Jan 12, 2022 (Nanowerk News) Flat materials that can morph into three-dimensional shapes have potential applications in architecture, medicine, robotics, space travel, and much more. But programming these shape changes requires complex and time-consuming computations. Now, researchers from the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS)...
‘Self-driving’ satellites poised to unlock space engineering potential
Jan 12, 2022 (Nanowerk News) In the future, mass transportation will almost certainly involve self-driving vehicles. The aerospace industry is pushing that idea even further, all the way to space. Now, a Cornell University project that demonstrates the technology’s potential is poised to take flight. The Pathfinder for Autonomous Navigation...
Oxygen ions in Jupiter’s innermost radiation belts
Jan 12, 2022 (Nanowerk News) Planets like Earth, Jupiter, and Saturn with global magnetic fields of their own are surrounded by so-called radiation belts: Trapped in the magnetic field, fast moving charged particles such as electrons, protons, and heavier ions whiz around thus forming the invisible, torus-shaped radiation belts. With...
An ice-inspired lubricant improves osteoarthritis symptoms in rats
Jan 12, 2022 (Nanowerk News) With the Winter Olympics approaching, many people will soon be tuning in to watch events that take place on ice, such as figure skating, speed skating and ice hockey. An ultrathin, super-lubricating layer of water on the ice’s surface is essential for skaters’ graceful glides....
Researchers develop new dendrimers to preserve biological medicines
Jan 12, 2022 (Nanowerk News) As superbugs become increasingly dangerous to human health, NC State researchers have developed a soft material that preserves medicines capable of treating infections without the risk of antimicrobial resistance. With his colleague Christopher Gorman in the Department of Chemistry and students Ryan Smith and Juliana...
2D Semiconductor demonstrates elusive quantum physics model
Jan 12, 2022 (Nanowerk News) With a little twist and the turn of a voltage knob, Cornell researchers have shown that a single material system can toggle between two of the wildest states in condensed matter physics: the quantum anomalous Hall insulator and the two-dimensional topological insulator. By doing so,...
In a smooth move, ions ditch disorder and keep their memories
Jan 12, 2022 (Nanowerk News) A Persian adage, notably wielded by Abe Lincoln and the band OK Go, expresses the ephemeral nature of the world: “This, too, shall pass.” Physicists have their own version of this rule. It says that wiggles and wrinkles—really any small disturbances—tend to get ironed out...
The search for an isotropic gravitational wave background
Jan 12, 2022 (Nanowerk News) The International Pulsar Timing Array (IPTA), joining the work of several astrophysics collaborations from around the world, recently completed its search for gravitational waves in their most recent official data release, known as Data Release 2 (DR2). This data set consists of precision timing data...
Black hole at center of Milky Way unpredictable and chaotic
Jan 12, 2022 (Nanowerk News) An international team of researchers, led by postgraduate student Alexis Andrés, has found that the black hole at the centre of our galaxy, Sagittarius A*, not only flares irregularly from day to day but also in the long term. The team analysed 15 years’ worth...
Artificial intelligence predicts RNA and DNA binding sites to speed up drug discovery
Jan 11, 2022 (Nanowerk News) The iMolecule group from Skoltech has developed an artificial intelligence-driven solution that uses data on the structure of RNA or DNA molecules to identify sites on them where interaction with potential drug candidates can occur. Knowledge of these binding sites allows pharmaceutical companies to discover...