Lifeboat Foundation

Using a newly developed technique, scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Nuclear Physics (MPIK) in Heidelberg have measured the very small difference in the magnetic properties of two isotopes of highly charged neon in an ion trap with previously inaccessible accuracy. Comparison with equally extremely precise theoretical calculations of this difference allows a record-level test of quantum electrodynamics (QED). The agreement of the results is an impressive confirmation of the standard model of physics, allowing conclusions regarding the properties of nuclei and setting limits for new physics and dark matter.

Electrons are some of the most fundamental building blocks of the matter we know. They are characterized by some very distinctive properties, such as their negative charge and the existence of a very specific intrinsic angular momentum, also called spin. As a charged particle with spin, each electron has a magnetic moment that aligns itself in a magnetic field similar to a compass needle. The strength of this magnetic moment, given by the so-called g-factor, can be predicted with extraordinary accuracy by quantum electrodynamics. This calculation agrees with the experimentally measured g-factor to within 12 digits, one of the most precise matches of theory and experiment in physics to date. However, the magnetic moment of the electron changes as soon as it is no longer a “free” particle, i.e., unaffected by other influences, but instead is bound to an atomic nucleus, for example.

(https://hscrb.harvard.edu/labs/whited-lab/) is an Assistant Professor of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology at Harvard University where her lab focuses on limb regeneration in axolotl salamanders and where they develop tools to manipulate gene expression during limb regeneration, and explore signaling events following wound healing that initiate the regenerative process.

Dr. Whited earned a B.A. in Philosophy and a B.S. in Biological Sciences from the University of Missouri, and obtained her Ph.D. in Biology from MIT, where she studied in Dr. Paul Garrity’s laboratory.

Continue reading “Dr. Jessica Whited, Ph.D. — Harvard University — Exploring The Biology Of Limb Regeneration” »

Scientists at ETH Zurich designed a push-button device that lets patients control cell-based therapies with the push of a button, using a piezoelectric device.

ENGAGE, the XR education and enterprise metaverse company, today unveiled its Link social platform which the company calls a “fully featured corporate metaverse.”

Previously codenamed Oasis when it was first revealed in June 2021, the Ireland-based studio calls Link a “professional metaverse,” as it was designed to host persistent virtual worlds which serve as gateways to individual spaces where employees, students and individual users can interact.

Continue reading “ENGAGE Reveals First Look at ‘Link’ Metaverse Platform for Enterprise & Education” »

Researchers at Imperial College London have developed a new dual drone that can both fly through air and land on water to collect samples and monitor water quality. The researchers developed a drone to make monitoring drones faster and more versatile in aquatic environments.

The ‘dual robot’ drone, tested at Empa and the aquatic research institute Eawag in Switzerland, has successfully measured water in lakes for signs of microorganisms and algal blooms, which can pose hazards to human health, and could in the future be used to monitor climate clues like temperature changes in Arctic seas.

Continue reading “MEDUSA‘ dual robot’ drone flies and dives to collect aquatic data” »

Time Crystals May Unlock the Quantum Equivalent of RAM.

A team of researchers have successfully linked two time crystals, an exotic phase of matter in the quantum field that boasts of exceedingly long coherence times and predictability — which could eventu.

Hong Kong, a densely populated city where agriculture space is limited, is almost totally dependent on the outside world for its food supply. More than 90% of the skyscraper-studded city’s food, especially fresh produce like vegetables, is imported, mostly from mainland China. “During the pandemic, we all noticed that the productivity of locally grown vegetables is very low,” says Gordon Tam, cofounder and CEO of vertical farming company Farm66 in Hong Kong. “The social impact was huge.”

Tam estimates that only about 1.5% of vegetables in the city are locally produced. But he believes vertical farms like Farm66, with the help of modern technologies, such as IoT sensors, LED lights and robots, can bolster Hong Kong’s local food production—and export its know-how to other cities. “Vertical farming is a good solution because vegetables can be planted in cities,” says Tam in an interview at the company’s vertical farm in an industrial estate. “We can grow vegetables ourselves so that we don’t have to rely on imports.”

Tam says he started Farm66 in 2013 with his cofounder Billy Lam, who is COO of the company, as a high-tech vertical farming pioneer in Hong Kong. “Our company was the first to use energy-saving LED lighting and wavelength technologies in a farm,” he says. “We found out that different colors on the light spectrum help plants grow in different ways. This was our technological breakthrough.” For example, red LED light will make the stems grow faster, while blue LED light encourages plants to grow larger leaves.

Researchers in Sweden report that they are closing in on a way to replace batteries for wearables and low-power applications in the internet of things (IoT). The answer lies in an ink coating that enables low-grade heat, which is generated by devices, to be converted to electrical power.

Publishing in Applied Materials & Interfaces (“Thermoelectric Inks and Power Factor Tunability in Hybrid Films through All Solution Process”), the researchers from KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm report that they have developed a promising blend of thermoelectric coating for devices that generate heat amounting to less than 100 °C.

A piece of film is coated in thermoelectric ink. (Image: KTH The Royal Institute of Technology)

The ancestors of some of the largest galaxy clusters have been hiding in plain sight. New work led by Carnegie’s Andrew Newman demonstrates a new technique for identifying the precursors of the most extreme galactic environments. The team’s findings are published in Nature.

Like all of us, galaxies are shaped and molded by their surroundings. To obtain a complete picture of the various physical influences on a galaxy’s lifecycle, it’s crucial to trace the emergence of properties caused by environmental factors as they arise.

“We’ve known for a long time that the colors, masses, and shapes of galaxies depend on their cosmic environment, but there’s a lot we don’t know about when and how those differences appeared,” Newman said.