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Feb 12, 2023

From the Shadows: A New Method for X-Ray Color Imaging

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, chemistry, computing, media & arts

Researchers at the University of Göttingen have created a new approach to generate colored X-ray images. Previously, the only way to determine the chemical composition and arrangement of components in a sample using X-ray fluorescence analysis was to focus X-rays on the entire sample and scan it, which was both time-consuming and costly. The new method allows for the creation of an image of a large area with just one exposure, eliminating the need for focusing and scanning. The findings were published in the journal Optica.

In contrast to visible light, there are no comparably powerful lenses for “invisible” radiation, such as X-ray, neutron, or gamma radiation. However, these types of radiation are essential, for example, in nuclear medicine and radiology, as well as in industrial testing and material analysis.

Uses for X-ray fluorescence include analyzing the composition of chemicals in paintings and cultural artifacts to determine authenticity, origin, or production technique, or the analysis of soil samples or plants in environmental protection. The quality and purity of semiconductor components and computer chips can also be checked using X-ray fluorescence analysis.

Feb 12, 2023

Can You Trust Your Quantum Simulator? MIT Physicists Report a New Quantum Phenomenon

Posted by in categories: computing, particle physics, quantum physics

Physics gets strange at the atomic scale. Scientists are utilizing quantum analog simulators – laboratory experiments that involve cooling numerous atoms to low temperatures and examining them using precisely calibrated lasers and magnets – to uncover, harness, and control these unusual quantum effects.

Scientists hope that any new understanding gained from quantum simulators will provide blueprints for designing new exotic materials, smarter and more efficient electronics, and practical quantum computers. But in order to reap the insights from quantum simulators, scientists first have to trust them.

That is, they have to be sure that their quantum device has “high fidelity” and accurately reflects quantum behavior. For instance, if a system of atoms is easily influenced by external noise, researchers could assume a quantum effect where there is none. But there has been no reliable way to characterize the fidelity of quantum analog simulators, until now.

Feb 12, 2023

What would Happen if Human Race Completely Disappeared?

Posted by in category: futurism

Explore what would happen if humans were suddenly eradicated from the world, and the Earth was left to heal itself. From the safety of nuclear power plants to the fate of pets, livestock, and wild animals, this video takes a detailed look at the environmental and societal impacts of such a scenario. Discover how air quality and greenhouse gas emissions would change and the Earth’s temperature would slowly return to its pre-industrial levels.

Feb 12, 2023

Berserker hypothesis

Posted by in categories: alien life, existential risks

A more frightening implication of the fermi paradox.


The berserker hypothesis, also known as the deadly probes scenario, is the idea that humans have not yet detected intelligent alien life in the universe because it has been systematically destroyed by a series of lethal Von Neumann probes.[1][2] The hypothesis is named after the Berserker series of novels (1963−2005) written by Fred Saberhagen.[1]

The hypothesis has no single known proposer, and instead is thought to have emerged over time in response to the Hart–Tipler conjecture,[3] or the idea that an absence of detectable Von Neumann probes is contrapositive evidence that no intelligent life exists outside of the Sun’s Solar System. According to the berserker hypothesis, an absence of such probes is not evidence of life’s absence, since interstellar probes could “go berserk” and destroy other civilizations, before self-destructing.

In his 1983 paper “The Great Silence”, astronomer David Brin summarized the frightening implications of the berserker hypothesis: it is entirely compatible with all the facts and logic of the Fermi paradox, but would mean that there exists no intelligent life left to be discovered. In the worst-case scenario, humanity has already alerted others to its existence, and is next in line to be destroyed.[4].

Feb 12, 2023

News on the Energy Front — Exxon Continues to Disappoint, An Agrivoltaic Breakthrough, and a New Energy Storage Project

Posted by in categories: energy, food, sustainability

Exxon’s green energy stories on the website are gaslighting, REM Tec creates agrivoltaics for farms and Canada builds a mass storage site.

Feb 12, 2023

Saudi’s first-ever AI-powered robot introduced, speaks Arabic and dances

Posted by in category: robotics/AI

She even sends texts.

Saudi Arabia introduced its first-ever robot that can communicate in the Arabic dialect, perform popular local dances, and respond to questions at a conference in Riyadh on Tuesday. The event was held at LEAP23, the techno-conference, and the robot was documented by the state news agency SPA.

The interactive machine boasts a built-in camera that uses artificial intelligence to recognize when people are standing in front of it. It can then begin a conversation when a visitor addresses it with the sentence “Hello Sara.”

Continue reading “Saudi’s first-ever AI-powered robot introduced, speaks Arabic and dances” »

Feb 12, 2023

‘Feather floating’: MAD architects reveal China’s new airport design

Posted by in categories: sustainability, transportation

The architecture of the new building is meant to convey the “timeless human need for connection to human and plant-life alike.”

Beijing-based MAD architects announced on Instagram on Tuesday that they won the contract to build the first large-scale air transportation junction for the new terminal of Changchun airport. The firm will now aim to create a green and sustainable structure that can accommodate all passenger needs.

The new site consists of 177.6 hectares with a building area of nearly 270,000 square meters and is located in Changchun, a city well-known as the international, regional hub in Northeast Asia with a population of 23 million.

Feb 12, 2023

Tiny black holes can compress Mount Everest into an atom size

Posted by in categories: cosmology, particle physics

These tiny black holes lose mass faster than their massive counterparts, emitting Hawking radiation until they finally evaporate.

One of the most intriguing predictions of Einstein’s general theory of relativity.

When a sufficiently massive star runs out of fuel, it explodes, and the remaining core collapses, leading to the formation of a stellar black hole (ranging from 3 to 100 solar masses).

Continue reading “Tiny black holes can compress Mount Everest into an atom size” »

Feb 12, 2023

Elon Musk inches close to reclaim throne of world’s richest person

Posted by in category: Elon Musk

Separating the Tesla CEO and first place within the wealth standings is simply $3 billion, claims a media report.

Despite losing 200 billion in 2022, Elon Musk is on a recovery, inching closer than ever to reclaim the throne of the world’s richest person.

Elon Musk may soon “reclaim the title of world’s richest person,” claimed a media report on Saturday. “Separating the Tesla CEO and first place within the wealth standings is simply $3 billion.

Continue reading “Elon Musk inches close to reclaim throne of world’s richest person” »

Feb 12, 2023

‘Desire for invisibility’: World’s first 3D-printed solar yacht concept

Posted by in category: futurism

The ship design has ‘solar wings.’

Designer Jozeph Forakis has introduced the world’s first 3D-printed super yacht concept, and it’s called Pegasus. The concept is 88 meters long and comes complete with reflective ‘Solar Wings,’ allowing it to have zero emissions and an infinite range.

The idea for the futuristic yacht was conceived on a beach in Koufonissi island, Greece. Forakis claimed to be “inspired to create a yacht as close to the sea and nature as possible, made of clouds floating above the waterline, becoming virtually invisible,” according to the designer’s page.