University of Michigan

Scientists at the University of Michigan have demonstrated an octocopter equipped with a nail gun and a knack for fixing asphalt shingles to a mock rooftop.

​When a spinal cord injury occurs, sometimes it's the body's own immune system that causes the subsequent paralysis. In the not-too-distant future, however, it's possible that an injection of nanoparticles at the injury site may be able to rein in the well-meaning but destructive immune cells.

Electronic devices are made possible thanks to rare-Earth metals, but these are rare and relatively expensive. Now, scientists have found a way to combine common elements into electronically-useful compounds, which could find their way into tunable lighting and solar panels.

A compelling study has revealed how a mammalian brain can produce an incredibly powerful hallucinogen called DMT. The research shows the psychedelic is endogenously produced in a number of brain regions, including the visual cortex, and spikes in concentrations following an induced cardiac arrest.

​Essentially cheap, battery-less, sticker-type devices, RFID tags transmit a signal when temporarily powered up by the electromagnetic signal from a reader device. Now, thanks to experimental new technology, they could be used to bring "smart" functionality to plain ol' analog objects.

CRISPR-Cas9 acts like a pair of molecular scissors and enables precise cut-and-paste DNA edits. But now, researchers have developed a new genetic tool that, they say, acts more like a motorized DNA “shredder.”

A team of astronomers has managed to find the origin of an enormous star that is currently barreling out of the Milky Way having escaped from one of our galaxy’s spiral arms. The discovery challenges the theory that such stars come from the galactic center.

Scientists have used computer models to show that our planet has a moderate climate and isn't an ocean world because there was a massive star in the vicinity of the primordial solar system that evaporated some of the water that otherwise would have been delivered to Earth as it formed.

Researchers from the University of Michigan have discovered a new symbiotic relationship we have with bacteria in our noses and throats, some of which may help fight off the flu virus.

Researchers at the University of Michigan may have found a way to slow aging – in worms at least. The team has identified a molecule in neurons that, when blocked, improves motor function in older worms and increases their lifespan and general health. Similar pathways might be at work in humans too.

​​According to a newly-released paper, the Andromeda galaxy may have committed fratricide on a cosmic scale some 2 billion years ago, by ripping apart an enormous galaxy, and cannibalizing much of the body.

"World’s smallest computer” is a contentious title, not just because scientists are racing to shrink devices, but because the very definition of a computer could be up for debate. The latest claim to the title is a tiny device that communicates through light and makes a grain of rice look gigantic.