Flossing could become the future of vaccination. In a groundbreaking study, researchers demonstrated that vaccine-coated dental floss can trigger robust immune responses by targeting a thin, permeable tissue between the teeth and gums called the junctional epithelium. Unlike other parts of the mouth, this layer is rich in immune cells and naturally leaky—perfect for absorbing vaccine molecules.⁠ ⁠ Using this method, scientists vaccinated mice against influenza by flossing their teeth with strands coated in inactivated virus. The results were remarkable: mice developed strong immunity not only in their gums, but throughout their bodies. Antibodies were detected in saliva, feces, lungs, spleens, and even bone marrow, indicating both mucosal and systemic immune protection. All vaccinated mice survived a lethal flu exposure. Unvaccinated ones did not.⁠ ⁠ The immune response was also sustained over time, showing promise for long-term protection. Researchers successfully repeated the method with other vaccine types, including mRNA and protein-based formulations, further confirming the versatility of the approach. Notably, eating or drinking after flossing didn’t diminish its effectiveness.⁠ ⁠ The team also tested delivery with human volunteers using floss picks coated in dye. Around 60% of the dye reached the target tissue—an encouraging sign that floss-based vaccines could be viable for people, too. The technique avoids risks linked to nasal sprays and bypasses needle use entirely.⁠ ⁠ Beyond effectiveness, this method offers practical advantages: it’s needle-free, requires no refrigeration, and could even be mailed. While it may not work for infants or people with advanced gum disease, it has the potential to revolutionize mass immunization efforts.⁠ ⁠ Source: s41551-025-01451-3

Cleveland Clinic surgeons just completed the world's first robotic aortic valve replacement through a tiny neck incision, eliminating the need to crack open the chest entirely. Dr. Marijan Koprivanac led the pioneering transcervical approach that replaces failing heart valves through four small incisions, with the main entry point hidden in a natural neck crease similar to thyroid surgery.⁠ ⁠ The results from the first four patients aged 60 to 74 years have stunned the medical community, with one patient returning to gym workouts just seven days after surgery and another back to farm work within three weeks. Traditional aortic valve replacement requires breaking the sternum and spreading the ribs apart, leading to months of painful recovery and strict lifting restrictions that this revolutionary technique completely avoids.⁠ ⁠ Dr. Koprivanac spent years perfecting the approach after learning transcervical thymectomies during surgical training, recognizing that the neck provides excellent access to view the aorta and aortic valve from above. He practiced the technique on 20 cadavers at Cleveland Clinic's anatomy lab before treating actual patients, using specialized retractors and robotic arms for millimeter-precise valve removal and replacement through the narrow cervical corridor.⁠ ⁠ The average surgical time was 140 minutes with hospital stays ranging from just 3 to 6 days, compared to traditional open-heart surgery that often requires weeks of recovery. Pain management consisted entirely of over-the-counter acetaminophen and ibuprofen, with patients reporting minimal discomfort throughout their recovery process.

German startup SWARM Biotactics just secured €13 million in funding to turn live Madagascar hissing cockroaches into AI-powered spy robots equipped with miniature backpacks containing cameras, sensors, and neural stimulators that allow remote control for covert surveillance missions. The Kassel-based company represents the world's first commercial effort to create "biologically integrated, AI-enabled, and mass-deployable systems" that can infiltrate environments where traditional drones and ground robots completely fail.⁠ ⁠ CEO Stefan Wilhelm revealed that each cockroach carries a lightweight backpack weighing up to 3 grams that includes tiny cameras for real-time reconnaissance, environmental sensors to detect gas or radiation, and neural stimulators that send electrical impulses to the insect's nervous system to control movement. The technology allows military operators to guide individual cockroaches through rubble, tight spaces, or hostile territories, or deploy entire swarms that operate autonomously using artificial intelligence coordination.⁠ ⁠ The breakthrough addresses fundamental limitations of conventional surveillance technology in cluttered, GPS-denied environments like urban combat zones, collapsed buildings, or disaster areas. Unlike mechanical robots that require significant power and sophisticated navigation systems, cockroaches naturally excel at navigating complex terrain while requiring zero energy input for locomotion, making them ideal biological platforms for persistent intelligence gathering.⁠ ⁠ These living surveillance systems could provide unprecedented tactical advantages in scenarios where conventional technology proves inadequate or too conspicuous for effective intelligence gathering.

