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Adhering to Moore’s Law, the number of transistors on a microchip has doubled annually since the 1960s, but this growth is expected to reach its limit as silicon, the foundation of modern transistors, loses its electrical properties when devices made from it dip below a certain size.

Enter 2D materials — delicate, two-dimensional sheets of perfect crystals that are as thin as a single atom.

An atom is the smallest component of an element. It is made up of protons and neutrons within the nucleus, and electrons circling the nucleus.

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This video shows the humble beginnings and the 40 years of development journey of Boston dynamics’ robot ATLAS. We start with the first model developed in 1983 in the leg lab in MIT, all the way to the current version of Atlas shown in 2023 in the Boston dynamics youtube channel.

Atlas is an incredibly advanced humanoid robot that has been developed by the robotics company Boston Dynamics. It is a bipedal robot that stands at 6 feet tall and weighs 180 pounds. It is capable of performing a variety of tasks, including walking, running, jumping, and even performing backflips.

Atlas is equipped with a variety of sensors, including cameras, laser rangefinders, and inertial measurement units. This allows it to perceive its environment and interact with it in a variety of ways. It is also equipped with a powerful onboard computer that allows it to process data and make decisions.

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Continue reading “Boston Dynamics : 40 years of development (1983” | >

Sending a jolt of electricity through a person’s brain can do remarkable things. You only have to watch the videos of people with Parkinson’s disease who have electrodes implanted in their brains. They can go from struggling to walk to confidently striding across a room literally at the flick of a switch.

Stimulating certain parts of the brain can bring people in and out of consciousness. Even handheld devices that deliver gentle pulses to the brain can help older people remember things.

Implants that track and optimize our brain activity are on the way.

Continue reading “Here’s how personalized brain stimulation could treat depression” | >

A new North Carolina State University study, performed in collaboration with battery testing researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory, shows that extremely short pulses from a high-powered laser can cause tiny defects in lithium-ion battery materials—defects that can enhance battery performance.

The technique, called nanosecond pulsed laser annealing, lasts for only 100 nanoseconds and is generated by the same type of laser used in modern-day eye surgeries. Researchers tested the technique on graphite, a material widely used in lithium-ion battery anodes, or positive electrodes. They tested the technique in batches of 10 pulses and 80 pulses and compared the differences in current capacity; power is calculated by multiplying voltage by current.

Lithium-ion batteries are widely used in portable electronic devices and electric cars. With further improvements, these batteries could have a major impact on transportation and as storage devices for renewable energy sources like wind and solar.

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One of the most interesting stars in the Milky Way is still serving up more than its fair share of intrigue.

In October 2020, SGR 1935+2154, the magnetar responsible for spitting out radio signals never before detected in our home galaxy, unexpectedly slowed down.

Now, scientists believe the rotational slowdown could be evidence of a volcano-like eruption on its surface, spewing material out into space that altered the star’s environment enough to decelerate the spinning of the planet minutely.

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