Applied Physics

Tongue Drive System Helps Severely Disabled Have More Independence

A new assistive technology developed by engineers at the Georgia Institute of Technology could help individuals with severe disabilities lead more independent lives. The novel system allows individuals with disabilities to operate a computer, control a pow ...

Article - News Staff - Jun 29 2008 - 11:50pm

The Future Is Still Plastics- Like Robot 'Skin' And Flexible Laptops

"I want to say one word to you. Just one word," spoke Mr. Maguire to young Benjamin in the 1967 film The Graduate. That word was 'plastics' and it became a cultural litany meaning lots of different things but it's never been more t ...

Article - News Staff - Jun 30 2008 - 11:21am

Chemosensory Neurons- Why College Students Are Drawn To Pizza

Thanks to salt and hot chili peppers, researchers have found what tells a roundworm to go forward toward dinner or turn to broaden the search. It's a computational mechanism, they say, that is similar to what drives hungry college students to a pizza. ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 3 2008 - 8:33am

Foreign-Accent Syndrome Makes Canadian Woman Acquire Different Canadian Accent

A woman in southern Ontario is one of the first cases in Canada of a rare neurological syndrome in which a person starts speaking with a different accent, McMaster University researchers report in the July issue of the Canadian Journal of Neurological Scie ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 3 2008 - 11:03am

Anaconda's Bulge Wave Could Take A Bite Out Of CO2

A giant rubber anaconda could be a step on the road to meeting a large chunk of our energy needs using carbon-free, wave-generated electricity. The 'Anaconda' is named after the snake of the same name because of its long thin shape. It is closed ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 3 2008 - 12:47pm

'Smart' Materials Made Of Proteins Change Shape And Size

A dynamic way to alter the shape and size of microscopic three-dimensional structures built out of proteins has been developed by biological chemist Jason Shear and his former graduate student Bryan Kaehr at The University of Texas at Austin. Shear and Kae ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 5 2008 - 10:21am

Is Baseball Biased Toward Lefties?

Is baseball biased toward left-handed pitchers? Indeed it is, says David A. Peters, Ph.D., McDonnell Douglas Professor of Engineering at Washington University in St. Louis (and uber baseball fan) and he says he has the data to prove it. There's no que ...

Article - News Staff - Oct 30 2010 - 8:49pm

Applied Mathematics Looks To Dolphins For Wind Turbine Design

Millions of years of evolution have maximized the efficiency of how sea creatures move through water while humans have been trying to perfect streamlined designs for barely a century- but we're catching up. Biologists and engineers from across the U.S ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 7 2008 - 10:10pm

Prototyping Machine 'Bakes' New Bones From Metal Powder

Scientists have long been fascinated by structure of bone. Bone is very light but can withstand heavy pressure and he inside is like a sponge so bone is firm and compact in certain places and porous in others. The construction industry would love to have m ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 8 2008 - 10:15am

'Solar Concentrator' Windows Could Also Generate Energy

Imagine windows that not only provide a clear view and illuminate rooms, but also use sunlight to efficiently help power the building they are part of. MIT engineers report a new approach to harnessing the sun's energy that could allow just that. The ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 10 2008 - 1:42pm