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Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on November 14, 2024 at 9:01am

Experiment supports existence of a new type of superconductor

A research team has found the strongest evidence yet of a novel type of superconducting material, a fundamental science breakthrough that may open the door to coaxing superconductivity—the flow of electric current without a loss of energy—in a new way.

The discovery also lends tangible support to a long-held theory about superconductivity—that it could be based upon electronic nematicity, a phase of matter in which particles break their rotational symmetry.

Here is what that means. In iron selenide crystals mixed with sulfur, iron atoms are positioned in a grid. At room temperature, an electron in an iron atom cannot distinguish between horizontal and vertical directions. But at lower temperatures, the electron may enter a "nematic" phase, where it begins to prefer moving in one direction or the other.

In some instances, the electron may start to fluctuate between preferring one direction, then the other. This is called nematic fluctuation.

For decades, physicists have attempted to prove the existence of superconductivity due to nematic fluctuations, with little success. But the new study, a multi-institutional effort led by Yale's Eduardo H. da Silva Neto, offers promise.

The findings appear in the journal Nature Physics.

Pranab Kumar Nag et al, Highly anisotropic superconducting gap near the nematic quantum critical point of FeSe1−xSx, Nature Physics (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41567-024-02683-x

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on November 14, 2024 at 8:58am

Dr. Drake's equation was more of a guide for scientists on how to go about searching for life, rather than an estimating tool or serious attempt to determine an accurate result.

Its parameters included the rate of yearly star formation in the Milky Way, the fraction of stars with planets orbiting them and the number of worlds that could potentially support life.

By comparison, the new model connects the rate of yearly star formation in the universe with its fundamental ingredients, such as the aforementioned dark energy density.

 Daniele Sorini et al, The impact of the cosmological constant on past and future star formation, Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society (2024). DOI: 10.1093/mnras/stae2236. academic.oup.com/mnras/article … .1093/mnras/stae2236

Part 3

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Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on November 14, 2024 at 8:57am

It concludes that a typical observer would expect to experience a substantially larger density of dark energy than is seen in our own universe—suggesting the ingredients it possesses make it a rare and unusual case in the multiverse.

The approach presented in the paper involves calculating the fraction of ordinary matter converted into stars over the entire history of the universe, for different dark energy densities.

The model predicts this fraction would be approximately 27% in a universe that is most efficient at forming stars, compared to 23% in our own universe.

This means we don't live in the hypothetical universe with the highest odds of forming intelligent life forms. Or in other words, the value of dark energy density we observe in our universe is not the one that would maximize the chances of life, according to the model.
Understanding dark energy and the impact on our universe is one of the biggest challenges in cosmology and fundamental physics.

The parameters that govern our universe, including the density of dark energy, could explain our own existence.
Surprisingly, though, researchers found that even a significantly higher dark energy density would still be compatible with life, suggesting we may not live in the most likely of universes.
The new model could allow scientists to understand the effects of differing densities of dark energy on the formation of structures in the universe and the conditions for life to develop in the cosmos.

Dark energy makes the universe expand faster, balancing gravity's pull and creating a universe where both expansion and structure formation are possible.

However, for life to develop, there would need to be regions where matter can clump together to form stars and planets, and it would need to remain stable for billions of years to allow life to evolve.
Crucially, the research suggests that the astrophysics of star formation and the evolution of the large-scale structure of the universe combine in a subtle way to determine the optimal value of the dark energy density needed for the generation of intelligent life.
Part 2

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on November 14, 2024 at 8:55am

A formula for life? New model calculates chances of intelligent beings in our universe and beyond

The chances of intelligent life emerging in our universe—and in any hypothetical ones beyond it—can be estimated by a new theoretical model which has echoes of the famous Drake Equation.

This was the formula that American astronomer Dr. Frank Drake came up with in the 1960s to calculate the number of detectable extraterrestrial civilizations in our Milky Way galaxy.

More than 60 years on, astrophysicists led by Durham University have produced a different model which instead focuses on the conditions created by the acceleration of the universe's expansion and the amount of stars formed.

It is thought this expansion is being driven by a mysterious force called dark energy that makes up more than two thirds of the universe.

Since stars are a precondition for the emergence of life as we know it, the model could therefore be used to estimate the probability of generating intelligent life in our universe, and in a multiverse scenario of different hypothetical universes.

