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Jun 28, 2022

Error-riddled data sets are warping our sense of how good AI really is

Posted by in category: robotics/AI

Our understanding of progress in machine learning has been colored by flawed testing data.

Jun 28, 2022

Hysteresis and Stochastic Fluorescence

Posted by in categories: materials, quantum physics

“Blinking” behavior of fluorophores, being harmful for the majority of super-resolved techniques, turns into a key property for stochastic optical fluctuation imaging and its modifications, allowing one to look at the fluorophores already used in conventional microscopy, such as graphene quantum dots, from a completely new perspective. Here we discuss fluorescence of aggregated ensembles of graphene quantum dots structured at submicron scale. We study temperature dependence and stochastic character of emission. We show that considered quantum dots ensembles demonstrate rather complicated temperature-dependent intermittent emission, that is, “blinking” with a tendency to shorten “blinking” times with the increase of temperature.

Jun 28, 2022

Oxytocin Spreads Cooperation in Social Networks

Posted by in category: neuroscience

Summary: Administering oxytocin to influential members of a social network helped increase overall group cooperation.

Source: SfN

Administering oxytocin to the central members of a social network spreads cooperation via increased punishment of uncooperative behavior, according to new research published in Journal of Neuroscience.

Jun 28, 2022

Finally, Scientists Prove the ‘Dead Cone Effect,’ Shaking Up Particle Physics

Posted by in category: particle physics

Operators of the ALICE detector have observed the first direct evidence of the “dead cone effect,” allowing them to assess the mass of the elusive charm quark.


The ALICE collaboration at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) in Geneva, Switzerland, recently made the first observation of an important aspect of particle physics called the “dead cone effect.”

The effect is a fundamental element of the strong nuclear force — one of the four fundamental forces of nature — responsible for binding quarks and gluons. These are the fundamental particles that comprise hadrons, such as protons and neutrons, that in turn make up all atomic nuclei, which are never seen on their own under normal circumstances, only at the kind of high energy levels generated at the LHC.

Continue reading “Finally, Scientists Prove the ‘Dead Cone Effect,’ Shaking Up Particle Physics” »

Jun 28, 2022

Two Genes Crucial for Plants Colonizing the Earth 470 Million Ago Have Been Identified

Posted by in category: futurism

Scientists believe it likely that the two genes, PEN1 and SYP122, paved the way for all terrestrial plant life.

Researchers from the University of Copenhagen have shed new light on how plant life got established on the surface of our planet. They specifically demonstrated that two genes are crucial for terrestrial plants to protect themselves against fungal attack – a defense mechanism that dates back 470 million years. These defenses most likely paved the way for all terrestrial plant life.

Jun 28, 2022

Xanadu puts quantum advantage in the cloud

Posted by in categories: particle physics, quantum physics

Toronto-based start-up’s programmable photonic device is accessible to the public and much faster than classical machines at Gaussian boson sampling.

Jun 28, 2022

Majorana fermions hold potential for information technology with zero resistance

Posted by in categories: materials, particle physics

A new, multi-node FLEET review, published in Matter, investigates the search for Majorana fermions in iron-based superconductors.

Jun 28, 2022

Intergalactic Viral Video Takes Viewers To ‘Edge’ of Universe and Blows People’s Minds

Posted by in category: space

“So fascinating and yet scary how unfathomably vast space is,” comments a user.

A marvelous animation takes those who view it on an illuminating adventure through outer space, beyond the Milky Way and ultimately to the edge of the known universe. Included in the journey are stunning revelations about the difficult-to-comprehend nature of distances measured in light years.

Jun 28, 2022

Evolution May Be Happening Up to 4 Times Faster Than We Thought, Massive Study Finds

Posted by in categories: climatology, evolution, genetics, sustainability

New research suggests that Darwinian evolution could be happening up to four times faster than previously thought, based on an analysis of genetic variation.

The more genetic differences there are in a species, the faster evolution can happen, as certain traits die off and stronger ones get established. The team behind this latest study calls it the “fuel of evolution”, and they looked at data on 19 different wild animal groups around the world.

That data analysis revealed this raw material for evolution is more abundant than earlier estimates, and as a result we may have to adjust our expectations for how quickly animals evolve – a pertinent question in our age of climate change.

Jun 28, 2022

Lab-grown plant matter marks a step towards 3D-printable wood

Posted by in categories: 3D printing, climatology, sustainability

Chopping down trees and processing the wood isn’t the most efficient or environmentally friendly way to make furniture or building materials. Scientists at MIT have now made breakthroughs in a process that could one day let us 3D print and grow wood directly into the shape of furniture and other objects.

Wood may be a renewable resource, but we’re using it up much faster than we’re replenishing it. Deforestation is having a drastic impact on wildlife and exacerbating the effects of climate change. Since our appetite for wooden products isn’t likely to change, our methods for obtaining it will have to.

In recent years, researchers have turned to growing wood in the lab. Not trees – just the wood itself, not unlike the ongoing work into cultivating animal cells for lab-grown meat, rather than raising live animals and slaughtering them. And now, a team of MIT scientists has demonstrated a new technique that can grow wood-like plant material in the lab, allowing for easy tuning of properties like weight and strength as needed.