Tech Briefs Magazine - May 2022 - 10

Products of
Tomorrow
This column presents technologies that have
applications in commercial areas, possibly
creating the products of tomorrow. To learn
more about each technology, see the contact
information provided for that innovation.
u Owl Wing Design to Suppress Noise Pollution
Trailing-edge noise is the dominant source of sound from aeronautical and turbine
engines like those in airplanes, drones, and wind turbines. Suppressing this
noise pollution is a major environmental goal for some urban areas. Researchers
from Xi'an Jiaotong University used the characteristics of owl wings to inform
airfoil design and significantly reduce trailing-edge noise. The team used noise
calculation and analysis software to conduct a series of detailed theoretical studies of simplified airfoils with characteristics
reminiscent of owl wings. They applied their findings to suppress the noise of rotating machinery. Improving
the flow conditions around the trailing edge and optimizing the shape of the edge suppressed the noise.
This research has the potential to serve as an important guide for airfoil design and noise control.
Contact: Larry Frum
Phone: 301-209-3090
E-mail: media@aip.org
u Stabilizing
Intelligent
Networks
Inspired by psycholu
A " Cloaking
System " for
Drug Delivery
Columbia Engineering
researchers
have developed
a " cloaking " system that temporarily hides therapeutic
bacteria from immune systems, enabling
them to more effectively deliver drugs to tumors
and kill cancer cells in mice. By manipulating the
microbes' DNA, they programmed gene circuits
that control the bacteria surface, building a molecular
" cloak'' that encapsulates the bacteria. According
to the team, they can regulate the time that bacteria
survive in human blood and increase the
maximum tolerable dose of bacteria. The ideal bacteria
should be able to evade the immune system
upon entry to the body, and efficiently get to the
tumor. And once they are in the tumor, they need to
be eliminated in other parts of the body to minimize
toxicity.
Contact: Holly Evarts
Phone: 347-453-7408
E-mail: holly.evarts@columbia.edu
10
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Tech Briefs, May 2022
ogy, NASA has developed
algorithms that
could be applied toward
creating stable, predictable, and artificially intelligent
networks. The Evolvable Neural Software
System (ENSS), Formulation for Emotion Embedding
in Logic Systems (FEELS), Stability Algorithm
for Neural Entities (SANE), and the Logic Expansion
for Autonomously Reconfigurable Neural Systems
(LEARNS), collectively represent ways for intelligent
systems to identify and correct
unpredictable or unstable behaviors, creating stable
emotional states that govern behaviors with given
specific circumstances, and establishing an evolvable
synthetic neural network that can eventually be
scaled from low-level functions to higher level decision-making
processes. These algorithms could be
key to research in autonomous spacecraft, nanorobotic
swarms, and sensor networks.
Contact: NASA's Licensing Concierge
Phone: 202-358-7432
E-mail: Agency-Patent-Licensing@mail.nasa.gov
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Tech Briefs Magazine - May 2022

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