Heal, seal, and send data: Bandages for the Sci-Fi age
Photo credits: Reuters
Bandages are getting an upgrade, and they’re a lot smarter than a roll of gauze.
At Caltech, researchers have built iCares, a patch that doesn’t just cover wounds, it spies on them. By tracking oxygen, pH, and other biomarkers, it can warn doctors if healing stalls or an infection starts brewing. In early human trials, that meant problems were spotted days earlier than with standard care. (Caltech)
Meanwhile, scientists at BITS Pilani went full sci-fi: their bandage detects infections and kills bacteria on contact, no antibiotics needed. It uses reactive materials to zap microbes while keeping skin safe.
Other labs are layering in flexible sensors that track moisture, heat, and chemical shifts. All signs of how a wound is really doing. (PMC)
The big picture: chronic wounds affect millions worldwide, but smart bandages could cut hospital trips, speed up recovery, and slash antibiotic use. In other words: the next life-saving medical device might come out of your first-aid kit.
The teeth’s second coming
Glorious news for boxers, MMA enthusiasts, people with a short temper, and the elderly. Japanese researchers are formulating an experimental drug that will regrow teeth. Now you can eat sweets and only have to worry about blood sugar, fat, and diabetes.
Bones and teeth are made up of the same things: Calcium, minerals, and collagen (and enamel for teeth). But teeth, unlike bones, lack the ability to regrow if damaged or broken.
Human trials began in September of last year, so this is something that could actually be promising. I think I speak for quite a few of us when I say, “We will watch your career with great interest.”
Google just got hit with a $425M privacy smackdown
Turns out, flipping that “off” switch on Google’s tracking settings wasn’t as final as users thought. A US federal court just ordered the tech giant to cough up $425 million (£316.3m) for quietly harvesting data from millions of people even after they’d disabled its Web & App Activity feature.
The lawsuit, filed by fed-up users, accused Google of sneaking into mobile devices, scooping up personal data, and cashing in on it despite promises to respect privacy settings.
The group had originally been gunning for a staggering $31 billion in damages, but even this verdict sends a sharp message: Big Tech can’t just nod at your privacy, then ignore it behind the curtain.
Science just pulled a Rick Sanchez — 3D-printed skin that heals like the real thing
“Aw jeez, Rick, they’ve gone and printed skin now!”
No joke — Swedish researchers have 3D-printed artificial skin that can actually grow its own blood vessels. Think less lab coats, more Rick’s garage vibes.
Here’s how it works: they cooked up a “bio-ink” where skin cells kick back on gelatin beanbags, spitting out collagen like it’s space goo. Then they 3D-printed hydrogel strands that dissolve into tiny tunnels — basically blood-flow portals waiting to be activated.
Artwork by Affan Qasim; created using Gemini Pro
Why it matters: regular skin grafts are like patching up a spaceship with duct tape — they hold, they work, but they’re not the perfect fix. This new tech could mean grafts that heal faster, scar less, and behave more like the real thing.
Still only in mice for now, but if science keeps leveling up like this, we’re not too far from “interdimensional wound healing.”
Martian Mud Might Be Alive: NASA’s Latest Discovery Stirs Debate
NASA’s Perseverance rover just turned over a rock—well, a whole mudstone—that could rewrite cosmic history.
Before you pop the champagne: no, NASA hasn’t found alien microbes waving hello. What they have found are redox reactions—the same kind of chemical energy trades that, here on Earth, microbes use to stay alive.
Joel Hurowitz, PhD—geosciences professor at Stony Brook University and lead author of the new paper—explains that these reactions could be plain chemistry. But here’s the kicker: their observations in Mars’ Bright Angel formation don’t line up neatly with a purely non-biological explanation. The iron, sulfur, and phosphorus-bearing nodules, plus those reaction fronts, might be a biosignature—a potential fingerprint of ancient life.
This discovery doesn’t close the case for life on Mars—but it sure makes the Red Planet look less dead and a lot more interesting.
Guiding drivers though the chaos (by blinding them in one eye)
I’m getting ever closer to getting Vegeta’s ‘scouter’ from Dragon Ball Z (DBZ).
Augmented Reality (AR) glasses have been a thing for a while, but Amazon is reportedly rolling out AR glasses for 100 ‘000 delivery drivers. While we’re still at least a year away from Amazon releasing these glasses — codenamed JayHawk — to the public, these glasses are supposed to have microphones, speakers, and a camera, and most importantly, a full-color display in one eye.
Now don’t get me wrong, this is pretty cool, but I’m a bit skeptical on how they’re going to implement this in an unobtrusive way for driving. We wouldn’t want driver’s half blind running into people’s mailboxes while making deliveries.
Personally, I can’t wait to LARP as a DBZ character when these do come out. Hoping Bezos comes out with a monocle version.
