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Study finds that individual layers of synthetic materials can collaborate for greater impact
Millions of years of evolution have enabled some marine animals to grow complex protective shells composed of multiple layers that work together to dissipate physical stress. In a new study, engineers have found a way to mimic the behavior of this type of layered material, such as seashell nacre, by programming individual layers of synthetic material to work collaboratively under stress. The new material design is poised to enhance energy-absorbing systems such as wearable bandages and car bumpers with multistage responses that adapt to collision severity.
Does REAL ID really make flying safer?
REAL ID enhances air travel security by verifying that individuals are who they say they are, says professor Sheldon H. Jacobson.
Paper: AI-human task-sharing could cut mammography screening costs by up to 30%
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — The most effective way to harness the power of artificial intelligence when screening for breast cancer may be through collaboration with human radiologists — not by wholesale replacing them, says new research co-written by a University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign expert in the intersection of health care and technology. The study finds that […]
Review: Social drinking also a well-worn path to alcohol use disorder
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — When picturing a “typical” alcoholic, people tend to imagine a person drinking at home alone. But that focus overlooks the social origins of many serious alcohol problems, say the authors of a new review paper in the journal Current Directions in Psychological Science. “Evidence for the centrality of social motives in problem […]
Learning from cockatiels
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — When the lights go out, the 18 shrieking cockatiels in the room get quiet. I aim my phone’s flashlight into a large cage where Philip Wiley, another of the six veterinary students participating in this advanced avian medicine professional development course, is poised to catch one of the birds. The light helps […]
New approach makes AI adaptable for computer vision in crop breeding
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Scientists developed a machine-learning tool that can teach itself, with minimal external guidance, to differentiate between aerial images of flowering and nonflowering grasses — an advance that will greatly increase the pace of agricultural field research, they say. The work was conducted using images of thousands of varieties of Miscanthus grasses, each […]
DNA origami guides new possibilities in the fight against pancreatic cancer
One of the challenges of fighting pancreatic cancer is finding ways to penetrate the organ’s dense tissue to define the margins between malignant and normal tissue. A new study uses DNA origami structures to selectively deliver fluorescent imaging agents to pancreatic cancer cells without affecting normal cells. The study, led by University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign mechanical science and engineering professor Bumsoo Han and professor Jong Hyun Choi at Purdue University, found that specially engineered DNA origami structures carrying imaging dye packets can specifically target human KRAS mutant cancer cells, which are present in 95% of pancreatic cancer cases.
Omnivorous? Vegan? Makes no difference to muscle building after weight training, study finds
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — A new study asked three questions about muscle protein synthesis in response to a nine-day diet and weight training regimen: First, does the source of protein — plant or animal-based — make any difference to muscle gain? Second, does it matter if total daily protein intake is evenly distributed throughout the day? […]
What effect will tariffs have on consumers, farmers?
Champaign, Ill. — Jonathan W. Coppess is the the Leonard and Lila Gardner Illinois Farm Bureau Family of Companies Endowed Associate Professor in Agricultural Policy at the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Coppess is the author of “Between Soil and Society: Legislative History and Political Development of […]
First-Generation Scholars Research Program provides research experience and more
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Before arriving on campus, first-year University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign student Andy Granados voiced the concerns that many students coming to a large university face. “Before I started freshman year, I was scared,” Granados said. “I’m not as social as other people. I don’t really know how to connect with my professors, so […]
Wearable technology continuously monitors heart-rate recovery to predict risk
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — The time it takes the heart to return to its baseline rhythm after exercise can predict a host of cardiovascular or metabolic disorders. In a new study, scientists at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign used a “smart shirt” equipped with an electrocardiogram to track participants’ heart-rate recovery after exercise and developed a […]
How does what lives in your gut affect your health?
The hordes of microorganisms living in our digestive tracts are important to digestion and our immune systems, but what we eat can affect them, too, says Illinois pathobiology professor Chris Gaulke in a video interview.