Live animal transport regulations not ‘fit for purpose’, major international study finds
From University of Bristol 26/01/24 A ‘fitness check’ of regulations in five countries meant to protect animals during transportation, has deemed that they all fall short of fully protecting animals during transport. Findings from this interdisciplinary work involving animal welfare scientists and a law lecturer which compared animal transport rules designed to protect the billions […]
Tunnelling of electrons via the neighboring atom
From Light Publishing Center, Changchun Institute of Optics, Fine Mechanics And Physics, CAS 26/01/24 Tunnelling is one of most fundamental processes in quantum mechanics, where the wave packet could traverse a classically insurmountable energy barrier with a certain probability. Within the atomic scale, tunnelling effects play an important role in molecular biology, such as accelerating […]
Discovering the physics behind 300-year-old firefighting methods
From American Institute of Physics 26/01/24 Today, water pressure technology is ubiquitous, and any person who showers, waters a garden, or fights fires is benefiting from the technology devised to harness it. In the 17th and 18th centuries, though, a steady stream of water not punctuated by pressure drops was a major breakthrough. In 1666, […]
Custom-fit honeycomb bike helmet
From Superinnovators 25/01/24 UK-based Hexr (f. 2017), launched a custom-fit 3D-printed bicycle helmet in 2019 followed by a home head scanning app in 2020. The company’s helmets, are printed from Polyamide-11, a material derived from castor bean oil, are designed for enhanced safety and comfort. Extensive testing indicates that Hexr helmets are 26% safer compared […]
Wooden wind turbine towers
From Superinnovators 25/01/24 Swedish startup Modvion (f. 2015) completed their first commercial wind turbine project in Dec 2023 providing a 105-meter tower made of laminated Scandinavian spruce. The turbine, near Skara, Sweden, is now spinning and accommodates an industry standard 2.0MW Vestas generator and carbon fibre blades, totaling 150 meters in height. Modvion’s novel wooden […]
Uncovering the secrets behind the silent flight of owls
From Chiba University 25/01/24 Owls are fascinating creatures that can fly silently through some of the quietest places. Their wings make no noise while flying, enabling them to accurately locate their prey using their exceptional hearing ability while remaining undetected. This unique ability depends on many factors and has long been a hot research subject. […]
Pioneering diamond manufacturing: Enhancing efficiency and precision with energy beam-based direct and assisted polishing techniques
From International Journal of Extreme Manufacturing 25/01/24 With the rapid development of semiconductor technologies, diamond emerges as a leading contender in reshaping the modern industry with its remarkable properties. However, the machining of diamond material is very difficult. The polishing technology of diamond, which was used as the jewelry, has developed for hundreds of years. […]
Back to the future: Weizmann Institute scientists develop the first method to measure cellular changes in the body over time
From Weizmann Institute of Science 25/01/24 While physicists continue to argue about whether time is indeed an illusion, as Albert Einstein claimed, biologists have no doubt about its significance for understanding life as a dynamic system. In recent years, they have been gaining an increasingly deeper understanding of complex biological systems using tools enabling the […]
Wheely-X: Treadmill and gamification for wheelchair users
From Superinnovators 24/01/24 South Korean company Kangsters (f. 2020) created Wheely-X, a home-based cardio and performance trainer designed for wheelchair users. Costing around £2,085, the device allows users to engage in various cardio workouts from the safety of their own home. Wheely-X is aimed at wheelchair users that find it difficult to train hard and […]
Mesmerising Dzhanibekov Effect
From Superinnovators 24/01/24 The Dzhanibekov Effect, also known as the tennis racket theorem, is a phenomenon in classical mechanics that occurs during the rotation of an object with three distinct momenta of inertia. When such an object, like a T-handle, wingnut or tennis racket, is tossed in the air with a spin around its intermediate […]