Translational Research
From Bench to Bedside and Back Again in Pediatric Brain Injury Susan Margulies and her colleagues used to study a brain or lung injury in vivo in the lab and only record what happened. If an animal stopped breathing, they observed. If its blood pressure fell, they waited. But clinicians who are integral members of […]
Turning Light into Electrical Current
Material scientists at the Nano/Bio Interface Center have demonstrated the transduction of optical radiation to electrical current in a molecular circuit. The system, an array of nano-sized molecules of gold, responds to electromagnetic waves by creating surface plasmons that induce and project electrical current across molecules, similar to that of photovoltaic solar cells. Dawn Bonnell, […]
Molecules that detect, monitor, and help to treat disease
On the third floor of Skirkanich Hall, Andrew Tsourkas is creating new magnetic nanoparticles that may revolutionize the detection of early cancer cells. By “early,” he means when molecular changes in the disease are occurring, but before any anatomical changes are visible. Detecting Cancer with Nanoparticles Today’s magnetic resonance imaging scans typically only reveal tumors […]
Haptics at Penn: A Class of Touch
Inside the Towne Building’s Haptics Lab, members of Team Kuchenbecker are bent over their work stations, completely absorbed in individual projects. A question is raised from one of the benches and soon the dynamic changes: a diverse and interesting mix of doctoral, master’s, undergraduate, and high school students gather around a central work table to […]
Ritesh Agarwal: Accelerating Advances in Electronic Memory
The race to create next-generation computer memory devices that are off-the-charts smaller, faster and more stable than current memory technologies has entered promising new territory thanks to recent innovations in Ritesh Agarwal’s lab. Agarwal, Assistant Professor in Materials Science and Engineering, has pioneered a technique for fabricating self-assembled nanowires. His breakthrough was published in October […]
Studying Animals to Build a Better Robot
Land animals use a precise combination of good body design and behavioral smarts to run, hop, climb, adapt quickly to icy conditions, and walk with ease over sand or gravel. Daniel Koditschek, professor in the departments of Electrical and Systems Engineering, Computer and Information Science, and Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics looks to these animals […]
Producing Nanoscale Patterns, In One Step
Shu Yang’s latest discovery in the field of nanoscale polymer science may be her most significant yet. It was also something of an accident. Yang, an associate professor of materials science and engineering, initially set out with her students to study the intrinsic properties of a flexible polymer membrane called polydimethylsiloxane, or PDMS. The silicone […]