Engineering Design

  1. Health & Medicine

    Jiggly gelatin: Good workout snack for athletes?

    Eating a vitamin-rich, Jell-O-like snack could help the body make the collagen needed to repair bones and ligaments that can be damaged by exercise.

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  2. Computing

    Germs power new paper batteries

    New paper-based batteries rely on bacteria to generate electricity. These ‘papertronic’ power systems may be a safer choice for remote sites or dangerous environments.

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  3. Animals

    Cool Jobs: Abuzz for bees

    These scientists are keeping bees healthy, making medicines for people from honey and constructing bee-inspired robots.

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  4. Archaeology

    Space archaeologists need your help to protect ancient treasures

    Explorers who search for ancient ruins in satellite images are asking for help from the public. Volunteers can visit a new website to sign up.

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  5. Tech

    Wired and weird: Meet the cyborg plants

    By mixing electronics with greenery, engineers have made plants that conduct electricity, detect bombs and send email.

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  6. Physics

    How to chill an object by sending its heat into space

    Researchers have designed a device that can cool an object by radiating its energy into outer space. Think of it as a solar panel in reverse.

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  7. Tech

    How to spin synthetic spider silk

    A new method for spinning artificial spider silk combines parts of proteins from two species and mimics what happens in a spider’s silk-forming gland.

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  8. Computing

    The Internet of Things wants to link all facets of our world

    The Internet of Things means everyday objects are becoming computers. Can people harness this technology to make the world better?

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  9. Computing

    How to build computer chips only 3 atoms thick

    Scientists have engineered an ultrathin material only three atoms thick. The material could be used to make extremely slender computer chips.

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  10. Computing

    LEDs offer new way to kill germs in water

    Growing ultraviolet-light-emitting diodes on thin, flexible sheets of metal holds promise for water disinfection and other applications.

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  11. Health & Medicine

    Snot Science: A snotty setup

    We’ve got a video with a snotty experiment. Now we describe how you can do the same test yourself. Try it!

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  12. Health & Medicine

    Snot Science: Results are nothing to sneeze at

    We tested a lot of snot, but now we need to figure out what our data mean. Here’s how to group and analyze our data.

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