The saying of philosopher René Descartes of what makes humans unique is beginning to sound hollow. 'I think—therefore soon I am obsolete' seems more appropriate. When a computer routinely beats us at chess and we can barely ...
Quantum Physics
Apr 13, 2016
16
1093
Electric cars will only be truly competitive when it doesn't take longer to charge them than it does to fill a gas tank. The storage capacity of batteries is improving exponentially, but the power grid is the weak link: how ...
Energy & Green Tech
Jan 20, 2016
10
44
A team of chemical engineers at the University of Pittsburgh recently identified the two main factors for determining the optimal catalyst for turning atmospheric CO2 into liquid fuel. The results of the study, which appeared ...
Materials Science
Dec 8, 2015
6
1970
The boiling of water is at the heart of many industrial processes, from the operation of electric power plants to chemical processing and desalination. But the details of what happens on a hot surface as water boils have ...
General Physics
Sep 8, 2015
0
51
That Nest thermostat on your wall could be making you money. Not saving money, mind you. That's its day job: learning your habits so it can fine-tune your energy use and lower your power bills. But most of the time, it's ...
Software
Jun 18, 2015
1
147
Researchers at PoliCom, Politecnico di Milano have presented the first experimental proof of an interferometric orbital angular momentum mode multiplexer/demultiplexer, exploiting a very compact configuration based on cylindrical ...
Optics & Photonics
Jan 28, 2015
0
22
A bump circuit with flexible tuning ability that uses 500 times less power and is smaller than previous circuits has been demonstrated by researchers at the University of Tennessee in the US.
Electronics & Semiconductors
Aug 19, 2014
0
0
The largest group of bitcoin miners, which maintains and processes transactions in the digital currency, is promising to avoid majority control of the currency as a temporary measure to maintain the payment system's credibility.
Internet
Jul 17, 2014
0
0
A*STAR molecular cell biologist Samuel Gan was in the midst of an exasperating work trip in Shanghai, China. Away from his office, his email inbox was filling up with DNA sequencing files that needed his urgent attention.
Biotechnology
Jul 16, 2014
0
0
A way of making hundreds—or even thousands—of tiny robots cluster to carry out tasks without using any memory or processing power has been developed by engineers at the University of Sheffield, UK.
Robotics
Apr 16, 2014
0
0
