Computer America

Show Notes 11 April 2025
Story 1: A flexible robot can help emergency responders search through rubble
Source: MIT News
Link: https://news.mit.edu/2025/sprout-flexible-robot-help-emergency-responders-search-rubble-0402
See video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DaMCTH4qZTE
Story 2: Charging electric vehicles 5x faster in subfreezing temps
Source: University of Michigan News
Link: https://news.umich.edu/charging-electric-vehicles-5x-faster-in-subfreezing-temps/
Story 3: Early Study Shows Promise for Eye-Surgery Robot Invented at the University of Utah
Source: University of Utah website
Link: https://www.price.utah.edu/2025/02/19/early-study-shows-promise-for-eye-surgery-robot-invented-at-the-university-of-utah
See video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rpHt-put4t8
See research paper here: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/scirobotics.adp7700
Story 4: World’s smallest pacemaker is activated by light - Tiny device can be inserted with a syringe, then dissolves after it’s no longer needed
Source: Northwestern University website
Link: https://news.northwestern.edu/stories/2025/03/worlds-smallest-pacemaker-is-activated-by-light/
See video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j_0hZ8cUwgo
Honorable Mentions
Story: Unlocking the Future of Green Energy: Exploring Hydrogen Production from Marine Microbes
Source: Science Magazine
Link: https://scienmag.com/unlocking-the-future-of-green-energy-exploring-hydrogen-production-from-marine-microbes/
Story: Scientists discover major differences in how humans and AI 'think' — and the implications could be significant
Source: LiveScience.com
Link: https://www.livescience.com/technology/artificial-intelligence/scientists-discover-major-differences-in-how-humans-and-ai-think-and-the-implications-could-be-significant
Story: Smartphones Could Diagnose Diseases Using Infrared Scans
Source: LabMedica.com
Link: https://www.labmedica.com/technology/articles/294804491/smartphones-could-diagnose-diseases-using-infrared-scans.html
Story: Airbus advances key technologies for next-generation single-aisle aircraft
Source: Airbus.com
Link: https://www.airbus.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2025-03-airbus-advances-key-technologies-for-next-generation-single-aisle

Show Notes 4 April 2025
Story 1: These smart contact lens prototypes could convince future me to ditch my glasses thanks to wireless power transfer and eye health biosensing
Source: TechRadar.com Story by Stephen Warwick
Link: https://www.techradar.com/health-fitness/these-smart-contact-lens-prototypes-could-convince-future-me-to-ditch-my-glasses-thanks-to-wireless-power-transfer-and-eye-health-biosensing
See also: https://xpanceo.com/
Story 2: Wearable ring translates sign language into text - SpellRing is trained on 20,000 words in American Sign Language.
Source: Popular Science Story by Andrew Paul
Link: https://www.popsci.com/technology/sign-language-translator-ring/
See video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LUtRk-oUeIc
Story 3: Terabytes of data in a millimeter crystal - University of Chicago researchers created a "quantum-inspired” revolution in microelectronics, storing classical computer memory in crystal gaps where atoms should be
Source: Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering news posting, University of Chicago
Link: https://pme.uchicago.edu/news/terabytes-data-millimeter-crystal
See research paper here: https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/nanoph-2024-0635/html
Story 4: Cellular 'scaffold' enables myoblast implants on healthy muscle to advance regenerative medicine
Source: MedicalXpress.com News from Tokyo Metropolitan University
Link: https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-02-cellular-scaffold-enables-myoblast-implants.html
See research paper here: https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/cell-and-developmental-biology/articles/10.3389/fcell.2024.1502332/full
Honorable Mentions
Story: U.S. Firm Develops Solid-State Battery With 25x More Capacity, 1,000 Cycles
Source: Tomorrow's World Today
Link: https://www.tomorrowsworldtoday.com/energy/u-s-firm-develops-solid-state-battery-with-25x-more-capacity-1000-cycles/
Story: Brazil launches world’s first ethanol power plant to turn sugarcane into electricity
Source: Timesofinnovation.com Story by Aria Patel
Link: https://timesofinnovation.com/renewable-energy-sector/brazil-launches-worlds-first-ethanol-power-plant-to-turn-sugarcane-into-electricity/
See also: https://www.wartsila.com/media/news/26-03-2025-world-first-engine-test-to-convert-sugarcane-into-clean-power-3564930
Story: Startup cracks the code to create jet fuel in 'record time' from an unexpected source: 'Novel technology' Carbon dioxide and water
Source: The Cool Down Story by Rick Kazmer
Link: https://www.msn.com/en-us/autos/other/startup-cracks-the-code-to-create-jet-fuel-in-record-time-from-an-unexpected-source-novel-technology/ar-AA1BUtDc
Story: Fetus Receives Life-Saving Medication Before Birth in Medical First
Source: ScienceAlert.com Story by Carly Cassella
Link: https://www.sciencealert.com/fetus-receives-life-saving-medication-inside-womb-in-medical-first

