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Category: computing – Page 34

Year 2024 face_with_colon_three

Our memristor is inspired and supported by a comprehensive theory directly derived from the underlying physical equations of diffusive and electric continuum ion transport. We experimentally quantitatively verified the predictions of our theory on multiple occasions, among which the specific and surprising prediction that the memory retention time of the channel depends on the channel diffusion time, despite the channel being constantly voltage-driven. The theory exclusively relies on physical parameters, such as channel dimensions and ion concentrations, and enabled streamlined experimentation by pinpointing the relevant signal timescales, signal voltages, and suitable reservoir computing protocol. Additionally, we identify an inhomogeneous charge density as the key ingredient for iontronic channels to exhibit current rectification (provided they are well described by slab-averaged PNP equations). Consequently, our theory paves the way for targeted advancements in iontronic circuits and facilitates efficient exploration of their diverse applications.

For future prospects, a next step is the integration of multiple devices, where the flexible fabrication methods do offer a clear path toward circuits that couple multiple channels. Additionally, optimizing the device to exhibit strong conductance modulation for lower voltages would be of interest to bring electric potentials found in nature into the scope of possible inputs and reduce the energy consumption for conductance modulation. From a theoretical perspective, the understanding of the (origin of the) inhomogeneous space charge and the surface conductance is still somewhat limited. These contain (physical) parameters that are now partially chosen from a reasonable physical regime to yield good agreement, but do not directly follow from underlying physical equations. We also assume that the inhomogeneous ionic space charge distribution is constant, while it might well be voltage-dependent.

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Manu Prakash, an assistant professor of bioengineering at Stanford, and his students have developed a synchronous computer that operates using the unique physics of moving water droplets. Their goal is to design a new class of computers that can precisely control and manipulate physical matter. For more info: http://news.stanford.edu/news/2015/ju…

Music: “Union Hall Melody” by Blue Dot Sessions.

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Scientists have translated nanoscale experimental and computational data into precise 3D representations of bacteria, yeast and human epithelial, breast and breast cancer cells in Minecraft, a video game that allows players to explore, build and manipulate structures in three dimensions.

The innovation will allow researchers and students of all ages to navigate biological cells, puncturing through the membranes of organelles to view their interiors or wandering across the cytoplasm to see how the various structures are distributed within the cell.

“CraftCells: A Window into Biological Cells” is the first broadly accessible tool allowing users to get an accurate picture of whole cells in 3D, said Zaida (Zan) Luthey-Schulten, a professor of chemistry and of physics at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign who led the work with Illinois bioengineering professors Stephen Boppart and Rohit Bhargava, graduate student Kevin Tan, postdoctoral researchers Zane Thornburg and Seth Kenkel, and study lead author Tianyu Wu, a biophysics graduate student at the U. of I.

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A new study published in Scientific Reports simulates particle creation in an expanding universe using IBM quantum computers, demonstrating the digital quantum simulation of quantum field theory for curved spacetime (QFTCS).

While attempts to create a complete quantum theory of gravity have been unsuccessful, there is another approach to exploring and explaining cosmological events.

QFTCS maintains spacetime as a classical background described by general relativity, while treating the matter and force fields within it quantum mechanically. This allows physicists to study in “curved spacetime” without needing a complete theory of quantum gravity.

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Two hundred million years ago, our mammal ancestors developed a new brain feature: the neocortex. This stamp-sized piece of tissue (wrapped around a brain the size of a walnut) is the key to what humanity has become. Now, futurist Ray Kurzweil suggests, we should get ready for the next big leap in brain power, as we tap into the computing power in the cloud.

TEDTalks is a daily video podcast of the best talks and performances from the TED Conference, where the world’s leading thinkers and doers give the talk of their lives in 18 minutes (or less). Look for talks on Technology, Entertainment and Design — plus science, business, global issues, the arts and much more.
Find closed captions and translated subtitles in many languages at http://www.ted.com/translate.

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Imagine a world where the act of observation itself holds the key to solving our most complex problems, a world where the very fabric of reality becomes a canvas for computation. This is the tantalizing promise of Observational Computation (OC), a radical new paradigm poised to redefine the very nature of computation and our understanding of the universe itself.

Forget silicon chips and algorithms etched in code; OC harnesses the enigmatic dance of quantum mechanics and the observer effect, where the observer and the observed are inextricably intertwined. Instead of relying on traditional processing power, OC seeks to translate computational problems into carefully crafted observer-environment systems. Picture a quantum stage where potential solutions exist in a hazy superposition, like ghostly apparitions waiting for the spotlight of observation to solidify them into reality.

By meticulously designing these “observational experiments,” we can manipulate quantum systems, nudging them towards desired outcomes. This elegant approach offers tantalizing advantages over our current computational methods. Imagine harnessing the inherent parallelism of quantum superposition for exponentially faster processing, or tapping into the natural energy flows of the universe for unprecedented energy efficiency.

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Researchers from Nagoya University in Japan and the Slovak Academy of Sciences have unveiled new insights into the interplay between quantum theory and thermodynamics. The team demonstrated that while quantum theory does not inherently forbid violations of the second law of thermodynamics, quantum processes may be implemented without actually breaching the law.

This discovery, published in npj Quantum Information, highlights a harmonious coexistence between the two fields, despite their logical independence. Their findings open up new avenues for understanding the thermodynamic boundaries of quantum technologies, such as and nanoscale engines.

This breakthrough contributes to the long-standing exploration of the second law of thermodynamics, a principle often regarded as one of the most profound and enigmatic in physics.

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Researchers at the Ernst Strüngmann Institute in Frankfurt am Main, Germany, led by Wolf Singer, have made a new discovery in understanding fundamental brain processes. For the first time, the team has provided compelling evidence that the brain’s characteristic rhythmic patterns play a crucial role in information processing. While these oscillatory dynamics have long been observed in the brain, their purpose has remained mostly elusive until now.

The study has the potential to transform our understanding of brain activity. Using , the researchers show that recurrent networks with oscillating nodes demonstrate better performance compared to non-oscillating networks and replicate many experimentally observed phenomena.

These findings indicate that oscillatory dynamics are not just an epiphenomenon but are essential for efficient computation in the brain. The work is published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

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Multiferroic materials, in which electric and magnetic properties are combined in promising ways, will be the heart of new solutions for data storage, data transmission, and quantum computers. Meanwhile, understanding the origin of such properties at a fundamental level is key for developing applications, and neutrons are the ideal probe.

Neutrons possess a which makes them sensitive to magnetic fields generated by unpaired electrons in materials. This makes scattering techniques a powerful tool to probe the magnetic behavior of materials at atomic level.

The story of the so-called layered perovskites and the breakthrough results now published are a paradigmatic example highlighting both the role of fundamental studies in the development of applications and of the power of neutrons. Being a promising class of materials exhibiting coupled magnetic and electric ordering properties at ambient temperatures, the magnetic structure of the layered perovskites YBaCuFeO5—and thus the origin of their interesting magneto-electric behavior—was still to be unambiguously determined.

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AMD has released mitigation and firmware updates to address a high-severity vulnerability that can be exploited to load malicious CPU microcode on unpatched devices.

The security flaw (CVE-2024–56161) is caused by an improper signature verification weakness in AMD’s CPU ROM microcode patch loader.

Attackers with local administrator privileges can exploit this weakness, resulting in the loss of confidentiality and integrity of a confidential guest running under AMD Secure Encrypted Virtualization-Secure Nested Paging (SEV-SNP).

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