A deep dive into deep learning

The building blocks of artificial intelligence—computing power, data, and mathematical models—have been around for decades. But only recently have they been employed at a level of sophistication and on a large enough scale to weave machine learning into our everyday lives.

A novel way to watch paint dry

It’s often the first thing we notice about a vehicle, and it reveals a lot: how new (or not) the vehicle is, how it’s been cared for, where it’s been driven. 

“Consumers are extremely picky regarding the quality of the paint job on any car they purchase, new or old, and the 10- to 20-year appearance of a car depends on 10 to 20 critical minutes of application and drying,” says James Gilchrist, a professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering at Lehigh University’s P.C. Rossin College of Engineering and Applied Science. 

Brian Chen: Solving a combinatorial quandary

Why do certain proteins in the body bind with some substances, but not with others?

The answer could be the difference between a drug working or not. The answer, however, is elusive by virtue of the sheer scope of mutations that make proteins vary between each other, and between individuals.

Fine-tuning catalysts at the nanoscale

It’s nice when you aim for a goal, and in the process of achieving it, nail another unexpected but significant target.

“We were just trying to generate a catalyst that would more efficiently make the product we desired,” says Christopher Kiely, the Harold B. Chambers Senior Professor of Materials Science and Engineering at Lehigh University’s P.C. Rossin College of Engineering and Applied Science. “Using less precious metal in the final catalyst material was a fortunate and unanticipated outcome.”

Mapping energy transport mechanism of chalcogenide perovskite for solar energy use

For solar cells to be widely used in the coming decades researchers must resolve two major challenges: increasing efficiency and lowering toxicity.

Solar energy works through a process that converts light into energy called the photovoltaic effect. Certain light sensitive materials when packaged together in a “cell” have the ability to convert energy from light into electricity.

Nader Motee: Making robots more perceptive

Robots are complex machines with lots of components. Each of these components has a precise purpose, and when each component acts as expected, it creates a seamless system that can accomplish intricate tasks.

Pages