Show Notes 28 March 2025
Story 1: Ultra-Accurate Optical Atomic Clocks Could Enable True Self-Driving Cars
Source: TopSpeed.com Story by Craig Cole
Link: https://www.topspeed.com/ultra-accurate-optical-atomic-clocks-could-enable-true-self-driving-cars/
See Chalmers University of Technology news article here: https://www.chalmers.se/en/current/news/mc2-microcomb-chips-help-pave-the-way-for-thousand-times-more-accurate-gps-systems/
Story 2: This is the first quantum computer you can actually buy (and use, and power): Equal1's Bell-1 uses a standard power socket
Source: TechRadar.com Story by Efosa Udinmwen
Link: https://www.techradar.com/pro/this-is-the-first-quantum-computer-you-can-actually-buy-and-use-and-power-equal1s-bell-1-uses-a-standard-power-socket
See also: https://www.equal1.com/post/equal1-launches-bell-1-the-first-quantum-system-purpose-built-for-the-hpc-era
Story 3: Shape-shifting robot that swims now explores Mariana Trench, reaching a depth of 34,776-ft
Source: InterestingEngineering.com Story by Jijo Malayil
Link: https://interestingengineering.com/innovation/shape-shifting-robot-mariana-trench-exploration
See research paper here: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-00489-y
See video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZ-2USuQEuU
Story 4: Wi-Fi-based technology developed to detect depression in older adults
Source: MedicalXpress.com Story by JMIR Publications
Link: https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-03-wi-fi-based-technology-depression.html#google_vignette
See research paper here: https://aging.jmir.org/2025/1/e67715/
See also: https://www.digitalhealthscience.org/2025/03/03/ai-meets-mental-health-wi-fi-based-depression-detection-for-aging-populations/
Honorable Mentions This week all medical news
Story: MIT engineers turn skin cells directly into neurons for cell therapy
Source: MIT News Story by Anne Trafton
Link: https://news.mit.edu/2025/mit-engineers-turn-skin-cells-into-neurons-for-cell-therapy-0313
Story: Rosemary and Sage Could Lead to Better Alzheimer’s Treatment
Source: Discover Magazine Story by Jenny Lehmann
Link: https://www.discovermagazine.com/the-sciences/rosemary-and-sage-could-lead-to-better-alzheimers-treatment
See research paper here: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3921/14/3/293
Story: Scientists develop magnesium-enriched nanofiber patches for safer wound healing
Source: Phys.org Story from Shibaura Institute of Technology
Link: https://phys.org/news/2025-02-scientists-magnesium-enriched-nanofiber-patches.html#google_vignette
Story: Rapidly self-healing electronic skin for machine learning–assisted physiological and movement evaluation
Source: ScienceAdvances.org
Link: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.ads1301

