Category: Assistive Technology

Assistive TechnologyOnline Privacy

Open Source Apps Emerge as Privacy-Focused Alternative to Default Phone Applications

According to recent analysis, default smartphone applications may be collecting more user data than many realize. Open-source alternatives are gaining attention as privacy-conscious options that maintain core functionality while eliminating tracking and analytics components. Industry observers suggest these alternatives represent a growing trend toward user-controlled data management.

Growing Privacy Concerns With Default Phone Applications

Most smartphone users rely on preinstalled default applications for core functions like messaging, photography, and file management, but sources indicate these convenient tools come with significant privacy trade-offs. According to reports, these default applications typically operate within broader cloud computing ecosystems that routinely collect user data ranging from anonymized usage statistics to personal telemetry metrics.

by Bennett Laura
Assistive TechnologyEarth Sciences

Research Reveals Unique Pressure Response in Rhenium-Based 2D Semiconductors

Groundbreaking research on rhenium-based transition metal dichalcogenides reveals these materials respond to pressure in fundamentally different ways than other 2D semiconductors. The findings could enable new approaches to designing bulk devices with 2D functionalities for advanced electronics and photonics applications.

Unusual Pressure Response Discovered in Advanced 2D Materials

Researchers have uncovered surprising behavior in rhenium-based transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs) that distinguishes them from other two-dimensional semiconductors, according to recent reports. The study, published in npj 2D Materials and Applications, reveals that ReS2 and ReSe2 exhibit negative pressure coefficients for their main optical transitions—a characteristic opposite to what has been observed in other well-known TMDCs like MoS2 and WS2.

by Bennett Laura