Engineering advances and applied technology.
Researchers demonstrated a programmable photomask that changed pixel patterns during exposures in a standard semiconductor photolithography stepper. The device produced photoresist features as small as about 1.7 micrometres, providing a basis for masks that could be reprogrammed without replacing the whole reticle.
An AI system using roadside cameras mapped traffic-related emissions by road segment and hour in Atlanta’s urban core. The researchers found that conventional inventories underestimated localized pollution burdens, partly because they missed the impact of inter-city freight traffic.
Scientists describe a global method for GPS-like navigation that avoids relying on a central processing hub. Using experiments with hundreds of widely distributed IGS stations, the approach produced satellite correction products similar to centralized baselines, while converging faster and cutting communication compared with other decentralized designs.
China began phasing out electric-vehicle (EV) purchase subsidies in 2018–2019, and the study finds buyers’ decisions shifted toward charging access. In cities with weaker charging networks, adding charging facilities raised EV market share in simulations, while the best subsidy type depended on local infrastructure.
Corrosion-causing chloride and dissolved iron can build up in amine-based gas-sweetening systems, raising maintenance costs. A biodegradable composite made from zein nanoparticles and humic substances removed both impurities from a methyldiethanolamine solution and reduced carbon-steel corrosion in experiments.
A new field study measured drivers’ pupil size as vehicles moved through four road tunnels with different shapes and lighting. Visibility emerged as the strongest driver of pupil changes, and the researchers proposed a “visibility-driven compensation” model to match the non-linear link between visibility and pupil response.
A study in Scientific Reports describes an AI framework that generates different residential landscape layouts while explicitly weighing trade-offs among comfort, appearance, accessibility, and ecological value. Tested on three parcels in Changsha, China, the approach produced more diverse, realistic-looking morphologies and found optimized schemes that, on average, scored 6.2% above professional human benchmarks on a combined index.
A study using computer vision to track pedestrians in a busy shopping district in Fukuoka, Japan, found that walking speed changes with both temperature and COVID emergency restrictions. The effects varied by time of day and by why people were walking, with night-time pedestrians showing more varied responses and a younger nighttime population during emergency periods.
Load shedding in South Africa has been accompanied by a rise in power transformer failures, according to a new systematic review. The review finds transformer windings are the most common failure point, and it discusses how knowledge-based fault diagnosis is being considered—while noting limited proof of real-world scale-up.
