Traditional geotechnical investigations provide data only at discrete borehole locations, leaving vast areas uncharacterized. This spatial gap often leads to unforeseen ground conditions during construction, causing costly delays, design modifications, and occasionally catastrophic failures. Now, a novel integrated geophysical-machine learning approach, using k-means clustering technique, by a team of researchers from Shibaura Institute of Technology provides continuous subsurface characterization, enabling evidence-based decision-making throughout project lifecycles.

Anode-free metal batteries offer high energy densities, but suffer from dendritic growth and short circuits, arising from non-uniform metal deposition. To address this, researchers from South Korea have developed a new facet-driven metal plating strategy that employs a facet-oriented zinc (Zn) host with a physicochemically polished surface to ensure uniform, horizontal Mg growth during plating, preventing dendrite formation and improving stability.

The number of single-person households in South Korea has exceeded 8 million, accounting for 36% of the total, marking an all-time high. A Seoul Metropolitan Government survey found that 62% of single-person households experience 'loneliness', deepening feelings of isolation and mental health issues. KAIST researchers have gone beyond the limitations of smartphones and wearables, utilizing in-home IoT data to reveal that a disruption in daily rhythm is a key indicator of worsening mental health. This research is expected to lay the foundation for developing personalized mental healthcare management systems.

Researchers at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands have developed a polymer that adopts a coiled spring configuration at low temperatures and unfolds again upon heating. Furthermore, the molecule can break down into smaller molecules under certain conditions.