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Question of the Week: Energy
Will Stretchable, Printable Solar Cells Catch On?
A Rice University lab is making solar cells that are stretchable, printable, and paintable. Watch the demo on Tech Briefs TV.
This week's Question: Will Stretchable, Printable Solar Cells Catch On?
Share your thoughts in the comments section below.
Blog: Materials
Researchers from the National University of Singapore (NUS) are trying to solve the problem of plastic waste by converting it into something useful: Aerogels.
INSIDER: Internet of Things
IoT devices need a wireless means of communications to be truly seamless so they can be easily integrated in...
INSIDER: Sensors/Data Acquisition
Developing automated systems that track occupants and self-adapt to their preferences is a major next step for the future of smart homes. When you walk into a room, for instance, a system...
INSIDER: Photonics/Optics
A team of researchers at Washington University in St. Louis was the first to successfully record environmental data using a wireless photonic sensor resonator with a...
INSIDER: Imaging
Tissue repair following injury or during surgery is conventionally performed with sutures and staples, which can cause tissue damage and complications, including infection....
INSIDER: Imaging
New lead halide perovskite nanocrystals developed by researchers from NUS Chemistry could soon mean cheaper X-rays and computerized tomography (CT) scans involving lower levels of...
INSIDER: Energy
In the quest for abundant, renewable alternatives to fossil fuels, scientists have sought to harvest the sun’s energy through “water splitting,” an artificial photosynthesis technique...
Blog: Data Acquisition
Professor Hadas Kress-Gazit tells Tech Briefs about the "great promise" of autonomous modular robots.
Question of the Week: Imaging
Will AR and VR Help Automotive Manufacturers?
A reader recently asked our automotive expert: “How will the use of augmented reality and virtual parts impact the role of automotive parts manufacturers, such as PCB manufacturers, in prototyping and production?”
Blog: Aerospace
For an electric-aircraft future, it's not enough to just change components. You have to rethink design, our expert tells one reader.
Blog: Energy
Have you heard of "fatbergs?" Researcher Asha Srinivasan explains how her team is turning masses of fat, oil, and grease into biofuel.
Question of the Week: Green Design & Manufacturing
Would You Use Carl Yee’s ‘Disappearing Ink?’
Our second INSIDER story today features a purposefully “lousy ink” – one that slowly fades after being printed. The gradual disappearance of the ink allows the paper to be used again and again.
Read the article, and let us know what you think.
This week's Question: Would You Use Carl...
Blog: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Now Deploying from the ISS: A Harpoon, A Net, and Other Ideas for Cleaning Up Space Debris
Richard Duke spoke with Tech Briefs about the nature of the space-junk problem — and how his team plans to fix it.
INSIDER: Motion Control
An unexpected source recently identified a global Martian dust storm. The source was an actuator, or motor, that powers a lid to a funnel that takes in samples of powdered Martian...
Blog: Green Design & Manufacturing
Carl Yee invented a new kind of "Invisible Ink," so he could print paper without the guilt.
Question of the Week: Materials
Will Paint-On coatings Become a Popular Way to Cool Down Buildings?
Our lead INSIDER story today featured a paint-on polymer that cools down buildings, through a process known as passive daytime radiative cooling.
Read the article, and let us know what you think.
This week’s Question: Will Paint-On coatings Become a Popular Way to Cool Down...
Blog: Automotive
How Will VR and AR Impact Automotive Manufacturers?
How will the use of AR and virtual prototypes impact the role of automotive parts manufacturers? A reader asks our expert.
Blog: Energy
A new solution, applied like paint, cools down rooftops, buildings, water tanks, vehicles, and even spacecraft.
Question of the Week: Sensors/Data Acquisition
What NASA Spin-Off Stands Out to You?
NASA technologies have led to many of the commercial products and innovative solutions we use every day, from memory foam and freeze-dried foods to exercise equipment and water purifiers. The October issue of Tech Briefs showcased a number of these NASA spinoffs.
Read the Tech Briefs feature article, and share...
Blog: Sensors/Data Acquisition
Robert Holmes spoke with Tech Briefs about his path from "amateur" astronomer to NASA pro.
News: Energy
The grand-prize-winning nanotechnology coating imparts anti-reflection and water-repellency capabilities to surfaces made of silicon, glass ,and some plastics, including Teflon.
Question of the Week: Medical
Can Digital-Health Apps Reliably Change Patient Behavior?
Last week on TechBriefs.com, a reader had the following question for our medical-device expert:
Blog: Test & Measurement
Rivers Ingersoll spoke with Tech Briefs about why it is so important to have an up-close understanding of the hummingbird and nectar bat.
Question of the Week: Materials
Are You Currently Using Mechanical Test Equipment to Measure Strain?
One way to measure strain and deformation in a material is through digital image correlation and non-contact sensors. Next week, in a live webinar presentation, speakers from Trilion Quality Systems and MTS Systems Corp. will review how customers have used their imaging and...
News: Connectivity
Answering Your Questions: How Can Medical IoT Devices Move Beyond Simple Information Gathering?
Is there more to the "Internet of Medical Things" than just data gathering? A reader asks our experts.
Blog: Test & Measurement
NASA's Lindley Johnson explains how the exciting business of asteroid detection does have its moments that are “like any other office job.”
INSIDER: Motion Control
Traditional videos and photos for studying motion are two-dimensional, and don’t show the underlying 3D structure of the person or subject of interest. So, researchers are using an algorithm...
INSIDER: Motion Control
Engineers at The University of Texas at Austin have developed the first method for selecting and switching the mechanical motion of nanomotors among multiple modes with simple visible light as the...
Top Stories
Blog: Manufacturing & Prototyping
2025 Holiday Gift Guide for Engineers: Tech, Tools, and Gadgets
INSIDER: Research Lab
Scientists Create Superconducting Semiconductor Material
Blog: Software
Quiz: Materials
Blog: Aerospace
Tech Briefs Wrapped 2025: Top 10 Technology Stories
Blog: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Webcasts
Upcoming Webinars: AR/AI
The Real Impact of AR and AI in the Industrial Equipment Industry
Upcoming Webinars: Motion Control
Next-Generation Linear and Rotary Stages: When Ultra Precision...
Upcoming Webinars: Energy
Hydrogen Engines Are Heating Up for Heavy Duty
Podcasts: Medical
How Wearables Are Enhancing Smart Drug Delivery
Podcasts: Power
SAE Automotive Podcast: Solid-State Batteries
Podcasts: Power