A Renaissance-era sketch may hold the key to building quieter drones. Scientists at Johns Hopkins University have revived Leonardo da Vinci’s “aerial screw,” a spiral rotor concept from the 1480s, and found it has a modern application: reducing the noise and energy demands of drone propellers. Through detailed computer simulations, they discovered that the helical rotor design offers surprising acoustic and aerodynamic benefits.⁠ ⁠ Unlike the sharp, narrow blades found on most commercial drones, da Vinci’s aerial screw has a broad, corkscrew-like surface that spins more slowly. That slower spin—and the smoother distribution of lift—means less turbulent airflow and fewer of the shrill, high-frequency tones typically produced by fast-spinning blades. Though the aerial screw generates slightly less lift than standard rotors, it compensates with greater surface area, resulting in more stable flight with far less noise and reduced mechanical power.⁠ ⁠ The implications for urban drone use are significant. Drones are increasingly being deployed for deliveries, inspections, and emergency response, but their noise—often compared to a swarm of angry bees—remains a major public complaint. A quieter rotor system could help drones integrate more seamlessly into everyday life without disturbing communities, especially in crowded cities where even subtle sounds can escalate into constant background noise.⁠ ⁠ While the researchers aren’t suggesting we swap all modern drone blades for da Vinci’s screw, they argue it’s time to revisit unconventional rotor shapes. Innovations sometimes mean looking forward—but other times, they mean rediscovering what we left behind. In this case, an idea sketched in the margins of history could reshape the future of flight, combining ancient vision with modern engineering.⁠ ⁠ Source: 2506.10223⁠ ⁠ #drones #technews #innovation #sciencefacts #engineering #futuretech #quiettech #davinci #designideas #droneflight #aerodynamics #techhistory #noisecanceling #urbanmobility

A new era in wearable tech is being etched directly onto the eye.⁠ ⁠ Dubai-based deeptech startup Xpanceo has raised $250 million in Series A funding to build what it claims is the world’s first multifunctional smart contact lens. The lens aims to merge augmented reality, health monitoring, and advanced optics—like night vision and zoom—into a featherlight device thinner than a human hair. With 15 functional prototypes already built, Xpanceo says it’s on track for clinical trials by 2026.⁠ ⁠ The lens is packed with innovations: intraocular pressure sensors for non-invasive glaucoma monitoring, biochemical sensors that scan tear fluid for glucose, hormones, and vitamins, and integrated nanophotonic microdisplays that project AR directly onto the retina. It uses just 1–3 microwatts of power—making it hundreds of times more efficient than current AR headsets.⁠ ⁠ Additional breakthroughs include wireless power transfer, real-time data transmission, color-blindness correction, and nanoparticle engineering for enhanced low-light vision. These modular capabilities could eventually adapt to specialized needs across healthcare, defense, industrial, and consumer sectors.⁠ ⁠ Xpanceo's long-term vision is bold: replace smartphones, glasses, and even smartwatches with a single, invisible computing interface. Founders Roman Axelrod and Dr. Valentyn Volkov have doubled their team to 100 researchers, filed over 110 scientific publications, and built partnerships with global institutions. The company has also debuted its lenses at trade shows like MWC and GITEX, where it showcased wireless-charging designs and real-time biosensing.⁠ ⁠ While challenges like FDA approval and miniaturization loom large, investors believe Xpanceo is leading the charge into the post-smartphone age. “They’re not just building a product,” said lead investor Opportunity Venture, “they’re rewriting the rules of personal tech.”

