Menu

Blog

Page 3533

Jan 11, 2023

Electrons take new shape inside unconventional metal

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

One of the biggest achievements of quantum physics was recasting our vision of the atom. Out was the early 1900s model of a solar system in miniature, in which electrons looped around a solid nucleus. Instead, quantum physics showed that electrons live a far more interesting life, meandering around the nucleus in clouds that look like tiny balloons. These balloons are known as atomic orbitals, and they come in all sorts of different shapes—perfectly round, two-lobed, clover-leaf-shaped. The number of lobes in the balloon signifies how much the electron spins about the nucleus.

That’s all well and good for individual , but when atoms come together to form something solid—like a chunk of metal, say—the outermost electrons in the atoms can link arms and lose sight of the nucleus from where they came, forming many oversized balloons that span the whole chunk of metal. They stop spinning about their and flow through the metal to carry electrical currents, shedding the diversity of multi-lobed balloons.

Now, researchers at the Quantum Materials Center (QMC) at the University of Maryland (UMD), in collaboration with theorists at the Condensed Matter Theory Center (CMTC) and Joint Quantum Institute (JQI), have produced the first experimental evidence that one metal—and likely others in its class—have electrons that manage to preserve a more interesting, multi-lobed structure as they move around in a solid. The team experimentally studied the shape of these balloons and found not a uniform surface, but a complex structure. This unusual metal is not only fundamentally interesting, but it could also prove useful for building quantum computers that are resistant to noise.

Jan 11, 2023

Explaining Anomalies in Reactor Antineutrinos

Posted by in categories: nuclear energy, particle physics

Several experiments have been set up outside nuclear reactors to record escaping antineutrinos. The data generally agrees with theory, but at certain energies, the antineutrino flux is 6–10% above or below predictions. These so-called reactor antineutrino anomalies have excited the neutrino community, as they could be signatures of a hypothetical sterile neutrino (see Viewpoint: Getting to the Bottom of an Antineutrino Anomaly). But a new analysis by Alain Letourneau from the French Atomic Energy Commission (CEA-Saclay) and colleagues has shown that the discrepancies may come from experimental biases in associated electron measurements [1].

The source of reactor antineutrinos is beta decay, which occurs in a wide variety of nuclei (more than 800 species in a typical fission reactor). To predict the antineutrino flux, researchers have typically used previously recorded data on electrons, which are also produced in the same beta decays. This traditional method takes the observed electron spectra from nuclei, such as uranium-235 and plutonium-239, and converts them into predicted antineutrino spectra. But Letourneau and colleagues have found reason to doubt the electron measurements.

The team calculated antineutrino spectra—as well as the corresponding electron spectra—using a fundamental theory of beta decay. This method works for some nuclei, but not all, so the researchers plugged the gaps using a phenomenological model. They were able to treat all 800-plus reactor beta decays, finding “bumps” in the antineutrino flux that agree with observations. Similar features are predicted for electron spectra, but they don’t show up in the data. The results suggest that an experimental bias in electron observations causes the reactor antineutrino anomalies. To confirm this hypothesis, the researchers call for new precision measurements of the fission electrons.

Jan 11, 2023

The Sounds of Atoms

Posted by in category: particle physics

Transforming the spectral lines of each element into a musical tone provides a fun tool for teasing out patterns in the electronic structures of atoms.

Jan 10, 2023

Meteor seen shooting through night sky from parts of UK — video

Posted by in category: futurism

Footage shows meteor spotted flying through the night sky from various parts of the UK.

Jan 10, 2023

An Introduction to Hokusai’s Great Wave, One of the Most Recognizable Artworks in the World

Posted by in categories: internet, space

You need not be a student of Japanese Ukiyo-e woodblock prints to recognize artist Katsushika Hokusai’s Under the Wave Off Kanagawa – or the Great Wave, as it has come to be known.

Like Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa and Botticelli’s The Birth of Venus, it’s been reproduced on all manner of improbable items and subjected to liberal reimagining – something Sarah Urist Green, describes in the above episode of her series The Art Assignment as “numerous crimes against this image perpetrated across the internet.”

Such repurposing is the ultimate compliment.

Jan 10, 2023

There’s An AI For That

Posted by in category: robotics/AI

Comprehensive database of AIs available for every task.

Jan 10, 2023

New research identifies a cognitive mechanism linked to reduced susceptibility to fake news

Posted by in categories: internet, neuroscience

Insightfulness might play a critical role in the ability to assess the accuracy of information, according to new research published in the journal Thinking & Reasoning. The study found that people with greater insight-based problem solving skills were less likely to fall for fake news.

With rise of the internet and social media, susceptibility to misinformation has become of increasing concern. The authors of the new research sought to better understand the cognitive mechanisms associated with believing in misinformation. They were particularly interested in the role of insight-based problem solving.

“I’m a neuroscientist and study the neural correlates of creativity and idea generation, specifically how we generate ideas accompanied by ‘Aha! moments’ i.e., insights,” said study author Carola Salvi, a professor at the John Cabot University of Rome and an associate faculty member at the University of Texas at Austin. “In this study, we investigated the relationship between insightfulness and aspects of social reasoning, such as believing in fake news, overclaiming, and bullshit.”

Jan 10, 2023

My lawyer, the robot

Posted by in categories: law, robotics/AI

The eerie new capabilities of artificial intelligence are about to show up inside a courtroom — in the form of an AI chatbot lawyer that will soon argue a case in traffic court.

That’s according to Joshua Browder, the founder of a consumer-empowerment startup who conceived of the scheme.

Continue reading “My lawyer, the robot” »

Jan 10, 2023

Conscious Robots Will Be ‘Bigger Than Curing Cancer,’ Scientists Say

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, robotics/AI

The next—and final?—step for artificial intelligence is on the horizon.

Jan 10, 2023

The TIMELINE of Star Trek: Prodigy Explained

Posted by in category: time travel

With the timeline of Star Trek: Prodigy being quite confusing and complex, we thought it would be worth a video dedicated to the timeline of Prodigy? So strap in as we deal with Vau N’akat time travel, how prodigy fits in with Picard, and much more!

This is gonna be interesting because we first have to start with the Protostar, we will somewhat go chronologically down the timeline, but with time travel being involved, we will jump to relevant times to further explain things.

Continue reading “The TIMELINE of Star Trek: Prodigy Explained” »