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Electrically tunable metasurface unlocks real-time THz holography

The terahertz (THz) band of the electromagnetic spectrum holds immense promise for next-generation technologies, including high-speed wireless communication, advanced encryption, and medical imaging. However, manipulating THz waves has long been a technical challenge, since these frequencies interact weakly with most natural materials.

Over the past two decades, researchers have increasingly turned to metasurfaces to tackle this problem. These are ultrathin materials carefully engineered to exhibit specialized properties, providing unprecedented control over THz waves.

Ideally, metasurfaces for THz applications in encryption and holography should be easily configurable, featuring an adjustable response that can be controlled externally. Despite this, tunable metasurface systems often rely on cumbersome or energy-inefficient methods, such as external thermal control.

‘A real physical thing’: Quantum computer exhibit at O’Hare seeks to make the technology tangible

Chicago has quickly emerged as a hub for quantum computing, with the state of Illinois and technology companies pouring millions of dollars into developing a campus to build the world’s first commercially viable quantum computer on the city’s Southeast Side.

But what does a quantum computer even look like? And how do they work?

Those are questions that a new exhibit unveiled at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport seeks to answer. In Terminal 1, near the massive model of a dinosaur skeleton, travelers of all ages paused on their brisk walks through the concourse to look at the model of the inside of a quantum computer, which resembles a large golden chandelier with four “tiers,” copper wiring and a chip at the bottom. On a screen on one side of the fiberglass case protecting the quantum computer, travelers were able to watch a video explaining the science behind it.

Webb Spots Cosmic Light Show on Rogue Planet

Brilliant aurora-like displays, much like Earth’s Northern Lights, are the highlight of an unusual weather forecast. Instead of coming from a television studio, this report originates from a distant world beyond our solar system.

Astronomers at Trinity College Dublin used the NASA /ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope to investigate the turbulent atmosphere of a nearby free-floating planet known as SIMP-0136.

With the telescope’s highly sensitive instruments, researchers were able to measure tiny variations in the planet’s brightness as it spun. These subtle shifts revealed information about its temperature, cloud cover, and chemical makeup.

“Like Talking on the Telephone” — Quantum Breakthrough Lets Individual Atoms Chat Like Never Before

Scientists have linked nuclear spins inside silicon chips, marking a leap toward scalable quantum computers. Engineers at UNSW have achieved a major breakthrough in quantum computing by creating what are known as “quantum entangled states.” In this phenomenon, two particles become so strongly conne

The Sun’s Poles Hold the Key to Its Three Greatest Mysteries

The Sun’s poles may hold answers to long-standing mysteries about magnetic cycles, solar wind, and space weather. The polar regions of the Sun remain one of the least explored areas in solar science. Although satellites and ground-based observatories have captured remarkable details of the Sun’s su

Earth’s Ancient Shield: Scientists Crack the Billion-Year-Old Mystery of the Magnetic Field

A new model uncovers how Earth’s liquid core has sustained its magnetic field since the planet’s beginnings, offering new insights into its future. Earth benefits from the presence of a magnetic field, which acts as a shield against harmful cosmic radiation and makes life possible. In contrast, p

Scientists Discover “Virtual Charges” That Exist Only When Light Hits

A study led by Politecnico di Milano, recently published in Nature Photonics, highlights the crucial role of virtual charges in insulating materials. One of the biggest challenges in modern physics and photonics is understanding how materials behave when struck by extremely brief flashes of light

New Optics Tech Could Revolutionize Gravitational-Wave Astronomy

UC Riverside has developed a technology that enables scientists to peer deeper into the universe. Gravitational-wave science is on the verge of a major step forward, thanks to a new instrumentation breakthrough led by physicist Jonathan Richardson at the University of California, Riverside. In a st

CISA Sounds Alarm on Critical Sudo Flaw Actively Exploited in Linux and Unix Systems

The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) on Monday added a critical security flaw impacting the Sudo command-line utility for Linux and Unix-like operating systems to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog, citing evidence of active exploitation in the wild.

The vulnerability in question is CVE-2025–32463 (CVSS score: 9.3), which affects Sudo versions prior to 1.9.17p1. It was disclosed by Stratascale researcher Rich Mirch back in July 2025.

“Sudo contains an inclusion of functionality from an untrusted control sphere vulnerability,” CISA said. “This vulnerability could allow a local attacker to leverage sudo’s-R (—chroot) option to run arbitrary commands as root, even if they are not listed in the sudoers file.”

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