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Artificial turf with an integrated subsurface water storage system could make sports courts cooler, safer to play on
For those living in cities, space to play sports outside can be a scarcity. Recently, natural grass in parks or public sports courts has often been replaced with more durable artificial turf to allow heavy consecutive use.... Read more
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Team prints edible QR codes using innovative 3D food printer
Like a scene from the movies, a team of researchers from Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) has developed new ways to freely produce and customize the food that we eat.... Read more
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Mass production may soon make ultra-large nano transparent screens accessible to everyone
A super-sized Nano Transparent Screen (NTS) has been developed and commercialized for the first time in the world. This innovative screen can adjust its transparency according to the environment and can be produced at a low cost, paving the way for the widespread adoption of large transparent screens, which until... Read more
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Novel 3D stretchable electronic strip could spark new possibilities for wearable e-textiles
Researchers have developed a novel 3D stretchable electronic strip which is expected to open up a range of new possibilities in wearable electronic textiles.... Read more
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Clever clothes: Seams in clothing capture body movement
Everyday clothing may soon be able to capture and record body movements according to new research published by the Universities of Bristol and Bath.... Read more
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Augmented reality tech aids manufacturing productivity
High-tech factory workers of the future will rely on training and support from Industry 4.0 technology, such as augmented reality head-mounted display modules (AR-HMD), to manage workflow and remote trouble-shooting—including in the next generation of shipbuilders, say Flinders University experts.... Read more
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Updated software improves slicing for large-format 3D printing
Researchers at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory have developed the first additive manufacturing slicing computer application to simultaneously speed and simplify digital conversion of accurate, large-format three-dimensional parts in a factory production setting.... Read more
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Researchers develop novel 3D printing strategy with controllable gradients porous structures
Material extrusion 3D printing technology is widely utilized in biofabrication/bioprinting, tissue engineering, flexible electronics, and soft robotics. However, the fixed printing parameters and constant filament diameter limit the design and fabrication of complex gradient porous structures.... Read more
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Cutting-edge technology on show at Euro 2024 is changing the face of soccer
From smart-enabled match balls and artificial intelligence to cryogenic recovery chambers, soccer is being transformed by the cutting-edge technology available to players, coaches and officials.... Read more
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Light-controlled artificial maple seeds could monitor the environment even in hard-to-reach locations
Researchers from Tampere University, Finland, and the University of Pittsburgh, U.S., have developed a tiny robot replicating the aerial dance of falling maple seeds. In the future, this robot could be used for real-time environmental monitoring or delivery of small samples even in inaccessible terrain such as deserts, mountains or... Read more
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Convolutional optical neural networks herald a new era for AI imaging
Convolutional neural networks (CNNs), with their exceptional image recognition capabilities, have performed outstandingly in the field of AI and notably within platforms like ChatGPT. Recently, a team of Chinese researchers from University of Shanghai for Science and Technology have successfully introduced the concept of CNNs into the field of optics... Read more
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Creating 3D shapes from a flat surface using LEDs
A team of South Korean researchers has developed an innovative haptic (tactile) display technology that is attracting global attention. This innovation allows users to physically experience 3D shapes and various textures, opening up potential applications in information delivery devices for the visually impaired, vehicle interfaces, metaverse applications, educational tools, and... Read more
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Empowering navigation for the visually impaired through Augmented Reality
Vision loss and visual impairment have long been a significant concern for human well-being amid an increasingly aging population. In a collaborative effort by researchers from The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) and The University of Waterloo, they have invented a groundbreaking device that utilizes Augmented Reality (AR) technology, revolutionizing... Read more
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Engineered skin tissue grants robots special properties and abilities
Researchers have found a way to bind engineered skin tissue to the complex forms of humanoid robots. This brings with it potential benefits to robotic platforms such as increased mobility, self-healing abilities, embedded sensing capabilities and an increasingly lifelike appearance.... Read more
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Researchers develop dry transfer printing for flexible electronics
Researchers at the Institute for Basic Science (IBS), South Korea, have developed an innovative dry transfer printing technique for flexible electronic devices. The study is published in Nature Materials.... Read more
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Model combines physical parameters and machine learning to predict storm tides
Predicting extreme events is essential to the preparation and protection of vulnerable regions, especially at a time of climate change. The city of Santos on the coast of São Paulo state (Brazil) is Latin America's largest port and has been the focus for significant case studies, not least because of... Read more
