The Weekend Edition
Tracing The Links Between Basic Research And Real-World Applications
The Weekend Edition
Reengineering Elevators Could Transform 21st-Century Cities
New technology could make it practical to build skyscrapers far taller than even today's highest – and change how people live, work and play in tall buildings.
The Weekend Edition
Storing Data In DNA Brings Nature Into The Digital Universe
Researchers who hold the world record for storing and retrieving data in DNA explain how the building blocks of life can be used to hold digital information as well.
The Weekend Edition
Editing Human Embryos With CRISPR Is Moving Ahead – Now’s The Time To Work Out The Ethics
There’s still a way to go from editing single-cell embryos to a full-term "designer baby." But researchers at Oregon Health and Science University say they worked with single-cell embryos, inserting CRISPR chemicals at the time of fertilization.
The announcement by researchers in Portland, Oregon that they’ve successfully modified the genetic material of a human embryo took some people by surprise.
Energy-Recycling Stairs Could Add A Spring To Your Step
The Weekend Edition
How Do Fire Ants Form Amazing Towers And Rafts Without A Master Plan?
Researchers identified simple behavioral rules that allow these tiny creatures to collaboratively build elaborate structures, with no one in charge.
Drop a clump of 5,000 fire ants in a pond of water. In minutes the clump will flatten and spread into a circular pancake that can float for weeks without drowning the ants.
The Weekend Edition
Forget The Insight Of A Lone Genius – Innovation Is An Evolving Process Of Trial And Error
The Weekend Edition
Reverse Engineering Mysterious 500-Million-Year-Old Fossils That Confound Our Tree Of Life
With no identifiable body parts, it's hard to know how these fossilized creatures lived. A new approach models how the ocean's water would interact with their unique shapes – hinting at their lifestyle.
The Weekend Edition
Helping Or Hacking? Engineers And Ethicists Must Work Together On Brain-Computer Interface Technology
Brain-computer interface devices that read minds and act on intentions are the latest headlines from Elon Musk and Facebook, and they can change lives for the better. But they could also be put to nefarious use in the not-too-distant future. Now's the time to think about risks, write neurology and engineering experts from the University of Washington.
