Lifeboat Foundation

Quantum computing is a new paradigm in computing that utilizes the benefits of quantum mechanics to enhance the computing experience. Quantum computers will no longer rely on binary digits (0 and 1 states), that computers have relied on since the early beginnings, but will instead use quantum bits, which can be in a superposition of states. Quantum bits, or qubits, have the advantage of being in many states at once, offering parallel computing advantages. For example, they have long been regarded as far superior to classical computers for applications in data encryption.

Although the concept of quantum computers has been known for several decades, practical realizations are still lacking. The main limiting factor has been the critical influence of the environment on a qubit. Most physical systems need to be in perfectly controlled conditions in order to remain in the superposition state, whereas any interaction (mechanical, thermal, or other) with the environment perturbs this state and ruins the qubit. Such perturbation is termed “decoherence” that has plagued many potential qubit systems.

Graphene, having spurred research into numerous novel directions, is naturally also considered as a candidate material host for qubits. For example, back in 2013, a team of researchers from MIT found that graphene can be made into a topological insulator – meaning that electrons with one spin direction move around the graphene edges clockwise, whereas those that have the opposite spin move counterclockwise. They made this happen by applying two magnetic fields: one perpendicular to the graphene sheet, to make the electrons flow at sheet edges only, and another parallel to the sheet, that separates the two spin contributions. Electron spin has long been considered a candidate qubit, because it is inherently a quantum system that is in a superposition of states. In graphene, the spins move along the sheet edges robustly, without much decoherence. Furthermore, the same research showed switching the spin selection on and off, an important feature of q-bit transistors.

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The aircraft will be supplied by Lilium, a Germany-based aviation company that manufacturers the industry’s only five-passenger “electric vertical takeoff and landing” aircraft.

Researchers led by City College of New York physicist Pouyan Ghaemi report the development of a quantum algorithm with the potential to study a class of many-electron quantums system using quantum computers. Their paper, entitled “Creating and Manipulating a Laughlin-Type ν=1/3 Fractional Quantum Hall State on a Quantum Computer with Linear Depth Circuits,” appears in the December issue of PRX Quantum, a journal of the American Physical Society.

“Quantum physics is the fundamental theory of nature which leads to formation of molecules and the resulting matter around us,” said Ghaemi, assistant professor in CCNY’s Division of Science. “It is already known that when we have a macroscopic number of quantum particles, such as electrons in the metal, which interact with each other, novel phenomena such as superconductivity emerge.”

However, until now, according to Ghaemi, tools to study systems with large numbers of interacting quantum particles and their novel properties have been extremely limited.

Recent advances indicate that the idea could work.

The quiet shift in strategy, which brings the Vision Fund’s approach closer to that of a traditional venture capital investor, may ease concerns over big, bold bets going sour, a factor that has left a major gap between SoftBank’s market capitalization and the sum of its investments.

TOKYO — SoftBank Group’s Vision Fund is turning to a new strategy as a global pandemic and government stimulus distort tech valuations: Invest smaller in hopes for bigger returns.

After raising nearly $100 billion and investing $85 billion in high-profile companies like Uber Technologies, WeWork and ByteDance over three years, the Vision Fund is now focusing on making smaller bets in early-stage startups.

Continue reading “SoftBank eyes smaller bets, bigger returns in Vision Fund rethink” »

Over the next few months, medical delivery drones will take flight in the Netherlands between two hospitals to deliver emergency medicines, blood, and other time-sensitive samples. The drones will be flying between the Isala Diaconessenhuis Meppel hospital and the Isala Ziekenhuis hospital.

The drones are at the center of tests, looking at how they can deliver emergency medicine in the future and improve patient care. This also marks the first time drones have flown beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) in overpopulated areas.

The tests are being run by the Medical Drone Service, an initiative set up by ANWB, PostNL, Erasmus MC, Isala, Sanquin, Certe, and technology partners Avy and KPN.

The need to pursue racial justice is more urgent than ever, especially in the technology industry. The far-reaching scope and power of machine learning (ML) and artificial intelligence (AI) means that any gender and racial bias at the source is multiplied to the n th power in businesses and out in the world. The impact those technology biases have on society as a whole can’t be underestimated.

When decision-makers in tech companies simply don’t reflect the diversity of the general population, it profoundly affects how AI/ML products are conceived, developed, and implemented. Evolve, presented by VentureBeat on December 8th, is a 90-minute event exploring bias, racism, and the lack of diversity across AI product development and management, and why these issues can’t be ignored.

“A lot has been happening in 2020, from working remotely to the Black Lives Matter movement, and that has made everybody realize that diversity, equity, and inclusion is much more important than ever,” says Huma Abidi, senior director of AI software products and engineering at Intel – and one of the speakers at Evolve. “Organizations are engaging in discussions around flexible working, social justice, equity, privilege, and the importance of DEI.”

Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine uses a gene-based platform that hasn’t been used for approved human vaccines. The reported high efficacy is a good sign for other vaccines using that approach.