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Insect-inspired flying robot bounces back after collisions

Flying insects, such as fruit flies, bees, dragonflies and mosquitoes, can dart through narrow spaces and survive collisions with various objects. In contrast, many flying robots fall, suffer damage or even break down when they hit nearby surfaces or objects.

Researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and the University of California, Davis (UC Davis) have developed a tiny robot that could better replicate the resilience of flying insects. The new robot, presented in a paper published in Science Robotics, could potentially explore areas that are difficult for other robots or humans to reach, recovering quickly after collisions.

“Our lab has been developing soft robotics for years. We were inspired by how flying insects survive collisions and other physical disturbances,” Qibing Pei, senior author of the paper, told Tech Xplore. “Many insect-sized robots rely on fragile components, which makes operating beyond the laboratory difficult. We saw an opportunity to use electrically responsive polymer materials to create a simpler, more resilient design.”

Comets probably didn’t seed life on Earth after all, new study suggests

The theory that comets delivered the molecular building blocks for life on Earth is a long-standing one, since comets are known to carry many of these molecules. However, a new study challenges this idea.

The researchers, led by the University of Cambridge, found the cometary delivery of these building blocks would be—at best—a ‘one-off fluke,’ and not the steady rain of prebiotic molecules that had been theorized.

Using computer modeling, the researchers determined that comets travel too fast and at too sharp an angle to Earth’s atmosphere for the fragile organic molecules to survive: they would almost certainly vaporize on impact with the surface. However, the researchers also found that another planet in our system—Mars—could be a slightly more promising candidate for cometary delivery of prebiotic molecules, although this is still highly unlikely. The results are published in the journal Scientific Reports.

Nearly 20 Years Later, Physicists Finally Detect a Long-Predicted Effect in Graphene

A nearly 20-year-old scientific prediction has gained experimental support, revealing how graphene’s atomic structure could unlock new possibilities for advanced sensors and electronic devices.

A wrinkle in graphene just a few atoms wide can dramatically alter how electricity behaves in the material. Scientists have now measured this effect in exceptionally sharp folds, providing experimental evidence for a phenomenon predicted nearly 20 years ago.

The discovery, published in Advanced Materials, suggests that researchers could eventually control electrical properties by changing a material’s shape rather than its chemical composition. Graphene, a remarkably strong and conductive material consisting of a single layer of carbon atoms, is already being explored for batteries, computer chips, and other advanced electronics.

No Batteries, No Plugs: Scientists Create a Tiny Sensor That Powers Itself

Scientists have developed a tiny temperature sensor that harvests energy from magnetic fields near electrical wiring.

Electrical wiring produces weak electromagnetic fields that typically go unnoticed, but researchers have found a way to turn some of that energy into a power source for tiny electronic devices. Scientists at the University of Arkansas (U of A) and the University of Michigan have developed a graphene-based energy harvester capable of powering an ultra-low-power temperature sensor without a conventional battery.

The prototype operates using energy collected from its immediate surroundings, consuming power measured in nanowatts, or billionths of a watt. It represents another advance toward the team’s goal of developing autonomous sensors that could function unattended for decades.

Hubble Finds a Stunning Twist in How the Universe Emerged From Darkness

Hubble observations of nearby starburst galaxies challenge the idea that supernova winds helped reionize the early universe, suggesting young stars may have enabled radiation to escape before those winds formed.

Powerful winds from exploding stars were thought to clear paths for ultraviolet radiation to escape early galaxies. A new study of nearby galaxies suggests those winds may instead make escape more difficult, challenging a leading explanation for how the universe emerged from a fog of neutral hydrogen.

Within the first billion years after the Big Bang, that fog made the universe opaque to ultraviolet light. It began to clear during an era called reionization, which started about 13 billion years ago. Energetic radiation from early galaxies struck neutral hydrogen atoms, separating them into charged protons and electrons.

This Giant Planet Orbits Its Star Every Two Days — but Something Is Very Wrong

Astronomers have discovered an unusual planet with an extremely hot host star and a highly eccentric orbit that challenges expectations for its class.

A giant planet racing around an unusually hot star has caught astronomers’ attention because of its highly elongated orbit. Known as TOI-1355 b, the planet completes one revolution in roughly two Earth days, following a path that differs sharply from the nearly circular orbits typical of many hot Jupiters.

Researchers from the University of Tokyo and their international collaborators believe the planet’s unusual trajectory could help explain how giant planets migrate toward their stars. However, its changing orbit is expected to limit observations after approximately 2033, leaving scientists a relatively short window to investigate its behavior.

This Alien Planet Should Have Lost Its Atmosphere Billions of Years Ago

James Webb Space Telescope observations suggest that exotic mineral clouds may be shielding a distant lava planet from its star.

A rocky planet exposed to extreme heat from its star appears to reflect nearly three-quarters of the starlight that reaches it. Astronomers suspect silicate-mineral clouds could act as a protective sunscreen, helping the planet maintain temperatures far below those expected for an exposed surface of molten rock.

The planet, TOI-561 b, lies about 280 light-years from Earth and was previously considered too hot to retain a substantial atmosphere. New observations from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) suggest that it has a significant envelope of gas that reflects incoming radiation and redistributes heat around the planet. The findings, published in The Astronomical Journal, challenge existing theories about how atmospheres survive on intensely irradiated rocky worlds.

A New Chemistry Breakthrough Could Change How Scientists Build Quantum Computers

Most materials being considered for quantum technology can hold a stable quantum state only when chilled to extreme temperatures. Diamond-based materials can work at room temperature, but their usefulness depends on defects in the crystal that have been difficult and computationally demanding to simulate.

At the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL), staff research scientist Mark Martirez has developed a far faster way to calculate how those defects respond to light and microwave pulses. The approach has identified promising boron-and oxygen-based defects that could serve as qubits, the basic information-processing units of quantum computers and sensors. The research was recently published in ACS Central Science and has already attracted attention from other experts in the field.

Aging’s “Zombie Cell” Problem May Have a Solution, Scientists Discover

“Zombie cells” become harder to clear with age, and a new study reveals why the immune system struggles to remove them.

Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine have identified a breakdown in protein recycling that helps explain why senescent cells, often called “zombie cells,” accumulate in aging tissues. In experiments involving older mice, restoring that process reduced senescent-cell buildup, inflammation, and tissue scarring. The findings, published in Nature Aging, suggest a possible way to help the immune system clear these cells more effectively.

Senescent cells remain alive after they stop dividing, but their activity changes. Although they can support tissue repair, their prolonged presence can fuel chronic inflammation and age-related disease. Most of the new experiments involved mice, with human lung samples providing evidence that the biological changes may also occur in people.