After 20 years of paralysis, Audrey Crews has written her name again—not with her hands, but with her mind. Thanks to a brain-computer interface (BCI) implant from Elon Musk’s company Neuralink, Crews is now able to control her computer purely through thought. The achievement marks a turning point for human-machine interaction and the future of assistive technology.⁠ ⁠ In a viral post on X, Crews shared a digital signature written telepathically, alongside playful doodles—a heart, a face, even a slice of pizza—all drawn using only her brain signals. The implant, embedded in her motor cortex, includes 128 ultra-thin threads that detect neural activity and translate it into digital commands. Crews, now designated Patient 9 in Neuralink’s PRIME study, called the experience "liberating."⁠ ⁠ The surgery was performed at the University of Miami, where doctors drilled a small hole in her skull to install the quarter-sized chip. While the implant doesn’t restore movement, it opens the door to "digital autonomy" for those with spinal injuries or neurodegenerative diseases. Elon Musk responded to her demonstration by noting, “She is controlling her computer just by thinking. Most people don’t realize this is possible.”⁠ ⁠ Neuralink’s team says this is only the beginning. Future versions of the device could enable more complex actions like speaking through a synthetic voice or navigating full digital environments. For Crews, each digital mark she makes is a triumph of persistence and progress. The line between biology and machine is blurring—and for millions, that could mean a new way forward.⁠ ⁠ Image Credits: Audrey Crews/X

When Fernando Ortiz Monasterio first gazed at the gray forest of highway pillars choking Mexico City’s Periférico, he saw potential. Not concrete. Not gridlock. But a vertical garden—one that would breathe life into one of the world’s most polluted capitals.⁠ ⁠ What followed was a transformation both literal and symbolic. Today, more than 1,000 columns of the Anillo Periférico are wrapped in dense, vibrant greenery. Dubbed Vía Verde, the project spans over 60,000 square meters of vertical gardens, irrigated by reclaimed water and sustained by recycled materials. No soil required—just innovation, textile, and hydroponics.⁠ ⁠ The system is intelligent. Each pillar contains sensors that monitor light, temperature, and moisture. They communicate in real time, triggering precision irrigation to conserve resources while maximizing plant health. These aren’t just decorative installations—they’re engineered ecosystems.⁠ ⁠ Ambitious by design, Vía Verde claims to filter 27,000 tons of air pollutants a year, trap heavy metals, and generate clean oxygen for tens of thousands. But the benefits go beyond air quality. The gardens reduce urban heat, dampen traffic noise, and even provide jobs—many filled by community workers and rehabilitating inmates.⁠ ⁠ Still, not everyone is convinced. Critics argue the project is more about aesthetics than impact. Replacing smog with succulents, they say, doesn’t address the core issue: car dependency. For the cost of one vertical column, the city could plant 300 trees.⁠ ⁠ Even Ortiz admits this is just a beginning. His firm is pushing to expand Vía Verde across rooftops, bridges, and tunnels—10 million square meters by 2030. But that would still fall short of WHO’s recommended green space per resident.⁠ ⁠ The vision is bold. The execution, ongoing. But even in a city of concrete and chaos, it’s possible to grow something green.⁠ ⁠

