Topic

Fuel cells use the chemical energy of hydrogen or other fuels to efficiently produce electricity or heat with minimal byproducts, primarily water. The DOE is accepting applications for a total of up to $74 million to support the research and development of clean, reliable fuel cells for...

Researchers at Purdue University and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have overcome a fundamental obstacle in developing breath-analysis technology to rapidly diagnose patients by detecting chemical compounds called "biomarkers" in a person's respiration in real time.

University of Arizona engineers have designed a new probe that allows for simple self-testing of glaucoma. It can also be used in situations that are either difficult to address or impossible to test with current procedures. The probe works by gently rubbing the eyelid to detect...

UCLA neuroscientists have collaborated with physicists to develop a non-invasive, ultra-high-speed microscope that can record in real time the firing of thousands of individual neurons in the brain as they communicate, or miscommunicate, with each other.

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute engineering researchers have developed pistons, in which oscillating droplets of ferrofluid can be used to pump small volumes of liquid. They can also function as liquid lenses that vibrate at high speeds and move in and out of focus as they change...

Researchers from Northwestern University and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have developed a nickel-size, curvilinear camera with a 3.5x optical zoom. Or, to put it simply, an eyeball camera. The lens and photodetectors are on flexible substrates. A hydraulic system then changes the shape of the substrates, allowing the...

This week's question addresses last week's news that Verizon will soon sell the iPhone 4. Although some analysts say the move may double Apple's market share, many enterprises and financial institutions have held back on the mobile device due to concerns of its...

An international team of physicists and neuroscientists has reported a breakthrough in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) that generates brain scans more than seven times faster than currently possible. The improvements allow full 3D brain scans in less than half a second, instead of the typical 2 to 3 seconds.

The 2010 Create the Future Design Contest, sponsored by COMSOL, Inc., PTC, and Tech Briefs Media Group (publishers of NASA Tech Briefs), recognized innovation in product design in six categories: Consumer Products, Machinery & Equipment, Medical, Safety & Security, Sustainable Technologies, and...

Photoelectrochemical cells convert sunlight into electricity, but their light-absorbing dyes, called chromophores, eventually degrade because of sunlight exposure. For plant cells, the degradation of chromophores isn't a big deal - they simply self-regenerate. Now, Purdue researchers are in the early stages of creating a...