Chiral-structural-color materials produce color through microscopic structures that interact with light rather than through pigmentation or dyes. Some beetle exoskeletons, avian feathers, butterfly wings, and marine organisms feature these structures naturally, producing iridescent or polarization-dependent colors. Over the last 10–15 years, scientists have made progress in developing artificial chiral-structural-color materials.
Recently, Chinese researchers have made a breakthrough in the field by discovering that microdomes made from common polymers exhibit tunable chiral structural colors with broad-spectrum capabilities and multiple polarization-modulated chirality. This advancement could have significant implications for applications in displays, sensors, and data security.
Published in PNAS, the study was led by Prof. Li Mingzhu’s team from the Technical Institute of Physics and Chemistry of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
Many next-generation quantum devices rely on single-photon emitters based on optically active defects in solids, known as color centers. Understanding their properties is fundamental to developing novel quantum technologies.
Now, in a study published in APL Materials, a multi-institutional research team led by Osaka University has sought to clarify the origin of the extremely bright color centers at the interface between silicon dioxide (SiO2) and silicon carbide (SiC).
Previous research has demonstrated a range of factors that can play a role in the formation of these interface color centers, including the effect of annealing after oxidation. However, the energy level structure (i.e., the electronic transitions taking place) responsible for luminescence, a crucial factor for understanding the origin of color centers, was completely unknown.
Researchers at Tohoku University, the University of Manchester, and Osaka University have made a breakthrough that has the potential to ignite the development of next-gen chiral information technology.
Chirality is a property of materials where their mirror image is not identical to the original—just like our left and right hands. This unique characteristic creates two distinct states, which researchers believe could one day be used to store digital information, much like the “0” and “1” states in conventional computing.
When you look at your surrounding environment, it might seem like you’re living on a flat plane. After all, this is why you can navigate a new city using a map: a flat piece of paper that represents all the places around you.
This is likely why some people in the past believed the Earth to be flat. But most people now know that is far from the truth.
You live on the surface of a giant sphere, like a beach ball the size of the Earth with a few bumps added. The surface of the sphere and the plane are two possible 2D spaces, meaning you can walk in two directions: north and south or east and west.
Gravity shapes our universe, but could we one day shape gravity? Join us as we explore the possibilities of gravity technology, from artificial gravity and interstellar travel to terraforming and cosmic engineering.
Watch my exclusive video Big Alien Theory https://nebula.tv/videos/isaacarthur–… Nebula using my link for 40% off an annual subscription: https://go.nebula.tv/isaacarthur Get a Lifetime Membership to Nebula for only $300: https://go.nebula.tv/lifetime?ref=isa… Use the link gift.nebula.tv/isaacarthur to give a year of Nebula to a friend for just $30. Visit our Website: http://www.isaacarthur.net Join Nebula: https://go.nebula.tv/isaacarthur Support us on Patreon: / isaacarthur Support us on Subscribestar: https://www.subscribestar.com/isaac-a… Facebook Group: / 1,583,992,725,237,264 Reddit: / isaacarthur Twitter: / isaac_a_arthur on Twitter and RT our future content. SFIA Discord Server: / discord Credits: Black Sun Rising: Living On A Planet Around A Black Hole Credits: Gravity Tech Episode 488; February 27, 2025 Written, Produced & Narrated by: Isaac Arthur Editor: Donagh Broderick Graphics: Jeremy Jozwik, LegionTech Studios, Sergio Botero Select imagery/video supplied by Getty Images Music Courtesy of Epidemic Sound http://epidemicsound.com/creator Phase Shift, “Forest Night” Chris Zabriskie, “Unfoldment, Revealment”, “A New Day in a New Sector”, Stellardrone, “Red Giant”, “Billions and Billions“ Get Nebula using my link for 40% off an annual subscription: https://go.nebula.tv/isaacarthur. Get a Lifetime Membership to Nebula for only $300: https://go.nebula.tv/lifetime?ref=isa… Use the link gift.nebula.tv/isaacarthur to give a year of Nebula to a friend for just $30.
