It’s possible that I shall make an ass of myself. But in that case one can always get out of it with a little dialectic. I have, of course, so worded my proposition as to be right either way (K.Marx, Letter to F.Engels on the Indian Mutiny)
Thursday, August 20, 2026
Study reveals how lung tumors hijack ancient marine metabolic axis to promote malignant growth
The metazoan-conserved KAT2/HDACIIa–PGK–ALDO axis inhibits dual protein degradation systems to enhance glycolysis, linking oyster thermal tolerance to cancer progression
Researchers at the Institute of Oceanology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (IOCAS) have shown how a metabolic mechanism underlying thermal tolerance in intertidal oysters sheds light on malignant proliferation in human lung adenocarcinoma.
The research, which was published in PNAS on August 18, focuses on how cells regulate glycolysis to maintain energy production under conditions of energy stress.
The IOCAS marine shellfish research team uncovered an ancient energy-sensing signaling cascade, termed the KAT2/HDACIIa–PGK–ALDO axis. The axis orchestrates a sophisticated "dual degradation inhibition" mechanism involving the key glycolytic enzymes phosphoglycerate kinase (PGK) and aldolase (ALDO). This mechanism stabilizes and hyperactivates both enzymes to meet cellular energy demands.
Integrating multi-omics data, gene editing, and biochemical functional assays, the researchers discovered that under energy stress, the balance between the acetyltransferase KAT2 and the deacetylase HDACIIa shifts to promote the acetylation of PGK. This modification shields PGK from ubiquitin–proteasomal degradation while strengthening its interaction with ALDO.
In turn, stabilized PGK exhibits a non-canonical protein kinase activity to directly phosphorylate ALDO, simultaneously boosting its catalytic efficiency and suppressing its chaperone-mediated autophagic–lysosomal degradation (CMA). By concurrently shutting down both proteasomal and CMA-mediated lysosomal degradation, this cascade achieves a potent "stabilization-plus-activation" effect, thereby amplifying glycolytic flux to ensure cell survival.
The researchers then identified a striking metabolic parallel between intertidal oysters and human tumors. Sessile intertidal oysters, which regularly endure severe heat, aerial exposure, and hypoxia, exhibit metabolic reprogramming toward aerobic glycolysis that closely mirrors the "Warburg effect" in human tumors. Building upon this evolutionary parallel, the team demonstrated that human lung cancer cells "hijack" this ancient stress-response axis—upregulating KAT2A and downregulating HDAC5 to drive persistent hyperacetylation of PGK1-K75 and hyperphosphorylation of ALDOA-S272, which directly fuels malignant proliferation and metastasis.
"The hypoxia and energy crises endured daily by intertidal oysters remarkably mirror the human tumor microenvironment," said Dr. WANG Chaogang, first author of the study. "Their extraordinary metabolic tolerance and adaptability make them a potential unconventional model organism to decipher the fundamental principles of tumor metabolism."
"Our study bridges marine evolutionary adaptation with human cancer metabolism," said Prof. LI Li, corresponding author of the study. "Hundreds of millions of years of evolution in the harsh intertidal environment have endowed oysters with an ingenious metabolic defense system."
This study not only elucidates the thermal adaptation strategies of marine invertebrates in response to climate warming from an evolutionary biology perspective, but also unveils promising therapeutic targets for the clinical diagnosis and treatment of human malignancies.
Largest genetic study of anorexia nervosa (24,000 people) and first study to compare genetics of people with binge-eating behaviour (39,000) to those without
Genetic associations with binge eating and with anorexia nervosa are not the same as genetic associations with body mass index (BMI)
Binge eating and anorexia nervosa exhibited similar positive genetic correlations with psychiatric disorders but their relationships with body weight and metabolic traits go in opposite directions
New research led by the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience (IoPPN) at King’s College London, in collaboration with an international partnership of researchers, has, for the first time, compared the genetics of people with binge eating versus those without any eating disorder. The paper also includes the largest ever genetic study of anorexia nervosa.
