‘Brain-free’ robots that move in synchronization, powered entirely by air

Leave a reply

This brain-free robot reminds me of a (battery-powered) toy I loved,

A November 18, 2025 University of Oxford press release (a similar version is also on EurekAlert but published November 4, 2025) announces a new type of soft robot, Note: Links have been removed,

A team led by the University of Oxford has developed a new class of soft robots that operate without electronics, motors, or computers – using only air pressure. The study, published today (05 Nov) in Advanced Materials, shows that these ‘fluidic robots’ can generate complex, rhythmic movements and even automatically synchronise their actions.

Professor Antonio Forte (Department of Engineering Science, University of Oxford, Lead of RADLab) said: “We are excited to see that brain-less machines can spontaneously generate complex behaviours, decentralising functional tasks to the peripheries and freeing up resources for more intelligent tasks.”

Overcoming a key challenge in soft robotics

Soft robots (made from flexible materials) are ideal for tasks like navigating uneven terrain or handling delicate objects. A major goal in soft robotics is to encode behaviour and decision-making directly into the robot’s physical structure, enabling more adaptive and responsive machines. This kind of automatic behaviour – emerging from body-environment interactions – is often difficult to replicate with traditional electronic circuits, which require complex sensing, programming and control systems.

To address this challenge, the researchers took inspiration from nature, where body parts often perform multiple roles and synchronised behaviour can emerge without central control. Their key innovation was to develop a small, modular component that uses air pressure to perform mechanical tasks – similar to how an electronic circuit uses electrical current. Depending on how it is set up, this single block can either:

  • Actuate (move or deform) in response to air pressure changes – functioning like a muscle.
  • Sense pressure changes or contact – similar to a touch sensor.
  • Switch air flow between ON/OFF states – like a valve or a logic gate.

Similar to LEGO pieces, multiple identical units (each one a few centimetres in size) can be connected to form different robots without changing the basic hardware design. In the study, the researchers constructed tabletop robots (roughly the size of a shoebox), that could hop, shake, or crawl.

In a particular configuration, the researchers found that each individual unit can automatically combine all three roles at once, enabling it to generate rhythmic movement entirely on its own once constant pressure is applied. When several of these responsive units are linked together, their movements began to synchronize naturally, without any computer control or programming.

These behaviours were used to make a shaker robot (able to sort beads into different containers by tilting a rotating platform) and a crawler robot (which could detect the edge of a table and automatically stop, preventing a fall). In each case, the coordinated movements were achieved entirely mechanically, with no external electronic control.

Lead author Dr Mostafa Mousa (Department of Engineering Science, University of Oxford) said: “This spontaneous coordination requires no predetermined instructions but arises purely from the way the units are coupled to each other and upon their interaction with the environment.”

Laying the groundwork for embodied intelligence

Crucially, the synchronised behaviour is only seen when the robots are linked together and touching the ground. The researchers used a mathematical framework called the Kuramoto model, which describes how networks of oscillators can synchronize, to explain this behaviour.

This revealed that complex, coordinated motion can emerge in the robots purely from their physical design when they are mechanically coupled through the environment. In this case, the motion of each robotic leg subtly affects the others through the shared body and ground reaction forces. This creates a feedback loop where the forces transmitted via friction, compression, and rebound link the motions of the limbs together, leading to spontaneous coordination.

Dr Mousa said: “Just as fireflies can begin flashing in unison after watching one another, the robot’s air-powered limbs also fall into rhythm, but in this case through physical contact with the ground rather than visual cues. This emergent behaviour has previously been observed in nature, and this new study represents a major step forward towards programmable, self-intelligent robots.”

Although the soft robots developed are currently at tabletop scale, according to the researchers the design principles are scale-independent. In the near future, the researchers aim to investigate these dynamical systems to build energy-efficient untethered locomotors. This would be one step forward towards the large-scale deployment of these robots in extreme environments where energy is scarce and adaptability is needed.

Professor Forte added: “Encoding decision-making and behaviour directly into the robot’s physical structure could lead to adaptive, responsive machines that don’t need software to ‘think.’ It is a shift from ‘robots with brains’ to ‘robots that are their own brains.’ That makes them faster, more efficient, and potentially better at interacting with unpredictable environments.”

Here’s a link to and a citation for the paper,

Multifunctional Fluidic Units for Emergent, Responsive Robotic Behaviors by Mostafa Mousa, Alberto Comoretto, Johannes T.B. Overvelde, Antonio E. Forte. Advanced Materials DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/adma.202510298 First published: 06 November 2025

This paper is open access.

Clues to the origins of buckyballs (and other fullerenes) in space

Leave a reply

A buckyball, for anyone unfamiliar with the term, is made up of carbon atoms ordered in a shape that resembles a soccer ball and the full name is bckminsterfullerene (a type of fullerene).

This work has been released into the public domain by its author, Benjah-bmm27. This applies worldwide. In some countries this may not be legally possible; if so: Benjah-bmm27 grants anyone the right to use this work File:Buckminsterfullerene-perspective-3D-balls.png Uploaded: 9 April 2007 [downloaded from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buckminsterfullerene#/media/File:Buckminsterfullerene-perspective-3D-balls.png]

A November 3, 2025 University of Colorado at Boulder news release (also on EurekAlert) by Daniel Strain has written about buckyballs in space in a most engaging fashion, Note: Links have been removed,

Far from Earth, in the vast expanses of space between stars, exists a treasure trove of carbon. There, in what scientists call the “interstellar medium,” you can find a wide range of organic molecules—from honeycomblike polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) to spheres of carbon shaped like soccer balls.

Image taken by the James Webb Space Telescope of the so-called “Pillars of Creation,” a region in the Eagle Nebula where clouds of gas and dust are collapsing to form new stars. Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI; Image Processing: Joseph DePasquale (STScI), Anton Koekemoer (STScI), Alyssa Pagan (STScI) Courtesy: University of Colorado at Boulder

In a new study, an international team of researchers led by scientists at the University of Colorado Boulder have used experiments on Earth to recreate the chemistry deep in space. The group’s results may have uncovered key steps in the processes that shape these organic molecules over time.  

The findings could reveal information about the building blocks that once formed Earth’s solar system, said Jordy Bouwman, lead author of the study. Billions of years ago, similar clouds of matter have condensed to form the seeds of what would become our own sun and its planets.

“We’re all made of carbon, so it’s really important to know how carbon in the universe gets transformed on its way to being incorporated in a planetary system like our own solar system,” said Bouwman, an assistant professor in the Department of Chemistry and scientist at the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP) at CU Boulder. 

The research, published recently in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, sheds light on the formation of a class of molecules called fullerenes.

Fullerenes are made up of carbon atoms organized in the shape of a closed cage. The most famous example is buckminsterfullerene, or the buckyball, which gets its name from famed futurist Richard Buckminster Fuller. These molecules include 60 carbon atoms in the shape of a sphere and bear a striking resemblance to a FIFA regulation soccer ball.