The new research does not attempt to calculate the absolute number of observers (i.e. intelligent life) in the universe but instead considers the relative probability of a randomly chosen observer inhabiting a universe with particular properties. The study has been published in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.

Part 1

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on November 14, 2024 at 8:44am

Researchers demonstrate universal control of a quantum dot-based system with four singlet-triplet qubits

Being able to precisely manipulate interacting spins in quantum systems is of key importance for the development of reliable and highly performing quantum computers. This has proven to be particularly challenging for nanoscale systems with many spins that are based on quantum dots (i.e., tiny semiconductor devices).

Researchers recently demonstrated the universal control of a quantum dot-based system with four singlet-triplet qubits. Their paper, published in Nature Nanotechnology, could open new possibilities for the successful upscaling of quantum information processing systems.

Xin Zhang et al, Universal control of four singlet–triplet qubits, Nature Nanotechnology (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41565-024-01817-9

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on November 13, 2024 at 1:11pm

Stem-cell transplants restore lost vision

Three people with severely impaired vision have had their sight substantially improved by a stem-cell transplant. These improvements have now lasted more than a year. A fourth person also experienced a boost in their vision, but it did not last. The four are the first to receive a transplant of reprogrammed stem cells to treat damaged corneas, the transparent outer surface of the eye. The team behind the treatment will launch larger clinical trials next year.

Nature | 
Reference: The Lancet paper

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on November 13, 2024 at 12:05pm

I Made Kidney Stones So I Could DESTROY THEM FOREVER

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on November 11, 2024 at 9:55am

Biomolecular Condensates

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on November 9, 2024 at 11:02am

Memories are not only in the brain, human cell study finds

It's common knowledge that our brains—and, specifically, our brain cells—store memories. But a team of scientists has discovered that cells from other parts of the body also perform a memory function, opening new pathways for understanding how memory works and creating the potential to enhance learning and to treat memory-related afflictions.

Learning and memory are generally associated with brains and brain cells alone, but this new study shows that other cells in the body can learn and form memories, too.

The research sought to better understand if non-brain cells help with memory by borrowing from a long-established neurological property—the massed-spaced effect—which shows that we tend to retain information better when studied in spaced intervals rather than in a single, intensive session—better known as cramming for a test.

In the research, the scientists replicated learning over time by studying two types of non-brain human cells in a laboratory (one from nerve tissue and one from kidney tissue) and exposing them to different patterns of chemical signals—just like brain cells are exposed to patterns of neurotransmitters when we learn new information.

In response, the non-brain cells turned on a "memory gene"—the same gene that brain cells turn on when they detect a pattern in the information and restructure their connections in order to form memories.

To monitor the memory and learning process, the scientists engineered these non-brain cells to make a glowing protein, which indicated when the memory gene was on and when it was off.

The results showed that these cells could determine when the chemical pulses, which imitated bursts of neurotransmitter in the brain, were repeated rather than simply prolonged—just as neurons in our brain can register when we learn with breaks rather than cramming all the material in one sitting.

Specifically, when the pulses were delivered in spaced-out intervals, they turned on the "memory gene" more strongly, and for a longer time, than when the same treatment was delivered all at once.

This reflects the massed-space effect in action. 

It shows that the ability to learn from spaced repetition isn't unique to brain cells, but, in fact, might be a fundamental property of all cells.

The researchers add that the findings not only offer new ways to study memory, but also point to potential health-related gains.

This discovery opens new doors for understanding how memory works and could lead to better ways to enhance learning and treat memory problems.

At the same time, it suggests that in the future, we will need to treat our body more like the brain—for example, consider what our pancreas remembers about the pattern of our past meals to maintain healthy levels of blood glucose or consider what a cancer cell remembers about the pattern of chemotherapy.

N. V. Kukushkin et al, The massed-spaced learning effect in non-neural human cells, Nature Communications (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-53922-x

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on November 9, 2024 at 9:56am

Elephant turns a hose into sophisticated showering tool

Tool use isn't unique to humans. Chimpanzees use sticks as tools. Dolphins, crows, and elephants are known for their tool-use abilities, too. Now a report in Current Biology on November 8, 2024, highlights elephants' remarkable skill in using a hose as a flexible shower head. As an unexpected bonus, researchers say they also have evidence that a fellow elephant knows how to turn the water off, perhaps as a kind of "prank."

 Water hose tool use and showering behavior by Asian elephants, Current Biology (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.10.017. www.cell.com/current-biology/f … 0960-9822(24)01371-X

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