More than 2,000 years ago, massive stone jars were carved from bedrock and placed on a highland plateau in northern Laos. Today, they represent not only an archaeological mystery, but also a series of small, self‑contained ecosystems that now provide researchers from the University of Copenhagen with a unique opportunity to study how nature develops over millennia.More than 2,000 years ago, massive stone jars were carved from bedrock and placed on a highland plateau in northern Laos. Today, they represent not only an archaeological mystery, but also a series of small, self‑contained ecosystems that now provide researchers from the University of Copenhagen with a unique opportunity to study how nature develops over millennia.

Researchers have transformed lightweight balsa wood veneer into a flexible material that generates electricity when pressed. Using two eco-friendly solvent treatments, they removed rigid lignin and added zinc oxide nanoparticles, enabling a 1-mm-thick sample to produce 0.24 V, which over three times the output of untreated wood. Four stacked pieces in series reached 0.92 V, enough to power small smart-home sensors.

A small, nest-dwelling tick found across large parts of Texas could play an outsized role in how the United States responds to African swine fever (ASF) should the virus reach domestic or wild pigs.

In a recent study, researchers at the Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences (VMBS), Texas A&M AgriLife Research and the Department of Biology mapped where Ornithodoros turicata — a soft tick species native to Texas and the southwestern United States — is most likely to survive and examined what that means for ASF preparedness.

The study is part of a $1.4 million Department of Homeland Security-funded research project through the Cross-Border Threat Screening and Supply Chain Defense (CBTS), DHS Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) Center of Excellence housed at Texas A&M. Led by Dr. Meriam Saleh, a clinical assistant professor in VMBS’ Department of Veterinary Pathobiology, this project seeks to understand whether Texas-derived populations of the tick could help sustain or transmit the virus if it were introduced into the U.S. — and how that risk could affect the food supply, trade and cross-border livestock movement. By supporting research at the intersection of animal health, border security and supply chain resilience, CBTS helps address emerging transboundary threats before they escalate into large-scale economic or homeland security challenges.

Fatigue is physical and mental exhaustion that can often be an early sign of severe health conditions. Current treatments for fatigue are mostly behavioral, including light physical activity, improved diet, stress reduction, and rest. Researchers are studying additional ways to manage fatigue, including supplements and enriched foods.

A review published in Thermo-X examines how thermal switches and thermal diodes could provide this dynamic control and enable new approaches to thermal management in energy and information technologies.

Researchers at the University of Science and Technology of China have developed an ultra-thin spray cooling heat sink only 3.5 mm thick and experimentally demonstrated its performance on a silicon-based thermal test chip. The study was published in Thermo-X.