Scaling Nanoribbon Transistors with Monolayer Transition Metal Dichalcogenides
Researchers at Stanford and collaborators have demonstrated monolayer transition‑metal dichalcogenide (TMD) nanoribbon transistors with channel widths as narrow as 25 nm. By anchoring source‑drain contacts to the substrate and using a low‑dose litho‑etch‑litho‑etch (LELE) multipatterning scheme, they achieved high current densities—up to 620 µA µm⁻¹ for MoS₂ and 460 µA µm⁻¹ for WS₂—while maintaining on/off ratios above 10⁹. The devices operate with both SiO₂ and high‑κ HfO₂ dielectrics, showing complementary n‑ and p‑type behavior. Structural analysis confirms minimal edge disorder, indicating the approach is viable for future gate‑all‑around nanosheet transistors.
Sex-Specific Regulation of Angiogenin in Alzheimer’s Disease
Researchers examined angiogenin (ANG), a stress‑responsive ribonuclease, across Alzheimer’s disease (AD) models, postmortem brains and large transcriptomic cohorts (n = 645). They discovered that ANG expression is dysregulated in a sex‑dependent fashion: male AD brains exhibit reduced ANG protein, while female brains...
Reduced BCL2 Level in Astrocytes Contributes to Blood-Brain Barrier Disruption in the Striatum of Offspring Exposed to Maternal Preeclampsia
Researchers discovered that offspring of mothers with preeclampsia exhibit markedly reduced BCL2 expression in striatal astrocytes, compromising the integrity of the blood‑brain barrier (BBB). Using a reduced‑uteroplacental perfusion pressure (RUPP) mouse model, the team showed increased BBB permeability, swollen astrocytic...
Cancer as a Window Into Mitochondrial Biology
Recent cancer research has revealed mitochondria as highly plastic organelles, capable of dynamic metabolic rewiring rather than being static powerhouses. Studies show that tumors exploit uridine‑derived ribose, ATP hydrolysis, and glutathione import to survive nutrient stress and resist chemotherapy. Mutations...
Functional Specialization Within the Mitochondrial Network: Are All Mitochondria Created Equal?
Recent research challenges the view of mitochondria as a uniform ATP‑producing network, presenting evidence that distinct subpopulations coexist within tissues and even single cells. Morphological differences, organelle contacts, and biochemical profiling reveal mitochondria specialized for catabolic, anabolic, or signaling roles,...
2D Transistor Goes Narrower
Researchers have demonstrated high‑performance two‑dimensional (2D) nanoribbon transistors with channel widths scaled below 100 nm using a litho‑etch‑litho‑etch (LELE) fabrication flow. The MoS₂ nanoribbons retain carrier mobility comparable to wider devices, indicating that aggressive width reduction does not compromise electrical performance....
Mars Was Once a Warmer World of Rivers, Lakes and a Thicker Atmosphere, but After Its Internal Dynamo Died and...
Early Mars hosted rivers, lakes and a thick atmosphere, evidence confirmed by valley networks and lake deposits older than 3.5 billion years. The planet’s internal dynamo ceased between roughly 4.2 and 3.7 billion years ago, removing the magnetic shield that deflects solar...
Alzheimer’s Blood Test Around Ages 53-69 May Help Detect Early Cognitive Decline
Researchers published in The Lancet that blood tests detecting amyloid‑beta and tau can identify early cognitive decline in adults aged 53‑69. In a cohort, 6% showed elevated biomarkers and subsequently exhibited slower processing speed, with a 2.5‑4‑fold higher risk of...
Lab Recreates Flight-Like Heat to Support NASA’s Dragonfly Mission to Titan
Sandia National Laboratories has successfully recreated the extreme heat conditions a spacecraft will encounter during entry into Titan’s dense atmosphere, supporting NASA’s Dragonfly rotorcraft mission. Using a plasma wind tunnel, engineers generated heat fluxes and temperatures up to roughly 1,200 °C...
RNA 'Cut-and-Patch' Tool Repairs Faulty Messages without Altering DNA
University of Hong Kong researchers unveiled RNA Segment Editing (RSE), a "cut‑and‑patch" platform that precisely removes and replaces faulty RNA segments in living cells without altering DNA. The tool leverages an engineered Cas13 enzyme to achieve segment‑level editing, a capability...
