news 2022

Engineering researchers make a media splash with sleek new 'splash-free' urinal design By Brian Caldwell Faculty of Engineering Engineering researchers at the University of Waterloo followed their curiosity and called on nature for inspiration for a new urinal design that has attracted internatinal attention by solving the messy problem of splash-back.

Mechanical engineers at the University of Michigan are tackling mysteries of bone density loss in space and on Earth FACULTY Q&A Early this morning, a pair of experiments exploring bone density, designed by engineers at the University of Michigan, left the Wallops Island, Virginia launchpad aboard a Northrop Grumman Corp.

Aircraft noise is an irritating source of ambient noise and a significant cause of stress for local residents and animals in the vicinity of airports. Reducing aircraft noise is a major social issue in the Netherlands, as evidenced by the discussions on the permitted number of flight movements at Schiphol.

The ancient Egyptians, as described in the Ebers Papyrus, already knew that palpation -feeling for hardened lumps - can help diagnose breast cancer. Palpation is still an important element in early screening for breast cancer. On the other hand, measurements on individual cancer cells show that they are softer than the healthy epithelial cells from which they stem, which probably makes them better able to metastasise in dense human tissue.

Engineering researchers have some simple advice for people learning to ride hoverboards: it's all in the ankles. An experiment using sophisticated cameras and sensors attached to first-time riders revealed that ankle movements, not knee or hip movements, are the key to catching on to the increasingly popular devices.

Scientists from 4D-BIOMAP, an ERC research project at the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (UC3M), have developed a new experimental method, based on magneto-active polymers, to study cellular behaviour. These compounds, which consist of a polymeric matrix (e.g., an elastomer) containing magnetic particles (e.g., iron), mechanically react by changing their shape and stiffness.

Study reveals that kidney cells don't filter blood, they pump it The finding could help detect and treat kidney diseases and aid in disease modeling Human kidneys are an intricate network of tubes that process roughly 190 quarts of blood every day. Lining these tubes are epithelial cells that transport blood through the kidneys and circulate it back into the body.

Researchers from the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (UC3M) have patented a method which makes it possible to reduce energy losses in solar thermal power plants. Solar thermal energy relies on harnessing solar radiation to produce heat. As with most methods of obtaining electricity, this heat is used to heat a high-pressure fluid, which drives a turbine connected to a generator.

Researchers studying giant Amazonian waterlilies have unravelled the engineering enigma behind the largest floating leaves in nature . In a study published today in Science Advances , researchers found that the distinctive pattern on the underside of the gargantuan leaves is the secret to the success of the giant Amazonian waterlily (genus Victoria ).

By Birgit Baustädter In the Turbomachinery Laboratory at the Institute of Thermal Turbomachinery and Machine Dynamics at TU Graz, Emil Göttlich, head of the laboratory, and his research team study the aerodynamics of aircraft engines. In the transonic test turbine facility, the inflow conditions in an aircraft engine can be realistically simulated from take-off to landing at around 60° to 80° Celsius.