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Alaska needs an estimated 27,500 new housing units over the next 10 years to alleviate overcrowding and unsanitary conditions, according to the Alaska Housing Foundation Corporation. An interdisciplinary team of Penn State researchers led by José Pinto Duarte, Stuckeman Chair in Design Innovation and director of the Stuckeman Center for Design Computing (SCDC) in the College of Arts and Architecture’s Stuckeman School, is looking to alleviate some of that stress with a $376,000 U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) grant.

By Matthew Carroll

Implantable biomedical devices — like pacemakers, insulin pumps and neurostimulators — are becoming smaller and utilizing wireless technology, but hurdles remain for powering the next-generation implants. A new wireless charging device developed by Penn State scientists could dramatically improve powering capability for implants while still being safe for our bodies, the researchers said.

Soft bioelectronic devices hold potential for many advances in the health care field, but researchers have faced hurdles in identifying materials that are biocompatible while still maintaining all necessary characteristics to operate effectively. A team co-led by Penn State researchers has now taken a step toward achieving such a material, modifying an existing biocompatible material to conduct electricity efficiently in wet environments, as well as send and detect ionic currents within biological media.

Their results were published in the journal Matter.

By Sarah Small