Technology
Here we bring you all the latest technological news both here on Earth and in space.
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Scientists Teach the Brain To Read Light as a New Sense
By Northwestern University – ScitechDaily
Scientists have created a soft wireless implant that uses tiny flashes of light to send information straight into the brain, allowing animals to learn brand-new artificial signals. By lighting up specific patterns across the cortex, the system teaches the brain to interpret these flashes as meaningful cues that guide decisions and behavior.
Researchers at Northwestern University have introduced a major advance in neurobiology and bioelectronics by creating a wireless device that uses light to transmit information straight into the brain. The approach moves around the body’s traditional sensory pathways and instead interacts with neurons directly.
The system is soft and flexible and fits beneath the scalp while resting on the skull. From this position, it can project carefully programmed light patterns through the bone to stimulate neurons across large areas of the cortex. Read more here.
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Quantum Tech Hits Its “Transistor Moment,” Scientists Say
University of Chicago / SciTechDaily
A new article examines the history of computing to help outline the direction of quantum research. It reports that quantum technology is advancing quickly, and that the major obstacles now involve expanding the systems to larger scales.
Quantum technology is quickly moving beyond experimental setups and beginning to take shape in practical settings, and a new article in Science argues that the field has reached a pivotal stage similar to the early era of computing before the transistor reshaped modern electronics.
In the report, researchers from the University of Chicago, Stanford University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the University of Innsbruck in Austria, and Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands offer a broad evaluation of quantum information hardware. Their analysis highlights the key obstacles and emerging possibilities that are influencing the development of scalable quantum computers, communication networks, and sensing devices. The paper was recently published in the journal Science.
“This transformative moment in quantum technology is reminiscent of the transistor’…Read more here.
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New Engine Taps the Freezing Void of Space To Generate Power at Night
By University of California – Davis – SciTechDaily
Researchers have created a device that generates mechanical power at night by harnessing the natural temperature difference between warm ground and the cold of outer space.
Engineers at the University of California, Davis, have created a device capable of producing mechanical energy at night by taking advantage of the warmth near the ground and the extreme cold of outer space. This approach could support practical uses such as moving air through greenhouses or other structures. The research was recently published in the journal Science Advances.
The device is based on a Stirling engine, a type of machine that operates using temperature differences. According to Jeremy Munday, professor of electrical and computer engineering at UC Davis and co-author of the study, many engines, including internal combustion engines, require a large temperature gap to generate power. A Stirling engine, however, can run with only a small temperature contrast, similar…Read more here.
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RidgeAlloy: The New Material Transforming Scrap Into High-Performance Parts
Julya Johnson, DOE/Oak Ridge National Laboratory / SciTechDaily
A new alloy could turn tomorrow’s vehicle scrap into America’s next manufacturing advantage.
A large influx of aluminum auto body scrap is expected to move through recycling systems over the next ten years. Much of this material contains too many impurities to be reused safely in high-performance automotive components, which significantly reduces its value.
Researchers at the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) have now developed a solution: a new aluminum alloy known as RidgeAlloy. This alloy allows low-grade scrap to be converted into material suitable for producing strong, reliable structural vehicle parts, creating a valuable domestic supply chain.
Aluminum appears on the DOE’s critical materials list because it plays a key role in technologies that generate, transport, store, and conserve energy.
RidgeAlloy is created by melting down post-consumer aluminum scrap and recasting it…Read more here.
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