Advances in Computers thread

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Heartbeats now in 3D, no special glasses required
Heartbeats now in 3D, no special glasses required | Cutting Edge - CNET News

When surgeons thread a catheter through a vein to the heart -- a procedure called cardiac ablation -- they are relying on electrodes at the catheter's tip to listen to the heart's electrical activity and find the source of -- and hopefully fix -- any heartbeat irregularities.

Now, a new system called the Rhythmia Mapping System, recently bought by Boston Scientific, translates that activity into a 3D map of the heart as it pumps blood. The system received FDA 510(k) clearance in the U.S., only months after receiving the similar CE Mark of approval in Europe.

In clinical trials, Rhythmia cut the time it takes to map electrical activity in half, Boston Scientific's Peter Sommerness told Fast Company last fall. A 64-electrode catheter tracks the heart's shape and electrical signals as it beats, and then the system's software turns that data into a 3D map of the organ. The idea is to help surgeons and physicians spot abnormalities right down to the precise section of muscle where the electrical activity is disrupted.

 

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Printing silver onto fibers could pave the way for flexible, wearable electronics

6 hours ago

A new technique for depositing silver onto clothing fibres could open up huge opportunities in wearable electronics.

Scientists at the National Physical Laboratory (NPL), the UK's National Measurement Institute, have developed a way to print silver directly onto fibres. This new technique could make integrating electronics into all types of clothing simple and practical. This has many potential applications in sports, health, medicine, consumer electronics and fashion.

Read more at: Printing silver onto fibers could pave the way for flexible, wearable electronics

 

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Towards a global quantum network: Photoelectron trapping in double quantum dots
Towards a global quantum network: Photoelectron trapping in double quantum dots

(Phys.org) —While the journey from today's fledgling quantum computers to a global quantum information network may seem daunting, researchers are continually, and at an accelerating pace, making progress towards that goal. One key element essential to that progress is the transfer of quantum information between single photons and solid-state quanta – and the properties of semiconductor quantum dots (QDs) make them excellent candidates for photon-electron quantum coupling. One historical stumbling block has been that although quantum circuits require nondestructive transfer between separate dots, using single QDs usually fails due to destructive transfer in which photoelectrons are immediately lost upon measurement.

 

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Diablo’s Memory Channel Storage tech will deliver terabytes of RAM – using NAND flash
Diablo?s Memory Channel Storage tech will deliver terabytes of RAM ? using NAND flash | ExtremeTech

One of the most fundamental problems in computing is the relationship between a CPU and its memory hierarchy. The problem, in a nutshell, is that fast, low-latency memory is extremely expensive and can’t hold much information. Larger, slower memory pools are far cheaper, but can’t be searched as quickly and take time to access. Thus, a typical CPU has a small, low-latency L1 cache, a larger, slower L2, and so on. If a chip can’t find data in cache, it has to go out to main memory and from there to storage. The problem is that even pulling data from L3 has a noticeable impact on a chip’s performance — going to main memory takes hundreds of cycles, while accessing primary storage takes tens of thousands.

That’s why I was initially skeptical when Diablo Technologies claimed to have found a way to drop NAND flash into the main memory bus of a system. DRAM and NAND flash are designed for entirely different purposes, starting with the fact that DRAM is volatile, while NAND flash isn’t. NAND isn’t designed to be read or written in the same fashion, and it takes far longer to perform a read/write cycle to flash than it does to DRAM.

 

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Simulating 1 second of real brain activity takes 40 minutes and 83K processors

Researchers have simulated 1 second of real brain activity, on a network equivalent to 1 percent of an actual brain’s neural network, using the world’s fourth-fastest supercomputer. The results aren’t revolutionary just yet, but they do hint at what will be possible as computing power increases

A team of Japanese and German researchers have carried out the largest-ever simulation of neural activity in the human brain, and the numbers are both amazing and humbling.

The hardware necessary to simulate the activity of 1.73 billion nerve cells connected by 10.4 trillion synapses (just 1 percent of a brain’s total neural network) for 1 biological second: 82,944 processors on the K supercomputer and 1 petabyte of memory (24MB per syapse). That 1 second of biological time took 40 minutes, on one of the world’s most-powerful systems, to compute.

Simulating 1 second of real brain activity takes 40 minutes and 83K processors ? Tech News and Analysis

 

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ReRAM, the memory tech that will eventually replace NAND flash, finally comes to market

A new memory technology company, Crossbar, has broken cover with a new ReRAM design it claims will allow for commercialization of the technology. The company’s claims aren’t strictly theoretical; today’s announcement reveals that the design firm has successfully implemented the architecture in silicon. While that’s not the same as initiating mass production, it’s an important step in the search for a NAND flash replacement.

ReRAM (also known as RRAM) works by creating resistance rather than directly storing charge. An electric current is applied to a material, changing the resistance of that material. The resistance state can then be measured and a “1″ or “0″ is read as the result. Much of the work done on ReRAM to date has focused on finding appropriate materials and measuring the resistance state of the cells. ReRAM designs are low voltage, endurance is far superior to flash memory, and the cells are much smaller — at least in theory.

