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Archive for the ‘computing’ category: Page 361

Jan 28, 2022

Twist: MIT’s New Programming Language for Quantum Computing

Posted by in categories: computing, quantum physics

Time crystals. Microwaves. Diamonds. What do these three disparate things have in common?

Quantum computing. Unlike traditional computers that use bits, quantum computers use qubits to encode information as zeros or ones, or both at the same time. Coupled with a cocktail of forces from quantum physics, these refrigerator-sized machines can process a whole lot of information — but they’re far from flawless. Just like our regular computers, we need to have the right programming languages to properly compute on quantum computers.

Programming quantum computers requires awareness of something called “entanglement,” a computational multiplier for qubits of sorts, which translates to a lot of power. When two qubits are entangled, actions on one qubit can change the value of the other, even when they are physically separated, giving rise to Einstein’s characterization of “spooky action at a distance.” But that potency is equal parts a source of weakness. When programming, discarding one qubit without being mindful of its entanglement with another qubit can destroy the data stored in the other, jeopardizing the correctness of the program.

Jan 27, 2022

Texas Governor Abbott Turns to Bitcoin Miners to Bolster the Grid and His Re-Election

Posted by in categories: bitcoin, business, computing, cryptocurrencies

Last fall, Texas Governor Greg Abbott gathered dozens of cryptocurrency deal makers in Austin where they discussed an idea that, on its face, seemed almost upside down: Electricity-hungry Bitcoin miners could shore up the state’s power grid, a top priority after a deep freeze last winter triggered blackouts that left hundreds dead.

The industry’s advocates have been making that pitch to the governor for years. The idea is that the miners’ computer arrays would demand so much electricity that someone would come along to build more power plants, something Texas badly needs. If the grid starts to go wobbly, as it did when winter storm Uri froze up power plants in February 2021, miners could quickly shut down to conserve energy for homes and businesses. At least two Bitcoin miners have already volunteered to do just that.

Jan 27, 2022

First Molecular Electronics Chip Developed — Realizes 50-Year-Old Goal

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, computing, genetics

A platform for single-molecule measurement of binding kinetics & enzyme activity.

The first molecular electronics chip has been developed, realizing a 50-year-old goal of integrating single molecules into circuits to achieve the ultimate scaling limits of Moore’s Law. Developed by Roswell Biotechnologies and a multi-disciplinary team of leading academic scientists, the chip uses single molecules as universal sensor elements in a circuit to create a programmable biosensor with real-time, single-molecule sensitivity and unlimited scalability in sensor pixel density. This innovation, appearing this week in a peer-reviewed article in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), will power advances in diverse fields that are fundamentally based on observing molecular interactions, including drug discovery, diagnostics, DNA

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Jan 26, 2022

Benchmarks Confirm Intel’s Latest Core i9 Chip Outperforms Apple’s M1 Max With Several Caveats

Posted by in category: computing

Benchmark results have started to surface for MSI’s new GE76 Raider, one of the first laptops to be powered by Intel’s new 12th-generation Core i9 processor.

Intel previously said that its new high-end Core i9 processor is faster than Apple’s M1 Max chip in the 16-inch MacBook Pro and, as noted by Macworld, early Geekbench 5 results do appear to confirm this claim, but there are several caveats as usual.

Jan 26, 2022

Yale researchers receive grant to develop novel epilepsy brain-computer chip treatment

Posted by in categories: computing, neuroscience

Yale researchers were awarded a grant from the Swebilius Foundation for their breakthroughs in increasing the functionality of brain-machine interface chips designed to treat epilepsy.

Jan 26, 2022

Scientists simulate ‘fingerprint’ of noise on quantum computer

Posted by in categories: computing, quantum physics

For humans, background noise is generally just a minor irritant. But for quantum computers, which are very sensitive, it can be a death knell for computations. And because “noise” for a quantum computer increases as the computer is tasked with more complex calculations, it can quickly become a major obstacle.

But because quantum computers could be so incredibly useful, researchers have been experimenting with ways to get around the noise problem. Typically, they try to measure the noise in order to correct for it, with mixed success.

A group of scientists from the University of Chicago and Purdue University collaborated on a new technique: Instead of directly trying to measure the noise, they instead construct a unique “fingerprint” of the noise on a quantum as it is seen by a program run on the computer.

Jan 26, 2022

Vibrating atoms make robust qubits, physicists find

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

The team was able to maintain this state of superposition among hundreds of vibrating pairs of fermions. In so doing, they achieved a new “quantum register,” or system of qubits, that appears to be robust over relatively long periods of time. The discovery, published today in the journal Nature, demonstrates that such wobbly qubits could be a promising foundation for future quantum computers.

New qubits stay in “superposition” for up to 10 seconds, and could make a promising foundation for quantum computers.

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Jan 26, 2022

Texas Instruments’ Earnings Were Red Hot. It’s Riding High Amid the Chip Shortage

Posted by in category: computing

Texas Instruments kicked off earnings season for the U.S.’s semiconductor manufacturers with a bang.

The profit report, seen as an indicator of what investors can expect from other chip makers, sent the shares higher in extended trading. Profits were higher than expected and management pointed to strong demand from customers in the industrial and automotive markets.

Jan 26, 2022

‘Atomic Armor’ for accelerators enables discoveries

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, computing

Protective coatings are common for many things in daily life that see a lot of use. We coat wood floors with finish; apply Teflon to the paint on cars; even use diamond coatings on medical devices. Protective coatings are also essential in many demanding research and industrial applications.

Now, researchers at Los Alamos National Laboratory have developed and tested an atomically thin coating for next-generation, electron-beam accelerator equipment—perhaps the most challenging technical application of the technology, the success of which bears out the potential for “Atomic Armor” in a range of applications.

“Accelerators are important tools for addressing some of the faced by humanity,” said Hisato Yamaguchi, member of the Sigma-2 group at the Laboratory. “Those challenges include the quest for , continued scaling of computational power, detection and mitigation of pathogens, and study of the structure and dynamics of the building blocks of life. And those challenges all require the ability to access, observe and control matter on the frontier timescale of electronic motion and the spatial scale of atomic bonds.”

Jan 25, 2022

Novel Ultra-Thin Sensor Records Brain Activity in Record-Breaking Resolution

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, computing, Elon Musk, neuroscience

A team of engineers and neurosurgeons developed a state-of-the-art brain sensor that could greatly enhance the treatment of cancer and epilepsy, according to a press statement from the University of California San Diego.

The new apparatus can record electrical signals from the brain’s surface in a never-before-seen resolution for such a device.

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