Single ultracold atoms act as slits, stripping away noise and emphasizing the fundamental nature of wave–particle duality
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Tiny defects deliver big gains: Controlling oxygen vacancies boosts thermoelectric efficiency by 91%
A research team has dramatically enhanced the efficiency of converting heat into electricity. The key lies in controlling tiny defects known as oxygen vacancies.
Their findings were published as a front cover article in the journal Advanced Science. The team was led by Professor Hyungyu Jin and Dr. Min Young Kim from the Department of Mechanical Engineering at POSTECH, in collaboration with Professors Donghwa Lee and Si-Young Choi from the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, and Professor Joseph P. Heremans from the Ohio State University.
Each day, enormous amounts of heat are lost around us: hot steam from factory chimneys, heat from car engines, and even the warmth generated by smartphones and computers. This waste heat is typically left unused, but if it could be converted back into electricity, it would offer a powerful solution to both energy inefficiency and environmental challenges.
A single gene may explain why immune responses differ between men and women
A new study has uncovered a key difference between the immune system of males and females—and it comes down to a single gene. The study is published in The Journal of Immunology.
It is known that biological sex affects the function of the immune system, with women often being more severely affected by autoimmune conditions or allergic diseases.
Scientists from the University of York have now identified the gene Malat1 as a critical player in regulating immune responses in female immune cells, but not in males.
Harnessing mechanobiology to combat kidney disease
Chronic kidney disease affects an estimated 37 million people in the U.S., and for many, there is no cure. But a new research project at Washington University in St. Louis seeks to change that by uncovering the mechanical basis of kidney cell injury.
To tackle chronic kidney disease, Guy Genin, the Harold and Kathleen Faught Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the WashU McKelvey School of Engineering, and Jeffrey Miner, the Eduardo and Judith Slatopolsky Professor of Medicine in Nephrology at WashU Medicine, teamed up with Hani Suleiman, an assistant professor of medicine at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. The interdisciplinary team, with expertise spanning medicine, cell biology, genetics and engineering, received a five-year $4 million grant from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
With the NIH’s support, the team plans to study the mechanobiology of podocytes, specialized cells in the kidney that help filter blood.
Researchers at Washington University in St. Louis have received a $4 million grant to study specialized cells that could help treat kidney disease.
Caltech breakthrough makes quantum memory last 30 times longer
While superconducting qubits are great at fast calculations, they struggle to store information for long periods. A team at Caltech has now developed a clever solution: converting quantum information into sound waves. By using a tiny device that acts like a miniature tuning fork, the researchers were able to extend quantum memory lifetimes up to 30 times longer than before. This breakthrough could pave the way toward practical, scalable quantum computers that can both compute and remember.
