New Atlas

Science Audio available

Scientists cool water to -263° C without freezing it

Nick Lavars April 11, 2019

Researchers in Switzerland have figured out a way to reduce the temperature of water to a very cool -263° C (-441.4° F) without freezing it, opening up some interesting possibilities around how we study molecular structures at extreme temperatures.

Researchers have figured out a way to keep water in a liquid state at temperatures approaching ...

Biology Audio available

First computer-generated genome could lead to custom synthetic lifeforms

Michael Irving April 1, 2019

Scientists have created the first fully computer-generated genome of a living organism. Named Caulobacter ethensis-2.0, it was built by simplifying the natural code of Caulobacter crescentus. The team says this is a huge step towards creating completely synthetic life and medicinal DNA molecules.

Scientists have created the first computer-generated genome of a living organism

Materials

Nanoparticle coating defogs surfaces using light instead of electricity

Michael Irving March 5, 2019

Goggles, glasses and windshield can fog up if there’s a difference in temperature or humidity. Researchers at ETH Zurich have developed a new anti-fog coating that warms up the surface without needing electricity.

The new coating reacts to simulated sunlight to defog a glass surface

Medical Audio available

New chemo drug keeps platinum nanoparticles on target for liver cancer

Michael Irving February 15, 2019

Chemotherapy drugs are effective at killing cancer cells – but they’re also pretty good at killing healthy cells. Making these drugs more selective for tumors is a key area of research, and now a team at ETH Zurich has found a way to keep a common treatment – platinum nanoparticles – on target.

Researchers have found a way to make platinum nanoparticles more effective against liver cancer, without harming ...

Robotics Audio available

Medical micro-robots automatically change shape to swim through the body

Michael Irving January 20, 2019

The human body is full of wildly different environments, so any robots exploring them need to be able to adapt on the fly. Now, researchers at EPFL and ETH Zurich have developed micro-robots that can automatically morph in response to their surroundings.

A new breed of medical micro-robots made to explore the human body can automatically adapt to ...

Materials

Artificial mother-of-pearl could give carbon fiber a run for its money

Ben Coxworth December 11, 2018

Mother of pearl is the coating found on the outside of pearls, and the inside of certain mollusc’s shells. It's one of nature's hardest, stiffest, most stable materials – and scientists have now figured out how to make an artificial version of it, which can be "tuned" for different applications.

A microscope image showing the structure of the synthetic nacre

Drones Audio available

Drones may find use in simplified motion-capture animation

Ben Coxworth December 6, 2018

In motion-capture animation, an actor moves through a studio equipped with multiple cameras. A computer tracks markers on their body, building a 3D "skeleton" that is used to create the final animated character. Experimental new drone-based tech, however, may make the process much easier.

The system requires no more than two commercially-available camera-equipped drones, a laptop, and a special suit ...

Health & Wellbeing

Self-contained station recycles water for hand-washing

Michael Irving October 21, 2018

Water used for hand-washing is relatively easy to treat for reuse, and now engineers at ETH Zurich have built and tested a standalone hand-washing station for use in public places and developing countries that can do just that.

The BAMBi water recycling system was tested for 100 days in a public place in Zurich

VR

Light, thin VR gloves put wearers in touch with virtual objects

Michael Irving October 16, 2018

VR motion controllers work pretty well at syncing up the movements of digital digits with your real ones, but they aren’t all that good at recreating the sense of touch. Scientists from EPFL and ETH Zurich have developed new haptic gloves that could help users get in touch with virtual objects.

DextrES is a VR glove that provides haptic feedback to the wearer, making it feel like ...

Space

Meteorites reveal Jupiter's troubled childhood

David Szondy August 29, 2018

Jupiter may be the largest planet in the solar system, but it experienced growing pains. That's the conclusion of a team of scientists, who say that Jupiter grew in three stages with a two-million-year gap during which it grew very slowly, affecting the development of the rest of the solar system.

Jupiter's southern hemisphere photographed by NASA's Juno probe