blog posts

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  Robotic pancreas transplant offers hope

  Jul 10, 2019 11:45 am

  Surgeons at UI Health have demonstrated that obese patients with Type 1 diabetes can safely receive a pancreas transplant when the surgery is performed robotically. More...

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  Revealing path to better rechargeable battery performance

  Nov 17, 2022 8:30 am

  To design better rechargeable ion batteries, UIUC engineers and chemists collaborated to combine a powerful new electron microscopy technique and data mining to visually pinpoint areas of chemical and physical alteration within ion batteries.

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  Researchers reveal new way to harvest untapped fresh water source

  Dec 12, 2022 8:30 am

  A new University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign study is the first to suggest an investment in new infrastructure capable of harvesting oceanic water vapor as a solution to limited supplies of fresh water in various locations around the world.

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  Researchers create room-temperature 1,000+ cycle solid-state Li-air battery

  Mar 21, 2023 10:00 am

  Senior author Mohammad Asadi said the battery design could store 1 kWh/kg or more, four times more than current Li-ion batteries. 

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  Real Impact: Synchrony culture empowers next-gen innovators

  Sep 28, 2022 10:30 am

  Synchrony Financial and the University of Illinois System place great value on internships that lead to the high-tech jobs of today and the future.

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  Real Impact: Start-up shows what happens with the right support

  Sep 2, 2022 9:15 am

  “Distillery Labs, the network of Illinois Innovation Network hubs, iVenture Accelerator and others – we are all on his side with resources and want to see the We Hear You team succeed.”

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  Prosthetic arms provide sensory feedback

  Jul 18, 2018 3:00 pm

  Aadeel Akhtar, an M.D./Ph.D. student at Illinois, developed a control algorithm to give prosthetic arm users reliable sensory feedback. More...

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  Promising nanoscale material captured by UIC's Electron Microscopy Core

  May 8, 2023 10:15 am

  Researchers visually captured the structure of MXenes - synthetic compounds with promise for energy storage, sensing, and superconductivity - using the world-class electron microscopy resources and expertise at UIC to reveal novel structures with intriguing properties.

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  Pritzker, stakeholders unveil design for Discovery Partners Institute at The 78

  Sep 23, 2022 2:45 pm

  Located on a one-acre site southwest of the Loop, the new DPI headquarters will provide more than 200,000 square feet of office, classroom, lab, and event space for DPI and its university and industry partners.

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  Printing flattens polymers, improves conductivity

  Aug 9, 2019 12:00 pm

  Researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have found a way to use polymer printing to stretch and flatten twisted molecules so that they conduct electricity better. More...

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  Potential new cystic fibrosis treatment

  Mar 30, 2019 12:15 pm

  An approved drug normally used to treat fungal infections could also do the job of a protein channel that is missing or defective in the lungs of people with cystic fibrosis, operating as a prosthesis on the molecular scale. More...

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  Portable, point-of-care COVID-19 test could bypass the lab

  Aug 31, 2020 11:00 am

  University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign researchers developed a microfluidic cartridge for a 30-minute COVID-19 test. The cartridges are 3D-printed and could be manufactured quickly.

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  Phase 1 human trials suggest UIC-developed breast cancer drug is safe, effective

  Aug 27, 2020 11:00 am

  A new type of breast cancer drug developed by researchers at the University of Illinois Chicago can help halt progression of disease and is not toxic, according to phase 1 clinical trials. 

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  Online tool speeds response to elephant poaching by tracing ivory to source

  Nov 1, 2019 5:30 am

  A new tool uses an interactive database of geographic and genetic information to help authorities quickly identify where the confiscated tusks of African elephants were originally poached. More...

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  NSF visits Urbana to announce two awards totaling more than $40 million

  Apr 27, 2022 8:00 am

  The Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research and Innovation at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign highlights a recent visit from the director of the National Science Foundation, and shares how federally funded research at our nation’s universities creates new companies, industries, opportunities, and jobs—and the tech-savvy, educated workforce needed to fill them. 

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  NSF grants $10M for collaborative data science institute in Chicago

  Aug 4, 2022 1:00 pm

  A multidisciplinary team representing five Chicago-area university research centers will unite as part of a new data science institute backed by a five-year, $10 million grant from the National Science Foundation.

