Researchers have developed a new smartphone-based digital holographic microscope that enables precision 3D measurements. The highly portable and inexpensive microscope could help bring 3D measurement capabilities to a broader range of applications, including educational uses and point-of-care diagnostics in resource-limited settings.
The University of Texas at Austin this week announced that it has opened its undergraduate robotics program to high school applicants. The honors program is one of the first in the U.S. that allows incoming freshmen to apply for the program as part of their initial admission application. It’s a clear indication that robotics is no longer in the realm of hyper-specialized graduate and doctorate programs.
The minor is tied to a handful of other majors, including aerospace engineering, electrical and computer engineering, computational engineering, computer science and mechanical engineering. Each forms a foundational piece of an eventual robotics major. With the rise of robotics in high school STEAM teaching, the program is designed to maintain incoming freshmen’s interest in the growing space.
Zoom is the leader in modern enterprise video communications, with an easy, reliable cloud platform for video and audio conferencing, chat, and webinars across mobile, desktop, and room systems. Zoom Rooms is the original software-based conference room solution used around the world in board, conference, huddle, and training rooms, as well as executive offices and classrooms. Founded in 2011, Zoom helps businesses and organizations bring their teams together in a frictionless environment to get more done. Zoom is a publicly traded company headquartered in San Jose, CA.
Across all species, critical skills are passed on from parents to offspring through communication. Researchers at the University Hospital Bonn (UKB) and the Researchers at the University of Bonn showed that effective communication relies on how both the sender and receiver represent information. Their study reveals how this process underlies training efficacy and task performance. Their results have been published in the journal Nature Communications.
Communication—be it through sounds, smells or movements—is crucial for survival. Its social aspect is fundamental to cognition, as our task descriptions in the brain are shaped not only by sensory experiences, but also by the information communicated to us.
“We know from our everyday lives that social communication is essential to our learning abilities in the real world, which is summed up by the saying ‘teaching is learning for the second time,” says Prof. Tatjana Tchumatchenko, from the Institute of Experimental Epileptology and Cognition Research at the UKB and member of the Transdisciplinary Research Area (TRA) “Modelling” at the University of Bonn.
A writer with no technical background recounts his incredible journey into the realm of coding and the invaluable lesson it taught him about the modern world.
Will artificial intelligence save us or kill us all? In Japan, AI-driven technology promises better lives for an aging population. But researchers in Silicon Valley are warning of untamable forces being unleashed– and even human extinction.
Will artificial intelligence make life better for humans or lead to our downfall? As developers race toward implementing AI in every aspect of our lives, it is already showing promise in areas like medicine. But what if it is used for nefarious purposes?
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The study, published by a multi-institutional team of researchers…
Researchers used D-Wave’s quantum computing technology to explore the relationship between prefrontal brain activity and academic achievement, particularly focusing on the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) scores in South Korea.
The study, published by a multi-institutional team of researchers across Korea in Scientific Reports, relied on functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) to measure brain signals during various cognitive tasks and then applied a quantum annealing algorithm to identify patterns correlating with higher academic performance.
Since 2014, solar capacity at K-12 schools has more than quadrupled across the US, according to a new report from clean energy nonprofit Generation180.
The “Brighter Future: A Study of Solar on K-12 Schools” report highlights that over 6.2 million students – more than 1 in 9 – now attend schools powered by solar. In 2023 alone, more than 800 schools added solar panels, meaning that at least one school went solar every single day during the 2022–23 school year.
“The benefits of solar energy are now reaching a broad range of schools across the country, including those in under-resourced communities that stand to gain the most from the cost savings and educational opportunities that solar technology provides. We want all schools and communities, regardless of their size, geography, or wealth, to have access to affordable, clean energy,” says Tish Tablan, the report’s lead author and senior director of Generation180’s Electrify Our Schools Program.
A new Nature Human Behaviour study, jointly led by Dr. Margherita Malanchini at Queen Mary University of London and Dr. Andrea Allegrini at University College London, has revealed that non-cognitive skills, such as motivation and self-regulation, are as important as intelligence in determining academic success. These skills become increasingly influential throughout a child’s education, with genetic factors playing a significant role.
The research, conducted in collaboration with an international team of experts, suggests that fostering non-cognitive skills alongside cognitive abilities could significantly improve educational outcomes.
“Our research challenges the long-held assumption that intelligence is the primary driver of academic achievement,” says Dr. Malanchini, Senior Lecturer in Psychology at Queen Mary University of London.
CRISPR-Cas systems, defense systems in bacteria, have become a plentiful source of technologies for molecular diagnostics. Researchers at the Helmholtz Institute for RNA-based Infection Research (HIRI) in Würzburg have expanded this extensive toolbox. Their novel method, called PUMA, enables the detection of RNA with Cas12 nucleases, which naturally target DNA. PUMA promises a wide range of applications and high accuracy.
The team published its results in the journal Nature Communications (“TracrRNA reprogramming enables direct PAM-independent detection of RNA with diverse DNA-targeting Cas12 nucleases”).
Bacteria have developed special defense mechanisms to protect themselves against viruses, which by no means infect only humans. As part of these so-called CRISPR-Cas systems, a CRISPR ribonucleic acid (crRNA), which serves as a “guide RNA,” recognizes regions of a foreign genome, such as viral DNA. The CRISPR-associated (Cas) nuclease, directed by a crRNA, then renders it harmless by cutting it like a pair of scissors.
