Advances in Computers thread

[ScienceRocks]

BBC unveils 'Micro Bit' - a pocket-sized computer to be given to every 11-12 year old in the UK for free

The BBC has revealed the final design of the Micro Bit, a pocket-sized computer set to be given to about one million UK-based children in October.
The device - which features a programmable array of red LED lights - includes two buttons and a built-in motion sensor that were not included in a prototype shown off in March.
But another change means the product no longer has a slot for a thin battery.
That may compromise its appeal as a wearable device.
An add-on power pack, fitted with AA batteries, will be needed to use it as a standalone product.
The BBC's director general Tony Hall said the device should help tackle the fact children were leaving school knowing how to use computers but not how to program them.
"We all know there's a critical and growing digital skills gap in this country and that's why it's so important that we come together and do something about it," he said at a launch event in London.

 

[ScienceRocks]

Black Phosphorus: Alternative to Silicon for Future Electronics

In 2004, researchers at the University of Manchester, UK, isolated and explored the remarkable properties of graphene, a one-atom-thick layer of carbon.
Since then scientists have rushed to investigate a range of other 2D materials. One of those is black phosphorus, a form of phosphorus that is similar to graphite and can be separated easily into single atomic layers, known asphosphorene.
Black phosphorus is the second known elemental allotrope with a layered crystal structure that can be mechanically exfoliated to atomic layer thickness. Unlike graphite and graphene, black phosphorus is a semiconductor in both bulk and few-layer form.
“To lower the operating voltage of transistors, and thereby reduce the heat they generate, we have to get closer and closer to designing the transistor at the atomic level. The toolbox of the future for transistor designers will require a variety of atomic-layered materials: an ideal semiconductor, an ideal metal, and an ideal dielectric. All three components must be optimized for a well-designed transistor. Black phosphorus fills the semiconducting-material role,” said Dr Szkopek, who is the senior author of the paper published in the journalNature Communications.

 

[ScienceRocks]

IBM achieves 7 nanometer chips using EUV lithography and strained silicon germanium

IBM Research today announced that it has produced the semiconductor industry’s first 7nm (nanometer) node test chips with functioning transistors. The breakthrough, accomplished in partnership with GLOBALFOUNDRIES and Samsung at SUNY Polytechnic Institute’s Colleges of Nanoscale Science and Engineering (SUNY Poly CNSE), could result in the...

 

[ScienceRocks]

Iris adds HUD tech to existing cars
By Ben Coxworth - July 10, 2015 3 Pictures

Despite concerns that they may actually make drivingless safe, heads-up displays (HUDs) could eventually be standard equipment on most cars. In the meantime, what happens if you want the technology in your existing vehicle? Well, you might be able to install an Iris HUD system in place of your driver's-side windshield visor.

 

[ScienceRocks]

Laser boosted femtomagnetism could enable hard drives that are ten thousand times faster

Lasers boost the femtomagnetism effect to enable read and write data without causing the thermal effects which would inevitably slow down the process.

Researchers have been using laser pulses to directly modify the amount of the interaction among the atoms to increase the exchange energy without necessarily altering the magnetic structure of the material.

Remarkably, this happens in a time interval well below the nanosecond, as the material response is almost entirely exhausted within the duration of the laser pulse, less than 100 femtoseconds in the experiment (1 femtosecond is one millionth of one billionth of a second ).

 

[ScienceRocks]

Omnidirectional Free Space Wireless Charging Developed, currently with charging of 30 smartphones at the same time

The simultaneous charging of multiple mobile devices at 0.5 meter away from the power source is now possible under the international electromagnetic field guidelines. Mobile devices, such as smartphones and laptops, have become indispensable portable items in modern life, but one big challenge remains to fully enjoying these devices: keeping...

 

[ScienceRocks]

Fastest-ever flexible diode provides 'last missing piece' needed to realize bendable phones
(Phys.org)—While there are hints that Samsung and LG are developing flexible phones that can fold, roll up, and even be stretched into larger screens, there are still some obstacles to overcome before such bendable phones ...

