ScienceDaily: Technology - December 23, 2024
Top technology research news
Dark energy 'doesn't exist' so can't be pushing 'lumpy' Universe apart
One of the biggest mysteries in science -- dark energy -- doesn't actually exist, according to researchers looking to solve the riddle of how the Universe is expanding. For the past 100 years, physicists have generally assumed that the cosmos is growing equally in all directions. They employed the concept of dark energy as a placeholder to explain unknown physics they couldn't understand, but the contentious theory has always had its problems. Now a team of physicists and astronomers are challenging the status quo, using improved analysis of supernovae light curves to show that the Universe is expanding in a more varied, 'lumpier' way.
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A study introduces a novel thermodynamic concept called the 'centotectic' and investigates the stability of liquids in extreme conditions -- critical information for determining the habitability of icy moons like Europa.
Researchers take 'significant leap forward' with quantum simulation of molecular electron transfer
Researchers have made a meaningful advance in the simulation of molecular electron transfer -- a fundamental process underpinning countless physical, chemical and biological processes. The study details the use of a trapped-ion quantum simulator to model electron transfer dynamics with unprecedented tunability, unlocking new opportunities for scientific exploration in fields ranging from molecular electronics to photosynthesis.
Breakthrough new material brings affordable, sustainable future within grasp
Researchers have developed a new material for sodium-ion batteries, sodium vanadium phosphate, that delivers higher voltage and greater energy capacity than previous sodium-based materials. This breakthrough could make sodium-ion batteries a more efficient and affordable alternative to lithium-ion, using a more abundant and cost-effective resource.
Tiny, wireless antennas use light to monitor cellular communication
Researchers developed a biosensing technique that eliminates the need for wires. Instead, tiny, wireless antennas use light to detect minute electrical signals in the solution around them.
Geothermal aquifers offer green potential but quality checks required
A research team has revealed that to use the aquifer thermal energy storage (ATES) system safely over the long term it is crucial to investigate the groundwater quality before operating the system and to continuously monitor the water quality.
Paving the way for the future of energy storage with solid-state batteries
Advances in solid-state battery research are paving the way for safer, longer-lasting energy storage solutions. A recent review highlights breakthroughs in inorganic solid electrolytes and their role in improving battery performance. The study also addresses key challenges, such as interfacial compatibility, while proposing innovative strategies for next-generation battery technologies.
Programming cells: Revolutionizing genetic circuits with cutting-edge RNA tools
Researchers have developed a new technology that improves the precision and integration density of synthetic genetic circuits.
AI may help researchers with medical chart review, study finds
Researchers trained a large language model to read medical charts, looking for signs that kids with ADHD received the right follow-up care when using new medications.
ESA and NASA satellites deliver first joint picture of Greenland Ice Sheet melting
Scientists have delivered the first measurements of Greenland Ice Sheet thickness change using data from ESA and NASA ice satellite missions. With global warming causing the Greenland Ice Sheet to melt and flow more rapidly, raising sea levels and disturbing weather patterns across our planet, precise measurements of its changing shape are of critical importance for tracking and adapting to the effects of climate warming.
AI may help researchers with medical chart review
Researchers trained a large language model to read medical charts, looking for signs that kids with ADHD received the right follow-up care when using new medications.
AI-driven approach reveals hidden hazards of chemical mixtures in rivers
Artificial intelligence can provide critical insights into how complex mixtures of chemicals in rivers affect aquatic life -- paving the way for better environmental protection.
First demonstration of quantum teleportation over busy Internet cables
Quantum teleportation could provide near-instant communication over long distances. But, inside Internet cables, photons needed for teleportation are lost within the millions of light particles required for classical communications. A new study quantified light scattering to find exact areas to place photons to keep them safe from other particles. The approach successfully worked in experiments carrying regular Internet traffic.
Large Hadron Collider regularly makes magic
A brotherly research duo has discovered that when the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) produces top quarks -- the heaviest known fundamental particles -- it regularly creates a property known as magic.
Clever trick to cook stars like Christmas pudding detected for first time
Researchers have found evidence of magnetic fields associated with a disc of gas and dust a few hundred light-years across deep inside a system of two merging galaxies known as Arp220. They say these regions could be the key to making the centres of interacting galaxies just right for cooking lots of hydrogen gas into young stars.
First results from 2021 rocket launch shed light on aurora's birth
Scientist have begun to reveal the particle-level processes that create the type of auroras that dance rapidly across the sky. The Kinetic-scale Energy and momentum Transport experiment -- KiNET-X -- lifted off from NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia on May 16, 2021, in the final minutes of the final night of the nine-day launch window.
