Lifeboat Foundation

Thanks to advancements in the development of patented synthetic human-like hearts first created at Michigan State, researchers can study human heart development and congenital heart disease on highly accurate models. This is facilitating the development of new therapies and pharmaceutical drugs to treat a variety of heart-related diseases just in time for the observance of American Heart Month in February.

Similar in size and development to fetal human hearts, these mini heart organoids are becoming increasingly complex and realistic. The MSU research team that created the mini hearts first published their findings in 2020. They have quickly become a world leader in this field and their latest advancements have been published in Nature Communications and Stem Cell Reports.

Aitor Aguirre, associate professor of biomedical engineering and chief of the division of developmental and stem cell biology in MSU’s Institute for Quantitative Health Science and Engineering, explained that the introduction of realistic models is essential to the discovery of effective and clinically translatable solutions to cardiovascular disease. An estimated 21 million annual deaths are related to this condition, including disorders of the heart and blood vessels. And that number is growing.

In a novel experiment, physicists have observed long range quantum coherence effects due to Aharonov-Bohm interference in a topological insulator-based device. This finding opens up a new realm of possibilities for the future development of topological quantum physics and engineering.

This finding could also affect the development of spin-based electronics, which may potentially replace some current electronic systems for higher energy efficiency and may provide new platforms to explore quantum information science.

The research, published in the February 20 issue of Nature Physics, is the culmination of more than 15 years of work at Princeton. It came about when Princeton scientists developed a quantum device —called a bismuth bromide (α-Bi₄Br₄) topological insulator—only a few nanometers thick and used it to investigate quantum coherence.

Discover the Arc Sport, a revolutionary electric wake boat engineered for performance, sustainability, and seamless user experience.

Former SpaceX engineers have unleashed their latest innovation, the Arc Sport, onto the waters, redefining the landscape of wake sports. Combining cutting-edge aerospace engineering with electric vehicle (EV) technology, the Arc Spor t promises an exhilarating experience like no other.

Boasting a massive 226 kWh battery capacity and a robust 570 horsepower (425 kW) motor, this engineering marvel delivers more than double the torque of its gas-powered counterparts.

Continue reading “Ex-SpaceX engineers unveil Arc Sport, 570 horsepower electric wakeboat” »

As interest in wearable technology has surged, research into creating energy-storage devices that can be woven into textiles has also increased. Researchers at North Carolina State University have now identified a “sweet spot” at which the length of a threadlike energy storage technology called a “yarn-shaped supercapacitor” (YSC) yields the highest and most efficient flow of energy per unit length.

“When it comes to the length of the YSC, it’s a tradeoff between power and energy,” said Wei Gao, corresponding author of a paper on the work and an associate professor of textile engineering, chemistry and science at NC State.

“It’s not only about how much energy you can store, but also the internal resistance we care about.”

A few years ago, a team of researchers working under Professor Stanisa Raspopovic at the ETH Zurich Neuroengineering Lab gained worldwide attention when they announced that their prosthetic legs had enabled amputees to feel sensations from this artificial body part for the first time.

Unlike commercial leg prostheses, which simply provide amputees with stability and support, the ETH researchers’ prosthetic device was connected to the sciatic nerve in the test subjects’ thigh via implanted electrodes.

This electrical connection enabled the neuroprosthesis to communicate with the patient’s brain, for example relaying information on the constant changes in pressure detected on the sole of the prosthetic foot when walking. This gave the test subjects greater confidence in their prosthesis—and it enabled them to walk considerably faster on challenging terrains.

In an extremely cosmic–brain take, University of Rochester astrophysics professor Adam Frank suggests that a civilization could advance so much that it could eventually tinker with the fundamental laws of physics.

It’s a mind-bending proposition that ventures far beyond the conventional framework of scientific understanding, a reminder that perhaps we should dare to think outside the box — especially as we continue our search for extraterrestrial civilizations.

If a civilization were to be able to change the laws of physics, “the very nature of energy itself, with established rules like energy conservation, would be subject to revision within the scope of engineering,” Frank, who is part of the NASA-sponsored Categorizing Atmospheric Technosignatures program, wrote in an essay for Big Think.

Science Fiction has long contemplated the idea that alien life not based on carbon chemistry such as silicon might exist on distant and strange worlds, or might be made to exist advanced biological engineering. What would such life be like?

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Researchers have developed a revolutionary biosensor using terahertz (THz) waves that can detect skin cancer with exceptional sensitivity, potentially paving the way for earlier and easier diagnoses. Published in IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, the study presents a significant advancement in early cancer detection, thanks to the collaboration of multidisciplinary teams from Queen Mary University of London and the University of Glasgow.

“Traditional methods for detecting skin cancer often involve expensive, time-consuming, CT, PET scans and invasive higher frequencies technologies,” explains Dr. Shohreh Nourinovin, Postdoctoral Research Associate at Queen Mary’s School of Electronic Engineering and Computer Science, and the study’s first author. “Our biosensor offers a non-invasive and highly efficient solution, leveraging the unique properties of THz waves—a type of radiation with lower energy than X-rays, thus safe for humans—to detect subtle changes in cell characteristics.”

The key innovation lies in the biosensor’s design. Featuring tiny, asymmetric resonators on a flexible substrate, it can detect subtle changes in the properties of cells. Unlike traditional methods that rely solely on refractive index, this device analyzes a combination of parameters, including resonance frequency, transmission magnitude, and a value called “full width at half maximum” (FWHM). This comprehensive approach provides a richer picture of the tissue, allowing for more accurate differentiation between healthy and cancerous cells and to measure malignancy degree of the tissue.

Inspired by the distribution of sunflower seeds, a group of scientists say they have developed a new city-pattern that ensures the best distribution of solar energy utilization “in low solar radiation countries.”

“Our new city-plan bears close resemblance to the distribution of seeds in sunflowers. This distribution ensures the best utilization of solar energy,” says Dr. Ammar A. T. Alkhalidi, University of Sharjah’s Associate Professor of Sustainable and Renewable Energy Engineering.

Dr. Alkhalidi is the lead author of a new study titled “Sunflower-inspired urban city pattern to improve solar energy utilization in low solar radiation countries.” The study is published in journal Renewable Energy Focus.