Recently, at the 13th National Tribology Conference held in Nanjing, the biotribology team of our school was awarded the "2015 Best Tribology Paper Award" for the paper "New model to explain tooth wear with implications for microwear formation and diet reconstruction" published in the journal PNAS of the American Academy of Sciences. the Best Paper Award in Tribology is selected once every two years and 0-1 papers is selected annually, which is awarded as excellent papers that have important promotion and influence on the development of tribology. In the past 10 years, seven papers have won this honor.

The National Tribology Conference is a joint conference of corporations, groups and individuals engaged in research, design, manufacturing, teaching and management in tribology and related fields. The conference is held every two years. Thus, the latest achievements in tribology research and application in the field of tribology in China could be exchanged through academic activities and product demonstrations. The convening of the conference provided significant spiritual motivation and intellectual support for many tribological workers to better focus on the prospects of tribology research and further promoted the sustainable development of tribology science, engineering and technology in China.

While enriching our understanding of the micro-wear mechanism of enamel, this study clarifies the long-standing debate in paleontology research—whether amorphous silica particles (phytoliths) with low hardness in plants can make the wear of the teeth lays the foundation for establishing the connection between microscopic wear of the enamel and the eating habits of paleontology.