New molecule-creation method a 'powerful tool' to accelerate drug synthesis and discovery
A team of chemists has unveiled a novel method to simplify the synthesis of piperidines, a key structural component in many pharmaceuticals. The study combines biocatalytic carbon-hydrogen oxidation and radical cross-coupling, offering a streamlined and cost-effective approach to create complex, three-dimensional molecules. This innovation could help accelerate drug discovery and enhance the efficiency of medicinal chemistry.
Machine psychology: A bridge to general AI?
Artificial intelligence that is as intelligent as humans may become possible thanks to psychological learning models, combined with certain types of AI.
Advancing a trustworthy quantum era: A novel approach to quantum protocol verification
The future of data security depends on the reliable application of quantum technology, but its widespread adoption requires rigorous verification. Researchers have developed a novel approach to verify quantum protocols, ensuring their reliability in safety- and security-critical applications. This advancement addresses the need for trustworthy quantum systems, which is essential for the secure deployment of quantum technologies in high-reliability systems.
Engineering researchers develop revolutionary diamond fabrication technology
A research team has developed a groundbreaking method for massively producing ultrathin and ultra-flexible diamond membranes.
New software unlocks secrets of cell signaling
SMART, a new software package, can make studying signaling processes significantly easier. Results could accelerate research in fields across the life sciences, such as systems biology, pharmacology and biomedical engineering.
Tinkering with the 'clockwork' mechanisms of life
Opening new doors for the development of nanotechnologies in medicine and other fields, scientists recreate and compare two natural mechanisms to better program the timescale of molecular communication and functionality.
Best glimpse ever into icy planetesimals of the early solar system
New studies offer a clearer picture of how the outer solar system formed and evolved based on analyses of trans-Neptunian objects (TNOs) and centaurs. The findings reveal the distribution of ices in the early solar system and how TNOs evolve when they travel inward into the region of the giant planets between Jupiter and Saturn, becoming centaurs. TNOs are small bodies, or 'planetesimals,' orbiting the sun beyond Pluto. They never accreted into planets, and serve as pristine time capsules, preserving crucial evidence of the molecular processes and planetary migrations that shaped the solar system billions of years ago. These solar system objects are like icy asteroids and have orbits comparable to or larger than Neptune's orbit. Prior to the new UCF-led study, TNOs were known to be a diverse population based on their orbital properties and surface colors, but the molecular composition of these objects remained poorly understood. For decades, this lack of detailed knowledge hindered interpretation of their color and dynamical diversity. Now, the new results unlock the long-standing question of the interpretation of color diversity by providing compositional information.
Effect of somatosensory electrical stimulation on hand choice
Hand choice, an unconscious decision, is influenced by target-related information, but if these are non-informative, the choice will be approximately 50-50. In this equilibrium situation, non-target information may also aid in decision-making, but no research has demonstrated this. Now, researchers have investigated the effect of somatosensory stimulation on motor decisions in healthy participants. The results revealed that wrist stimulation significantly increased the likelihood of choosing the stimulated hand, highlighting its application in stroke rehabilitation.
This prototype sunscreen protects your skin and cools you off, too
Wearing sunscreen is important to protect your skin from the harmful effects of UV radiation but doesn't cool people off. However, a new formula protects against both UV light and heat from the sun using radiative cooling. The prototype sunblock kept human skin up to 11 degrees Fahrenheit (6 degrees Celsius) cooler than bare skin, or around 6 degrees Fahrenheit (3 degrees Celsius) cooler than existing sunscreens.
Origins of lunar water and its connection to Earth's early history
Scientists have unveiled groundbreaking research on the origins of lunar water, offering insights that could reshape our understanding of the Earth-Moon system and the broader solar system. The pioneering study explores the isotopic signatures of lunar water, revealing a mix of indigenous and cometary sources.
Need a research hypothesis? Ask AI
Engineers have developed AI frameworks to identify evidence-driven hypotheses that could advance biologically inspired materials.
Laser-based artificial neuron mimics nerve cell functions at lightning speed
Researchers developed a laser-based artificial neuron that fully emulates the functions, dynamics and information processing of a biological graded neuron, which could lead to new breakthroughs in advanced computing. With a processing speed a billion times faster than nature, chip-based laser neuron could help advance AI tasks such as pattern recognition and sequence prediction.
