Quantum bits, or qubits, can be thought of as representing data on a sphere Google DeepMind Google DeepMind has developed an AI model that could improve the performance of quantum computers by correcting errors more effectively than any existing method, bringing these devices a step closer to broader use. Quantum computers perform calculations on quantum…
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An artist’s impression of IBM’s Eagle quantum processing unit IBM IBM has made a significant advance on the road to larger and more powerful quantum computers by linking two such devices together and performing calculations beyond the capabilities of either alone. The result is a positive sign that the company’s bet on a modular approach…
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A pigeon-inspired robot has solved the mystery of how birds fly without the vertical tail fins that human-designed aircraft rely on. Its makers say the prototype could eventually lead to passenger aircraft with less drag, reducing fuel consumption. Tail fins, also known as vertical stabilisers, allow aircraft to turn from side to side and help…
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An artist’s depiction of a system showing its host star, transiting planet and misaligned protoplanetary disc NASA/JPL-Caltech/R. Hurt, K. Miller (Caltech/IPAC) A world seen orbiting a 3-million-year-old star about 520 light years from Earth is one of the youngest known planets, offering a window into early planet formation. The star is an early-stage dwarf star,…
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It hasn’t been a good year for people who care about climate change. A hoped-for peak in carbon emissions has failed to emerge, meaning we continue to warm the planet at an accelerating rate (see “Humanity has warmed the planet by 1.5°C since 1700”). Meanwhile, the election of Donald Trump for a second term as…
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Can AI replicate individual humans? gremlin/Getty Images An experiment simulating more than 1000 real people using the artificial intelligence model behind ChatGPT has successfully replicated their unique thoughts and personalities with high accuracy, sparking concerns about the ethics of mimicking individuals in this way. Joon Sung Park at Stanford University in California and his colleagues…
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Source: Global Biogeochemical Cycles Human-caused climate change is driving an increase in extreme weather. Heat waves, droughts, and extreme precipitation are occurring more frequently, growing more intense, and directly affecting ecosystem function. For instance, the 2003 European heat wave—the continent’s hottest summer in centuries—caused a substantial die-off of Sphagnum moss in alpine bogs, and the…
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California’s San Andreas Fault is renowned for its large and destructive earthquakes. But some stretches of the fault slide in slow motion, with minimal or no earthquake activity. These “creeping” fault segments slip steadily, releasing stresses that would otherwise accumulate and trigger large earthquakes. “This has very important implications for where to expect earthquakes versus…
Editors’ Highlights are summaries of recent papers by AGU’s journal editors. Source: AGU Advances Plate tectonics is a part of mantle convection. However, planetary evolution includes both thermal and compositional effects. During seafloor spreading, for example, the upper mantle material is fractionated into basaltic crust and a harzburgite layer. Recent seismological studies and geodynamic models…
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The sun’s upper atmosphere, or corona, in ultraviolet light ESA & NASA/Solar Orbiter/EUI Team These fiery images are the clearest views we have ever had of the sun, taken by the Solar Orbiter spacecraft. Solar Orbiter, a joint mission between the European Space Agency (ESA) and NASA, is the most advanced instrument to orbit the…
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