Peer Reviewed

The World Health Organisation has reported seven people in China have contracted Influenza A H7N9, including two deaths. The UK and Australian Science Media Centre has asked some experts for their opinions. Journalists are welcome to use these expert quotes.

Singapore, 2 April – Mobile device users will soon be able to view brilliant 3D content with the naked eye with a nano-engineered screen protector that turns ordinary mobile screens into 3D displays. The unique plastic film can also potentially be used as next generation security tokens employed by banks and corporations.

(Tsukuba, 29 March 2013) The first observation of massive swelling and shrinkage of inorganic layered materials like a biological cell provides insights into the production of two-dimensional crystals.

Microscale medical sensors inserted under the skin can be powered wirelessly by an external handheld receiver

Defects in metal–organic frameworks induce low-temperature ferromagnetism and could yield novel materials for industry

Microstructures made of adjoining semiconductor disks could lead to powerful nanoscale sensors

A revolutionary atmospheric-pressure plasma boosts adhesion of polymer films for roll-to-roll solar-cell production

A computer model provides important clues for the production of tightly packed electronic components

Singapore, 27 March - A*STAR’s IME and United Test and Assembly Center (UTAC), announced a collaboration to develop a 2.5D Through-Silicon-Interposer (TSI) platform which will enable UTAC to join the scarce list of suppliers in offering fine-pitch 2.5D TSI packaging solutions.

Singapore and Tokyo, 26 March – Singapore’s A*STAR, and Fujitsu Limited (Fujitsu) have signed a MoU to explore the creation of the first Centre of Excellence for Computational Social Science and Engineering in Singapore to identify technological solutions for sustainable urban development.

The consortium aims to improve the reliability of semiconductor devices by tackling copper wire bonding issues related to corrosion and stress. Members of this consortium span across the semiconductor supply chain including Atotech S.E.A., GLOBALFOUNDRIES, Heraeus Materials and Infineon Technologies.

At its first glance, the mannequin ‘i.Dummy’ developed by researchers of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) looks no different from an ordinary dummy but it is no plain stuff - this sophisticated mannequin can change its body shape and size or even elongate at the point of a fingertip on computer.

A project supported by the Canadian International Food Security Research Fund (CIFSRF) is helping smallholder shrimp farmers in Sri Lanka adapt their industry’s best management practices to local needs. This could lead to fewer disease outbreaks, bigger and more profitable shrimp, and fewer negative environmental impacts.

Yan Chai Hospital Social Services Department (YCHSSD), in collaboration with The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU)’s Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, has developed a novel health qigong protocol for frail elderly in Hong Kong.

Meet the Expert - Professor Deok-Soo Kim of Hanyang University is working towards creating a new field called Molecular Geometry which provides geometrical solutions within the study of molecules.

Singapore, 18 March 2013 – Imagine a sensor about the size of a 50-cent coin that can remotely diagnose the ‘health’ of a motor without anyone having to physically inspect the motor. Hoestar has licensed IMRE’s piezoelectric sensor technology to automate the monitoring of vibration and physical stresses of machinery.

A research group at NIMS International Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics (MANA) have succeeded in developing a gel material which is capable of releasing drugs in response to pressure applied by the patient.

A simple fermentation treatment can convert a by-product of biofuel production into a valuable chemical feedstock for a wide range of biomedical products

A numerical simulation predicts the behavior of a component that controls light for faster computing

Electronic engineers in Singapore have developed and successfully tested a management system that increases the efficiency of wireless sensor networks for monitoring machine health.

Computing tasks for signal processing could be performed more quickly with less power by using look-up tables

Ulsan, South Korea 11 March - A research team from Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST), South Korea have developed high-performance organic phototransistors (OPTs) based on single-crystalline n-channel organic nanowires. The research was published recently in Advanced Functional Materials.

Wildlife Conservation Society and National University of Singapore discover American bullfrog is spreading Chytrid through commercial trade

Tsukuba, Japan 6 March - A research group at WPI-MANA have discovered that it is possible to detect diluted ionic mercury in water with more than 10 times higher sensitivity than with the conventional spectroscopy method.

This book explores the place of poor people within a rich variety of value chains, focusing upon lagging, rural regions in Africa and Asia, and how they can “upgrade” within such chains.

A project supported by the Canadian International Food Security Research Fund (CIFSRF) is overcoming key obstacles to increasing the production and consumption of hardy and healthy grains in India.

A new book, Fighting Eviction, tells the story of the Katkari, one of the poorest of India’s 600 tribes, and their struggle to remain in hamlets they have occupied for generations near Mumbai.

A campaign that won legal recognition for Arab women’s citizenship rights in nine jurisdictions is providing inspiration and tactical lessons for women facing growing discrimination across the Middle East.

Women who were relocated from slums in central New Delhi to the city’s desolate periphery face daily indignities and danger as they collect water or access public toilets. Using the Women’s Safety Audit they have begun to realize their rights and demand better, safer services.

(Toyohashi, Japan, 5 March) Toyohashi Tech researchers have developed small-area, low-power, low-noise instrumentation amplifiers for high-spatial-resolution biomedical and environment monitoring system.