This article reports on a new study published in Engineering that presents a reliability-based code calibration procedure for pultruded glass fiber-reinforced polymer I-section beams. The research focuses on determining optimal partial safety factors for web-crippling under end-two-flange and interior-two-flange loading cases, contributing to more reliable design guidelines for these materials in civil engineering applications.

Using an inexpensive electrode coated with DNA, MIT researchers designed disposable diagnostics that could be adapted to detect a variety of diseases, including cancer or infectious diseases such as influenza and HIV.

Researchers from China Agricultural University and Jiangsu University have developed a new control mechanism for electric tractors. Their study, published in Engineering, details a system that enhances operational quality and energy efficiency through real-time data interaction and collaborative task management. The innovations include a high-performance controller and a hierarchical real-time operating system that optimize tractor performance.

Fuelled by climate change and relentless pressure on land and water resources, some of the most widespread and damaging drought events in recorded history have taken place since 2023, according to a UN-backed report launched today.  The report provides a comprehensive account of how droughts compound poverty, hunger, energy insecurity, and ecosystem collapse.

The newly established Photonics Innovation Award recognizes outstanding scientists whose groundbreaking research has expanded the frontiers of photonics and embodies the innovative spirit of Professor Federico Capasso, founding editor of the journal “Nanophotonics”.

Following a rigorous and unanimous selection process by the award committee, Dr. Charles Roques-Carmes of Stanford University was chosen for his broad and original contributions to the field of photonics.

Quantum computers still face a major hurdle on their pathway to practical use cases: their limited ability to correct the arising computational errors. To develop truly reliable quantum computers, researchers must be able to simulate quantum computations using conventional computers to verify their correctness – a vital yet extraordinarily difficult task. Now, in a world-first, researchers from Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden, the University of Milan, the University of Granada, and the University of Tokyo have unveiled a method for simulating specific types of error-corrected quantum computations – a significant leap forward in the quest for robust quantum technologies.

The entrepreneurial ecosystems (EE) approach is often promoted for Africa’s growth, but Africa already has many entrepreneurs. Instead of increasing entrepreneurship, researchers argue for strategies drawn from East Asia’s development and Schumpeterian growth theory—both of which oppose EE thinking. These approaches suggest that Africa should focus on building large, productive firms and absorbing existing technologies, rather than relying on start-ups, to achieve long-term, sustainable economic development.