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Category: physics – Page 73

“In the study, we demonstrate how artificial intelligence can be used to carry out fundamental theoretical physics that addresses the behavior of fluids and other complex soft matter systems,” says Prof. Dr. Matthias Schmidt, chair of Theoretical Physics II at the University of Bayreuth.

Scientists from Bayreuth have developed a new method for studying liquid and soft matter using artificial intelligence. In a study now published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, they open up a new chapter in density functional theory.

We live in a highly technologized world where basic research is the engine of innovation, in a dense and complex web of interrelationships and interdependencies. The published research provides new methods that can have a great influence on widespread simulation techniques, so that complex substances can be investigated on computers more quickly, more precisely and more deeply.

In the future, this could have an influence on product and process design. The fact that the structure of liquids can be excellently represented by the newly formulated neural mathematical relationships is a major breakthrough that opens up a range of possibilities for gaining deep physical insights.

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Enceladus’ ice plumes may hold the building blocks of life. Researchers have shown unambiguous laboratory evidence that amino acids transported in the ice plumes of Saturn’s moon, Eceladus, can survive impact speeds of up to 4.2 km/s, supporting their detection during sampling by spacecraft.

As astrophysics technology and research continue to advance, one question persists: is there life elsewhere in the universe? The Milky Way galaxy alone has hundreds of billions of celestial bodies, but scientists often look for three crucial elements in their ongoing search: water, energy and organic material. Evidence indicates that Saturn’s icy moon Enceladus is an ‘ocean world’ that contains all three, making it a prime target in the search for life.

During its 20-year mission, NASA’s Cassini spacecraft discovered that ice plumes spew from Enceladus’ surface at approximately 800 miles per hour (400 m/s). These plumes provide an excellent opportunity to collect samples and study the composition of Enceladus’ oceans and potential habitability.

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The prevailing scientific paradigm is that matter is primary and everything, including consciousness can be derived from the laws governing matter. Although the scientific explanation of consciousness on these lines has not been realized, in this view it is only a matter of time before consciousness will be explained through neurobiological activity in the brain, and nothing else. There is an alternative view that holds that it is fundamentally impossible to explain how subjectivity can arise solely out of material processes-“the hard problem of consciousness”-and instead consciousness should be regarded in itself as a primary force in nature. This view attempts to derive, for example, the laws of physics from models of consciousness, instead of the other way around. While as scientists we can understand and have an intuition for the first paradigm, it is very difficult to understand what “consciousness is primary” might mean since it has no intuitive scientific grounding. Here we show that worlds experienced through virtual reality (VR) are such that consciousness is a first order phenomenon. We discuss the Interface Theory of Perception which claims that in physical reality perceptions are not veridical and that we do not see the “truth” but that perception is based on evolutionary payoffs. We show that this theory may provide an accurate description of perception and consciousness within VR, and we put forward an experimental study that could throw light on this. We conclude that VR does offer an experimental frame that provides intuition with respect to the idea that “consciousness is first” and what this might mean regarding the perceived world. However, we do not draw any conclusions about the veracity of this notion with respect to physical reality or question the emergence of consciousness from brain function.

Keywords: consciousness; interface theory of perception; perception; presence; real vs. virtual; virtual reality.

Copyright © 2022 Slater and Sanchez-Vives.

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Philosophy of science.

We call it perception. We call it measurement. We call it analysis. But in the end it’s about how we take the world as it is, and derive from it the impression of it that we have in our minds.

We might have thought that we could do science “purely objectively” without any reference to observers or their nature. But what we’ve discovered particularly dramatically in our Physics Project is that the nature of us as observers is critical even in determining the most fundamental laws we attribute to the universe.

But what ultimately does an observer—say like us—do? And how can we make a theoretical framework for it? Much as we have a general model for the process of computation —instantiated by something like a Turing machine —we’d like to have a general model for the process of observation: a general “observer theory”

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Scientists have developed a model to better understand the physics of the powerful superflares emitted by stars far beyond our solar system.

Solar flares, which are rapid and strong bursts of energy and radiation that originate from the Sun’s surface, are known to be emitted into space by our Sun.

NASA’s Kepler and TESS missions, however, have discovered several stars may produce superflares that are 100–10,000 times brighter than those emitted by our Sun.

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As a leading venture capitalist, Ted Dintersmith lived and breathed the world of innovation. He has seen first-hand how quickly automation is eliminating the structured jobs in our economy, as well as the opportunities for young adults who are bold, creative, and entrepreneurial. As Ted shifted his focus to the future of our schools, he realized that the core purpose of our schools has been lost in a wave of testing, data, and accountability. In this talk, Ted underscores the potential for our kids and our country if we educate to our innovative and creative strengths, and trust our schools and teachers to prepare our kids for life, instead of for standardized tests.

After a twenty-five year career in venture capital, Ted Dintersmith is now focused on issues at the intersection of innovation and education. In the fall of 2012, Ted served as part of the delegation representing the United States at the United Nations General Assembly, where he focused on global education and entrepreneurship. The first two films he executive produced – Most Likely To Succeed and The Hunting Ground – premiered at Sundance, 2015. His website http://www.edu21c.com describes his initiatives and he can be followed @dintersmith.

Ted is a Partner Emeritus with Charles River Ventures, a leading early-stage venture capital firm. Independent industry analysts ranked Ted as the top-performing venture capitalist in the United States for the 1995–99 period. Ted earned a Ph.D. in Engineering from Stanford University, and his undergraduate degree from the College of William and Mary, where he earned High Honors in Physics and English.

This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community.

Continue reading “Prepare Our Kids for Life, Not Standardized Tests | Ted Dintersmith | TEDxFargo” | >

💥Join us on our Journey to 1 Million Subscribers💥 Liv Boeree is a British science communicator, television presenter and former professional poker player. She is a World Series of Poker and European Poker Tour champion, and is the only female player in history to have won both a WSOP bracelet and an EPT event. She has a degree in astrophysics and uses her YouTube channel @LivBoeree to discuss science, game theory, probabilities, extinction risk and AI.

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The current measurements of the expansion rate of the universe are in disagreement, leading to a crisis in cosmology and the need for renewed research efforts into new physics and a new model of the universe.

Questions to inspire discussion.

What is the crisis in cosmology?
—The crisis in cosmology refers to the disagreement between measurements of the expansion rate of the universe, leading to the need for renewed research efforts into new physics and a new model of the universe.

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