Fullerenes, including buckyballs, float freely in the interstellar medium. But scientists have long struggled to explain where they come from and how they are formed. 

The new study suggests that radiation in space may help to transform PAHs into fullerenes.

“This gives us a hint that the buckyballs that we find in space may be connected to these large aromatic molecules that are also abundant,” Bouwman said.

Space chemistry, on Earth

The group simulated the chemistry in space by studying two small PAH molecules called anthracene and phenanthrene.

PAHs are made up of carbon atoms arranged in a series of hexagons, not unlike a honeycomb. They’re abundant on Earth where you can find them in smoke, soot and other charred materials.

“If you put your steak on the grill for too long, and it gets black, that contains PAHs,” Bouwman said. “They’re a nasty byproduct of combustion.”

First, the researchers bombarded the two PAHs with a beam of electrons. It’s similar to what happens when radiation in space interacts with molecules in the interstellar medium.

This bombardment transformed the PAHs into new, charged organic molecules. The researchers then fed the products into an ion trap apparatus at a scientific facility called the Free Electron Lasers for Infrared eXperiments (FELIX). This one-of-a-kind national research facility is located in Nijmegen in the Netherlands and includes several lasers that spread across a large basement room. Using those lasers, the researchers were able to precisely probe the structure of their new molecules.

They were surprised when they saw the results.

Making buckyballs

Bouwman explained that when the team hit anthracene and phenanthrene with electrons, the molecules lost one or two of their hydrogen atoms. 

In the process, they also radically changed their structures, like disassembling a Lego castle and building a new structure. Instead of just including hexagons, the resulting products now carried carbon atoms arranged in the shape of both hexagons and pentagons.

That radical reaction had never been seen before, Bouwman said. Whether these kinds of pentagon-bearing molecules are also common in space isn’t clear.

“That was a very surprising result—that just by kicking off a hydrogen atom or two, the entire molecule completely rearranged,” said Sandra Brünken, a co-author of the study, associate professor at Radboud University and group leader at FELIX.

The results were eye-opening, in part because those kinds of molecules are also really easy to fold up. (Just picture a soccer ball, which is made up of a mix of both hexagons and pentagons).

In other words, these pentagon-bearing molecules may be the missing link for converting common PAHs into buckyballs and other fullerenes.

Bouwman and Brünken hope that astrophysicists will take note. Scientists could use the team’s findings to see if similar pentagon-bearing molecules exist deep in space using tools like the James Webb Space Telescope—the most powerful telescope ever launched.

“You can take our results from the laboratory, and then use them as a fingerprint to look for the same signatures in space,” Brünken said.

CU Boulder co-authors of the new study include LASP graduate students Madison Patch and Rory McClish. Other co-authors include scientists at Radboud University; Leiden University in the Netherlands; Paris-East Créteil University in France; and the University of Maryland College Park. 

Here’s a link to and a citation for the paper,

Radical Isomerization upon Dissociative Electron Ionization of Anthracene and Phenanthrene by Madison M. Patch, Rory McClish, Sanjana Panchagnula, Daniël B. Rap, Shreyak Banhatti, Helgi R. Hrodmarsson, Sandra Brünken, Harold Linnartz, Alexander G. G. M. Tielens and Jordy Bouwman. Journal of the American Chemical Society (J. Am. Chem. Soc.) 2025, 147, 38, 34508–34516 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1021/jacs.5c08619 Published September 12, 2025 Copyright © 2025 American Chemical Society

This paper is behind a paywall.

Nanoengineered, paint-like coating passively cools buildings and captures water directly from the air

Leave a reply

Not entirely a surprise that this research comes from Australia, given that country’s need for water. From a November 3, 2025 news item on Nanowerk. Note: A link has been removed,

Researchers at the University of Sydney and start-up Dewpoint Innovations have developed a nanoengineered polymer paint-like coating that can passively cool buildings and capture water directly from the air – all without energy input.

The invention could help tackle global water scarcity and help cool buildings, reducing the need for energy-intensive systems.

The research team led by Professor Chiara Neto created a porous polymer coating that reflects up to 97 percent of sunlight and radiates heat into the air, keeping surfaces up to six degrees cooler than the surrounding air even under direct sun. This process creates ideal conditions for atmospheric water vapour to condense into droplets on the cooler surface, the way steam condenses on your bathroom mirror.

Professor Neto from the University of Sydney Nano Institute and School of Chemistry said the findings could have far-reaching implications.

“This technology not only advances the science of cool roof coatings but also opens the door to sustainable, low-cost and decentralised sources of fresh water – a critical need in the face of climate change and growing water scarcity,” she said.

…

A November 3, 2025 University of Sydney press release (also on EurekAlert but published November 2, 2025), which originated the news item, delves further into the research, Note: Links have been removed,

In the six-month long outdoor study conducted on the roof of the Sydney Nanoscience Hub, dew could be collected over 32 percent of the year and so could provide a sustainable and predictable supply of water even in periods with no rain. Under optimum conditions, the coatings can harvest up to 390 mL of water per square metre each day – enough for a 12-square-metre surface to supply the daily drinking needs of one person.

The study, published in Advanced Functional Materials, shows that passive cooling and atmospheric water capture can be integrated into a paint-like material for large-scale use.

Larger collection areas mean the paint could be versatile in industry: water for animals, for horticulture of high-value plants, for use in cooling by misting, or for use in hydrogen production. (About nine litres of water per kilogram of hydrogen is needed in electrolysis.)

Cooling the city, drop by drop

Unlike traditional white paints, the porous coatings, made of polyvinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropene, or PVDF-HFP, do not rely on ultraviolet-reflective pigments such as titanium dioxide.

“Our design achieves high reflectivity through its internal porous structure, delivering durability without the environmental drawbacks of pigment-based coatings,” said Dr Ming Chiu, the study’s lead author and Chief Technology Officer of Dewpoint Innovations.

“By removing UV-absorbing materials, we overcome the traditional limit in solar reflectivity while avoiding glare through diffuse reflection. This balance between performance and visual comfort makes it easier to integrate and is more appealing for real-world applications.”

Over the six-month outdoor trial, the team recorded cooling and water collection data minute-by-minute, confirming robust performance with no degradation under harsh Australian sun. Similar technologies have been shown to quickly deteriorate.

Beyond water harvesting, these coatings could help reduce urban heat island effects, lower energy needs for air-conditioning and provide climate-resilient water sources in regions facing growing heat and water stress.

Professor Neto, also a member of the University of Sydney Net Zero Institute, said the research also challenges the assumption that dew collection only works in humid climates.

“While humid conditions are ideal, dew can form even in arid and semi-arid regions where night-time humidity rises. It’s not about replacing rainfall but supplementing it – providing water where and when other sources become limited.”

