Origami structures hold promising potential in space applications, such as ultra-large-area solar arrays, deployable space stations, and extra-terrestrial modular foldable buildings. However, the ...

Anyone who has seen pictures or models of the human brain is aware that the outside layer, or cortex, of the brain is folded in an intricate pattern of “hills”, called gyri, and “valleys”, called ...

Cortical folding, characterized by convex gyri and concave sulci, has an intrinsic relationship to the brain’s functional organization. Understanding the mechanism of the brain’s convoluted patterns ...

"Jumping genes"—bits of DNA that can move from one spot in the genome to another—are well-known for increasing genetic diversity over the long course of evolution. Now, new research at Washington ...

A new family of origami shapes that unfold like flower petals could be used to design more effective structures in space, like telescopes or solar panels. Origami structures, based on the Japanese ...

The researchers found that, contrary to how it’s depicted in most textbooks, chromatin does not fold in on itself in an organized manner to create distinct structures. Instead, it forms a pliable, ...

In a 1999 paper, Erik Demaine -- now an MIT professor of electrical engineering and computer science, but then an 18-year-old PhD student at the University of Waterloo, in Canada -- described an ...