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Oct 25, 2023

Topological quantum computation on supersymmetric spin chains

Posted by in categories: computing, quantum physics

Only theoretical now but someday this could lead to lag free and error free quantum computers.


Quantum gates built out of braid group elements form the building blocks of topological quantum computation. They have been extensively studied in SUk quantum group theories, a rich source of examples of non-Abelian anyons such as the Ising (k = 2), Fibonacci (k = 3) and Jones-Kauffman (k = 4) anyons. We show that the fusion spaces of these anyonic systems can be precisely mapped to the product state zero modes of certain Nicolai-like supersymmetric spin chains. As a result, we can realize the braid group in terms of the product state zero modes of these supersymmetric systems. These operators kill all the other states in the Hilbert space, thus preventing the occurrence of errors while processing information, making them suitable for quantum computing.

Oct 25, 2023

Giant £2.2m Transformers-style robot could replace humans on building sites

Posted by in category: robotics/AI

A NEW generation of giant shape-shifting robots designed to work on building sites and disaster zones have been unveiled in Japan.

The Transformer-style bots, dubbed the Archax, can grow to nearly three times the height of a man on their four-wheeled legs.

Designed by Tsubame Industries in Tokyo, the machines can also change into different shapes to suit any situation.

Oct 25, 2023

Launch Roundup: SpaceX surpass 5,000 active Starlink satellites; China to send taikonauts to space station

Posted by in categories: internet, satellites

The week of Oct. 23 through Oct 30 is a big one for low-Earth orbit (LEO) with all but one flight headed to already existing constellations. This includes two Falcon 9 launches on opposite sides of the country, one Russian Soyuz 2.1b launch, and two different launches planned out of China, one involving humans.

Two Chinese launches start the week, with the first being a Chang Zheng 2D preparing for its flight from LC-3 at Xichang Satellite Launch Center. Then, a Chang Zheng 2F/G will launch out of LC-90 at the China Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, before a Soyuz 2.1b launches out of Plesetsk Cosmodrome. Then the first Falcon 9 launches more Starlink satellites on the other side of the world out of SLC-4E at Vandenberg Spaceforce Base (VSFB). Then, on the other side of America, Falcon 9 Starlink launches out of SLC-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS).

Chang Zheng 2D – Yaogan 39 Group 04

Oct 25, 2023

Spacewalk with Astronauts Jasmin Moghbeli and Loral O’Hara: Oct. 30, 2023 (Official NASA Broadcast)

Posted by in category: space

NASA astronauts Jasmin Moghbeli and Loral O’Hara are taking a spacewalk outside the International Space Station on Monday, Oct. 30, to remove electronics gea…

Oct 25, 2023

Physics has long failed to explain life — but we’re testing a groundbreaking new theory in the lab

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, chemistry

Modern physics can explain everything from the spin of the tiniest particle to the behaviour of entire galaxy clusters. But it can’t explain life. There’s simply no formula to explain the difference between a living lump of matter and a dead one. Life seems to just mysteriously “emerge” from non-living parts, such as elementary particles.

Assembly theory is a bold new approach to explaining life on a fundamental scale, with its framework recently published in Nature. It assumes that complexity and information (such as DNA) are at the heart of it. The theory provides a a way to understand how these concepts emerge in chemical systems.

Emergence is a word physicists use to explain something that is bigger than the sum of its parts – such as how water can feel wet when individual water molecules don’t. Wetness is an emergent property.

Oct 25, 2023

Space Perspective’s balloon-like spacecraft is floating toward a 2024 commercial launch. See new photos of the high-altitude luxury vehicle — including its fancy space toilet

Posted by in category: space travel

An interstellar exploration company wants to build a space vessel that takes the uberwealthy cruising high up in the earth’s atmosphere — and Mercedes-Maybach is lending its luxury brand name to make it happen.

Space Perspective hopes to take travelers up in the air by the end of 2024 in a craft known as Spaceship Neptune, a pressurized capsule with panoramic views.

A space balloon will lift Neptune 100,000 feet into the upper stratosphere, where guests can witness the earth’s curvature.

Oct 25, 2023

Ancient Landscape Not Seen For 14 Million Years Discovered Beneath Antarctic Ice

Posted by in categories: climatology, space, sustainability

An ancient landscape that has remained hidden beneath the East Antarctic Ice Sheet (EAIS) for at least 14 million years has been revealed by a new satellite data and radar imaging study. According to the researchers, the preservation of this primordial scenery attests to the fact that the EAIS has remained relatively unchanged for eons, yet this stability could soon be threatened by an unprecedented rise in global temperatures.

The study authors used satellite data to identify undulations in the ice sheet’s surface that provided clues as to the nature of the terrain beneath. Using radio-echo sounding techniques, they were then able to image the landscape covered by the ice over an area of 32,000 square kilometers (12,355 square miles).

“The land underneath the East Antarctic Ice Sheet is less well known than the surface of Mars,” explained study author Professor Stewart Jamieson in a statement. “And that’s a problem because that landscape controls the way that ice in Antarctica flows, and it controls the way it might respond to past, present and future climate change.”

Oct 25, 2023

California DMV Suspends Cruise’s Driverless Robotaxis, Effective Immediately

Posted by in categories: robotics/AI, transportation

The abrupt reversal comes in the wake of several high-profile incidents involving Cruise’s autonomous vehicles, including a hit-and-run earlier this month in which a Cruise taxi dragged a pedestrian for 20 feet after they’d been launched into the taxi’s path by a separate car.

The hit-and-run driver remains at large.

Following that crash and a handful of others, Cruise agreed to reduce its autonomous fleet in San Francisco by 50%, capping the taxis to no more than 50 operating during the day and no more than 150 at night.

Oct 25, 2023

Take an Offensive Approach to Password Security by Continuously Monitoring for Breached Passwords

Posted by in categories: policy, security

🔑 Weak passwords can be a major threat.

Find out how Specops Password Policy with Breached Password Protection can safeguard your organization.

Oct 25, 2023

How ultra-processed food affects mental health

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, life extension, neuroscience

Ultra-processed foods can have a negative effect on mental health, and this is especially true for younger people, who consume more of these foods than older people.


Over time, there has been increasing evidence that those whose diet includes large quantities of ultra-processed foods are more likely to develop physical health issues.

These issues can include obesity, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and even more rapid aging. This is supported by wide research, including a paper by the IRCCS Neuromed Mediterranean Neurological Institute in Italy, involving about 23,000 citizens from the Molise region.

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