Work engagement is a persistent, positive state of mind that enhances productivity, creativity, and well-being. However, few practical methods exist to foster it. Addressing this gap, researchers from Japan developed WEDiary, a smartphone app that encourages daily positive reflection on work achievements. In a randomized controlled trial involving 600 Japanese workers, the app significantly improved work engagement levels in only 2 weeks, with effects lasting 3 weeks beyond the intervention.

A team led by UVA professor Evan Scott recently published a paper in Nature Communications unveiling a polymer-based system for precise, non-invasive treatment delivery that avoids immune rejection.

Social hierarchies are everywhere—think of high school dramas, where the athletes are portrayed as most popular, or large companies, where the CEO makes the important decisions. Such hierarchies aren’t just limited to humans, but span the animal kingdom, with dominant individuals getting faster food access, higher mating priority, and bigger or better territories. Whilst it’s long been thought that winning or losing can influence the position of an individual within a social hierarchy, the brain mechanisms behind these social dynamics have remained a mystery. In iScience, researchers from the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST) investigate the neurological basis of social hierarchy in male mice, pinpointing the neurons they believe crucial in determining these social hierarchy dynamics.

Scientists have set a record for solar technology, creating the largest and most efficient triple-junction perovskite-perovskite-silicon tandem solar cell reported, a vital step to stabilise next-generation renewable energy technology.

Researchers at Columbia Engineering have developed a compact light source that generates dozens of high-power wavelengths, paving the way for a new generation of data center hardware and portable sensing technologies.