The research, published in Nature Mental Health found that genetic associations with binge eating and with anorexia nervosa were not the same as those with body mass index, despite body mass index being an important factor in both conditions.
Dr Helena Davies, postdoctoral research fellow at the IoPPN and joint-first author on the study, said: “This research confirms on a genetic level that eating disorders are not just about body weight; many of the versions of genes linked to these conditions are different from the versions of genes that are linked to how much someone weighs.”
Researchers identified six areas in the genome, also known as loci, associated with binge eating and eight loci associated with anorexia nervosa in people from European backgrounds.
Binge eating is a symptom that can occur across different eating disorders, most notably binge-eating disorder, but also bulimia nervosa, some cases of anorexia nervosa, and other eating disorders. In this study, the researchers analysed the genetics of the symptom of binge eating, rather than examining specific diagnoses like binge-eating disorder that include binge eating alongside other symptoms.
The researchers compared the DNA of people with binge eating to that of people without this symptom, utilising 27 global datasets and encompassing almost 40,000 individuals with binge eating and over 1.2 million unaffected people. They also compared the DNA of about 25,000 people with anorexia nervosa with the same unaffected individuals.
An analysis of the data revealed six loci associated with binge eating and eight loci associated with anorexia in people from European backgrounds. Six of the anorexia nervosa loci had been implicated in a 2019 genetic study of anorexia, further strengthening the evidence that they play a role in the condition. It is the first time two of the loci associated with anorexia had been identified.
Dr Jonathan Coleman, Senior Lecturer in Statistical Genetics at King’s IoPPN and lead senior author on the study, said, “We've been making important progress in understanding the genetics of anorexia nervosa for several years, but that’s only one of several eating disorders that have major impacts on people's lives. This work is really important - we go beyond anorexia nervosa and start to understand the genetics of binge eating, which affects many people with eating disorders. We're hopeful that our findings will allow future research to improve the lives of people with all eating disorders.”
Some of the binge-eating loci have previously been linked to body size traits, including one near a well-known gene called FTO. FTO has been studied for years because it is tied to higher body weight, and these new results suggest that binge eating may help explain part of the connection between FTO and higher BMI.
The researchers now plan to expand analyses to include other eating disorders such as atypical presentations and Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID), as well as global ancestries, in order to maximise discovery and improve the relevance of findings across populations, ultimately ensuring that genetic insights benefit people worldwide.
The study was an output of the Eating Disorders Working Group of the Psychiatric Genomics Consortium, which is a group of scientists that focus on meta- and mega-analyses of psychiatric eating disorder and symptom genetic studies. This phase of work by the Consortium was partially funded by the US National Institute for Health (NIH). The researchers were supported by a range of bodies including the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Biomedical Research Centre: Maudsley.
Genome-wide association studies of binge -eating behaviour and anorexia nervosa yield insights into the unique and shared biology of eating disorder phenotypes
Article Publication Date
19-Aug-2026
How do body mass index and waist circumference affect mortality in older adults?
In a Journal of the American Geriatrics Society analysis of nationally representative data from 6,905 US adults aged 65 or older followed between 2011–2024, higher body mass index (BMI) was associated with lower mortality risk, whereas higher waist circumference, a marker of abdominal obesity, was independently associated with higher mortality risk after accounting for BMI.
Compared with normal weight, overweight males and males with class I and II obesity (BMI of 30 to less than 40 kg/m2) had 46% and 51% lower risks of mortality, respectively. Additionally, a high waist circumference was also associated with a 24% higher mortality risk in males. Similar patterns were observed in females.
When BMI and waist circumference were evaluated together, being overweight was associated with lower mortality risk regardless of waist circumference among males. Class I and II obesity also remined associated with lower mortality risk exclusively among males with elevated waist circumference. In contrast, being underweight, regardless of waist circumference, and having normal BMI with elevated waist circumference were both associated with higher mortality risk in both males and females.
"BMI and waist circumference provide complementary information about health risk in older adults,” said study co-author, Bryan Blissmer, PhD, of the University of Rhode Island. “Our findings suggest that considering both measures together, rather than relying on BMI alone, may improve mortality risk assessment and support more informed clinical decision-making.”