From lab to rooftop

To bring the discovery from the lab to rooftops, Dewpoint Innovations is now developing a water-based paint formulation that can be applied using ordinary rollers or sprayers.

“At Dewpoint, we’re proud to partner with the University of Sydney to bring this breakthrough in passive atmospheric water harvesting to life through advanced paint-based coatings,” said Perzaan Mehta, CEO of Dewpoint Innovations.

“It’s a scalable, energy-free solution that transforms rooftops and remote infrastructure into reliable sources of clean water, helping address an urgent challenge of our time.”

With more than two million Australian homes already collecting rainwater, Professor Neto said dew-collecting roofs could complement existing systems.

“Imagine roofs that not only stay cooler but also make their own fresh water – that’s the promise of this technology,” she said.

The Neto group’s innovation was licensed from the University of Sydney in 2022 to start-up company Dewpoint Innovations. Its commercial translation represents a significant step toward scalable, environmentally friendly solutions for water harvesting and passive cooling, with potential applications in the built environment, agriculture, remote communities, and urban infrastructure.

Here’s a link to and a citation for the paper,

Passively Cooled Paint-Like Coatings for Atmospheric Water Capture by Ming Chiu, Emile Theau, Angus Harrison, Johanna M. Terpstra, Riccardo Parin, C. Martijn de Sterke, Tristram J. Alexander, Chiara Neto. Advanced Functional Materials Online Version of Record before inclusion in an issue DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/adfm.202519108 First published: 30 October 2025

This paper is behind a paywall.

Dewpoint Innovations can be found here.

A wearable tail and the 2026 Canada-Wide Science Fair

Leave a reply

One more post about the 2026 Canada-Wide Science Fair (my last one was a June 1, 2026 piece highlighting the top prizes) as this work from two high school students fascinates me.

The video shows the announcement of the students’ award and their interview on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation’s (CBC) Calgary Eyeopener news show, Note: This segment runs about 7 mins.,

For those who might like to read about the project, a June 2, 2026 article by Kelsea Arnett for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) news online website describes the device (wearable tail) intended to assist people with balance problems,

Allen Guo-Lu and Luotong Shi aren’t your typical Grade 12 students.

While most are either busily preparing for final exams or revelling in the fact that their high school careers are almost over, Guo-Lu and Shi have spent their senior year developing wearable technology to help people battling Parkinson’s disease avoid serious falls.

“It’s our last year in Grade 12, so we were like, ‘Why don’t we try to kind of give back to the community?'” Shi told CBC Radio’s Calgary Eyeopener.

“This was one of the ways that we thought of doing it.”

The technology — a wearable battery-powered tail equipped with built-in sensors — can detect when the wearer may be unstable and act as a counterweight to help them regain their balance, Shi said.

“It essentially works kind of like the idea of a spine where there is several pieces that you can attach and the tubes act as tendons,” Shi said.

In April, [2026] the Western Canada High School students won the University of Calgary Chancellor and Senate Award at the Calgary Youth Science Fair. The project was also a finalist at the Canada-Wide Science Fair in Edmonton last week.

There are at least 120,000 people living with Parkinson’s in Canada, and that number is expected to exceed 150,000 by 2034, according to Ko Currie with Parkinson Canada.

…

Tremors and gait features like slowness, difficulty with balance or rigidity are some of the more recognizable symptoms of the disease, Currie said, adding falls are a significant concern.

“It’s one of the most disabling features of Parkinson’s, because they can lead to really serious injuries and sometimes even hospitalizations,” said Currie, who is the organization’s director of research programs and partnerships. 

…

Why a tail?

Guo-Lu said the project was inspired by his volunteer work in seniors’ homes and witnessing Parkinson’s patients struggling with balance. 

He said the tail design comes from witnessing how cats and other mammals use their tails to balance and correct themselves.

Guo-Lu said in testing the belt with several patients, they were able to see how the tail responded to various individual gaits and stages of progression of the disease.

“Learning about those factors and testing really helped us get a good design for the tail,” Guo-Lu said.

He added they can also change the weight of the tail depending on how much support a patient needs and what is most comfortable for them, although the ideal range was between 400 and 1,200 grams. 

Users can also tailor the tail’s sensitivity to their body with an app the pair built.

Project’s benefits go beyond Parkinson’s

But the benefits of the tail extend beyond just patients with Parkinson’s, Shi said.

“This tail, because it addresses balance specifically, it honestly should benefit all people who have asymmetric gait,” she said.

…

Guo plans to study neuroscience at the University of Calgary and Shi plans to study electrical engineering at the University of Waterloo.

Living liquid metal composites for next generation bioelectronics

Leave a reply

An October 30, 2025 Nanowerk Spotlight article by Michael Berger highlights a ‘living’ approach to electronics,

…

Liquid metals are unusual substances. They flow like water yet conduct electricity almost as well as solid copper. This combination makes them appealing for flexible electronics, soft robotics, and wearable devices.

Their weakness lies in the oxide film that instantly forms when the metal meets air or water. The thin oxide stabilizes droplets but prevents them from fusing, interrupting electrical flow. Previous attempts to control this oxide used agitation, chemical etching, or complex coatings. Each method added cost or created new problems such as brittleness or instability. A stable, self-repairing conductor that worked without those steps remained out of reach.

[…] new research offers a biological route forward. [A] team created a living liquid metal composite by embedding bacterial endospores within a gallium and indium alloy. The spores come from Bacillus subtilis, a microbe known for surviving heat, dryness, and chemical stress. In the dormant spore state, the cells are metabolically inactive and remarkably durable. When exposed to nutrients, they germinate and return to life. Within the metal, these spores act as both structural and electrical agents. They modify the oxide layer and, once active, move electrons directly into the metallic network.

Conceptual illustrations of the living liquid metal composite embedded with electrogenic bacterial endospores. a) Circuit conductivity: i) Liquid metal droplets with native oxide layers, exhibiting low conductivity. ii) Endospore-mediated oxide rupture between droplets, enabling conductive bridging, and high conductivity. b) Biological functionality: i) Dormant endospores embedded in liquid metal, supporting long-term preservation, and stable conductivity. ii) Germination of endospores, reactivating metabolic activity and extracellular electron transfer (EET). c) Self-healing behavior enabled by the intrinsic fluidity and oxide dynamics of liquid metal. d) Enhanced patternability on paper substrates due to improved wettability and interfacial compatibility provided by endospores. [downloaded from https://advanced.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/adfm.202521818]

Berger’s October 30, 2025 article provides more detail about the advantages of this particular approach,

The mechanism depends on how the spores interact with the metal surface. Each spore carries a rough outer shell covered with chemical groups that bond strongly to metal oxides. These include amino, carboxyl, phosphate, and hydroxyl groups. When mixed with the gallium–indium alloy, the spores attach to the oxide skin and disturb its uniformity. This weakens the barrier and allows neighboring droplets to merge, restoring electrical continuity without external pressure or heating. Spectroscopic analysis confirms reduced oxygen signals and greater exposure of gallium, evidence of thinner oxide layers and stronger metal connectivity.

