Gadgets.judah

  Most parents are products of the conventional educational system and, therefore, have little basis to consider any alternative regime. On a certain level, they may intuit that the existing system is much less than ideal, but in general, they believe that it is the only practical option. You should consider that a significant proportion of parents have some good reason to believe that the existing system is substantially a waste of time, money and effort, or that they are acting irrationally when they do not actively participate in the education of their children or generously support their funding.     As a general principle, one should not affirm the irrationality of millions of supposedly intelligent human beings without considering any other explanation for their behavior. Intellectual enrichment is undoubtedly a virtue, but it should be considered secondary to security and survival. The author did not state that the only purpose of education is job training. I mus...

   Many people play Scrabble, and these days some people pay any amount for the latest technological gadget.It would look like a regular Scrabble game, but inside the chips, there would be information that the board could read you play your chips, and the board automatically reads the word, calculates your score and adds it to your previous score - each player's score would be shown on the board for all to see.    If I wanted to challenge someone, I could press a challenge button, and the board would have the data of all the Scrabble words acceptable and not, if it was acceptable or not, and address the scores in this way they turned Battleship into an electronic battleship, I'm surprised it was not done with Scrabble.It used to be when you played bowling, you had to keep track of your score, now the electronics do it for you.    It's because electronics is no longer an exotic set of specialties. Electronics is so pervasive that all common functions h...

The new technology has potential uses in consumer communication systems, laser devices, automotive technology, and more Schematic of the realized isolator, formed by two coupled nonlinear resonators connected through a delay line. Operation of modern-day technology requires an ever-increasing use of broadband frequency signals. This, in turn, has grown the demand for reliable, efficient methods of signal transmission that prevent interference and are more efficient in their use of the scarcely available frequency spectrum. These requirements are constrained, however, by reciprocity -- a law of physics that forces the transmission of light to be identical in opposite directions.

Intense laser experiments provide first evidence that light can stop electrons Illustration of the radiation reaction effect. Summary: By hitting electrons with an ultra-intense laser, researchers have revealed dynamics that go beyond 'classical' physics and hint at quantum effects. This radiation reaction -- demonstrated in the lab for the first time -- is thought to occur around objects such as black holes and quasars By hitting electrons with an ultra-intense laser, researchers have revealed dynamics that go beyond 'classical' physics and hint at quantum effects. Whenever light hits an object, some of the light scatters back from the surface of the object. However, if the object is moving extremely fast, and if the light is incredibly intense, strange things can happen. Electrons, for example, can be shaken so violently that they actually slow down because they radiate so much energy. Physicists call this process 'radiation reaction'.

Asymmetric photocurrent extraction in semitransparent laminated flexible organic solar cells In a semi-transparent solar cell module as shown in the photograph, electrodes with two variants of the polymer PEDOT:PSS (commonly used in organic electronics) are used, where one acts as the anode and the other is modified to become the cathode. What appear as stripes across the solar cell module are lines of either cathode-type or anode-type material. The active layer that absorbs light and produces electrons is located between these electrodes. The individual solar cells are connected in series in the module. Summary: The ability to use cheap materials and simple manufacturing methods are two huge advantages of printed organic solar cells. Scientists have now developed an even simpler method to manufacture solar cell modules. The ability to use cheap materials and simple manufacturing methods are two huge advantages of printed organic solar cells. Olle Inganäs, professor at L...

Summary: An international team has shown that the puzzling properties of samarium hexaboride do not stem from the material being a topological insulator, as it had been proposed to be. Theoretical and initial experimental work had previously indicated that this material, which becomes a Kondo insulator at very low temperatures, also possessed the properties of a topological insulator. The team has now published a compelling alternative explanation. Samarium hexaboride is a dark solid with metallic properties at room temperature. It hosts Samarium, an element having several electrons confined to localized f orbitals in which they interact strongly with one another. The lower the temperature, the more apparent these interactions become. SmB6 becomes what is known as a Kondo insulator, named after Jun Kondo who was first able to explain this quantum effect.

Phase-chance switch can now be performed at higher temperatures This is a vanadium dioxide chip developed at EPFL's NANOLAB. Summary: Vanadium dioxide's unique properties make it perfect for outperforming silicon and giving rise to a new generation of low-power electronic devices. Engineers have shown how this compound can be used to create programmable radiofrequency electronic functions for aerospace communication systems. Other applications -- such as in neuromorphic computing and artificial intelligence -- are also on the cards. First came the switch. Then the transistor. Now another innovation stands to revolutionize the way we control the flow of electrons through a circuit: vanadium dioxide (VO 2 ). A key characteristic of this compound is that it behaves as an insulator at room temperature but as a conductor at temperatures above 68°C. This behavior -- also known as metal-insulator transition -- is being studied in an ambitious EU Horizon 2020 project...

