To a human, microplastics are very small at less than 5 millimeters (mm) wide. But to an insect, microplastics might be the same size as the food they usually eat. Researchers reporting in ACS’ Environmental Science & Technology have shown that crickets can and will consume polyethylene microplastics if their mouth is larger than the plastic particle. The study suggests that crickets — and likely many other insects — cannot distinguish plastic from food.

Aston University’s Professor Patricia Thornley has been appointed as the new chief scientific adviser (CSA) for the Department for Transport. Professor Thornley is a highly respected leader in the field of sustainable energy, recognised for her extensive contributions to advancing low carbon innovation and clean technologies. She is currently based at Aston University, where she is based at the Energy and Bioproducts Research Institute. She will join the Department for Transport early next year, where she will be based four days a week, spending one day a week at the University. 

Addressing the staggering power and energy demands of artificial intelligence, engineers at the University of Houston have developed a revolutionary new thin-film material that promises to make AI devices significantly faster while dramatically cutting energy consumption. 

UC Davis researchers analyzed 1.4 million truckloads of tomatoes to find that California’s $1 billion processing tomato industry likely will be able to withstand higher temperatures and traffic congestion.

Ant colonies operate as tightly coordinated “superorganisms” with individual ants working together, much like the cells of a body, to ensure their collective health. Researchers at the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA) have now discovered that terminally ill ant brood, like infected cells, release an odor signaling their impending death and the risk they pose. This sophisticated early warning system facilitates rapid detection and removal of pathogenic infections. The study was published in Nature Communications.

Recent study led by Mount Sinai West doctors found AI technology helped identify more than 97 percent of serious congenital heart defects in babies

SAN ANTONIO — December 2, 2025 — Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) has upgraded its High-Viscosity Flow Loop (HVFL) to meet increased demands in the oil and gas industry. The expanded and upgraded facility now enables SwRI to offer more comprehensive, efficient, and cost-effective heavy oil testing.

Within tissues, cells are embedded in complex, three-dimensional structures known as the extracellular matrix. Their biomechanical interactions play a crucial role in numerous biological processes. Scientists at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) have now developed a novel lab-on-a-chip system based on intelligent hydrogel structures, which enables precise pressure forces to be applied to cellular microenvironments. The recently presented method could find future applications in medical diagnostics for mechanical disorders in living tissues.