A May 15, 2020 news item on Nanowerk provides context for an announcement of a research breakthrough on quantum entanglement, Quantum entanglement is a process by which microscopic objects like electrons or atoms lose their individuality to become better coordinated with each other. Entanglement is at the heart of quantum technologies that promise large advances in computing, communications and sensing, for example detecting gravitational waves.Entangled states are famously fragile: in most cases even a tiny…

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A May 15, 2020 news item on Nanowerk provides context for an announcement of a research breakthrough on quantum entanglement, Quantum entanglement is a process by which microscopic objects like electrons or atoms lose their individuality to become better coordinated with each other. Entanglement is at the heart of quantum technologies that promise large advances in computing, communications and sensing, for example detecting gravitational waves.Entangled states are famously fragile: in most cases even a tiny…

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A simulation of a quantum material’s properties reveals its ability to learn numbers, a test of artificial intelligence. (Purdue University image/Shakti Wadekar) A May 7, 2020 Purdue University news release (also on EurekAlert) describes a new approach for energy-efficient hardware in support of artificial intelligence (AI) systems, To just solve a puzzle or play a game, artificial intelligence can require software running on thousands of computers. That could be the energy that three nuclear plants…

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I went down a rabbit hole while trying to figure out the difference between ‘organic’ memristors and standard memristors. I have put the results of my investigation at the end of this post. First, there’s the news. An April 21, 2020 news item on ScienceDaily explains why researchers are so focused on memristors and brainlike computing, The advent of artificial intelligence, machine learning and the internet of things is expected to change modern electronics and…

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Researchers have shown that plasmonics can enhance the fluorescent markers used to signal positive samples in certain types of tests for diseases. A polymer brush coating keeps unwanted biomolecules away while a capture antibody (red) catches biomarkers of disease (clear). A detection antibody (blue) then latches on to the biomarker and emits light from an attached fluorophore (sphere). All of this is sandwiched by a thin layer of gold and a silver nanocube that is…

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My reference point for date and time is almost always Pacific Time (PT). Depending on which time zone you live in, the day and date I’ve listed here may be incorrect. For anyone who has difficulty figuring out which day and time the event will take place where they live, a search for ‘time zone converter’ on one of the search engines should prove helpful. May 20, 2020 at 7:30 pm (UK time): Complicité’s The…

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Caption: The spotted belly of a Tokay gecko used by UC Berkeley biologists to understand how the animal’s five sticky toes help it climb on many types of surface. Credit: Yi Song Those are fabulous toes. Geckos and the fine hairs on their toes have been of great interest to researchers looking to increase qualities of adhesion for all kinds of purposes including for robots that climb. The latest foray into the research suggests that…

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I successfully submitted an editorial to the Canadian Science Policy Centre (CSPC). You can find it and a host of others on the CSPC Editorial Series: Response to COVID-19 Pandemic and its Impacts webpage (scroll down under Policy Development) or in the CSPC Featured Editorial Series Volume 1, Issue 2, May 2020 PDF on pp. 31-2. What I’ve posted here is the piece followed by attribution for the artwork used to illustrate my op-ed in…

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Things have changed (but not the event date) since my March 3, 2020 posting about the Sea Shambles event in London’s (UK) Royal Albert Hall. It will now be livestreamed by the Royal Albert Home (series) and The Stay at Home Festival on May 17, 2020. [downloaded from https://cosmicshambles.com/words/news/sea-shambles-at-home-guests] You may recognize Cobie Smulders (fourth from the left) from her stints on television (How I Met Your Mother and Stumptown) and in the movies (the…

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It can’t be any surprise that Canadian Science Policy Conference 2020 (CSPC 2020) is going to be virtual this year. Not unexpectedly, at least one deadline is being extended. Here’s more from the CSPC 2020 Goes Virtual webpage, [Conference theme] New Decade, New Realities: Hindsight, Insight, ForesightNew Deadline for Panel Submission: June 12th, 2020Due to the unprecedented circumstances generated by the COVID-19 pandemic, the 12thCanadian Science Policy Conference, CSPC 2020, will be held completely online!…

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