University of Florida
When we think of aircraft that study hurricanes, most of us probably either picture powerful manned airplanes that fly straight through them, or perhaps unmanned drones that fly safely over them. The University of Florida’s Prof. Kamran Mohseni has something else in mind, however. He’s developing tiny unmanned aircraft – and submarines – that will be swept up with the hurricane, gathering data on the strength and path of the storm as they go. Read More
A new scientific breakthrough points to a new way of treating the Hepatitis C virus, which infects 170 million people worldwide. Researchers at the University of Florida have created nanorobots that can attack the very mechanism of viral replication. It acts on a cellular level as a tiny particle destroys the mechanism that reproduces the proteins related to the disease. Read More
Doping graphene with trifluoromethanesulfonyl-amide (TFSA) has enabled researchers at the University of Florida (UF) to set a new efficiency record for graphene solar cells. While the record-breaking efficiency of 8.6 percent is well short of the efficiencies seen in other types of solar cells, it is a big improvement over previous graphene solar cells that saw efficiencies ranging up to 2.9 percent. The development provides hope for cheaper, durable graphene solar cells in the future. Read More
A team at University of Florida has developed a new thin film technology that can convert infrared light into visible light. In layman terms, we can stop eating carrots to improve our night vision because it might soon be applied cheaply to our eye glasses, car windshields, even our cell phones, and it could be here in a little as 18 months. Read More
Patients forgetting, bungling or just plain refusing to take their medication is a big problem for health care professionals and patients alike. It can exacerbate medical problems, spurring hospitalizations or expensive medical procedures and undercut clinical trials of new drugs. In seeking a way to confirm that patients have taken their medication a team of researchers have added a tiny microchip and digestible antenna to a standard pill capsule that automatically alerts doctors when the pill has actually been ingested. Read More
Researchers at the University of Florida have found they can use low-power lasers as a cheap and efficient way to light and ignite nanoparticles. The discovery could lead to important advancements in the medical, computing and automotive fields. Read More
In recent years the lotus leaf has been the go-to surface for scientists looking to develop high-tech water repelling surfaces. Now engineering researchers have created what they say is a “nearly perfect hydrophobic interface” by borrowing from another of nature’s wonders - spiders. By reproducing the shape and patterns of the minute hairs that grow on the bodies of spiders, the researchers have created what may be the most water-phobic surface yet... a development that could lead to everything from self-cleaning surfaces to faster boats. Read More
Scientists cure color blindness in monkeys - humans next?
When English chemist John Dalton first wrote about color blindness in 1798, he must have wondered how science would improve the quality of life for people living with the condition. Today, spectacles, contact lenses and revolutionary corrective eye surgery combat the effects of a myriad of vision disorders, yet people with color blindness still live in quiet acceptance of this common genetic disorder. Now researchers have delivered promising results by successfully treating two squirrel moneys with defective color perception using a gene therapy that could also safely eradicate color blindness in humans. Read More
