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The research group FQM-215—Affordable and Sustainable Sample Preparation at the University of Córdoba has developed a method that is not only faster and easier to perform but also more environmentally sustainable. It can detect illicit drugs on surfaces and determine their exact quantity in just five minutes, using everyday items such as cotton fabric swabs for sampling.
A study conducted at Harvard University identified a group of metabolites that travel from the intestine to the liver and then to the heart, where they are pumped throughout the body. These metabolites play an important role in controlling metabolic pathways in the liver and insulin sensitivity. This discovery may contribute to future treatments for obesity and type 2 diabetes. The results were published in the journal Cell Metabolism.
Spinal cord injury (SCI) rostral to the lumbar locomotor center disrupts communication between the brain and the spinal circuits that control leg movements, leading to paraplegia. A research team led by Dr. Yukio Nishimura of the Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Medical Science, in collaboration with Dr. Toshiki Tazoe and colleagues has now demonstrated a novel noninvasive closed-loop spinal stimulation paradigm that restores stepping control in humans with paraplegia. The findings are published in the journal Brain.
Food quality and safety are crucial. However, conventional food-monitoring methods, including ribotyping and polymerase chain reaction, tend to be destructive and lengthy. These shortcomings limit their potential for broad applications. In this regard, surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) sensing, with real-time, non-destructive, and high sensitivity capabilities, is a highly promising alternative.
When the hospital germ Pseudomonas aeruginosa infects the body, it uses the sugar-binding protein LecA to attach itself to human cells, invade them, and form so-called biofilms. LecA thus plays a central role in the development and progression of infections with this pathogen, which is classified as particularly critical by the WHO.
Despite what some believe, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) can play a key role in the digital, green and social transition taking place in the 21st century. However, SMEs cannot expect real change to come from adopting only a few basic digital tools. They need to go further, harnessing a range of organizational and ecosystem support factors.
Nerve damage is one of the most common and burdensome complications of diabetes. Millions of patients worldwide suffer from pain, numbness, and restricted movement, largely because damaged nerve fibers do not regenerate sufficiently. The reasons for this are unclear.
Located in the middle of the South Pacific, thousands of miles from the nearest continent, Easter Island (Rapa Nui) is one of the most remote inhabited places on Earth. To visit it and marvel at the quarries where its iconic moai statues were created is a luxury few get to experience—until now.
One of the most comprehensive surveys to date of shark and other large predator fish in the Eastern Tropical Pacific (ETP) ocean finds that remote marine protected areas (MPAs)—including the Galapagos, Malpelo, Clipperton, and Revillagigedo islands—support some of the largest numbers of sharks reported globally, including the critically endangered scalloped hammerhead, while coastal MPAs are showing signs of severe depletion.
Providing year-round access to RSV immunization would minimize the risk of large seasonal outbreaks across the nation, including in both urban and rural areas.
A new evidence brief, based on a study by the Juno Evidence Alliance conducted in collaboration with CABI's One Health Hub, has highlighted that a One Health approach is needed in research into zoonotic disease risks around the world.
NASA has confirmed that it will contribute to Europe's Martian rover Rosalind Franklin, which is scheduled to launch in 2028 after repeated delays, the European Space Agency said on Wednesday.
South Korea launched its largest satellite yet on its nationally developed space rocket early Thursday, the fourth of six planned launches through 2027.
For children with Down syndrome (DS) or other genetic syndromes (OS), adenotonsillectomy seems to be safe, with a low rate of complications, according to a study published online Oct. 31 in the Ear, Nose, and Throat Journal.
New research from the University of St Andrews has discovered how Incas used Andean balance scales and ancient string knot writing known as "khipus," in association with sacred, animate landscapes.
Imagine biting into a crisp, garden-fresh salad and savoring juicy strawberries for dessert. But instead of your backyard, you're gazing out at a stark lunar landscape, Earth hanging like a precious blue marble in the inky sky.
Scientists have discovered living microbes producing methane in the fractured rocks deep inside Sweden's Siljan impact crater, offering insights into Earth's earliest life and the search for life beyond our planet.
Modern Chileans are significantly taller and have larger heads than their ancestors. That's the central finding of new research looking at how intracranial volume (ICV) has changed across thousands of years in northern Chile. ICV is the space inside the skull that houses the brain, which scientists use to estimate brain size.
We are producing more textiles than ever before: worldwide, well over one hundred million tons of textiles are manufactured every year—more than twice as much as in the year 2000. This makes it increasingly important not to simply throw away old textiles, but to recover them in an environmentally friendly way.
