Computers

Genetically encoded reporter proteins have been a mainstay of biotechnology research, allowing scientists to track gene expression, understand intracellular processes and debug engineered genetic circuits. But conventional reporting schemes that rely on fluorescence and other optical approaches come with practical limitations that could cast a shadow over the field's future … [Read more...] about ‘Nanopore-tal’ enables cells to talk to computers

The old adage "never let them see you sweat," doesn't apply in the electrical and computer engineering lab of Rose Faghih, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering in the University of Houston Cullen College of Engineering. In fact, Faghih seeks sweat, the kind that beads on your upper lip when you're nervous -- skin conductance response (SCR) as the change in … [Read more...] about Using your smartwatch to reduce stress: New technology uses sweat on skin to infer brain stress

Scientists have taken the clearest picture yet of electronic particles that make up a mysterious magnetic state called quantum spin liquid (QSL). The achievement could facilitate the development of superfast quantum computers and energy-efficient superconductors. The scientists are the first to capture an image of how electrons in a QSL decompose into spin-like particles called … [Read more...] about Quantum computing: Exotic particle had an ‘out-of-body experience’: An unexpected finding could advance quantum computers and high-temperature superconductors

New research published in the journal Clinical Psychological Science reveals that teenagers (ages 13-17) in low socioeconomic settings who spend a moderate amount of time online after a stressful experience deal with adversity far better than those who spend many hours online or avoid digital technology altogether. "Adolescents are smart, and they make use of technology to … [Read more...] about Stressed teens benefit from coping online, but a little goes a long way

To train robots how to work independently but cooperatively, researchers at the University of Cincinnati gave them a relatable task: move a couch. If you've ever helped someone move furniture, you know it takes coordination -- simultaneously pushing or pulling and reacting based on what your helper is doing. That makes it an ideal problem to examine collaboration between … [Read more...] about These robots can move your couch: Researchers develop robots that can work independently but cooperatively

An undergraduate student from the University of Surrey has discovered a way to suppress hot-carrier effects that have plagued devices that use thin-film transistor architecture -- such as smartwatches and solar panels. Hot-carrier effects occur when unwanted electron energy builds up in certain regions of transistors, resulting in devices performing unreliably. In her … [Read more...] about Discovery could improve reliability of future smart electronics

Researchers have developed a lightweight optical system for 3D inspection of surfaces with micron-scale precision. The new measurement tool could greatly enhance quality control inspection for high-tech products including semiconductor chips, solar panels and consumer electronics such as flat panel televisions. Because vibrations make it difficult to capture precision 3D … [Read more...] about Compact system designed for high-precision, robot-based surface measurements: System poised to enable real-time, in-line 3D inspection and boost efficiency of high-tech manufacturing

The COVID-19 pandemic may be the deadliest viral outbreak the world has seen in more than a century. But statistically, such extreme events aren't as rare as we may think, asserts a new analysis of novel disease outbreaks over the past 400 years. The study, appearing the week of Aug. 23 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, used a newly assembled record of … [Read more...] about Statistics say large pandemics are more likely than we thought: Most people are likely to experience an extreme pandemic like COVID-19 in their lifetime

Mathematicians at the Center for Advanced Mathematics for Energy Research Applications (CAMERA) at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) have developed a mathematical algorithm to decipher the rotational dynamics of twisting particles in large complex systems from the X-ray scattering patterns observed in highly sophisticated X-ray photon correlation spectroscopy … [Read more...] about Mathematicians build an algorithm to ‘do the twist’: New approach extracts rotational diffusion from X-ray photon correlation spectroscopy experiments

Scientists studying two different configurations of bilayer graphene -- the two-dimensional (2-D), atom-thin form of carbon -- have detected electronic and optical interlayer resonances. In these resonant states, electrons bounce back and forth between the two atomic planes in the 2-D interface at the same frequency. By characterizing these states, they found that twisting one … [Read more...] about Layered graphene with a twist displays unique quantum confinement in 2-D