1 January – Researchers at Harvard, writing in Nature Nanotechnology, report the first single lens that can focus all colours of the rainbow in the same spot and in high resolution, previously only achievable with multiple lenses.[3][4] 2 January – Physicists at Cornell University report the creation of "muscle" for shape-changing, cell-sized robots.[5][6] 3 January Computer researchers report discovering two major security vulnerabilities, named "Meltdown" and "Spectre," in the microprocessors inside almost all computers in the world.[7][8][9] Scientists in Rome unveil the first bionic hand with a sense of touch that can be worn outside a laboratory.[10] 4 January – MIT researchers devise a new method to create stronger and more resilient nanofibers.[11][12] 5 January – Researchers report images (including image-1) taken by the Curiosity rover on Mars showing curious rock shapes that may require further study in order to help better determine whether the shapes are biological or geological.[1][2] Later, an astrobiologist made a similar claim based on a different image (image-2) taken by the Curiosity rover.[13][14] 8 January – The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) reports that 2017 was the costliest year on record for climate and weather-related disasters in the United States.[15][16] 9 January A pattern in exoplanets is discovered by a team of multinational researchers led by the Université de Montréal: Planets orbiting the same star tend to have similar sizes and regular spacings.