Living Brain Gene Activity Revealed Noninvasively Through Programmable Blood Test
Rice University bioengineers have unveiled INTACT, a programmable blood‑based assay that captures real‑time transcription of selected genes in living brain tissue. The platform couples engineered Released Markers of Activity (RMAs) with mRNA‑sensing sensors, releasing detectable markers into the bloodstream. In...
Women on GLP-1 Medications May Be Less Likely to Develop Breast Cancer
An observational analysis presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology found that women taking GLP‑1 medications were 35% less likely to be diagnosed with breast cancer. The study examined more than 110,000 cases and was coordinated by the American...
NASA Invites Media to See Roman Space Telescope Arrive at Kennedy
NASA has opened media credentials to witness the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope’s arrival at Kennedy Space Center, where it will be transferred from a Pegasus barge after final assembly at Goddard. The observatory, built with partners including BAE Systems,...
Debugging: Google Requests Permission to Release 32m Mosquitoes in California and Florida
Google’s Alphabet unit has filed an EPA request to release up to 32 million sterile male mosquitoes in California and Florida over two years. The Debug program uses Wolbachia‑infected males that cannot produce viable offspring, aiming to suppress Aedes aegypti populations...
Matter May Entangle with Light Far More Easily Near Quantum Critical Points
Rice University physicist Qimiao Si proposes a theory that coupling quantum materials to photons inside a small mirrored cavity becomes far easier when the material is tuned close to its quantum critical point. Near the quantum critical point, the threshold...
Shockwaves From Dying Stars May Sculpt 'Cosmic Wagon Wheel' Stellar Nurseries, Simulations Reveal
A team from Kyushu and Nagoya Universities used 3‑D magnetohydrodynamic simulations on the ATERUI III supercomputer to show how shockwaves from supernovae or massive‑star winds carve spoke‑like filaments in magnetized molecular clouds. The resulting hub‑and‑spoke architecture funnels gas into a dense...
What Happened When the First Animals Started to Move
Researchers at London’s Natural History Museum examined over 230 Ediacaran trace fossils, revealing that the first mobile animals dramatically expanded their sensory range between 546.5 and 539 million years ago. Early organisms could only sense within two body lengths, but later...
Astronauts Could Use Lightning-Like Plasma Jets to Kill Germs on the Moon and Mars, Demo Hints
Researchers at the University of Alabama demonstrated that lightning‑like plasma jets can sterilize fabric faster and more effectively than current International Space Station methods. By directing a thin, electrically powered plasma stream at cotton samples seeded with Staphylococcus caprae, they...
How a Giant Moon and a Steam Atmosphere Built the Recipe for Life
A new arXiv study suggests Earth’s early magma‑ocean phase may have persisted for up to half a billion years, driven by intense tidal heating from a close, massive Moon and a thick steam‑rich greenhouse atmosphere. The researchers used the PROTEUS...
AMA: Healthcare: Redefining Preclinical Testing: New Biofabrication Approach at Newcastle University
Newcastle University’s researchers unveiled the Reactive Jet Impingement (ReJI) bioprinting platform, which creates high‑density, cell‑laden 3D tissue constructs for preclinical drug testing. The cardiac model, printed with five million cells ml⁻¹, sustained spontaneous beating for 21 days and responded predictably to pro‑ and...
Neuropixels Opto Integrates Electrophysiology and Optogenetics to Probe Neuronal Function
UCL scientists have co‑developed Neuropixels Opto, a 1‑cm‑long probe that merges high‑resolution electrophysiology with optogenetic stimulation. The device packs 960 recording sites and 28 light emitters on a 70‑µm shank, enabling simultaneous recording of hundreds of neurons while activating or...
Argonne: Driving the Future of AI in Science at TPC26
The U.S. Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory will take a leading role at the Trillion Parameter Consortium’s TPC26 conference in Baltimore, gathering over 800 participants from more than 100 organizations. Argonne’s agenda includes plenary addresses, panel discussions on international...
Scientists Develop Virtual Tomato Training Arena for Agricultural Robots
Researchers at Osaka Metropolitan University unveiled a virtual tomato farm that automatically creates realistic images and AI training labels for agricultural robots. By reconstructing 3D models with 3D Gaussian Splatting and Unreal Engine 5, the system mimics complex lighting, occlusion, and...
