Lifeboat Foundation

The next generation of computing and information processing lies in the intriguing world of quantum mechanics. Quantum computers are expected to be capable of solving large, extremely complex problems that are beyond the capacity of today’s most powerful supercomputers.

New research tools are needed to advance the field and fully develop quantum computers. Now Northwestern University researchers have developed and tested a theoretical tool for analyzing large superconducting circuits. These circuits use superconducting quantum bits, or qubits, the smallest units of a quantum computer, to store information.

Circuit size is important since protection from detrimental noise tends to come at the cost of increased circuit complexity. Currently there are few tools that tackle the modeling of large circuits, making the Northwestern method an important contribution to the research community.

No Man’s Sky

Researchers have created what they say is the largest computer simulation of the universe, and have made the data available for anyone to download for free.

An international team associated with the Center for Computational Astrophysics created the virtual universe using ATERUI II, the world’s most powerful astronomical supercomputer, according to a press release by the organization. Dubbed Uchuu (the Japanese word for “outer space”), the simulation contains a staggering 2.1 trillion particles spanning 9.6 billion virtual light-years. That’s big. Real big.

Isaac Newton’s groundbreaking scientific productivity while isolated from the spread of bubonic plague is legendary. University of California San Diego physicists can now claim a stake in the annals of pandemic-driven science.

A team of UC San Diego researchers and colleagues at Purdue University have now simulated the foundation of new types of artificial intelligence computing devices that mimic brain functions, an achievement that resulted from the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown. By combining new supercomputing materials with specialized oxides, the researchers successfully demonstrated the backbone of networks of circuits and devices that mirror the connectivity of neurons and synapses in biologically based neural networks.

The simulations are described in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

Circa 2020

The setup of lasers and mirrors effectively “solved” a problem far too complicated for even the largest traditional computer system.

The EuroExa Supercomputer funded by the European Union will make use of technologies from a number of hardware powerhouses and aims for deployment as early as 2022.

“Enormous clouds of gas are pulled into galaxies and used in the process of making stars,” said co-lead author Deanne Fisher, associate professor at the Centre for Astrophysics and Supercomputing at Swinburne University in Australia.

On its way in it is made of hydrogen and helium. By using a new piece of equipment called the Keck Cosmic Web Imager, we were able to confirm that stars made from this fresh gas eventually drive a huge amount of material back out of the system, mainly through supernovas.

But this stuff is no longer nice and clean – it contains lots of other elements, including oxygen, carbon, and iron.

“We are thinking about volumes in millions.”

“We are thinking about volumes in millions, not the thousands that people talk about with quantum computers based on superconducting,” said Marcus Doherty, chief science officer.

Quantum Brilliance delivered its first system to the Pawsey Supercomputing Centre in Australia earlier this year and is beginning to ship to other commercial customers.

On Thursday, Tesla CEO Elon Musk unveiled the Tesla Bot, which runs on the same AI used in Tesla’s autonomous vehicles. This surprise reveal was shared at the end of Tesla’s AI Day presentation. Musk revealed very few details about the humanoid robot besides the fact that it is 5″ 8′ and weighs 125 pounds.

The Tesla Bot is to be built from lightweight materials, and its head will be fitted with the autopilot cameras used by Tesla’s vehicles for sensing the environment. The Bot will be operated by Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) computer.

Continue reading “Elon Musk Unveils Tesla Bot a humanoid robot set to debut in 2022” »

A team of Swiss researchers from Graubuenden University of Applied Sciences has broken the record for calculating the mathematical constant pi. It is now known to an incredible level of exactitude, hitting 62.8 trillion figures thanks to the work of a supercomputer.

Pi represents the ratio between the radius of a circle and its circumference. You may recognize the first 10 digits, π=3.141592653, though there is an infinite number of digits that follow that decimal point.

To write all of the digits for the new record out on A4 paper, you would need almost 35 billion sheets, equivalent to about 52 percent of the mass of the Empire State Building. Putting those pieces of paper head to toe they would extend for over 10 million kilometers (6.5 million miles).