Woodrats’ dietary breadth is driven by the costs of both specialization and generalization. For example, generalist woodrats continued to eat harmful creosote year-round, even when less toxic plants were available. This suggests that the costs to introducing a new food source may be higher than maintaining a consistent, if more toxic, diet. Scientists assume that generalist species are more tolerant of change or more effective invaders. The research reveals this may be untrue when generalists are comprised of locally adapted specialists. 

The Rotating Detonation Engine offers the ability to deliver satellites to precise orbits in outer space with greater robustness and reduced fuel consumption and emissions than with current conventional engines. However, there are many fundamental scientific challenges that remain related to designing materials systems that can perform under these extreme engine conditions. A new multi-institutional collaborative $2 million grant, "Thriving While Detonating – Materials for Extreme Dynamic Thermomechanical Performance,” led by Natasha Vermaak, an associate professor of mechanical engineering and mechanics in Lehigh University’s P.C. Rossin College of Engineering and Applied Science, addresses some of these materials design challenges. 

A new AI framework improves how complex systems with unequal decision-makers like smart grids – traffic networks, and autonomous vehicles – are managed. Unlike traditional models that assume equal influence and timing, this approach uses a Stackelberg-Nash game structure, where leader agents act first and followers respond optimally. It also features an event-triggered mechanism that updates decisions only when needed, cutting computational load. The result is smarter, more efficient AI that adapts to real-world uncertainty, limited resources, and hierarchical decision-making.

As the frequency and intensity of heatwaves increase across the U.S., a similar but more striking phenomenon is occurring in American rivers. Analysis of data from nearly 1,500 sites in the contiguous United States between 1980 and 2022 revealed that heatwaves in rivers are accelerating faster than and lasting nearly twice as long air heatwaves, according to a new study by researchers at Penn State.