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When molecules are excited, they can give rise to a variety of energy conversion phenomena, such as light emission and photoelectric or photochemical conversion. To unlock new energy conversion functions in organic materials, researchers should be able to understand the nature of a material’s excited state and control it.

So far, many scientists have used spectroscopy techniques based on in research focusing on excited states. Nonetheless, they were unable to use light to examine nanoscale materials, due to its limitations in so-called diffraction. The spectroscopic measurement methods applied to electron and scanning probe microscopes that can observe substances with atomic resolutions, on the other hand, are still underdeveloped.

Researchers at RIKEN, the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), University of Tokyo and other Institutes in Japan have recently developed a laser nanospectroscopy technique that could be used to examine individual molecules. This technique, presented in a paper published in Science, could open up new possibilities for the development of various new technologies, including light-emitting diodes (LEDs), photovoltaics and photosynthetic cells.

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The CHEOPS satellite accidentally spotted a rare exoplanet with no known equivalent. The satellite detected this unique exoplanet while looking for two exoplanets in a bright nearby star system.

This planet called ‘Nu2 Lupi d’ is located 50 light-years away in the constellation Lupus (Latin for Wolf), around a star called Nu2 Lupi. It is about 2.5 times the size of Earth and almost 9 times its mass.

What’s more, scientists used measurements with archival data from other observatories and numerical models to characterize the density and composition of the planet and its neighbors. They found that the planet has a rocky interior. It has far more water than the Earth. However, the water is not liquid; instead of taking high-pressure ice or high-temperature steam, making the planets uninhabitable.

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First of all the title is highly misleading and directly contradicted by the article itself and the actual letter. (He’s not ‘offering’ NASA money he’s voluntarily forgoing payment equal to the SpaceX award for the contract. Now considering the initial pricing was closer to 10 billion that would essentially mean that NASA would be on the hook for about 8 billion but considering the total SpaceX contract is also about 10 billion that still fits into the new Congressional budget, if barely) Secondly considering that Blue Origin is only one of the companies that are cooperating to this bid if the other companies do no agree they he actually WILL be paying those companies to participate. Thirdly while the overall concept was rejected it pays to keep in mind it was ONLY rejected for the price and some questions on the proposed engine development budget so this goes a long way to show they are putting more ‘skin’ in the game than SpaceX. So interesting but highly disappointing ‘take’ on the offer by VT.

Jeff Bezos has offered NASA $2 billion in exchange for a moon contract that will allow Blue Origin to land astronauts in space. The Amazon founder, 57, made history when he went to space last week, and now in an open letter to administrator Bill Nelson on July 26, he…

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The predicted shapes still need to be confirmed in the lab, Ellis told Technology Review. If the results hold up, they will rapidly push forward the study of the proteome, or the proteins in a given organism. DeepMind researchers published their open-source code and laid out the method in two peer-reviewed papers published in Nature last week.

And in 20 other animals often studied by science, too.

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CORVALLIS, Ore. – A two-legged robot invented at Oregon State University completed a 5K in just over 52 minutes. Cassie the robot, created by OSU spinout company Agility Robotics, made history with the successful trot. “Cassie, the first bipedal robot to use machine learning to control a running gait on outdoor terrain, completed the 5K on Oregon State’s campus untethered and on a single battery charge,” according to OSU. But it didn’t go off without a hitch.

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Form Energy, the billionaire-backed start-up that claimed to have developed an innovative low-cost 150-hour battery, has finally revealed its battery chemistry after more than a year of high-profile secrecy.

The Boston-based company says its first commercial product is a “rechargeable iron-air battery capable of delivering electricity for 100 hours at system costs competitive with conventional power plants and at less than 1/10th the cost of lithium-ion”.

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French Gates and Scott, who were formerly married to Seattle-based tech founders Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos, respectively, have become powerful philanthropists in their own rights. Both women, who are among the richest people in the world, have signed The Giving Pledge, promising to give away the majority of their wealth in their lifetimes.

In a powerful philanthropic pairing, Melinda French Gates and McKenzie Scott have teamed up to direct $40 million to advancing the power and influence of American women over the next decade.

The donation is being awarded to winners of the Equality Can’t Wait Challenge, a competition hosted by French Gates’ investment firm Pivotal Ventures, with financial support from Scott and her husband, Dan Jewett, as well as from the Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies. The challenge billed itself as “the first competition centered on gender and equality in the U.S. with an award of this magnitude and … an opportunity to invest in and empower women leaders.”

The four contest winners — which were chosen from among 550 applicants — proposed various creative ways to empower and improve the lives of women and gender non-conforming people in the United States. They include establishing publicly supported infrastructure for childcare and other forms of caregiving; creating training for women interested in software development careers; accelerating young women’s trajectories through college and their early careers; and growing “impactful businesses owned by Native womxn.”

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Austin-based Silicon Labs has sold its infrastructure and automotive business for $2.75 billion to California-based semiconductor maker Skyworks Solutions. Plans for the all-cash deal was initially announced in April.

Silicon Labs primarily designs semiconductors and other silicon devices. CEO Tyson Tuttle said the deal will allow the company to focus on its growing Internet of Things business. Internet of Things, or IoT as it is known in industry shorthand, refers to a range of non-computing devices —from kitchen devices to security systems — that connect to the Internet.

Silcon Labs’ IoT business already serves tens of thousands of customers and works in thousands of applications, but the deal narrows Silicon Labs focus exclusively to that technology.

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