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Researchers have produced a “human scale” demonstration of a new phase of matter called quadrupole topological insulators that was recently predicted using theoretical physics. These are the first experimental findings to validate this theory.

The researchers report their findings in the journal Nature.

The team’s work with QTIs was born out of the decade-old understanding of the properties of a class of materials called topological insulators. “TIs are electrical insulators on the inside and conductors along their boundaries, and may hold great potential for helping build low-power, robust computers and devices, all defined at the atomic scale,” said mechanical science and engineering professor and senior investigator Gaurav Bahl.

A SILICON Valley billionaire is paying the ultimate price for the chance of immortality: death.

Well that, and a spare ten grand.

Entrepreneur Sam Altman is one of 25 people who have splashed the cash to join a waiting list at Nectome – a startup that promises to upload your brain into a computer to grant eternal life to your consciousness.

Continue reading “Silicon Valley billionaire pays $10k to be killed and have his brain preserved” »

As quantum computing approaches real-world viability, it also poses a huge threat to today’s encryption measures.

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Continue reading “What CISOs Should Know About Quantum Computing” »

The move is being heralded as a ‘significant milestone’ in the broader effort to build a world-beating quantum computer.

Building a quantum computer has been called the ‘space race of the 21st century’ – a difficult and ambitious challenge, with the potential to deliver revolutionary tools.

Continue reading “Scientists discover how to make quantum bits ‘talk’ to each other” »

A group of Australian scientists made reached a major milestone towards building a quantum computer. Here’s how they revolutionized the field.

Last year, scientists took a big step towards creating the next generation of computers.

For the first time ever, they stored light-based information as sound waves on a computer chip — something the researchers compared to capturing lightning as thunder.

Continue reading “We Can Now Store Light as Sound, And It’s a Game Changer For Computing” »

Israel-based BrainQ is a new neurotech startup hoping to take on brain-computer interface (BCI) companies like Braintree founder Bryan Johnson’s Kernel and Silicon Valley billionaire Elon Musk’s Neuralink.

It’s not clear yet what Musk’s startup intends to do with the computer chips it plans to put in our heads, but Johnson’s startup says it is focused on developing “technologies to understand and treat neurological diseases in new and exciting ways.”

Whatever sector each company goes for, both plan to insert chips in our brains to connect us to computers — the consequences of which could have dramatic effects on human memory, intelligence, communication and many other areas that could rocket humanity forward, should they work out.

Continue reading “BrainQ aims to cure stroke and spinal cord injuries through mind-reader tech” »

However, the pattern seems clear, and is worth heeding by other nations: despite China’s reputation for authoritarian and hierarchical rule, in science the approach seems to be to ensure that top researchers are well supported with funding and resources, and then to leave them to get on with it.

Chinese investment is paying off with serious advances in biotech, computing and space. Are they edging ahead of the west?

By Philip Ball

Continue reading “China’s great leap forward in science” »

Rumors swirled earlier this week suggesting Nvidia was preparing to showcase its next generation of GeForce graphics cards during its GPU Technology Conference (GTC) at the end of the month (or perhaps even during the annual Game Developers Conference a week earlier).

Unfortunately, neither venue will host the big reveal according to a recent report from Tom’s Hardware. Multiple independent sources tell the site that apart from a possible announcement and a vague appetizer, nothing concrete regarding Nvidia’s next-gen gaming hardware is likely to be shared at the shows.

“Rumors that these venues would be the big reveal for Nvidia’s 2018 cards to succeed its current Pascal lineup should be put to rest,” the site advises.

Continue reading “Nvidia unlikely to unveil GTX 2080/70 GPUs this month” »