Toggle light / dark theme

Integrating diverse data sources with different formats and standards also presents considerable challenges. Promoting open-source platforms and standardizing data formats are critical for facilitating data exchange within the space industry.

Robbie Robertson, CEO of Sedaro, identifies the main barrier to integrating digital twin technology as a cultural shift rather than technical feasibility. “The most substantial limitation is the change involved in adopting this new approach,” he explains. Overcoming the inertia of legacy tools to build a future-proof system is crucial. Additionally, addressing the shortage of skilled professionals is vital. Collaborations with institutions like MIT’s Aeronautics and Astronautics Department and robust educational initiatives are essential to developing the next generation of engineers and scientists equipped to manage digital twins.

Digital twin technology has revolutionized the space industry by enhancing mission design, testing and management. Organizations like NASA, ESA and the Department of Defense utilize this technology to improve reliability, efficiency and success. As digital twins evolve, their role in space exploration and utilization becomes increasingly vital.

The University of Texas at Austin this week announced that it has opened its undergraduate robotics program to high school applicants. The honors program is one of the first in the U.S. that allows incoming freshmen to apply for the program as part of their initial admission application. It’s a clear indication that robotics is no longer in the realm of hyper-specialized graduate and doctorate programs.

The minor is tied to a handful of other majors, including aerospace engineering, electrical and computer engineering, computational engineering, computer science and mechanical engineering. Each forms a foundational piece of an eventual robotics major. With the rise of robotics in high school STEAM teaching, the program is designed to maintain incoming freshmen’s interest in the growing space.

Zoom is the leader in modern enterprise video communications, with an easy, reliable cloud platform for video and audio conferencing, chat, and webinars across mobile, desktop, and room systems. Zoom Rooms is the original software-based conference room solution used around the world in board, conference, huddle, and training rooms, as well as executive offices and classrooms. Founded in 2011, Zoom helps businesses and organizations bring their teams together in a frictionless environment to get more done. Zoom is a publicly traded company headquartered in San Jose, CA.

Across all species, critical skills are passed on from parents to offspring through communication. Researchers at the University Hospital Bonn (UKB) and the Researchers at the University of Bonn showed that effective communication relies on how both the sender and receiver represent information. Their study reveals how this process underlies training efficacy and task performance. Their results have been published in the journal Nature Communications.

Communication—be it through sounds, smells or movements—is crucial for survival. Its is fundamental to cognition, as our task descriptions in the brain are shaped not only by sensory experiences, but also by the information communicated to us.

“We know from our everyday lives that social communication is essential to our learning abilities in the real world, which is summed up by the saying ‘teaching is learning for the second time,” says Prof. Tatjana Tchumatchenko, from the Institute of Experimental Epileptology and Cognition Research at the UKB and member of the Transdisciplinary Research Area (TRA) “Modelling” at the University of Bonn.

Will artificial intelligence save us or kill us all? In Japan, AI-driven technology promises better lives for an aging population. But researchers in Silicon Valley are warning of untamable forces being unleashed– and even human extinction.

Will artificial intelligence make life better for humans or lead to our downfall? As developers race toward implementing AI in every aspect of our lives, it is already showing promise in areas like medicine. But what if it is used for nefarious purposes?

In Japan, the inventor and scientist behind the firm Cyberdyne is working to make life better for the sick and elderly. Professor Yoshiyuki Sankai’s robot suits are AI-driven exoskeletons used in rehabilitative medicine to help stroke victims and others learn to walk again. But he doesn’t see the benefits of AI ending there; he predicts a future world where AIs will live in harmony with humans as a new, benevolent species.

Yet in Silicon Valley, the cradle of AI development, there is an unsettling contradiction: a deep uncertainty among many developers about the untamable forces they are unleashing. Gabriel Mukobi is a computer science graduate student at Stanford who is sounding the alarm that AI could push us toward disaster– and even human extinction. He’s at the forefront of a tiny field of researchers swimming against the current to make sure AI is safe and beneficial for everyone.

The study, published by a multi-institutional team of researchers…


Researchers used D-Wave’s quantum computing technology to explore the relationship between prefrontal brain activity and academic achievement, particularly focusing on the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) scores in South Korea.

The study, published by a multi-institutional team of researchers across Korea in Scientific Reports, relied on functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) to measure brain signals during various cognitive tasks and then applied a quantum annealing algorithm to identify patterns correlating with higher academic performance.

The team identified several cognitive tasks that might boost CSAT score — and that could have significant implications for educational strategies and cognitive neuroscience. The use of a quantum computer as a partner in the research process could also be a step towards practical applications of quantum computing in neuroimaging and cognitive assessment.

Since 2014, solar capacity at K-12 schools has more than quadrupled across the US, according to a new report from clean energy nonprofit Generation180.

The “Brighter Future: A Study of Solar on K-12 Schools” report highlights that over 6.2 million students – more than 1 in 9 – now attend schools powered by solar. In 2023 alone, more than 800 schools added solar panels, meaning that at least one school went solar every single day during the 2022–23 school year.

“The benefits of solar energy are now reaching a broad range of schools across the country, including those in under-resourced communities that stand to gain the most from the cost savings and educational opportunities that solar technology provides. We want all schools and communities, regardless of their size, geography, or wealth, to have access to affordable, clean energy,” says Tish Tablan, the report’s lead author and senior director of Generation180’s Electrify Our Schools Program.

A new Nature Human Behaviour study, jointly led by Dr. Margherita Malanchini at Queen Mary University of London and Dr. Andrea Allegrini at University College London, has revealed that non-cognitive skills, such as motivation and self-regulation, are as important as intelligence in determining academic success. These skills become increasingly influential throughout a child’s education, with genetic factors playing a significant role.

The research, conducted in collaboration with an international team of experts, suggests that fostering non-cognitive skills alongside could significantly improve educational outcomes.

“Our research challenges the long-held assumption that intelligence is the primary driver of ,” says Dr. Malanchini, Senior Lecturer in Psychology at Queen Mary University of London.