• Structural changes observed in the brains of astronauts on long-duration missions

    The team imaged the brains of 15 astronauts before and after extended tours of duty on the International Space Station (ISS). They found that in their time away from planet Earth, the fluid-filled spaces along veins and arteries in the brain were altered. These spaces, known as perivascular space, are integral to a natural system of brain cleansing that occurs during sleep. The network of tubes is known as the glymphatic system – a brain-wide network that clears metabolic proteins that would otherwise build up in the brain. Scientists say this system seems to perform optimally during deep sleep. “These findings have important implications as we continue space exploration,” said senior author Juan Piantino. “It also forces you to think about some basic fundamental questions of science and…

  • Telecom sector drops its challenge to landmark California net neutrality law

    A group of industry associations that represent major internet providers, including AT&T, Comcast and Verizon, have dropped their challenge of a federal district court's ruling upholding California's net neutrality law. While supporters of net neutrality rules celebrate the legislation as a necessary step to ensure a free and open internet, telecom providers believe the rule discourages investment in broadband and introduces uncertainty about acceptable business practices. The 2018 law allows the California state government to ban internet service providers (ISPs) from slowing down or blocking access to websites and applications that don’t pay for premium service. Last month, the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals unanimously rejected an industry attempt to prevent the state from enforcing…

  • Night-time satellite images used to identify areas of poverty

    Despite successes in reducing poverty globally in the last two decades, almost one billion people are still living without access to reliable and affordable electricity, which in turn negatively affects health and welfare, and impedes sustainable development. Researchers have been using satellite images of Earth at night to study human activity for almost 30 years and it is well established that these images – commonly referred to as night-time radiance – can help map issues like economic growth, poverty, and inequality, especially in places where data are lacking. In developing countries, areas that are unlit at night generally indicate limited development, while brightly lit areas indicate more developed areas like capital cities where infrastructure is abundant. An obvious example…

  • Handheld device could cut the rate of cancer biopsies in half

    Scientists have been able to successfully leverage millimetre-wave imaging to slash the rate of unnecessary biopsies. In 2015, 5.9 million skin biopsies were performed on Medicare recipients - a 142 per cent increase since the turn of the millennium. The healing process from these procedures is long and painful, as doctors need to carve away small lumps of tissue for laboratory testing, leaving patients with wounds that can take weeks to heal. Patients have been willing to undergo such treatments to enable early cancer treatment. However, this approach might soon no longer be necessary. Researchers at Stevens Institute of Technology are developing a low-cost handheld device that could cut the rate of unnecessary biopsies in half and give dermatologists and other frontline physicians easy…

  • Why upskilling is the key to attracting tech talent during a skills shortage

    Both Brexit and the Covid-19 pandemic have taken a toll on the recruitment process. Amidst a pool of vacant positions, employers are having a hard time when it comes to attracting the best talent. Employees are reluctant to switch roles due to uncertainty, outsourcing workers from the European Union isn’t on the cards anymore, and employees lack both hard and soft skills. This is on record as the most severe skills shortage that the UK has ever faced and is likely to slow Britain’s economic growth. Although trade sectors, such as construction, engineering, and IT, are affected the most, the UK labour shortage spans across all industries. In a recent KPMG pulse survey , 70 per cent of the companies that participated said they found it difficult or very difficult to attract and retain employees…

    E+T Magazine
    E+T Magazine

  • View from India: The semiconductor is the new oil in this digital age

    Today’s economy is based on data, or rather data-driven artificial intelligence (AI). Semiconductors enable advances in communication, transportation, education and electronic devices. “The semiconductor industry is projected to be $1tn by 2030 and the data economy could be the driving force. Data is stored and processed and memory storage is central to it. Data-driven economies could be characterised by 5G networks, complex 3D designs, advanced AI and intelligence edge,” said Sanjay Mehrotra of Micron Technology at Semicon India 2022. Data memory and storage may be tapped by the auto industry, given that electric vehicles are increasing the advanced driver safety features as well as infotainment options. Data memory and storage could be used to improve agricultural productivity. Memory and…

