But such measurements are notoriously challenging: the instruments used are themselves governed by quantum laws, and their interaction with particles can alter the very properties they are meant to observe.
“The field of quantum measurements is still poorly understood because it has received little attention so far. Until now, research has mainly focused on the states of quantum systems themselves, which feature properties—like entanglement or superposition—that are more directly applicable to areas such as quantum cryptography or quantum computing,” explains Alejandro Pozas Kerstjens, Senior Research and Teaching Assistant in the Department of Applied Physics, Physics Section, at the UNIGE Faculty of Science.
To those unfamiliar with quantum mechanics, the achievement might seem minor. Yet in the world of quantum research, this moment is transformative. With the ability to create quantum entanglement between two light sources, a host of commercial technologies could soon become reality.
Control over multiple quantum light sources forms the bedrock of quantum networks. Entanglement —where two light sources are linked, no matter the distance—remains a pillar of quantum physics. Without it, building fast quantum computers and developing next-generation encryption would stay out of reach.
The findings, recently published in Science, spotlight just how far the field has come. Researchers at the Niels Bohr Institute underscored the breakthrough’s major impact on the future of quantum technologies.
Without coordinated action, genomic data could be exploited for surveillance, discrimination, or even bioterrorism. Current protections are fragmented, and vital collaboration between disciplines is lacking. Key to successful prevention will be interdisciplinary cooperation between computer scientists, bioinformaticians, biotechnologists, and security professionals – groups that rarely work together but must align.
Our research lays the foundations for improving biosecurity by providing a single, clear list of all the possible threats in the entire next-generation sequencing process.
The paper also recommends practical solutions, including secure sequencing protocols, encrypted storage, and AI-powered anomaly detection, creating a foundation for much stronger cyber-biosecurity.
Our Vision Weekends are the annual festivals of Foresight Institute. Held in two countries, over two weekends, you are invited to burst your tech silos and plan for flourishing long-term futures. This playlist captures the magic of our Puerto Rico edition, held February 21–23, 2025, in the heart of Old San Juan. Come for the ideas: join the conference, unconference, mentorship hours, curated 1-1s, tech demos, biohacking sessions, prize awards, and much more. Stay for fun with new friends: join the satellite gatherings, solarpunk future salsa night, beach picnic, and surprise island adventures. This year’s main conference track is dedicated to “Paths to Progress”; meaning you will hear 20+ invited presentations from Foresight’s core community highlighting paths to progress in the following areas: Existential Hope Futures, Longevity, Rejuvenation, Cryonics, Neurotech, BCIs & WBEs, Cryptography, Security & AI, Fusion, Energy, Space, and Funding, Innovation, Progress. ══════════════════════════════════════
*About The Foresight Institute*
The Foresight Institute is a research organization and non-profit that supports the beneficial development of high-impact technologies. Since our founding in 1986 on a vision of guiding powerful technologies, we have continued to evolve into a many-armed organization that focuses on several fields of science and technology that are too ambitious for legacy institutions to support. From molecular nanotechnology, to brain-computer interfaces, space exploration, cryptocommerce, and AI, Foresight gathers leading minds to advance research and accelerate progress toward flourishing futures.
*We are entirely funded by your donations. If you enjoy what we do please consider donating through our donation page:* https://foresight.org/donate/
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Our Vision Weekends are the annual festivals of Foresight Institute. Held in two countries, over two weekends, you are invited to burst your tech silos and plan for flourishing long-term futures. This playlist captures the magic of our Puerto Rico edition, held February 21–23, 2025, in the heart of Old San Juan. Come for the ideas: join the conference, unconference, mentorship hours, curated 1-1s, tech demos, biohacking sessions, prize awards, and much more. Stay for fun with new friends: join the satellite gatherings, solarpunk future salsa night, beach picnic, and surprise island adventures. This year’s main conference track is dedicated to “Paths to Progress”; meaning you will hear 20+ invited presentations from Foresight’s core community highlighting paths to progress in the following areas: Existential Hope Futures, Longevity, Rejuvenation, Cryonics, Neurotech, BCIs & WBEs, Cryptography, Security & AI, Fusion, Energy, Space, and Funding, Innovation, Progress. ══════════════════════════════════════
*About The Foresight Institute*
The Foresight Institute is a research organization and non-profit that supports the beneficial development of high-impact technologies. Since our founding in 1986 on a vision of guiding powerful technologies, we have continued to evolve into a many-armed organization that focuses on several fields of science and technology that are too ambitious for legacy institutions to support. From molecular nanotechnology, to brain-computer interfaces, space exploration, cryptocommerce, and AI, Foresight gathers leading minds to advance research and accelerate progress toward flourishing futures.
