Animals and plants living in snow and sub-zero areas have evolved all sorts of chemical tricks that allow them to live in these cold environments. There are various natural antifreeze compounds from such organisms, but researchers from RIKEN Advanced Science Institute at Wako focused on one called xylomannan – a natural antifreeze produced by the… »

In one of our previous articles, we wrote about two ideas that employ robots building construction, but researchers from Cornell University came up with a different approach in a project named Machine Metabolism – Truss Structure Manipulation using Robots. The project involves a robotic system capable to break down modular elements and reuse them to… »

Bioengineers at Harvard University came up with a new technology with a great potential in nanofibers production, and they refer to it as a “cross between a high-speed centrifuge and a cotton candy machine”. The invention could find many uses in industry, with potential applications ranging from artificial organs and tissue regeneration to clothing and… »

Researchers from the University of Oxford managed to create a bio-inspired superglue with unmatched performance by engineering an unusual protein from Streptococcus pyogenes – a type of bacteria that can cause mild infections as well as some life-threatening diseases. The modified protein enables sticking molecules, proteins or enzymes together to build new structures on the… »

Two separate research groups have applied two different approaches to improve cement in order to make it more durable and greener. Researchers from the Michigan State University have found that mixing ground waste glass into the cement makes resulting concrete stronger, more durable and more resistant to water, while Drexel University researchers found a way… »

In recent years, enhancements in the multimedia quality increased the demand for wireless communication speeds which lead to increased need for more frequencies, especially for ones bellow 6 GHz band. A joint development from National University Corporation, Tokyo Institute of Technology and Sony resulted with a radio frequency (RF) LSI and a baseband (BB) LSI… »

The flat roofs of many buildings as well as some unused floors in some buildings could be used for hydroponic gardening. Aside needed space, the plants growing there could also rely on building‘s waste heat and cleaned waste water. Researchers from the Fraunhofer Institute for Environmental, Safety and Energy Technology (UMSICHT) are developing their solution… »

We already published several articles about studies where spiders served as inspiration for biomimicry and analysis, but the new study by the researchers from the University of Akron developed the new biocompatible synthetic material similar to a specific kind of silk spun by orb spiders. The material could be used as new kinds of medical… »