Lifeboat Foundation

Scientists at the University of Pennsylvania have unveiled a revolutionary method to study the microscopic structures of the human brain. The study, led by Benjamin Creekmore in the labs of Yi-Wei Chang and Edward Lee, promises to enhance our understanding of various brain diseases, including Alzheimer’s and multiple sclerosis.

Cryo-electron tomography takes center stage

Traditionally, scientists have utilized electron microscopy to explore and comprehend the intricate details of cellular structures within the brain. However, this method has been fraught with challenges, such as the alteration of cell structures due to the addition of chemicals and physical tissue cutting.

Classical computers can sometimes outperform quantum computers thanks to new algorithms, challenging the idea that quantum always prevails.

NYU researchers have developed a new method that allows classical computers to perform certain tasks faster and more efficiently than quantum computers.

The new project will develop robotic satellite technologies to reliably connect with other satellites to perform in-orbit repairs and maintenance.

Explore the future of space technology as the University of Sydney pioneers a $2.3 million initiative in collaboration with industry leaders.

Altman estimates that he would need between $5 trillion and $7 trillion to overhaul the semiconductor industry, which is currently dominated by Nvidia, the leading provider of graphics processing units (GPUs) for AI applications. Nvidia’s market cap has soared to $1.72 trillion in 2023, surpassing many tech giants such as Amazon and Alphabet. Altman wants to challenge Nvidia’s monopoly and create more competition and innovation in the AI chip market.

White House’s $11 billion bet on US semiconductor

Meanwhile, The White House announced the US government’s plan to spend $11 billion on semiconductor-related research and development on Friday. This move comes in the wake of Congress approving the Chips and Science Act in August 2022, which provides $52.7 billion for semiconductor production and R&D. Of this, $39 billion is allocated for subsidies and $11 billion for R&D.

Fields medalist Cédric Villani explains some of John Nash’s most amazing theorems.

Fields medal winner Cédric Villani takes us through the very special world of mathematical creation of John Nash, who founded several new chapters of game theory and geometric analysis in just a few revolutionary contributions that seemed to come from nowhere.
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Australian researchers have worked out how to fix a defect that causes lupus, and hope their world-first discovery will offer effective long-term treatment.

Published in Nature Communications, the Monash University-led study found a way to reprogram the defective cells of lupus patients with protective molecules from healthy people.

Using human cells, the new treatment restores the protective side of the immune system that prevents autoimmunity, which is when the immune system attacks its own cells. The findings relate to the autoimmune disease lupus, a debilitating disease with no cure and limited treatments.

Patients with recurrent Escherichia coli bacteremia can harbor strains with mutations that promote multidrug antibiotic resistance:

Certain patients with gram-negative bacterial bloodstream infections (GNB-BSIs) are well-known to experience recurrent bacteremia after receiving antimicrobial therapy — but is this phenomenon due to microbial factors? Researchers have analyzed isolates from patients with relapsed GNB-BSIs in which the initial and subsequent strains were nearly identical genetically.

Paired bacteremic isolates of E. coli, Klebsiella species, Serratia marcescens, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa were identified for a detailed analysis of the E. coli strains. Time-kill studies found that 4 of the 11 recurrent isolates had a higher number of bacterial colony-forming units persisting through 24 hours of exposure to meropenem. The recurrent strain with the greatest number of persisting cells had a loss-of-function mutation in the ptsI gene (involved in the phosphoenolpyruvate phosphotransferase system and shown in vitro to be important to the effects of bactericidal antibiotics). Challenging mice with the initial and ptsI mutant recurrent strains in a bacteremia model showed that both variants were equally virulent, but the recurrent strain was 10-fold less susceptible to treatment with ertapenem.

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Highly reducing or oxidizing photocatalysts are a fundamental challenge in photochemistry. Only a few transition metal complexes with Earth-abundant metal ions have so far advanced to excited state oxidants, including chromium, iron, and cobalt. All these photocatalysts require high energy light for excitation and their oxidizing power has not yet been fully exploited. Furthermore, precious and hence expensive metals are the decisive ingredients in most cases.

A team of researchers headed by Professor Katja Heinze of Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) has now developed a new molecular system based on the element manganese. Manganese, as opposed to precious metals, is the third most abundant metal after iron and titanium and hence widely available and very cheap. The study is published in the journal Nature Chemistry.

When spacecraft re-enter Earth’s atmosphere, friction heats them up and creates a plasma sheath that stops communications – but SpaceX thinks its Starlink satellites could solve the problem.

By Mark Harris