Scientists use Allen Institute cell lines to learn how the genetic defect spreads in stem cells
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First Images From the Pandora Exoplanet Mission
A new mission promises to ‘open the box’ on exoplanet science. Scientists and engineers recently released the first engineering images from the Pandora exoplanet survey mission. The pictures represent the first ever images from a NASA Astrophysics Pioneers Program mission. Established in 2020, the program looks to test the feasibility of small low cost missions designed to address key questions in astronomy and astrophysics.
Cellular and subcellular specialization enables biology-constrained deep learning
Galloni et al. introduce “dendritic target propagation”: a Dale’s law-compliant learning algorithm for cortical microcircuits with soma-and dendrite-targeting inhibition and realistic connectivity constraints. By combining experimentally derived BTSP and Hebbian rules, dendrites compute local error proxies via E/I mismatch, supporting gradient-based deep learning during simultaneous bottom-up and top-down signaling.
Older people with HIV are especially vulnerable to influenza, yet this group remains understudied
https://doi.org/10.1172/jci.insight.199232 Here, Savita G. Pahwa & team demonstrate high-dose vaccination for influenza strengthens immunity in older adults with HIV after prior standard dosing, but not all strain-specific weaknesses were overcome.
1Department of Microbiology and Immunology.
2Division of Biostatistics, Department of Public Health Sciences; and.
3Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Miami, Florida, USA.
Why twisted bilayer graphene stops superconducting near high-dielectric substrates
Superconductors are materials that can conduct electricity with a resistance of zero. In so-called conventional superconductors, this occurs at low temperatures when electrons become bound into pairs, known as Cooper pairs.
In some other materials, however, superconductivity (SC) emerges via other electron pairing mechanisms that are still poorly understood. These materials, called unconventional superconductors, include twisted bilayer graphene (tBLG), a two-dimensional material created by stacking two single sheets of graphene on top of each other, one of which is rotated in relation to the other by a precise small angle.
One factor that plays a role in unconventional SC is the so-called dielectric constant. This is the measure of how well a material reduces the electric forces between charged particles.
Magnetic ‘super lenses’ open new window on high-temperature superconductors
An international research team, including scientists from the Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR), has achieved a methodological breakthrough in the study of superhydrides, a promising class of superconductors. For the first time, the team succeeded in analyzing lanthanum superhydrides under extreme pressure using nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy.
The research is published in the journal Advanced Science.
Superconductors are characterized by the fact that their electrical resistance vanishes below a material-specific critical temperature, allowing them to conduct electricity without loss. For most known materials, this transition temperature is below about 140 Kelvin (minus 133 degrees Celsius), which requires complex cooling technology for practical applications. Consequently, researchers are actively searching for materials that exhibit superconductivity at significantly higher temperatures.
A new way to read the universe could sharpen understanding of cosmic expansion and dark energy
An international team led by researchers at the Institute of Cosmos Sciences of the University of Barcelona (ICCUB) has developed a new method that could significantly improve our understanding of the expansion of the universe and the nature of dark energy.
The study, published in Nature Astronomy, presents a powerful framework called CIGaRS that allows scientists to extract more information from exploding stars known as Type Ia supernovae, primarily through imaging rather than costly spectroscopic observations. The results pave the way for making the most of the vast amount of data expected from the next generation of astronomical surveys, especially from the Vera C. Rubin Observatory.
A persistent quantum computing error finally explained
Scientists have discovered the cause of a persistent glitch that continues to disrupt superconducting quantum computers, even when they have built-in defenses. For all their advanced hardware, superconducting quantum computers are vulnerable to errors caused by ionizing radiation from space or the environment. Radiation particles interfere with the chip substrate (the silicon base the processor is built on), which leads to the creation of rogue particles (quasiparticles) that disrupt the qubits, the basic units of quantum computers.
To protect against this, scientists developed a technique called gap engineering. This involves creating an energy barrier in the superconducting material of the qubits, making it harder for these particles to reach sensitive parts of the device.
However, it is not foolproof. Even with this defense, radiation can still cause sudden widespread errors affecting many qubits at once (error bursts). But it was not clear why.