One in three cases of dementia could be prevented by addressing nine lifestyle factors, according to a report from the first Lancet Commission on Dementia Prevention and Care. Credit: Keck Medicine of USC

Managing lifestyle factors such as hearing loss, smoking, hypertension and depression could prevent 1/3 of the world’s dementia cases, according to a report by the first Lancet Commission on Dementia Prevention and Care. Presented at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference (AAIC) 2017 and published in The Lancet, the report also highlights the beneficial effects of nonpharmacologic interventions such as social contact and exercise for people with dementia.

“There’s been a great deal of focus on developing medicines to prevent dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease,” says com...

A magnetic folding robot arm can grasp and bend thanks to its pattern of origami-inspired folds and a wireless electromagnetic field. Credit: Wyss Institute at Harvard University

Wireless magnetic fields and actuator ‘muscles’ allow folding robots to move without batteries. The traditional Japanese art of origami transforms a simple sheet of paper into complex, 3D shapes through a very specific pattern of folds, creases, and crimps. Folding robots based on that principle have emerged as an exciting new frontier of robotic design, but generally require onboard batteries or a wired connection to a power source, making them bulkier and clunkier than their paper inspiration and limiting their functionality.

A team at the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering and John A...

Brandon Sweeney and Blake Tiepel working in the lab. Credit: Texas A&M University

A doctoral student in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at Texas A&M University has developed a method to transform the landscape of 3D printing today by making 3D printed parts 275% stronger and immediately useful in real-world applications. 3D printed objects are comprised of many thin layers of materials, usually plastics, deposited on top of each other to form a desired shape. These layers are prone to fracturing, causing issues with the durability and reliability of the part when used in a real-world application, for example a custom printed medical device.

When Sweeney started his doctorate, he was working with Green in the Department of Chemical Engineering at Texas Tech University...

An illustration of NASA’s Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope orbiting Earth. Credit: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center Conceptual Image Lab

The center of our Milky Way contains a ‘trap’ that concentrates some of the highest-energy cosmic rays, among the fastest particles in the galaxy, a combined analysis of data from NASA’s Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope and the High Energy Stereoscopic System, a ground-based observatory in Namibia, suggests.

“Our results suggest that most of the cosmic rays populating the innermost region of our galaxy, and especially the most energetic ones, are produced in active regions beyond the galactic center and later slowed there through interactions with gas clouds,” said lead author Daniele Gaggero at the University of Amsterdam...