Show Notes 21 March 2025
Story 1: Lithium needed for the battery revolution could be harvested from salt-lake brines or geothermal brine solutions
Source: Imperial College announcement by Ian Mundell
Link: https://www.imperial.ac.uk/news/261774/lithium-needed-battery-revolution-could-harvested/
See also: https://techxplore.com/news/2025-03-lithium-battery-revolution-harvested-saltwater.html
See research paper here: https://www.nature.com/articles/s44221-025-00398-8
Story 2: Nanoparticle breakthrough could bring 'holy grail' of solar power within reach
Source: LiveScience.com Story by Ben Turner
Link: https://www.livescience.com/chemistry/nanoparticle-breakthrough-could-bring-holy-grail-of-solar-power-within-reach
See the research paper here: https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlelanding/2025/el/d4el00029c
Story 3: Mimicking Human Skin, This Self-Healing Gel Could be Applied to Soft Robotics
Source: Discover Magazine Story by Monica Cull
Link: https://www.discovermagazine.com/technology/mimicking-human-skin-this-self-healing-gel-could-be-applied-to-soft-robotics
See the research paper here: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41563-025-02146-5#Sec5
See also: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/03/250307130138.htm
Story 4: Man survives with titanium heart for 100 days – a world first
Source: Nature Magazine Story by Smriti Mallapaty
Link: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-025-00782-0
See video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wW3MMFmDobs
Honorable Mentions
Story: Scientists Use Amino Acid to Extract 99.99% of Lithium from Old Batteries
Source: Technology Networks
Link: https://www.technologynetworks.com/applied-sciences/news/scientists-use-amino-acid-to-extract-9999-of-lithium-from-old-batteries-397175
Story: Spinning, Twisted Light for Next-Generation Electronics
Source: RealClearScience.com
Link: https://www.realclearscience.com/2025/03/14/spinning_twisted_light_for_next-generation_electronics_1097501.html
Story: Nanoparticle Could Act as Switch in Optical Computers - New nanoparticles can switch between dark and bright states
Source: IEEE Spectrum Story by Katherine Bourzac
Link: https://spectrum.ieee.org/nanoparticle-optical-switches
Story: James Webb telescope's view of the Flame Nebula is a 'quantum leap' forward for astronomers
Source: LiveScience.com Story by Jamie Carter
Link: https://www.livescience.com/space/astronomy/space-photo-of-the-week-james-webb-telescopes-view-of-the-flame-nebula-is-a-quantum-leap-forward-for-astronomers

Show Notes 14 March 2025
Story 1: No Fiber Needed: New Chip Uses Light to Beam 10Gig Speeds Through the Air
Source: PC Magazine Story by Michael Kan
Link: https://www.pcmag.com/news/no-fiber-taara-chip-uses-light-to-beam-10gig-speeds-through-the-air
See also: https://www.wired.com/story/plaintext-google-taara-chip-internet-by-light/
Side note - for more about the Taara Project, see: https://x.company/projects/taara/
Story 2: Self-healing Asphalt Could Prevent Potholes and Save Costs on Vehicle Repairs
Source: ZME Science Story by Tibi Puiu
Link: https://www.zmescience.com/science/news-science/self-healing-asphalt-could-prevent-potholes-and-save-costs-on-vehicle-repairs/
Story 3: A protein from tiny tardigrades may help cancer patients tolerate radiation therapy
Source: MIT News Website Story by Anne Trafton
Link: https://news.mit.edu/2025/tiny-tardigrades-protein-may-help-cancer-patients-tolerate-radiation-therapy-0226
Story 4: New Implant May Help Patients Regenerate Their Own Heart Valves
Source: Georgia Tech News Announcement
Link: https://research.gatech.edu/feature/heart-valves
See video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-fMI4VcPiLA
Honorable Mentions
Story: A private mission to Venus aims to look for signs of life - A probe would bring samples of the planet’s atmosphere to Earth
Source: ScienceNews.org Story by Lisa Grossman
Link: https://www.sciencenews.org/article/venus-life-signs-private-mission
Story: 11 Emerging Construction Technology Trends in 2025
Source: Construction News and Review Story by Alex Radchenko
Link: https://mycnr.com/guest-column/11-emerging-construction-technology-trends-in-2025/?form=MG0AV3
Story: Common Mushroom Fiber May Protect Against Flu, Study Finds
Source: ScienceAlert.com Story by David Nield
Link: https://www.sciencealert.com/common-mushroom-fiber-may-protect-against-flu-study-finds
Story: Physicists achieve fully optical readout of superconducting qubits
Source: Phys.org Story by Institute of Science and Technology Austria
Link: https://phys.org/news/2025-02-physicists-fully-optical-readout-superconducting.html