  • Robot chef is able to ‘taste’ food to make recipe improvements

    They believe the results could be useful in the development of automated or semi-automated food preparation by helping robots to learn what tastes good and what doesn’t. The robot chef, which has already been trained to make omelettes based on human tasters’ feedback, tasted nine different variations of a simple dish of scrambled eggs and tomatoes at three different stages of the chewing process, and produced ‘taste maps’ of the different dishes. The researchers found that this ‘taste as you go’ approach significantly improved the robot’s ability to quickly and accurately assess the saltiness of the dish over other electronic tasting technologies, which only test a single homogenised sample. “Most home cooks will be familiar with the concept of tasting as you go – checking a dish throughout…

  • Does space travel lead to blood clots? Nasa gives the answer

    Are astronauts more likely to develop blood clots? That’s the question Nasa is trying to answer alongside UNC School of Medicine’s Professor Stephan Moll MD. A new publication in Vascular Medicine shows the results of an occupational surveillance programme that took place after an astronaut developed a blood clot during a mission to the International Space Station (ISS).  This was the first time a blood clot had been found in an astronaut in space, so there was no established method of treatment for deep vein thrombosis ( DVT) in zero gravity. Therefore, Nasa called upon Moll, a member of the UNC Blood Research Center, for his knowledge and treatment experience of DVT on Earth. "Knowing there are no emergency rooms in space, we had to weigh our options very carefully,” Moll said. In…

  • US to place ‘seismic’ human rights-related sanctions on China’s Hikvision

    The Biden administration is considering placing human rights-related sanctions on the Chinese company and has begun briefing its allies, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday, citing four people familiar with the matter. The world’s largest manufacturer of surveillance equipment has been accused of enabling human rights abuses. Hikvision reportedly supplied the Chinese government with surveillance cameras that facilitate the repression of one million Uyghurs who have been detained in camps in the north-western region of Xinjiang. Both the Trump and Biden administrations have accused Beijing of committing “genocide”, although China has consistently denied the accusations. If the decision to sanction were taken, it would amount to the first time the US has imposed such sanctions on…

  • Wi-Fi, coming to a lamppost near you!

    The researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) found that the optimal height of installation depends on transmission frequency and antenna design. Attaching equipment at lower heights of around 4m is better for traditional wireless systems with omnidirectional antennas, the team said, whereas higher locations 6-9m up are better for the latest systems such as 5G using higher, millimetre-wave frequencies and narrow-beam antennas. An international group, the Telecom Infra Project, is promoting the idea of making Wi-Fi available over the unlicensed 60GHz frequency band by installing access points on lampposts. A technical challenge, however, is that signals in this band, which are higher than traditional cellphone frequencies, are sparse and tend to scatter off…

  • Meta opens access to its massive AI language model

    Facebook-owner Meta Platforms Inc is opening up access to its massive language model for artificial intelligence (AI)   research. 'Large language models' are natural language processing systems that are trained on massive volumes of text, and are capable of both understanding and generating texts. With 175 billion parameters, Meta’s Open Pretrained Transformer (OPT-175B) was designed to share both the groundbreaking abilities and potential flaws of OpenAI’s pioneering neural network GPT-3.  By giving researchers free access to the model, as well as data about its training, Meta hopes to drive AI research forward, as well as reduce the ethical risks that come with these technologies. “We strongly believe that the ability for others to scrutinise your work is an important part of research…

  • Rail funding cuts increase risk of major accidents on the network, TUC says

    Network Rail plans to cut annual expenditure by £100m, mainly through the loss of 2,500 rail maintenance jobs. A previously unpublished analysis of Network Rail data by the RMT union found that this could lead to 670,000 fewer hours of maintenance work annually. The cuts come after a Spending Review from the Chancellor at the end of 2020 that saw Network Rail’s budget cut by £1bn for the 2019-2024 period, down nearly 10 per cent on the £10.4bn for the previous five-year period. In its latest report, the TUC said it was impossible to make those cuts without losing many safety-critical jobs. Network Rail responsibilities include track maintenance and maintaining signals to ensure trains are on time and prevent collisions as well as ensuring a consistent electricity supply to the network…

