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Dec 22, 2016

The hidden inferno inside your laser pointer

Posted by in categories: physics, space

If you thought that a kid’s room, a Norwegian Nobel Laureate and a laser pointer had nothing in common, two UA physicists are about to enlighten you.

It’s hard to believe, but after having unraveled many of the laws that make the universe tick, physicists still haven’t reached an agreement on whether something as seemingly simple as “hot” or “cold” can be measured in a system under certain circumstances.

“Imagine you threw an iceberg into the sun and right before it’s melted and gone, you wanted to know, ‘How hot is that iceberg at that moment?’ Would that be a meaningful question to ask?” says Charles Stafford, a professor in the Department of Physics in the UA’s College of Science. “According to traditional physics, it wouldn’t be.”

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Dec 22, 2016

Sidney Drell, Stanford theoretical physicist and national security expert, dies at 90

Posted by in categories: military, physics, policy, security

RIP dear friend.


A giant in the worlds of both academia and policy, Drell died Wednesday, Dec. 21, at his home in Palo Alto. He was 90 years old.

“An accomplished physicist, his contributions to improve national and international security made our world a better place,” said Tom Gilligan, director of the Hoover Institution at Stanford in a statement. “We are especially grateful for Sid’s relentless dedication to eliminating the threat posed by nuclear weapons and know that his important work will continue to frame the issue.”

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Dec 22, 2016

Experts split on how soon quantum computing is coming, but say we should start preparing now

Posted by in categories: computing, encryption, information science, quantum physics

Let’s say closer to 7yrs or less.


Whether quantum computing is 10 years away — or is already here — it promises to make current encryption methods obsolete, so enterprises need to start laying the groundwork for new encryption methods.

A quantum computer uses qubits instead of bits. A bit can be a zero or a one, but a qubit can be both simultaneously, which is weird and hard to program but once folks get it working, it has the potential to be significantly more powerful than any of today’s computers.

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Dec 22, 2016

Robots That Read Minds Are a Breakthrough for Manufacturing

Posted by in categories: business, robotics/AI

Definitely; why we been telling businesses the importance of BMI for their environments.


A site dedicated to the sciences, recent scientific discoveries and advances.

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Dec 22, 2016

Using graphene to detect brain cancer cells

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, neuroscience

Graphene has already proven its importance to brain implants as well as other Synbio technology.


Brain cell culture. Left: Normal astrocyte brain cell; Right: cancerous Glioblastoma Multiforme (GBM) version, imaged by Raman spectrography. (credit: B. Keisham et al./ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces)

By interfacing brain cells with graphene, University of Illinois at Chicago researchers have differentiated a single hyperactive Glioblastoma Multiforme cancerous astrocyte cell from a normal cell in the lab — pointing the way to developing a simple, noninvasive tool for early cancer diagnosis.

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Dec 22, 2016

Electron-photon small-talk could have big impact on quantum computing

Posted by in categories: computing, employment, particle physics, quantum physics

In a step that brings silicon-based quantum computers closer to reality, researchers at Princeton University have built a device in which a single electron can pass its quantum information to a particle of light. The particle of light, or photon, can then act as a messenger to carry the information to other electrons, creating connections that form the circuits of a quantum computer.

The research, published in the journal Science and conducted at Princeton and HRL Laboratories in Malibu, California, represents a more than five-year effort to build a robust capability for an electron to talk to a , said Jason Petta, a Princeton professor of physics.

“Just like in human interactions, to have good communication a number of things need to work out—it helps to speak the same language and so forth,” Petta said. “We are able to bring the energy of the electronic state into resonance with the light particle, so that the two can talk to each other.”

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Dec 22, 2016

The First Quantum Revolution: Foundational information for the enterprise CTO

Posted by in categories: cybercrime/malcode, quantum physics

Bob Gourley

Our report on Naturally Better Security dove deep into ways quantum effects can be leveraged to enhance real world cybersecurity. It was our most popular post in November 2016 and the feedback we received was taken as a signal that we should produce more on what CTOs should know about the quantum world. With this post we are kicking off a series of five pieces that will dive into quantum effects. This first post tackles some foundational background that puts the science into a historical context. The second one will discuss the current revolution in quantum computing. The third focuses on security concerns. The forth dives into quantum key distribution. The fifth hits on the “so-what” of the current revolution in terms of security.

So first, foundational background on quantum mechanics.

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Dec 22, 2016

UW researcher pursues synthetic ‘scaffolds’ for muscle regeneration

Posted by in category: bioengineering

Tissue engineering for muscles.


Tissue engineering in the news again this time its creating scaffolds for muscle regeneration.

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Dec 22, 2016

One of World’s Most Dangerous Supervolcanoes Is Rumbling

Posted by in category: existential risks

Italy’s Campi Flegrei may be awakening from a long slumber, scientists warn.

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Dec 22, 2016

World’s largest hedge fund to replace managers with artificial intelligence

Posted by in categories: finance, robotics/AI, transhumanism

“Bankers will become dinosaurs.” #AI article from The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/dec/22/bridgewat…management #Transhumanism


The company is already highly data-driven, with meetings recorded and staff asked to grade each other throughout the day using a ratings system called “dots”. The Systematized Intelligence Lab has built a tool that incorporates these ratings into “Baseball Cards” that show employees’ strengths and weaknesses. Another app, dubbed The Contract, gets staff to set goals they want to achieve and then tracks how effectively they follow through.

These tools are early applications of PriOS, the over-arching management software that Dalio wants to make three-quarters of all management decisions within five years. The kinds of decisions PriOS could make include finding the right staff for particular job openings and ranking opposing perspectives from multiple team members when there’s a disagreement about how to proceed.

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