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Tens of millions of people suffer from traumatic brain injury every year worldwide, with almost 5 million deaths. Yet when it comes to improving clinical outcomes, new research suggests the solution lies far outside hospital operating rooms.
The study relied upon medical school students to gather data involving more than 2,000 patients from 100 hospitals in 29 countries from 2019 to 2022. They found motor vehicle crashes accounted for the biggest single cause of traumatic brain injury globally, although causes varied by country. For example, the study found high rates of traumatic brain injuries from ground-level falls among older adults in wealthier countries.
“You can’t solve a global brain injury crisis in operating rooms alone,” said senior author Ahmed Raslan, M.D., chair of neurological surgery in the OHSU School of Medicine. “This study shows the importance of fixing the systems that surround us.”
Paradoxically, the study found lower rates of traumatic brain injury in less-developed countries than in more industrialized countries. That may be related to the lack of easy access to medical care, especially in rural areas where critically injured people may not survive long enough to make it to a hospital.
“If it takes two hours to get to a hospital in wealthy countries, it can take five days in some low-income countries,” Raslan said.
‘Preventing the injury in the first place’
Previous research delved into effectiveness of various clinical and surgical approaches to treat traumatic brain injuries. Even as surgical and medical teams are continuing to improve care for these patients, the new study is among the first to define injury patterns, care practices and outcomes across countries measured by their human development index accounting for measures like income, education and gross domestic product.
The study suggests the importance of improving infrastructure such as roads and encouraging use of helmets, said lead author Joseph Nugent M.D., M.P.H. M.H.S., a fourth-year resident neurosurgeon at OHSU.
Nugent previously worked as a paramedic in Baltimore while studying public health at Johns Hopkins University’s Bloomberg School of Public Health. He subsequently transitioned to a career as a neurosurgeon.
He was gratified that the study suggests an approach rooted in principles of public health — better roads, improved emergency services, encouraging the use of helmets — will be needed to reduce the global scourge of traumatic brain injuries.
“When I was a paramedic, I brought countless patients to the hospital with traumatic brain injuries,” he said. “Skilled neurosurgeons can accomplish a lot, but my fire department and public health mentors showed me the best way to optimize outcomes for trauma is to direct efforts toward preventing the injury in the first place.”
Strategies to reduce traumatic brain injuries will vary from country to country, researchers said. For example, ground-level falls are the single most common cause of traumatic injury treated at OHSU Hospital.
“We could reduce a lot of mortality from traumatic brain injuries in Oregon if we could make sure that frail people don’t fall,” Raslan said. “Prevention strategies may differ in other countries where young people in motor vehicle accidents account for the largest share of injuries. The gaps are not the same in every country, and policymakers need to design solutions based on their own needs.”
The research project was supported by the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences of the National Institutes of Health, grant award UL1TR002369. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the NIH.
Study involving 100 sitting MPs in the UK reveals gulf between perceptions of the political class and realities of public attitudes on environmental issues such as insulation and green taxes.
MPs also think the UK electorate is far more divided than it is over climate policies. Researchers find statistical evidence for a ‘spiral of silence’ effect in the British Parliament.
Members of Parliament from the UK’s three biggest political parties in the House of Commons significantly overestimate levels of public resistance to major policy proposals for tackling climate change, a University of Cambridge study suggests.
Researchers say it may be the first data-led evidence for a “spiral of silence” in Westminster, where skewed perceptions of public sentiment among politicians can reduce political support for a policy.
The study’s authors, from the University’s El-Erian Institute of Behavioural Economics and Policy and the Cambridge Political Psychology Lab, surveyed one hundred sitting MPs on how they think voters and other parliamentarians feel about carbon reduction policies, and compared their estimates with public polling from earlier in the year.*
On making grants or loans for improved insulation available to all households with an energy efficiency rating of C or below, MPs collectively estimated public opposition to the policy at around 18%, more than three times the actual level of just 6%.
