Learning from Ants: Principles of Locomotion in Confined Spaces Could Help Future Robot Teams Work Underground
Future teams of subterranean search and rescue robots may owe their success to the lowly fire ant, a much despised insect whose painful bites and extensive networks of underground tunnels are all-too-familiar to people living in the southern United States.
Oxygen-Free: RNA Was Capable of Catalyzing Electron Transfer on Early Earth with Iron’s Help, Study Suggests
A new study shows how complex biochemical transformations may have been possible under conditions that existed when life began on the early Earth. The study shows that RNA is capable of catalyzing electron transfer under conditions similar to those of the early Earth.
Biology of the Brain: Georgia Tech Researchers Seek a Better Understanding of the Brain
Researchers at Georgia Tech are applying their expertise, tools and techniques to understand on a fundamental level how the brain works. Because the human brain is immensely complex, the researchers are pursuing many levels of inquiry – from molecules to cells to circuits to the mystery of the mind itself – and also studying brain disorders and development, along with daily feats of brain activity, such as vision, speech, movement and memory.
Brain Development: Study Shows How Pathway Competition Affects Early Differentiation of Higher Brain Structures
A new study shows how the strength and timing of competing molecular signals during brain development has generated natural and presumably adaptive differences in a brain region known as the telencephalon -- much earlier than scientists had previously believed.
Artificial Transparent Skin: Arrays of Piezoelectric “Taxels” Convert Mechanical Motion to Electronic Controlling Signals for Improved Tactile Imaging
Using bundles of vertical zinc oxide nanowires, researchers have fabricated arrays of piezotronic transistors capable of converting mechanical motion directly into electronic controlling signals. The arrays could help give robots a more adaptive sense of touch, provide better security in signatures and offer new ways for humans to interact with electronic devices.
FlipperBot: Sea Turtles and Flipper-Driven Robot Reveal Principles of Moving on Sand and Other Granular Media
Based on a study of both hatchling sea turtles and "FlipperBot" -- a robot with flippers -- Georgia Tech researchers have learned principles for how both robots and turtles move on granular surfaces such as sand.
September 27, 2007 — A new biosensor developed at the Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI) can detect avian influenza in just minutes. In addition to being a rapid test, the biosensor is economical, field-deployable, sensitive to different viral strains and requires no labels or reagents.
September 21, 2007 — Two U.S. professors, a physicist and mathematician, have proposed a new way to define the kilogram standard based on the mass of a very large – but precisely-specified – number of carbon-12 atoms. Their proposal would address shortcomings of the existing standard, which is based on a physical artifact.
September 14, 2007 — Collaboration between Baltimore-based GSE Systems and Georgia Tech offers a new way of learning that combines traditional classroom training with hands-on experience using advanced computer simulations of complex industrial facilities. Training is designed for operators of large power-generation facilities.
September 5, 2007 — A dime-sized tropical crab that has invaded coastal waters in the Southeast United States is having both positive and negative effects on oyster reefs, leaving researchers unable to predict what the creature’s long-term impact will be.
August 23, 2007 — Researchers are developing insights into a remarkable class of tubular nanomaterials that can be produced in water with a high degree of control over their diameter and length. Based on metal oxides in combination with silicon and germanium, such single-walled inorganic nanotubes could be useful in a range of nanotechnology applications that require precise control over nanotube dimensions.
August 12, 2007 — Researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology have received a Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) award to participate in a multi-university research center that will develop a computer-aided design (CAD) environment for micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) and nano-electromechanical systems (NEMS).
THE WIRELESS WORLD is gradually opening its doors to people with disabilities because of new research, policy and consumer demand.
photo by Gary Meek
Leanne West, senior research scientist in …
WHEN materials scientist Ken Sandhage needs to consult with a chemist, biologist or even an electrical engineer, he need only step up or down a few flights of stairs in …
THE emergency department at Meadows Regional Medical Center in rural Vidalia, Ga., has achieved what would make most hospitals across the nation envious: a 44 percent reduction in average length …
An experimental approach is one of the hallmarks of Georgia Tech’s digital media programs.
photo by Gary Meek
Assistant professor Michael Nitsche is shown with a screen from Charbitat, an …
