Neuroblastoma remains one of the most unpredictable childhood cancers, ranging from tumors that regress without treatment to aggressive disease that resists intensive therapy. 

Neural activity unfolds through three-dimensional circuits in milliseconds or faster, but many optical microscopes still record volumes sequentially. A new PhotoniX Perspective from UCLA researchers reviews how light-field microscopy is being re-engineered for fast neuroimaging, from brain-wide calcium recordings to kilohertz-class volumetric voltage imaging. The authors argue that light-field microscopy should be judged not as a direct replacement for confocal, multiphoton, or light-sheet microscopy, but by information throughput, latency, photon efficiency, temporal accuracy, and robustness to motion at the speed frontier.

A research team has found that microbial communities in a large, thermally stratified reservoir changed more strongly from year to year than between surface and deep waters, while their overall metabolic functions remained comparatively stable. 

A 360-million-year-old fossil plant named Ganiopteris from Jiangxi Province, China, is the earliest seed plant with ovules borne directly on leaves. The fossil preserves complete megasporophylls with ovules on their undersides; these megasporophylls form a strobilus terminating the axis. The discovery reveals that the evolutionary shift from axial- to leaf-borne ovules occurred at least 40 million years earlier than previously known and offers insights into the origin of Permian glossopterids.

The exponential demand for energy-efficient and adaptive computing architectures drives the evolution of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML). Neuromorphic computing, inspired by biological neural networks, overcomes the limitations of traditional von Neumann architectures, including high energy consumption and limited scalability. The introduction of two-dimensional (2D) materials, such as transition metal dichalcogenides, hexagonal boron nitride, black phosphorus, and tellurene, enables neuromorphic devices with unprecedented control over electronic and optoelectronic properties. These materials exhibit atomic-scale thickness, high carrier mobility, and tunable bandgaps, facilitating synaptic behaviours such as spike-timing-dependent plasticity and paired-pulse facilitation. This review describes the integration of 2D materials into neuromorphic systems, highlighting applications in wearable electronics, brain–machine interfaces, and quantum neuromorphic platforms. In wearable and edge computing, 2D-based devices enable localized, ultra-low-power data processing. In brain–machine interfaces, they enhance signal transduction and neural interfacing. Quantum effects in 2D materials further enable hybrid quantum–classical neuromorphic architectures for high-dimensional computational tasks. Despite significant advances, challenges in reproducibility, scalability, and stability remain. Addressing these limitations through innovations in synthesis and defect passivation is essential for practical application. This review underscores the transformative potential of 2D-material-based neuromorphic computing for energy-efficient AI.

Researchers have developed a directly synthesized p-type PbS quantum dot (QD) ink that can form uniform short-wave infrared imaging films on 6-inch silicon wafers. The ink avoids a common post-treatment step (ligand exchange process) that can crack films and make pixels uneven. Prototype imagers made with the ink produced more uniform images and helped vehicle recognition under foggy conditions.

Researchers at KAIST have developed a new holographic telepresence framework that captures and replays the physical light wavefront from a three-dimensional (3D) scene in real time. Unlike conventional 3D systems that reconstruct objects from depth maps, point clouds, or computer-generated models, the new approach directly measures optical wavefronts using a single camera image. This may help future communication systems reproduce depth, focus, and spatial presence more naturally.

This cross-sectional study, published in Eye & ENT Research, investigated the knowledge, attitudes and practices regarding contact lens (CL) use among students at the College of Health Sciences, University of Ghana. A total of 236 participants were enrolled via convenience sampling. The results revealed a striking mismatch: while nearly all students were aware of contact lenses, only a small proportion possessed adequate knowledge of standard care and usage, and the overall CL wearing rate was very low. Educational level was significantly associated with contact lens acceptability.

Researchers have elucidated the bactericidal mechanisms of microwave ultrahigh temperature treatment against Geobacillus stearothermophilus, a thermophilic bacterium used as an indicator for sterilization validation. A nonlinear relationship between power density and inactivation efficacy was observed: optimal reductions of approximately 5 log CFU·mL⁻¹ were achieved at 150 W·mL⁻¹ for 40 s and 300 W·mL⁻¹ for 20 s, while intermediate powers yielded inferior outcomes despite identical terminal temperature (136±1 °C). Mechanistic analyses revealed that microwave treatment induced significant membrane damage, suppressed metabolic activity, and dramatically elevated intracellular reactive oxygen species and malondialdehyde levels, with oxidative stressmediated lipid peroxidation identified as a primary inactivation mechanism.