Lifeboat Foundation

Neutron scattering is considered the method of choice for investigating magnetic structures and excitations in quantum materials. Now, for the first time, the evaluation of measurement data from the 2000s with new methods has provided much deeper insights into a model system—the 1D Heisenberg spin chains. A new toolbox for elucidating future quantum materials has been achieved.

Potassium copper fluoride (KCuF₃ ) is considered the simplest model material for realizing the so-called Heisenberg quantum spin chain: The spins interact with their neighbors antiferromagnetically along a single direction (one-dimensional), governed by the laws of quantum physics.

“We carried out the measurements on this simple model material at the ISIS spallation neutron source some time ago when I was a postdoc, and we published our results in 2005, 2013 and again in 2021, comparing to new theories each time they became available,” says Prof. Bella Lake, who heads the HZB-Institute Quantum Phenomena in Novel Materials. Now with new and extended methods, a team led by Prof. Alan Tennant and Dr. Allen Scheie has succeeded in gaining significantly deeper insights into the interactions between the spins and their spatial and temporal evolution.

E to forgetting and false memories. However, if we believe that episodic memory developed to flexibly and creatively combine and rearrange memories of prior events in order to plan for the future, then it is quite a good system. We argue that consciousness originally developed as part of the episodic memory system—quite likely the part needed to accomplish that flexible recombining of information. We posit further that consciousness was subsequently co-opted to produce other functions that are not directly relevant to memory per se, such as problem-solving, abstract thinking, and language. We suggest that this theory is compatible with many phenomena, such as the slow speed and the after-the-fact order of consciousness, that cannot be explained well by other theories. We believe that our theory may have profound implications for understanding intentional action and consciousness in general. Moreover, we suggest that episodic memory and its associated memory systems of sensory, working, and semantic memory as a whole ought to be considered together as the conscious memory system in that they, together, give rise to the phenomenon of consciousness. Lastly, we suggest that the cerebral cortex is the part of the brain that makes consciousness possible, and that every cortical region contributes to this conscious memory system…

The Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded to Alain Aspect, John F. Clauser and Anton Zeilinger on Tuesday for work that has “laid the foundation for a new era of quantum technology,” the Nobel Committee for Physics said.

The scientists have each conducted “groundbreaking experiments using entangled quantum states, where two particles behave like a single unit even when they are separated,” the committee said in a briefing. Their results, it said, cleared the way for “new technology based upon quantum information.”

Continue reading “Nobel Prize in Physics Is Awarded to 3 Scientists for Work in Quantum Technology” »

Were you unable to attend Transform 2022? Check out all of the summit sessions in our on-demand library now! Watch here.

The open-source Linux operating system is an essential component of the cloud and enterprise application delivery. In fact, every cloud service, even Microsoft, offers Linux-based compute resources and Linux is often the default choice for embedded and internet of things (IoT) devices. Among the major Linux distribution vendors today are IBM’s Red Hat business unit, German vendor SUSE and Canonical, which develops the Ubuntu Linux distribution.

The market for Linux is forecast to grow to $22.15 billion by 2029, according to Fortune Business Insights, up from $6.27 billion in 2022.

It is a commonly accepted view that light stimulation of mammalian photoreceptors causes a graded change in membrane potential instead of developing a spike. The presynaptic Ca²⁺ channels serve as a crucial link for the coding of membrane potential variations into neurotransmitter release. Ca_v1.4 L-type Ca²⁺ channels are expressed in photoreceptor terminals, but the complete pool of Ca²⁺ channels in cone photoreceptors appears to be more diverse. Here, we discovered, employing whole-cell patch-clamp recording from cone photoreceptor terminals in both sexes of mice, that their Ca²⁺ currents are composed of low-(T-type Ca²⁺ channels) and high-(L-type Ca²⁺ channels) voltage-activated components. Furthermore, Ca²⁺ channels exerted self-generated spike behavior in dark membrane potentials, and spikes were generated in response to light/dark transition. The application of fast and slow Ca²⁺ chelators revealed that T-type Ca²⁺ channels are located close to the release machinery. Furthermore, capacitance measurements indicated that they are involved in evoked vesicle release. Additionally, RT-PCR experiments showed the presence of Ca_v3.2 T-type Ca²⁺ channels in cone photoreceptors but not in rod photoreceptors. Altogether, we found several crucial functions of T-type Ca²⁺ channels, which increase the functional repertoire of cone photoreceptors. Namely, they extend cone photoreceptor light-responsive membrane potential range, amplify dark responses, generate spikes, increase intracellular Ca²⁺ levels, and boost synaptic transmission.

SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Photoreceptors provide the first synapse for coding light information. The key elements in synaptic transmission are the voltage-sensitive Ca²⁺ channels. Here, we provide evidence that mouse cone photoreceptors express low-voltage-activated Ca_v3.2 T-type Ca²⁺ channels in addition to high-voltage-activated L-type Ca²⁺ channels. The presence of T-type Ca²⁺ channels in cone photoreceptors appears to extend their light-responsive membrane potential range, amplify dark response, generate spikes, increase intracellular Ca²⁺ levels, and boost synaptic transmission. By these functions, Ca_v3.2 T-type Ca²⁺ channels increase the functional repertoire of cone photoreceptors.

Scientists trained a machine learning tool to capture the physics of electrons moving on a lattice using far fewer equations than would typically be required, all without sacrificing accuracy. A daunting quantum problem that until now required 100,000 equations has been compressed into a bite-size task of as few as four equations by physicists using artificial intelligence. All of this was accomplished without sacrificing accuracy. The work could revolutionize how scientists investigate systems containing many interacting electrons. Furthermore, if scalable to other problems, the approach could potentially aid in the design of materials with extremely valuable properties such as superconductivity or utility for clean energy generation.

From an AI that makes videos from text prompts to a robot running track, check out this week’s awesome tech stories from around the web.

SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea on Tuesday fired an intermediate-range ballistic missile over Japan, its neighbors said, escalating tests of weapons designed to strike key targets in regional U.S. allies.

It is the most significant missile test by North Korea since January, when it fired the Hwasong-12 intermediate-range missile capable of reaching the U.S. territory of Guam. It is also the first time that a North Korean missile has flown over Japan since 2017.

The Japanese prime minister’s office said at least one missile fired from North Korea flew over Japan and was believed to have landed in the Pacific Ocean.