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Tech & Engineering

Updates every hour. Last Updated: 27-Oct-2026 19:16 ET (27-Oct-2026 23:16 GMT/UTC)

Microplastics can affect the next generation without being passed directly from mother to offspring

Shenyang Agricultural University Collaborative Journals
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Microplastics and nanoplastics are increasingly found throughout aquatic environments, raising concern about whether these tiny particles can move from exposed parents into their offspring. But a new critical review warns that harm observed in the next generation should not automatically be interpreted as evidence that plastic particles were directly transferred from mother to offspring.

Journal: New Contaminants

Engineering defects in metal-organic frameworks boosts conversion of biomass sugars into lactic acid

Shenyang Agricultural University Collaborative Journals
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Lactic acid is a key building block for biodegradable plastics, but producing it efficiently from renewable biomass remains challenging. Researchers have now developed a defect-engineered metal-organic framework catalyst that converts glucose into lactic acid with substantially improved efficiency, while also showing activity toward raw biomass feedstocks.

Journal: Sustainable Carbon Materials

KAIST finds a way to redirect cell fate with just a single stimulus

The Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST)
Peer-Reviewed Publication

- Professor Kwang-Hyun Cho's team in the Department of Bio and Brain Engineering develops NUDGE, a general-purpose foundational technology that harnesses cells' own regulatory dynamics

- A single temporary intervention, without permanently altering genes, can switch cells between diverse states in computational models while preserving their native adaptability

- Expected to enable new control strategies spanning stem cell differentiation, aging, autoimmune disease, regenerative medicine, and cancer reversion therapy

Journal: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Funder: Ministry of Science and Information and Communication Technology, Korea Dementia Research Center, Ministry of Health & Welfare, Ministry of Science and ICT, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology

Electrical and computer engineering trailblazer Laura Kim targets endometriosis with prestigious award

University of Florida
Grant and Award Announcement

UF Professor Laura Kim, who leads a cross-college project to detect endometriosis earlier and more accurately, recently received an NIH Trailblazer Award to develop a minimally invasive diamond-based quantum sensing platform capable of detecting subtle magnetic signals at the microscopic level.

Salk Institute moves deeper-rooted crop research from lab discovery to field testing

Salk Institute
Grant and Award Announcement

The Bezos Earth Fund is granting $18 million for ROOTS, a three-year Salk project to test deeper-rooted, more resilient crops that can store more carbon in soil. The project builds on six years of work through Salk’s Harnessing Plants Initiative, which has identified 347 gene candidates and advanced 37 projects across genes and crops. The grant brings the Bezos Earth Fund’s total support for Salk to $48 million.

A new AI framework could help cities plan for future traffic

NYU Tandon School of Engineering
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Traffic jams are usually treated as a problem to be measured after they form. Anton Rozhkov and his colleagues are exploring a different approach: giving planners state-of-the-art tools that can anticipate congestion, locate where it is most likely to emerge and translate complex traffic models into plain-language guidance.

Journal: Transactions in GIS

Turning oxidation into an advantage: Researchers designing self-lubricating metals for extreme heat

Virginia Tech
Grant and Award Announcement

Researchers from Virginia Tech, Arizona State University, and Iowa State University have received a $2 million grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to solve that problem by manufacturing self-lubricating, wear-resistant metal alloys that won't break down even at ultra-high temperatures.

Funder: National Science Foundation

Zhang advances fungi-based upcycling of waste concrete

George Mason University
Grant and Award Announcement

Emma Zhang, Assistant Professor, Civil, Environmental and Infrastructure Engineering, College of Engineering and Computing (CEC), received funding from the National Science Foundation for the project: “Collaborative Research: Fungi-Based Biological Upcycling of Waste Concrete into Durable Infrastructure Materials.”

Brodsky studying translation potential of platform to manage microgrids in real time

George Mason University
Grant and Award Announcement

Alexander Brodsky, Professor, Computer Science, College of Engineering and Computing (CEC), is exploring translation potential of a microgrid management platform.