Today's Tech News: Notable or Not?

https://scitechdaily.com/scientists-create-synthetic-dimensions-to-better-understand-the-fundamental-laws-of-the-universe/ "synthetic dimension on a silicon ring resonator, using the same approach used to build complementary metal-oxide-semiconductors (CMOS)... particular bandwidths... acquired a “comb-like” optical spectra... While the developed device comprises one ring, more could be stacked to cascade effects and quickly characterize optical frequency signals... smaller and compact than previous approaches, which employed optical fibers connected to various components"

https://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/battery-breakthrough-achieves-energy-density-133548407.html "aim of significantly increasing the battery’s cycle life. Energy density has been the biggest obstacle towards the advancement of electric planes, with 500Wh/kg viewed as an important benchmark for achieving both long-haul and high-capacity flights... potential to hold up to five times more energy than lithium-ion batteries of the same size (3,460 Wh/kg), however previous experimental designs have consistently failed beyond the lab scale"

https://phys.org/news/2022-01-ultrathin-materials-pave-personal-sized-quantum.html "The resulting qubit is about 100 times smaller than what they made with traditional techniques on the same chip. The coherence time, or lifetime, of the qubit is only a few microseconds shorter with their new design. And capacitors built with hexagonal boron nitride contain more than 90 percent of the electric field between the upper and lower plates, which suggests they will significantly suppress cross-talk among neighboring qubits"

https://phys.org/news/2022-01-scientists-atomically-thin-wires-ribbons.html "Using tungsten telluride nanowires, they created bundles of wires deposited on a flat substrate. These were exposed to vapors of chalcogens like sulfur, selenium and tellurium. With a combination of heat and vapor, the initially separate threads in the bundles were successfully woven together into narrow, atomically thin nanoribbons with a characteristic zigzag structure. By tuning the thickness of the original bundles, they could even choose whether these ribbons were oriented parallel to the substrate or perpendicular"

https://scitechdaily.com/first-molecular-electronics-chip-developed-realizes-50-year-old-goal/ "sequencing sensor provides a new, direct view of polymerase activity, with the potential to advance sequencing technology by additional orders of magnitude in speed and cost...This ultra scalable chip opens up the possibility for highly distributed sequencing for personal health or environmental monitoring, and for future ultra-high throughput applications such as Exabyte-scale DNA data storage”

https://uk.news.yahoo.com/inside-silicon-valley-race-live-102200388.html "500 labs globally with a clear focus in this area – 15 to 20 of which are in the UK – and 25 drugs in various stages of testing. ‘That’s likely five or 10 times greater than it was two decades ago... around 25% of human longevity is inherited... dietary supplements that boost levels of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD) – a molecule that supports cellular function that your body produces less of as you age" Related: A jump through time – new technique rewinds the age of skin cells by 30 years https://www.babraham.ac.uk/news/2022/04/new-technique-rewinds-age-skin-cells-30-years New intranasal and injectable gene therapy for healthy life extension https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2121499119 Anti-aging breakthrough dials up fatty acid signaling to boost longevity https://newatlas.com/medical/anti-aging-breakthrough-fatty-acid-signaling-longevity/ Reverse aging for humans? Scientists come one step

https://newatlas.com/energy/nuclear-fusion-breakthrough-burning-plasma-first-time/ "using 192 lasers housed inside a 10-story building to deliver 1.9 megajoules of ultraviolet energy onto a fuel capsule roughly the size of a ball bearing... causes separate atoms to fuse into helium, a reaction that releases vast amount of energy...  to have the fusion reactions become the primary source of heat instead... a burning plasma state where more fusion energy is emitted from the fuel than was required to initiate the fusion reactions, or the amount of work done on the fuel”

https://scitechdaily.com/century-old-scientific-debate-settled-anesthesias-effect-on-consciousness-solved/ "Do anesthetics act directly on cell-membrane gates called ion channels, or do they somehow act on the membrane to signal cell changes in a new and unexpected way? It has taken nearly five years of experiments, calls, debates and challenges to arrive at the conclusion that it’s a two-step process that begins in the membrane, the duo say. The anesthetics perturb ordered lipid clusters within the cell membrane known as “lipid rafts” to initiate the signal"

https://scitechdaily.com/new-brain-mapping-technique-reveals-neural-code-of-vision-processing-over-time/ "We know that the code for visual information is distributed across a large population of neurons, but how that code is distributed depends on the goals of a given task. What this means is that the brain does not simply create a mental picture based exclusively on the environment, but instead creates a representation that best matches the behavioral goals of the person... Fortunately, DETI mapping enables opportunities to explore the neural dynamics of task-based visual codes and how those codes ultimately support task-based decision-making"

https://interestingengineering.com/facebooks-meta-says-its-new-ai-supercomputer-will-beat-all-rivals-by-2022s-end?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=mailing&utm_campaign=Newsletter-26-01-2022 "Meta will use RSC to develop novel services on the metaverse... office- and advertisement-friendly spaces will pervade nearly all aspects of user experience... RSC will help Meta's AI researchers build new and better AI models that can learn from trillions of examples; work across hundreds of different languages; seamlessly analyze text, images, and video together" Related: The metaverse is dystopian – but to big tech it’s a business opportunity https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/jan/29/the-metaverse-is-dystopian-but-to-big-tech-its-a-business-opportunity Explore Universe Or Live In Metaverse? https://cosmoknowledge.com/explore-universe-or-live-in-metaverse/ So what is “the metaverse,” exactly? https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2021/11/everyone-pitching-the-metaverse-

