Researchers present a comprehensive review of frontier AI applications in computational structural analysis from 2020 to 2025, focusing on graph neural networks (GNNs), sequence-to-sequence (Seq2Seq) and Transformer-based architectures, and physics-informed methods. Published in Smart Construction, their work offers a valuable guide for researchers and engineers to understand fundamental concepts, current research status, existing challenges, and future application prospects.

Tokyo, Japan – Scientists from Tokyo Metropolitan University have discovered that a hydrogen-absorbing material shrinks in one direction upon heating, so-called negative thermal expansion (NTE). They found that this NTE is driven by a phase transition in the alignment of magnetic moments, an entirely different mechanism from its hydrogen-free counterpart. Since hydrogenation can be tuned, their findings promise customized high-precision ingredients in materials which don’t change in volume on heating, for next-generation precision nanotechnology.

A recent study, published in Science Advances and co-led by Rice University’s Pengcheng Dai, found that the material cerium magnesium hexalluminate (CeMgAl11O19) was not actually in a quantum spin liquid phase despite evidence suggesting it was. 

Researchers develop hybrid foam with a 3D-printed plastic skeleton—strong enough to save lives, light enough for everyday life.