research news

Apr 13, 2011

NC State Develops Material To Remove Radioactive Contaminants From Drinking Water

A combination of forest byproducts and crustacean shells may be the key to removing radioactive materials from drinking water, researchers from North Carolina State University have found. 

Apr 13, 2011

Software Creates Privacy Mode To Help Secure Android Smartphones

Researchers at North Carolina State University have developed software that helps Android smartphone users prevent their personal information from being stolen by hackers. 

Apr 12, 2011

Study Finds Public Relatively Unconcerned About Nanotechnology Risks

A new study finds that the general public thinks getting a suntan poses a greater public health risk than nanotechnology or other nanoparticle applications. The study, from North Carolina State University, compared survey respondents’ perceived risk of nanoparticles with 23 other public-health risks. 

Apr 6, 2011

“Sniffing Out” Lymphoma Genes by Turning Dogs into Humans

Researchers at North Carolina State University are narrowing the search for genes involved in non-Hodgkin lymphoma – by turning dogs into humans. Humans and dogs don’t just share companionship and living space, they also share a similar genetic makeup. Additionally, they share the same types of cancer, including lymphoma. Dr. Matthew Breen, professor of genomics… 

Apr 6, 2011

Researchers ID Microbe Responsible For Methane From Landfills

Researchers have long known that landfills produce methane, but had a hard time figuring out why – since landfills do not start out as a friendly environment for the organisms that produce methane. New research from North Carolina State University shows that one species of microbe is paving the way for other methane producers. 

Apr 4, 2011

Facial Structure Of Men And Women Has Become More Similar Over Time

Research from North Carolina State University shows that they really don’t make women like they used to, at least in Spain. The study, which examined hundreds of Spanish and Portuguese skulls spanning four centuries, shows that differences in the craniofacial features of men and women have become less pronounced. 

Apr 1, 2011

Can Online Courses Help Struggling High School Students?

High schools students who fail a course after receiving classroom instruction certainly wouldn’t do any better taking an online class – or would they? Research from North Carolina State University shows students who retake courses online often do better due to the self-paced nature of the class, which also promotes the self-discipline necessary to succeed. 

Mar 31, 2011

New Tool Makes Programs More Efficient Without Sacrificing Safety Functions

Computer programs are incorporating more and more safety features to protect users, but those features can also slow the programs down by 1,000 percent or more. Researchers at North Carolina State University have developed a software tool that helps these programs run much more efficiently without sacrificing their safety features. 

Mar 30, 2011

‘Spincasting’ Holds Promise For Creation Of Nanoparticle Thin Films

Researchers from North Carolina State University have investigated the viability of a technique called “spincasting” for creating thin films of nanoparticles on an underlying substrate – an important step in the creation of materials with a variety of uses, from optics to electronics. 

Mar 29, 2011

Health Care IT Providers Need To Do More To Solicit User Feedback

Information technology (IT) companies need to bring in doctors and other health care stakeholders in order to ensure that new technologies and applications are actually useful to the health care system – something which is currently fragmented at best, according to a recent paper from North Carolina State University. 

Mar 23, 2011

International Laws May Be Part Of Maritime Piracy Problem

International piracy costs the shipping industry billions of dollars a year and leads to high-profile murders that make global headlines. Longstanding concerns over piracy have led to numerous international laws and conventions designed to keep pirates in check – but research from North Carolina State University shows that the tangled network of laws may actually… 

Mar 22, 2011

Engineering Success

Brush up on your PowerPoint skills and hang on to your slide rule. Professors behind NC State's Engineering Entrepreneurs Program say it takes a multidisciplinary approach to launch a business or turn an idea into profit. 

Mar 22, 2011

Study Finds That Overweight People Really Are Big-Boned

One of the blind spots in forensic science, particularly in identifying unknown remains, is the inability of experts to determine how much an individual weighed based on his or her skeleton. New research from North Carolina State University moves us closer to solving this problem by giving forensic experts valuable insight into what the shape… 

Mar 21, 2011

NC State Program Fosters Entrepreneurship In Engineering Community

One lesson learned in North Carolina State University’s Engineering Entrepreneurs Program (EEP): technical knowledge is not enough, if you want to be successful. NC State researchers are laying out lessons they’ve learned running one of the nation’s first EEPs in a paper being published by IEEE’s Computer, as part of a special issue focused on entrepreneurship. 

Mar 17, 2011

Study Finds More Efficient Means Of Creating, Arranging Carbon Nanofibers

Carbon nanofibers hold promise for technologies ranging from medical imaging devices to precise scientific measurement tools, but the time and expense associated with uniformly creating nanofibers of the correct size has been an obstacle – until now. A new study from North Carolina State University demonstrates an improved method for creating carbon nanofibers of specific…