Scientists solving meteorological mysteries on Mars
Scientists are changing our understanding of climate and weather on Mars and providing critical insights into Earth's atmospheric processes as well.
New evidence exists for hidden water reservoirs and rare magmas on ancient Mars
A new study explores how variations in Mars' crustal thickness during its ancient history may have influenced the planet's magmatic evolution and hydrological systems. The research suggests that the thick crust of Mars' southern highlands formed billions of years ago generated granitic magmas and sustained vast underground aquifers, challenging long-held assumptions about the red planet's geological and hydrological past.
Plasma heating efficiency in fusion devices boosted by metal screens
Scientists have performed computer simulations confirming a technique that prevents the production of unhelpful electromagnetic waves, boosting the heat put into fusion plasma.
Research shows how music can reduce distress
A new study has demonstrated for the first time how and why music can reduce distress and agitation for people with advanced dementia. The study involved interviews with staff and music therapists on inpatient mental health dementia wards, a review of published research, and a national survey of UK healthcare professionals.
Human-like artificial intelligence may face greater blame for moral violations
In a new study, participants tended to assign greater blame to artificial intelligences (AIs) involved in real-world moral transgressions when they perceived the AIs as having more human-like minds.
Getting in sync: Wearables reveal happiest times to sleep
Research finds connections between mood and circadian rhythm disruptions in study using Fitbit data from hundreds of medical interns.
Breakthrough in photochemical water oxidation: Paving the way for sustainable energy
Water oxidation offers a promising path to achieve sustainable energy by efficiently generating oxygen. This study investigates how optimizing Ru(II) photosensitizers, metal oxide catalysts, and pH conditions can enhance water splitting efficiency. By introducing a simplified method to estimate catalyst performance, researchers make it easier to design more effective systems. These findings provide crucial insights for advancing clean energy solutions and accelerating the transition to renewable energy.
Lost score revives sound of music and voices from centuries past
A fragment of 'lost' music found in the pages of Scotland's first full-length printed book is providing clues to what music sounded like five centuries ago. Scholars have been investigating the origins of the musical score -- which contains only 55 notes -- to cast new light on music from pre-Reformation Scotland in the early sixteenth-century. Researchers say the tantalizing discovery is a rare example of music from Scottish religious institutions 500 years ago, and is the only piece which survives from the northeast of Scotland from this period.
Young exoplanet's atmosphere unexpectedly differs from its birthplace
Conventional wisdom assumes the ratio of gases in a planet's atmosphere should match the ratio of gases in the natal disk that birthed it. For the first time, researchers compared gases in a still-forming planet's atmosphere to its natal disk. The team found the planet surprisingly was less carbon-rich than the disk.
Bias in AI amplifies our own biases, researchers show
Artificial intelligence (AI) systems tend to take on human biases and amplify them, causing people who use that AI to become more biased themselves, a new study finds.
Supermassive black holes halt rapid construction in an ancient celestial city
Galaxy clusters -- the big cities of the universe -- are home to many giant elliptical galaxies that have completed their growth and are not forming stars. However, it is still unclear what has shut down star formation. In a new study, researchers utilized the James Webb Space Telescope to observe an ancestor of galaxy clusters, revealing the role of supermassive black holes in slowing star formation and allowing them to evolve into giant elliptical galaxies.
Potentially harmful bacteria slip through antimicrobial showerheads
To guard against harmful waterborne pathogens, many consumers, including managers of health-care facilities, install antimicrobial silver-containing showerheads. But researchers now report that these fixtures are no 'silver bullet.' In real-world showering conditions, most microbes aren't exposed to the silver long enough to be killed. However, the composition of rare microbes in water from these showerheads varied with each type of fixture tested.
Uncovering a centaur's tracks: Scientists examine unique asteroid-comet hybrid
Scientists recently led a team that found, for the first time, that Chiron has surface chemistry unlike other centaurs. Its surface it has both carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide ice along with carbon dioxide and methane gases in its coma, the cloud-like envelope of dust and gas surrounding it.
Survey of 26,000 dead stars confirms key details of extreme stellar behavior
A study of more than 26,000 white dwarf stars has confirmed a long-predicted but elusive effect in these ultra-dense, dying stars: Hotter white dwarfs are slightly puffier than cooler ones, even when they have the same mass.
New recommendations to increase transparency and tackle potential bias in medical AI technologies
A new set of recommendations aims to help improve the way datasets are used to build Artificial intelligence (AI) health technologies and reduce the risk of potential AI bias.