Tons of used face masks to be turned into energy "Compared to traditional accumulators, the new batteries have a high density of stored energy and electrical capacity. Previously, pellet batteries created using a similar technology had a capacity of 10 watt-hours per 1 kg, but scientists managed to achieve 98 watt-hours/kg... nanoparticles of inorganic perovskite of CaCo oxide type to the electrodes obtained from the masks, the energy capacity of the batteries further increased (208 watt-hours/kg). They have achieved a high electrical capacity of 1706 farads per gram"

https://phys.org/news/2022-01-nano-architected-material-refracts-important-photonic.html "Each cube is so tiny that the width of the beams making up the cube's structure is 100 times smaller than the width of a human hair... polymer coated evenly at that scale with a metal required the research team to develop a wholly new method... sputtering technique in which a disk of germanium was bombarded with high-energy ions that blasted germanium atoms off of the disk and onto the surface of the polymer lattice... telecommunications, medical imaging, radar camouflaging, and computing" Related:  This Mirror Reverses How Light Travels in Time https://spectrum.ieee.org/time-reversal-interface

https://phys.org/news/2022-01-illuminating-solvent-additives-efficiency-polymer.html "PC-AFM is an advanced microscopy technique that allows photocurrents to be visualized with nanometer-scale resolution. The researchers found that trace solvent additives improved the power conversion and photocurrent density of an all-polymer blend solar cell by a factor of up to ~3 by enhancing the ordering and crystallization of the polymer microstructure in the solar cell without damaging the phase-separated structure"

  https://scitechdaily.com/first-molecular-electronics-chip-developed-realizes-50-year-old-goal/ "molecular electronics sensor capable of reading DNA sequence... a DNA polymerase, the enzyme that copies DNA, is integrated into the circuit, and the result is direct electrical observation of the action of this enzyme as it copies a piece of DNA, letter by letter... achieves direct, real-time observation of a DNA polymerase enzyme incorporating nucleotides... illustrates how these activity signals can be analyzed with machine learning algorithms to allow reading of the sequence"

  https://techxplore.com/news/2022-01-scientists-energy-storage-capacity-graphene.html "polypyrrole uniformly into the graphene network by pulse electrodeposition. Graphene/polypyrrole composite electrodes were obtained and a new type of solar-thermally enhanced supercapacitor was thus constructed. This supercapacitor has many advantages. When the temperature dropped to -30°C, the electrochemical performance of the supercapacitor, which is normally severely degraded, could be enhanced rapidly to room temperature under solar irradiation at light intensities of 1.0 kW m-2" Related : Scientists enhance energy storage capacity of graphene supercapacitors via solar heating https://techxplore.com/news/2022-01-scientists-energy-storage-capacity-graphene.html This startup’s energy storage tech is ​‘essentially a giant toaster’ https://www.canarymedia.com/articles/energy-storage/this-startups-energy-storage-tech-is-essentially-a-giant-toaster

https://today.uic.edu/stackable-artificial-leaf-uses-less-power-than-lightbulb-to-capture-100-times-more-carbon-than-other-systems "organic solvent attaches to available carbon dioxide to produce a concentration of bicarbonate, or baking soda, on the membrane.... 3.3 millimoles per hour per 4 square centimeters. This is more than 100 times better than other systems, even though only a moderate amount of electricity (0.4 KJ/hour) was needed to power the reaction... cost at $145 per ton of carbon dioxide, which is in line with recommendations... cost should not exceed around $200 per ton" Related: Scientists unveil least costly carbon capture system to date https://techxplore.com/news/2023-01-scientists-unveil-carbon-capture-date.html Researchers capture carbon more effectively with new catalyst design https://techxplore.com/news/2023-01-capture-carbon-effectively-catalyst.html A new approach to waste incineration removes CO2 from the atmosphere https://techxplore.com/news/2023

https://phys.org/news/2022-01-chinese-electroculture-theorized.html "in one of the plots were grown in an electric field. When the plants matured and produced new peas, the researchers found that those grown in the electric field produced approximately a fifth more product...  using a triboelectric nanogenerator powered by harvested energy from wind and rainfall... cost only US $40... may be some hesitancy by consumers worried about possible health impacts of the electric field on the crops"

https://www.newscientist.com/article/2304571-robot-piloted-by-a-ball-of-algae-is-powered-by-photosynthesis/ "directly harness photosynthesis to make actuators, biosensors and bioprocessors... Marimo Actuated Rover Systems (MARS)... autonomous, low-cost, lightweight, compact size, photosynthetically powered rover is reported. The potential for further system enhancements are identified and under development" Related: New technology fused with photosynthetic life offers path to green energy https://biodesign.asu.edu/news/new-technology-fused-photosynthetic-life-offers-path-green-energy-0 Breakthrough artificial photosynthesis comes closer https://medicalxpress.com/news/2022-06-compound-range-hard-to-treat-cancers-previously.html A Superior Green Energy Technology- Engineered Photosynthesis https://steemit.com/hive-109160/@truth2/a-superior-green-energy-technology-engineered-photosynthesis A new breakthrough in biology allows scientists to grow food without sunlight https://inte

https://eandt.theiet.org/content/articles/2022/01/aircraft-noise-pollution-could-be-dampened-with-design-based-on-owl-wings/ "Nocturnal owls produce about 18 decibels less noise than other birds at similar flight speeds due to their unique wing configuration... Moreover, when the owl catches prey, the shape of the wings is also constantly changing... The team used noise calculation and analysis software to conduct a series of detailed theoretical studies of simplified aerofoils with characteristics reminiscent of owl wings" Related: Toroidal propellers: A noise-killing game changer in air and water https://newatlas.com/aircraft/toroidal-quiet-propellers/

https://www.cnbc.com/2022/01/12/ubiquitous-energy-aims-to-turn-skyscrapers-into-vertical-solar-farms.html "Ubiquitous makes a coating for windows that uses semiconducting materials to convert sunlight into electricity. The coating is just nanometers thick and tiny wires connect the solar window to electrical systems where the energy is used...  the solar-electricity window panels are projected to be about 30% more expensive than regular glass that goes into windows once production gets to scale" Related: Transparent solar panels could replace windows in the future. Here's how https://interestingengineering.com/transparent-solar-panels-replace-windows-in-the-future-heres-how Transparent Solar Panels Replace Windows, Mobile Screens https://yodoozy.com/transparent-solar-panels-replace-windows-mobile-screens/ Vertical PV power plants reduce the need for gas imports and electricity storage systems https://techxplore.com/news/2022-07-vertical-pv-power-gas-imports.html Solar tow

https://techxplore.com/news/2022-01-language-quantum-1.html?utm_source=nwletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=daily-nwletter "safer quantum programs by explicitly stating when a qubit must not be entangled with another... we hope that Twist paves the way to languages that make the unique challenges of quantum computing more accessible to programmers... They also measured how well the programs performed in practice in terms of runtime, which had less than 4 percent overhead"