Show Notes

Story 1: US team creates ‘holey’ battery with 180-degree flexibility for wearables

Source: InterestingEngineering.com Story by Christopher McFadden

Link: https://interestingengineering.com/energy/holey-battery-for-wearables

Story 2: Stretchable, flexible, recyclable. This plastic is fantastic

Source: Princeton Engineering Story by John Sullivan

Link: https://engineering.princeton.edu/news/2024/12/12/stretchable-flexible-recyclable-plastic-fantastic

Story 3: NASA's 'SPHEREx' infrared space telescope is launching this week [note, launched on February 28]. Here's why it's a big deal

Source: Space.com Story by Sharmila Kuthunur

Link: https://www.space.com/space-exploration/missions/nasas-spherex-infrared-space-telescope-is-launching-this-week-heres-why-its-a-big-deal

Story 4: The US military wants to explore blood biohacks to boost warfighter performance in extreme conditions

Source: Business Insider Story by Kelsey Baker

Link: https://www.businessinsider.com/darpa-exploring-how-blood-biohacks-could-help-warfighters-2025-1

Computer America Stories 02/28/2025

The next chapter: Skype Ends

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/blog/2025/02/28/the-next-chapter-moving-from-skype-to-microsoft-teams/ 

Microsoft launches native Mac app for Copilot

https://www.engadget.com/ai/microsoft-launches-native-mac-app-for-copilot-235945829.html 

Amazon’s subscription-based Alexa+ looks highly capable—and questionable

https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2025/02/amazons-subscription-based-alexa-looks-highly-capable-and-questionable/ 

Apple Launches the iPhone 16e

https://www.nbcnews.com/select/shopping/apple-iphone-16e-preorder-rcna193702  

Misc. Movie Time! The Best, Worst, and Everything Else Movies of 2024

https://www.popzara.com/podcast/movie-time-the-best-worst-and-everything-else-movies-of-2024/

Show Notes 28 February 2025
Story 1: This Chip Could Be the Massive Breakthrough We’ve Been Waiting for in Quantum Computing
Source: Popular Mechanics Story by Darren Orf
Link: https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/a63872181/majorana-1-topological-qubit/
See Microsoft’s official announcement here: https://news.microsoft.com/source/features/innovation/microsofts-majorana-1-chip-carves-new-path-for-quantum-computing/
See Mircosoft’s video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wSHmygPQukQ&t=18s
See also: https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/blog/quantum/2025/02/19/microsoft-unveils-majorana-1-the-worlds-first-quantum-processor-powered-by-topological-qubits/
See also: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/microsoft-s-majorana-1-what-a-new-state-of-matter-means-for-quantum-computing/ar-AA1znhjk
Story 2: Scientists Reveal "Artificial Leaf" That Turns Carbon into Sustainable Fuels
Source: Futurism.com Story by Noor Al-Sibai
Link: https://futurism.com/artificial-leaf-carbon-sustainable-fuel
See research paper here: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41929-025-01292-y
*Story 3: AI-designed chips are so weird that humans cannot really understand them — but they perform better than anything we've created
Source: LiveScience.com Story by Tim Danton
Link: https://www.livescience.com/technology/computing/humans-cannot-really-understand-them-weird-ai-designed-chip-is-unlike-any-other-made-by-humans-and-performs-much-better
See research paper here: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-024-54178-1#Fig1
Story 4: Biohybrid hand gestures with human muscles - Complex finger movements made possible with rolls of tendon like human muscle tissue
Source: University of Tokyo Press Release
Link: https://www.u-tokyo.ac.jp/focus/en/press/z0508_00386.html
See video here: https://www.msn.com/en-xl/news/other/terminator-like-hand-that-uses-lab-grown-muscle-tissue-developed/vi-AA1zddSI

