Physical sciences

Report: ‘Future-proofing’ crops will require urgent, consistent effort

Professor Stephen Long describes research efforts to “future-proof” the crops that are essential to feeding a hungry world in a changing climate.

Behind the scenes Earth and environmental sciences Physical sciences Photo of Ellen Buckley standing on a white field.

Teaching about sea ice while standing on it

UTQIAQGVIK, Alaska — My boots crunch into the snow as I step onto the frozen Arctic Ocean. It’s April in Utqiaġvik, Alaska, and I’m here to help run a sea ice field trip for eighth graders and assist with some fieldwork. Around me, a network of tents — each with a story to tell about […]

Engineering Researchers seated behind a hand scale prototype of their new multilayer material.

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.

Expert viewpoints A man in a dark suit stands outside with orange foliage in the background

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.

Engineering Researchers positioned behind a microscope used in the research and in from of a projected image of model cancer cell.

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.

Engineering

Researchers develop a five-minute quality test for sustainable cement industry materials

A new test developed at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign can predict the performance of a new type of cementitious construction material in five minutes — a significant improvement over the current industry standard method, which takes seven or more days to complete. This development is poised to advance the use of next-generation resources called supplementary cementitious materials — or SCMs — by speeding up the quality-check process before leaving the production floor.

Life sciences Portrait of the research team posing together.

Minecraft players can now explore whole cells and their contents

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Scientists have translated nanoscale experimental and computational data into precise 3D representations of bacteria, yeast and human epithelial, breast and breast cancer cells in Minecraft, a video game that allows players to explore, build and manipulate structures in three dimensions. The innovation will allow researchers and students of all ages to navigate […]

Honors

Four Illinois researchers receive Presidential Early Career Award

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Four researchers at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign were named recipients of the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers, the highest honor bestowed by the U.S. government on young professionals at the outset of their independent research careers. The winners this year are health and kinesiology professor Marni Boppart, physics professor Barry Bradlyn, chemical and biomolecular engineering professor Ying […]

Engineering Prototype of device

New research helps eliminate dead zones in desalination technology and beyond

Engineers have found a way to eliminate the fluid flow “dead zones” that plague the types of electrodes used for battery-based seawater desalination. The new technique uses a physics-based tapered flow channel design within electrodes that moves fluids quickly and efficiently, potentially requiring less energy than reverse osmosis techniques currently require.

Earth and environmental sciences Engineering Physical sciences Research news Science and technology Photo of the researcher in his laboratory with starting materials and holding a glass jar full of the end product, ethylbenzene.

Photo of the researcher in his laboratory with starting materials and holding a glass jar full of the end product, ethylbenzene.

Team makes sustainable aviation fuel additive from recycled polystyrene

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — A new study overcomes a key challenge to switching commercial aircraft in the U.S. from their near-total reliance on fossil fuels to more sustainable aviation fuels. The study details a cost-effective method for producing ethylbenzene — an additive that improves the functional characteristics of sustainable aviation fuels — from polystyrene, a hard […]

Humanities Portrait of Andrew White. He is standing in front of a screen displaying two images: on the left, a LiDAR image of Monks Mound in the ancient city of Cahokia; on the right, an artist's painted interpretation of what the city of Cahokia looked like in its heyday. The painting depicts Cahokia from an aerial perspective.

Portrait of Andrew White. He is standing in front of a screen displaying two images: on the left, a LiDAR image of Monks Mound in the ancient city of Cahokia; on the right, an artist's painted interpretation of what the city of Cahokia looked like in its heyday. The painting depicts Cahokia from an aerial perspective.

Are climate-related calamities erasing Illinois’ cultural history?

In a new report, scientists with the Illinois State Archaeological Survey describe how increased flooding, erosion and other effects of human-induced climate change are degrading many of the state’s cultural sites. ISAS research archaeologist Andrew White, a co-author of the report, spoke with News Bureau life sciences editor Diana Yates about the scope of the […]

Physical sciences An illustration of Mission Illinois at work in orbit above the Earth, passing over Illinois and the Great Lakes region.

Illinois researchers to kick off new phase of program to explore space-based manufacturing

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — What is being billed as the most exciting phase of a space manufacturing project called Mission Illinois is set to kick off this month. The project is currently gearing up to send a specialized construction apparatus to the International Space Station to demonstrate space-based or on-orbit manufacturing during the summer of 2026. […]

Physical sciences

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