When asked about rejigging tax on products so that it varies according to environmental damage, MPs believed public opposition to be around 38%, almost double the 20% shown by polling the British people.
“MPs across parties who both support and oppose climate policies consistently overestimate public opposition,” said study lead author Dr Lisa-Maria Tanase, who conducted the work for her PhD at Cambridge. “This is likely to limit the range of what they consider to be politically feasible options for taking action on climate change.”
“Our findings cannot be explained away by wishful thinking of politicians or the projecting of their own worldview. On average, even MPs who support a climate policy think the public is more opposed to it than it really is,” said Tanase.
“Politicians, like all of us, are often exposed to information environments that distort perceptions of public opinion. Social and traditional media can disproportionately reflect particularly vocal segments of society rather than the full distribution of opinion.”
“We find a ‘funhouse mirror’ effect through which politicians see a distorted version of the public position on carbon reduction policies, associated with a lower willingness to promote these ideas,” said Tanase, now a Postdoctoral Research Associate at Cambridge’s El-Erian Institute of Behavioural Economics and Policy.
False polarisation
MPs also believed the UK electorate to be far more politically polarised over carbon reduction – or “net zero” – policies than it is, according to the study published in the journal Communications Sustainability.
Polling showed a 12-percentage point difference in support for the insulation and product tax policies between Labour and Conservative voters, but MPs estimated it at more than double that, at around 25 percentage points.
MPs predicted the difference between Lib Dem and Conservative voters on climate policies at 30 percentage points, when polling put it at just 14 points. Even the small two-point difference between Labour and Lib Dem voters was estimated at nearly five points by politicians.
“A number of previous studies show that exaggerated perceptions of polarisation can reduce the willingness of politicians to engage in cross-party dialogue,” said Tanase.
This “false polarisation” was most evident for Conservative voters, who MPs considered to be far more sceptical of these climate policies than polling suggested.
MPs overestimated the divide by about fivefold, believing Conservatives were on average 12.6 percentage points less supportive than the general public, when polling showed it to be just 2.5 percentage points.
“Environmentally supportive Conservative voters may end up feeling misrepresented if politicians consistently exaggerate how different their attitudes are from those of other voters,” Tanase said.
Spiral of silence
In fact, how MPs perceived public support for a green product tax predicted their willingness to advocate for it, even after accounting for each MP’s personal belief in the policy, the study found. Parliamentarians who thought support among the electorate was lower were on average less willing to speak up for the tax in public.
Researchers also asked MPs to estimate how many other parliamentarians would back a green product tax. Again, believing it to have less support among colleagues across parties correlated, on average, with MPs saying they would be less willing to champion it in Westminster, regardless of whether they personally support the policy.
Tanase says the study provides some evidence of a “spiral of silence” among MPs, as perceptions of low support among the electorate or Parliament reduces their willingness to speak up for a policy – even if it’s one they support. This suppressive effect is policy-dependent, as it wasn’t detected for insulation subsidies.**
Researchers found that parliamentarians not only overestimated opposition, but also markedly underestimated public support for the climate policies.
MPs underestimated public backing for an environmental product tax by 14.9 percentage points and underestimated support for the energy efficiency policy by 7.1 percentage points. Overall, MPs underestimated public support for these climate policies by about 11 percentage points on average.
However, the study suggests MPs’ beliefs about public opposition to climate policies are more influential. “Overestimating opposition is likely to generate greater political risk aversion than assuming the public is merely ambivalent,” Tanase said.
The researchers found all these misperceptions to be so potent that when they randomly assigned half the MPs to receive public polling results, then asked them to estimate support for another set of climate policies, it barely moved the dial in reducing inaccurate estimations.
“Our study found a systematic pessimism about the public appetite for climate action among the UK’s most influential decision-makers, and evidence that it affects their intended behaviour on climate action,” added Tanase.
“This may be contributing to a silencing effect in Parliament around one of the defining policy challenges of the 21st century.”
