Research News

In the future, self-driving cars’ computational needs may fuel a large increase in global carbon emissions. The energy needed to run the powerful computers onboard a global fleet of autonomous vehicles could generate as much greenhouse gas emissions as what all global data centers combined currently emit. That’s one key finding of a new study … Read more

Researchers have developed a new tool and technique that uses “vortex ultrasound“ – a type of ultrasonic tornado – to break down blood clots in the brain. The new approach works faster than existing techniques to eliminate clots formed in an in vitro model of cerebral venous sinus thrombosis, or CVST. The U.S. National Science … Read more

New research by Joanna Blaszczak of the University of Nevada, Reno and her colleagues shows that hypoxia in rivers and streams is more prevalent across the globe than previously thought. Hypoxia occurs when oxygen levels in surface waters become depleted, which can be harmful to aquatic species and can increase production of greenhouse gases from … Read more

A startling analysis from Globe at Night — a citizen science program run by the U.S. National Science Foundation NOIRLab — concludes that stars are disappearing from human sight at an astonishing rate. The study finds that, to human eyes, artificial lighting has dulled the night sky more rapidly than indicated by satellite measurements. The … Read more

A team led by University of Minnesota Twin Cities researchers has invented a groundbreaking catalyst technology that converts renewable materials such as trees and corn into acrylic acid and acrylates, the key chemicals used in paints, coatings and superabsorbent polymers. The new technology is highly efficient and could lead to lower costs for manufacturing renewable … Read more

The next frontier of continuous health monitoring could be skin deep. Biomedical engineers at the University of Cincinnati say interstitial fluid, the watery fluid between and around cells, tissues and organs in the body, could provide an excellent medium for early disease diagnosis or long-term health monitoring. A U.S. National Science Foundation-supported paper published in … Read more

It’s estimated that the information, communication and technology sector accounts for 5% to 9% of total electricity consumption worldwide. If growth continues unabated, computing could demand up to 20% of the world’s power generation by 2030. With power grids already under strain, engineers at the University of Virginia are investigating a system that will allow … Read more

The rapid retreat of Thwaites Glacier in West Antarctica appears to be driven by processes under its floating ice shelf that are different than researchers realized. Two papers published in the journal Nature provide a clearer picture of the changes taking place under the glacier, which is the size of Florida and is one of … Read more