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Published

Geneticists discover hidden 'whole genome duplication' that may explain why some species survived mass extinctions      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Geneticists have unearthed a major event in the ancient history of sturgeons and paddlefish that has significant implications for the way we understand evolution. They have pinpointed a previously hidden 'whole genome duplication' (WGD) in the common ancestor of these species, which seemingly opened the door to genetic variations that may have conferred an advantage around the time of a major mass extinction some 200 million years ago.

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Published

Symmetry breaking by ultrashort light pulses opens new quantum pathways for coherent phonons      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have demonstrated a novel concept for exciting and probing coherent phonons in crystals of a transiently broken symmetry. The key of this concept lies in reducing the symmetry of a crystal by appropriate optical excitation, as has been shown with the prototypical crystalline semimetal bismuth (Bi).

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Published

Robot centipedes go for a walk      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers show how their multilegged walking robot can be steered by inducing a dynamic instability. By making the couplings between segments more flexible, the robot changes from walking straight to moving in a curved path. This work can lead to more energy-efficient and reliable robotic navigation of terrain.

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Published

Forging a dream material with semiconductor quantum dots      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have succeeded in creating a 'superlattice' of semiconductor quantum dots that can behave like a metal, potentially imparting exciting new properties to this popular class of materials.

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Published

Snapshots of photoinjection      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Ultrafast laser physicists from the attoworld team have gained new insights into the dynamics of electrons in solids immediately after photoinjection.

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Published

Quantum scientists accurately measure power levels one trillion times lower than usual      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Scientists have developed a nanodevice that can measure the absolute power of microwave radiation down to the femtowatt level at ultra-low temperatures -- a scale trillion times lower than routinely used in verifiable power measurements. The device has the potential to significantly advance microwave measurements in quantum technology.

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Weevils, long-nosed beetles, are unsung heroes of pollination      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Some of nature's most diverse pollinators often go unnoticed, even by scientists: long-snouted beetles called weevils. A new study provides a deep dive into the more than 600 species of weevils, including ones whose entire life cycles are interwoven with a specific plant that they help pollinate.

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Published

Engineers harvest abundant clean energy from thin air, 24/7      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A team of engineers has recently shown that nearly any material can be turned into a device that continuously harvests electricity from humidity in the air. Researchers describe the 'generic Air-gen effect'-- nearly any material can be engineered with nanopores to harvest, cost effective, scalable, interruption-free electricity. The secret lies in being able to pepper the material with nanopores less than 100 nanometers in diameter.

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Published

Quantum matter breakthrough: Tuning density waves      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Scientists have found a new way to create a crystalline structure called a 'density wave' in an atomic gas. The findings can help us better understand the behavior of quantum matter, one of the most complex problems in physics.

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Published

Move over, armadillos: There's a new bone-plated mammal in town      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Armadillos have long been considered to be the only living mammals that produce protective bony plates. But a new study unexpectedly shows that African spiny mice produce the same structures beneath the skin of their tails, which until now had gone largely undetected.

Chemistry: General Physics: General Physics: Quantum Computing
Published

Stretching metals at the atomic level allows researchers to create important materials for quantum, electronic, and spintronic applications      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A University of Minnesota Twin Cities-led team has developed a first-of-its-kind breakthrough method that makes it easier to create high-quality metal oxide films that are important for various next generation applications such as quantum computing and microelectronics.

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Published

Fossil of mosasaur with bizarre 'screwdriver teeth' found in Morocco      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Scientists have discovered a new species of mosasaur, a sea-dwelling lizard from the age of the dinosaurs, with strange, ridged teeth unlike those of any known reptile. Along with other recent finds from Africa, it suggests that mosasaurs and other marine reptiles were evolving rapidly up until 66 million years ago, when they were wiped out by an asteroid along with the dinosaurs and around 90% of all species on Earth.

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Published

Uncovering universal physics in the dynamics of a quantum system      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

New experiments using one-dimensional gases of ultra-cold atoms reveal a universality in how quantum systems composed of many particles change over time following a large influx of energy that throws the system out of equilibrium.

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Published

Curved spacetime in a quantum simulator      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The connection between quantum physics and the theory of relativity is extremely hard to study. But now, scientists have set up a model system, which can help: Quantum particles can be tuned in such a way that the results can be translated into information about other systems, which are much harder to observe. This kind of 'quantum simulator' works very well and can lead to new insights about the nature of relativity and quantum physics.

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Published

Is it an ant? Is it a plant? No, it's a spider!      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A species of tiny, colorful jumping spider employs two lines of defense to avoid being eaten: camouflaging with plants and walking like an ant. Researchers report that this combination of camouflage and movement mimicry helps the spiders evade spider-eating spiders but does not deter hungry praying mantises.

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Published

With new experimental method, researchers probe spin structure in 2D materials for first time      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

In the study, a team of researchers describe what they believe to be the first measurement showing direct interaction between electrons spinning in a 2D material and photons coming from microwave radiation.

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Published

Researcher uses artificial intelligence to discover new materials for advanced computing      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have identified novel van der Waals (vdW) magnets using cutting-edge tools in artificial intelligence (AI). In particular, the team identified transition metal halide vdW materials with large magnetic moments that are predicted to be chemically stable using semi-supervised learning. These two-dimensional (2D) vdW magnets have potential applications in data storage, spintronics, and even quantum computing.

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Physicists discover 'stacked pancakes of liquid magnetism'      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Physicists have discovered stacked pancakes of 'liquid' magnetism that may account for the strange electronic behavior of some layered helical magnets.