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Plastic-based spectrometers offer low-cost, compact solution for broadband spectral imaging

A multinational research team, including engineers from the University of Cambridge and Zhejiang University, has developed a breakthrough in miniaturized spectrometer technology that could dramatically expand the accessibility and functionality of spectral imaging in everyday devices.

The study, titled “Stress-engineered ultra-broadband spectrometer,” published in the journal Science Advances, describes a novel, low-cost spectrometer platform built from programmable plastic materials rather than conventional glass.

These innovative devices operate across the full visible and short-wave infrared (SWIR) range—spanning 400 to 1,600 nanometers—which opens up a wealth of possibilities for real-world applications.

Heterometallic nanosheets containing multiple metal ions achievable through new technique

Coordination nanosheets are a unique class of two-dimensional (2D) materials that are formed by coordination bonds between planar organic ligands and metal ions. These 2D nanomaterials are increasingly utilized in energy storage, electronic devices, and as electrode-based catalysts due to their excellent electronic, optical, redox properties, and catalytic activity.

Over the last decade, coordination nanosheets composed of various transition , such as nickel (Ni) ions linked to benzenehexathiol (BHT)—an organic compound—have been successfully synthesized in laboratories. However, their production has relied on a two-phase interfacial reaction that occurs between two immiscible phases of matter.

Furthermore, the selective synthesis of well-organized heterometallic nanosheets, containing two or more metal ions, has proven to be difficult. To address these two major issues limiting the production of novel coordination nanosheets, a team of researchers led by Professor Hiroshi Nishihara, from the Research Institute for Science and Technology (RIST), Tokyo University of Science (TUS), Japan, has conducted a series of innovative experiments.

Can the Large Hadron Collider snap string theory?

In physics, there are two great pillars of thought that don’t quite fit together. The Standard Model of particle physics describes all known fundamental particles and three forces: electromagnetism, the strong nuclear force, and the weak nuclear force. Meanwhile, Einstein’s general relativity describes gravity and the fabric of spacetime.

However, these frameworks are fundamentally incompatible in many ways, says Jonathan Heckman, a at the University of Pennsylvania. The Standard Model treats forces as dynamic fields of particles, while general relativity treats gravity as the smooth geometry of spacetime, so gravity “doesn’t fit into physics’s Standard Model,” he explains.

In a recent paper in Physical Review Research, Heckman, Rebecca Hicks, a Ph.D. student at Penn’s School of Arts & Sciences, and their collaborators turn that critique on its head. Instead of asking what string theory predicts, the authors ask what it definitively cannot create. Their answer points to a single exotic particle that could show up at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). If that particle appears, the entire string-theory edifice would be, in Heckman’s words, “in enormous trouble.”

Narcissism and other dark personality traits linked to AI cheating in art universities

In many countries, there is an academic cheating crisis with students misusing artificial intelligence tools like ChatGPT to write essays, dissertations and other assignments. According to new research, certain personality traits make some students more likely to pass off AI-generated work as their own.

In a study published in BMC Psychology, Jinyi Song of South Korea’s Chodang University and Shuyan Liu of Baekseok University surveyed 504 Chinese art students. They found that students who scored highly for dark like narcissism, machiavellianism and psychopathy (collectively known as “the Dark Triad”) were more likely to rely on AI tools like ChatGPT and Midjourney to do their work.

Although previous studies have revealed a link between dark personality traits and academic dishonesty, most research has focused on general student populations, not on specific groups such as art students.

Cutting to the core of how 3D structure shapes gene activity

In biology textbooks and beyond, the human genome and DNA therein typically are taught in only one dimension. While it can be helpful for learners to begin with the linear presentation of how stretches of DNA form genes, this oversimplification undersells the significance of the genome’s 3D structure.

To fit in the nucleus of our cells, six feet of DNA is wound up like thread on protein spools called histones. In its packaged form called chromatin, coiled up DNA features many loops and clumps. While it may look random and messy to the untrained eye, these tumbleweed-like shapes bring certain genomic regions into close contact while sheltering others.

Problems with this 3D structure are associated with many diseases including developmental disorders and cancer. Almost 12% of in have incurred issues with their , while other structural issues are known to cause T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

Antibody mapping chip speeds up vaccine research by revealing hidden binding sites quickly

A new microchip invented by Scripps Research scientists can reveal how a person’s antibodies interact with viruses—using just a drop of blood. The technology offers researchers faster, clearer insights that could help accelerate vaccine development and antibody discovery.

“This lets us take a quick snapshot of antibodies as they are evolving after a vaccine or pathogen exposure,” says Andrew Ward, professor in the Department of Integrative Structural and Computational Biology at Scripps Research and senior author of the new paper published in Nature Biomedical Engineering on June 3, 2025. “We’ve never been able to do that on this timescale or with such tiny amounts of blood before.”

When someone is infected with a virus, or receives a vaccine, their creates new antibodies to recognize the foreign invader. Some antibodies work well against the pathogen, while others attach to it only weakly. Figuring out exactly which parts of the virus the best antibodies stick to is key information for scientists trying to optimize vaccines, since they want to design vaccines that elicit strong, reliable immune responses.

3I/ATLAS: Interstellar object ‘may be oldest comet ever seen’

A mystery interstellar object discovered last week is likely to be the oldest comet ever seen—possibly predating our solar system by more than 3 billion years, researchers say.

The “water ice-rich” visitor, named 3I/ATLAS, is only the third known object from beyond our solar system ever spotted in our cosmic neighborhood and the first to reach us from a completely different region of our Milky Way galaxy.

It could be more than 7 billion years old, according to University of Oxford astronomer Matthew Hopkins—who is discussing his findings at the Royal Astronomical Society’s National Astronomy Meeting (NAM 2025) in Durham—and may be the most remarkable interstellar visitor yet.

Key brain protein may hold answers for memory loss and neurodegenerative diseases

Scientists have discovered how a key protein helps maintain strong connections between brain cells that are crucial for learning and memory.

Results of the study, published in the journal Science Advances, could point the way to new treatments for traumatic brain injuries and diseases, such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s, the scientists said.

Their research, led by a Rutgers University-New Brunswick professor, uncovered a previously unknown role for cypin, a . Members of the research team found that cypin promotes the presence of tags on specific proteins at synapses, namely the tiny gaps where the , known as neurons, communicate. The marking helps ensure that the right proteins are in the right place, allowing the synapses to work properly.

Cheap Catalyst Turns Acids Into Pharmaceutical Gold

Carboxylic acids are common components in bioactive compounds and serve as widely available building blocks in organic synthesis. When transformed into carboxy radicals, these acids can initiate the formation of valuable carbon-carbon and carbon-heteroatom bonds, a key step in the creation of new materials and pharmaceutical agents. Despite their utility, few existing methods rely on cost-effective catalysts.

Addressing this gap, a team from WPI-ICReDD and the University of Shizuoka developed a straightforward hydrogen atom transfer (HAT) strategy that selectively converts carboxylic acids into carboxy radicals. This method employs xanthone, a commercially available and inexpensive organic ketone, as the photocatalyst. The study was recently published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society.

Researchers Decode How We Turn Thoughts Into Sentences

An NYU team uses machine learning to analyze neural activity data and uncover how speech is produced. In a recent paper published in Nature Communications Psychology, a research team at NYU, led by Associate Professor Adeen Flinker and Postdoctoral Researcher Adam Morgan, explored how the brain c