Massive black hole in the early universe spotted taking a 'nap' after overeating
Scientists have spotted a massive black hole in the early universe that is 'napping' after stuffing itself with too much food. Like a bear gorging itself on salmon before hibernating for the winter, or a much-needed nap after Christmas dinner, this black hole has overeaten to the point that it is lying dormant in its host galaxy.
Swarms of 'ant-like' robots lift heavy objects and hurl themselves over obstacles
Scientists have developed swarms of tiny magnetic robots that work together like ants to achieve Herculean feats, including traversing and picking up objects many times their size. The findings suggest that these microrobot swarms -- operating under a rotating magnetic field -- could be used to take on difficult tasks in challenging environments that individual robots would struggle to handle, such as offering a minimally invasive treatment for clogged arteries and precisely guiding organisms.
Engineers grow 'high-rise' 3D chips
Researchers can now fabricate a 3D chip with alternating layers of semiconducting material grown directly on top of each other. The method eliminates thick silicon substrates between the layers, leading to better and faster computation, for applications like more efficient AI hardware.
Physicists magnetize a material with light
Physicists have created a new and long-lasting magnetic state in a material, using only light. The results provide a new way to control and switch antiferromagnetic materials, which are of interest for their potential to advance information processing and memory chip technology.
A 'remelting' of lunar surface adds a wrinkle to mystery of Moon's true age
Scientists propose a 'remelting' of the Moon's surface 4.35 billion years ago due to the tidal pull of Earth causing widespread geological upheaval and intense heating.
Thorium film could replace crystals in atomic clocks of the near future
Atomic clocks that excite the nucleus of thorium-229 embedded in a transparent crystal when hit by a laser beam could yield the most accurate measurements ever of time and gravity, and even rewrite some of the fundamental laws of physics. Thorium-229-doped crystals are both scarce and radioactive. A thin film using a dry precursor of thorium-229 shows the same nuclear excitation as the crystal, but its low cost and radioactivity, and smaller size mean its production could be more easily scaled up to make smaller, less expensive, more portable atomic clocks.
Developing artificial intelligence tools for health care
Reinforcement Learning, an artificial intelligence approach, has the potential to guide physicians in designing sequential treatment strategies for better patient outcomes but requires significant improvements before it can be applied in clinical settings, finds a new study.
A new study offers hope for people who are blind or have low vision (pBLV) through an innovative navigation system that was tested using virtual reality. The system, which combines vibrational and sound feedback, aims to help users navigate complex real-world environments more safely and effectively.
Nano drug delivery system heralds safer era for drug development
A team of researchers has created an innovative drug delivery system with outstanding potential to improve drug development.
How to print a car: High-performance multi-material 3D printing techniques
A future where lightweight car parts can be made with a 3D printer is here, thanks to multi-material additive manufacturing research.
Microgravity is known to alter the muscles, bones, the immune system and cogni tion, but little is known about its specific impact on the brain. To discover how brain cells respond to microgravity, scientists sent tiny clumps of stem-cell derived brain cells called 'organoids' to the International Space Station.
Physicists 'bootstrap' validity of string theory
World Cup soccer is getting faster for men and women alike
If the experience of watching a FIFA World Cup soccer final is intense, spare a thought for the players, who are competing at an ever increasing intensity, according to a new study.
Significant advancement made in engineering biology and clean energy
Engineers have reported a significant advancement in engineering biology and clean energy. A team of researchers has developed an innovative light-driven hybrid nanoreactor that merges natural efficiency with cutting-edge synthetic precision to produce hydrogen -- a clean and sustainable energy source.
String figures shed light on cultural connections and the roots of mathematical reasoning
New research suggests that the making of string figures, a globally documented practice, may point to shared cultural heritage stretching back millennia. The research offers a new way to investigate the evolution and distribution of cultural phenomena using mathematical methods.
Researchers have demonstrated the high accuracy of their newly developed typhoon observation device that can be dropped from an aircraft into the eye of a typhoon. This kind of device, called a dropsonde, measures storm's atmospheric conditions as it falls from altitude to the ocean surface. The new dropsonde is lightweight and is made mainly of a biodegradable material. It can descend without a parachute unlike conventional dropsondes.
Physics: Current generated by the quantum Hall effect has additional magnetic properties
The quantum Hall effect, a fundamental effect in quantum mechanics, not only generates an electric but also a magnetic current. It arises from the motion of electrons on an orbit around the nuclei of atoms. These results can potentially be used to develop new types of inexpensive and energy-efficient devices.