https://www.optica.org/en-us/about/newsroom/news_releases/2022/researchers_use_electrically_responsive_fluid_to_m/ "optical transmittance of around 95% at visible wavelengths between 390 and 780 nm and that performance remains stable at temperatures ranging from room temperature to over 200 °F... increasing the applied voltage from 0 to 100 V changed the focal length from 7.5 mm to 13.1 mm and that the lens’ resolution can reach almost 29 lines per millimeter"

https://www.imeche.org/news/news-article/supercritical-carbon-dioxide-could-boost-concentrated-solar-plant-efficiency-by-more-than-10 "up to 720 °C and 275 bar... a fraction of the size of conventional turbomachinery... can increase the efficiency of a CSP plant by as much as 10 percentage points... The high efficiency of the sCO2 cycle also allows the turbomachinery to have a smaller footprint—it is 1/20th the size of a standard steam turbine" Related: Stackable artificial leaf uses less power than lightbulb to capture 100 times more carbon than other systems https://today.uic.edu/stackable-artificial-leaf-uses-less-power-than-lightbulb-to-capture-100-times-more-carbon-than-other-systems Scientists committed a breakthrough in the production of clean and cheap energy https://ecofriendlytime.com/en/28080-scientists-committed-a-breakthrough-in-the-production-of-clean-and-cheap-energy/ 'We've got the power': Brayton cycle technology test delivers electricity to the g

https://techxplore.com/news/2022-01-rational-guidelines-neuromorphic-devices.html "Based on these experimental results, the group modeled the neuromorphic response of the devices. Comparisons of the data showed that movements of the ions in the OECT controlled the response. This indicates tuning the timescale for ion movement can be an effective way to regulate the neuromorphic behavior of OECTs"

https://techxplore.com/news/2022-01-world-mram-based-in-memory.html   "accuracy of 98% in classification of hand-written digits and a 93% accuracy in detecting faces from scenes... Non-volatile memories, in particular RRAM and PRAM have been actively used for demonstrating in-memory computing. By contrast, it has so far been difficult to use MRAM—another type of non-volatile memory—for in-memory computing despite MRAM's merits such as operation speed, endurance and large-scale production"

https://www.cambridgephoton.com/ "A sheet containing the dots is laid on top of a normal solar panel with no connections needed... Claim production starting in 2024 or so... Photon Multiplier Film uses advanced nanotechnology to split each incoming blue and green photon into two infra-red photons. This allows the silicon cell to capture energy that would otherwise be lost, and substantially increases its power output"

https://www.pv-magazine.com/2022/01/18/spraying-water-system-for-solar-module-cooling/ "sprayed around 15.6 liters/day of water over the modules at temperatures beyond 45 degrees Celsius, which in turn raised the water temperature to an average of 30 degrees Celsius... temperature sensor fixed on the back of the solar module that is connected to a microcontroller producing a pulse width modulation (PWM) signal... triggers a Mosfet acting as a switch between the system's solenoid valve, which is placed between the water tank and the spraying unit, and the power supply" Related: A computer cooling breakthrough uses a common material to boost power 740 percent https://interestingengineering.com/computer-cooling-740-percent-increase-power SiC MOSFET: Toshiba’s Breakthrough 2200 V Devices Streamline Inverter Systems https://energytheory.com/sic-mosfet-toshibas-breakthrough-2200-v-devices-streamline-inverter-systems/

https://techxplore.com/news/2022-01-fuel-cells-temperatures-200c.html "The ultra-micropores in the TB polymer act as capillaries for the PA absorption and retention... By adjusting the chemical structure of the monomer, the polymer membrane pore size and distribution could be controlled. One membrane with the pore size of about 3.5 Å showed the best siphoning effect of PA molecules, and thus the best conductivity stability and fuel cell performance"

https://www.siliconrepublic.com/machines/graphene-ink-production-tcd-amber "exfoliate graphene flakes from graphite with minimal defects... process of the exfoliation of graphite.. we can produce high-quality graphene at low cost in a highly efficient manner that is easily scalable... cost could be reduced to £20 per litre once scaled up. This could lead to the production of multi-tonne quantities if successfully commercialised, far exceeding the world’s current graphene supply" Related: Técnico researchers develop new process for low-cost graphene production: US patent granted https://tecnico.ulisboa.pt/en/news/tecnico-researchers-develop-new-process-for-low-cost-graphene-production-us-patent-granted Research team proposes innovative wearable e-textiles for a sustainable circular economy https://techxplore.com/news/2023-10-team-wearable-e-textiles-sustainable-circular.html Wearable stretchable electronics: A new design and fabrication process for skin-like integrated circuit

https://www.techexplorist.com/crispr-cas13-targets-proteins-causing-als-huntingtons-disease/44224/ "Using a targeted CRISPR technique in the central nervous systems of mice, scientists at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign have successfully deactivated the mutation of proteins that can cause Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and Huntington’s disease... effectively silenced the mutant genes without disturbing the cell’s DNA" Related: Surprising discovery: how a gene mutation causes higher intelligence in humans https://scitechdaily.com/surprising-discovery-how-a-gene-mutation-causes-higher-intelligence-in-humans/

https://news.umich.edu/quantum-tech-semiconductor-flipped-to-insulator-above-room-temp/ "When most, but not all, layers had switched to prismatic state, the sample was cooled back to room temperature... layers that remained in the octahedral state were exhibiting charge density waves that were orderly and stable, and stayed that way at temperatures of up to 170 F. In addition, those layers had flipped from semiconductors to insulators"

https://sc-cms.psu.edu/research/story/form-fit-device-wraps-around-hot-surfaces-turns-wasted-heat-electricity "The 72-couple device exhibited the highest reported output power and device power density from a single thermoelectric generator... scientists placed six couples along a thin strip. They then used flexible metal foil to connect 12 of the strips together... Liquid metal was used between the layers of each strip to improve device performance... 3-inches squared, maintained a 115% power density advantage. That version exhibited a total power output of 56.6 watts" Related: Interview: How waste heat recovery will change the landscape https://techxplore.com/news/2022-03-recovery-landscape.html Major leap in turning waste heat into electricity https://www.greentechmag.com/major-step-in-turning-waste-heat-into-electricity/ Ink coating could enable devices powered by heat https://techxplore.com/news/2022-06-ink-coating-enable-devices-powered.htm