Visit our Website: http://www.isaacarthur.net. Join Nebula: https://go.nebula.tv/isaacarthur. Support us on Patreon: / isaacarthur. Support us on Subscribestar: https://www.subscribestar.com/isaac-a… Facebook Group: / 1583992725237264 Reddit: / isaacarthur. Twitter: / isaac_a_arthur on Twitter and RT our future content. SFIA Discord Server: / discord. Credits: Black Sun Rising: Living On A Planet Around A Black Hole. Credits: Gravity Tech. Episode 488; February 27, 2025 Written, Produced & Narrated by: Isaac Arthur. Editor: Donagh Broderick. Graphics: Jeremy Jozwik, LegionTech Studios, Sergio Botero.
“The Ouroboros Code” explores the intersection of science and spirituality through the lens of digital alchemy and self-simulation. Authored by Antonin Tuynman, the book presents a philosophical framework called “The Transcendental Metaphysics of Pancomputational Panpsychism” exploring how consciousness may be the fundamental ground of existence and the universe a self-modifying code. Tuynman investigates topics like the nature of intelligence, the limits of computation, and the possibility of artificial general intelligence. The book draws on concepts from physics, information theory, mathematics, and various spiritual traditions, aiming to bridge the gap between objective and subjective realities. It builds upon the author’s previous works and incorporates insights from various scientists and thinkers. Ultimately, the book seeks to understand how the universe, through a recursive process, generates and experiences itself. *Available as a Kindle eBook, paperback, and Audible audiobook: https://www.amazon.com/Ouroboros-Code?tag=lifeboatfound-20… #SelfSimulation #Pancomputationalism #DigitalPhysics #ComputationalPhysics
The was awarded jointly to John Bardeen, Leon Neil Cooper and John Robert Schrieffer ‘for their jointly developed theory of superconductivity, usually called the BCS-theory’
Raw milk has made headlines recently for widespread samples containing the virus that causes H5N1, or bird flu, with the U.S. Department of Agriculture launching a program in December to track the virus through milk testing. But bird flu is far from the only disease-causing pathogen lurking in raw milk: Unpasteurized milk can contain bacteria such as E. coli and Listeria, for instance.
New Stanford Medicine research has found that another virus affecting both animals and people — Rift Valley fever virus — can remain active in raw milk samples for roughly as long as someone might want to drink it. Rift Valley fever is an acute viral illness spread to people through mosquitoes or the bodily fluids of infected animals. These findings mirror recent Stanford research showing that flu virus can be infectious in refrigerated raw milk for up to five days.
While Rift Valley fever virus mostly impacts sub-Saharan Africa, these findings have important implications for understanding human disease risk from drinking raw milk, said Brian Dawes, MD, PhD. He is an infectious disease fellow and postdoctoral researcher in Stanford Medicine’s LaBeaud Lab and led the research. Desiree LaBeaud, MD, associate dean of global health, was the senior author. Alina De La Mota-Peynado of the USDA was co-lead author.
Mayo Clinic researchers have discovered a new role that a specific protein plays in regulating cell resistance and fighting tumors in certain types of cancer, offering hope for improved cancer therapies and patient outcomes.
The protein, known as NKG7, is found in CD8+ T cells, a type of immune cell that can recognize and kill cancer cells. CD8+ T cell resilience is essential for anti-tumor activity. The protein allows CD8+ T cells to continue killing cancer cells even under stress and can help prevent cancer from growing and spreading.
“We found that patients with invasive bladder cancer who had NKG7-expressing CD8+ T cells within their tumor had superior survival compared to patients without,” says Dan Billadeau, Ph.D., senior author of the study, detailed in Nature Communications. “This discovery holds promise for manipulating CD8+ T cells — for example, CAR-T and tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) — to combat cancer.”
A rare genetic disease that ravages some but spares others has baffled researchers — until now.
Researchers found that a genetic variant, HAQ-STING, acts as a shield against COPA Syndrome, a discovery that could lead to life-changing gene therapies. For families long plagued by the disease, the revelation was both an explanation and a beacon of hope.
