With a large research university right in our back yard, a strong military presence, and innovative businesses across the metropolitan area, Southern Arizona often has a wide variety of interesting scientific and technological news. Here is a breakdown of the most interesting recent developments.
From Pima to Paris. The University of Arizona has partnered with the French National Center for Scientific Research to create an international research center that will focus on environmental, data and climate sciences. The new “France-Arizona Institute for Global Great Challenges” is based in UA and will use the scientific strengths of the individual facilities: CNRS telescopes, particle accelerators and large-scale research facilities on five continents; and UA’s expertise in optical science, data science, and environmental research. What made UA the ideal partner for CNRS, however, is Biosphere 2, the large greenhouse-like facility north of Tucson that “is the only place in the world where scientists can simulate climate change and study its effects on entire ecosystems in one place “. Although the UA and CNRS have already worked together on several projects, the new institute will address issues such as sustainability and resilience in arid countries, according to UA. how biomes connect and respond to global changes; the nature of dark matter and energy; and equality in the digital revolution.
“Global challenges simply require global solutions,” said UA President Robert Robbins. “Working in partnership gives our institutions the opportunity to create and develop innovations in unique ways that we cannot try or achieve on our own. We look forward to the center being a hub of global collaboration for America – an entry point and exchange with the rest of the world and for our hemisphere. “
Promotion of manufacturing.The National Science Foundation recently awarded a $ 250,000 research grant to local startup Paramium Technologies for Small Business Innovation Research to conduct research and development on “efficient manufacturing methods for radio antenna reflectors.” Paramium Technologies’ work aims to improve access to the Internet by enhancing the prototyping capabilities for antenna designers. Its core product is curved free-form metal plates that have been manufactured using electromagnetic deep-drawing technology, which both heats and presses the plates. The method uses hybrid effects of localized induction heating and electromagnetic force. According to Paramium, the adjustable plate shapes adapt to the desired shape without processing or hardware changes. The NSF is an independent federal agency with a budget of approximately $ 8.5 billion that supports basic research and education in all areas of science and technology.
Consumption calendar. The Centers for Disease Control rank obesity and its associated complications as the second leading preventable cause of death in the United States (second only after smoking). They account for 18% of deaths among Americans between the ages of 40 and 85. Overconsumption of saturated fats and sugars One of the leading causes of obesity, however, is that research into improving health can be hampered by limitations in accurately tracking people’s food intake. To solve this problem, the University of Arizona is developing a nutrition assessment app that will allow participants in nutrition studies to more closely track their saturated fat and added sugar intake.
The National Institutes of Health recently awarded UA Health Sciences a five-year grant of $ 3 million to develop the app, which throughout the day prompts participants to report their meals from a list of commonly consumed foods and beverages The most saturated amounts contain fat or added sugar in the American diet. Researchers will use the data to get a more accurate picture of food consumption and make better recommendations on how to improve health and wellbeing. According to UA, traditional nutrition studies used mobile apps to regularly deliver “short, automated surveys” to participants throughout the day. These ratings are generally study-specific and are not optimized for wide use in the research community. “This new app is considered to be the first fully automated, research-quality nutritional assessment tool that researchers can use to collect nutritional data as part of an“ instantaneous ecological assessment ”.