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  NSF, DOE grants fund UIC research to decarbonize cement manufacturing

  Jul 28, 2022 1:30 pm

  Chemical engineers at the University of Illinois Chicago are investigating new methods to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from cement manufacturing.

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  NSF awards UIC $1.5M for new data science institute

  Mar 24, 2020 2:30 pm

  A multidisciplinary team of University of Illinois at Chicago researchers received a three-year, $1.5 million grant from the National Science Foundation to form a new data science institute. More...

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  New volcanic eruption forecasting technique

  Sep 10, 2019 7:00 am

  University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign geologists are part of a team that has developed new computer models to help researchers better forecast volcanic eruptions. More...

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  New UIUC greenhouse aims to incubate bioenergy crops

  Oct 16, 2023 10:00 am

  The new facility will house a high-throughput plant phenotyping facility designed to monitor the growth of grasses such as miscanthus and specialized strains of sugarcane and sorghum that could be developed into biofuels.

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  New UIUC ACES dean Bollero points college towards innovative future

  Aug 28, 2023 10:15 am

  “What allures me is the curiosity of learning new things. I’m still curious about the future — and that really drives me to do better,” says Germán Bollero, dean of the University of Illinois College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences.

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  New UIC Engineering Innovation Building

  Jul 22, 2019 12:00 pm

  UIC's new 57,500-square-foot building will add depth and breadth to the university’s expanding engineering footprint. It will house engineers investigating phenomena on a scale from the very large to the exceedingly small. More...

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  New technique to de-ice surfaces in seconds

  Sep 3, 2019 12:00 pm

  Researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign collaborated with Kyushu University researchers to develop a system that can de-ice surfaces in seconds. More...

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  New smartphone clip-on can detect Zika virus in blood samples

  Aug 4, 2022 1:15 pm

  Rsearchers at UIUC have developed an instrument that can be clipped on to a smartphone to rapidly test for Zika virus in a single droplet of blood. 

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  New set of chemical building blocks makes complex 3D molecules in a snap

  Feb 9, 2022 8:45 am

  UIUC researchers developed a new class of chemical building blocks and a next-generation molecule-making machine to assemble them into complex small molecules with 3D twists and turns.

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  New seizure-monitoring baseball cap innovated by Carle Illinois students

  Jan 21, 2022 3:15 pm

  A new seizure-monitoring baseball cap could help doctors diagnose patients with epilepsy more quickly and comprehensively. The innovation is called Epicap. 

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  New polymer property could give accessible solar power a boost

  Jun 9, 2022 8:30 am

  Researchers at the Beckman Institute are the first to observe structural chirality, a biological property important to photosynthesis, emerging in achiral conjugated polymers. Their discovery could help enhance flexible solar cell design and increase access to affordable renewable energy.

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  New generation of biobots developed

  Sep 16, 2019 2:00 pm

  Urbana-Champaign researchers have developed soft robotic devices driven by neuromuscular tissue that triggers when stimulated by light – bringing mechanical engineering one step closer to developing autonomous biobots. More...

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  New 'biohybrid' machines weave electronics with living cells

  Mar 6, 2023 12:30 pm

  A long-time staple of science fiction, biohybrid tech now appears within reach. UIUC researchers are working towards creating these machines, made from both living and artificial parts, that can behave with similar dexterity to living creatures.

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  New antiplatelet drug shows promise for treating heart attack

  Jul 15, 2020 9:30 am

  Researchers at the University of Illinois Chicago have developed a new drug that prevents blood clots without causing an increased risk of bleeding, a common side effect of all antiplatelet medications currently available.

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  New 3D inductor technology expands microchip capability

  Mar 25, 2020 2:30 pm

  University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign engineers introduce a micrhochip inductor capable of tens of millitesla-level magnetic induction in a new study. More...

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  Nature-loving maker converts food waste into Pyrus, a wood proxy

  Jan 24, 2023 11:45 am

  Gabe Tavas founded SymmetryWood, one of many startups born at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, his alma mater. A research powerhouse, UIUC is part of the University of Illinois System, which prioritizes innovation that improves lives in the state and beyond. 

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  Musicians, chemists use sound to better understand science

  Feb 23, 2022 9:00 am

  A team of researchers at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign is using sonification – the use of sound to convey information – to depict biochemical processes and better understand how they happen.

