The GPU-powered cluster based in Taiwan is about to start its first big assignment at the hands of a research team from the National Taiwan University (NTU). The team will attempt to more closely analyze the behavior of subatomic particles. 
Monday, December 14, 2009
NVIDIA-Powered Supercomputer to Elucidate Universal Mysteries
The GPU-powered cluster based in Taiwan is about to start its first big assignment at the hands of a research team from the National Taiwan University (NTU). The team will attempt to more closely analyze the behavior of subatomic particles. University of Toronto physicists lay the groundwork for cooler, faster computing
University of Toronto quantum optics researchers Sajeev John and Xun Ma have discovered new behaviours of light within photonic crystals that could lead to faster optical information processing and compact computers that don't overheat.
"We discovered that by sculpting a unique artificial vacuum inside a photonic crystal, we can completely control the electronic state of artificial atoms within the vacuum," says Ma, a PhD student under John's supervision and lead author of a study published in a recent issue of Physical Review Letters.
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"We discovered that by sculpting a unique artificial vacuum inside a photonic crystal, we can completely control the electronic state of artificial atoms within the vacuum," says Ma, a PhD student under John's supervision and lead author of a study published in a recent issue of Physical Review Letters.
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RFID Helps Naval Ships Defend Themselves From Missile Attacks
Lockheed Martin offers RFID functionality with its decoy-launching system, to help international navies ensure they fire the proper rounds.
The RFID technology offers ship's personnel real-time visibility into which types of decoys are deployed, as well as which barrels they are installed in, and helps ensure that the proper round is fired off, potentially in a split-second decision, while the vessel is under attack.
Scientists isolate new antifreeze molecule in Alaska beetle
Scientists have identified a novel antifreeze molecule in a freeze-tolerant Alaska beetle able to survive temperatures below minus 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Unlike all previously described biological antifreezes that contain protein, this new molecule, called xylomannan, has little or no protein. It is composed of a sugar and a fatty acid and may exist in new places within the cells of organisms.
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Computer Models How Brain Cells Reach a Decision
In a study published online December 13 in the journal Nature Neuroscience, Xiao-Jing Wang, professor of neurobiology at Yale School of Medicine and at the Kavli Institute of Neuroscience, proposes that synapses—the connections between neurons—are capable of computing probabilities from observed cues in order to make a statistical inference.
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Strong Authentication Not Strong Enough
Two-factor authentication -- used to protect online bank accounts with both a password and a computer-generated one-time passcode -- is supposed to be more secure than relying on a single password.
But Gartner Research VP Avivah Litan warns that cyber criminals have had success defeating two-factor authentication systems in Web browsing sessions using Trojan-based man-in-the-middle attacks.
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But Gartner Research VP Avivah Litan warns that cyber criminals have had success defeating two-factor authentication systems in Web browsing sessions using Trojan-based man-in-the-middle attacks.
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A Breakthrough for Hydrogen Storage?
On Nov. 25, Germany’s Federal Institute for Materials Research & Testing (known by its German acronym, BAM) released results of nearly two years of tests on C.En’s technology, which involves the storage of compressed hydrogen inside bundles of thin, strong tubes of glass, known as capillary arrays. “The lightweight storage and safety factors give the technology a huge commercial potential for a whole range of industries.
'Smart' appliances need variable electricity rates
Smart grid technology, including so-called smart appliances, have the ability to help consumers cut their electricity use and shave their utility bills--but only if three pieces fall into place, according to AHAM. Those include time-of-use electricity rates, open communications standards, and products that let consumers retain full control of their home appliances.
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X-51A WaveRider Gets First Ride Aboard B-52
The X-51A Waverider was carried aloft for the first time Dec. 9 by an Air Force Flight Test Center B-52 Stratofortress over Edwards Air Force Base, Calif.The test was a key milestone in preparation for the X-51 to light its supersonic combustion ramjet engine and propel the WaverRider at hypersonic speed for about five minutes, before plunging into the Pacific Ocean.
Nanocrystals Create an Insulator Better Than Pure Vacuum
Vacuum's emptiness doesn't just pose a problem for space travelers -- a vacuum lining is also one of the best known insulators on Earth, and may help keep those holiday drinks and soups warm in your thermos. Now scientists have found that layering photonic crystals within the vacuum lining can even prevent heat loss from invisible infrared radiation.
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Nuclear-Powered Transponder for Cyborg Insect
Engineers develop radioisotope MEMS power source for insect spy program.
Cornell University engineers presented research that shows progress in powering cybernetic organisms with a radioactive fuel source.
Electrical engineering associate professor Amit Lal and graduate student Steven Tin presented a prototype microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) transmitter—an RF-emitting device powered by a radioactive source with a half-life of 12 years, meaning that it could operate autonomously for decades.
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Cornell University engineers presented research that shows progress in powering cybernetic organisms with a radioactive fuel source.
Electrical engineering associate professor Amit Lal and graduate student Steven Tin presented a prototype microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) transmitter—an RF-emitting device powered by a radioactive source with a half-life of 12 years, meaning that it could operate autonomously for decades.
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Weaponized RipSaw-MS2 UGV Evaluated for Convoy Security & Support
Most UGV programs are utilizing vehicles that move rather slowly and require relatively complex control, lacking effective 360 degrees situational awareness. Consequently, they can be easily outmaneuvered and disabled by an enemy that could get close or out run the robot. The U.S. Army is evaluating a much larger, powerful, agile and lethal robot developed by the Hawe & Hawe (H&H) company, known as 'RipSaw Military Specification 2', that offers many advantages that minimize such vulnerabilities.