Tanase, L-M, Reisch L. A., Dewies M, De-Wit, L. Perception gaps in British Parliament reveal a possible pathway to stronger climate policy action. Communications Sustainability. DOI:
Notes:
* The surveying of sitting MPs took place during December 2024 and January 2025. The public polling benchmark was a nationally representative survey of 4,201 UK adults conducted by Ipsos UK between 18 and 24 April 2024. The polling asked people about the specific policies outlined in the study, such as the home insulation policy and green product tax.
** The study’s authors write that: "No significant silencing effect was found for the energy efficiency subsidy policy, likely due to the broader expected popularity and relative lack of controversy of subsidy policies compared to tax-based measures."
The sample of MPs in the study consisted of sitting Labour (80), Conservative (16) and Liberal Democrat (4) parliamentarians. While it approaches representing the composition of the Commons at the time, there is an overrepresentation of Labour MPs and an underrepresentation of Liberal Democrat MPs.
When temperatures rise, public advice is familiar: drink water, avoid strenuous activity during the hottest hours, keep homes cool, and check on older or isolated people. These recommendations are reflected in the latest heat-health guidance from the WHO Regional Office for Europe. Authorities can reinforce them through clear warnings, accessible cooling spaces, and protection for outdoor and overheated indoor workers. Such actions save lives. Yet they also reveal a basic inequality: not everyone can decide when to stop working, afford air conditioning, reach a shaded route, or live in a home that remains safe at night.
Thermal Justice framework
Researchers from ETH Zurich, the Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology (Eawag), and international partner institutions address this problem in a Comment in Nature Climate Change. They define ‘Thermal Justice’ as an application of Environmental Justice to heat. “The question is not only whether a measure lowers temperatures, but whether people can actually sleep, work, move, care for others, and remain healthy during heat,” says lead author and Environmental Engineering researcher, Lucas Gobatti. The framework brings together five dimensions:
The fair distribution of thermal burdens and benefits
Recognition of structurally produced vulnerabilities,
Participation in decision-making,
The capability of people and communities to function safely, and the
Protection of ecosystems and future generations.
Cooling can create new inequalities
The framework also draws attention to thermal displacement: cooling one person or place can transfer heat-related risks elsewhere. Air conditioning protects people indoors, but releases waste heat outside, increases electricity demand and excludes those who cannot afford it. Urban greening can provide shade while raising rents and pushing residents towards hotter neighbourhoods. Cooling that depends on intensive irrigation, fragile energy systems, or neglected maintenance may solve an immediate problem while also creating future vulnerability. These shifts become unjust when the burdens fall on communities, ecosystems, or generations with less power to avoid them.
Adapting for the long term
A thermally just heat response must, therefore, combine emergency protection with structural change. During heatwaves, cities should prioritise exposed and isolated residents, accessible public cooling, worker protection, shaded routes to essential services, and affordable indoor cooling. Between heatwaves, they should retrofit poorly protected housing, expand durable green and blue infrastructure, match vegetation to water availability, and prevent cooling investments from displacing the people they were intended to protect.
Ultimately, success should be measured not only by warnings issued, cooling centres opened or trees planted, but by whether human and ecological life can continue safely without shifting heat risk elsewhere.
Thermal Justice at the Scientifica science festival
The ideas behind this research have also been translated into a collaborative board game, “Thermal Justice: a serious game.” It explores how cities can respond to extreme heat – not only effectively, but in a just way. In this interactive simulation, players work together to protect citizens from heat stress while managing limited energy, water, space, and financial resources. The game highlights the difficult trade-offs involved in urban cooling and explores who benefits and who bears the costs.
The game will be presented in a workshop at the upcoming Scientifica science festival in Zurich, Switzerland. It offers visitors the opportunity to explore the challenges of just and climate-resilient heat adaptation firsthand. More information about the workshop visit Scientifica.ch.
As climate impacts such as heatwaves, floods, and fires are intensifying worldwide, there is an urgent demand for information on how to respond. IIASA researchers and partners have developed a new tool that meets that need, integrating climate drivers, risks, and adaptation options in one framework grounded in IPCC science. It turns authoritative global climate assessments into guidance practitioners can use.
