Category Health/Medical

This tiny US flag — just a few nanometers wide and invisible to the naked eye — is arguably the world’s smallest image of Old Glory, according to its creators at the University of Texas at Dallas. In an experiment, the nanoflag pattern emerged unexpectedly as sheets of the “stripe” material — molybdenum ditelluride — were heated to about 450 degrees Celsius, at which point its atoms began to rearrange and form new structures — the ‘stars’ in this false-color image. Each star consists of six central atoms of molybdenum surrounded by six atoms of tellurium. Stacked on top of one another, the stars form nanowires that might power advanced electronics. The transformation from stripes to stars is reported in the journal Advanced Materials. Credit: University of Texas at Dalla

Assistant Professor Tan Swee Ching (left), Mr Sai Kishore Ravi (right) and their team from the National University of Singapore’s Faculty of Engineering has developed a novel nanofibre solution that creates thin, see-through air filters (held by Mr Sai) that can remove up to 90 per cent of PM2.5 particles and achieve 2.5 times better air flow than conventional air filters. Credit: Image courtesy of National University of Singapore

An international study of 3,396 patients with venous thromboembolism in 31 countries shows that the blood thinner rivaroxaban is just as safe as aspirin and more effective at preventing blood clots. CREDIT The Ottawa Hospital

NUS researchers found that regular consumption of tea brewed from tea leaves reduces elderly persons’ risk of cognitive decline