  • London’s Elizabeth Line will finally launch later this month after years of delays

    Passengers will be able to travel on the new line from 24 May 2022 and will see improved transport links from Abbey Wood in the south-east, Shenfield in the north-east and extending to Reading in the west. The Elizabeth Line should also help to cut journey times and provide additional capacity on London’s tube network. It will initially operate as three separate railways, with services from Reading, Heathrow and Shenfield connecting with the central tunnels from autumn this year. In the coming weeks, signage for the line will be uncovered across the network in preparation for the start of customer service. The updated Tube and Rail map will also be released later showing the new central section stations connected with the rest of the TfL network for the first time. …

  • Ofqual to explore online testing for exams

    According to the regulator Ofqual, the move – set to take place over the next three years – could be the first step on the path towards online GCSEs and A-levels. It said it will explore novel approaches to assessment, including the use of technology, and will work with exam boards to “explore the role of adaptive testing”, where digital exams automatically adjust to suit a candidate’s ability level. Ofqual added it will “remove regulatory barriers where innovation promotes valid and efficient assessment”. It plans to oversee the reintroduction of full public exams in 2022 while being “ready to implement contingency arrangements if needed”. Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, welcomed the move away from “Fort Knox-style security arrangements…

  • Centre for innovation in XR technology opens in Portsmouth

    The CCIXR is the UK’s first purpose-built facility to bring together a whole suite of the very latest 'eXtended Reality' (XR) technologies under one roof to support innovation in virtual, augmented and extended realities. The centre will offer cutting-edge XR training, research and development, with the aim of addressing a critical skills shortage in these areas of industry and supporting the creation of high-value jobs regionally, nationally and beyond. CCIXR will also work with businesses and organisations to improve understanding of, and widen access to, XR and its potential across a wide range of applications, from simulators, training tools and immersive visitor attractions, to the metaverse and art and performance. CCIXR experts have already worked with organisations including the…

  • ‘Double masking’ has little effect; it’s the fit that matters

    US health authorities already recommend people wear N95 and KN95 masks, as they offer the most protection against the disease, while loosely woven cloth masks have been found to offer the least protection. But researchers at Florida State University (FSU) said there is still not a full understanding of mask characteristics for the most optimal protection, over two years since the pandemic began. They used a technique called principal component analysis (PCA) along with fluid dynamics simulation models to show the importance of proper fit for all types of masks and how face shape influences the ideal fit. More layers mean a less porous face covering, leading to more flow forced out of the perimeter gaps (sides, top, and bottom) in masks with a less secure fit. While double layers do increase…

  • Water-containing electrolyte might transform battery production

    Researchers working on battery development have typically seen water as the enemy. It had previously been thought that lithium-ion batteries generally needed to be produced under extremely dry conditions in order for them to hold large amounts of charge.  Now, a research team at the US Department of Energy’s (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory has developed a new battery electrolyte that can hold a thousand times more water than conventional electrolytes, according to Argonne senior battery chemist Zhengcheng 'John' Zhang. “We’ve always thought that water was going to cause major problems for a lithium-ion battery," he said. "However, it turns out that our formulation can hold dramatically more than previously known, which could help reduce costs in battery fabrication.” In a battery, ions…

  • UK set to shelve plans to empower new technology regulator

    The government's new legislative programme is not expected to include a bill to provide statutory underpinning to the Digital Markets Unit that is based within the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), the Financial Times has reported. The decision is a serious blow to global efforts to curb the dominance of internet companies, including Google and Meta, and poses a sharp contrast with the policy of the European Union, which is moving towards enforcing stricter controls on technology giants to prevent them from using their dominance to push out smaller firms and disadvantage consumers. The government announced its plans to set up the Digital Markets Unit (DMU) in 2020, a year after the CMA began a probe into the influence of US technology platforms and how they collected and used personal…

