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    Self-Growing Materials that Strengthen in Response to Force

    February 2, 2019, Categories  Physics, Technology/Electronics, Chemistry/Nanotechnology

    A double-network hydrogel (i). After stretching (ii), brittle sections break, allowing a generation of mechanoradicals, indicated by color change (iii).
    Credit: Gong J. P. et al., Mechanoresponsive self-growing hydrogels inspired by muscle training, Science, February 1, 2019

    A strategy inspired by the process responsible for muscle growth could lead to the development of stronger, longer-lasting materials. Hokkaido University researchers have developed a strategy to fabricate materials that become stronger in response to mechanical stress – mimicking skeletal muscle growth. Their findings, published in the journal Science, could pave the way for long-lasting materials that can adapt and strengthen based on surrounding conditions.

    The strategy was inspired by the process that makes ...

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    To Sleep, perchance to Heal: Newly discovered Gene governs need for slumber when Sick

    February 1, 2019, Categories  Health/Medical, Biology/Biotechnology

    This is an image of a fruit that fly has been infected with bacteria, showing nemuri expression (green) in the brain — a single neuron and its projections on either side of the brain.
    Credit: Amita Sehgal, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania; Science

    Direct link between illness and the need for more sleep. Humans spend nearly one-third of their lives in slumber, yet sleep is still one of biology’s most enduring mysteries. Little is known about what genetic or molecular forces drive the need to sleep – until now. In a study of over 12,000 lines of fruit flies, researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania have found a single gene, called nemuri, that increases the need for sleep. These findings are published today in Science.

    The ...

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    Fasting Ramps up Human Metabolism, study shows

    February 1, 2019, Categories  Health/Medical, Biology/Biotechnology

    A study by the G0 Cell Unit and Kyoto University researchers suggests that fasting, which puts the body in ‘starvation mode,’ leads to fuel substitution, antioxidation, increased mitochondrial activation and altered signal transduction.
    Credit: OIST

    Fasting may help people lose weight, but new research suggests going without food may also boost human metabolic activity, generate antioxidants, and help reverse some effects of aging. Scientists at the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University (OIST) and Kyoto University identified 30 previously-unreported substances whose quantity increases during fasting and indicate a variety of health benefits.

    “We have been researching aging and metabolism for many years and decided to search for unknown health effects in human ...

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    New 3D Printer Shapes Objects with Rays of Light

    February 1, 2019, Categories  Physics, Technology/Electronics, Chemistry/Nanotechnology

    UC Berkeley researchers used new 3D printing technology to create a model of Rodin’s ‘The Thinker.’
    Credit: UC Berkeley photo by Stephen McNally

    The technology has potential to transform how products from prosthetics to eyeglass lenses are designed and manufactured. A new 3D printer uses light to transform gooey liquids into complex solid objects in only a matter of minutes. Nicknamed the “replicator” by the inventors – after the Star Trek device that can materialize any object on demand – the 3D-printer can create objects that are smoother, more flexible and more complex than what is possible with traditional 3D-printers...

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