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  Model calculates energetics of piercing fangs and claws

  Oct 25, 2022 1:00 pm

  Researchers have created a model that can calculate the energetics involved when one organism stabs another with its fangs, thorns, spines or other puncturing parts.

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  Manipulating atoms to make better superconductors

  Mar 2, 2020 2:30 pm

  A new study by UIC researchers shows that it is possible to manipulate individual atoms so that they begin working in a collective pattern that has the potential to become superconducting at higher temperatures. More...

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  Lithium-air batteries

  Feb 15, 2019 9:30 am

  Lithium-air batteries, according to UIC researchers, could be even more efficient and provide more charge with the incorporation of advanced catalysts made from two-dimensional materials. More...

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  Lighter, stronger, faster bionic hand aided by composites design

  Mar 27, 2023 11:30 am

  As a Ph.D. student at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Aadeel Akhtar began working on a bionic prosthetic hand concept that would be faster, more functional, and more affordable than alternatives on the market. 

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  Innovate Springfield hub

  Oct 16, 2018 10:00 am

  Innovate Springfield, a downtown Springfield innovation and business incubator, has become part of the University of Illinois at Springfield under an agreement aimed at expanding economic growth, entrepreneurship opportunities and social progress in the capital city. More...

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  In-development app will help providers spot misinformation

  Jan 6, 2023 10:15 am

  University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign researchers are partnering with healthcare professionals so they're able to dispel incorrect perceptions their patients have based on unreliable sources.

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  Imaging of exotic quantum particles

  Jul 29, 2019 11:00 am

  Researchers at UIC, in collaboration with colleagues at the University of Hamburg, have imaged an exotic quantum particle that can be used as a building block for future qubits and eventually the realization of quantum computers. More...

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  IBM and Grainger College of Engineering to launch new Discovery Accelerator Institute

  May 26, 2021 10:00 am

  IBM and The Grainger College of Engineering at UIUC plan to launch a large-scale collaboration designed to increase access to technology education and skill development, and to combine the strengths of academia and the industrial sector to spur breakthroughs in emerging areas of technology.

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  Hybrid air-conditioning system

  Oct 16, 2018 10:15 am

  NETenergy, a clean tech startup company based on technology developed and licensed by UIC, will commercialize its unique hybrid, super-efficient air-conditioning system with funding from the U.S. Department of Energy. More...

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  Human reflexes keep two-legged robot upright

  Oct 30, 2019 1:00 pm

  Urbana mechanical science and engineering professor João Ramos developed a human-operated robot which relies on human reflexes to remain upright during locomotion. More...

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  Humanities research program elevated to institute status

  Jun 11, 2020 9:30 am

  The Illinois Program for Research in the Humanities has been formally recognized for its leading role in fostering humanities research at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, with an elevation to institute status.

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  Hich-tech gel aids delivery of drugs

  Aug 28, 2019 2:30 pm

  Eben Alsberg, UIC, and colleagues report on a hydrogel-based carrier that can deliver small interfering RNA molucules directly to where they are needed. More...

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  Hands-free "ballbot" wheelchair prototype achieves major milestone

  Apr 10, 2023 11:30 am

  PURE - Personalized Unique Rolling Experience - is a hands-free wheelchair that rolls on a ball or “spherical” wheel. The rider simply leans in the desired direction of travel.

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  Groundbreaking self-driving test track coming to Central Illinois

  Aug 11, 2021 12:15 pm

  The Rantoul Village Board approved a lease agreement with the University of Illinois on Tuesday night that is the latest step toward construction of a multimillion-dollar autonomous-transportation testing facility and track on the grounds of the former Chanute Air Force Base.

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  Green roofs are worth the cost for urban residents

  May 18, 2022 3:00 pm

  A new study from UIUC, Reed College, and Portland State University explores the benefits of investing in rooftop gardens, which can reduce the impact of stormwater runoff. 

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  Gov. Pritzker announces funding for UIS Innovation Center

  Feb 12, 2020 10:15 am

  The UIS Innovation Center will receive $15 million in state funds as part of the $500 million appropriation for the Illinois Innovation Network and the Discovery Partners Institute.

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  Good News Now

  Jul 19, 2018 3:00 pm

  While attending the University of Illinois at Springfield, Miranda Mogle came up with the concept for a new computer application called Good News Now, a news content aggregator that screens out unpleasant news stories providing consumers with only positive news. More...