https://www.techgenyz.com/2022/01/20/worlds-lowest-power-phase-change-memory/ "world’s smallest phase-change memory... a thousand times lower than mainstream productspower consumption of a 100-nanometer-sized device created in the lab consumes more than 1000pJ...  Variable memory consumes less than 0.05pJ of power, which is a thousand times less than conventional goods. The phase change memory provides the advantages of good consistency and long life in addition to low power consumption"

https://techilive.in/research-team-sets-new-efficiency-record-for-solar-cell-technology/ "significantly improves the efficiency of perovskite/ organic tandem solar cells, achieving a power conversion rate of 23.6%... An effective ICL (interconnecting layers) should be chemically inert, electrically conductive and optically transparent" Related: Double-junction perovskite-tin sulfide PV cell design with up to 28.92% efficiency https://www.pv-magazine.com/2022/03/17/double-junction-perovskite-tin-sulfide-pv-cell-design-with-up-to-28-92-efficiency/ Improved tin perovskite solar cells achieve more than 1,300 hours of operational stability https://techxplore.com/news/2022-03-tin-perovskite-solar-cells-hours.html Cu+ doping enhances self-trapped exciton emission in alloyed Cs2(Ag/Na)InCl6 double perovskite https://phys.org/news/2022-03-cu-doping-self-trapped-exciton-emission.html Tandem solar cell based on cadmium telluride, iron disilicide promises 43.9% efficiency https://pv-maga

https://www.electrive.com/2022/01/06/battery-startup-improves-model-s-range-to-1200-km/ "capacity of the battery pack installed in the Tesla at 203.7 kWh, and the volumetric energy density at 416 Wh/l. The battery in the demonstration vehicle is said to use the same installation space as the original battery in the Model S Long Range Plus, which has a capacity of 103.9 kWh... LFP battery called Aries with a cell-to-pack approach... production battery is expected to be unveiled in 2023"

https://techxplore.com/news/2022-01-team-lithium-air-battery-energy-density.html?utm_source=nwletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=daily-nwletter "energy density over 500Wh/kg... highest energy densities and best cycle life performances ever achieved... reaction proceeds at room temperature... currently developing higher-performance battery materials and plans to integrate them into the newly developed lithium-air battery with the aim of greatly increasing the battery's cycle life"

  https://sciencex.com/news/2022-01-capillary-bridge-colloidal-particles-tunable.html "entrapping fluid between solid surfaces sufficiently close to each other. We observed the evaporation of liquid suspensions containing colloidal particles between parallel plates. In this case, apart from the parameters mentioned above for droplets, it becomes possible to control the gap between surfaces, the dimensions of plates, and the nature of the two plates"

https://scitechdaily.com/european-milestone-quantum-computer-with-more-than-5000-qubits-launched/ "quantum annealer has over 5,000 qubits and is therefore big enough to help with application-related problems that are typically calculated on supercomputers... efficient control of traffic flows and the training of neural networks for artificial intelligence applications"

https://www.acs.org/content/acs/en/pressroom/presspacs/2022/acs-presspac-january-19-2022/camels-noses-inspire-new-humidity-sensor.html "reliably detect variations in humidity in settings that included industrial exhaust and the air surrounding human skin... Narrow, scroll-like passages within a camel’s nose create a large surface area, which is lined with water-absorbing mucus... porous polymer network. On it, they placed moisture-attracting molecules called zwitterions to simulate the property of mucus to change capacitance as humidity varies"

https://www.rmit.edu.au/news/all-news/2022/jan/decarbonisation-tech "The "bubble column" method starts with liquid metal being heated to about 100-120C... gas bubbles rising up just like bubbles in a champagne glass" Related: A new catalyst that transforms carbon dioxide into added-value chemical products https://phys.org/news/2023-01-catalyst-carbon-dioxide-added-value-chemical.html

https://phys.org/news/2022-01-p-type-near-infrared-transparent-thin.html "the NIR optical transmittance of the films can reach as high as 85~60%, while maintaining the film resistance at room temperature at a low level... CuRhO2 showed p-type conducting characteristics and processed a narrow indirect bandgap of 2.31 eV... will significantly improve the development of future multifunctional invisible optoelectronic devices"

https://phys.org/news/2022-01-membrane-dual-ion-batteries-closer-reality.html "The researchers focused on hexafluorophosphate, an anionic component in lithium-ion batteries. They employed an important monomer containing quaternary ammonium motifs—which are positively charged—to develop a polymer electrolyte membrane that can selectively filter anions. It resulted in superb cycling stability with a 99% coulombic efficiency at high voltage" Related: Metal-free batteries raise hope for more sustainable and economical grids https://techxplore.com/news/2023-01-metal-free-batteries-sustainable-economical-grids.html Postech professor Soojin Park’s team innovates polymer binder to extend dual-ion battery lifespan https://postech.ac.kr/eng/making-electric-vehicles-last/?pageds=1&k=&c= A breakthrough in Coulombic reversibility of dual-ion batteries at quick charge and underlying mechanisms https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S2352152X23038021

https://reneweconomy.com.au/5b-targets-solar-farm-building-robots-in-33m-push-to-ultra-low-cost-pv/ "ultra low cost solar generation at $15 per megawatt hour, which is roughly a third of today’s cost... an advanced manufacturing line that can produce 40 Maverick units per day... aim for a 35 per cent cost reduction in its technology by 2023 and a 70 per cent cost reduction forecast by 2030, to 30 cents per watt... faster, lower cost, more efficient and safer to develop large-scale projects"

https://pv-magazine-usa.com/2022/01/18/pulling-fertilizer-out-of-thin-air-with-solar-power "we manufacture nitrates (NO3-), there is a lot of oxygen to transport per lb of nitrogen”. Nitricity uses a 200 gallon tank to store the product prior to it being applied to the tomatoes... an energy efficiency ten times better than present plasma values and equal to or better than that of the conventional Haber-Bosch process could be achieved" Related: Yara and Lantmaennen to launch 'fossil-free' fertilisers in Sweden https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/yara-lantmaennen-launch-fossil-free-fertilisers-sweden-2022-01-13/?utm_source=reddit.com Use of algae to support sustainable fertilizer production https://phys.org/news/2023-02-algae-sustainable-fertilizer-production.html Researchers discover eco-friendly fungicide alternative https://phys.org/news/2024-01-eco-friendly-fungicide-alternative.html Researchers develop new plant-derived urease inhibitor to improve fertiliz