Story 1: Scientists develop a compact camera that can identify objects at the speed of light
Source: Digital Camera World Story by Leonie Helm
Link: https://www.digitalcameraworld.com/cameras/scientists-develop-a-compact-camera-that-can-identify-objects-at-the-speed-of-light
See the research paper here: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.adp0391
See video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lfgzAGpwHv4
Story 2: This Solar-Powered Reactor Sucks CO2 From the Air and Turns It into Fuel
Source: Gizmodo.com Story by Margherita Bassi
Link: https://gizmodo.com/this-solar-powered-reactor-sucks-co2-from-the-air-and-turns-it-into-fuel-2000563558
See the research paper here: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41560-025-01714-y
Story 3: Engineers develop a soft robot that crawls, climbs, and shape-shifts to move in new directions
Source: TechXplore.com Story from Seoul National University
Link: https://techxplore.com/news/2025-02-soft-robot-climbs-shifts.html#google_vignette
See also the research paper here: https://www.cell.com/cell-reports-physical-science/fulltext/S2666-3864(25)00047-5
Story 4: New assistive device enhances grasping for people with spinal cord injuries
Source: UC Berkeley Engineering News Page Story by Marni Ellery
Link: https://engineering.berkeley.edu/news/2025/02/new-assistive-device-enhances-grasping-for-people-with-spinal-cord-injuries/
Honorable Mentions
Story: A spine-zapping implant helped 3 people with a muscle-wasting disease walk better
Source: AP News Service Story by Lauran Neergaard
Link: https://apnews.com/article/spinal-muscular-atrophy-stimulate-neurodegenerative-826a3ea658d4daa36b6b0671b162af3c
Story: Scientists Invent Device That Straps to Any Car's Tailpipe, Transforming Exhaust Into Electricity
Source: Futurism.com Story by Frank Landymore
Link: https://futurism.com/the-byte/device-tailpipe-exhaust-electricity
Story: Photon-powered quantum battery breakthrough could boost solar cell efficiency
Source: Interesting Engineering Story by Aman Tripathi
Link: https://interestingengineering.com/energy/photon-powered-quantum-battery
Story: New holistic Apple Health Study launches today [February 14] in the Research app
Source: Apple Newsroom
Link: https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2025/02/new-holistic-apple-health-study-launches-today-in-the-research-app

Show Notes 14 February 2025
Story 1: New fabric can heat up more than 50 degrees to keep people warm in ultracold weather

• Source: LiveScience.com Story by Victoria Atkinson
• Link: https://www.livescience.com/chemistry/new-fabric-can-heat-up-almost-50-degrees-to-keep-people-warm-in-ultracold-weather
• See the team’s research paper here: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s42114-024-00994-4

Story 2: MIT engineers develop breakthrough technology that could change the way we process \[recycled\] aluminum

• Source: Yahoo\!Tech "Today in Tech" Story by Jeremiah Budin
• Link: https://www.yahoo.com/tech/mit-engineers-develop-breakthrough-technology-110053323.html?guccounter=1
• See also: https://www.techexplorist.com/capturing-recycling-aluminum-manufacturing-waste/95378/
• See also: https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acssuschemeng.4c07268

Story 3: Machine Learning Designs Materials as Strong as Steel and as Light as Foam

• Source: Technology Networks Story from University of Toronto
• Link: https://www.technologynetworks.com/applied-sciences/news/machine-learning-designs-materials-as-strong-as-steel-and-as-light-as-foam-395414
• See also: https://advanced.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/adma.202410651

Story 4: New Smart Glasses Use Insect Vision Tech to Restore Full 3D Visual Experience - offering treatment of macular degeneration

• Source: WonderfulEngineering.com Story by Jannat Un Nisa
• Link: https://wonderfulengineering.com/new-smartglasses-use-insect-vision-tech-to-restore-full-3d-visual-experience/
• Check out the great video on the opening page of the company behind this technology, see: https://www.soliddd.com/

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