New AI-Powered Thermal Cameras Could Reduce Vessel Strikes on Gray Whales in San Francisco
Researchers at Benioff Ocean Science Lab have deployed AI‑powered forward‑looking infrared cameras that detect gray whales up to 4 nautical miles away in San Francisco Bay. The system, built with WhaleSpotter, the U.S. Coast Guard Vessel Traffic Service and the Marine...
First Direct View Tracks Planet-Forming Disk Spinning Around AB Aurigae
Astronomers have, for the first time, directly measured the rotation of a protoplanetary disk surrounding the young star AB Aurigae by mapping dust‑grain emissions. Using the SPHERE instrument’s near‑infrared imaging over a four‑year span, the team identified bright accretion zones and...
Triple Therapy Could Block Newborn Meningitis without Antibiotics
Researchers at ETH Zurich and the University of Basel have devised a triple‑pronged therapy that prevents transmission of the K1 strain of E. coli from pregnant mothers to newborns. The regimen pairs an oral vaccine that weakens the pathogen, bacteriophages...
Cancer Is Now a Story of the Good, the Bad and the Ugly – but Also Hope | Devi Sridhar
At the American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting, a new oral drug, daraxonrasib, doubled five‑year survival for pancreatic cancer patients in a 500‑person trial, offering a rare breakthrough for a disease with historically poor outcomes. A concurrent head‑and‑neck cancer vaccine,...
Climate Change, Heat, and Premature Birth
A new multi‑country study links climate‑related heat to a higher risk of premature birth, finding up to a 15% increase in preterm deliveries across 13 nations. Researchers analyzed birth records and temperature data, showing that each 1 °C rise during the...
How Cells Clear Immune Signals Could Reshape Drug Design and Cancer Spread Research
Researchers at the Institute of Cell Biology and Immunology Thurgau decoded the signaling pathway of the atypical chemokine receptor ACKR4, revealing its continuous trafficking between the cell surface and internal organelles to internalize and degrade excess chemokines. The study identified...
Blood Samples Uncover Concussion in Older Adults, Offering More Objective Diagnosis
Researchers at Monash University and The Alfred have validated a blood test that detects the glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) to diagnose concussion in adults over 60. In a study of 89 patients, GFAP levels were markedly higher in those...
Blue Origin's Lunar Lander Just Passed Its Toughest Test Yet
Blue Origin’s Blue Moon Mark 1 lunar lander, dubbed Endurance, successfully completed NASA’s Chamber A thermal‑vacuum test, proving it can survive extreme lunar temperature swings and vacuum conditions. The uncrewed cargo vehicle will carry two science payloads—a high‑resolution stereo camera suite and...
Editing the Pesky Bones Out of a Popular Farmed Fish
Scientists at Huazhong Agricultural University have used CRISPR to knock out the runx2b gene in grass carp, creating a stable line of completely boneless fish. Micro‑CT imaging and comprehensive nutrient profiling showed the edited carp retain normal muscle and fat...
Growing up in a Disadvantaged Neighborhood Is Associated with Faster Brain Maturation
A new longitudinal study of 11,639 U.S. adolescents shows that children raised in disadvantaged neighborhoods exhibit lower cortical thickness and surface area at age 10 and faster declines through age 14, even after controlling for family income. Researchers used the...
Heading a Soccer Ball Just Once Is Enough to Raise Levels of Proteins Associated with Brain Damage
A Dutch study published in JAMA Neurology found that even a single soccer header triggers a temporary rise in blood proteins linked to brain injury. In 302 amateur male players, S100B levels spiked immediately after matches, while p‑tau217 increased after...
First Ever Live Observation of the Rotation of a Planetary Nursery
Astronomers using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) have recorded the first live, real‑time rotation of a protoplanetary disk—often called a planetary nursery—surrounding the young star V883 Ori. The team measured a rotation period of roughly 30 years and detected spiral...
Enhancing Alzheimer Disease Detection Using Neuropsychiatric Symptoms: The Role of Mild Behavioral Impairment in the Revised NIA-AA Research Framework
A recent analysis of 1,327 dementia‑free participants from the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative found that mild behavioral impairment (MBI) significantly predicts core Alzheimer’s biomarkers. Individuals with MBI were more than twice as likely to show CSF amyloid‑β42 positivity (aOR = 2.26) and...
NASA Uses Mineralogical Marker to Understand Ancient Martian Climate
NASA scientists have identified a specific mineralogical marker—phyllosilicate‑rich clay deposits—in sedimentary layers explored by the Curiosity rover in Gale Crater. Radiometric dating places these deposits at roughly 3.5 billion years old, pointing to a period when Mars experienced a warmer, wetter...