This microscopic change produces significant electrical improvements. The composite conducts at about 1.1×10⁴ siemens per centimeter even without sintering. After a week of air exposure, it retains over 90 percent of that conductivity, while pure liquid metal loses much more. When the spores are activated with a nutrient solution containing amino acids and sugars, the conductivity increases to about 5.1×10⁶ siemens per centimeter. The gain comes from both mechanical disruption of the oxide and electron transfer by the living cells. Imaging shows that the spores germinate and spread within the metallic matrix, confirming that biological activity enhances performance.

Electrochemical tests reinforce this finding. Cyclic voltammetry shows that oxidized metal without spores produces unstable current profiles that weaken over time. With spores, the current remains steady, showing stable charge transfer. Impedance measurements reveal higher resistance while the spores are dormant, followed by a marked drop after germination, consistent with active electron movement through the living network.

Mechanical performance also improves. Liquid metals already heal by flowing into cracks, but the composite heals faster. After being cut, it recovers more than 90 percent of its conductivity within about 30 seconds, while the unmodified alloy needs about 90 seconds. During 500 bending cycles at 10 percent strain, the composite retains over 90 percent of its conductivity, while the pure alloy loses nearly half. Microscopy shows continuous bridges forming across cracks and suggests that the spores reinforce the oxide layer and spread stress more evenly.

…

Binghamton University issued a November 5, 2025 news release by Chris Kocher that highlights the researcher and his hopes for the material, Note: Links have been removed,

Electronics have been transforming from rigid, lifeless systems into adaptive, living platforms capable of seamlessly interacting with biological environments. Researchers at Binghamton University are pioneering “living metal” composites embedded with bacterial endospores, paving the way for dynamic communication and integration between electronic and biological systems.

In a paper recently published in the journal Advanced Functional Materials (opens in a new window), Professor Seokheun “Sean” Choi, Maryam Rezaie, PhD ’25, and Yang “Lexi” Gao, PhD ’26, share their potentially groundbreaking study on liquid living metal composites that could redefine the future of bioelectronics.

Choi — a faculty member in the Thomas J. Watson College of Engineering and Applied Science’s Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering — is developing innovative technologies to bridge the gap between electronic and biological systems.

Most of Choi’s previous bioelectronic projects employed conductive polymer materials, as liquid metals pose challenges for integration. Their hydrophobic properties hinder adhesion to electronic substrates, and exposure to air or water leads to the formation of an oxide layer that restricts electron flow and disrupts communication between electronic and biological systems.

However, he said, polymers have their own difficulties: “I was not satisfied with the interface — it was not seamless — and although the polymers are conductive, it’s not as much as metal. Also, most bioelectronics will be deployed in very harsh environments, so they are subject to mechanical damage. They must have a self-healing property.”

He believes that electrogenic bacteria — cells which generate small amounts of power — are the key. By combining liquid metal with dormant endospores for the bacteriaBacillus subtilis, which Choi has used to develop biobatteries, the composite material overcomes many of the limitations from liquid metal alone.

“When we combine the spores with the liquid metal droplets, there is a huge attractive force, because the spores have chemical functional groups on their surface that interact with the liquid metal oxide layers. This strong force ruptures the oxide layers so the metal can be conductive.”

The spores can stay inactive under harsh conditions and germinate when the environment is more favorable. The composite also is easily absorbed into device substrates such as paper while keeping the best properties of metal. It even exhibits enhanced electrical conductivity when the spores germinate.

Most importantly, though, the composite shows the self-healing abilities that researchers want to see. When a break in the material happens, the composite autonomously fills the gap— an important breakthrough when a circuit is damaged and can’t easily be replaced.

Before any commercial applications, more experimentation is needed to better control the activation of the endospores and to evaluate the liquid living metal composites for long-term stability in a variety of environments.

In the future, such materials could enable wearable or implantable devices to interface safely and directly with human tissue.

“Biological systems use molecules and ions for metabolism or signaling, while electronics exclusively depend on the electrons, so that will create communication errors,” he said. “Electrogenic bacteria use molecules and ions but also generate electrons. The question is how we can seamlessly integrate this electrogenic bacteria into a living electrode to bridge these two systems.”

Here’s a link to and a citation for the paper,

Living Liquid Metal Composites Embedded with Electrogenic Endospores for Next-Generation Bioelectronics by Maryam Rezaie, Yang Gao, Seokheun Choi. Advanced Functional Materials First published: 24 October 2025 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/adfm.202521818

This paper is open access.

Lignin nanoparticles for herbicide delivery systems (an agriculture story)

Leave a reply

This explanation of how this research relates to food security is direct from the paper’s introduction and helped me, Note: Links have been removed,

The constantly growing world population has caused nations to struggle with food shortages, while farmers face crop turbulence with weed competition. (1) Weeds have developed resistance to herbicides, chemical compounds used to protect plants against them, for the last 60 years. Also, herbicides can be easily driven through leaching, drifting, or running off into the water and accidentally harming off-target plant species, animals, and humans. This highlights the need for new techniques to be developed and implemented. (2,3) Over time, the use of nano-enabled agriculture has demonstrated efficiency in delivery of herbicides (nanoherbicide) by increasing herbicidal activity and decreasing environmental impact. (4) Nanoherbicides can be derived from diverse materials (organic, inorganic, or hybrid), with organic nanomaterials being highlighted for their eco-friendly properties and effectiveness that may minimize risks to nontarget organisms and ecosystems. (5,6)

Lignin is a sustainable, natural, and organic macromolecule derived from agricultural waste. It comprises a complex phenolic structure in plant cell walls, formed by benzene units in aromatic regions and hydroxyl, carboxyl, carbonyl, and ether functional groups in aliphatic parts. This arrangement allows the formation of diverse structures (e.g., capsules, triangular, and spherical), with spherical lignin nanoparticles (SLNPs) being well known for their smooth surfaces. (7,8) SLNPs are usually prepared using the antisolvent precipitation method, where aggregation forms nanoparticles with hollows attributed to π–π interactions in the benzene rings and shells formed by hydrogen bonding among carboxylic–phenolic groups in water and forming hydrophobic core/hydrophilic shell structures. (9) Recently, lignin has been explored to design nanodevices in the agricultural sector. (10) For instance, lignin-based nanoparticles can be stored for extended periods, (7) possess UV-blocking properties that may prevent active ingredients from degradation, (11) promote controlled release of active ingredients, (5,10) and lignin-composited nanocapsules have been studied as nanoherbicides. (12)

