Science

Some fusion projects aim to create hundred-million degree working temperatures in magnetically confined plasma. The CEO of TAE Technologies tells us his team's aiming for 10 times that temperature, targeting cheaper, easier and safer boron fuel.

The US Inflation Reduction Act is poised to kickstart a global hydrogen revolution. Among the bill's many climate-focused provisions are tax credits that will make American green hydrogen the cheapest H2 in the world, as low as US$0.73 per kilogram.

Illinois Tech spinoff Influit Energy says it's coming out of stealth mode to commercialize a rechargeable electrofuel – a non-flammable, fast-refuelling liquid flow battery that already carries 23% more energy than lithium batteries, at half the cost.

Getting a bandage to stick to your skin can sometimes be difficult, particularly if that skin is wet. This isn't a problem with an experimental new wound dressing however, which uses ultrasound-induced microbubbles to better bond with the skin.

Patients who remain in bed for long periods of time may develop pressure sores, which can in turn become potentially life-threatening chronic skin ulcers. A new sensor could help keep that from happening, using scattered light.

Researchers at the Salk Institute have made a breakthrough that could lead to new treatments for genetic hearing loss. Gene therapy that delivers a particular protein can ensure faulty hair cells grow correctly, allowing for improved hearing.

Northrop Grumman announces that the war in Ukraine is forcing it to develop a US-designed and manufactured replacement for the first stage of its Antares rocket, which was previously made in Ukraine using Russian engines.

The James Webb Space Telescope keeps breaking its own records for peering deeper into space and time. It's now detected a galaxy candidate about 35 billion light-years from Earth, which if confirmed would make it the most distant galaxy ever found.

Another stunning example of the James Webb Space Telescope's power has arrived courtesy of the instrument's advanced infrared cameras, which have illuminated incredible new components of what's known as the Cartwheel Galaxy.

In wastewater produced by the textile industry and others, dye is one of the primary pollutants. A newly developed synthetic polymer is capable of removing that dye from the water, plus it can be cleaned up and reused to treat more wastewater.

In recent years, we've heard about efforts to replace some of the aggregate used in concrete with crumbled used tires. Now, however, scientists have succeeded in producing good quality concrete in which all of the aggregate has been replaced with tire particles.

With new manufacturing techniques comes the opportunity for new metal alloys with a range of possible properties. A team of researchers has now developed a new 3D-printable alloy with a specific nanostructure that makes it ultra strong and ductile.

While prehistoric insects encased in amber certainly are fascinating, they usually don't look all that different from today's insects. A newly discovered one, however, is so bizarre that it has been placed in its own unique family.

When we think of animals that work together to hunt prey, we typically think of creatures such as wolves or orcas. Common bats may soon be added to that list, as a new study suggests that they show each other where the tasty insects can be found.

Scientists have demonstrated a new system that can restore crucial molecular and cellular functions in pigs one hour after death. The experiments could help widen the organ transplantation pool and may even lead to new treatments for heart attacks.

One of the best ways to analyze Earth's past climate is with samples drilled from deep ice cores. Now, scientists have dated what may be the world’s oldest ice core, with some sections potentially preserving samples as old as 5 million years.

UC Berkeley chemists say they've created a simple, and very inexpensive way to capture carbon dioxide using a polymer called melamine, that's far cheaper than metal-organic frameworks. It could capture carbon emissions from smokestacks or tailpipes.

Siemens Gamesa has developed a fully recyclable blade that can be used to create new products when its wind-catching days are done, and it's just been installed on a turbine at a commercial wind farm in the North Sea.

Researchers have developed a more precise design for "optical tweezers," using a metasurface lens studded with millions of tiny pillars which focus light to trap and manipulate individual atoms. It could pave the way for powerful quantum devices.

Everything has to end eventually – including the universe itself. It might be hard to imagine a catastrophe big enough to affect the entirety of existence, but here are some of the leading hypotheses about how the universe could end, and when.

This month marks the 10th anniversary of the discovery of the Higgs boson. But what exactly is this particle, and why is it so important? What has it taught us in the last decade – and more importantly, what could it teach us in the next decade?

Although it's always best to reuse and recycle, many small, simple, low-power electronic devices tend to be single-use. A new paper battery could make them more eco-friendly, as it's activated by water, and it biodegrades once discarded.

While high-end car audio systems do allow users to tweak the various sound frequencies to their liking, the average non-audiophile may get lost in the process. The YourSound system is designed to make things easier, by guiding users via sound samples.

Engineers at MIT have developed a modular computer chip with components that can communicate using flashes of light. This could allow for electronics that can easily be upgraded with new sensors or processors, rather than replacing the whole chip.

Three teams of scientists have achieved a major milestone in quantum computing. All three groups demonstrated better than 99 percent accuracy in silicon-based quantum devices, paving the way for practical, scalable, error-free quantum computers.

IBM has unveiled the Eagle, the world’s most powerful quantum processor. Boasting 127 quantum bits (qubits), the Eagle is a major step towards commercial quantum computers outperforming traditional machines.

An Australian/German company is developing powerful quantum accelerators the size of graphics cards. They work at room temperature, undercutting and outperforming today's huge, cryo-cooled quantum supercomputers, promising industry-wide disruption.