Technology

Molecular robots work cooperatively in swarms, LED lights made from rice husk, Muonic x-rays safely see inside samples, Making a luminescent material shine brighter and How to counter vaccine hesitancy, Read all in the May Editor's Choice and this month's Asia Research News 2022 magazine pick - Absorbing impact: Inside the Head of a Woodpecker.

Asia Research News monitors the latest research news in Asia. Some highlights that caught our attention this week are forest-flying autonomous drones, AI that predicts mental health, and hyperventilating cells.

Using muonic x-rays from a high-energy accelerator and a technology used for astronomical observations, researchers can now see the elemental makeup of sensitive samples without damaging them.

Researchers have established a low-cost method of magnetization reversal on perpendicularly magnetized ferromagnets. Not needing an external magnetic field, the method brings reverse magnetization closer to commercial viability.

Researchers overcome computational limitations to predict the starting materials of multi-step reactions using only information about the target product molecule.

Scientists at Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST) in Korea have fabricated a flexible material that lights up brightly when stretched and/or when an electric field is applied. The results were published in the journal Applied Physics Reviews and show promise for the development of bright, sustainable, stretchable devices for use, for example, as interactive skin displays and in soft robotics.

A porous material, which opens to receive highly flammable acetylene and closes to release it, sidesteps the flaws of the existing storage method.

An international team of researchers from India and Singapore has successfully developed a novel coating with enhanced water repellent properties using natural material from the waste crab shell.

In disaster mitigation planning for future large earthquakes, seismic ground motion predictions are a crucial part of early warning systems. The way the ground moves depends on how the soil layers amplify the seismic waves (described in a mathematical site “amplification factor”). However, geophysical explorations to understand soil conditions are costly, limiting characterization of site amplification factors to date. Using data on microtremors in Japan, a neural network model can estimate site-specific responses to earthquakes based on subsurface soil conditions.

Researchers at The University of Tokyo used a hybrid of Monte Carlo and molecular dynamics simulations to predict the self-assembly of charged Janus particles, which may lead to biomimetic nanostructures that can assemble like proteins

Milling rice to separate the grain from the husks, produces about 100 million tons of rice husk waste globally each year. Scientists searching for a scalable method to fabricate quantum dots have developed a way to recycle rice husks to create the first silicon quantum dot LED light. Their new method transforms agricultural waste into state-of-the-art light-emitting diodes in a low-cost, environmentally friendly way.

A team of materials researchers from India, Thailand, Malaysia, China and UK has successfully produced a fibre reinforced polymer composite material using natural fibres from the coconut stalk.

Malaysian and UK medical device and composite materials experts have partnered up to research into using natural fibres for prosthetic limb technology to lower the cost of the prosthesis

The molecule trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) can be used to reversibly modulate the rigidity of microtubules, a key component of molecular machines and molecular robots.

199 Gold, 188 Silver and 56 Bronze were awarded

The theme of MTE 2022 is "Embracing the New Norm and Moving to New Frontiers," and this prestigious event is expected to attract over 10,000 online visitors from all over the world via its virtual exhibition platform.

As a result of global warming in the 21st century, the Greenland ice sheet may contribute several metres to sea-level rise in the centuries to come; however, effective climate change mitigation measures will greatly reduce its decay.

Researchers aim to streamline the time- and resource-intensive process of screening ligands during catalyst design by using virtual ligands.

Devices that can see shortwave infrared light, which is invisible to the naked eye, could soon become cheaper and more accessible to a broader consumer base.

A nanoparticle’s size is fine-tuned to offer high-resolution images before and during surgical procedures.

Inspired by the woodpecker’s ability to strike trees with its beak rapidly and repeatedly without injury, engineers in Malaysia have used computer simulations to find ways to improve the design of composite beams used in impact-prone structures.

Device designers at the University of Tokyo are developing cheap and accessible ways to monitor and explore the sea.

A reimagined robot hand combines strength with flexibility and resilience, sidestepping problems with existing designs.

An innovative sample preparation method for cellular proteomics and protein structural analysis

The SupercomputingAsia Conference recognised key HPC pioneer-leaders with its annual SCA22 Awards. The winning teams from Asia, Australia and the US were also announced at the awards ceremony for the international Data Mover Challenge 2021 (DMC21) competition.

Scientists demonstrate an optical trapping technique using nanotextured black silicon that can efficiently trap polymer chains. By adjusting the laser intensity, these “optical tweezers” can control the florescence color emitted through a local concentration of a perylene-modified polymer solution. From a low intensity blue to high intensity orange, this reversible and fully remote technology can almost reach the entire RGB spectrum.