…

This illustrative image is part of the abstract,

Courtesy: ACS Sustainable Chem. Eng. 2025, 13, 37, 15460-15477

Hopefully that made this description more understandable. From the paper’s abstract,

Recent advances in nanoscience have reduced herbicide usage while maintaining crop yields, and sustainable materials, such as lignin, have emerged as promising nanocarriers for herbicide delivery. Spherical lignin nanoparticles (SLNPs) with atrazine (SLNPs_ATZ) were designed, characterized, and applied to nontarget and target plants in this work. SLNPs_ATZ displayed spherical shapes with sizes near 178 nm by dynamic light scattering (DLS), and 136 nm by nanoparticle tracking analysis (NTA), with a 74.2% loading efficiency and a 43.26% release percentage after 168 h. Chemical computational modeling revealed lower gap energies between atrazine and lignin, indicating strong carrier/bioactive interactions. Hydroponic experiments were conducted with butterhead lettuce with sublethal doses of atrazine (30 μg/L) for 28 days, and lettuce treated with SLNPs and SLNPs_ATZ showed no significant changes in root length/shoot area compared to the control. Lipid peroxidation and catalase (biochemical tests) showed significant differences between lettuce treated with atrazine and all other treatments. Gene expression of catalase-1 (CAT1) and GST6 genes indicated a possible stress tolerance in lettuce by SLNPs. Moreover, PER51 gene results indicated damage from SLNPs_ATZ and ATZ. Based on the weed control assessment, seeds/seedlings showed possible germination/development interference by SLNPs_ATZ. These findings highlight lignin as a sustainable molecule for developing nanocarriers with potential effects on gene expression and improved weed control.

Here’s a link to and a citation for the paper,

Sustainable Lignin Nanoparticles for Herbicide Delivery Systems: Preparation, Characterization, and Effects on Target and Nontarget Plants (or PDF) by Pedro H. C. de Lima, Maria C. Shiroma Buri, Rafaela S. Mendonça, Gabriel M. Favara, Érica R. Biscalchim, Mariana M. L. H. Forini, Luiz A. F. Cavalcante, Renato Grillo. ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering (ACS Sustainable Chem. Eng.) 2025, 13, 37, 15460–15477 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1021/acssuschemeng.5c05651 Published September 11, 2025 Copyright © 2025 The Authors. Published by American Chemical Society. This publication is licensed under CC-BY 4.0 .

This paper is open access.

One step closer to robots you can wear like clothing with automatic weaving of “fabric muscle”

Leave a reply

An October 29, 2025 National Research Council of Science & Technology (Korea) press release (also on EurekAlert) research that would make commercialization of wearable robots possible, Note: A link has been removed,

The commercialization of clothing-type wearable robots has taken a significant step forward with the development of equipment that can continuously and automatically weave ultra-thin shape memory alloy coil yarn—thinner than a human hair—into lightweight and flexible “fabric muscle” suitable for large-scale production.

The Advanced Robotics Research Center at the Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials (KIMM, President Seog-Hyeon Ryu), under the National Research Council of Science & Technology (NST, Chairman Young-Shik Kim), led by Principal Researcher Cheol Hoon Park, has developed an automated weaving system that enables the continuous mass production of fabric muscle, a lightweight yet powerful artificial muscle actuator.

The newly developed system uses shape memory alloy (SMA) wire with a diameter of 25 μm [micrometers or microns]—about one-fourth the thickness of a human hair—processed into coil-shaped yarn, enabling the continuous weaving of fabric muscles. This fabric, weighing only 10 g, can lift 10–15 kg, making it an ideal core actuator for clothing-type wearable robots. The SMA coil yarn previously developed by KIMM used a metallic core wire, which resulted in low elongation and made automatic weaving difficult. To overcome this limitation, the KIMM research team replaced the metal core with natural fiber, redesigned the structure and fabrication process of the fabric muscle, and improved the weaving machine’s design, thereby achieving stable and continuous mass production.

Conventional wearable robots designed to assist multiple joints—such as the elbow, shoulder, and waist—relied on heavy, noisy motor or pneumatic actuators, making them bulky, expensive, and uncomfortable for long-term use. As a result, most could provide only limited support to specific joints. Active assistance for the shoulder has been particularly challenging due to its complex range of motion. In contrast, KIMM’s fabric muscle actuators are lightweight and flexible, allowing them to naturally conform to and actively assist multiple complex joints simultaneously. Using this technology, the research team developed the world’s first clothing-type wearable robot, weighing less than 2 kg, that simultaneously assists the elbow, shoulder, and waist, reducing muscle effort by more than 40% during repetitive physical tasks.

Furthermore, the team created an ultra-lightweight shoulder-assist robot weighing just 840 g, which patients with muscle weakness can comfortably wear and carry in daily life. In clinical trials conducted at Seoul National University Hospital (SNUH) on patients with muscular weakness, including those with Duchenne muscular dystrophy, the wearable shoulder-assist robot improved shoulder movement range by more than 57%.

With the ability to continuously produce high-quality, uniform fabric muscle through the automated weaving system, the research team has laid the foundation for the commercialization of clothing-type wearable robots.

This breakthrough is expected to reduce workers’ physical strain, improve patients’ quality of life, and accelerate the widespread adoption of wearable robots, thereby enhancing industrial competitiveness. In particular, the shoulder-assist robot, designed to support rehabilitation and daily activities of patients with muscle weakness, is expected to reduce caregiver burden while improving patient independence, quality of life, and self-esteem, and overall well-being.

“Our development of continuous mass-production technology for fabric muscle—the key component of clothing-type wearable robots—will significantly improve quality of life in fields such as healthcare, logistics, and construction,” said Dr. Cheol Hoon Park, Principal Researcher at KIMM’s Advanced Robotics Research Center. “We will continue to build on KIMM’s extensive wearable robotics technologies to accelerate commercialization and lead the global wearable robotics market.”

This research, which won the KIMM Best Research Award 2024, was supported by KIMM’s ACE program, the Core Robot Technology Development Program of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources (MOTIR), and the Seoul National University Hospital (SNUH) Lee Kun-hee Child Cancer and Rare Disease Project. The findings were published online in the October 2025 issue of TNSRE (IEEE Transactions on Neural Systems and Rehabilitation Engineering), a leading international journal in the field of rehabilitation engineering.

Here’s a link to and a citation for the paper,

Soft Exosuit Based on Fabric Muscle to Assist Shoulder Joint Movements in Patients With Neuromuscular Diseases by Seong Jun Park; Sungbae Jo; Hyung-Ik Shin; Eunsu Lee; Jung Hyun Kim; Hyunmok Jung. IEEE Transactions on Neural Systems and Rehabilitation Engineering, vol. 33, pp. 3866-3877, 2025, Date of Publication: 24 September 2025 DOI: 10.1109/TNSRE.2025.3613709

This paper is open access.

