New form of quantum computation promises showdown with ordinary computers

Submitted by Freedomman on Thu, 12/27/2012 - 15:55

CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts (PNN) - December 24, 2012 - You’ve heard the hype a hundred times: Physicists hope to someday build a whiz-bang quantum computer that can solve problems that would overwhelm an ordinary computer.

Now, four separate teams have taken a step toward achieving such “quantum speed-up” by demonstrating a simpler, more limited form of quantum computing that, if it can be improved, might soon give classical computers a run for their money. But don’t get your hopes up for a full-fledged quantum computer. The gizmos may not be good for much beyond one particular calculation.

MIT discovers a new state of matter

Submitted by Freedomman on Thu, 12/27/2012 - 15:51

New kind of magnetism.

CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts (PNN) - December 20, 2012 - Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have discovered a new state of matter with a new kind of magnetism. This new state, called a quantum spin liquid (QSL), could lead to significant advances in data storage. QSLs also exhibit a quantum phenomenon called long-range entanglement, which could lead to new types of communications systems, and more.

University uses Tesla technology to wirelessly charge electric bus

Submitted by Freedomman on Wed, 12/19/2012 - 17:55

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah (PNN) - December 10, 2012 - Utah State University presented a first-of-its-kind electric bus that is charged through wireless charging technology in a demonstration Nov. 15.

How to scrub GPS data from your photos

Submitted by Freedomman on Wed, 12/12/2012 - 17:34

NEW YORK (PNN) - December 7, 2012 - John McAfee - anti-virus pioneer, "person of interest" in a Belize murder investigation, and launcher of increasingly bizarre media stories - has been captured. It happened after journalists from Vice accidentally published an iPhone photo of McAfee with embedded GPS data.

Anonymous may attack UN agency over Internet rules

Submitted by Freedomman on Wed, 12/12/2012 - 17:31

NEW YORK (PNN) - December 7, 2012 - A security expert thinks the hacktivist movement Anonymous is planning an imminent cyber attack against the United Nations' International Telecommunication Union.

Scientists find biggest black hole ever

Submitted by Freedomman on Wed, 12/05/2012 - 18:41

MUNICH, Germany (PNN) - November 28, 2012 - The biggest black hole blast ever found blasts out 400 solar masses of material per year, and is five times more powerful than any other scientists have ever seen. The blast is so large it spreads about 1000 light-years out into the surrounding galaxy.

New nuclear engine could power deep-space exploration

Submitted by Freedomman on Wed, 12/05/2012 - 18:39

HOUSTON, Texas (PNN) - November 27, 2012 - Researchers have tested a small prototype of a nuclear-reactor engine design that could one day power deep-space exploration probes.

The proposed design is based on a Stirling engine - an engine first invented in the 19th century that uses hot pressurized gas to push a piston. It would use a 50-pound nuclear uranium battery to generate heat that is then carried to eight Stirling engines to produce about 500 watts of power.

Freeway drones to replace manned cop cars

Submitted by Freedomman on Wed, 11/28/2012 - 18:14

LOS ANGELES, Kalifornia (PNN) - November 21, 2012 – It’s a future far from Ponch and Jon, the Los Angeles-based motorcycle officers of “CHiPs,” a TV series that rose to popularity in the 1970s. In this take on the Kalifornia Highway Patrol of 2025, patrol cars and motorcycles would be replaced by computerized drones; chips take over CHiPs.

Hybrid nanomaterial converts light and heat into electricity

Submitted by Freedomman on Wed, 11/28/2012 - 18:05

ARLINGTON, Texas (PNN) - November 13, 2012 - We’ve seen nanomaterials that can be used to convert light into electricity and others that can convert heat into electricity. Now researchers from the University of Texas at Arlington and Louisiana Tech University have created a hybrid nanomaterial that can do both. By pairing the material with microchips, the researchers say it could be used in self-powered sensors, low-power electronic devices, and biomedical implants.

New big screen TVs can be easily hacked to spy on viewers

Submitted by Freedomman on Wed, 11/21/2012 - 17:45

RIDGEFIELD PARK, New Jersey (PNN) - November 19, 2012 - Samsung’s 2012 top-of-the-line plasmas and LED HDTVs offer new features never before available within a television including a built-in, internally wired HD camera, twin microphones, face tracking and speech recognition. While these features give you unprecedented control over an HDTV, the devices themselves, more similar than ever to a personal computer, may allow hackers or even Samsung to see and hear you and your family, and collect extremely personal data.