Humans were making tools from whale bones as far back as 20,000 years ago, according to a study conducted by scientists from the Institute of Environmental Science and Technology of the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (ICTA-UAB), the French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS), and the University of British Columbia. This discovery broadens our understanding of early human use of whale remains and offers valuable insight into the marine ecology of the time. 

MIT engineers developed a fuel cell that offers more than three times as much energy per pound compared to lithium-ion batteries. Powered by a reaction between sodium metal and air, the device could be lightweight enough to enable the electrification of airplanes, trucks, or ships.

Inspiration can hit anytime, anywhere—and come from just about anything. “I was walking my dog and watching a squirrel jump from tree branch to tree branch,” says David Saldaña, an assistant professor of computer science and engineering at Lehigh University. “I started thinking about how quickly the animal has to adapt to the different properties of each branch and to the forces generated by their movement. And that’s when the idea hit me—how could we get robots, especially aerial robots, to adapt like that?” Saldaña, who leads the SwarmsLab, recently received nearly $600,000 in funding through the National Science Foundation’s Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program to answer that question. His research will explore how to expand the capabilities of aerial robots so they can manipulate and transport flexible objects such as cables, rods, hoses, and plastic sheets. Potential applications could range from construction and disaster response to industrial automation.   

The wearable smart photonic wristband proposed in this work achieves precise assessment of cardiorespiratory function and effective biometric identification. It not only excels in response speed, long-term stability, and durability but also maintains high-precision monitoring across various application scenarios and individual differences, demonstrating its practicality and adaptability. Additionally, the demonstration of biometric identification capabilities opens up new possibilities for personal health services. This research finding holds broad application prospects in the prevention, treatment, and daily health management of cardiorespiratory diseases, and is expected to have a positive impact on people's healthy lives.

 

A joint team of researchers led by scientists at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) and King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST) has reported the fastest quantum random number generator (QRNG) to date based on international benchmarks. The QRNG, which passed the required randomness tests of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, could produce random numbers at a rate nearly a thousand times faster than other QRNG.