By redesigning how fluids are simulated, researchers have demonstrated an order of magnitude speed increase on the previous state-of-the-art for slow-flowing viscous liquids.
Category: particle physics – Page 269
face_with_colon_three circa 2018.
Understanding the fundamental constituents of the universe is tough. Making sense of the brain is another challenge entirely. Each cubic millimetre of human brain contains around 4 km of neuronal “wires” carrying millivolt-level signals, connecting innumerable cells that define everything we are and do. The ancient Egyptians already knew that different parts of the brain govern different physical functions, and a couple of centuries have passed since physicians entertained crowds by passing currents through corpses to make them seem alive. But only in recent decades have neuroscientists been able to delve deep into the brain’s circuitry.
On 25 January, speaking to a packed audience in CERN’s Theory department, Vijay Balasubramanian of the University of Pennsylvania described a physicist’s approach to solving the brain. Balasubramanian did his PhD in theoretical particle physics at Princeton University and also worked on the UA1 experiment at CERN’s Super Proton Synchrotron in the 1980s. Today, his research ranges from string theory to theoretical biophysics, where he applies methodologies common in physics to model the neural topography of information processing in the brain.
“We are using, as far as we can, hard mathematics to make real, quantitative, testable predictions, which is unusual in biology.” — Vijay Balasubramanian
What is the Standard Model?
Posted in particle physics
The Standard Model is our best theory for how the universe operates, but there are some missing pieces that physicists are struggling to find.
The Standard Model of physics is the theory of particles, fields and the fundamental forces that govern them.
It tells us about how families of elementary particles group together to form larger composite particles, and how one particle can interact with another, and how particles respond to the fundamental forces of nature. It has made successful predictions such as the existence of the Higgs boson, and acts as the cornerstone for theoretical physics.
Even in the driest climates, though, there is a considerable amount of moisture in the air. The researchers note that even in places like the Sahel desert, relative humidity is still around 20 percent on average. So they set about finding a way to use this untapped water resource to produce hydrogen.
Their device consists of a water harvesting unit that houses a sponge soaked in a water-absorbing liquid that can pull moisture from the air. On either side of this reservoir are electrodes that can be powered by any renewable energy source. When a current runs through the circuit, the water is split via electrolysis into its constituent oxygen and hydrogen atoms, which can then be collected as gas.
The team showed that the device could run efficiently for 12 consecutive days and produced hydrogen with 99 percent purity. What’s more, the device continues to work in relative humidity as low as four percent.
At a fundamental level, only a few particles and forces govern all of reality. How do their combinations create human consciousness?
Circa 2021 face_with_colon_three
Metallic non-metals
In theory, most materials are capable of becoming metallic if put under enough pressure. Atoms or molecules can be squeezed together so tightly that they begin to share their outer electrons, which can then travel and conduct electricity as they do in a chunk of copper or iron. Geophysicists think that the centres of massive planets such as Neptune or Uranus host water in such a metallic state, and that high-pressure metallic hydrogen can even become a superconductor, able to conduct electricity without any resistance.
Many of us are all too familiar with how strain in work relationships can impact performance, but new research shows that materials in electricity-producing fuel cells may be sensitive to strain on an entirely different level.
Researchers from Kyushu University report that strain caused by just a 2% reduction in the distance between atoms when deposited on a surface leads to a whopping 99.999% decrease in the speed at which the materials conduct hydrogen ions, greatly reducing the performance of solid oxide fuel cells.
Developing methods to reduce this strain will help bring high-performance fuel cells for clean energy production to a wider number of households in the future.
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Hello and welcome! My name is Anton and in this video, we will talk about a new groundbreaking discovery about a proton — a charm quark on the inside?
Links:
Previous video: https://youtu.be/8BTZOz850GI
Unusual experiment findings: https://youtu.be/jYAsW8OXg7c.
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-022-04998-2
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/0370269380903640
https://www.jlab.org/
https://www.mdpi.com/2571-712X/5/2/15
#charm #proton #physics.
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Early in its history, shortly after the Big Bang, the universe was filled with equal amounts of matter and “antimatter”—particles that are matter counterparts but with…
The European nuclear research facility CERN announced on Tuesday that scientists using the upgraded Large Hadron Collider (LHC) had identified three previously unknown particles.
After a three-year suspension for improvements, the world’s biggest and most powerful particle collider resumed operation. The modernized LHC enables researchers to analyze twenty times more collisions than previously.
Using the improved collider, CERN researchers discovered a “pentaquark” and the first-ever pair of “tetraquarks.”