Curated News: Scientific Meetings

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To investigate how shortfin mako sharks achieve their impressive speeds, researchers tested real sharkskin samples, using digital particle image velocimetry. They discovered that a “passive bristling” capability of the microscopic surface geometry of the shark’s scales controlled flow separation, which causes pressure drag -- the most influential cause of drag on aircraft. The work will be described at the 2019 APS March Meeting, and could lead to new designs to reduce drag on aircraft.

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For best chances of in vitro fertilization success, the most motile sperm are chosen from semen. But current methods of sperm selection are inefficient and can cause fragmentation of the precious DNA carried in sperm heads. Afrouz Ataei has developed an alternative mechanism to sort sperm, which avoids genetic damage while also being faster and more cost-effective. Ataei will describe the device at the 2019 APS March Meeting in Boston.

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Side channel signals and bolts of lightning from distant storms could one day help prevent hackers from sabotaging electric power substations and other critical infrastructure, a new study suggests.

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Researchers at Imperial College London created a bioreactor to allow heart tissue to experience mechanical forces in sync with the beats, like it would in the body, to study the mechanics of healthy and diseased hearts.

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Researchers at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory are developing techniques to study how proteins respond to the tiny forces our cells experience.

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Researchers at Yale University gain insights into the mechanics of touch by studying the sensitive skin on ducks’ bills, which they found is similar in some ways to the skin on human palms.

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Formal study release held in conjunction with an information session with the study authors at the TMS 2019 Annual Meeting & Exhibition in San Antonio, Texas.

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Researchers at Rockefeller University characterized a molecular spring attached to the membrane of inner ear cells that converts bending forces created by a sound wave to electrical signals that the brain can interpret.

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Researchers at the University of Oslo find that when lipids land on a surface they form tiny cell-like containers without external input, and that large organic molecules similar in size to DNA’s building blocks can spontaneously enter these protocells while they grow. Both of these are crucial steps towards forming a functioning cell.

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Soils all over the Earth’s surface are rigorously tested and managed. But what about soils that are down in the murky depths? Some scientists are working to get them the recognition and research they deserve.

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How good is the research on the success or failure of the system that verifies your identity when you log into a computer, smartphone or other device? Chances are it’s not good, and that’s a major security and privacy issue that should be fixed, according to a Rutgers University–New Brunswick study that proposes a novel solution.

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AED Announces 2019 ICED Awards and Honorees

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The dynamic five-day Meeting provides attendees with opportunities to share their latest unpublished findings and learn the newest emerging techniques and applications.

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What would be the purpose of a flower that doesn’t bear seeds? Research with crop wild relatives suggests the extra flowers make a small but significant contribution to yield.

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Virtual reality can often make a user feel isolated from the world, with only computer-generated characters for company. But researchers at the University of British Columbia and University of Saskatchewan think they may have found a way to encourage a more sociable virtual reality.

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Researchers at Tokyo Institute of Technology (Tokyo Tech) have designed a 28 GHz transceiver that integrates beamforming[1] with dual-polarized multiple-input and multiple-output (MIMO[2]) technology.

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Thomas Crowther identifies long-disappeared forests available for restoration across the world. He will describe how there is room for an additional 1.2 trillion new trees around the world that could absorb more carbon than human emissions each year.

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Matto Mildenberger, University of California Santa Barbara explains how perceived experiences with climate change in the United States can be linked to political shifts in Congress, culture and society.

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Rice University statistician Genevera Allen says scientists must keep questioning the accuracy and reproducibility of scientific discoveries made by machine-learning techniques until researchers develop new computational systems that can critique themselves.

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Often, energy pipelines pass through previously undisturbed areas. These areas need to be managed carefully to re-establish ecologically functioning systems. A new study shows teams can increase the chance of successful land reclamation by first collecting soil data at short intervals. More collections can also lead to significant cost savings.