https://www.surrey.ac.uk/news/edge-processing-research-takes-surrey-discovery-closer-use-artificial-intelligence-networks "MMTs, a unique type of thin-film transistor... achieving practically identical classification accuracy as pure ReLU implementations. They used both measured and simulated MMT data to train an artificial neural network to identify handwritten numbers and compared the results with the built-in ReLU of the software"

https://www.cnbc.com/2021/09/09/solugen-raises-357-million-to-make-chemicals-and-plastic-from-plants.html "Bioforge produces 1 ton of product per ton of feedstock... We scale new molecule production 1 million fold, from 0.0004L well plates to 40,000L Bioforges, in months not decades... Our process offsets over 30,000 tpy of CO2 equivalent... Replace 5B bottles worth of non-degradable plastic by becoming a major producer of bio-plastic monomers" Related: How Texas Could Solve Our Toxic Chemical Problem https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kxA6NqcC9DM Chemical researchers discover catalyst to make renewable paints, coatings, and diapers https://cse.umn.edu/college/news/chemical-researchers-discover-catalyst-make-renewable-paints-coatings-and-diapers Elucidating the mysteries of enzyme evolution at the macromolecular level https://phys.org/news/2023-05-elucidating-mysteries-enzyme-evolution-macromolecular.html

https://www.olcf.ornl.gov/2022/01/07/firing-up-quantum-fidelity/ " The researchers used quantum state tomography, which estimates the properties of a quantum state based on the properties of similar states, to keep track of values and correct for errors upon completion. The results showed a 23 percent improvement in quantum state fidelity – one of the most successful refinements for a quantum problem so far" Related: Quantum computing in silicon hits 99% accuracy https://phys.org/news/2022-01-quantum-silicon-accuracy.html Wireless technique enables quantum computer to send and receive data without generating too much error-causing heat https://techxplore.com/news/2023-02-wireless-technique-enables-quantum-generating.html Google announces major breakthrough that represents ‘significant shift’ in quantum computers https://www.independent.co.uk/tech/google-quantum-computer-error-correction-latest-b2287412.html

https://www.adelaide.edu.au/newsroom/news/list/2022/01/17/superabsorption-unlocks-key-to-next-generation-quantum-batteries "It is theoretically possible that the charging power of quantum batteries increases faster than the size of the battery which could allow new ways to speed charging... The active layer of the microcavity contains organic semiconductor materials that store the energy. Underlying the superabsorbing effect of the quantum batteries is the idea that all the molecules act collectively through a property known as quantum superposition" See also: Proof of concept verifies physics that could enable quantum batteries https://newatlas.com/energy/quantum-battery-proof-concept-fast-charging/

https://discovery.kaust.edu.sa/en/article/1197/making-light-work-of-emerging-micropollutants "The researchers found that the effectiveness of high-intensity pulsed light (HIPL) varied significantly depending on parameters including the number of pulses and the total energy dose delivered by the light. This allowed them to identify the most effective conditions for treating a test solution containing 11 significant OMPs, including drugs, hormones and industrial chemical contaminants" Related: Novel nanofiltration membrane shows high efficiency in acidic wastewater treatment https://phys.org/news/2023-01-nanofiltration-membrane-high-efficiency-acidic.html From waste to clean water: Tiny carbon particles can do the job https://phys.org/news/2023-03-tiny-carbon-particles-job.html New wood-based technology removes 80% of dye pollutants in wastewater https://phys.org/news/2023-03-wood-based-technology-dye-pollutants-wastewater.html Wastewater to energy: New treatment process can im

https://www.leti-cea.com/cea-tech/leti/english/Pages/What's-On/Press%20release/HfO2-Based-FeRAM-Arrays-Designed--Fabricated-at-CEA-Leti-Bring-the-Technology-Closer-to-Manufacturability.aspx "world's-first demonstration of 16-kbit ferroelectric random-access memory (FeRAM) arrays at the 130nm node that advances this energy-saving technology closer to commercialization. The breakthrough includes back-end-of-line (BEOL) integration of TiN/HfO2:Si/TiN ferroelectric capacitors as small as 0.16 µm², and solder reflow compatibility for the first time for this type of memory"

https://english.hf.cas.cn/nr/rn/202112/t20211217_294617.html "novel composite materials are named modified-Gd2O3/B4C/HDPE... The optimal composite achieved as high as 98% neutron shielding rate with the thickness of 15 cm... superior to conventional boron-containing polyethylene for collimating shield which applied to neutron and gamma spectrum diagnostic system of Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak (EAST). And it is expected to be promising radiation shielding material used in neutron-gamma mixed fields" Related: Researchers develop neutron-shielding film for radiation protection https://phys.org/news/2023-11-neutron-shielding.html

https://propakistani.pk/2022/01/13/japan-launches-the-worlds-most-efficient-electricity-cable/amp/?__cf_chl_f_tk=rpzYG8i3Yab4PqLsrUaZ3pK_JA2KG5.crUijwvBylMg-1642284831-0-gaNycGzNCGU "1.5-km superconducting transmission cable... transmission line is cooled to -269 Degrees Celcius... liquid nitrogen goes into a superconducting state at -196 Degrees Celcius... 10% cheaper than the standard liquid helium... coat transmission lines... railway-required 1,500 volts and several hundred amperes... the country loses 4% of its electricity; about 700 million kilowatt-hours"

https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3162566/chinese-megawatt-laser-powerful-small-enough-be-used-satellite "1.5kg pulse device is possible because of breakthroughs allowing critical components in solid state lasers to be much smaller... device is not a weapon – but a larger version in future could be... applications, including identifying a target, tracking, imaging and high-speed communication... can generate a powerful 1 megawatt laser light and can fire 100 shots per second for nearly half an hour without overheating"

https://today.uconn.edu/2022/01/regrowing-cartilage-in-a-damaged-knee-gets-closer-to-fixing-arthritis/# "electrical signals are key to normal growth... tissue scaffold made out of nanofibers of poly-L lactic acid (PLLA), a biodegradable polymer often used to stitch up surgical wounds. The nanomaterial has a neat property called piezo-electricity. When it is squeezed, it produces a little burst of electrical current The team recently tested the scaffold in the knee of an injured rabbit... the cartilage grew back normally" Related:  Scientists regrow frogs’ amputated limbs in massive leap for regenerative medicine https://www.euronews.com/next/2022/01/28/scientists-regrow-frogs-amputated-limbs-in-massive-leap-for-regenerative-medicine