The new climate impact taxonomy, developed as part of research published in Nature Climate Change, can help translate the scientific findings of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) into practical information for policymakers, adaptation planners, climate service providers, and other decision makers.
The IPCC assessment reports provide a wealth of scientific information, but there has been limited integration between the physical science of climate change and the assessment of its impacts and adaptation options. Practitioner-oriented products that translate IPCC concepts into actionable information have also been missing. The new taxonomy was created to bridge that gap by providing a shared framework that links measurable climate changes with the risks arising from them, and examples of how those risks can be addressed.
The tool systematically connects all 35 climatic impact-drivers identified by the IPCC, including physical climate conditions such as coastal flooding, drought, or extreme heat, with the eight representative key risks, which describe the major climate-related risks to ecosystems, infrastructure, food security, water resources, cities, and human wellbeing. Each connection is enriched with practical information, including the scale at which impacts occur, the systems affected, examples of adaptation responses, links to mitigation options, and references to the relevant IPCC chapters.
"This work is less about producing new climate science and more about making existing information actionable. Navigating the IPCC reports can be challenging due to their scope and complexity. Our taxonomy provides an easier entry point by directly linking measurable climatic impact-drivers to specific risks and adaptation responses," explains lead author Michaela Werning, a researcher in the IIASA Energy, Climate, and Environment Program.
The researchers highlight several important patterns in the information compiled within the taxonomy. More than half of the combinations of climate hazards and the risks they create primarily play out at regional scales, underscoring that many climate impacts are determined by unique regional conditions. The analysis also found an almost even split between gradual changes in the climate and extreme events, showing that it is important to build capacity not only to deal with such events, but also to plan on longer time scales. In addition, just under half of the climate driver-risk combinations are expected to reach high levels of risk at around 1.5°C of global warming, while a similar proportion reaches high levels of risk beyond 2°C, emphasizing the need for both mitigation and adaptation. The taxonomy also highlights where scientific evidence is still limited, helping identify priorities for future research.
The researchers see a wide range of potential applications for which the taxonomy could provide useful information to stakeholders. Climate service providers could use it to build tailored risk dashboards, adaptation planners could use it to identify suitable response options, and policymakers could better understand how reducing emissions today can lower future climate risks across different sectors. It also offers the scientific community a practical framework for integrating knowledge across the physical science of climate change and the assessment of its impacts and corresponding adaptation options.
“As impacts from climate change become more frequent and climate risks intensify in communities around the world, a shared language and framework will be increasingly critical. This taxonomy can both engage newer and larger audiences and advance a global response that protects people and the planet,” says coauthor Seth Monteith, Director, Advisory and Insights at ClimateWorks Foundation.
The team notes that the taxonomy is a prototype that could lay the groundwork for more coherent and actionable climate impact assessments. They envision it as a starting point and a living tool that invites research and practitioner communities to refine and validate it.
“No single team has the expertise to cover the full breadth of climate impacts on its own. That’s exactly why we have created a structured and transparent way for people to submit feedback. We need voices from across the research and practitioner community to test, challenge, and improve this prototype," says Alexander Nauels, study coauthor and a Senior Research Scholar in the Integrated Climate Impacts Research Group of the IIASA Energy, Climate, and Environment Program.
Through this collaborative process, the team hopes to deliver climate information that is increasingly useful for those making decisions in a changing climate.
Reference Werning, M., Byers, E., Andrijevic, M., Schleussner, C-F., Monteith, S., Aldrete Lopez, L., Lemaire, V., Matsumae, E., Thomas, A., Nauels, A. (2026). A climate impact taxonomy operationalizing IPCC physical driver and risk concepts. Nature Climate Change DOI: 10.1038/S41558-026-02717-7 (link will be live once the embargo lifts)
About IIASA: The International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) is an international scientific institute that conducts research into the critical issues of global environmental, economic, technological, and social change that we face in the twenty-first century. Our findings provide valuable options to policymakers to shape the future of our changing world. IIASA is independent and funded by prestigious research funding agencies in Africa, the Americas, Asia, and Europe. www.iiasa.ac.at
Figure1 | ML-based design process and schematic of the DPP smart window. a, The proposed ML-based approach including candidate materials and spatial arrangements. b, ML-based design with global optimization solutions. c, ML-based design for customized objective and customer-specific spectral demands. d, Schematic of the final goal for directional privacy protection. e, 9 typical commercial glass with statistical Tlum, TNIR, and εLWIR. f, Schematic of the proposed DPP smart window compared with commercial glass.
