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May 30, 2024

Theory of everything: how a fear of failure is hampering physicists’ quest for the ultimate answer

Posted by in categories: neuroscience, physics

It is likely that a theory of everything will ultimately require massive collaboration to be solved. Ironically, this may be a job for the older physicists, despite the warnings of Eddington and others. Francis Crick dedicated his attention to trying to solve the problem of consciousness in his later years, albeit without success.

We need collaboration. But we may be looking at the prospect of a theory of everything only coming from those who have accomplished so much they can afford the potential embarrassment and will be given the benefit of the doubt. This hardly stirs the enthusiasm of the vibrant, young minds that may otherwise tackle the problem.

In trying to solve the ultimate problem, we may have inadvertently created a monster. Our academic framework for research progression is not conducive to it, and history has presented an unkind picture of what happens to those who try.

May 30, 2024

Quantum time travel: The experiment to ‘send a particle into the past’

Posted by in categories: particle physics, quantum physics, time travel

Time loops have long been the stuff of science fiction. Now, using the rules of quantum mechanics, we have a way to effectively transport a particle back in time – here’s how.

By Miriam Frankel

May 30, 2024

Computational lens unmasks hidden 3D information from a single 2D micrograph

Posted by in categories: materials, robotics/AI

Dr. Deepan Balakrishnan, the first author, said, “Our work shows the for single-shot 3D imaging with TEMs. We are developing a generalized method using physics-based machine learning models that learn material priors and provide 3D relief for any 2D projection.”

The team also envisions further generalizing the formulation of pop-out metrology beyond TEMs to any coherent imaging system for optically thick samples (i.e., X-rays, electrons, visible light photons, etc.).

Prof Loh added, “Like human vision, inferring 3D information from a 2D image requires context. Pop-out is similar, but the context comes from the material we focus on and our understanding of how photons and electrons interact with them.”

May 30, 2024

‘Smart’ antibiotic can kill deadly bacteria while sparing the microbiome

Posted by in category: biotech/medical

Gram negative bacteria have been laughing at us but now we might finally have our revenge, with lolamicin.


Compound called lolamicin targets a group of harmful microbes but does not disturb those that live peacefully in the gut.

May 30, 2024

A wave of AI ‘acquihires’ is coming. Here’s who could be looking for deals

Posted by in category: robotics/AI

Big Tech’s demand for top AI talent could bring a wave of “acquihires” later this year, investors told Business Insider.

May 30, 2024

Predicting The Future Of Cloud Infrastructure

Posted by in categories: futurism, robotics/AI

With the rise of AI, we’re abstracting complexity by embracing technologies that resonate with human intuition. Take ChatGPT, for instance. We can simply articulate our goals in plain English, and it generates code for provisioning the infrastructure accordingly.

Another approach is using visualization. For example, with Brainboard, you can draw your cloud infrastructure, and the necessary deployment and management code is automatically generated.

These examples illustrate the next-generation software and mindset. The shift is happening now, and the next set of tools will be adapted and optimized for humans.

May 30, 2024

Sam Altman is considering turning OpenAI into a regular company: report

Posted by in category: robotics/AI

Unlike most organizations, OpenAI says it is run as a “capped-profit” company where its for-profit arm is governed by a nonprofit.

May 30, 2024

Hacker Releases Jailbroken “Godmode” Version of ChatGPT

Posted by in category: futurism

GPT-4o UNCHAINED!


Hackers have released a jailbroken version of ChatGPT-4o called “GODMODE GPT.” And, yes, it works. Be safe, kids!

May 30, 2024

Building a Dyson Sphere Around the Sun Would Be Easy if We Used Jupiter for Raw Materials

Posted by in categories: energy, space

We’d need an astronomical amount of resources to construct a Dyson sphere, a giant theoretical shell that would harvest all of a given star’s energy, around the Sun.

In fact, as science journalist Jaime Green explores in her new book “The Possibility of Life,” we’d have to go as far as to demolish a Jupiter-sized planet to build such a megastructure, a concept first devised by physicist Freeman Dyson in 1960.

“If you wanted enough material to build such a thing, you’d essentially have to disassemble a planet, and not just a small one — more like Jupiter,” Green writes in her book.

May 30, 2024

Water-based circuit concept switches much faster than semiconductors

Posted by in categories: computing, materials

Water is usually something you’d want to keep away from electronic circuits, but engineers in Germany have now developed a new concept for water-based switches that are much faster than current semiconductor materials.

Transistors are a fundamental component of electronic systems, and in a basic sense they process data by switching between conductive and non-conductive states – zeroes and ones – as the semiconductor materials in them encounter electrical currents. The speed of this switching (along with the number of transistors in a chip) is a primary factor in how fast a computer system can be.

Now, researchers at Ruhr University Bochum have developed a new type of circuit that can switch much faster than existing semiconductor materials. The key ingredient is, surprisingly, water, with iodide ions dissolved into it to make it salty. A custom-made nozzle fans this water out into a flattened jet only a few microns thick.

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