Researchers at MIT have discovered that eggs dropped on their side are less likely to crack than those dropped on their tips, reports Doyle Rice for USA Today. The researchers conducted both a drop and compression test on the eggs, and the findings “suggest that future research could explore the application of these findings to engineering scenarios, such as how structures respond to dynamic loads,” writes Rice.
A study by MIT researchers has found that “dropping an egg horizontally is more likely to keep it intact than a vertical drop,” reports Ed Cara for Gizmodo. “People tend to have better intuition for stiffness and strength, which are important in statics,” explains Prof. Tal Cohen. “It is common that they refer intuitively to the redistribution of a load along the arch. However, when dynamics are involved, toughness is also an important quantity.”
MIT researchers have discovered that “eggs are less likely to crack when they fall on their side,” reports Adithi Ramakrishnan for the Associated Press. “It’s commonly thought that eggs are strongest at their ends — after all, it’s how they’re packaged in the carton,” explains Ramakrishnan. “The thinking is that the arc-shaped bottom of an egg redirects the force and softens the blow of impact. But when scientists squeezed eggs in both directions during a compression test, they cracked under the same amount of force.”
Researchers at MIT have found that eggs dropped on their sides and not their tips are more resilient and less likely to crack, reports Veronique Greenwood for The New York Times. The researchers found that “eggs dropped so they landed on their sides were substantially less likely to crack,” writes Greenwood. “When they hit, the shell was able to compress, absorbing some of the blow. Eggs dropped on their ends, where the shell is stiffer, did not show such flexibility.
MIT has joined with the American Association of Universities, American Council on Education, the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities and 12 other universities in filing suit to contest the National Science Foundation announcement that it will implement 15% caps on indirect costs for NSF research grants, reports Juliet Schulman-Hall for MassLive. The suit notes that: “If NSF’s policy is allowed to stand, it will badly undermine scientific research at America’s universities and erode our Nation’s enviable status as a global leader in scientific research and innovation.”
Researchers at MIT have successfully captured the first images of individual atoms interacting freely in space, reports Georgina Jedikovska for Interesting Engineering. “The images, which show interactions between free-range particles that had only been theorized until now, will reportedly allow the scientists to directly observe quantum phenomena in real space,” writes Jedikovska.
Researchers at MIT have developed a “small, hopping robot designed to traverse challenging environments,” reports Emmett Smith for Mashable. “The robot utilizes a spring-loaded leg for propulsion and incorporates flapping wing modules for stability and control,” explains Smith. “This design enables movement across diverse surfaces and the ability to carry loads exceeding its own weight.”
Researchers at MIT have developed a new technique to fabricate “a metamaterial that is both stretchy and strong,” reports Alex Knapp for Forbes. The researchers also discovered that their new fabrication technique can be applied to the development of new materials, Knapp explains, adding that: “future research will be directed toward developing stretchy glass, ceramics and textiles.”
Prof. Amos Winter speaks with WBUR reporter Grace Griffin about his work developing a desalination system that relies on solar power. “The majority of water you find in the ground around the world is salty,” says Winter. “The reason we use solar power is that most people around the world are going to be resource-constrained. They may have lower income levels or not have access to grid electricity. So, our technology makes desalination much more accessible in all areas around the world.”
Graduate student Yi-Hsuan (Nemo) Hsiao and City University of Hong Kong Prof. Pakpong Chirarattananon have developed a “hopping robot that can leap over tall obstacles and jump across slanted or uneven surfaces, while using far less energy than an aerial robot,” writes Andrew Corselli for Tech Briefs Magazine. “One of the biggest challenges is our robot is still connected with a power cable,” explains Hsiao. “I think going into power autonomy — which means we carry a battery and a sensor onboard — will be the next step. And this robot has really opened the opportunities for us to do that.”
Graduate student Will Parker joins Dana Taylor of the USA Today podcast The Excerpt to discuss his research on the impact of climate change on satellites. “We're seeing a cooling effect in the upper atmosphere where most of our satellites are operating, and because of that cooling effect, we're seeing that the entire atmosphere is contracting, so it's retreating away from low Earth orbit where we rely on that atmosphere for drag on our satellites,” explains Parker. “The effect of that retreat, that shrinking of the atmosphere, is that it's not doing as good a job at cleaning out low Earth orbit, and again, we rely on that cleaning force because we have no other way to remove most of this debris.”
MIT researchers have developed a method to grow artificial muscle tissue that twitches and flexes in multiple, coordinated directions, and could be useful for building “biohybrid” robots, reports Andrew Corselli for Tech Briefs. Prof. Ritu Raman explains that her lab is focused on creating “artificial muscle tissues that can be used to understand and treat muscle diseases that impact healthy human mobility,” and making “safe muscle-powered robots that can perform complex tasks in dangerous environments that are not suitable for humans.”
MIT researchers have developed a new method to grow artificial muscles for soft robots that can move in multiple directions, mimicking the iris of an eye, reports Mrigakshi Dixit for Interesting Engineering. The researchers developed a new technique called “stamping” to create “an artificial iris-like structure,” Dixit explains. “For this, they 3D-printed a tiny stamp, patterned with microscopic grooves. This stamp is then pressed into a soft hydrogel to create a blueprint for muscle growth.”
Researchers at MIT have discovered how “greenhouse gases are impacting Earth’s upper atmosphere and, in turn, the objects orbiting within it,” reports Grace Snelling for Fast Company. “If we don’t take action to be more responsible for operating our satellites, the impact is that there are going to be entire regions of low Earth orbit that could become uninhabitable for a satellite,” says graduate student William Parker.
MIT researchers have discovered that increased greenhouse gas emissions in the Earth’s upper atmosphere can “potentially cause catastrophic satellite collision in low-Earth orbit,” reports Bruce Dorminey for Forbes. “When the thermosphere contracts, the decreasing density reduces atmospheric drag — a force that pulls old satellites and other debris down to altitudes where they will encounter air molecules and burn up,” Dorminey explains. “Less drag therefore means extended lifetimes for space junk, which will litter sought-after regions for decades and increase the potential for collisions in orbit.”