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Tech & Engineering

Updates every hour. Last Updated: 27-Oct-2026 01:16 ET (27-Oct-2026 05:16 GMT/UTC)

Rice bioengineer King joins Texas cancer institute’s AI advisory panel

Rice University
Business Announcement

Michael King, a bioengineering professor at Rice University who focuses on the behavior of cancer and immune cells in the bloodstream, was selected in August as a founding member of a new state advisory committee examining the use of artificial intelligence in cancer research.

Funder: Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas

New AI algorithm could improve detection and prediction of heart diseases

Scripps Research Institute
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Now, scientists at Scripps Research have built a new AI model to improve detection and prediction of various heart diseases, which may be particularly useful in settings with limited labeled data or fewer available ECG leads. Published in Lancet Digital Health on September 1, 2026, the new tool, called ECG-CLIP, was trained using over 1.7 million ECGs collected from more than 540,000 people and paired with clinicians’ notes, embedding the tool with knowledge that may make it more adaptable for different disease detection and prediction tasks in real-world clinical environments.

Journal: The Lancet Digital Health

New design strategy expands nanoparticle vaccine approach to influenza viruses

Scripps Research Institute
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Now, in a Nature Communications study published on August 13, 2026, scientists at Scripps Research offer a blueprint for how to stabilize the various versions of influenza’s HA protein and use it to build nanoparticle vaccine candidates. Influenza is the latest target made compatible with the nanoparticle technology, specifically called self-assembling protein nanoparticles (SApNPs), which work by organizing many copies of viral proteins into clusters that the immune system can more easily recognize. This framework could eventually be applied to inform design of next-generation vaccines across diverse flu viruses.

Journal: Nature Communications

Department of Energy awards University of Houston-led team $2.88M to use AI to strengthen America’s critical mineral supply chain

University of Houston
Grant and Award Announcement

University of Houston researchers are leading a multidisciplinary coalition leveraging artificial intelligence to design and manufacture next-generation permanent magnets, an effort aimed at securing the nation’s domestic supply chain for advanced energy and industrial technologies.

Protecting the peanut: Sensors help fend off fungus

Virginia Tech
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Researchers at Virginia Tech developed low-cost electrochemical sensors that detect infection as early as 5 days, compared to the up to two months required for physical symptoms to show.

Journal: ACS Agricultural Science & Technology

First results published from major algal gene sequencing project

University of East Anglia
Peer-Reviewed Publication

An international team of more than 100 scientists have taken a major step towards unlocking the secrets of some of Earth’s tiniest but most important organisms.

A new study led by the University of East Anglia reveals that different species of microscopic algae can behave in strikingly different ways because of their genetics.

The team hope the findings could lead to breakthroughs in biotechnology - from cleaner fuels and carbon capture systems to advanced nanotechnology for medical treatments and sensors.

The 100 Diatom Genomes Project, led by Prof Thomas Mock from UEA’s School of Environmental Sciences, is the largest algal genome sequencing project to date.

Its aim is to sequence the genomes of 100 diatom species - a class of microalgae - to provide insights into their roles in capturing carbon dioxide and as the foundation of diverse aquatic food webs.

Journal: PLOS Biology

2027 Hertz Fellowship application info sessions offered for prospective applicants

Fannie and John Hertz Foundation
Meeting Announcement

The Hertz Foundation will hold two Hertz Fellowship Application Information Sessions for applicants to learn more about the 2027 Hertz Fellowship application and experience as a fellowship recipient. On Thursday, September 10, at 6:00 p.m EDT -or- Monday, September 14 at 12:00 p.m. EDT, join Hertz Fellowship Director Derek Haseltine and Hertz Fellows for an online information session to learn more about this unique doctoral funding opportunity.

Funder: Hertz Foundation

Mount Sinai launches Center for Genomic AI and Microbiome Medicine to advance precision medicine

The Mount Sinai Hospital / Mount Sinai School of Medicine
Business Announcement

The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai has launched the Center for Genomic AI and Microbiome Medicine, a research center that will bring together human genetics and microbiome research and use artificial intelligence (AI) to investigate how human genetic variation and the gut microbiome jointly shape disease progression and treatment response.

2027 Hertz Fellowship application now open

Fannie and John Hertz Foundation
Grant and Award Announcement

The Hertz Foundation today opened applications for the 2027 Hertz Fellowship, the nation’s most competitive doctoral fellowship in the applied sciences, engineering and mathematics. The Hertz Fellowship application closes on October 30, 2026. Fellowship finalists will be named in February 2027, and fellowship awards will be officially announced in May 2027.

Funder: Hertz Foundation