Researchers from Northwestern University and Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have developed a groundbreaking sticker that allows clinicians to monitor patients’ organs and deep tissues using a simple ultrasound device. This first-of-its-kind sticker can detect health changes in real-time, potentially revolutionizing post-surgery care.

When attached to an organ, the soft, tiny sticker changes shape in response to the body’s fluctuating pH levels, serving as an early warning system for complications such as anastomotic leaks. These leaks occur when gastrointestinal fluids escape the digestive system, posing a life-threatening risk. Currently, no reliable non-invasive methods exist to detect these leaks.

Contact lenses have become remarkably thin, but they pale in comparison to a groundbreaking new lens developed by scientists at Stanford University and the University of Amsterdam. This revolutionary lens measures just three atoms thick, making it the thinnest lens ever created.

Lenses function by collecting light, bending it, and focusing it towards a specific point. This process magnifies objects to correct vision, allows us to observe minute details through microscopes, and lets us see distant objects through telescopes. Typically, lenses are made of curved glass or other transparent materials such as hydrogels for contact lenses. However, these traditional designs can result in large, thick, and heavy lenses, especially when made of glass.