https://phys.org/news/2022-01-newly-strange-metal-deep-insights.html "electrical charge is carried not by electrons, but by more "wave-like" entities called Cooper pairs... Strange metal behavior could hold the key to understanding high-temperature superconductivity, which has vast potential for things like lossless power grids and quantum computers. And because strange metal behavior seems to be related to fundamental constants of the universe, understanding their behavior could shed light on basic truths of how the physical world works"

https://techxplore.com/news/2022-01-focuses-greener-alternative-conventional-batteries.html "development of a water-based electrolyte that was cheap to produce... could also come to replace or supplement lithium-ion batteries... initial focus is on developing the water-based electrolyte for use in supercapacitors"

https://news.mit.edu/2022/light-could-boost-performance-fuel-cells-lithium-batteries-and-other-devices-0209 "demonstrated the effect of light on the movement of oxygen ions through a popular solid electrolyte composed of ceria and gadolinium... also expected to apply to other ceramics systems that conduct different elements... lowering the barrier height with light, and in doing so we’re able to enhance the flow of the ions by a factor of three. We expect that we should be able to increase that to orders of magnitude by optimizing the system" See also:  The opto-ionic effect: Light may increase performance of fuel cells and lithium-ion batteries https://techxplore.com/news/2022-03-opto-ionic-effect-fuel-cells-lithium-ion.html

https://www.graphene-info.com/graphene-could-replace-ito-oled-displays "monolayer graphene anode instead of the problematic ITO... The graphene was patterned using photolithography and its conductivity was enhanced by doping with nitric acid prior to deposition of the OLED stack. The electrical and optical performances of the as-fabricated graphene-based OLEDs were identical to the control devices with conventional ITO anodes" Related: Direct electroconversion of air to nitric acid realized under mild conditions https://phys.org/news/2023-10-electroconversion-air-nitric-acid-mild.html

https://www.gatech.edu/news/2022/01/12/rubber-material-holds-key-long-lasting-safer-ev-batteries "All-solid-state batteries can dramatically increase the mileage and safety of electric vehicles... form a three-dimensional (3D) interconnected plastic crystal phase within the robust rubber matrix... high ionic conductivity, superior mechanical properties and electrochemical stability... generating robust and smooth interfaces on the surface of electrodes... prevent lithium dendrite growth and allow for faster moving ions, enabling reliable... even at room temperature" Related: Preparing a renewable route to rubber material https://phys.org/news/2023-04-renewable-route-rubber-material.html

https://www.fraunhofer.de/en/press/research-news/2022/january-2022/Modular-facade-with-integrated-systems-technology-supplies-buildings-with-renewable-energy.html "PV system integrated into the modular facade for supplying energy, a mini heat pump for heating and cooling, and a decentralized ventilation unit with heat recovery... 25 to 30 percent of all office buildings in Germany together consume 3200 gigawatt hours (GWh) of electricity each year. Using our RE modular facade would reduce this to 600 GWh" Related: Development of a high flow rate cantilever fan https://techxplore.com/news/2023-11-high-cantilever-fan.html

https://phys.org/news/2022-01-silicon-quantum-chip-atom.html "embedding single atoms in a silicon wafer one-by-one... potential to make quantum computers using the same methods that have given us cheap and reliable conventional devices containing billions of transistors. We could 'hear' the electronic click as each atom dropped into one of 10,000 sites in our prototype device. Our vision is to use this technique to build a very, very large-scale quantum device... Practical applications... optimizing timetables and finances, unbreakable cryptography"

https://www.tue.nl/en/news-and-events/news-overview/12-01-2022-new-tiny-sensor-makes-the-invisible-visible/ "Mantis shrimp eyes have 16 (humans have only 3) different photon sensitive cell types. Wafer-scale chip sends signals straight to the analysis algorithms. significantly simplifying the design. It's ready to be embedded in smartphones; apps. include: personal health, monitoring crops, industrial process control, lab-on-chip medical testing"

https://news.umich.edu/1000-cycle-lithium-sulfur-battery-could-quintuple-electric-vehicle-ranges/ "A network of aramid nanofibers, recycled from Kevlar, can enable lithium-sulfur batteries to overcome their Achilles heel of cycle life—the number of times it can be charged and discharged... Sulfur is much more abundant than the cobalt of lithium-ion electrodes. In addition, the aramid fibers of the battery membrane can be recycled from old bulletproof vests... can also handle the temperature extremes... a ten-year lifespan" Related: This New Lithium Sulfur Battery Tech Claims It Could Quintuple EV Range!! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVOAlBUV6tQ Next-generation aramid fiber with electrical conductivity https://phys.org/news/2023-03-next-generation-aramid-fiber-electrical.html

https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/MIDOT/bulletins/303f669 "steel cables are installed inside forms before concrete is poured. The strands are then tensioned with a significant force, causing them to elongate. Once the concrete has gained strength but before it carries loads, the strands are released, compressing the concrete.  Any subsequent loads on the beam would then have to overcome this built-in compression to actually stress the beam. Prestressing also reduces or eliminates cracking from concrete shrinkage; it allows thinner and longer spans" Related: Korean Researchers Develop Energy-storing Carbon Nanotube Fiber http://www.businesskorea.co.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=85791 Team develops novel sponge-based triboelectric nanogenerator for corrosion protection in transportation systems https://phys.org/news/2023-09-team-sponge-based-triboelectric-nanogenerator-corrosion.html Armor for steel: New method could enable advances in energy, electronics and aerospace

https://techxplore.com/news/2022-01-raspberry-pi-viruses-devices-software.html?utm_source=nwletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=daily-nwletter "running software generates photons... each piece of software generates its own unique photon pattern... used an H-field probe to capture wave patterns of known computer viruses running on various devices... viewed the results on an oscilloscope. They saw oscilloscope patterns that were unique to individual viruses as they were running. Researchers programmed a Raspberry Pi (tiny cheap computer)"

