By designing computers to behave more like the brain, engineers seek faster, more energy-efficient computing. Most researchers attempt to mimic the cerebrum, which underlies reasoning, memory and language. New device is first to mimic the cerebellum, the brain’s reflex center. Device identified abnormal heartbeats from ECGs within one-fifth of a heartbeat, 98% accuracy and 10,000 times fewer computer operations.

 JMIR Publications released a feature News and Perspectives story on technological advances in oncology.

A new study published in Big Earth Data  introduces the University of Bonn Soil Moisture Data Catalog (UB-SMDC), a standards-compliant metadata portal that centralizes information on publicly available soil moisture content (SMC) datasets and provides a unified platform for efficient data discovery, comparison, and access. Built on the GeoNetwork platform and supported by a controlled metadata taxonomy, the catalog analyzes 373 SMC datasets, facilitating transparent research, cross-dataset integration, and a comprehensive understanding of the global soil moisture data landscape.The data and materials supporting the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request. All metadata records are cataloged and publicly accessible in the UB-SMDC GeoNetwork data portal (https://ubsmdc.sfb1502.de/).

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) continues to advance innovative solutions that tackle real‑world challenges and contribute to a smarter future. In the 25th batch of the Smart Traffic Fund, a PolyU project was awarded approximately HK$3.578 million in funding to develop an intelligent traffic signal control system for temporary traffic arrangements using real-time sensing technologies. This innovation will provide the industry with a flexible and efficient solution for temporary traffic management.

Dr. Arum Han, electrical and computer engineering professor and associate dean for research for the Texas A&M University College of Engineering, is leading organ-on-a-chip technology development efforts in the newly established $15.3 million National Institutes of Health (NIH)-supported center, which he says has the potential to significantly reduce or even replace animal testing in the future.