The modernization of urban infrastructure and the rapid electrification of transportation networks have brought the severe energy inefficiency of conventional windows into sharp focus. Windows are among the least energy-efficient components, accounting for 50 to 75 percent of the thermal load in electric vehicle cabins and about 45 percent of total energy losses in buildings. In this push for a sustainable environment, dynamic smart windows are increasingly demanded to replace static commercial privacy glasses. However, current commercial glazing cannot adapt to seasonal environmental shifts and suffers from inherent physical trade-offs. Hence, they are far from efficient in many points of view, from all-weather energy conservation to thermal comfort.
In a new paper published in Light: Science & Applications, a team of scientists, led by Professor Yi Long from The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Professor Bin Hu from Huazhong University of Science and Technology, and Professor Shouqin Tian from Wuhan University of Technology, have developed an artificial intelligence-driven framework for the inverse design of function-oriented thermochromic smart windows. Based on a physics-guided neural network, they designed an energy-efficient window optimized for directional privacy protection. Featuring size-controlled vanadium dioxide nanoparticles, this smart window achieves ultrahigh simultaneous modulation of near-infrared transmittance and longwave infrared emissivity. The smart window allows for climate-adaptive all-weather thermal management without compromising the strict dark tint required for commercial privacy protection.
The intelligent smart window is centered around a four-layer Fabry-Perot resonator architecture, empowered by the machine learning algorithm. The photonic structure can be precisely tailored by tuning the geometric parameters of the vanadium dioxide nanoparticles and the underlying polymeric spacer. It can support massive dual-band optical modulation to adapt to various real-world climates. These scientists summarize the operational principle of their design:
“We develop a machine learning-assisted inverse design framework to navigate the complex and nonlinear relationship between optical performance, particle geometry, and multilayer configuration,” the scientists explained. “Our physics-guided neural network allows us to identify that reducing the vanadium dioxide nanoparticle size universally enhances the dual-band modulation, while the spacer thickness can be meticulously calibrated to maximize the optical resonance.”
“The directional privacy protection arises from a low photopic transmittance combined with exterior-interior luminance asymmetry.” they added.
“When applied to electric vehicles, our smart window exhibits robust passive thermal regulation, reducing the maximum indoor air temperature in the summer while preserving heat in the winter. This work establishes a generalizable route for future smart cities, zero-energy building envelopes, and advanced electric vehicles, offering significant energy savings across global mid-latitude regions,” the scientists forecast.
Machine learning-assisted highly efficient thermal management in function-oriented thermochromic smart windows
Figure2 | Performance evaluation of the DPP smart window. a, Comparison of privacy-protection performance, ΔTNIR, and ΔεLWIRamong the present work, commercial glass, and reported results. b, IR camera image of the low-e reference, high-e reference, and the DPP smart window.c, Apparent temperature measured over 30~100℃.d, Temperature distribution across the entire car body on a typical summer day (left) and a typical winter day (right), obtained from simulations with the DPP smart window (top) and with commercial glass (bottom). The averaged surface temperatures (T) of the used glass are shown in the upper-left corner.e, Ambient temperature and solar irradiance on a typical summer day (top). The mean interior car temperature for the two glazing configurations (DPP smart window vs commercial privacy glass) (bottom).f, Ambient temperature and solar irradiance on a typical winter day (top). The mean interior car temperature for the two glazing configurations (DPP smart window vs commercial privacy glass) (bottom).g, Simulated building energy consumption for commercial privacy glass, low-e privacy glass, and the DPP smart window.h, Annual heating and cooling energy-saving potential of the DPP smart window compared to low-e privacy glass in ten mid-latitude cities.