Red Dwarf Stars Detected “Eating” Earth-Like Planets
Astronomers have directly detected red dwarf stars devouring Earth‑like planets, marking the first observational evidence of such catastrophic events. Using infrared data from the James Webb Space Telescope and ground‑based observatories, researchers identified streams of metallic debris and vaporized material...
NASA’s Roman Mission Preps to Unveil New Populations of Faraway Worlds
NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, slated for a 2027 launch, is gearing up for its first major exoplanet microlensing survey. The mission will scan a wide swath of the infrared sky, targeting distant planetary systems that lie beyond the reach of...
China Launches Rival to SpaceX Falcon 9 with Zero Warning
China’s state‑run China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) launched the Long March 12B on Monday, the first flight of a vehicle positioned as a rival to SpaceX’s Falcon 9. The launch occurred without the customary airspace or maritime warnings that international aviation...
Listening to the Sun Reveals Previously Hidden Changes to Solar Cycle
Researchers at the University of Birmingham have used solar acoustic observations to uncover subtle, previously hidden changes in the Sun’s magnetic cycle. By analyzing data from the Global Oscillation Network Group and NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory, they identified an early...
ASCO: Immatics Posts Data on PRAME Pipeline Ahead of Pivotal Readout
Immatics used the ASCO meeting to unveil data on its PRAME‑targeted cell therapies, highlighting early results from next‑generation candidate IMA203CD8 and its lead product anzu‑cel. In a Phase I study, IMA203CD8 induced responses in 12 of 19 gynecologic cancer patients, including...
Better Math Discriminates Exotic From Classical Materials
Researchers at Kobe University have shown that the planar Hall effect, previously thought to signal exotic quantum behavior, can also arise in classical materials when crystal orientation aligns with the measurement probe. By extending a 70‑year‑old classical transport theory to...
D-Wave Outlines Superconducting Gate-Model Roadmap Targeting 100 Logical Qubits
D‑Wave Quantum announced a gate‑model roadmap aiming for a 100‑logical‑qubit, fault‑tolerant system by 2032. The plan leverages its recent Quantum Circuits acquisition and a superconducting dual‑rail qubit design that can detect roughly 90% of physical errors. Early milestones include a...
Building a Lunar Digital Engineering Community with LUNAverse
The Aerospace Corporation unveiled LUNAverse, a digital‑twin platform that creates a common operating picture of the Moon for mission planners. Designed as a multi‑compatible environment, it will enable data sharing, standardization, and coordination across government, industry, and international partners. An...
Artificial Intelligence Sheds Light on How some Brains Resist Alzheimer’s Memory Loss
Researchers at UC San Diego used an AI Boolean Network Explorer to pinpoint a 40‑gene signature that separates brains that remain cognitively sharp despite Alzheimer’s pathology from those that develop dementia. The genetic fingerprint highlighted astrocyte‑driven inflammation pathways and was...
Process to Add New Layers of Heart Muscle May Help in HF
Researchers reported the first-in-human trial of a tissue‑engineered heart muscle product, called biologic ventricular assist tissue (Repairon), aimed at adding new muscle layers to failing hearts. In the phase 1‑to‑2 BioVAT‑HF study, 20 patients with reduced ejection fraction received up to...
This Common Amino Acid Helped Mice Survive Deadly Inflammation
Researchers at the Salk Institute discovered that dietary supplementation with the essential amino acid methionine dramatically improves survival in mice infected with Yersinia pseudotuberculosis. Methionine enhances kidney filtration, lowers circulating pro‑inflammatory cytokines, and prevents wasting, blood‑brain barrier damage, and death...
The Day the Mississippi River Changed Direction
The 1811‑1812 New Madrid earthquake sequence produced three magnitude‑7‑plus shocks, with the February event possibly reaching magnitude 8.8—the strongest recorded in the continental United States. The quakes triggered landslides, dammed the Mississippi River and even caused a brief reversal of its flow,...
Moderna Partners with CEPI on Ebola Vaccine Efforts Amid Outbreak in Africa
Moderna and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) have struck a partnership that allocates up to $50 million to advance an experimental mRNA vaccine targeting the Bundibugyo ebolavirus (BDBV). The funding will support preclinical work, Phase 1 trials and manufacturing capacity...