Materials science and engineering postdoctoral researcher Hyungwoo Lee looks inside a thin film deposition system during oxide thin film structure growth Summary: Scientists have provided evidence of a hole gas coexisting with two-dimensional electron gas. They designed an ultrathin material, known as a thin film structure, specifically for this research. Lennon and McCartney. Abbott and Costello. Peanut butter and jelly. Think of one half of any famous duo, and the other half likely comes to mind. Not only do they complement each other, but together they work better.

Measuring the temperature of two-dimensional materials at the atomic level Summary: Researchers describe a new technique for precisely measuring the temperature and behavior of new two-dimensional materials that will allow engineers to design smaller and faster microprocessors. Researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago describe a new technique for precisely measuring the temperature and behavior of new two-dimensional materials that will allow engineers to design smaller and faster microprocessors. Their findings are reported in the journal  Physical Review Letters . Newly developed two-dimensional materials, such as graphene -- which consists of a single layer of carbon atoms -- have the potential to replace traditional microprocessing chips based on silicon, which have reached the limit of how small they can get. But engineers have been stymied by the inability to measure how temperature will affect these new materials, collectively known as transition metal ...

New material creates fuel cell catalysts at a hundredth of the cost Engineered carbon fibers embedded with active nanoparticles (top) can be fabricated into structural materials that are lightweight and flexible (bottom). Summary: Researchers now describe the development of an inexpensive, efficient catalyst material for a type of fuel cell called a polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell, which turns the chemical energy of hydrogen into electricity and is among the most promising fuel cell types to power cars and electronics. Fuel cells have the potential to be a clean and efficient way to run cars, computers, and power stations, but the cost of producing them is limiting their use. That's because a key component of the most common fuel cells is a catalyst made from the precious metal platinum. In a paper published today in  Small , researchers at the University of California, Riverside, describe the development of an inexpensive, efficient catalyst material for a...

Researchers observe electrons zipping around in crystals Calley Eads, a fifth-year doctoral student in the UA's Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, aligns a laser system used to track electrons on time-scales at the limits of what can be measured. In her research, she investigates materials that could one day bring faster computing and more efficient solar cells. Summary: For the first time, scientists have tracked electrons moving through exotic materials that may make up the next generation of computing hardware, revealing intriguing properties not found in conventional, silicon-based semiconductors The end of the silicon age has begun. As computer chips approach the physical limits of miniaturization and power-hungry processors drive up energy costs, scientists are looking to a new crop of exotic materials that could foster a new generation of computing devices that promise to push performance to new heights while skimping on energy consumption. Unlike cu...

Scientists discover 'chiral phonons' -- atomic rotations in a 2-D semiconductor crystal Experiments confirm the first chiral phonon that could enable exotic forms of electronics This diagram maps out atomic motion in separate phonon modes. At left ("LO" represents a longitudinal optical mode), selenium atoms exhibit a clockwise rotation while tungsten atoms stand still. At right ("LA" represents a longitudinal acoustic mode), tungsten atoms exhibit a clockwise rotation while selenium atoms rotate in a counterclockwise direction. Summary: A research team has found the first evidence that a shaking motion in the structure of an atomically thin material possesses a naturally occurring circular rotation that could become the building block for a new form of information technology and molecular-scale machines. A research team from the Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) has found the first evidence th...

Discoveries will help realize the promise of faster, energy-efficient spintronic computers and ultra-high-capacity data storage Summary: Engineers have reported advances in so-called 'spintronic' devices that will help lead to a new technology for computing and data storage. They have developed methods to detect signals from spintronic components made of low-cost metals and silicon, which overcomes a major barrier to wide application of spintronics. UCR researchers have developed methods to detect signals from spintronic components made of low-cost metals and silicon. Engineers at the University of California, Riverside, have reported advances in so-called "spintronic" devices that will help lead to a new technology for computing and data storage. They have developed methods to detect signals from spintronic components made of low-cost metals and silicon, which overcomes a major barrier to wide application of spintronics. Previously such devices depen...

Microtubules (MT) interact with each other through DNA molecules while moving around on the kinesin motors. A team of researchers from Hokkaido University and Kansai University has developed DNA-assisted molecular robots that autonomously swarm in response to chemical and physical signals, paving the way for developing future nano-machines. The world's smallest "swarm robot" measures 25 nanometers in diameter and 5 micrometers in length, and exhibits swarming behavior resembling motile organisms such as fish, ants and birds. "Swarm robots are one of the most elusive subjects in robotics," says Akira Kakugo of the research team at Hokkaido University. "Fish schools, ant colonies and bird flocks show fascinating features that cannot be achieved by individuals acting alone. These include the formation of complex structures, distinct divisions of labor, robustness and flexibility, all of which emerge through local interactions among the individuals ...