Stem cell breakthrough: Japanese scientists discover way to create 'embryonic-like' cells without the ethical dilemma

A new way of creating stem cells that is cheaper, faster and more efficient than before could transform the ability of scientists to develop "personalised medicine" where a patient’s own healthy skin or blood cells can be used to repair damaged tissues, such as heart disease or brain injury.
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Cats' whiskers inspire nanotube sensors

Researchers have created tactile sensors from composite films of carbon nanotubes and silver nanoparticles that are claimed to be similar to whiskers of cats and rats.

These so-called e-whiskers, developed by researchers at Berkeley Lab and the University of California (UC) Berkeley, are said to respond to pressure as slight as a single Pascal. Potential applications include giving robots new abilities to manoeuvre within their surrounding environment
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Earth Won't Die as Soon as Thought

Take a deep breath—Earth is not going to die as soon as scientists believed. Two new modeling studies find that the gradually brightening sun won’t vaporize our planet's water for at least another 1 billion to 1.5 billion years—hundreds of millions of years later than a slightly older model had forecast. The findings won’t change your retirement plans but could imply that habitable, Earth-like alien worlds are more common than scientists thought.

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