  • Helicopter catches and drops falling rocket mid-air in reusability test

    The feat, which is designed to demonstrate the reusability of its rockets, took place following a mission that saw the deployment of 34 satellites in orbit After launching to space, the Electron rocket’s first stage was returned to Earth under a parachute during which it was captured by a helicopter using a hook on a long line to snag the parachute line. However, after the catch, the helicopter pilot detected different load characteristics from those previously experienced, and dropped the rocket for safety reasons. The stage is now being loaded onto Rocket Lab’s recovery vessel for transport back to the company’s production complex for analysis and assessment for re-flight as planned. The firm’s technology is competing with Elon Musk’s SpaceX, which has also created reusable rockets…

  • Majority of UK manufacturers increasing net-zero efforts, survey reveals

    Around 90 per cent of manufacturers are planning further action on net zero as activity ramps up, with 35 per cent of businesses already subscribing to a fully formed net-zero strategy. A further 14 per cent have set their strategy but not yet set it in motion, the survey found, while 11 per cent do not have a net-zero strategy and have no plans to introduce one. “Britain’s manufacturers have shown that they are at the forefront of global innovation and have already gone a long way to improve their processes and production in the quest to reach net zero,” MakeUK said in its report. “It came as no surprise that progress is dependent on issues that we continually campaign upon. A lack of skills was cited as a barrier to change, with some 40 per cent of companies stating they did not have…

  • EU moves forward in antitrust case against Apple

    The 27-nation bloc’s executive arm, the European Commission, has been investigating Apple since 2020. The commission’s preliminary view is that the firm is restricting competition by preventing mobile wallet app developers from accessing the necessary hardware and software on Apple devices. Mobile wallets rely on near-field communication (NFC), which uses a chip in the mobile device to wirelessly communicate with a merchant’s payment terminal. The commission said Apple Pay is by far the largest NFC-based mobile wallet on the market, and the only mobile wallet solution that may access the necessary NFC input on iOS, and accused the company of refusing others access to the popular technology. The commission blamed Apple for not making it available to third-party app developers. “Apple has…

  • EU embraces data to reduce unnecessary medical tests

    Currently, EU patients spend €1.4bn (about £1.2bn) every year on unnecessary medical images alone.  To address this issue, the European Commission has outlined a plan to make health data easier to access for patients, medics, regulators and researchers. The new European health data space is expected to improve the efficiency of existing healthcare services as well as boost medical research , according to an EU document obtained by Reuters. An estimated one in 10 X-rays or ultrasound tests taken by EU patients are actually duplications of existing valid images. This proliferation of unneeded tests is caused by data silos as well as strict restrictions regulating the accessibility of patients' data, to the point of keeping patients from being able to access their own records.  Widening…

  • View from India: India prepares to be key hub for semiconductors

    The pandemic is a reminder of Albert Einstein’s words, “In the midst of every crisis, lies great opportunity.” It’s a known fact that the chip shortage during the pandemic has dampened the spirits of the electronics and automotive industries, among other verticals. It didn’t take long for the government to fast-track measures to uplift the economy. The Indian manufacturing sector is getting a push through Production Linked Incentives (PLI) schemes that offer incentives of over $26bn in 14 key sectors. Over the next five years, the electronics manufacturing sector is expected to see record growth. As reported in the media, the country’s 4G mobile network will start to roll out within a week. The Government-owned service provider BSNL has finalised 2,443 sites for rolling out the service, which…

  • UK to subsidise electricity costs for high energy firms

    The Energy Intensive Industries (EII) compensation scheme began rolling out in 2017 as a way to keep high-energy businesses in the UK competitive while the economy transitions to net zero. The scheme will now be extended for a further three years and have its budget more than doubled following months of rising energy prices. The Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy said it could also encourage greater electrification in some businesses which will ultimately be needed to meet net zero goals. Today’s announcement will see the scheme’s budget expanded by more than £2bn. Industry minister Lee Rowley said: “We want to keep the UK at the forefront of manufacturing, helping our energy-intensive industries remain competitive and sustainable for the long term, and continuing to…

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