Tech

Researchers at the University of Delaware have developed a "smart" hydrogel that can deliver medicine on demand, in response to mechanical force.

Over the past few decades, smart hydrogels have been created that respond to pH, temperature, DNA, light and other stimuli.

Monitoring glucose levels is imperative for diabetes patients, but for some the standard Hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) test is not valid. Researchers from Johns Hopkins University, the University of Wisconsin, and the University of Minnesota have determined that the fructosamine tests and a novel assay for glycated albumin may be useful for predicting complications related to diabetes. The results will be published in the latest edition of The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology.

The study, published today in the journal PLOS ONE, found that people could reliably sense when a change had occurred, even when they could not see exactly what had changed.

For example, a person might notice a general change in someone's appearance but not be able to identify that the person had had a haircut.

Lead researcher Dr. Piers Howe from the Melbourne School of Psychological Sciences said the research is the first to show in a scientific study that people can reliably sense changes that they cannot visually identify.

A new blood test being developed by Walter and Eliza Hall Institute researchers can rapidly and accurately diagnose coeliac disease without the need for prolonged gluten exposure.

Dr Jason Tye-Din, gastroenterologist and head of coeliac research at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute, said the new diagnostic test gave a result within 24 hours and preliminary findings indicated it could accurately detect coeliac disease. It is hoped that larger studies will verify its role as a widely used tool for diagnosing coeliac disease.

EAST LANSING, Mich. — When it comes to biofuels, corn leads the all-important category of biomass yield. However, focusing solely on yield comes at a high price.

In the current issue of the Proceedings for the National Academy of Sciences, Michigan State University researchers show that looking at the big picture allows other biofuel crops, such as native perennial grasses, to score higher as viable alternatives.

"Plasmonic nanostructures are of great current interest as chemical sensors, in vivo imaging agents, and for photothermal therapeutics," explained David G. Cahill, a Willett Professor and head of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. "Applications in imaging and sensing typically involve the emission of light at a different wavelength than the excitation, or 'secondary light emission'. The interpretation of resonant secondary light emission in terms of fundamental processes has been controversial for 40 years."

Five Empa laboratories were involved in the EU «NanoHouse» project, along with four other European research institutes and four industrial partners. The aim of the project was to investigate the opportunities and risks presented by the nanomaterials used in the surface coatings applied to building façades. For the first time not only were freshly manufactured products studied to see if they set free nanoparticles, but also aged samples.

This news release is available in German.

Researchers have found a way to project future habitat locations under climate change, identifying potential safe havens for threatened biodiversity.

Associate Professor Grant Wardell-Johnson and Dr Gunnar Keppel from the Curtin University Institute for Biodiversity and Climate, along with lead researcher and former Curtin scientist Dr Tom Schut, now at Wageningen University in the Netherlands, developed an approach to identify potential refugia in declining rainfall environments.

DURHAM, N.C. -- Inventor Nikola Tesla imagined the technology to transmit energy through thin air almost a century ago, but experimental attempts at the feat have so far resulted in cumbersome devices that only work over very small distances. But now, Duke University researchers have demonstrated the feasibility of wireless power transfer using low-frequency magnetic fields over distances much larger than the size of the transmitter and receiver.

New research(1), published today in the PLOS ONE, has found no evidence for a link between moderate coffee consumption and dehydration. The research, conducted by researchers at the University of Birmingham School of Sport and Exercise Sciences, UK, found that drinking moderate amounts of coffee does not result in dehydration and contributes to daily fluid requirements in regular coffee drinkers just as other fluids do.

The field of metamaterials has produced structures with unprecedented abilities, including flat lenses, invisibility cloaks and even optical "metatronic" devices that can manipulate light in the way electronic circuitry manipulates the flow of electrons.

RICHLAND, Wash. – It's known that electric vehicles could travel longer distances before needing to charge and more renewable energy could be saved for a rainy day if lithium-sulfur batteries can just overcome a few technical hurdles. Now, a novel design for a critical part of the battery has been shown to significantly extend the technology's lifespan, bringing it closer to commercial use.

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — A surprising effect created by a 19th century device called a Helmholz coil offers clues about how to achieve controlled nuclear fusion at Sandia National Laboratories' powerful Z machine.

WASHINGTON – Proposed updates to federal regulations that protect human research subjects need additional clarification when applied to the social and behavioral sciences, says a new report from the National Research Council. The report reviews an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) from the U.S.