*We are entirely funded by your donations. If you enjoy what we do please consider donating through our donation page:* https://foresight.org/donate/
*Visit* https://foresight.org, *subscribe to our channel for more videos or join us here:*
Our Vision Weekends are the annual festivals of Foresight Institute. Held in two countries, over two weekends, you are invited to burst your tech silos and plan for flourishing long-term futures. This playlist captures the magic of our Puerto Rico edition, held February 21–23, 2025, in the heart of Old San Juan. Come for the ideas: join the conference, unconference, mentorship hours, curated 1-1s, tech demos, biohacking sessions, prize awards, and much more. Stay for fun with new friends: join the satellite gatherings, solarpunk future salsa night, beach picnic, and surprise island adventures. This year’s main conference track is dedicated to “Paths to Progress”; meaning you will hear 20+ invited presentations from Foresight’s core community highlighting paths to progress in the following areas: Existential Hope Futures, Longevity, Rejuvenation, Cryonics, Neurotech, BCIs & WBEs, Cryptography, Security & AI, Fusion, Energy, Space, and Funding, Innovation, Progress. ══════════════════════════════════════
*About The Foresight Institute*
The Foresight Institute is a research organization and non-profit that supports the beneficial development of high-impact technologies. Since our founding in 1986 on a vision of guiding powerful technologies, we have continued to evolve into a many-armed organization that focuses on several fields of science and technology that are too ambitious for legacy institutions to support. From molecular nanotechnology, to brain-computer interfaces, space exploration, cryptocommerce, and AI, Foresight gathers leading minds to advance research and accelerate progress toward flourishing futures.
*We are entirely funded by your donations. If you enjoy what we do please consider donating through our donation page:* https://foresight.org/donate/
*Visit* https://foresight.org, *subscribe to our channel for more videos or join us here:*
Sensata Technologies (known as Sensata) has suffered a ransomware attack last weekend that encrypted parts of the company network and disrupted operations.
In an 8-K filing to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Sensata says that the attack occurred on Sunday, April 6, and involved data theft, too.
“The incident has temporarily impacted Sensata’s operations, including shipping, receiving, manufacturing production, and various other support functions,” reads the notification.
Quantum computers promise to outperform today’s traditional computers in many areas of science, including chemistry, physics, and cryptography, but proving they will be superior has been challenging. The most well-known problem in which quantum computers are expected to have the edge, a trait physicists call “quantum advantage,” involves factoring large numbers, a hard math problem that lies at the root of securing digital information.
In 1994, Caltech alumnus Peter Shor (BS ‘81), then at Bell Labs, developed a quantum algorithm that would easily factor a large number in just seconds, whereas this type of problem could take a classical computer millions of years. Ultimately, when quantum computers are ready and working—a goal that researchers say may still be a decade or more away—these machines will be able to quickly factor large numbers behind cryptography schemes.
But, besides Shor’s algorithm, researchers have had a hard time coming up with problems where quantum computers will have a proven advantage. Now, reporting in a recent Nature Physics study titled “Local minima in quantum systems,” a Caltech-led team of researchers has identified a common physics problem that these futuristic machines would excel at solving. The problem has to do with simulating how materials cool down to their lowest-energy states.