ReRAM, the memory tech that will eventually replace NAND flash, finally comes to market | ExtremeTech

 

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Samsung now mass producing 3D vertical NAND flash chips


New 3D chips offer at least twice the reliability and speed over 10nm chips.

Following the logical progression along flash storage development, Samsung has just announced that it will begin mass producing 3D "vertical NAND" (V-NAND) flash chips. Although we know Samsung as a massive consumer electronics company, the Korean manufacturer also has a lucrative business making the internal components — such as processors, flash storage and displays — for many different device manufacturers.

We've talked before about the move by Samsung (and other manufacturers) to smaller technology for fitting a denser amount of storage on the same physical area with the move to a 10nm-class manufacturing process, but as the name would lead you to expect this new 3D NAND system goes a step further. Rather than sticking to a traditional "planar" (flat) structure, Samsung is now building chips that stack components vertically — up to 24 cell layers high.

Samsung now mass producing 3D vertical NAND flash chips | Android Central

 

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StyleShoots automatically gives product shots transparent backgrounds

When incorporating photographs of products into catalogs or websites, it’s always helpful if those photos have a digitally-transparent background. This means that a computer working with the photo will allow the user to add in whatever background they wish behind the product – or give it no background at all – instead of being stuck with the background against which it was originally shot. In the past, creating such an image has often required graphic artists to manually cut the product out of the shot, using a program such as Photoshop. Now, however, the StyleShoots system is able to create product shots with transparent backgrounds within seconds, as the photos are being taken.

Each StyleShoots rig consists of a large glass light table, overhead daylight simulation lamps, an integrated Mac mini, an iPad and a Canon 5D Mark II camera.

StyleShoots automatically gives product shots transparent backgrounds

 

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Atom Everywhere: Intel breaks ground on first 450mm fab

Intel has broken ground on its first dedicated facility for 450mm wafer production. The new foundry — D1X Module 2 — is scheduled to come online in 2015, with Intel committing to roughly $2 billion in bring-up costs through the end of the year. Foundry costs have continued to balloon in recent years; the 450mm facility will likely set records in this area due to the cost of the new manufacturing equipment.

A calculated bet

The advantage of 450mm wafers is that while the equipment costs are formidable, the long-term production costs are advantageous. GlobalFoundries has done an extensive presentation on this — for a chip of a given size, a 450mm wafer can yield 3,400 dies while a 300mm wafer yields just 1,450.

http://www.extremetech.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/GF-2.png

 

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E-Ticket Usage Projected To Increase 3-Fold During Next 5 Years

E-ticket usage will increase three-fold by the year 2018 — with more than 18 billion transport and events tickets being delivered to mobile devices annually by that point — according to a new report from Juniper Research.

Growth is expected in nearly all markets, according to the report, but the most significant growth will be seen in the metro and public transportation markets, especially the relatively undeveloped US market.

Read more at CleanTechnica | Clean Tech News & Views: Solar Energy News. Wind Energy News. EV News. & More.

 

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IBM unveils computing architecture based on the brain

Company says its breakthrough could allow for a next generation of applications that mirror the brain's efficiency in perception, cognition, and action.
IBM scientists unveiled an all-new computing architecture on Wednesday that's based on the human brain.

In an announcement tonight, IBM Research said that its new software ecosystem was built to program silicon chips whose architecture is directly inspired by the brain's size, function, and minimal use of power. The company hopes that its breakthrough may support a next generation of applications that could mirror what the brain can achieve in perception, cognition, and action

IBM unveils computing architecture based on the brain | Cutting Edge - CNET News

 

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EUV machines to swing into commercial action in 2015

(Phys.org) —ASML develops technology for high-tech lithography machines for the semiconductor industry. The company, based in The Netherlands, manufactures equipment that is used to transfer circuit patterns onto wafers. For them and their customers, EUV, or extreme ultraviolet, is a significant term that comes down to producing wafers in a better way. The chip industry has long hoped to use the short-wavelength light to make circuits that are cheaper and denser. The company, according to IEEE Spectrum's detailed report, has announced its work with extreme ultraviolet and related goals, and that its EUV machines will by 2015 be bright enough for commercial production.

Read more at: EUV machines to swing into commercial action in 2015

 

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Review: First peek through Google Glass impresses

Google hopes to change the face of technology by persuading people to wear computers on their heads.

That's the inspiration behind Google Glass, a spectacle-like device that contains a hidden computer, a thumbnail-size transparent display screen above the right eye and other digital wizardry. This Internet-connected headgear is set up to let users receive search results, read email, scan maps for directions and engage in video chats without reaching for a smartphone. Google Glass' grasp of voice commands even makes it possible to shoot hands-free photos and videos.

Read more at: Review: First peek through Google Glass impresses

If they can do voice command accurate then this is going to kick ass.

