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Category: computing – Page 6

Scientists create optical skyrmions using a two-century-old light phenomenon

Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) scientists have used a classic optical phenomenon known as the Poisson spot to create stable patterns of light called optical skyrmions, which are tiny, swirling configurations in the properties of light—akin to the spikes of a hedgehog.

The team used a laser directed at a small circular disk instead of the complex and costly engineered materials commonly used to generate these skyrmions. This new method gives scientists a much simpler way to generate, study and adjust optical skyrmions.

Skyrmions are currently a hot scientific subject because they hold the potential to store information, paving the way for future data storage, communications and computing systems.

Cisco Unified CM Flaw Exploited After PoC Reveals File-Write Path to Root

Threat actors have begun to exploit a recently disclosed critical security flaw impacting Cisco Unified Communications Manager (Unified CM) and Unified Communications Manager Session Management Edition (Unified CM SME).

The vulnerability, tracked as CVE-2026–20230 (CVSS score: 8.6), is a case of improper input validation for specific HTTP requests that could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to conduct server-side request forgery (SSRF) attacks through an affected device.

“An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending a crafted HTTP request to an affected device,” Cisco said in an advisory released earlier this month. “A successful exploit could allow the attacker to write files to the underlying operating system that could be used later to elevate to root.”

Massimo (@Rainmaker1973) on X

Scientists have identified a reversal of the long-standing Flynn effect—the roughly 200-year trend of rising average intelligence (measured via IQ and cognitive tests) across generations. For the first time in modern recorded history, Generation Z (born roughly 1997–2012) shows lower performance than previous generations in key cognitive domains, including attention, memory, literacy, numeracy, executive function, problem-solving, and general IQ—despite spending more years in formal education than ever before. Neuroscientist and educator Dr. Jared Cooney Horvath, PhD, MEd, testified before the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation on January 15, 2026, highlighting this shift. In his written testimony, he stated that cognitive development in children across much of the developed world has stalled or reversed over the past two decades, with declines evident in international assessments (e.g., PISA, TIMSS) and other large-scale data starting around the mid-2000s and accelerating post-2010. Horvath attributes the primary driver not to reduced schooling, but to the widespread integration of digital screens and educational technology (EdTech) in classrooms. He argues that human brains evolved for deep, focused learning through face-to-face interaction and sustained attention, not fragmented skimming or constant task-switching encouraged by devices. Key points from his testimony include: — Teens now spend over half their waking hours on screens, with significant portions in school involving computers or tablets—often leading to off-task behavior and shallower processing. — Evidence from meta-analyses and national/international studies shows a consistent pattern: higher classroom screen exposure correlates with weaker outcomes in reading, math, science, and higher-order reasoning. — Digital tools may aid narrow, repetitive skill practice in controlled settings, but in core academic contexts, they tend to reduce depth of understanding, retention, and critical thinking. Horvath describes this as a “structural mismatch” between human cognition and how digital platforms are designed (to capture and fragment attention), warning that unchecked EdTech adoption risks long-term harm to workforce skills, innovation, and societal reasoning. [Horvath, J. C. (2026). Written testimony before the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. U.S. Senate]

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Quantum mechanics theory may work without imaginary numbers, new analysis suggests

Physicists from Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf (HHU) have examined a fundamental property of quantum mechanics in collaboration with the German Aerospace Center (DLR). In an article published in the journal Physical Review Letters, they show that this theory does not necessarily need to be formulated with imaginary numbers—real numbers can, in fact, also be used.

The physical theory of quantum mechanics describes the world of atomic and subatomic particles. Its development began in the 1900s with physicists such as Max Planck, Niels Bohr, Werner Heisenberg and Erwin Schrödinger.

Quantum mechanics can effectively describe phenomena at microscopic scales, including, for example, the diffraction of particles at a double slit —which shows that particles also exhibit wave-like behavior—and the quantum tunneling effect, in which a certain probability exists that particles can penetrate a barrier even if they have insufficient energy to do so. Particularly important phenomena today include entanglement and coherence, which are key for applications such as quantum computers and communication.

How to create distinguishable states for quantum systems

Researchers around the world are racing to develop new quantum-based systems for sensing, communication, computing, and control that have the promise of outperforming traditional systems. Creating stable, measurable, distinguishable quantum states, which would be the heart of any such system, is a daunting task.

Quantum states possess unique properties that can be exploited for developing novel information processing systems. Two key properties, stability and distinguishability, are hard to achieve, however. Extracting information from a quantum system depends on the distinguishability of quantum states, an intrinsic property associated with a property known as orthogonality. Nevertheless, no two Gaussian states (a widely studied class of quantum states) are orthogonal, and this yields an unavoidable error when attempting to distinguish them.

In addition, present quantum devices tend to remain stable only for a fraction of a second, and require complex protocols to distinguish states. Now, researchers at MIT and the University of Ferrara have found a new approach for creating easily distinguishable states that could help to enable the development of these new quantum-based devices.

A new way to control tiny quantum light sources by twisting atomically thin layers of hexagonal boron nitride

In a paper published in Science Advances, researchers at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) in collaboration with the University of Minnesota and Kyung Hee University have found a new way to control quantum light sources, which is one of the key elements needed before quantum technologies can be used reliably in real-world systems.

Lead author Dr. Angus Gale says the research gives scientists a new control mechanism for tiny quantum light sources, bringing them a step closer to being used in practical quantum technologies such as quantum computing, secure communication and ultrasensitive sensing.

“You can measure these quantum emitters and see that they exist, but it’s hard to make them work in practice. This gives us a lever to get closer to that—a step toward the realization of quantum technologies,” said Dr. Gale.

Unpatchable ‘usbliter8’ Exploit Breaks Apple A12 and A13 SecureROM Boot Chain

Security researchers at Paradigm Shift have published a working exploit, dubbed usbliter8, that achieves arbitrary code execution inside the SecureROM of Apple’s A12 and A13 chips.

That code is burned into the silicon at manufacture. No software update can reach it. Affected devices will carry this flaw for as long as they stay in use.

This is not a remote attack. It requires physical possession of the device, which must be in DFU mode and connected via USB to a dedicated RP2350-based microcontroller board. With that setup, the exploit finishes in under two seconds, before Apple’s signed boot chain loads.

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