Cities are learning to cool with time, not just power. So-called ice batteries, thermal energy storage tanks that freeze liquid overnight, let buildings ride the next day’s heat on yesterday’s cold. Shifting chillers to off-peak hours trims grid stress when temperatures spike and electricity is priciest, creating a smoother balance between supply and demand.⁠ ⁠ The numbers are real, not theoretical. Manhattan’s 30-story Eleven Madison freezes roughly 500,000 pounds of ice each night and reports up to a 40% cut in cooling costs. Trane and others have installed more than 4,000 systems worldwide, a tiny slice of six million U.S. commercial buildings but a proof that scaling is possible and increasingly attractive in hotter climates.⁠ ⁠ The tech is getting smarter at the material level. In The Journal of Physical Chemistry C, a Texas A&M team led by Patrick Shamberger tuned salt hydrates, salts that lock in water molecules, to freeze and thaw at HVAC-friendly temperatures without degrading. Their focus is phase segregation, the tendency for the material to split into solid and liquid zones over many cycles. By optimizing “nucleation particles,” especially those containing barium, the system triggers cleaner, repeatable freezing with higher efficiency.⁠ ⁠ Why this matters now: cooling already eats about 20% of building electricity, and AI data centers are adding heavy, always-on thermal loads. Ice batteries do not eliminate energy use, but they move it to when power is cleaner and cheaper, lowering peak demand and postponing the need for new plants.⁠ ⁠ A century after barges hauled river ice down the Hudson, engineered ice may again be the quiet workhorse that keeps modern life comfortable, only this time with chemistry doing the steering and research ensuring decades of reliable performance.⁠ ⁠ #tech #energy #hvac #buildings #energystorage #grid #climate #datacenters #materials

A Japanese team just took a sharp step toward cleaning Earth’s crowded orbit without ever touching the trash. At Tohoku University, researchers demonstrated a bi-directional plasma thruster that fires two opposed jets of ionized gas, one to slow a target hulk and the other to cancel the recoil that would shove the cleanup craft away.⁠ ⁠ Plasma is a charged gas, so directing it at debris can bleed off speed until the object dips into the atmosphere and burns up. The catch has always been Newton’s third law, the same push that slows the junk kicks the remover backward. This engine solves that by balancing thrust in real time, keeping the chaser parked on target instead of drifting off.⁠ ⁠ The team also added a “cusp” magnetic field, a configuration borrowed from fusion research, to corral and focus the plasma. In vacuum-chamber tests, that tweak boosted performance, tripling the deceleration reported in earlier experiments and delivering measured pushes in the tens of millinewtons at kilowatt-class power. Researchers note that this could make future debris-cleaning missions far more efficient, extending operational lifetimes and allowing smaller spacecraft to take on bigger jobs.⁠ ⁠ Practical perks matter in orbit, and this design runs on argon, which is cheaper and easier to source than xenon common in ion engines. At projected levels, about 30 millinewtons of sustained braking could deorbit a one-ton object in roughly 100 days, a scale that targets the largest collision risks that could trigger a Kessler-style chain reaction.⁠ ⁠ There’s work ahead, from standoff distance control to propellant budgets for long burns. But the core result, peer-reviewed in Scientific Reports on August 20, 2025, shows a path to contact-free debris removal that is stable, scalable, and built from known physics rather than wishful thinking.

The universe may be preparing to put on its most spectacular show yet. A new study from physicists at UMass Amherst suggests there is a 90 percent chance we will witness a black hole explosion within the next decade, a cosmic finale that could rewrite the laws of physics. These blasts would come not from the massive black holes we know, but from primordial black holes, tiny relics formed in the chaos after the Big Bang, now burning out after billions of years.⁠ ⁠ Stephen Hawking first predicted that black holes slowly evaporate by emitting faint quantum radiation. As they lose mass, they grow hotter, spitting out particles faster until they collapse in a final burst. For stellar or supermassive black holes, that process takes longer than the age of the universe. But asteroid-mass primordial black holes could be dying right now, within view of our telescopes.⁠ ⁠ The breakthrough came when researchers proposed a bold twist. If these black holes carried a small dark electric charge, linked to a hypothetical particle called a “dark electron,” their evaporation would stall for eons before ending suddenly in an explosive discharge. This simple adjustment turns an event once thought to occur only once every 100,000 years into something that might happen every ten.⁠ ⁠ The implications are staggering. An explosion would not only confirm Hawking radiation and the existence of primordial black holes, it would unleash a definitive catalog of the universe’s building blocks. Everything from electrons and quarks to possible dark matter candidates could appear in the debris, along with entirely new particles. One brief flash could illuminate mysteries that particle colliders and decades of experiments have yet to touch.⁠ ⁠ Source: 10.1103/nwgd-g3zl