Can the 'silver bullet' of printing revolutionize electronics?
Scientists are claiming to have found the "silver bullet" that will enable the cheap, easy printing of electronic components and transform the way we use computers.
Researchers at Xerox say that a new silver ink technology will allow them to add computer power to a wide range of plastics and fabrics, and pave the way for a remarkable range of new products.
Bye-Bye Bomber - End to B2, B52
A study just published by the Air Force's main lobbying organization, the Air Force Association, concludes that the nation "should gradually shift to a dyad" of submarines and missiles, phasing out bombers. The reasoning: the nation's bomber fleet is largely antiquated, and the latest-generation plane, the bat-winged B-2 (also known as the stealth bomber), costs about $2 billion apiece. Defense Secretary Robert Gates and other Pentagon officials have indicated that such expensive piloted bombers may no longer be affordable.
China flies air-launched cruise missile
The US has the AGM-86, Russia has the KH-55 and China now has the CJ-10K.
The Chinese Military Aviation blog (.cn domain) on Saturday posted the above photo of the CJ-10K aloft under the wing of an H-6 bomber. The blog says the missile's range is between 1,500km and 2,500km.
The Chinese Military Aviation blog (.cn domain) on Saturday posted the above photo of the CJ-10K aloft under the wing of an H-6 bomber. The blog says the missile's range is between 1,500km and 2,500km.
Lockheed Test-Fires Proposed Warrior Cannon
Lockheed Martin UK has test-fired the new CT40 cannon in the turret it is proposing for a 1 billion pound upgrade of British Army Warrior infantry fighting vehicles.
Friday, December 11, 2009
Battery lithium could come from geothermal waste water
A GEOTHERMAL power plant in California will soon be producing more than just electricity. The valuable metal lithium could be extracted from its hot waste water.
The technique, developed by California-based Simbol Mining, could bolster lithium supplies at a time when they are being squeezed by our growing reliance on high-density batteries.
The technique, developed by California-based Simbol Mining, could bolster lithium supplies at a time when they are being squeezed by our growing reliance on high-density batteries.
New software targets Air Force bombers' accuracy
Boeing Co. has won a $23 million contract to upgrade software on Air Force bombers that will improve their targeting capabilities.
Phase 2 of the B-1 Laptop Controlled Targeting Pod software upgrade will add additional capability to the aircraft’s targeting system by allowing it to more accurately identify both stationary and moving targets.
Army inspects new signals intelligence system
The Prophet Enhanced system will improve the way commanders at the tactical level respond to intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance information through battlespace networks, the officials said.
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Motorola Announces Handheld RFID Reader for Non-Industrial Uses
The MC3090-Z is lighter than the company's other handheld interrogators, has an omnidirectional antenna and supports the ability to determine the locations of specific RFID tags.
3-D microchips for more powerful and environmentally friendly computers
A new technology for stacking several layers of microprocesssors, which is being developed at EPFL in collaboration with ETHZ and IBM Research, could boost the performance of computer chips by a factor 10.
Light-generating transistors to power labs on chips
What started out as 'blue-sky' thinking by a group of European researchers could ultimately lead to the commercial mass production of a new generation of optoelectronic components for devices ranging from mobile laboratories to mobile phones.
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Tiny Nuclear Batteries to Power Micro Devices
Typical chemical batteries just don't cut it when a device needs to run for years without fail. Enter the betavoltaics, or tiny nuclear batteries that harvest energy from radioactive sources such as tritium.
New Russian missile fails again in testing:
Russia's new nuclear-capable Bulava missile has suffered a new failure in testing which was the likely source of a mysterious light that appeared over Norway, Russian newspaper reports said Thursday.
MIT Plans to Rebuild Artificial Intelligence from the Ground Up
After 50 years and countless dead ends, incremental progress, and modest breakthroughs, artificial intelligence researchers are asking for a do-over. The $5 million Mind Machine Project (MMP), a patchwork team of two dozen academics, students and researchers, intends to go back to the discipline's beginnings, rebuilding the field from the ground up.
Americans Consume 34 Gigabytes Daily Per Person
Info-delivery gadgets in U.S. homes helped Americans collectively consume 3.6 zettabytes of data in 2008. Just one zettabyte would fill 1,000 datacenters, or, as the report suggests, 3.6 zettabytes of text in books stacked tightly across the continental U.S. and Alaska would create a massive pile 7 feet high.
Google Demonstrates Quantum Algorithm Promising Superfast Search
Google has spent the past three years developing a quantum algorithm that can automatically recognize and sort objects from still images or video.
Ultrafast graphene photodetector
We demonstrate ultrafast transistor-based photodetectors made from single- and few-layer graphene. The photoresponse does not degrade for optical intensity modulations up to 40 GHz, and further analysis suggests that the intrinsic bandwidth may exceed 500 GHz.
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Scientists create atom transistor to speed up computers
An international team of scientists has created a tiny transistor that could one day help quantum computers process impossibly large amounts of information.
The researchers are the first to make a transistor's electrical current pass through a single atom in a controllable way, another step towards the quantum computer chip.
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The researchers are the first to make a transistor's electrical current pass through a single atom in a controllable way, another step towards the quantum computer chip.
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Surge will break Taliban momentum in a year
The NATO commander in Afghanistan on Tuesday predicted a surge of US troops will reverse the momentum of Taliban insurgents within a year and ensure their ultimate defeat.
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