Mushroom computer chips act as fungal memristors for brain-like computing?

Leave a reply
Caption: Fungal memristors could be ideal interfaces for high-frequency bioelectronics, researchers say. Photo provided by John LaRocco.

An October 26, 2025 news item (rewritten slightly) on ScienceDaily announces research into ‘fungal computers’ from Ohio State University (OSU),

Fungal networks could one day replace the tiny metal components that process and store computer data, according to new research.

Mushrooms are known for their toughness and unusual biological properties, qualities that make them attractive for bioelectronics. This emerging field blends biology and technology to design innovative, sustainable materials for future computing systems.

Turning Mushrooms Into Living Memory Devices

Researchers at The Ohio State University recently discovered that edible fungi, such as shiitake mushrooms, can be cultivated and guided to function as organic memristors. These components act like memory cells that retain information about previous electrical states.

…

…

An October 24, 2025 Ohio State University (OSU) news release (also on EurekAlert) by Tatyana Woodall, which originated the news item (Note: ScienceDaily has made mostly minor editorial changes), provides further context and detail, Note: Links have been removed,

“Being able to develop microchips that mimic actual neural activity means you don’t need a lot of power for standby or when the machine isn’t being used,” said John LaRocco, lead author of the study and a research scientist in psychiatry at Ohio State’s College of Medicine. “That’s something that can be a huge potential computational and economic advantage.”

Fungal electronics aren’t a new concept, but they have become ideal candidates for developing sustainable computing systems, said LaRocco. This is because they minimize electrical waste by being biodegradable and cheaper to fabricate than conventional memristors and semiconductors, which often require costly rare-earth minerals and high amounts of energy from data centers. 

“Mycelium as a computing substrate has been explored before in less intuitive setups, but our work tries to push one of these memristive systems to its limits,” he said. 

The study was recently published in the journal PLOS One.

To explore the new memristors’ capabilities, researchers cultured samples of shiitake and button mushrooms. Once mature, they were dehydrated to ensure long-term viability, connected to special electronic circuits, and then electrocuted at various voltages and frequencies. 

“We would connect electrical wires and probes at different points on the mushrooms because distinct parts of it have different electrical properties,” said LaRocco. “Depending on the voltage and connectivity, we were seeing different performances.”

After two months, the team discovered that when used as RAM – the computer memory that stores data – their mushroom memristor was able to switch between electrical states at up to 5,850 signals per second, with about 90% accuracy. However, performance dropped as the frequency of the electrical voltages increased, but much like an actual brain, it could be fixed by connecting more mushrooms to the circuit.  

Overall, their research details how surprisingly easy it is to program and preserve mushrooms to behave in unexpected and useful ways, said Qudsia Tahmina, co-author of the study and an associate professor in electrical and computer engineering at Ohio State. Moreover, it’s an example of how technology can advance when it relies on the natural world. 

“Society has become increasingly aware of the need to protect our environment and ensure that we preserve it for future generations,” said Tahmina.“So that could be one of the driving factors behind new bio-friendly ideas like these.”

Building on the flexibility mushrooms offer also suggests there are possibilities for scaling up fungal computing, said Tahmina. For instance, larger mushroom systems may be useful in edge computing and aerospace exploration; smaller ones in enhancing the performance of autonomous systems and wearable devices. 

Organic memristors are still in early development, but future work could optimize the production process by improving cultivation techniques and miniaturizing the devices, as viable fungal memristors would need to be far smaller than what researchers achieved in this work. 

“Everything you’d need to start exploring fungi and computing could be as small as a compost heap and some homemade electronics, or as big as a culturing factory with pre-made templates,” said LaRocco. “All of them are viable with the resources we have in front of us now.” 

Other Ohio State co-authors include Ruben Petreaca, John Simonis and Justin Hill. This study was supported by the Honda Research Institute.

…

Here’s a link to and a citation for the paper,

Sustainable memristors from shiitake mycelium for high-frequency bioelectronics by John LaRocco, Qudsia Tahmina, Ruben Petreaca, John Simonis, Justin Hill. PLOS [Public Library of Science] One Published: October 10, 2025 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0328965

This paper is open access.

Celebrating the May 23 – 30, 2026 Canada-Wide Science Fair and its students (those who didn’t or did win awards)

Leave a reply

The 2026 Canada-Wide Science Fair (Canada-Wide Science Fair (CWSF)/Expo-sciences pancanadienne (ESPC)) has come and gone (May 23 – 30, 2026) and I expect planning for 2027 will begin soon. First, congratulations to all of the students who participated at the national event and all of the smaller regional and local events leading up to it!

To get a sense of the scope for science fairs in Canada, here’s more from the About the Canada-Wide Science Fair webpage,

Canada’s Largest Youth STEM [science, technology, engineering, and mathematics] Event

For over 60 years, the Canada-Wide Science Fair (CWSF) has brought together the brightest young minds from across the country to showcase their research and innovations, compete for awards, and connect with peers who share their passion for discovery and innovation. Hosted annually by Youth Science Canada, the CWSF is Canada’s largest annual youth science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) event.

Each year, nearly 400 finalists in grades 7-12/Cégep are selected through a national network of over 100 regional STEM fairs spanning every province and territory. These exceptional students earn the opportunity to represent their region at the CWSF, where they compete for nearly $2 million in prizes, scholarships, and exclusive opportunities.

Our Purpose

The CWSF is more than just a competition; it’s a celebration of curiosity, creativity, and the pursuit of knowledge. The fair provides a platform for young scientists to:

  • Present original research and innovations to experts, peers, and the public
  • Receive recognition for their achievements in STEM
  • Connect with like-minded peers from across Canada
  • Gain exposure to career opportunities in STEM fields
  • Develop communication and presentation skills
  • Compete for medals, awards, scholarships, and international opportunities (learn more)

The CWSF Experience

The week-long event includes:

  • Project presentations and judging
  • Interactive STEM activities and workshops
  • Educational tours and social events
  • Public exhibition days where thousands of visitors explore student projects
  • A prestigious awards ceremony

Participants consistently describe the CWSF as a life-changing experience that fosters lifelong friendships, builds confidence, and opens doors to future opportunities. Beyond the awards and recognition, the CWSF creates a community where young people can embrace their passion for STEM and connect with others who share their enthusiasm for discovery and innovation.

“Even without the awards, it is an experience of a lifetime…not exaggerating…IT IS THE EXPERIENCE OF A LIFETIME. You meet so many people from across Canada…meet every single person you can, leave any shyness behind you, and I promise you will have friends you will keep in touch with forever.” — CWSF Alum

Global Reach

Top projects from the CWSF may be selected to represent Canada at prestigious international competitions, including the European Union Contest for Young Scientists (EUCYS), the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF), and other global STEM events.

