Researchers from the University of Illinois are making tracks in synthetic biology by designing non-electronic biological machines. They used a 3D printer to combine hydrogel and heart cells to create bio-robots. These functional machines are biocompatible and soft, and they are able to move by themselves. Once perfected, these bio-bots could be altered and specialized… »

Duke University’s Pratt School of Engineering researchers perfected an old research related to their “invisibility cloak” by incorporating a modification to the device’s design. Although the new design still functions in one plain (it is unidirectional), it solves one of the major flaws of the original device. These new improvements could be used to change… »

Engineering researchers at the University of Arkansas came up with a thermal energy storage system that performs as a viable alternative to other currently available methods used to store energy collected from solar panels. Use of the newly developed design could increase annual energy production while significantly decreasing production costs of concentrated solar power plants,… »

Clarkson University’s new Student Center is a great example how functionality can be combined with sustainable features in order to minimize the impact of the building onto the environment. The goal of its construction is to unite student programs in one building and to link the new center to the other academic buildings on campus…. »

CSIRO researchers and a colleague at Sweden’s Karolinska Institute recently revealed details about their research related to an exotic fatty acid called dihydromatricaria acid (DHMA), which is one of a group called polyynes that have known anti-microbial and anti-cancer properties. Their research could be used to employ biotechnology in creation of new antibiotic and anti-cancer… »

Researchers at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) have devised a new robot used for explosive tests in the National Explosives Engineering Sciences Security (NEXESS) Center. The platform they chose as a base for their robot is iRobot Packbot 510 – a robot manufactured by the same company that created the Roomba vacuum-cleaning robot –… »

A group of researchers at Rice University decided to seek a different approach to their previous work in order to develop a high-capacity, durable and low-cost anode material with a great commercial potential for next-generation rechargeable lithium batteries. The newly devised method to use silicon as anode material can nearly triple the capacity of silicon-based… »

The University of Wyoming wanted a green design for its new Visual Arts Center that would incorporate the latest technology, provide a safe and healthy environment for all users promote interdisciplinary collaboration, and provide a welcoming gallery/lobby to encourage community outreach. The resulting building managed to achieve all those goals, while being sustainable and aiming… »