ENGGtalks Newsroom

09 Oct 23

Nanopore Sequencing Detects Dozens of Disease Biomarkers

Computer & Information Technology

Nanopore sequencing has, over the past three decades, become the most affordable, efficient way to sequence DNA. The method, which involves pulling DNA strands through a membrane via channels just nanometers wide, can read much longer DNA sequences than is possible with traditional techniques. Nanopore sequencing allows scientists to analyze…

09 Oct 23

French startup bags €40M for unique CO2 battery recycling tech

Computer & Information Technology

Lyon-based Mecaware has raised €40mn in funding to industrialise its battery recycling technology, designed to produce strategic raw materials. Founded in 2020, the startup has positioned itself in the recycling of end-of-life batteries and production scrap of battery manufacturing plants. Its technology, born from research at the University of Lyon,…

09 Oct 23

UK’s first exascale supercomputer project goes to Edinburgh

Computer & Information Technology

The UK today said it had selected Edinburgh to host its first exascale next-gen supercomputer, which will be 50 times faster than its current highest capacity system. The University of Edinburgh will house the country’s new exascale computing facility, which the government says will “safely harness its potential to improve…

09 Oct 23

PLD Space launches Europe’s first private rocket — and it’s reusable

Computer & Information Technology

Spanish startup PLD Space successfully blasted the first-ever private European rocket into orbit on Saturday, in a potential turning point for the continent’s struggling space industry. The first launch of the Miura 1 took place at 02:19 CEST (00:19 UTC) on October 7 from a site in southwest Spain. The…

09 Oct 23

How Plus Codes helped create new home addresses in India

Computer & Information Technology

Using Google’s Plus Codes, India-based NGO Shelter Associates gives slum dwellers their own Google Maps navigable address

09 Oct 23

How Google’s AI helped Australian researchers with conservation efforts

Computer & Information Technology

Australian researchers used Google’s Tensorflow to create the WISDAM software for wildlife conservation efforts

09 Oct 23

First demo vehicle from ‘factory in a box’ heralds new production model for EVs

Computer & Information Technology

Helixx has unveiled the first demonstrator vehicle from the startup’s “factory in a box” system. The commercial delivery van was built to validate a new form of carmaking. Using software-led production and site designs that are customised to local needs, the factories can be built anywhere in the world. Once the…

08 Oct 23

This Robot Could Be the Key to Helping People With Disabilities

Electrical, Electronics & Instrumentation, Mechanical, Production & Manufacturing

In 2010, Henry Evans saw a robot on TV. It was a PR2, from the robotics company Willow Garage, and Georgia Tech robotics professor Charlie Kemp was demonstrating how the PR2 was able to locate a person and bring them a bottle of medicine. For most of the people watching…

07 Oct 23

What Is a Heat Pump?

Electrical, Electronics & Instrumentation, Mechanical, Production & Manufacturing

Heat pumps are all the rage these days, particularly in Europe, where some countries are striving to ban the installation of fossil-fuel fired furnaces and boilers in favor of greener options, including energy-saving heat pumps. (Furnaces heat air and distribute it throughout houses using ducts, whereas boilers heat water to…

07 Oct 23

How Disney Packed Big Emotion Into a Little Robot

Electrical, Electronics & Instrumentation, Mechanical, Production & Manufacturing

On Wednesday, at the 2023 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS), in Detroit, a Disney Research team presented a brand new robotic character during their evening keynote address. The adorable robot packs an enormous amount of expression into its child-size body, from its highly expressive head and…