Inventions
Why Einstein is a “peerless genius” and Hawking is an “ordinary genius”
Why some people are considered geniuses while other equally impressive people are not seems largely arbitrary.
This implant cools off nerves to give targeted pain relief
A tiny implant that wraps around nerves and cools them to deliver targeted pain relief could help address the opioid crisis.
A celebrated AI has learned a new trick: How to do chemistry
We had a challenging question for the AI AlphaFold – had its structural training set taught it some chemistry?
How to be a techno-optimist
Technology will not save the world, and it is inherently neither good nor bad. But, when tech is coupled to human virtue, good will prevail.
These bendy wind turbines won’t crack in hurricanes
To significantly scale up offshore wind turbines, SUMR researchers are testing a design inspired by the flexibility of palm trees.
Future tech could 3D print objects inside your body
Direct sound printing could one day allow doctors to build medical implants inside patients’ bodies instead of surgically placing them.
Washable smart fabric turns movement into electricity
NTU Singapore researchers have developed a washable, stretchy smart fabric that turns movement into electricity.
New tech could help prevent 2/3 of hospital-acquired infections
A new treatment could prevent hospital-acquired infections by making it hard for biofilms to form on implanted medical devices.
A new device can make drinking water from seawater at the push of a button
A new portable unit from MIT researchers could make it much easier to remove salt from water to create drinking water.
Elon Musk’s Hyperloop is possible. How badly do we want it?
The Hyperloop is physically possible, but engineering challenges will make its construction difficult. Also, accidents would be catastrophic.