actuations ...
Hibernating astronauts could be the best way to save mission costs, reduce the size of spacecraft by a third and keep crew healthy on their way to Mars. An ESA-led investigation suggests that human hibernation goes beyond ...
Superelasticity is an elastic response to an applied external force that occurs via phase transformation. The resulting actuation of the materials is an elastic response to external stimuli, including light and heat. While ...
Inspired by the growth of bones in the skeleton, researchers at the universities of Linköping in Sweden and Okayama in Japan have developed a combination of materials that can morph into various shapes before hardening. ...
Grow a tomato inside a square box, and you'll end up with a square tomato. It's an experiment that shows clearly how confinement can influence a body's evolving shape.
Natural camouflage is one of nature's most interesting traits. Materials scientists have now developed a material that can mimic the camouflage capabilities of marine mollusks. They created a starfish-shaped soft robot that ...
It seems like science fiction: a flat object issues from the 3D printer, then starts to fold itself. Albeit in a limited way, 4D printing was already possible, but now TU/e researcher Marc del Pozo Puig has developed a smart ...
