Food producers can use a mathematical model to ensure their products do not cause botulism. For refrigerated products, the guidelines for controlling Clostridium botulinum indicate that the water contained in the products should have a salt content of at least 3.5%. Unfortunately, this hampers efforts to develop salt-reduced products, even though such products would benefit…

Gaining control of the flow of electrical current through atomically thin materials is important to potential future applications in photovoltaics or computing. Physicists have discovered one way to locally add electrical charge to a graphene device. A paper published in the journal Nano Letters describes the charge transfer process in detail. Gaining control of the…

A team of researchers concludes that a game-theory approach may offer new insights into both the spread and disruption of viruses, such as SARS-CoV-2. Its work applies a ‘signaling game’ to an analysis of cellular processes in illuminating molecular behavior. «We need new models and technologies at many levels in order to understand how to…

Researchers found that people may be less likely to take health advice from an AI doctor when the robot knows their name and medical history. On the other hand, patients want to be on a first-name basis with their human doctors. Researchers from Penn State and University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) found that people…

Researchers have discovered a new mechanism in magnetic compounds that couples multiple topological bands. The coupling can significantly enhance the effects of quantum phenomena. Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Physics of Solids in Dresden, the University of South Florida in the USA, and co-workers have discovered a new mechanism in magnetic compounds…

In a year defined by obstacles, a student rocket team persevered. Working together across five time zones, they successfully designed a hybrid rocket engine that uses paraffin and a novel nitrous oxide-oxygen mixture called Nytrox. «Hybrid propulsion powers Virgin Galactic’s suborbital tourist spacecraft and the development of that engine has been challenging. Our students are…

More attention must be paid to improving perceptions of emerging technologies like AI-powered symptom checkers, which could ease the strain on health-care systems, according to a recent study. Symptom checkers are online platforms that help with self-triage based on a range of inputted symptoms and demographic details. The study, led by University of Waterloo researchers,…

Hybrid unmanned aerial vehicles, or UAVs, are drones that combine the advantages of multi-copters and fixed-wing planes. These drones are equipped to vertically take off and land like multi-copters, yet also have the strong aerodynamic performance and energy-saving capabilities of traditional planes. As hybrid UAVs continue to evolve, however, controlling them remotely still remains a…

A new artificial-intelligence technology for heart imaging can improve care for patients, allowing doctors to examine their hearts for scar tissue while eliminating the need for contrast injections. A team of researchers who developed the technology, including doctors at UVA Health, reports the success of the approach in a new article in the scientific journal…

Adapting a traditional endless runner video game and using a raccoon as the protagonist, researchers have developed a platform that allows the identification and evaluation of the degree of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children and adolescents. ADHD is a neurodevelopmental disorder with an estimated prevalence of 7.2% in children and adolescents, according to…