On Mars, winds constantly stir up whirlwinds of fine dust. It was at the center of two of these dust devils that the SuperCam instrument's microphone, the first ever to operate on Mars, accidentally recorded particularly strong signals.
Radiofrequency coagulation (RFC) is safe and effective for bilateral recurrent anterior epistaxis (RAE) in children with allergic rhinitis, according to a study published online Nov. 19 in the Journal of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery.
The latest United Nations climate summit (COP30) was held between 10 and 21 November in Belém, Brazil. Although the event did not end with any significant progress toward the goals of mitigating global warming or advancing climate finance, it did leave us with one positive outcome: a group of countries has launched an initiative to phase out fossil fuels.
An international research team has shown that avalanches are crucial to the survival of many glaciers worldwide. The study aims to contribute to better predictions of water resources and natural hazards in the context of global warming.
During the annual salmon run last fall, University of Washington researchers pulled salmon DNA out of thin air and used it to estimate the number of fish that passed through the adjacent river. Aden Yincheong Ip, a UW research scientist of marine and environmental affairs, began formulating the driving hypothesis for the study while hiking on the Olympic Peninsula.
Naloxone, also known by the brand name Narcan, is one of the most important drugs in the United States' fight against the opioid crisis. It reverses an opioid overdose nearly instantly, restarting breathing in a person who was unresponsive moments before and on the brink of death. To bystanders witnessing it being administered, naloxone can appear almost supernatural.
As more devices get piled onto computer chips to increase processing power capacity, heat generation becomes increasingly concentrated. This heat must be removed to keep chip performance high, but is currently achieved by circulating water through millimeter-scale channels to cool nanosized hotspots. This scale mismatch reduces the cooling efficiency by consuming more water than necessary, also raising environmental concerns.
The Labor Party's landslide victory at the polls in 2025 was shaped by several factors, including a clear advantage on policy issues, the relative popularity of Anthony Albanese and strong support from younger voters and women, according to a major study of Australian political attitudes and behavior.
AI and human-movement research intersect in a study that enables precise estimation of hand muscle activity from standard video recordings. Using a deep-learning framework trained on a large, comprehensive multimodal dataset from professional pianists, the researchers introduce a system that accurately reconstructs muscle activation patterns without sensors.
The hepatitis C virus—HCV—can persist in the livers of those infected and even lead to liver disease or failure in extreme cases. It affects tens of millions of people worldwide and there is no vaccine to prevent infection, but effective treatment can resolve most cases.
New research has revealed the critical role of river-floodplain connectivity in sustaining fish species diversity on the floodplain of the Martuwarra Fitzroy River in the Kimberley region of Western Australia.
How does a baby learn to understand the world before they even learn to talk? A new study from Reichman University reveals that as early as the first year of life, infants develop expectations about how their parents will respond to crying or distress. A baby who consistently receives calm and comforting responses learns to expect help and develops a sense of security, whereas one who experiences inconsistent responses learns to be less reliant on others and develops a sense of uncertainty.
Researchers at Kaunas University of Technology (KTU) are developing new ways to turn textile waste into energy and high-performance cement materials, offering sustainable solutions for two resource-intensive sectors—textiles and construction.
Hay fever, also known as allergic rhinitis, is the condition responsible for seasonal allergies or allergic reactions to other environmental allergens, like dust mites and animal dander. Estimates vary, but somewhere around 10–30% of the population worldwide experiences hay fever at least occasionally. Symptoms include nasal congestion, headaches, itchy throat and ocular symptoms, like itchy eyes, tearing and redness. Ultimately, these symptoms disrupt daily activities and affect quality of life for hay fever sufferers.
Researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine, in collaboration with Data Science Alliance, a nonprofit promoting the importance of a responsible science environment, led a study showing that hospitals could save millions of dollars and significantly reduce surgical waste by rethinking supply lists used to prepare operating rooms, without compromising patient safety.
Soft robots are prized for their agility and gentle touch, which makes them ideal for traversing delicate or enclosed spaces to perform various tasks, from cultivating baby corals in laboratories to inspecting industrial pipes in chemical plants. However, achieving embodied intelligence in such systems, where sensing, movement and power supply work together in an untethered configuration, remains a challenge.
Humanoid robots could guide travelers and manage crowds at some Chinese border crossings after Shenzhen-based UBTech Robotics said it had won a multimillion-dollar contract to supply its latest models for a trial project.
Studies have shown that even a few hours of monocular deprivation can markedly improve the visual function of the deprived eye in adults. However, the underlying neural mechanisms of this ocular dominance plasticity remain unclear.