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Virtual and mixed realities converge in new driving simulator
Portobello, a new driving simulator developed by researchers at Cornell Tech, blends virtual and mixed realities, enabling both drivers and passengers to see virtual objects overlaid in the real world.... Read more
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Breaking benchmarks: Frontier supercomputer sets new standard in molecular simulation
When scientists pushed the world's fastest supercomputer to its limits, they found those limits stretched beyond even their biggest expectations.... Read more
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New soft robotic gripper designed with graphene and liquid crystals
Eindhoven researchers have developed a soft robotic "hand" made from liquid crystals and graphene that could be used to design future surgical robots. The new work has just been published in the journal ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces.... Read more
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Using drones will advance the inspection of remote runways in Canada and beyond, research suggests
With weather, limited flights and long distances, gravel runways at remote airports—particularly in northern Canada—are difficult to get to, let alone to inspect for safety.... Read more
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A fully edible robot could soon end up on our plate, say scientists
A fully edible robot could soon end up on our plate if we overcome some technical hurdles, say EPFL scientists involved in RoboFood—a project which aims to marry robots and food.... Read more
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From wearables to swallowables: Engineers create GPS-like smart pills with AI
Imagine finding your location without GPS. Now apply this to tracking an item in the body. This has been the challenge with tracking "smart" pills—pills equipped with smart sensors–once swallowed. At the USC Viterbi School of Engineering, innovations in wearable electronics and AI have led to the development of ingestible... Read more
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New fabric makes urban heat islands more bearable
This year has already seen massive heat waves around the globe, with cities in Mexico, India, Pakistan and Oman hitting temperatures near or past 50 degrees Celsius (122 degrees Fahrenheit).... Read more
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Could a cockpit warning system prevent close calls between planes at US airports?
As a Delta Air Lines jet began roaring down a runway, an air traffic controller at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport suddenly blurted out an expletive, then ordered the pilots to stop their takeoff roll.... Read more
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New 3D printing technique integrates electronics into microchannels to create flexible, stretchable microfluidic devices
The transition from traditional 2D to 3D microfluidic structures is a significant advancement in microfluidics, offering benefits in scientific and industrial applications. These 3D systems improve throughput through parallel operation, and soft elastomeric networks, when filled with conductive materials like liquid metal, allowing for the integration of microfluidics and electronics.... Read more
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'Flying taxis' to be tested during Paris Olympics: Minister
France's transport minister said Wednesday that so-called "flying taxis"—large futuristic drones capable of transporting several people—would be authorized for use on an experimental basis during the Paris Olympics.... Read more
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Virtual reality as a reliable shooting performance-tracking tool
Virtual reality technology can do more than teach weaponry skills in law enforcement and military personnel, a new study suggests: It can accurately record shooting performance and reliably track individuals' progress over time.... Read more
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Tricking the brain: New dimensions of haptics in virtual reality
How can virtual reality (VR) be experienced haptically, i.e., through the sense of touch? This is one of the fundamental questions that modern VR research is investigating.... Read more
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Study explores ice-based electricity generation
Last year, researchers from the US and Canada reported in PLOS ONE creating electrical batteries from ice. The electrical output is modest, just 0.1 milliwatt. But this may be a sign of good things to come. The scientists worked over the course of two seasons to design and produce electrochemical... Read more
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Tunisian all-women's team eye inventors' prize for smart wheelchair
A smart wheelchair system built by a team of young Tunisian women engineers has reached the finals for a prestigious European inventors' prize, setting a hopeful precedent in a country embroiled in multiple crises.... Read more
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Using 3D printer students design attachment for a quieter leaf blower
Nate Greene, an engineer at Towson's Stanley Black & Decker, calls the innovation "extremely atypical."... Read more
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Tiny crop-health sensors could help cut the cost of groceries
A compact, lightweight sensor system with infrared imaging capabilities developed by an international team of engineers could be easily fitted to a drone for remote crop monitoring.... Read more
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New liquid metal-based electronic logic device mimics prey-capture mechanism of Venus flytrap
A research team led by the School of Engineering of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) has developed a liquid metal-based electronic logic device that mimics the intelligent prey-capture mechanism of Venus flytraps. The study is published in the journal Nature Communications.... Read more
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Using AI to decode dog vocalizations
Have you ever wished you could understand what your dog is trying to say to you? University of Michigan researchers are exploring the possibilities of AI, developing tools that can identify whether a dog's bark conveys playfulness or aggression.... Read more
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New electronic skin mimics human touch with 3D architecture
