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Mar 1, 2024
Quantum Resurrection: High-Performance Niobium Superconducting Qubits
Posted by Dan Breeden in categories: materials, quantum physics
For years, niobium was considered an underperformer when it came to superconducting qubits. Now scientists supported by Q-NEXT have found a way to engineer a high-performing niobium-based qubit and so take advantage of niobium’s superior qualities.
When it comes to quantum technology, niobium is making a comeback.
For the past 15 years, niobium has been sitting on the bench after experiencing a few mediocre at-bats as a core qubit material.
Mar 1, 2024
Daily Cannabis Use Linked to Increased Heart Attack and Stroke Risk
Posted by Laurence Tognetti, Labroots Inc. in categories: biotech/medical, health, law
“Cannabis use is increasing in both prevalence and frequency, while conventional tobacco smoking is declining,” said Salomeh Keyhani, MD, MPH. “Cannabis use by itself might, over time, become the more important risk factor.”
Can smoking cannabis bring the same risk of heart attack and stroke as smoking cigarettes? This is what a recent study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association hopes to address as a team of researchers from the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) investigated the likelihood that cannabis use would lead to a heart attack and/or stroke. This study comes as recreational cannabis use is slowly becoming legal across the United States and holds the potential to help researchers, medical professionals, legislators, and the public better understand the long-term health risks associated with cannabis use, specifically smoking cannabis.
For the study, the team compared data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Survey between 2016 and 2020 across 27 American states and 2 territories and 434,104 survey participants between ages 18 and 74 to ascertain a link between their cannabis use and likelihood for heart problems. The team classified cannabis use as the number of times a participant smoked cannabis within a previous 30 days while accounting for self-reported heart issues and tobacco use, as well.
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Mar 1, 2024
Elon Musk sues OpenAI for abandoning its mission to benefit humanity
Posted by Gemechu Taye in categories: Elon Musk, health, information science, law, robotics/AI
Elon Musk claims OpenAI is using GPT-4 to ‘maximize profits’ instead of ‘for the benefit of humanity.’
The lawsuit claims that the GPT-4 model OpenAI released in March 2023 isn’t just capable of reasoning but is also actually “better at reasoning than average humans,” having scored in the 90th percentile on the Uniform Bar Examination for lawyers. The company is rumored to be developing a more advanced model, known as “Q Star,” that has a stronger claim to being true artificial general intelligence (AGI).
Altman was fired (and subsequently rehired five days later) by OpenAI in 2023 over vague claims that his communication with the board was “hindering its ability to exercise its responsibilities.” The lawsuit filed by Musk alleges that in the days following this event, Altman, Brockman, and Microsoft “exploited Microsoft’s significant leverage over OpenAI” to replace board members with handpicked alternatives that were better approved of by Microsoft.
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Mar 1, 2024
How scientists are using quantum squeezing to push the limits of their sensors
Posted by Gemechu Taye in categories: computing, engineering, quantum physics
Mar 1, 2024
Google DeepMind’s new generative model makes Super Mario–like games from scratch
Posted by Gemechu Taye in categories: robotics/AI, transportation
Genie learns how to control games by watching hours and hours of video. It could help train next-gen robots too.
Mar 1, 2024
Why concerns over the sustainability of carbon removal are growing
Posted by Gemechu Taye in categories: space, sustainability
Some investors are raising warnings about the amount of money flowing into direct-air-capture companies, given the high costs and limited markets.
There’s a looming problem in the carbon removal space.
Mar 1, 2024
How much are Nvidia’s rivals investing in startups? We investigated
Posted by Gemechu Taye in category: robotics/AI
Over the past couple of years, Nvidia, by far the largest AI chipmaker, has ramped up its investments in startups that propel it deeper into the AI space.
Nvidia isn’t the only AI chipmaker investing in startups. Its rivals — Intel, AMD and Arm — are too. Here’s to what extent.
Mar 1, 2024
What Exactly Do Large Language Models Really Understand?
Posted by Gemechu Taye in category: futurism
Ever since these models appeared, researchers and philosophers have debated whether they are complex ‘stochastic parrots’ or whether they are indeed capable of understanding and will eventually be smarter than us.
Mar 1, 2024
Google’s AI-First Strategy Brings Vector Support To Cloud Databases
Posted by Gemechu Taye in categories: robotics/AI, security, space
With an emphasis on AI-first strategy and improving Google Cloud databases’ capability to support GenAI applications, Google announced developments in the integration of generative AI with databases.
AWS offers a broad range of services for vector database requirements, including Amazon OpenSearch Service, Amazon Aurora PostgreSQL-Compatible Edition, Amazon RDS for PostgreSQL, Amazon Neptune ML, and Amazon MemoryDB for Redis. AWS emphasizes the operationalization of embedding models, making application development more productive through features like data management, fault tolerance, and critical security features. AWS’s strategy focuses on simplifying the scaling and operationalization of AI-powered applications, providing developers with the tools to innovate and create unique experiences powered by vector search.
Azure takes a similar approach by offering vector database extensions to existing databases. This strategy aims to avoid the extra cost and complexity of moving data to a separate database, keeping vector embeddings and original data together for better data consistency, scale, and performance. Azure Cosmos DB and Azure PostgreSQL Server are positioned as services that support these vector database extensions. Azure’s approach emphasizes the integration of vector search capabilities directly alongside other application data, providing a seamless experience for developers.
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