Borosilicate glass

• The Boston University CTE Center today reported the results of the largest-ever study of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) in young athletes.
• The study, examining autopsied tissue, found signs of CTE in 63 out of 152 young athlete brains.
• The subjects of the study competed in youth, high school and college competitions, and all died before the age of 30.

CTE and young athletes

• However, some high-profile cases of CTE have been identified among younger athletes.
• In Australia, much-loved NRL player and coach Paul Green was 49 when he died and was later found to have CTE.
• The risk factors for young athletes are complex and multifaceted but it is likely that playing junior contact sport heightens an athlete’s risk of developing neurodegenerative diseases as an adult.
• For the athletes in the Boston University study to develop CTE before the age of 30, it is likely they were exposed to repeated brain trauma from an early age through youth sport.

Are contact sports safe for kids?

• Public health advocates in North America, Australia, New Zealand Aotearoa and the United Kingdom have long expressed concerns about the risks of contact sport for children.
• Improved oversight would go some way toward reducing the serious health risks of mild traumatic brain injury (concussion).

First steps

• To protect them from the disease, contact sporting bodies must reduce young athletes’ lifetime exposure to brain trauma.
• One way to do this would be to restrict contact in training and games for juniors.
• Some sporting bodies have already taken the initial steps.
• Australian Rules football players are restricted to modified tackling until the age of 12.
• The National Rugby League will soon implement a ban on tackling until midway through under-7s competitions.

• SCHOTT, the international technology group and inventor of specialty glass, has won the prestigious R&D 100 Award for its emerging product.
• SCHOTT will formally accept the award at a banquet on Nov. 16, 2023, in Coronado, California.
• Past R&D 100 Awards recipients include established Fortune 500 companies and federally funded research institutions, as well as academic and government labs and smaller companies.
• Until now, SCHOTT has received the R&D100 Award five times for several innovations including the company’s various laser glasses.

• Data cited in this release include polished silicon wafers, including those used as virgin test wafers, as well as epitaxial silicon wafers, and non-polished silicon wafers shipped by the wafer manufacturers to end users.
• Silicon wafers are the fundamental building material for the majority of semiconductors, which are vital components of all electronic devices.
• The SMG is a sub-committee of the SEMI Electronic Materials Group (EMG) and is open to SEMI members involved in manufacturing polycrystalline silicon, monocrystalline silicon or silicon wafers (e.g., as cut, polished, epi).
• The SMG facilitates collective efforts on issues related to the silicon industry including the development of market information and statistics about the silicon industry and the semiconductor market.

• SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif., July 6, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Revasum today announced the availability of 200mm SiC wafer polishing capability on their 6EZ chemical mechanical polishing platform.
• The 6EZ has already proven its value in high-volume manufacturing of 150mm SiC substrates and a 200mm conversion kit has now been fully tested and released, giving customers the option of upgrading 6EZ systems in the field.
• The 6EZ is the first and only single wafer CMP tool on the market designed from the ground up for SiC wafer polishing.
• The 6EZ's proprietary ViPRR wafer carrier delivers higher downforces than the conventional membrane-based design which was designed for silicon.