Created by nature, the human skin shows powerful sensing capabilities that have been pursued by scientists for a very long time. However, it is challenging for today's technologies to replicate the spatial arrangement of the complex 3D microstructure of human skin.... Read more
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New all-optical approach could miniaturize night vision technology
Researchers from TMOS, the ARC Center of Excellence for Transformative Meta-Optical Systems, have made significant progress in their journey to deliver a new approach to night vision technology, creating an infrared filter that is thinner than a piece of cling wrap, and that could one day be placed on everyday... Read more
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Feeling flush: Japan's high-tech toilets go global
As Japan plays host to a record influx of tourists, one of the country's more private attractions—the high-tech toilet—is becoming a must-have in luxury bathrooms worldwide.... Read more
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Innovative bird eye–inspired camera developed for enhanced object detection
The eyes of raptors can accurately perceive prey from kilometers away. Is it possible to model camera technology after birds' eyes? Researchers have developed a new type of camera that is inspired by the structures and functions of birds' eyes. A research team led by Prof. Kim Dae-Hyeong at the... Read more
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Third Thumb: People have no difficulty getting to grips with an extra thumb, study finds
Cambridge researchers have shown that members of the public have little trouble in learning very quickly how to use a third thumb—a controllable, prosthetic extra thumb—to pick up and manipulate objects.... Read more
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Scientists modify the configuration parameters of 'phantom sensations' so that people can perceive them
Can people feel through the sense of touch in the absence of a real tactile stimulation? In other words, can we feel the sensation of being touched when in reality we are not? This is what is known as "phantom sensation," which occurs when the nervous system perceives a tactile... Read more
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Singapore study finds close to 5 in 10 say they would take air taxis in the future
A study by researchers from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) has found that Singaporeans are open to riding air taxis, which are small autonomous aircraft that carry passengers over short distances. Through a study of 1,002 participants, the NTU Singapore team found that almost half (45.7%) say they intend... Read more
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Tomorrow's digital screens may be soft and elastic, so you'll get to 'feel' items through your phone
A touch screen for digital devices that can be deformed through finger pressure, becoming softer or stiffer in direct response to force applied by the user, has been developed by computer scientists at the University of Bath in the UK.... Read more
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An adhering, pure conducting polymer hydrogel for medical applications
The rapid advancement of electronics and artificial intelligence (AI) tools have opened interesting opportunities for the development of technologies for a wide range of applications. These include implantable devices designed to support the treatment of medical conditions, monitor biological processes, or augment human abilities.... Read more
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Imperceptible sensors made from 'electronic spider silk' can be printed directly on human skin
Researchers have developed a method to make adaptive and eco-friendly sensors that can be directly and imperceptibly printed onto a wide range of biological surfaces, whether that's a finger or a flower petal.... Read more
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AI headphones let wearer listen to a single person in a crowd by looking at them just once
Noise-canceling headphones have gotten very good at creating an auditory blank slate. But allowing certain sounds from a wearer's environment through the erasure still challenges researchers. The latest edition of Apple's AirPods Pro, for instance, automatically adjusts sound levels for wearers—sensing when they're in conversation, for instance—but the user has... Read more
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New flexible film detects eyelash proximity in blink-tracking glasses
When another person's finger hovers over your skin, you may get the sense that they're touching you, feeling not necessarily contact, but their proximity. Similarly, researchers reporting in ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces have designed a soft, flexible film that senses the presence of nearby objects without physically touching them.... Read more
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Researchers use 'smart' rubber structures to carry out computational tasks
Without electronics carrying out computational tasks, our daily lives would look very different. Devices such as elevators, vending machines, turnstiles, washing machines and even traffic lights use a simple form of electronic computing to switch from state to state. But, what if a power supply is not available to operate... Read more
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EIT-based tactile sensor provides new approach to fine motor skills assessment
Fine motor skills play a crucial role in human cognition, influencing everything from daily activities to the development of advanced tool-based civilizations. Yet, quantifying and evaluating these skills objectively has been a challenge.... Read more
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Brain-machine interface device predicts internal speech in second patient
Caltech neuroscientists are making promising progress toward showing that a device known as a brain–machine interface (BMI), which they developed to implant into the brains of patients who have lost the ability to speak, could one day help all such patients communicate by simply thinking and not speaking or miming.... Read more
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Artificial tactile system study: Robots' sense of touch could be as fast as humans
Research at Uppsala University and Karolinska Institutet could pave the way for a prosthetic hand and robot to be able to feel touch like a human hand. Their study has been published in the journal Science. The technology could also be used to help restore lost functionality to patients after... Read more