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“Nowadays we always have our mobile phones or a flashlight, but to see bioluminescence in the forest, it has to be pitch black,” said Rudolf.

They collected some samples of the glowing specimen, originally thinking it was a known bioluminescent species called Mycena haematopus. In their well-lit studio, the artists realized that it was another species called the saffron drop bonnet mushroom (Mycena crocata). While this mushroom is known for its saffron-coloured milk, it had not previously been described as bioluminescent.

[ Related: A simple experiment revealed the complex ‘thoughts’ of fungi. ].

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Researchers have created a high-power tunable laser on silicon photonics, achieving nearly 2 watts using an LMA amplifier. This advancement could revolutionize integrated photonics, with potential applications in space exploration, reducing satellite costs while enhancing capabilities.

In today’s world, the size of various systems continues to decrease, incorporating increasingly smaller components for applications like high-speed data centers and space exploration with compact satellites.

However, this trend toward miniaturization and high-density integration—driven by advancements in integrated photonics—has significantly compromised the ability of these systems to generate high signal power. Traditionally, high-power output has been associated with larger systems, such as fiber and solid-state platforms, whose substantial physical dimensions allow for greater energy storage.

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Summary: Researchers have identified a unique stem cell in the young brain capable of maturing into multiple cell types, potentially explaining the origins of autism and glioblastoma. These stem cells show gene expression patterns that regulate early brain development and, when disrupted, could lead to neurological conditions.

The study provides a detailed gene expression map, linking autism-related genes to immature neurons active during brain growth. The findings open avenues for targeting glioblastoma’s origins and better understanding autism’s developmental roots.

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Stars are born in clouds of gas and dust, making it difficult to observe their early development. But researchers at Chalmers have now succeeded in simulating how a star with the mass of the sun absorbs material from the surrounding disk of material—a process called accretion.

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The AI behavior models controlling how robots interact with the physical world haven’t been advancing at the crazy pace that GPT-style language models have – but new multiverse ‘world simulators’ from Nvidia and Google could change that rapidly.

There’s a chicken-and-egg issue slowing things down for AI robotics; large language model (LLM) AIs have enjoyed the benefit of massive troves of data to train from, since the Internet already holds an extraordinary wealth of text, image, video and audio data.

But there’s far less data for large behavior model (LBM) AIs to train on. Robots and autonomous vehicles are expensive and annoyingly physical, so data around 3D representations of real-world physical situations is taking a lot longer to collect and incorporate into AI models.

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Innovative integration of flexible electronics with a lightweight, self-deployable boom offers multifunctionality for space applications. This ultrathin composite structure, designed to withstand harsh space conditions, enhances satellite capabilities. The Virginia Tech CubeSat, featuring this technology, is set for a 2025 launch.

Being lightweight is essential for space structures, particularly for tools used on already small, lightweight satellites. The ability to perform multiple functions is a bonus. To address these characteristics in a new way, researchers at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign successfully integrated flexible electronics with a three-ply, self-deployable boom that weighs only about 20 grams.

The study, “Multifunctional bistable ultrathin composite booms with ,” by Yao Yao and Xin Ning from Illinois, Juan Fernandez from NASA Langley Research Center and Sven Bilén at Penn State, is published in Extreme Mechanics Letters.

“It’s difficult to get commercial electronics integrated into these super thin structures,” said Xin Ning, an aerospace professor in The Grainger College of Engineering at U. of I. “There were a lot of engineering constraints adding to the challenge of making the electronics able to withstand the harsh environment of space.”

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