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Jan 7, 2024

MIT scientists create inhalable sensors to detect early lung cancer

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, nanotechnology

The technique of inhaling nanoparticle sensors followed by a urine test may offer the potential for faster and early detection of lung cancer.

Scientists from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have introduced this cutting-edge medical technology, presenting a simplified approach to diagnosing lung cancer.

Additionally, this innovation holds particular promise for low-and middle-income countries where the accessibility of computed tomography (CT) scanners is limited.

Jan 7, 2024

AI chemist performs complex experiments based on plain text prompts

Posted by in categories: chemistry, robotics/AI

Computational Chemistry.

AI chemist performs complex experiments based on plain text prompts.

On its first try, the technology could successfully replicate work that won a Nobel prize.

Jan 7, 2024

Cosmic phenomenon: King tides returning to San Diego coastline

Posted by in category: habitats

If you plan on visiting the coast, you might notice flooded parking lots in the mornings or exposed reefs or rocks in the afternoons, depending on the area.

For those who are interested in learning more about king tides, the San Diego Audubon Society will be hosting an event at the Kendall-Frost Marsh on Friday from 8–10 a.m. Attendees will get an overview of sea level rise, the birds that rely on disappearing marsh habitat, and tools for documenting or reporting king tides.

Looking beyond January, the cosmic phenomenon of king tides is expected again Feb. 9–10.

Jan 7, 2024

Reports: Origin Quantum Computing Unveils 72-Qubit Quantum Computer

Posted by in categories: computing, engineering, quantum physics

The third-generation superconducting quantum computer, “Origin Wukong,” was launched on January 6 at Origin Quantum Computing Technology in Hefei, according to Chinese-based media outlet, The Global Times, as reported by the Pakistan Today.

According to the news outlets, the “Origin Wukong” is powered by a 72-qubit superconducting quantum chip, known as the “Wukong chip.” This development marks a new milestone in China’s quantum computing journey as it’s the most advanced programmable and deliverable superconducting quantum computer in China, as per a joint statement from the Anhui Quantum Computing Engineering Research Center and the Anhui Provincial Key Laboratory of Quantum Computing Chips, shared with the Global Times.

Superconducting quantum computers, such as the “Origin Wukong,” rely on a approach being investigated by several other quantum computer makers, including IBM and Google quantum devices.

Jan 7, 2024

Ant behavior inspires autonomous material assembly research

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, robotics/AI

The survival strategies employed by one of the most aggressive, territorial and venomous ant species may pave the way to revolutionize robotics, medicine and engineering.

Fire ants survive floods by temporarily interlinking their legs to create a raft-like structure, allowing them to float collectively to safety as a unified colony and then releasing to resume their individual forms.

Continue reading “Ant behavior inspires autonomous material assembly research” »

Jan 7, 2024

Study reveals Relationship of Gut Microbiome on Children’s Brain Development and Function

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, health, neuroscience

Emerging evidence implicates the gut microbiome in cognitive outcomes and neurodevelopmental disorders, but the influence of gut microbial metabolism on typical neurodevelopment has not been explored in detail. Researchers from Wellesley College, in collaboration with other institutions, have demonstrated that differences in the gut microbiome are associated with overall cognitive function and brain structure in healthy children.

This study—published Dec. 22 in Science Advances—is a part of the Environmental Influences on Child Health Outcome (ECHO) Program. This study investigates this relationship in 381 healthy children, all part of The RESONANCE cohort in Providence, Rhode Island, offering novel insights into early childhood development.

The research reveals a connection between the gut microbiome and cognitive function in children. Specific gut microbial species, such as Alistipes obesi and Blautia wexlerae, are associated with higher cognitive functions. Conversely, species like Ruminococcus gnavus are more prevalent in children with lower cognitive scores. The study emphasizes the role of microbial genes, particularly those involved in the metabolism of neuroactive compounds like short-chain fatty acids, in influencing cognitive abilities.

Jan 7, 2024

Complexity, Evolution And Intelligence

Posted by in categories: biological, cosmology, evolution

Over the past few decades, it has become quite obvious that humans are not the only living organisms with intelligence.

The story of intelligence you are about to experience goes back 13.8 billion years, back to the moment the universe was born: the Big Bang. It’s a story of time and space, matter and energy. It is a story of unfolding, It’s the story of how the very nature of the physical universe from its very inception led to the universe getting to know itself and eventually, to reflect.

Continue reading “Complexity, Evolution And Intelligence” »

Jan 7, 2024

The Big Picture (Time & Entropy, feat. Sean Carroll)

Posted by in category: futurism

A series of videos about time and entropy, made in collaboration with Caltech physicist Sean Carroll, and based off of his book “The Big Picture”

Jan 7, 2024

Unifying Nature’s Laws: The State of String Theory

Posted by in category: quantum physics

Einstein dreamed of a unified theory of nature’s laws. String theory has long promised to deliver it: a mathematically elegant description that some have called a “theory of everything.” Join one of the most influential groups of theorists ever assembled on a single stage to evaluate the current state of this most ambitious of theories.\
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David Gross\
Andrew Strominger\
Edward Witten\
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Brian Greene\
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Jan 7, 2024

‘It could be profound’: How astronomer Wendy Freedman is trying to fix the universe

Posted by in category: cosmology

The problem is known as the Hubble tension, and it centers around figuring out a number for the universe’s expansion rate, called the Hubble constant. To find it, scientists have pored over tiny fluctuations in the cosmic microwave background (CMB) — an ancient relic of the universe’s first light — and built cosmic distance ladders to remote, pulsating stars called Cepheid variables.

But the best experiments using these two methods disagree. The difference in results may have seemed small, but it was enough to spark a major crisis in cosmology.

Wendy Freedman, an astrophysicist at the University of Chicago, has spent four decades studying the Hubble constant.