Science and Technology

  1. Exoskeletons to assist workers, the elderly, etc.

    U-M is developing a solution for the one in eight Americans who faces a mobility disability. A $1.7 million grant from the National Institutes of Health is funding the creation of a modular, powered exoskeleton system that could be used on one or multiple joints of the legs.

  2. Individual finger control for advanced prostheses demonstrated in primates

    In a first, a computer that could fit on an implantable device has interpreted brain signals for precise, high-speed, multifinger movements in primates. This is a key step toward giving those who have lost limb function more natural, real-time control over advanced prostheses.

  3. Solar cells with 30-year lifetimes for power-generating windows

    A new transparency-friendly solar cell design could marry high efficiencies with 30-year estimated lifetimes, which may pave the way for windows that also provide solar power. The high-efficiency but fragile molecules for converting light to electricity thrive with a little protection.

  4. Dementia’s toll on US

    U-M study shows major gaps in who gets care that could help them remain at home. Black, low-income, or people with lower levels of education are less likely than their counterparts to have available spouse caregivers, but more likely to have adult children available to provide care.

  5. XR technology ‘brings’ conference goers to iconic U-M space

    As the Center for Academic Innovation prepared for its first annual XR Summit, organizers had an idea: create a virtual representation of the Diag for people to meet, using the technology that was the focus of the event. So cool.

  6. First-responder robots could team with wildfire fighters

    A three-year project funded by a $1 million grant aims to equip bipedal walking robots with the technology to trek in areas that are too dangerous for humans, including collapsed buildings and other disaster areas.

  7. Data is life: Amazon holds clues about climate

    Follow Michigan researchers deep into (and above) the Amazon as they collect data, day by day and tree by tree, that could drive a better understanding of the Earth’s climate future.

  8. Lake Huron sinkhole surprise

    Researchers propose that increasing day length on the early Earth may have boosted the amount of oxygen released by photosynthetic cyanobacteria, changing the planetary rotation rate.

  9. Snails help solve mystery with world’s smallest computer

    U-M scientists using a computing system so tiny it can stick to a snail’s shell recently collected data ‘that nobody had been able to obtain’ before. Evolutionary biologists are using the miniaturized sensing computers to understand how to preserve and protect endemic species.