 

[ScienceRocks]

Apple iPod touch (6th-generation): Early impressions
By Will Shanklin - July 16, 2015 6 Pictures

Yesterday Apple released a new iPod touch – the first since 2012 – and we have one of them in-house. Read on for our early impressions.

 

[ScienceRocks]

Samsung Mobile's Note 4 is right on schedule to see a successor.


Samsung Galaxy Note 5: The specs, release date, price we're likely to see
It's the time of year when rumors and leaks rear up about Samsung's next stylus-wielding phablet. Here's everything we know, we think, or we suspect so far.
cnet.co

 

[ScienceRocks]

On the way to breaking the terahertz barrier for graphene nanoelectronics

A team of scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research (MPI-P) discovered that electrical conduction in graphene on the picosecond timescale -- a picosecond being one thousandth of one billionth of a second -- is governed by the same basic laws that describe the thermal properties of gases. This much simpler thermodynamic approach to the electrical conduction in graphene will allow scientists and engineers not only to better understand but also to improve the performance of graphene-based nanoelectronic devices.

The researchers found that the energy of ultrafast electrical currents passing through graphene is very efficiently converted into electron heat, making graphene electrons behave just like a hot gas. "The heat is distributed evenly over all electrons. And the rise in electronic temperature, caused by the passing currents, in turn has a strong effect on the electrical conduction of graphene" explains Professor Mischa Bonn, Director at the MPI-P. The study, entitled "Thermodynamic picture of ultrafast charge transport in graphene," has recently been published in Nature Communications.
Graphene -- a single sheet of carbon atoms -- is known to be a very good electrical conductor. As a result, graphene finds a multitude of applications in modern nanoelectronics. They range from highly efficient detectors for optical and wireless communications to transistors operating at very high speeds. A constantly increasing demand for telecommunication bandwidth requires an ever faster operation of electronic devices, pushing their response times to be as short as a picosecond. "The results of this study will help improve the performance of graphene-based nanoelectronic devices such as ultra-high speed transistors and photodetectors" says Professor Dmitry Turchinovich, who led the research at the MPI-P. In particular they show the way for breaking the terahertz operation speed barrier -- i.e. one thousand billions of oscillations per second -- for graphene transistors.

 

[ScienceRocks]

Spintronics just got faster

In a tremendous boost for spintronic technologies, EPFL scientists have shown that electrons can jump through spins much faster than previously thought.
Electrons spin around atoms, but also spin around themselves, and can cross over from one spin state to another. A property which can be exploited for next-generation hard drives. However, "spin cross-over" has been considered too slow to be efficient. Using ultrafast measurements, EPFL scientists have now shown for the first time that electrons can cross spins at least 100,000 times faster than previously thought. Aside for its enormous implications for fundamental physics, the finding can also propel the field of spintronics forward. The study is published inNature Chemistry ("Sub-50 fs photo-induced spin cross-over in [Fe(bpy)3]2+").

 

[ScienceRocks]

The system, which is still a prototype, can also adjust and widen the headlight beam at road junctions and roundabouts to help drivers navigate at tricky junctions.


The headlights work alongside a screen inside the car that is designed to give drivers additional warning by highlighting potential hazards in a yellow box


There's a commercial on tv right now about driving at night “200” at a time.” My reaction is – only 200” I think the high beams on my Xterra reach out further than that. Anyhow, this would be a huge advance in safety.

Read more: Ford develops smart lights to detect pedestrians cyclists and animals at night Daily Mail Online

 

[ScienceRocks]

Memristors linked into neural network arrays


The secret is to build thin stacks of the same old oxide memristor material as before (aluminum and titanium) — only this time, use a low temperature sputtering process that enables monolithic three-dimensional integration. A memristor, named for ‘memory-resistor,’ has an electrical resistance that depends on the history of the current that has flowed through the device — namely, how much current and in what direction. In general, the more current that goes through it, the easier it will travel through in the future. When power to the device is turned off, it ‘remembers’ its most recent resistance value until power is turned back on.

