Lifeboat Foundation: Safeguarding Humanity
Toggle light / dark theme

Blog – Page 11

A graduate research assistant at The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH), a part of The University of Alabama system, has published a paper in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics that builds on an earlier study to help understand why the solar corona is so hot compared to the surface of the sun itself.

To shed further light on this age-old mystery, Syed Ayaz, a Ph.D. candidate in the UAH Center for Space Plasma and Aeronomic Research (CSPAR), employed a statistical model known as a Kappa distribution to describe the velocity of particles in space plasmas, while incorporating the interaction of suprathermal particles with kinetic Alfvén waves (KAWs).

KAWs are oscillations of the charged particles and as they move through the , caused by motions in the photosphere, the sun’s outer shell. The waves are a valuable tool for modeling various phenomena in the solar system, including particle acceleration and wave-particle interactions.

Read more | >

A team of physicists affiliated with multiple institutions in China has measured a pulse of light in 37 dimensions. In their paper published in Science Advances, the group explains that their experiment was meant to demonstrate that quantum mechanics is more nonclassical than thought.

Quantum mechanics involves how things work at the , while describes classical theory, which has aspects of what physicists call local realism, where things happen around us in the ways that we expect them to happen and in the order we expect.

Physicists have tried and failed to unite the two theories for decades. The problem has only grown more difficult in recent years as research efforts have shown that the differences between them are greater than thought. In this new effort, the researchers in China sought to see how far nonclassical differs from classical theory by carrying out an experiment to demonstrate the Greenberger–Horne–Zeilinger (GHZ) paradox.

Read more | >

Foams are an essential component of many different drinks and foods: from a frothy head of beer to coffee crema, bread and ice cream. Despite their ubiquity, little is actually known or understood about these highly complex systems.

Collaboration between the Institut Laue-Langevin (ILL) and Aarhus University has connected unique capabilities to investigate foam with critically relevant challenges, bringing a greener food future a step closer. The study is published in the Journal of Colloid and Interface Science.

Understanding the behavior of foam requires characterization of the structure. “That’s not easy,” explains Leonardo Chiappisi, ILL researcher and coordinator of the Partnership for Soft Condensed Matter (PSCM).

Read more | >

In physics, the term “isotropy” means a system where the properties are the same in all directions. For fusion, neutron energy isotropy is an important measurement that analyzes the streams of neutrons coming from the device and how uniform they are. This is critical because so-called isotropic fusion plasmas suggest a stable, thermal plasma that can be scaled to higher fusion energy gains, whereas anisotropic plasmas, those emitting irregular neutron energies, can lead to a dead end.

A new Zap research paper, published in Nuclear Fusion, details neutron isotropy measurements from the FuZE that provide the best validation yet that Zap’s sheared-flow-stabilized Z pinches generate stable, thermal . It’s a benchmark milestone for scaling fusion to higher energy yields in Zap’s technology and giving confidence in reaching higher performance on the FuZE-Q device.

“Essentially, this measurement indicates that the is in a ,” says Uri Shumlak, Zap’s Chief Scientist and Co-Founder. “That means we can double the size of the plasma and expect the same sort of equilibrium to exist.”

Read more | >

An international team of engineers and physicists have found a way to use quantum light to improve the performance of cutting-edge spectroscopy.

Their new technique enables measurements of infrared electric fields which are twice as sensitive as previous developments in a process called time-domain spectroscopy.

The researchers say their work could help open up new applications in security and medical diagnostics.

Read more | >

Question Were the liberalization of medical cannabis and the legalization of nonmedical cannabis in Canada associated with changes in the population-attributable fraction of cannabis use disorders associated with schizophrenia?

Findings In this population-based cohort study comprising 13 588 681 individuals, the population-attributable fraction of cannabis use disorder associated with schizophrenia increased significantly from 3.7% in the prelegalization period to 10.3% during the postlegalization period.

Meaning These findings suggest that the association between cannabis use disorders and schizophrenia is an important consideration for the legalization of cannabis.

Read more | >

A team of researchers, led by Dr. Sofia Sheikh of the SETI Institute.

The SETI Institute (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) is a private, nonprofit organization dedicated to scientific research, education, and public outreach founded in 1984. Located in Mountain View, California, the Institute’s primary mission is to explore, understand, and explain the origin and nature of life in the universe, with a particular focus on the search for intelligent life beyond Earth. Researchers at the SETI Institute use a variety of methods to detect signs of extraterrestrial civilizations, including monitoring electromagnetic signals for non-random patterns that may be transmitted by alien technologies.

Read more | >

Researchers have devised a method that bridges the gap between simulations and real-world dynamics, paving the way for faster innovation in energy-efficient computing.

Magnetic Whirls: The Future of Data Storage?

Skyrmions are tiny magnetic whirlpools, ranging from nanometers to micrometers in size, that behave like particles and can be easily controlled with electrical currents.

Read more | >

Scientists have unlocked the secret world of dark excitons — tiny energy carriers crucial for the future of solar power and LEDs.

Using an advanced microscopy technique, researchers have mapped their formation in unprecedented detail, opening new doors for improving energy efficiency in cutting-edge materials.

Tracking invisible energy carriers in next-gen technology.

Read more | >