Researchers have shown that carefully tuning sulfidation temperature can guide a nickel, cobalt and iron based electrode through distinct structural phases, revealing a heterojunction composition that delivers enhanced energy storage performance. The findings provide new insight into how phase engineering could be used to design more effective supercapacitor electrodes.

Tea is enjoyed by millions of people every day, but its leaves can also collect traces of persistent pollutants from the environment and during production. A new nationwide study has provided the most comprehensive picture to date of polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBs, in commercial tea produced across China.

Researchers have developed a reusable magnetic sensing platform that combines surface-enhanced Raman scattering with machine learning to detect trace levels of uranyl ions, the most common soluble form of uranium in environmental waters. The system could support faster and more sustainable monitoring of uranium contamination in complex aquatic environments.

One of the major challenges in glioma surgery is that tumor boundaries are often difficult to define. Diffuse gliomas can infiltrate surrounding brain tissue beyond what surgeons can see directly or what conventional imaging can fully resolve. During surgery, neurosurgeons must remove as much tumor as possible while preserving critical brain functions. This makes accurate intraoperative assessment of tumor infiltration essential for more precise surgical decision-making.  A study published in Cell now reports a new platform called ULTRA, short for ultrarapid cleared stimulated Raman with AI, designed to address this gap. Developed by researchers from Fudan University, Huashan Hospital of Fudan University, Zhongshan Hospital of Fudan University, Beijing Neurosurgical Institute, Capital Medical University, and collaborators, ULTRA combines rapid tissue clearing, stimulated Raman scattering microscopy, and AI-based virtual staining to perform deep 3D histological imaging of surgical tissue without conventional staining or sectioning.

Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) can turn rapidly from intestinal inflammation into a life-threatening surgical emergency in premature infants, yet choosing when and how to operate remains difficult. 

X-band phased-array radar data assimilation sharpens high-resolution simulation of a westerly weak tornado

Optical computing is attracting strong interest because light can carry and process information at extremely high speed while consuming less energy than many electronic approaches. In principle, optical systems can accelerate demanding tasks such as artificial intelligence inference, image processing, scientific simulation, and high-bandwidth signal processing. However, most proposed optical processors still depend on electronic memory to hold intermediate data. Each time information is converted between light and electronics, the system pays a penalty in speed, energy, and complexity.

Bone healing, an intricate process involving multiple cell populations, relies not only on existing bone-forming cells but also on dormant progenitor cells outside the skeleton. A study published in Bone Research reveals that fibroadipogenic progenitors (FAPs) in skeletal muscle become bone-forming cells after injury, contributing to fracture repair and abnormal bone growth. The findings identify these cells as promising therapeutic targets for enhancing fracture healing while preventing unwanted bone formation.  

Microplastics and per- and polyfluorinated alkyl substances (PFASs) are increasingly found together in agricultural soils, raising concern over how combined pollution may affect food safety.