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Category: innovation – Page 59

Innovative! Drought resistant and doesn’t need a lot of fertilizer. And it smells like bread. Especially good for Africa which was mentioned.

This fruit curiously smells like baking bread and tastes like potatoes – and it might also provide a means to help feed communities amid drought and famine.

Breadfruit, despite its name, is not made of bread. It’s a tall tree native to islands in the Pacific that produces a starchy fruit, similar to a jackfruit.

Researchers at Northwestern University have been studying breadfruit because they believe it could help feed the world as our more vulnerable crops are plunged into jeopardy due to rising global temperatures.

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A new study suggests different species may rely on a shared principle for neural network formation.

In all species, brain function relies on an intricate network of connections that allows neurons to send information back and forth between one another, commanding thought and physical activity. But within those networks a small number of neurons share much stronger connections to one another than all the others. These abnormally strong connections—known as “heavy tailed” based on the shape of their distribution—are thought to play an outsized role in brain function.

Research on Neural Network Connections.

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The system combines trajectory optimization and enhanced reinforcement learning to improve how ANYmal chooses its leg positions and footholds.

In the field of robotics, the development of legged robots stands as a formidable challenge. The dynamic and agile movements observed in animals prove difficult to replicate through conventional human-made methods.

Researchers at ETH Zurich have now used an innovative control framework that has helped an autonomous robot, ANYmal, to traverse challenging terrains seamlessly.

Negotiating surfaces ranging from staircases to foam blocks and rugged terrain, this robotic quadruped demonstrates a newfound agility and adaptability, showcasing the effectiveness of its upgraded control system.

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10 Centimeter Diameter metalens for astronomy.

A newly-developed “metalens” has showcased promise in capturing high-resolution images of celestial bodies like our Sun, Moon, and even some distant objects.

The Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) created the first all-glass metalens, which has a diameter of only 10 cm.

With the rising interest in capturing images of celestial objects, the innovative metalens might be a game changer in the development of next-generation optics for telescopes.

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January 8, 2024, Mountain View, CA — In a groundbreaking cosmic quest, the SETI Institute’s Commensal Open-Source Multimode Interferometer Cluster (COSMIC) at the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array (VLA) is expanding the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI). This cutting-edge technology is not a distinct telescope; it’s a detector. COSMIC searches for extraterrestrial signals and paves the way for future science using a copy of the raw data from the telescope’s observations. At the heart of COSMIC’s mission is pursuing the age-old question: Are we alone in the universe? Project scientist Dr. Chenoa Tremblay and the team detailed the project in a paper published in The Astronomical Journal.

What sets COSMIC apart is its adaptability to the future. The system is designed for future upgrades, ensuring it remains at the forefront of cosmic exploration. With the potential to expand its capabilities, COSMIC could soon cover more stars, explore new frequencies, and enhance our understanding of the vast cosmic tapestry. It is important to note that COSMIC’s capabilities go beyond searching for extraterrestrial intelligence. Future upgrades could unlock new explorations, from finding fast radio bursts with a submillisecond temporal resolution to studying spectral line science and axionic dark matter.

“COSMIC introduces modern Ethernet-based digital architecture on the VLA, allowing for a test bed for future technologies as we move into the next generation era,” said Tremblay. “Currently, the focus is on creating one of the largest surveys for technological signals, with over 500,000 sources observed in the first six months. However, the flexibility of the design allows for a wide range of other scientific opportunities, such as studying fast radio burst pulse structures and searching for axion dark matter candidates. We hope to open opportunities for other scientists to use our high time (nanoseconds) or our high spectral resolution (sub-Hz) to complete their research. It is an exciting time for increasing the capabilities of this historic telescope.”

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