The objective of the EFRI project led by Daniela Rus of MIT is to create computational materials whose properties can be programmed to achieve specific shapes and/or mechanical properties, such as ...

Using components made from smart shape-memory materials with slightly different responses to heat, researchers have demonstrated a four-dimensional printing technology that allowed creation of complex ...

When natural motion comes to mind, plants are most likely at the bottom of most people's list. The truth is that plants can perform complex movements, but they only do so very slowly. The main ...

Every breakthrough that opens new vistas also removes the ground from under the feet of other scientists. The scientific joy of those who have seen the new light is accompanied by the dismay of those ...

Protein structure and dynamics are intimately linked with biological activity. Understanding the physical basis for this activity requires knowledge of the equilibrium and kinetic properties of the ...

A Northwestern Engineering research team led by Professor Julius Lucks has uncovered a new understanding of how RNA molecules act as cellular ‘biosensors’ to monitor and respond to changes in the ...

Structural biology is shifting from predicting protein shapes to uncovering broader organizational rules; AI tools like AlphaFold have made large-scale protein structure data far ...

A highly sophisticated folding mechanism employed by a group of insects for at least 280 million years is set to become available for a wide range of applications, thanks to a design method developed ...

There is a lot engineers can learn from Japanese paper folding art forms, from cheap batteries made from paper and water to tiny robots that are activated by heat. While origami gets a lot of the ...

video: Using components made from smart shape-memory materials with slightly different responses to heat, researchers have demonstrated a four-dimensional printing technology that allowed creation of ...