Lifeboat Foundation: Safeguarding Humanity
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According to new research, black holes could be like a hologram, where all the information is amassed in a two-dimensional surface able to reproduce a three-dimensional image.

We can all picture that incredible image of a black hole that traveled around the world about a year ago. Yet, according to new research by SISSA, ICTP and INFN, black holes could be like a hologram, where all the information is amassed in a two-dimensional surface able to reproduce a three-dimensional image. In this way, these cosmic bodies, as affirmed by quantum theories, could be incredibly complex and concentrate an enormous amount of information inside themselves, as the largest hard disk that exists in nature, in two dimensions. This idea aligns with Einstein’s theory of relativity, which describes black holes as three dimensional, simple, spherical, and smooth, as they appear in that famous image. In short, black holes “appear” as three dimensional, just like holograms. The study which demonstrates it, and which unites two discordant theories, has recently been published in Physical Review X.

The mystery of black holes.

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Devoted to the principle of comparative advantage in the pursuit of efficiency, this industry had forsaken resilience. As a result, this lean and agile supply chain made itself vulnerable not just to a global risk event such as Covid-19 but also to export controls such as the ones directed against Huawei. The events of the past six months are likely to force a re-evaluation of this trade-off towards building more redundancy.

Specifically, the semiconductor supply chain is susceptible to four risks.

Covid-19 is likely to accelerate the move towards more resilience in the semiconductor industry.

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This corresponds to a certain symmetry of nature: T-symmetry, or time-reversal invariance. Our everyday experience indicates to us, quite strongly, that the laws of physics must violate this symmetry, but for decades, we couldn’t demonstrate it. But a few years ago, we experimentally proved the laws of physics are different depending on which direction time runs. Here’s how we know.

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A team of researchers at Université de Sherbrooke with assistance from a group at Exonetik Inc., has created a wearable supernumerary robotic arm that adds functionality for common human tasks. In their paper published in IEEE Spectrum, the group describes their robotic arm, its abilities and their plans for expanding its functionality.

A supernumerary robotic device is of a type that adds functionality to an existing system. In this case, the team in Canada added a third arm and associated three-fingered hand to a human subject.

The bottom part of the is strapped to the waist and hips of the user, anchoring it in place. The robot arm extends from its anchor and performs functions as the user either watches or carries out his or her own activities. The arm is motivated by magnetorheological clutches and hydrostatic transmissions, giving it three degrees of freedom. It does not weigh much, either, just four kilograms. But that is because it has a tethered power/control source that remains on the ground. It also is remotely controlled by another person standing nearby. Future plans call for semi-autonomous control.

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A new version of Google’s mapping service being rolled out will display pandemic-related transit alerts and let people know when buses or trains might be crowded.

Updated versions of the free app for smartphones powered by Apple or Google-backed Android software will also let drivers know about COVID-19 checkpoints or restrictions on their routes.

“We’re introducing features to help you easily find important information if you need to venture out, whether it’s by car or public transportation,” Google Maps product management director Ramesh Nagarajan said in a blog post.

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For more than two years, the Pentagon’s research arm has been working with engineers to beef up the security of computer chips before they get deployed in weapons systems or other critical technologies.

Now, the research arm — the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) — is turning the hardware over to elite white-hat hackers who can earn up to $25,000 for bugs they find. The goal is to throw an array of attacks at the hardware so its foundations are more secure before production.

“We need the researchers to really roll their sleeves up and dig into what we’re doing and try to break it,” said Keith Rebello, a DARPA program manager. Hardware hacks often involve identifying vulnerabilities in how a computer chip handles information, like the flaw uncovered in Intel microprocessors in March that could have allowed attackers to run malicious code early in the boot process.

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