Topics: Materials Science, Nanotechnology, Semiconductor Technology A novel semiconducting material with high thermal conductivity can be integrated into high-power computer chips to cool them down and so improve their performance. The material, boron arsenide, is better at removing heat than the best thermal-management devices available today, according to the US-based researchers who developed it. TheContinue reading “Cooling Computer Chips…”
Author Archives: reginaldgoodwin
On Fire…
Topics: Climate Change, Existentialism, Global Warming The hundreds of climate experts who compiled the mammoth new climate report released today by the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) had to work under unprecedented pandemic conditions. At vast meetings forced online, scientists wrestled with how to convey the extent of the global crisis and the urgent needContinue reading “On Fire…”
Stop-Motion Efficiency…
Topics: Applied Physics, Electrical Engineering, Nanotechnology, Semiconductor Technology A new ultrafast imaging technique that captures the motion of atoms in nanoscale electronic devices has revealed the existence of a short-lived electronic state that could make it possible to develop faster and more energy-efficient computers. The imaging technique, which involves switching the devices on and offContinue reading “Stop-Motion Efficiency…”
Flatland…
Topics: Particle Physics, Quantum Computer, Quantum Mechanics, Theoretical Physics Flatland: “The book used the fictional two-dimensional world of Flatland to comment on the hierarchy of Victorian culture, but the novella’s more enduring contribution is its examination of dimensions.” Source: Wikipedia After decades of exploration in nature’s smallest domains, physicists have finally found evidence that anyonsContinue reading “Flatland…”
Reckoning, or Ragnarok…
Topics: Civics, Civil Rights, COVID-19, Existentialism, Fascism, Human Rights I read Mary Trump’s book “Too Much, and Never Enough,” feeling a chill when in the epilogue she predicted: “my uncle is going to get a lot of people killed.” Realize, when those words were typed on presumably her laptop, she, and all of us wereContinue reading “Reckoning, or Ragnarok…”
Breaking Physics…
Topics: Quantum Computer, Quantum Mechanics, Thermodynamics In what could prove to be a momentous accomplishment for fundamental physics and quantum physics, scientists say they’ve finally figured out how to manufacture a scientific oddity called a time crystal. Time crystals harness a quirk of physics in which they remain ever-changing yet dynamically stable. In other words,Continue reading “Breaking Physics…”
Flirting by Starlight…
Topics: Astrophysics, Electromagnetic Radiation, Entanglement, SETI When we gaze up at the night sky, we might be accidentally eavesdropping on an alien conversation. At least, that’s according to Imperial College London quantum physicist Terry Rudolph, who last week published preprint research theorizing that an advanced extraterrestrial civilization might alter the light coming off stars in order toContinue reading “Flirting by Starlight…”
The Weirdest Matter…
Topics: Condensed Matter Physics, Quantum Mechanics, Theoretical Physics Your desk is made up of individual, distinct atoms, but from far away its surface appears smooth. This simple idea is at the core of all our models of the physical world. We can describe what’s happening overall without getting bogged down in the complicated interactions betweenContinue reading “The Weirdest Matter…”
ARPA-E, and Emission-Free Metal…
Topics: Climate Change, Green Tech, Materials Science, Research When it comes to making steel greener, “only the laws of physics limit our imagination,” says Christina Chang of the Advanced Research Projects Agency–Energy (ARPA–E). Chang, an ARPA–E fellow, is seeking public input on a potential new agency program titled Steel Made via Emissions-Less Technologies. During herContinue reading “ARPA-E, and Emission-Free Metal…”
Survival of Community…
Topics: Civics, Civil Rights, Climate Change, COVID-19, Environment, Existentialism Like his more famous contemporary, Spencer was enamored with the idea of evolution. But where Darwin focused on biology, Spencer imagined that evolutionary thinking could be applied much more broadly. In his mind, it governed entire societies. Today, when Spencer is remembered at all, it is usuallyContinue reading “Survival of Community…”
Physics and Nano 