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Have you ever wondered what the best way is to pack a finite number of identical spheres into a shape-shifting flexible container, like a convex hull? Researchers from the University of Twente, Active Soft Matter Lab led by Dr. Hanumantha Rao Vutukuri in the TNW Faculty, along with Utrecht University, have investigated this fascinating mathematical sphere-packing problem by combining experiments and computer simulations.

A team from the University of Geneva shows how visual social skills develop in a unique way in children with autistic disorders. As they grow, children increasingly focus their attention on social elements in their environment, such as faces or social interactions. However, children with autism are often more interested in non-social stimuli, such as textures or geometric shapes.

International students do not importantly affect education and labour market outcomes of domestic students in higher education in England, finds a new study involving UCL. The study, published in the European Economic Review by researchers at UCL and the Universities of Surrey and Essex, investigated whether international students in undergraduate programmes affect the educational performances and early labour market outcomes of their UK-domiciled peers.

A non-organic intelligent system has for the first time designed, planned and executed a chemistry experiment, Carnegie Mellon researchers report in the Dec. 21 issue of the journal Nature (doi:10.1038/s41586'023 -06792-0). "We anticipate that intelligent agent systems for autonomous scientific experimentation will bring tremendous discoveries, unforeseen therapies and new materials.

Study shows computational models trained to perform auditory tasks display an internal organization similar to that of the human auditory cortex. Computational models that mimic the structure and function of the human auditory system could help researchers design better hearing aids, cochlear implants, and brain-machine interfaces.

A s'holidays near, people are sneaking shakes of their presents to try to figure out what they're getting. But present shakers might be a little less sly than they think. New research shows its incredibly easy for people watching others shake boxes to tell what they're up to.

The SP80 team has just attached a kite to its sailboat, in another step towards its goal of breaking the current world record and reaching a speed of 150 km/h.

School students experience a wide range of achievement emotions during the years they spend attending school. Some of those emotions, such as joy and pride, are positive. Yet students also experience boredom and anger when they find achievement activities too difficult or too easy. These differing emotions are important for adolescents' development trajectories.

Utrecht University's PFAS Remediation Living Lab recently received funding of 2.45 million from the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water to research a PFAS-contaminated field at Utrecht University and other locations. Worldwide, large tracts of land are contaminated with PFAS. Instead of the classic "dig and dump" method, the university wants to explore the possibilities of sustainable remediation.

A landmark study from Monash University has found that infants and toddlers are capable of engaging in imaginary play, correcting previously held academic beliefs that they were unable to, and confirming the profound significance of imaginative play in early childhood education. Funded through the Australian Research Council Laureate Fellowship scheme, the five year programmatic study, which involved researchers from the Faculty of Education at Monash University, engaged with over 2,500 educators and young children.

Sodium in the form of table salt helps make French fries a tasty snack and bacon a delicious indulgence, but it is also a vital nutrient for the proper functioning of our bodies, playing a role in the movement of your muscles, the signaling of your neurons, and many other important processes. Having the right amount of sodium in your body is so crucial, in fact, that parts of your brain work hard to make sure you're getting the salt that you need.

People watched other people shake boxes for science. Here's why. When Johns Hopkins researchers asked hundreds of people to watch other people shake boxes, it took just seconds for almost all of them to figure out what the shaking was for W hen researchers asked hundreds of people to watch other people shake boxes, it took just seconds for almost all of them to figure out what the shaking was for.

A federal program aimed at attracting physicians to areas with critical shortages has not improved mortality rates or physician density, a new Yale study finds. A federal program created to attract physicians to medically underserved areas of the United States has not achieved this intended effect or reduced mortality rates in these regions, a new Yale study finds.

Anouk Hubrechsen defended her PhD thesis cum laude at the Department of Electrical Engineering on October 26th. We are using ever more (smart) devices connected to the 5G network. The high-frequency antennas they contain are often integrated with chips, and this adds a layer of complexity to testing.

It's not easy to parse young children's words, but adults' beliefs about what children want to communicate helps make it possible, a new study finds. When babies first begin to talk, their vocabulary is very limited. Often one of the first sounds they generate is "da," which may refer to dad, a dog, a dot, or nothing at all.

Mindfulness doesn't always prompt a 'keep calm and carry on' attitude - it can amplify outrage at injustice, according to research from The University of Queensland. While mindfulness is known to lessen emotional responses in victims of injustice, a five-year study led by Dr Adam Kay from the UQ Business School found it had the opposite effect on witnesses to acts of injustice against others.

A new comprehensive survey of more than 1,400 scientific studies has shed light on the challenges of climate change adaptation. The study reveals a critical issue: systematic networking of various actor groups has generally been insufficient. Notably, the main burden has been borne by individuals and households affected by the consequences of climate change.

Recognising the urgent need to respond to rapid societal and environmental change, resilience is one of the University of Twente's spearheads. As an academic institution, we have a role to play in strengthening the resilience of the social, technological and environmental systems that support us. In this weekly series of the Resilience@UT programme , UT researchers share their personal reflections on current events and trends that impact our daily lives, exploring their implications for resilience.

On Thursday, Carnegie Mellon University's Rayid Ghani testified as a witness during the U.S. Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hearing entitled " Governing AI Through Acquisition and Procurement. "  Ghani, who graduated from Carnegie Mellon in 2001, is a Distinguished Career Professor in CMU's Machine Learning Department and the Heinz College of Information Systems and Public Policy.

Study: Contextualized High School Performance: Evidence to Inform Equitable Holistic, Test-Optional, and Test-Free Admissions Policies Indicators of high school grades and standardized test scores that consider the levels of school, neighborhood and family resources available to students are strongly associated with students' success in college, according to new University of Michigan research.