“Submit your photo today to fly with the crew on Dragon and commemorate your achievements!” SpaceX wrote on its website.
Related: In photos: SpaceX’s historic Demo-2 test flight with astronauts More: How SpaceX’s Crew Dragon space capsule works (infographic)
With the help of the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory, Juliette Stecenko is exploring cosmology—a branch of astronomy that investigates the origin and evolution of the universe, from the Big Bang to today and into the future. As an intern through DOE’s Science Undergraduate Laboratory Internships (SULI) program, administered at Brookhaven by the Office of Educational Programs (OEP), Stecenko is using modern supercomputers and quantum computing platforms to perform astronomy simulations that may help us better understand where we came from.
Stecenko works under the guidance of Michael McGuigan, a computational scientist in the quantum computing group at Brookhaven’s Computational Science Initiative. The two have been collaborating on simulating Casimir energy—a small force that two electrically neutral surfaces held a tiny distance apart will experience from quantum, atomic, or subatomic fluctuations in the vacuum of space. The vacuum energy of the universe and the Casimir pressure of this energy could be a possible explanation of the origin and evolution of the universe, as well a possible cause of its accelerated expansion.
“Casimir energy is something scientists can measure in the laboratory and is especially important for nanoscience, or in cosmology, in the very early universe when the universe was very small,” McGuigan said.
Together with SpaceX, we will return human spaceflight to American soil after nearly a decade. May 27th is not only a big day for our teams – it’s a big day for our country.
What does our upcoming NASA Commercial Crew Program mission mean to YOU? Here’s how to submit your responses using #LaunchAmerica : https://go.nasa.gov/2Wk2opU
Watch the full trailer: https://go.nasa.gov/35LLaov
The flag of the nation’s newest military branch was unveiled today (May 15) during a ceremony in the Oval Office. President Donald Trump watched as the flag was unfurled and designated it the official banner of the Space Force.
“Space is going to be the future, both in terms of defense and offense and so many other things,” said Trump, who also signed the 2020 Armed Forces Day Proclamation during today’s event. “And already, from what I’m hearing and based on reports, we’re now the leader in space.”
The AC-130J Ghostrider gunship is a fearsome flying arsenal, so why would Air Force Special Forces add a comparatively low-powered laser to it? The answer may be ‘plausible deniability.’
SYRACUSE, NY (WSYR-TV)- A Tornado Watch is in effect for Chenango, Madison and Oneida counties until 10 p.m. Friday. Thunderstorms are moving into Central New York now and will sweep east across th…
Bitcoin News.
Visa International has filed for a cryptocurrency system patent that is meant to replace physical currency. The system, which utilizes both central banks and commercial banks, leverages a private blockchain to improve the payment ecosystem.
The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) published on Thursday a patent application entitled “digital fiat currency,” filed by Visa International Service Association on Nov. 8, 2019.
Continue reading “Visa Files Patent for Cryptocurrency System to Replace Cash” »
Therapeutics company Sorrento has made what it believes could be a breakthrough in potential treatment of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that leads to COVID-19. The company released details of its preclinical research on Friday, announcing that it has found an antibody that provides “100% inhibition of SARS-CoV-2 virus infection of healthy cells after four days incubation.” The results are from a preclinical study that still has to undergo peer review. It was an in vitro laboratory study (meaning not in an actual human being), but it’s still a promising development as the company continues to work on production of an antibody “cocktail” that could provide protection against SARS-CoV-2 even in case of mutations in the virus.
Sorrento says it believes this antibody, which is labelled STI-1499, stood out among billions of candidates it has been screening from its extensive human antibody library for its ability to completely block the interaction of the SARS-CoV-2’s spike protein with a human cell target receptor. That means it prevents the virus from attaching to the host’s healthy cell, which is what leads to incubation and infection.
The nature of the antibody’s efficacy means that Sorrento currently believes it will be the first antibody to be included in the cocktail it is developing, which will be made up of a large number of different antibodies that show efficacy in blocking the attachment of the spike protein, in order to provide multiple avenues of protection that are designed to remain effective even if the virus mutates in transmission from person to person, or within the same individual. One of the big outstanding questions that researchers are working on answering currently is just how mutagenic SARS-CoV-2 actually is, as many coronaviruses like the common cold show a tendency to mutate pretty quickly, rendering long-lasting cures and treatments difficult to develop.
