Category: Archive

Researchers propose new topological phase of atomic matter hosting ‘photonic skyrmions’

The field of topology or the study of how surfaces behave in different dimensions has profoundly influenced the current understanding of matter. The prime example is the topological insulator, which conducts electricity only on the surface while being completely insulating inside the bulk.

Now electrical and computer engineering researchers have proposed for the first time that this same electronic conductivity influences the topological properties of light inside atomic matter.

Invasive pests kill so many trees each year, it’s equal to 5 million car emissions

Invasive insects and pathogens have wreaked havoc on ash, elm, chestnut trees and others, wiping some of them almost completely from American forests. In addition to the ecological impact, a Purdue University study shows that the carbon storage lost to these pests each year is the same as the amount of carbon emitted by 5 million vehicles.

Purdue leading $10 million effort to address global food safety

Purdue’s Haley Oliver will lead the Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Food Safety (FSIL) in partnership with Cornell University. The lab, funded by $10 million from USAID, will focus on developing programs to improve food safety in Bangladesh, Kenya, Ethiopia, Senegal and Cambodia

This designer clothing lets users turn on electronics while turning away bacteria

New rainproof, stainproof technology turns clothing into self-powered remotes

Data: Indiana farmers markets as affordable as grocery stores

Purdue’s Ariana Torres and her graduate student, Orlando Rodriguez, gathered price data on common produce items found at Indiana farmers markets and grocery stores since 2017. They found that prices at a farmers market are often comparable with those at the grocery store.

New research aims to optimize farmland use for crops, solar electricity production

A tractor plants corn seed in early June around solar photovoltaic panels in a field north of the Agronomy Center for Research and Education. The panels are part of the Sustainable Food, Energy and Water Systems
(SFEWS) research project
intended to examine
how to produce electricity
without inhibiting crop yield.

Technology soars in advancing critical communication, safety for pilots, passengers

A technology called “Plane English,” created by two Purdue University alumni aims to help new pilots master radio communication skills and better interact with air traffic controllers.

Joining the jet set: Jet ignition technology could boost efficiency and lower emissions of combustion engines

Purdue University researchers are working on methods to use jet ignition technology to replace conventional spark plugs and help power personal cars and other automobiles.

DOE Career Award to help scientists use giraffe dung to make biofuels

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Career Award will fund Kevin Solomon’s work using giraffe, wildebeest, zebra and horse dung to improve the production of medicines and fuels from biomass. Solomon is an assistant professor in Purdue University’s Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering.

Is that avocado brown already? Genetic research could help.

Some researchers are trying to change how quickly avocados brown by taking a closer look at the fruit’s genes. Doing an analysis of an avocado’s transcriptome, which represents the small portion of genetic code that’s transcribed to RNA molecules, could help researchers manipulate the firmness of the fruit and the rate at which they ripen.