About Youth Science Canada

Youth Science Canada (YSC) is a national charitable organisation dedicated to fuelling the curiosity of Canadian youth through STEM projects. Since 1966, we have been at the forefront of nurturing and showcasing the innovative talents of Canada’s young minds.

Our Vision

We envision a future society rooted in the power of curiosity, community, and STEM skills.

Our Mission

Empowering all Canadian youth to engage their curiosity in discovering and innovating through STEM projects.

Our Impact

  • 500,000+ K-12 students in Canada create a STEM project annually
  • 20,000+ students showcase a project at regional fairs
  • 400 student projects are selected for the Canada-Wide Science Fair
  • 100+ regional STEM fairs supported across Canada
  • Millions in scholarships and prizes awarded to young scientists

Our Programs

Canada-Wide Science Fair (CWSF) – Our flagship programme brings together the country’s top young scientists for a week of competition, celebration, and connection. The CWSF is Canada’s largest youth STEM event and showcases the incredible talent and innovation of students in grades 7-12/Cégep.

mySTEMspace – An online platform that supports youth in developing and documenting their STEM projects. mySTEMspace provides resources, tools, and guidance for students at every stage of their STEM project journey.

National STEM Fair Network – We coordinate and support a network of over 100 regional STEM fairs across Canada, ensuring that students nationwide have opportunities to showcase their work and potentially advance to the CWSF.

Team Canada – We select and support Canadian students representing our country at international STEM competitions and events, such as the European Union Contest for Young Scientists (EUCYS) and other global forums.

STEM Expo – Held in conjunction with the CWSF, STEM Expo features interactive exhibits and activities from educational institutions, companies, and organisations, inspiring thousands of visitors annually.

Smarter Science – A framework and resources that help teachers introduce and integrate inquiry-based STEM learning in their classrooms, fostering critical thinking and scientific skills from an early age.

purpleSTEMwave – A national movement that celebrates and unites young Canadians who transform their curiosity into action through STEM projects.

…

A May 30, 2026 news item on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation’s (CBC) news online website highlights one particular project,

A Kitchener, Ont., teen has won the best project award for innovation at the Canada-Wide Science Fair.

Eigenpulse: Eliminating Demographic Bias in Pulse Oximetry and Remote PPG from First Principles was the name of the project by Gurnoor Kaur, a Grade 11 student at Cameron Height Collegiate Institute in Kitchener.

The judges at the Edmonton competition say the 17-year-old’s work fixes a 35-year-old problem in blood oxygen sensors, which has led to higher mortality in Black patients [emphasis mine].

Kaur spoke to CBC K-W’s The Morning Edition before going to Edmonton for the science fair about another device she created to detect hospital-induced delirium, which can affect the cognitive state of patients [emphasis mine].

She noted nurses are often busy with other work and so many cases of delirium go undetected. 

“It can detect emotions and micro expressions to understand patients’ emotional state and it also can detect heart rate and respiratory rate through non-contact, camera-based monitoring, eliminating the need for bulky sensors in hospitals as well,” she said.

“I’ve integrated a chatbot to be able to continuously converse with patients and run reorientation techniques, which have been shown to decrease risk by up to 50 per cent.”

…

The CBC’s May 30, 2026 news item includes a video and an interview featuring a discussion with Gurnoor Kaur about her work.

It is jaw-dropping to see the kinds of projects that the students embark on, these are the CWSF 2026 Results from the Awards webpage,

Liam Desre

Best Project – Discovery ΛCDM+S – Thermodynamic Cosmology: Simulating The Universe’s Expansion Without Dark Energy

For nearly 30 years, cosmologists have attributed the universe’s accelerating expansion to dark energy, a force that has never been directly detected and whose physical nature remains unknown. Desre proposed that the same thermodynamic laws governing black holes also apply to the universe’s outer boundary, and that the natural accumulation of entropy at this boundary drives cosmic expansion. His project, ΛCDM+S – Thermodynamic Cosmology: Simulating the Universe’s Expansion Without Dark Energy, reproduced standard cosmological predictions with 93.4 percent accuracy while also offering potential explanations for two long-standing measurement discrepancies that have challenged the field for years.

Gurnoor Kaur

Best Project – Innovation Eigenpulse: Eliminating Demographic Bias in Pulse Oximetry and Remote PPG from First Principles

The small clip-on sensors hospitals use to check blood oxygen levels work by shining light through the skin. Kaur identified the source of a persistent reading error as a second pulsing signal, synchronized with blood flow but originating from a different part of the vascular system, that affects oxygen calculations differently in darker skin. Her project, Eigenpulse: Eliminating Demographic Bias in Pulse Oximetry and Remote PPG from First Principles, isolates and removes this signal from the measurement process, reducing demographic bias from 2.3 percent to less than 0.15 percent.

Siddharth Patel

Platinum Awards – Discovery – Junior Automating Asteroid Detection Criteria to Strengthen Citizen Science for Planetary Defense

Patel, who has personally discovered two asteroids through the International Astronomical Search Collaboration, developed an automated system that helps volunteer astronomers determine whether faint moving objects in telescope images are genuine asteroids, improving the accuracy and reliability of citizen science efforts in planetary defence.

Audrey Cowen

Platinum Awards – Discovery – Senior Harnessing Inhibition of Efflux to Reverse Antifungal Resistance

Cowen identified compounds that block the molecular pumps used by a common drug-resistant fungus to expel antifungal medication, restoring the drug’s effectiveness in killing the infection while confirming minimal toxicity to healthy human cells.

Willem Vuurmans

Platinum Awards – Innovation – Junior EXODEC: A Rational Design Framework for BBB Ligand Evaluation and De Novo Peptide Engineering

Vuurmans built a computational tool to evaluate potential treatments for brain diseases across five stages of crossing the blood-brain barrier, the biological filter that prevents most drugs from reaching the brain.

Siddharth Rajesh

Platinum Awards – Innovation – Intermediate APTAi: De Novo Aptamer Design for Proteomic Biomarker Detection Using a Physics-Informed AI Model

Rajesh developed an AI-powered platform to design aptamers, short DNA sequences used to detect disease-related proteins, providing a rapid alternative to the expensive, months-long laboratory process currently required to develop diagnostics for conditions such as sepsis.

View CWSF 2026 results & slides

Exiting,, yes?

Canadian Science Policy Centre’s (CSPC) June 4, 2026 virtual panel “Sowing Security: The Agri-Food Sector and Canada’s Defence Industrial Strategy”

Leave a reply

There’s more to this posting than the virtual panel, as intriguing as I found the combination of agri-food with defence industrial strategy but those come later, with less detail. First from a May 28, 2026 Canadian Science Policy Centre (CPSC) notice (received via email),

June 4 [2026]: Sowing Security: The Agri-Food Sector and Canada’s Defence Industrial Strategy

Join us on June 4 [2026] from 12:00–1:30 PM EST for a timely “Deep Dive” panel exploring the intersection of food security and national resilience. In an era of growing global volatility, food security is no longer just an agricultural issue—it is a cornerstone of national security. As Canada advances its Defence Industrial Strategy [DIS], this session will examine how the agri-food sector can support stable, innovative, and secure supply chains. Featuring experts from research, industry, and policy, the panel will highlight the role of agricultural innovation and food sovereignty in strengthening Canada’s security, including discussions on protecting critical food infrastructure, leveraging dual-use agri-tech, and enhancing resilience against emerging global and environmental threats.

