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Feb 20, 2023

David Wallace: Thermodynamics as control theory

Posted by in category: physics

I explore the reduction of thermodynamics to statistical mechanics by treating the former as a control theory: a theory of which transitions between states can be induced on a system (assumed to obey some known underlying dynamics) by means of operations from a fixed list. I recover the results of standard thermodynamics in this framework on the assumption that the available operations do not include measurements which affect subsequent choices of operations. I then relax this assumption and use the framework to consider the vexed questions of Maxwell’s demon and Landauer’s principle. Throughout I assume rather than prove the basic irreversibility features of statistical mechanics, taking care to distinguish them from the conceptually distinct assumptions of thermodynamics proper.

Annual UWO Philosophy of Physics Conference.
Thermodynamics as a Resource Theory: Foundational and Philosophical Implications.
June 20–22, 2018
http://philphysics.uwo.ca.
David Wallace, University of Southern California.

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Feb 20, 2023

Look Out! Astronomers Just Found A Runaway Supermassive Black Hole

Posted by in category: cosmology

Astronomers spotted the wake left by the supermassive black hole as it barrels across the disk after being kicked out during a galactic merger.

Feb 20, 2023

Just an Ordinary Material? The Last Mysteries of Mica

Posted by in categories: chemistry, materials

A well-known mineral is once again the center of attention thanks to applications in electronics: the Vienna University of Technology shows that mica still possesses some surprises.

At first glance, mica appears to be quite ordinary: it is a prevalent mineral found in materials like granite and has undergone extensive examination from geological, chemical, and technical standpoints.

At first, it may seem that there’s nothing groundbreaking that can be uncovered about such a commonplace material. However, a team from the Vienna University of Technology has recently published a study in Nature Communications.

Feb 20, 2023

What Is dark energy?

Posted by in categories: cosmology, physics

Dark energy is the name physicists have given to the mysterious thing driving the universe’s accelerated expansion. It may be a force or a form of energy, and one piece of evidence suggests it is hidden inside black holes.

Feb 20, 2023

German doctors say another person declared free of HIV after blood stem cell transplant

Posted by in category: biotech/medical

Feb. 20 (UPI) — Researchers at Dusseldorf University said Monday a fifth person has been declared free of HIV after a blood stem cell transplant during that patient’s treatment for leukemia. The revelation, disclosed in a study published Monday in the scientific journal Nature Medicine, said the patient, a 53-year-old man from Dusseldorf, Germany, tested positive for HIV in 2008 and developed leukemia three years later.

Feb 20, 2023

Now Build ChatGPT On Your Own Device

Posted by in category: robotics/AI

Since OpenAI has not open-sourced the code for ChatGPT, replicating the chatbot is a herculean task, and even the big-tech are struggling. But, AI startup Colossal-AI has found a way to build your own ChatGPT with less computing resources.

Towards this goal, the company has leveraged a PyTorch-based implementation that covers all three stages from pre-training, reward model training, and reinforcement learning. They offer a demo version of the training process that requires only 1.62 GB of GPU memory and can be done on a single consumer-grade GPU, with 10.3x growth on one GPU model capacity.

Check out the GitHub repository here.

Feb 20, 2023

Neuromorphic semiconductor device achieves world’s highest handwriting pattern recognition rate

Posted by in categories: nanotechnology, robotics/AI

A research team led by Dr. Yong-hun Kim and Dr. Jeong-Dae Kwon has successfully developed the world’s first neuromorphic semiconductor device with high-density and high-reliability by developing a thin film of lithium-ion battery materials. They achieved this by producing ultra-thin lithium ions, a key material of lithium-ion batteries that have been in the spotlight recently, and combining it with two-dimensional nano-materials. The research team is from the Surface & Nano Materials Division at the Korea Institute of Materials Science (KIMS).

A neuromorphic device has synapses and neurons similar to the , which processes and memorizes information. The synaptic device receives signals from neurons and modulates the synaptic weight (connection strength) in various ways to simultaneously process and store information. In particular, the linearity and symmetry of synaptic weights enables various pattern recognition with low power.

Traditional methods for controlling synaptic weights use charge traps between interfaces of heterogeneous materials or oxygen ions. In this case, however, it is difficult to control the movement of ions in the desired direction according to the external electric field. The researchers solved this problem with an artificial intelligence semiconductor device with high density by developing a thin film process while maintaining the mobility of lithium ions according to the external electric field. The thin film—with a thickness of several tens of nanometers—enables fine pattern processing while controlling the thickness of the wafer scale.

Feb 20, 2023

Actin: A Protein That Helps Drive Cancer Metastasis

Posted by in category: biotech/medical

Metastasis occurs when cancer cells break free from a primary tumor and spread throughout the body, requiring them to sever connections with neighboring cells and migrate to other tissues. Signaling molecules released by the cancer cells drive both processes and thereby increase the malignancy of tumors.

A team of researchers led by Professor Robert Grosse and Dr. Carsten Schwan from the University of Freiburg discovered that the release of prometastatic factors, which drive the malignancy of tumors, is influenced by the cells’ skeleton. The findings were published in the journal Advanced Science.

Feb 20, 2023

Did Tesla REALLY fire employees for attempting to unionise Giga NY?

Posted by in categories: education, robotics/AI, sustainability, transportation

What do you think?


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Feb 20, 2023

The Argumentative Theory: Predictions and Empirical Evidence

Posted by in category: futurism

The argumentative theory of reasoning suggests that the main function of reasoning is to exchange arguments with others. This theory explains key properties of reasoning. When reasoners produce arguments, they are biased and lazy, as can be expected if reasoning is a mechanism that aims at convincing others in interactive contexts. By contrast, reasoners are more objective and demanding when they evaluate arguments provided by others. This fundamental asymmetry between production and evaluation explains the effects of reasoning in different contexts: the more debate and conflict between opinions there is, the more argument evaluation prevails over argument production, resulting in better outcomes.