https://news.mit.edu/2022/physicists-detect-hybrid-particle-held-together-uniquely-intense-glue-0110 "the hybrid particle is a mashup of an electron and a phonon (a quasiparticle that is produced from a material’s vibrating atoms)... the force binding the electron with the phonon is about 10 times stronger than what’s been estimated for other known electron-phonon hybrids... it could allow you to couple to one of the components and indirectly tune the other, Ilyas says. That way, you could change the properties of a material, like the magnetic state of the system" Related: A nontoxic glue for plywood – from glucose, citric acid https://www.acs.org/content/acs/en/pressroom/newsreleases/2022/may/nontoxic-glue-for-plywood-from-glucose-citric-acid.html

https://phys.org/news/2022-01-rainwater-driven-microbial-fuel-cells-power.html "rainwater as a sustainable analyte in an air-cathode microbial fuel cell (MFC)... open circuit potential (OCP) of 553 ± 2 mV, without the addition of nutrients at ambient temperature. Addition of nutrients further increased the cell voltage... maximum power output of 7 ± 0.1 mWm-2 at a corresponding current density value of 44 ± 0.7 mAm-2 at 30 degrees Celsius... During summer, Lactobacillus spp. formed the dominant electroactive genus, while Staphylococcus spp. dominated the winter rainwater"

https://www.lunduniversity.lu.se/article/nanowire-transistor-integrated-memory-enable-future-supercomputers " a transistor at the bottom, and a very small memory element located further up on the same wire. This makes it into a compact integrated function where the transistor controls the memory element ... to build vertically in a 3D configuration... Future applications could, for example, be various forms of machine learning such as radar-based gesture control, climate modelling or development of various drugs... even works without a power supply"

https://nouvelles.umontreal.ca/en/article/2022/01/10/chemists-use-dna-to-build-the-world-s-tiniest-antenna/ "20,000 times smaller than a human hair... fluorescent nanoantenna receives light in one colour, or wavelength, and depending on the protein movement it senses, then transmits light back in another colour... ive nanometer-long antenna that produces a distinct signal when the protein is performing its biological function... able to detect, in real time and for the first time, the function of the enzyme alkaline phosphatase with a variety of biological molecules and drugs"

https://phys.org/news/2021-12-thermoelectric-snte.html "screened As/Sb elements can facilitate not only the band convergence of light and heavy bands (Delta E(L-Σ)) but also increasing the band gap (Eg) of SnTe, which improved its thermoelectric properties... Ge-Sb or Ge-As co-doping in SnTe is favorable for the improvement of Seebeck coefficients, power factor, and the zT value... SnTe contains toxic-free elements and possesses the high-symmetry rock salt crystal structure"

https://www6.slac.stanford.edu/news/2022-01-06-first-realistic-portraits-squishy-layer-that%E2%80%99s-key-battery-performance.aspx "Cryo-EM is a form of electron microscopy... By flash-freezing their samples into a clear, glassy state, scientists can look at the cellular machines that carry out life’s functions in their natural state and at atomic resolution....sopping up the excess liquid with blotter paper... plunged into liquid nitrogen to freeze the little films into a glassy state that perfectly preserved the SEI... took place in a closed system that protected the films from exposure to air" Related: Improving the durability of lithium metal batteries using carbon fiber paper as the anode https://techxplore.com/news/2023-03-durability-lithium-metal-batteries-carbon.html

https://techxplore.com/news/2022-01-memory-technology-based-compound-semiconductors.html "Remarkably, the ULTRARAM on silicon devices actually outperform previous incarnations of the technology on GaAs compound semiconductor wafers, demonstrating (extrapolated) data storage times of at least 1000 years, fast switching speed (for device size) and program-erase cycling endurance of at least 10 million, which is one hundred to one thousand times better than flash... patented in the US"

https://techxplore.com/news/2022-01-scientists-all-solid-state-battery-resistance.html "lithium negative electrode, an LiCoO2 positive electrode, and an Li3PO4 solid electrolyte... exposed the LiCoO2 surface to air, nitrogen (N2), oxygen (O2), carbon dioxide (CO2), hydrogen (H2), and water vapor (H2O) for 30 minutes... Only H2O vapor strongly degrades the Li3PO4-LiCoO2 interface... heat treatment at 150°C for an hour... Amazingly, this reduced the resistance down to 10.3 Ω cm2, comparable to that of the unexposed battery"

https://www.cnet.com/news/inwith-promises-worlds-first-smart-contact-lens/#ftag=CAD590a51e "lenses will work with your smartphone or another external device to show you real-time information about the world around you. "You'll be able to see things such as, What is the speed limit on this road? What direction am I heading? Where is the next exit and how many miles away?"

https://cleantechnica.com/2022/01/07/the-latest-energy-storage-gizmo-is-an-ocean-battery-with-a-bladder/ "with its “in-a-box” undersea system, you don’t have to find a spot to build a new pumped hydro reservoir on land... makes it possible to mix and merge storage volume and capacity. The storage volume can be sized by connecting the exact amount of rigid reservoir elements, each with a storage volume of 10 MWh... you pump seawater from the rigid reservoir into the bladder. Pressure within the bladder does the rest. When extra kilowatts are needed, water is released to run turbines" See also: What Is the Ocean Battery? It Could Be Crucial for Renewable Energy Storage https://www.greenmatters.com/p/ocean-battery Related: Japan Is Dropping a Gargantuan Turbine Into The Ocean to Harness 'Limitless' Energy https://www.sciencealert.com/japan-s-dropping-a-kaiju-sized-turbine-into-the-ocean-to-fish-for-limitless-energy

https://medicalxpress.com/news/2022-01-optical-biopsy-liver-cancer.html "The new optical biopsy system combines diffuse reflectance spectroscopy and lifetime fluorescence measurements to evaluate markers related to cellular metabolism, which differs between healthy and cancerous cells. This could help surgeons see, in real time, where the cancer is so that they can identify the best place to acquire a tissue sample" Related: UT Southwestern develops nanotherapeutic to ward off liver cancer https://www.utsouthwestern.edu/newsroom/articles/year-2022/nanotherapeutic-to-ward-off-liver-cancer.html New method can detect early-stage breast cancer in two minutes, study claims https://medicalxpress.com/news/2023-11-method-early-stage-breast-cancer-minutes.html