Register (For Free)

….

The CSPC’s “Sowing Secutiry: The Agri-Food Sector and Canada’s Defence Industrial Strategy” event page offers details about the speakers,

[Moderator]

Shayan Sharif

Distinguished Research Chair in Agri-Food Biosecurity, Associate Dean, Research and Graduate Studies,  University of Guelph

Sharif led various research programs, training initiatives and agri-food research centres owned by the Agricultural Research Institute of Ontario and operated by U of G, including those at the Ridgetown Campus. He also oversaw the Laboratory Services Division and fostered relationships with a range of public- and private-sector partners.

Sharif is a professor of immunology whose research focuses on poultry diseases, such as avian influenza. He is dedicated to developing innovative vaccines to control these infections. Additionally, in the past, he led the Poultry Health Research Network, collaborating with experts from academia, government and industry. More recently, he was instrumental in establishing a translational health initiative at the University, bridging veterinary and human health research to translate laboratory discoveries into treatments for both animals and humans.

[Panelists]

Virginia Mulligan

Director of Agriculture and Food Innovation, Alberta Innovates

Virginia Mulligan is Director of Agriculture and Food Innovation, where she designs and delivers strategic programs that support innovation and sustainability in Alberta’s agriculture sector, with additional experience in forestry and energy. She has been involved in developing and delivering initiatives that surface promising technologies and turn ideas into practical tools for end users. Her work supports a diverse portfolio of projects focused on improving resource efficiency, strengthening on-farm practices, and enabling more informed decision-making across the sector. Virginia works closely with industry, academia, and government partners to ensure this work is well informed, collaborative, and responsive to evolving needs. She brings a practical, systems-level perspective on the role of innovation in advancing sustainable and resilient agri-food systems.

Brodie Berrigan

Senior Director of Government Relations and Farm Policy, Canadian Federation of Agriculture

As Senior Director of Government Relations and Farm Policy at the Canadian Federation of Agriculture (CFA), Brodie Berrigan plays a key role in coordinating the organization’s policy development and government relations, with leadership on files including risk management, food security, labour, trade and transportation. 

Prior to joining the CFA, he spent many years working for the Government of Canada across several departments, including Public Services and Procurement Canada, the Privy Council Office, and Employment and Social Development Canada. 

Mr. Berrigan holds a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science and History from the University of Ottawa, a Master’s degree in Public Policy and Administration from Carleton University, and a diploma in Business – Agriculture from Algonquin College. 

Dana Dickerson

Director of Market Development and Sustainability, Grain Farmers of Ontario

Dana Dickerson is Director of Market Development and Sustainability at Grain Farmers of Ontario. Working on behalf of 28,000 farmers who grow barley, corn, oats, wheat, and soybeans, Dana focuses on strengthening existing markets and creating new demand across food, feed, fuel, beverage, and bioproduct sectors. She works closely with farmers, processors and governments to encourage value‑added processing innovation in Ontario, grow grain exports, and support farmer and customer sustainability.

Ian Affleck

Vice President – Plant Biotechnology, CropLife Canada

Ian Affleck, is the vice-president of plant biotechnology for CropLife Canada. In this role, Affleck works with domestic and international agricultural stakeholders and governments on the development of policies, regulations, and science related to plant biotechnology. Prior to joining CropLife Canada, Affleck worked at the Canadian Food Inspection Agency for 10 years. His work there focused on the regulation of novel plants and new varieties. Affleck holds a B Sc from Nova Scotia Agricultural College and a Masters from the University of Guelph. Affleck has been involved in agriculture from an early age, having grown up on a potato farm in Bedeque, PEI.

[Logistical details]

Date: Jun 4 [2026]

Time:: 12:00 pm – 1:30 pm EDT

Event Category: Virtual Sessions

Website: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_5wWYqSlgTZOMaSY7z2Mgqg

I have a few more items from the CSPC’s May 28, 2026 notice. In the order in which they appeared,

…

Deadline Extended to June 19 [2026]:

Call for French Editorial Series Vol. 2

The deadline to submit editorials for the French Editorial Series Vol. 2 has been extended to June 19, 2026! This volume features a call for editorials entitled: “Collaborating to Innovate: Building Scientific Bridges Across Regions and Sectors in Canada.”

Scientific collaboration between francophone and other linguistic communities across Canada continues to face challenges due to silos and regional disparities, despite the strong potential for pan-Canadian collaboration. This call seeks proposals that foster scientific collaboration in Canada and create networking opportunities across regions and disciplines, including but not limited to biomedical sciences, social sciences and humanities, natural sciences, and engineering.

For more details and to submit an editorial, click below.

Submit an Editorial

Deadline Extended to June 5 [2026]: Science Meets Parliament (SMP) Federal

2026 Applications

CSPC is excited to announce that the deadline for the SMP Federal 2026 program applications has been extended to June 5, 2026! SMP Federal returns in 2026 following a successful 2025 program. This initiative connects scientists and parliamentarians, fostering dialogue and strengthening evidence-informed policymaking in Canada. SMP Federal will take place November 23 – 24, 2026 in Ottawa, preceding the 18th annual Canadian Science Policy Conference. 

For more information on eligibility criteria and to submit an application, click the button below. 

SMP Federal 2026 Applications

Canadian Forum on Social Innovation (CFSI) Symposium – June 3 [2026]

CSPC and Partners present Canadian Forum on Social Innovation (CFSI) Symposium, From Fragmentation to Coherence in Canada’s Science and Innovation Ecosystem

In a knowledge-driven economy, Canadian universities play a central role in advancing the country’s science and research strategy by generating and mobilizing the talent and knowledge that support economic, social and public innovation, national competitiveness, effective regulation, and societal well-being. 

On June 3rd 2026 in Calgary, AB, the CFSI Symposium will launch the Strategic Science and Innovation Leadership Initiative (SSIL) and convene a high-level national dialogue on the science and research strategy Canada needs to support a more holistic approach to conceiving, implementing and maintaining the conditions for inclusive prosperity. The CFSI SSIL Symposium will bring together higher education, industry and nonprofit leaders, policymakers, research and community funders and capacity builders to examine how science and research can support Canada’s ambitions across all sectors.  

More information is available on our website, or visit the registration page below to join the conversation in Calgary.

Registration Page

…

For Canadian science policy wonks, this looks to be a busy June (first half at least).