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Magnetic nanoparticles cut adhesive curing from 24 hours to one in laboratory tests
Scientists at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) and global automotive supplier Motherson are collaborating to develop a magnetic heating technology that could significantly reduce the time and energy needed to cure industrial coatings.
The collaboration combines NTU’s expertise in magnetic materials and polymer science with Motherson’s automotive engineering and manufacturing capabilities to adapt the technology for industrial production.
Motherson is a leading global design, engineering, manufacturing, assembly and logistics specialist, supporting customers from more than 475 facilities across 47 countries. Its operations span automotive and aerospace components, as well as other industries.
Pre-operative stereotactic radiosurgery versus intraoperative cesium-131 brachytherapy for resected brain metastases: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Pre-operative stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) and intraoperative cesium-131 (Cs-131) brachytherapy are alternatives to post-operative SRS for resected brain metastases (BMs). The randomized phase 3 Radiation One and Done Study (ROADS; NCT04365374) showed improved surgical-bed control with Cs-131 tiles versus post-operative stereotactic radiotherapy, but outcomes relative to pre-operative SRS are undefined.
PubMed, Embase, and ScienceDirect were searched through October 2026 (PRISMA 2020); one further trial was identified by other methods. Twelve-month local control (LC), leptomeningeal disease (LMD), radiation necrosis (RN), and overall survival (OS) were extracted for treatment-naïve BMs. Proportions were pooled with random-effects generalized linear mixed models and compared with a test for subgroup differences; sensitivity analyses included meta-regression, Hartung–Knapp, leave-one-out, follow-up, and fractionation analyses.
Fifteen pre-operative SRS studies (918 patients/940 BMs) and four brachytherapy studies (207 patients/217 BMs) were included. Pooled 12-month LC was 97% (95% CI 90–99) with Cs-131 brachytherapy and 90% (86–93) with pre-operative SRS (test for subgroup differences p = 0.054; meta-regression p = 0.019; Hartung–Knapp p = 0.066); among studies reporting observed counts, LC was 99% vs. 90% (p = 0.009). Within pre-operative SRS, LC was 96% after hypofractionated and 86% after single-fraction treatment (p = 0.005). LMD (9.1% vs. 5.1%) and RN (0.7% vs. 5.2%) did not differ significantly. Median OS was 15.6 months with brachytherapy (range 5.9–42.5; 11.0 months, range 5.9–20.1, excluding the ROADS estimate) and 14.4 months with pre-operative SRS (range 6.3–26.4).
Robots recognize the shape of an arena by messaging each other
Humans can create loose maps of environments they are exploring in their minds, using their senses and navigation skills. Many robots, on the other hand, rely on set maps of known environments or new maps produced using data collected by their sensors.
Researchers at Sorbonne University’s Institute of Intelligent Systems and Robotics (ISIR), the University of Tokyo and other institutions recently introduced a framework that could allow a swarm of tiny robots to recognize the shape of an enclosure they are in without a map. Their approach, outlined in a paper published in Science Robotics, allows robots to identify the enclosure from a set of known shapes by repeatedly exchanging messages with nearby robots.
“The project addressed a fundamental question in swarm robotics: how can a group of simple robots perceive something that none of its members can observe alone?” Leo Cazenille, first author of the paper, told Tech Xplore.
The focus on AI safety disasters ignores everyday harms
Lawmakers are passing industry-backed bills to guard against the worst outcomes, rather than addressing more common problems.
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Could new fertilizers help combat high prices?
AI helps digital humans move more naturally as they speak
People communicate with more than words. A raised hand, a change in posture or a facial expression can help convey meaning and emotion. Now, researchers have developed an artificial intelligence (AI) system that can translate speech into coordinated movements of the body, hands and face, potentially making digital characters and virtual presenters more expressive and lifelike.
Developed by researchers at Tohoku University and the University of Hong Kong, DynaConTalk generates three-dimensional (3D) human movements that correspond to spoken content.
Unlike approaches that generate only individual gestures, the system coordinates different parts of the body while maintaining smooth movement over longer speeches. Users can also guide the generated motion by specifying poses or providing reference examples.
Thin-film lithium niobate photonics for quantum technologies
Thin-film lithium niobate offers a promising platform for integrated photonic applications. This Perspective discusses how its material and optical properties can solve bottlenecks in quantum technologies.
Why We May Soon Add ‘Anti-Aging’ to GLP-1s’ Growing Benefits
As study after study reveals unexpected health benefits of GLP-1s, longevity researchers are launching trials to examine the drugs’ effects in a surprising population: healthy people.
Simulations reveal design rules for high-performance DNA particle motors
DNA-nano/microparticle motors are among the fastest artificial molecular motors reported to date, moving at approximately 30 nm per second. However, they are still slower than natural motor proteins (approximately 100–1,000 nm per second), and further improvements in design and performance are required.
Researchers at the Institute for Molecular Science (IMS) and the Graduate University for Advanced Studies, Sokendai, performed geometry-based kinetic simulations that reproduce the motion of DNA-nano/microparticle motors with particle diameters of 100–5,000 nm and identified conditions for improving their speed, run length and unidirectionality.
The work was published in Biophysical Journal.