https://medicalxpress.com/news/2021-12-approach-enhancer-addicted-cancers.html "a novel approach to treating prostate cancers fueled by different genetic drivers, which altogether represent upwards of 90% of all prostate cancers... The researchers looked at several prostate cancer models that expressed different oncogenes. They found that blocking the SWI/SNF complex slowed cancer cell growth and induced cell death especially in tumors driven by FOXA1 or androgen receptor. There was no effect on benign prostate cells"

https://phys.org/news/2022-01-light-controlled-drug-free-macromolecules-precise-tumor.html "The up-conversion nanoparticles converted near-infrared light into ultra-violet light and induced the cross-linking of CA groups, thus resulting in the clustering of CD20 receptors and cell apoptosis. No apoptosis occurred in light-free sites. Therefore, tumors could be precisely treated in a safe and efficient manner. This strategy was confirmed by in situ and intravenous administration in tumor model animals"

https://www.pv-magazine.com/2022/01/06/electrolyzer-tech-to-produce-hydrogen-from-seawater/ "scaling of the filters and desalination components for use on an industrial scale. In addition, the cost and resistance of the system will have to be improved. The aim is to reduce green hydrogen production costs from the current €4-10/kg to €2. Water treatment is of key importance to reduce the price of electrolysis and significant efficiency advantages could easily be converted into cost savings" Related: Generating green hydrogen from biomass, an abundant renewable energy source https://techxplore.com/news/2022-07-green-hydrogen-biomass-abundant-renewable Tapping into nontraditional water sources to increase green hydrogen https://techxplore.com/news/2022-07-nontraditional-sources-green-hydrogen.html Breakthrough in gas separation and storage could fast-track shift to green hydrogen and significantly cut global energy use https://theconversation.com/breakthrough-in-gas-separation-a

https://singularityhub.com/2022/01/03/h2-clipper-will-resurrect-hydrogen-airships-to-haul-green-fuel-across-the-planet/ "cruise at about 175 mph... It also has a cargo volume of 265,000 cubic feet—8 to 10 times more than most airfreighters—and can carry up to 340,000 pounds of payload 6,000 miles at its standard cruising speed. Between distances of 1,000 to 6,000 miles, the airship could carry a ton of cargo for as little as $0.177 to $0.247 per mile—a quarter of the cost of airfreight. And because it can take off and land vertically"

https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/12/rigetti-announces-80-qubit-processor-experiments-with-qutrits/ 2.5x speedup. This is critical because qubits also tend to lose their state over time. The more operations you can squeeze into a given amount of time, the more likely you are to get a complex set of manipulations done before the processor loses its state... 80-qubit Aspen-M may represent a more significant advance, since Rigetti describes it as "assembled from two 40-qubit chips"

https://neurosciencenews.com/touch-perception-19878/ “to be able to measure the activity of neurons in the brain... the identity of those neurons which we can learn about through the genes they express... they uncovered how a mouse brain understands touch... deconstruct the brain down to its individual components and then start asking how these components interact during behavior... We think this could be a way for the circuit to “remember” or “not forget” how to process information in the old environment" See also: How the brain helps us focus our attention https://medicalxpress.com/news/2022-01-brain-focus-attention.html The neuronal mechanism behind motivation https://phys.org/news/2022-01-neuronal-mechanism.html

https://www.pv-magazine.com/2022/01/06/solar-powered-hydrogen-for-domestic-applications-via-building-integrated-transparent-platform/   "high average visible transmittance of around 64%... visual appearance of TPV and TPEC is a fundamental issue... 1.47%-efficient transparent metal oxide solar cells built with n-doped zinc oxide (N:ZnO) and p-doped nickel(II) oxide (p-NiO) on a glass substrate made of indium tin oxide (ITO)... are able to generate a high photovoltage of 0.546V density of 2.28mA/cm2... “Short wavelength UV with highly-energetic photons was mostly absorbed... with an efficiency as high as 82%" Related: Air-breathing cathode enhances conversion efficiency, durability of alkaline nickel-zinc batteries https://techxplore.com/news/2023-04-air-breathing-cathode-conversion-efficiency-durability.html

https://www.lightsourcebp.com/us/2021/12/pollinator-research-bellflower/ "At Bellflower, Lightsource BP and ecosystem experts will test a variety of seed mixes across both high-density pollinator gardens and low-density areas spanning over 1,000 acres under and around the solar arrays. Researchers will also house hives in a “bee yard” on site. These sites will provide shelter and forage for insects and other species that play vital ecological roles, including pollinating food crops"

https://phys.org/news/2022-01-3d-digital-holograms-smartphones.html "The new sensor can further detect near-infrared light... opening up new opportunities in various fields such as 3D night vision, self-driving, biotechnology, and near-infrared data acquisition... near-infrared region without additional polarization filters... holographic image sensor for 3D digital holograms, using the 2D semiconductor materials: rhenium diselenide and tungsten diselenide... Photodiodes, which convert light into current signals... enabling the storage of 3D holograms" Related: Researchers use smartphone screen to create 3D layered holographic images https://phys.org/news/2024-04-smartphone-screen-3d-layered-holographic.html

https://www.empa.ch/web/s604/eq74-cellulose-coating-for-fruit "cellulose protective coating for fruit and vegetables... made from so-called pomace – squeezed fruit and vegetable peels... banana and cucumber shelf life was extended by more than a week... possibility of adding additives such as vitamins or antioxidants... plastic packaging on imported cucumbers... plastic wrapping accounts for only 1% of the environmental impact caused by production and transport... positive effect on the environment from less "food waste" is almost 5X higher than negative effect from packaging" Related: Researchers create coating solution for safer food storage https://phys.org/news/2024-02-coating-solution-safer-food-storage.html

https://www.seas.harvard.edu/news/2022/01/first-topological-acoustic-transistor "Topological materials move electrons along their surface and edges without any loss, making them promising materials for dissipationless, high-efficiency electronics... with sound waves instead of electrons — and proposed a connection architecture to form a universal logic gate that can switch the flow of sound on and off... honeycomb lattice that can be rapidly expanded using SMA coils to create a high thermal expansion coefficient" Related: Inspired by the human ear, a new acoustic fabric converts audible sounds into electrical signals https://techxplore.com/news/2022-03-human-ear-acoustic-fabric-audible.html