 

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Scientists seek silicon's successor

15 hours ago by Lisa M. Krieger

In the hunt for a sequel to silicon, scientists at the SLAC National Accelerator Lab have flipped an "on-off" switch in the mineral magnetite that is far faster than today's transistors

Computer circuits can't be made ever-smaller and faster with existing materials. So researchers at the Stanford-operated lab are preparing for the day when the famed Moore's Law hits the speed limit - that is, the number of transistors on a circuit no longer double every 1.5 years, as forecast by Intel co-founder Gordon Moore.

Magnetite, a naturally occurring mineral, isn't the answer, but it puts science one step closer

Read more at: Scientists seek silicon's successor

 

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Mystery particle could shrink your hard drive to the size of a peanut

A strange, newly discovered particle could shrink a laptop computer's hard drive to the size of a peanut and an iPod's drive to the size of a rice grain.

The particle, called a skyrmion, is more stable and less power-hungry than its conventional, magnetic cousin. Besides storing data in ultra compact media, skyrmions could lead to faster computers that combine storage with processing power and usher in smaller and smaller devices that have the same computing power as a desktop machine.

Mystery particle could shrink your hard drive to the size of a peanut - NBC News.com

 

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7Gbps transmissions up to a mile will boost wireless Internet coverage
7Gbps transmissions up to a mile will boost wireless Internet coverage | Ars Technica

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has changed its rules to allow higher-power outdoor operations on the 57-64 GHz band, enabling wireless transmissions "over distances up to a mile at data rates of 7Gbps," the agency said.

This is the same swath of spectrum used by Wireless Gigabit technology, which allows fast streaming between devices in living rooms and offices. Transmissions at this frequency are easily blocked by walls and objects. However, the FCC said the transmissions will still be useful outdoors in line-of-sight applications. Unlike a home network, the 7Gbps of bandwidth would be shared among many users

 

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New “semi-floating” gate makes for fast, low-power circuitry

New ?semi-floating? gate makes for fast, low-power circuitry | Ars Technica

After a long period during which the emphasis had been on building ever-faster computer circuits, things have shifted toward making them more energy-efficient. Some efficiency gains have come through small tweaks to the layout of the individual components, but most of the efficiency was a product of changes to the manufacturing process: new materials and ever-smaller features. Unfortunately, we're getting close to the point where shrinking the features of circuits any further will cause the inherent noise of quantum mechanics to start interfering with the chip's operations

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Meta, The Crazy AR Glasses That Aim To Do What Google Glass Can’t, Go Up For Pre-Order


Meta, The Crazy AR Glasses That Aim To Do What Google Glass Can?t, Go Up For Pre-Order | TechCrunch

Over a year after the announcement Of Google Glass, many folks I talk to still seem to be misunderstanding what Glass can actually do.

“It’ll be great for Augmented Reality!” they say, assuming that Glass can render objects directly into your full view of the world (it can’t.) “Ooh! It’ll be like Minority Report!”, expecting Glass’ camera to pick up your every hand wave (it doesn’t.)

Then they try on a pair and realize that… well, that’s not what Glass is. But it’s what Meta is aiming to be — and their first (read: still a bit rough) version is going on sale to the public starting today.

To picture the Meta, picture a pair of glasses — or, more accurately in its current stage, a pair of safety goggles. Put a translucent, reflective surface in each eye piece, displaying images on top of your field of view as piped out of a tiny projector built into each arm of the frames. Take a couple tiny RGB/Infrared cameras — essentially a miniature Kinect — and strap them to the frame. That’s the Meta.

The Meta then plugs into another device to help it with the data crunching; right now, that’s a laptop. Moving forward, it’ll be your phone.

 

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Computer scientists develop new model to simulate cloth on a computer with unprecedented accuracy

Computer scientists at the University of California, San Diego, have developed a new model to simulate with unprecedented accuracy on the computer the way cloth and light interact. The new model can be used in animated movies and in video games to make cloth look more realistic.

Read more at: Computer scientists develop new model to simulate cloth on a computer with unprecedented accuracy

 

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Google Glass update offers alerts, new voice commands

You can now dictate more (and better) commands with the latest software update for Google Glass.

As promised, the team behind Google Glass is rolling out its monthly update, and this one especially taps into third-party offerings.

Baking in extra features and taking further advantage of the very small but growing third-party ecosystem for the Android-based spectacles is incredibly important for touting Glass as a viable consumer product.

New voice commands, as simple as they might be, really could be "just the beginning," as touted by the Google Glass team on Monday.

Specifically, the additional commands play well for Path and Evernote.

On the private social networking app, users can "Post an update" audibly to Path and "Take a note" on Evernote. The latter one seems especially more useful on Glass for on-the-go users who wouldn't even have time to record a message on a smartphone.

Google also introduced a number of other Now cards for staying in the loop, notably one for weather emergency alerts when severe thunderstorm and/or flash flooding warnings are in effect.

Google Glass update offers alerts, new voice commands | Cutting Edge - CNET News