Short Look at the Long View

By carefully tinkering with the chemical structure of a common household plastic, scientists have managed to upcycle it into a reusable adhesive with unique properties, billing it as one of the toughest materials known to science.

Researchers have come up with a way to turn sulfur into a high-end plastic, that, unlike almost all other plastics on the market, is flame-retardant.

Electromagnetic shielding is usually placed around electronics to prevent interference. Now, engineers have found that a 2D material called titanium carbonitride is excellent at the job, absorbing rather than reflecting electromagnetic waves.

Researchers at Spain's Polytechnic University of Valencia have developed "Lego-like" segments of 3D-printed plastic that can be pieced together as a lightweight alternative to reinforced concrete beams.

MIT scientist Yoel Fink has been at the cutting edge of smart textile technology for more than a decade and has just made a significant breakthrough, demonstrating the first ever digital fabric-fiber that can store and process information.