For The Better

Scientists have revealed the molecular structure of a type of receptor that’s crucial to brain development and function. ‘This study shows the dominant assemblies and states of the GABA receptor. That’s really the huge breakthrough — nobody had been a…

New research examines the ‘revolution’ in the study of deforestation brought about by satellites, and analyzing which kinds of policies might limit climate-altering deforestation.

Researchers reported for the first time that a genetic biomarker may be able to help predict the severity of food allergy reactions. Currently there is no reliable or readily available clinical biomarker that accurately distinguishes patients with food…

The first use of a novel method of analyzing Mars’ gravitational force supports the idea that the planet once had an extensive northern ocean. In doing so, the method defines the scope of what scientists refer to as the northern Martian paleo-ocean in …

Researchers have developed a method of ‘wiring up’ graphene nanoribbons (GNRs), a class of one-dimensional materials that are of interest in the scaling of microelectronic devices. Using a direct-write scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) based process,…

Materials are often considered to be one phase, but many engineering materials contain two or more phases, improving their properties and performance. These two-phase materials have inclusions, called precipitates, embedded in the microstructure. Alloy…

Scientists and industry leaders worldwide are looking for answers on how to make aviation sustainable by 2050 and choosing a viable sustainable fuel is a major sticking point. Aerospace engineers took a full inventory of the options to make a data-driv…

Biomedical engineers have developed a new hydrogel-based delivery system that balances the acidic environment in a tumor and greatly enhances the cancer-fighting activity of the chemotherapeutic drug doxorubicin.

Building on work in human-computer interaction that aims to incorporate sustainability and reuse into the field, researchers introduce ‘garbatrage,’ a framework for prototype builders centered around repurposing underused devices.

Engineering researchers have discovered that sand can actually flow uphill. A corresponding video shows what happens when torque and an attractive force is applied to each grain — the grains flow uphill, up walls, and up and down stairs.

The commonly-held belief that attempting to suppress negative thoughts is bad for our mental health could be wrong, a new study suggests. Researchers trained 120 volunteers worldwide to suppress thoughts about negative events that worried them, and fou…

A new study suggests patches of fertile soil in the Amazon, known as dark earth, were intentionally produced by ancient Amazonians as a way to improve the soil and sustain large and complex societies.

Craniosynostosis, the premature fusion of the top of the skull in infants, is caused by an abnormal excess of a previously unknown type of bone-forming stem cell, according to a preclinical study.

Half a million years ago, earlier than was previously thought possible, humans were building structures made of wood, according to new research.