ScienceDaily: Top Technology News

Scientists announce discovery of supermassive binary black holes

Posted: 11 Mar 2022 03:25 PM PST

Researchers have discovered a supermassive black hole binary system, one of only two known such systems.

How to clean solar panels without water

Posted: 11 Mar 2022 11:14 AM PST

Dust that accumulates on solar panels is a major problem, but washing the panels uses huge amounts of water. Engineers have now developed a waterless cleaning method to remove dust on solar installations in water-limited regions, improving overall efficiency.

Researchers re-engineer red blood cells to trigger immune system against COVID-19

Posted: 11 Mar 2022 11:14 AM PST

Researchers have been able to re-engineer red blood cells and use them as a promising new vehicle for vaccine delivery.

The next generation of robots will be shape-shifters

Posted: 11 Mar 2022 11:14 AM PST

Physicists have discovered a new way to coat soft robots in materials that allow them to move and function in a more purposeful way.

Lower, more frequent doses of nanomedicines may enhance cancer treatment

Posted: 11 Mar 2022 09:57 AM PST

Both nanomedicines and metronomic scheduling -- when medications are given at lower, more frequent doses -- can correct abnormalities surrounding tumors that help protect cancer cells and foster their growth and spread. Combining nanomedicines and metronomic scheduling may help improve cancer treatment strategies.

Using ions to find molecules

Posted: 11 Mar 2022 08:53 AM PST

When we think of ions, we usually think of single atoms that have lost or gained some electrons, but entire molecules can also become ions. Physicists now show that cold molecular ions can be created using a new method, and that they are a very useful tool for detecting small amounts of other, regular molecules.

Magnetic reconnection breakthrough may help predict space weather

Posted: 11 Mar 2022 08:53 AM PST

Researchers have recently discovered a breakthrough in magnetic reconnection that could ultimately help predict space weather.

Acoustic propulsion of nanomachines depends on their orientation

Posted: 11 Mar 2022 06:53 AM PST

Scientists have now found answers to central questions which had previously stood in the way of acoustic propulsion of nanoparticles.

Home-based flu tests as accurate as rapid diagnostic testing in clinical settings

Posted: 10 Mar 2022 02:08 PM PST

Home-based, self-administered tests for influenza are comparable in accuracy to rapid diagnostic tests in clinical settings, according to a peer-reviewed study. The researchers determined that sensitivity and specificity of the home test and clinical test were similar. False-negative results were more common when the self-test was administered after 72 hours of the onset of symptoms, but were not related to inadequate swab collection or severity of illness.

Brain-based computing chips not just for AI anymore

Posted: 10 Mar 2022 02:08 PM PST

With the insertion of a little math, researchers have shown that neuromorphic computers, which synthetically replicate the brain's logic, can solve more complex problems than those posed by artificial intelligence and may even earn a place in high-performance computing. Neuromorphic simulations employing random walks can track X-rays passing through bone and soft tissue, disease passing through a population, information flowing through social networks and the movements of financial markets.

Labeling key to success of software company innovations

Posted: 10 Mar 2022 12:19 PM PST

Companies in the software industry, where novel ideas are prized, use linguistic tactics to develop new labels for their innovations to stay ahead of competitors.

Magnetism helps electrons vanish in high-temp superconductors

Posted: 10 Mar 2022 11:37 AM PST

A physicist's discovery could lead to the engineering of high-temp superconducting properties into materials useful for quantum computing, medical imaging.

Physicists show how frequencies can easily be multiplied without special circuitry

Posted: 10 Mar 2022 11:37 AM PST

A new discovery by physicists could make certain components in computers and smartphones obsolete. The team has succeeded in directly converting frequencies to higher ranges in a common magnetic material without the need for additional components. Frequency multiplication is a fundamental process in modern electronics.

After more than 20 years, scientists have solved the full-length structure of a Janus Kinase

Posted: 10 Mar 2022 11:36 AM PST

More than two decades of effort went into a project that has now revealed the structure of a crucial signaling molecule, opening the door to new and better drugs for some cancers.

A cautionary tale of machine learning uncertainty

Posted: 10 Mar 2022 08:51 AM PST

A new analysis shows that researchers using machine learning methods could risk underestimating uncertainties in their final results.

On the hunt for ultra-thin materials using data mining

Posted: 10 Mar 2022 08:51 AM PST

Two-dimensional (2D) materials possess extraordinary properties. They usually consist of atomic layers that are only a few nanometers thick and are particularly good at conducting heat and electricity, for instance. To the astonishment of many scientists, it recently became known that 2D materials can also exist on the basis of certain metal oxides. These oxides are of great interest in areas such as nanoelectronics applications. A research team has now succeeded in predicting twenty-eight representatives of this new class of materials by using data-driven methods.

A first step towards quantum algorithms: Minimizing the guesswork of a quantum ensemble

Posted: 10 Mar 2022 08:51 AM PST

A quantum ensemble -- a set of quantum states with their corresponding probabilities -- is essential to the encoding of classical information for transmission over quantum channels. But receivers must be able to 'guess' the transmitted quantum state, incurring a cost called 'guesswork.' Recently, researchers have derived analytical solutions of the guesswork problem for when the ensemble is subject to a finite set of conditions. The results constitute a first step towards future algorithms for quantum software.

The new, improved Dragonfly is a galactic gas detector

Posted: 10 Mar 2022 08:50 AM PST

The Dragonfly telescope is undergoing a metamorphosis. For the past decade, the Dragonfly Telephoto Array has conducted groundbreaking science by detecting faint starlight within dimly lit parts of the night sky. The telescope uses clusters of telephoto lenses to create images, much the way a dragonfly's eyes gather visual data.

Roadmap for finding new functional porous materials

Posted: 10 Mar 2022 08:43 AM PST

A recent study has revealed how future structures of MOPs can be predicted and designed at the molecular level. The discovery of new structures holds tremendous promise for accessing advanced functional materials in energy and environmental applications.

Seeing lipids more deeply with mass spectrometry

Posted: 10 Mar 2022 08:43 AM PST

PRMC-MS allows enhanced profiling of phosphoinositide acyl variants both in intracellular and extracellular environments.

Climate change and lithium mining negatively influence flamingos, study finds

Posted: 09 Mar 2022 07:45 AM PST

Chile's saltwater lake closest to lithium mining activity has lost 10 to 12 percent of its flamingo population in the past 11 years. Although climate change has caused numerous saltwater lakes in the region to shrink, the flamingo population at the other lakes has held steady. As lithium mining increases to supply the metal to electric vehicles and other products, the effect could spread, according to new research.

Researchers develop hybrid human-machine framework for building smarter AI

Posted: 07 Mar 2022 01:20 PM PST

Creating smarter, more accurate artificial intelligence systems requires a hybrid human-machine approach, according to researchers. In a new study, they present a new mathematical model that can improve performance by combining human and algorithmic predictions and confidence scores.