The World Robot Olympiad opened in Singapore on Wednesday with hundreds of international students, some as young as eight, set to compete using automatons to solve real-world problems.
The Mexican government will build a supercomputer with a processing capacity seven times greater than the current most powerful computer in Latin America, officials responsible for the project said Wednesday.
Every day, our brains transform quick impressions, flashes of inspiration, and painful moments into enduring memories that underpin our sense of self and inform how we navigate the world. But how does the brain decide which bits of information are worth keeping—and how long to hold on?
Artificial intelligence may write award-winning essays and diagnose disease with remarkable accuracy, but biological brains still hold the upper hand in at least one crucial domain: flexibility.
In the face of US federal funding cuts, biomedical researchers propose strategies for continued progress in drug discovery. Publishing in Trends in Pharmacological Sciences, their recommendations include harnessing AI and computational analyses in early-stage research, diversifying funding sources, pursuing earlier licensing and commercialization, and fostering international collaborations.
Researchers at the Mark and Mary Stevens Neuroimaging and Informatics Institute (Stevens INI) at the Keck School of Medicine of USC have uncovered new insights into how brain wiring differs in children and young adults with autism, pointing to more precise ways of understanding the condition.
Researchers from National Taiwan University Hospital and collaborating institutions have demonstrated that finerenone, a new-generation nonsteroidal mineralocorticoid receptor antagonist (MRA), significantly reduces the risk of death and major heart and kidney events compared with spironolactone in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) and type 2 diabetes (T2D).
A research team affiliated with UNIST has demonstrated a simple yet effective method to extend the lifespan of all-solid-state batteries—by simply stretching film-shaped electrolytes to improve safety and performance.
By adding silicon to battery anodes, energy storage can be doubled or even tripled. Ph.D. student Ali Abo Hamad at FSCN Research Center has developed a sustainable method to make silicon suitable for next-generation batteries.
New research shows that using smaller, fractional vaccine doses during epidemics can significantly reduce infections, especially when vaccines are scarce or distribution is limited.
Japanese chipmaker Rapidus plans to start building a second factory to produce cutting-edge semiconductors in a race with Taiwanese industry leader TSMC, local media reports said.
Researchers at Lund University have developed a new framework that can lead to the Öresund Link, thanks to the right maintenance at the right time and smart monitoring, having a total lifespan of 200 years. This is twice as long as envisaged when the bridge was inaugurated 25 years ago.
Tim Berners-Lee, the creator of the World Wide Web, has released an important new book about the problems we face online and how to solve them. It is called "This is for Everyone," meaning that the internet should be for all.
Scientists have developed a new material that converts motion into electricity (piezoelectricity) with greater efficiency and without using toxic lead—paving the way for a new generation of devices that we use in everyday life.
While most organizations address cybersecurity issues with technology and surveillance, Emmanuel Anti's research argues that empathy may be a more effective defense. His doctoral dissertation at the University of Vaasa explores insider deviance, and how understanding the human elements related to it can lead to stronger, more sustainable cybersecurity practices.
The Wave Engineering for eXtreme and Intelligent maTErials (We-Xite) lab, led by engineering assistant professor Osama R. Bilal, has developed a reconfigurable metamaterial that can control sound waves—bending them, dampening them, or focusing them—while encoding real-time tuning with almost infinite possible shapes.
High-voltage, higher-order PAM-8 signals are essential to achieve data rates beyond 100 Gb/s, requiring highly linear receivers to maintain excellent signal-to-noise ratios.
A study co-authored by UBC Okanagan Associate Professor Dr. Mahmudur Fatmi and doctoral student Bijoy Saha uses Okanagan travel-diary data to model destination choices across full bike "tours."
When city leaders talk about making a town "smart," they're usually talking about urban digital twins. These are essentially high-tech, 3D computer models of cities. They are filled with data about buildings, roads and utilities. Built using precision tools like cameras and LiDAR—light detection and ranging—scanners, these twins are great at showing what a city looks like physically.
Researchers from Trinity and UCD have designed and road- or "river"-tested a new barrier modification system that enables fish to travel up and downstream while simultaneously generating green energy for local consumption.
Researchers with McGill's Trottier Institute for Sustainability in Engineering and Design have developed a stretchable, eco-friendly battery suitable for use in wearable and implantable devices. The battery, which uses citric or lactic acid and gelatin to achieve flexibility and performance without relying on toxic materials, stands to reduce electronic waste.
A study by the University of Stuttgart, the California State University at Fullerton, and the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems has found that there are benefits to representing one's real-life disability through an avatar in virtual reality.