Category: Research and Innovation

Robotic sea turtle mimics uniquely adaptable gait

Sea turtles glide majestically through ocean waters and maneuver like armored vehicles over rocks and sand on land. Their locomotive adaptability makes them particularly interesting to robotics experts, who seek to learn the secrets of their gait and propulsion. “The sea turtle’s unique …

Mosaic of the 10 stir grant recipients

STIR grants energize new science/engineering research projects at Notre Dame

The first Seed Transformative Interdisciplinary Research (STIR) grants, announced in early 2023 by the Notre Dame College of Science and College of Engineering, have been awarded to four new research projects led by multidisciplinary teams of scientists and engineers. The one-year seed …

Engineering faculty win awards for young investigators and innovators

Notre Dame faculty in the College of Engineering received some of the nation’s most prominent early-career awards in 2022-23. Three won National Science Foundation (NSF) CAREER awards, which recognize young faculty for their potential as innovators, both in research and education. Adam …

Novel 3D printing method a ‘game changer’ for discovery, manufacturing of new materials

The time-honored Edisonian trial-and-error process of discovery is slow and labor-intensive. This hampers the development of urgently needed new technologies for clean energy and environmental sustainability, as well as for electronics and biomedical devices. “It usually takes 10 to 20 years …

Advanced Air Mobility, with its many vehicle concepts and potential uses in both local and intraregional applications, is shown in this illustration.

Making the skies safer with smarter drones

With NASA funding, Notre Dame will lead a multi-institution, multi-million-dollar project to ensure safer skies Drones flying at low altitude are increasingly being used to support activities ranging from emergency response to package delivery to agricultural surveillance. How can we ensure …

Meenal Datta

New study shows blood pressure drug boosts effectiveness of immunotherapy for brain cancer and reduces deadly side effect

The fast-growing and aggressive brain tumor known as glioblastoma has so far resisted all therapies, including immunotherapy, a treatment that harnesses the body’s immune system to destroy cancer cells. In a new study, researchers have demonstrated how a safe and widely prescribed blood …

New nanomaterial sets magnetic trap for disease biomarkers

Researchers at the University of Notre Dame and Vanderbilt University Medical Center have devised a low-cost filter that can rapidly isolate and trap biomarkers for cancer with a 99% success rate. Their novel filter uses magnetic fields to capture lipoproteins, which are biomarkers for stroke …

Researchers successfully prevent peanut allergic reactions in mice, blocking onset in its tracks

An allergen-specific inhibitor devised by researchers at the University of Notre Dame and the Indiana University School of Medicine has successfully prevented potentially life-threatening allergic responses to peanuts. The results of the new study were just published in Science Translational …

Prof. Tengfei Luo

Engineers use quantum computing to develop transparent window coating that blocks heat, saves energy

Cooling accounts for about 15 percent of global energy consumption. Conventional clear windows allow the sun to heat up interior spaces, which energy-guzzling air-conditioners must then cool down. But what if a window could help cool the room, use no energy and preserve the view?  …

Aerial of Downtown Chicago overlooking Millennium Park

Designing climate-resilient cities in at-risk communities

In September, the U.S. Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory announced it would lead a multi-institutional team to advance urban climate science with the establishment of an Urban Integrated Field Laboratory in Chicago. The DOE will fund the project with $25 million over five …