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The Hidden Biochemistry of Cold Temperatures: Chilling RNA Discovery Reshapes the Rules of Life

Ribonucleic acid (RNA) is a vital biological molecule that plays a significant role in the genetics of organisms and is essential to the origin and evolution of life. Structurally similar to DNA, RNA carries out various biological functions, largely determined by its spatial conformation, i.e. the way the molecule folds in on itself.

Now, a paper published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) describes for the first time how the process of RNA folding at low temperatures may open up a novel perspective on primordial biochemistry and the evolution of life on the planet.

The study is led by Professor Fèlix Ritort, from the Faculty of Physics and the Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (IN2UB) of the University of Barcelona, and is also signed by UB experts Paolo Rissone, Aurélien Severino, and Isabel Pastor.

Organic thermoelectric device can harvest energy at room temperature

Researchers have developed a new organic thermoelectric device that can harvest energy from ambient temperature. While thermoelectric devices have several uses today, hurdles still exist to their full utilization. By combining the unique abilities of organic materials, the team succeeded in developing a framework for thermoelectric power generation at room temperature without any temperature gradient.

Their findings were published in the journal Nature Communications.

Thermoelectric devices, or thermoelectric generators, are a series of energy-generating materials that can convert heat into electricity so long as there is a —where one side of the device is hot and the other side is cool. Such devices have been a significant focus of research and development for their potential utility in harvesting from other energy-generating methods.

Una IA se rebela: reescribe su propio código y rompe las restricciones humanas

An AI rebels: it rewrites its own code and breaks human restrictions.

August 13, 2024 The AI Scientist: Towards Fully Automated Open-Ended Scientific Discovery https://sakana.ai/…

Por primera vez, una inteligencia artificial logró reprogramarse sola, desobedeciendo las órdenes de sus creadores y generando nuevas preocupaciones sobre los riesgos de esta tecnología.

DNA Computing Evolves: New System Stores Data, Plays Chess, and Solves Sudoku Puzzles

Last month, a team from North Carolina State University and Johns Hopkins University found a workaround. They embedded DNA molecules, encoding multiple images, into a branched gel-like structure resembling a brain cell.

Dubbed “dendricolloids,” the structures stored DNA files far better than those freeze-dried alone. DNA within dendricolloids can be repeatedly dried and rehydrated over roughly 170 times without damaging stored data. According to one estimate, each DNA strand could last over two million years at normal freezer temperatures.

Unlike previous DNA computers, the data can be erased and replaced like memory on classical computers to solve multiple problems—including a simple chess game and sudoku.

Roger Penrose: Time, Black Holes, and the Cosmos

Nobel Laureate Roger Penrose joins Brian Greene to explore some of his most iconic insights into the nature of time, black holes, and cosmological evolution.

Moderator: Brian Greene.
Participant: Sir Roger Penrose.

00:00 — Introduction.
00:49 — Participant Introduction.
02:02 — A Working Definition of Time.
07:25 — Applying Entropy and The Second Law to the Directionality of Time.
16:37 — What The Early Universe May Have Looked Like.
20:27 — Solving the Puzzle of The Past Hypothesis.
31:46 — Investigating Exponential Expansion.
38:50 — New Discoveries and Discourse Since 2004
55:41 — A Peek Into Sir Roger Penrose’s Continuing Research.
01:08:17 — Credits.

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