 

[ScienceRocks]

New computer program first to recognize sketches more accurately than a human
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/07/150721081638.htm

Researchers from Queen Mary University of London (QMUL) have built the first computer program that can recognise hand-drawn sketches better than humans.

Known as Sketch-a-Net, the program is capable of correctly identifying the subject of sketches 74.9 per cent of the time compared to humans that only managed a success rate of 73.1 per cent.

As sketching becomes more relevant with the increase in the use of touchscreens, the development could provide a foundation for new ways to interact with computers.

Touchscreens could understand what you are drawing enabling you to retrieve a specific image by drawing it with your fingers, which is more natural than keyword searches for finding items such as furniture or fashion accessories. The improvement could also aid police forensics when an artist's impression of a criminal needs to be matched to a mugshot or CCTV database.

 

[ScienceRocks]

Nourish creates daily nutritional supplements based on users' needs
By Ben Coxworth - July 27, 2015 4 Pictures

While some people take off-the-shelf supplements, others use products that are formulated to their own unique nutritional needs. According to the folks at Boston-based startup FitNatic, however, that's still not specific enough. Their Nourish device keeps track of its user's states of health and fitness, then serves up nutritional supplements that are custom-blended on a daily basis.

 

[HaShev]

IBM nano tubes and drive to store mass amounts of data in the least space possible is a mission that will truly help their other ventures particularly memory brain transfer which even Google is now admitting is not so far away.

 

[ScienceRocks]

Intel's new storage chip is 1,000 times faster than flash memory



Intel and Micron present a new paradigm of non volatile flash-like memory 1000 times faster and 10 times denser than nowaday flash memory. "Now in production" are the words you can read in the press note, although, according to some tweets, a joint Utah Intel-Micron factory is to produce it. Let's hope that in short term

UPDATE: Supposedly, initial capacities will be 128 Gb (16GB) and should arrive at some point in 2016

They use a resistive behaviour with no transistors.


I wanted to show an image of the chip structure, but I don't know why I'm not allowed to. Here is the link:



http://cdn.thinglink...10/scaletowidth


And here is the link to the keynote.

http://newsroom.inte...mory-technology

 

[ScienceRocks]

IARPA funding on improved Quantum Computer Qubits and Quantum error correction

IARPA is seeking innovative solutions for the Logical Qubits (LogiQ) Program. LogiQ intends to build a logical qubit from a number of imperfect physical qubits by combining high-fidelity multi-qubit operations with extensible integration. The LogiQ Program is envisioned to begin 1 February 2016 and end by 31 January 2021. Current quantum...

 

[ScienceRocks]

Google's Project Loon balloons to cover Sri Lanka with internet access
By Nick Lavars - July 29, 2015 4 Pictures

Bringing internet to remote regions by sending internet-enabled balloons into the stratosphere sure sounds like a wild idea, but it's about to become a reality for the resident of Sri Lanka. The government of the island nation has just announced a partnership with Google that will bring affordable high-speed internet access to every inch of the country using the company's Project Loon balloons.

 

[ScienceRocks]

Connecting artificial intelligence with the internet of things


With the two technologies set to meet, lines between sci-fi and a high-tech new reality continue to blur. Industry experts see no reason to be fearful

It’s no secret tech luminaries like Elon Musk and Bill Gates worry about humanity flirting with disaster though a digital version of the Icarus myth – in our case, the power of artificial intelligence being the sun that eventually burns our wings.
Even so, not every futurist or technology pioneer is quite so alarmed that our experiments with AI might confine us all to dystopian doom.
John Underkoffler – the chief executive of Oblong Industries, better known as the guy who created the futuristic gesture-based interface in the movie Minority Report – is one such thinker. He founded Oblong Industries in 2006 as a first step to bringing ideas like the Minority Report interface into the real world, which means he knows as well as anyone where the bounds of sci-fi end and a high-tech new reality begins.