In a groundbreaking advancement for motor control, Model-Free Predictive Control (MFPC) technology has emerged as a revolutionary advancement. This innovative approach enables motors to operate efficiently and stably even in unpredictable environments. Let's delve into the world of MFPC and explore how it's reshaping the future of motor drives.

A research team led by Dr. Hye sun Cho at the Plant Systems Engineering Research Center of the Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology(KRIBB) has uncovered, for the first time at the molecular level, the mechanism by which plants adapt and survive under heat stress.

Studying how cells work inside a living body is one of the most powerful ways to understand health and disease. However, looking deep inside live tissue is extremely challenging, especially when trying to see very small structures like mitochondria the tiny engines inside cells that produce energy and help regulate many important biological functions. These structures are constantly moving and changing, so scientists need imaging tools that can capture them in action, clearly and without harming the animal.

A joint research team from Institute of Science Tokyo (Science Tokyo) and Hiroshima University has successfully improved the performance of terahertz-band communication devices using a mechanical tuning technique based on a microactuator.

Terahertz waves exceeding 100 GHz offer the potential to utilize extremely wide frequency bandwidths for communication, and research and development in this field has been accelerating worldwide. In Japan, in addition to ongoing studies in the 300 GHz band, active research in the 150 GHz band has recently gained momentum. However, as the frequency increases, the wavelength becomes shorter, making the impact of unavoidable mechanical fabrication errors more significant. These errors can greatly affect the performance of the communication modules.

To address this challenge, the research team applied a microactuator capable of sub-micrometer precision to terahertz-band components such as the waveguide transitions that connect antennas and chips. This approach aimed to compensate for performance degradation caused by mechanical inaccuracies. A reflective surface inside a waveguide transition was constructed using a flexible conductive membrane, and its position was controlled by the microactuator. As a result, the team demonstrated that the reflection and transmission characteristics of the waveguide transition could be precisely tuned at 250 GHz.

With climate change exacerbating drought conditions, scientists in Japan have identified a hidden player in plant survival: myosin XI. This unexpected link between the motor protein and hormone signalling that regulates water loss deepens our understanding of plant stress responses. It also opens a promising avenue for engineering drought-resilient crops. Targeting myosin XI could enhance water-use efficiency and help reshape the future of agriculture in an increasingly arid world.