When people are asked to draw the flower of a sunflower plant, almost everyone draws a large circle encircled by yellow petals. "Actually, that structure is the flower head, or the capitulum, which may be composed of hundreds of flowers, also known as florets. The surrounding 'petals' are florets different in structure and function to those closer to the centre," says Professor … [Read more...] about Auxin makes the spirals in gerbera inflorescences follow the Fibonacci sequence
Transforming circles into squares: Researchers reconfigure material topology on the microscale
Reconfigurable materials can do amazing things. Flat sheets transform into a face. An extruded cube transforms into dozens of different shapes. But there's one thing a reconfigurable material has yet to be able to change: its underlying topology. A reconfigurable material with 100 cells will always have 100 cells, even if those cells are stretched or squashed. Now, researchers … [Read more...] about Transforming circles into squares: Researchers reconfigure material topology on the microscale
Shake-up at Triller. TikTok rival replaces CEO and buys AI firm
TrillerNet, the parent company of a controversial social video app that sought to take on TikTok, has replaced its chief executive and acquired another business.The Los Angeles entertainment company on Wednesday named Mahi de Silva, who is currently its nonexecutive board chairman, to CEO. He succeeds Mike Lu, who will transition to be the company’s president, TrillerNet said … [Read more...] about Shake-up at Triller. TikTok rival replaces CEO and buys AI firm
Who gets to make millions selling NFTs? The intellectual property fight we knew was coming
José Delbo’s days of drawing superheroes for Marvel and DC Comics ended decades ago, and when COVID-19 shut down comic conventions last year, the 87-year-old got cut off from the fans who bought his artwork too. Like many older Americans, he seemed isolated and lonely in his Miami apartment, his family says, as he sheltered from the pandemic. Then his grandson introduced him … [Read more...] about Who gets to make millions selling NFTs? The intellectual property fight we knew was coming
Combining mask wearing, social distancing suppresses COVID-19 virus spread: Network model findings could shape public health policy for airborne viruses
Studies show wearing masks and social distancing can contain the spread of the COVID-19 virus, but their combined effectiveness is not precisely known. In Chaos, by AIP Publishing, researchers at New York University and Politecnico di Torino in Italy developed a network model to study the effects of these two measures on the spread of airborne diseases like COVID-19. The model … [Read more...] about Combining mask wearing, social distancing suppresses COVID-19 virus spread: Network model findings could shape public health policy for airborne viruses