Engineering Design
- Computing
Star Trek technology becomes more science than fiction
On Star Trek, the characters used devices that seemed wild, futuristic and impossible. But those sci-fi gadgets are inspiring real-world, useful inventions.
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How not to grin and bear it
Three teen researchers who took part in this year’s Broadcom MASTERS competition seek to help those who clench and grind their teeth.
- Brain
What makes a pretty face?
Beautiful faces are symmetrical and average. Do we prefer them because this makes them easier for our brains to process?
- Health & Medicine
Implant traps cancer cells on the move
A device implanted under the skin extended the life of mice with breast cancer. It trapped injected cancer cells before they created tumors in organs throughout the body.
- Health & Medicine
Simpler way to screen for hidden hearing loss?
Many teens today walk around with undiagnosed hearing damage. But some Boston-based researchers have come up with a low-tech approach to screening these individuals so they can get help.
- Animals
These young inventors had to make like a crab
This year’s top challenge for Broadcom MASTERS finalists was to design and build a robotic arm based on a crab’s arm and claw.
- Animals
Speckled dino spurs debate about ancient animals’ colors
Structures found in fossil dinosaur skin may give clues to the creatures’ colors and how they lived. But not all scientists agree on how to interpret what they see.
- Chemistry
Milking chocolate for its health benefits
Researchers figure out how to give milk chocolate the same health benefits as dark chocolate. The secret ingredient is an extract from peanut skin.
- Health & Medicine
Could toothpaste give heart disease the brush-off?
Brushing with a toothpaste that dyes plaque green encourages people to remove more of it. This also lowered inflammation, which may cut someone’s risk of heart disease.
- Climate
Predicting a wildfire with data from space
When the West gets dry it can catch fire. A teen decided to find out if satellite data might show where a fire’s fuel might reside.
- Agriculture
Teen develops water-saving pods for seeds
In California’s drought, every drop of water counts. A teen developed a capsule to keep sprouting seeds wet and reduce water use.
- Physics
Hack: How to spy on a 3-D printer
Computer scientists have found that a hacker can eavesdrop on a 3-D printer using a smartphone. The technique uses sound and energy data produced by the printer.
