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NASA to Host In-Flight Interview with First Indigenous Woman in Space, Nicole Aunapu Mann – Native News Online

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

Tomorrow, people around the world will get the chance to see the first-ever Indigenous woman in space in a live-streamed in-flight interview withNicole Aunapu Mann (Wailacki of the Round Valley Indian Tribes).

NASA selected Mann to become an astronaut in 2013. She is a California native with a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering and a Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering. Mann is a Colonel in the U.S. Marine Corps and served as a test pilot in the F/A-18 Hornet and Super Hornet. Additionally, she deployed twice aboard aircraft carriers to support combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.

I didnt figure that out until a little bit later on in life as a young girl growing up in Northern California, Mann said. I was certainly interested in math and science, but I didnt really realize that being an astronaut was in the realm of possibility. So it wasnt until I was flying jets in the Marine Corps, looking at my future career options, that I started looking at potentially becoming a test pilot and, from there, an astronaut. It took me a little time to get it all figured out.

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NASA to Host In-Flight Interview with First Indigenous Woman in Space, Nicole Aunapu Mann - Native News Online

Pittsburgh’s Moonshot Museum offers a window into space exploration by inviting you to be part of it – Fox Weather

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

Sam Moore, Executive Director of the Moonshot Museum, joined FOX Weather to give a preview of the museum as it opens on Saturday.

PITTSBURGH A visit to the new Moonshot Museum in Pittsburgh is all the convincing you should need that Western Pennsylvania is about to enter the same class as well-known space towns such as Houston, Cape Canaveral and Huntsville with storied roles in spaceflight.

Focusing on the achievements of present and future space exploration, the Moonshot Museum is the only place in the country where you can watch engineers in a clean room work on a robot destined for another world without special access.

That experience is possible because the museum is located within Astrobotic's headquarters on Pittsburgh's north side. The lunar logistics and robotic company set aside 3,000 square feet to make room for the nonprofit museum and provide a window into their work.

"The real spark is when people step into the space for the first time, and they go, 'Oh, you weren't kidding. I am 10 feet away from a lunar spacecraft right now. I am waving through the glass to the engineers who are building, technicians who are building the spacecraft on the other side of the glass.'" Moonshot Museum Executive Director Sam Moore said.

ULA TARGETS EARLY 2023 FOR FIRST VULCAN ROCKET LAUNCH FROM CAPE CANAVERAL WITH MOON LANDER

Astrobotic is currently targeting early 2023 to launch the Peregrine moon lander, a mission that will carry the first NASA payloads to the moon under the Artemis program, setting the stage for a human landing in 2025.

Astrobotic engineers work on the Peregrine lunar lander at the company's headquarters in Pittsburgh, which is also home to the Moonshot Museum where visitors can see views into the cleanroom. (Image credit: Astrobotic)

Astrobotic's mission control is also located in the same building. During a mission, the museum will transform to be a seat at the table in mission control. All the screens in the building will carry a live feed from mission control, and the museum has events planned around the Peregrine moon landing.

The museum held a few soft openings ahead of the grand opening Saturday. The reactions so far validate the unique experience now open to everyone.

Moore said a local college student and space enthusiast became emotional when she saw the clean room for the first time.

"That moment where she could come in and stand on the other side of the glass. Take a look at this work that's happening behind me," Moore said, pointing to the clean room. "It was an overwhelming moment for her, and it was very, very cool to be here for that."

Among the goals of the nonprofit museum is to make sure their guests know there is a place in space for them, especially visiting students of all ages. While astronauts and rocket scientists are well-known career paths, making any space mission possible requires many different jobs.

"The reality is that it takes folks who can work on HVAC systems, and it takes folks who can market the space industry," Moore said. "It takes policymakers, and it takes designers to inspire the next generation of spacecraft."

A visitor to Moonshot can experience real space industry challenges, including assembling a lunar lander, finding a site for a moon base and learning how to survive in the lunar environment. The concept is that each interactive exhibit will introduce visitors to real careers within the space industry.

The Moonshot Museum has partnered with Pittsburgh Public Schools, Carnegie Mellon University, Saint Francis University and STEM education nonprofits to develop student-driven experiences. Moore said the museum will work specifically with both middle school and high school students to make sure those students know that, "space is on the menu for them in Pittsburgh."

"We want to get people up close to this work," Moore said. "We want them to find their place in the future of space exploration, and we want them to leave knowing that this is happening here in their backyard and that they can be involved in it."

The museum will be open Wednesday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission is $10 for adults, $5 for children and free for children 2 and under.

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Pittsburgh's Moonshot Museum offers a window into space exploration by inviting you to be part of it - Fox Weather

From the Space Shuttle to Starship | 90.7 WMFE – WMFE

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

Backdropped by a blue and white part of Earth, space shuttle Discovery is featured in this image photographed by an Expedition 26 crew member as the shuttle approaches the International Space Station during STS-133 rendezvous and docking operations. Docking occurred at 2:14 p.m. (EST) on Feb. 26, 2011. Photo: NASA

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For three decades, the Space Shuttle program carried 355 astronauts into orbit on 135 missions.

And it took a team of thousands of engineers, technicians and other employees to keep the program flying. A new documentary When We Were Shutte tells the stories of those working behind the scenes and what the program meant to them.

Well speak with director Zackary Weil about the film.

Then, SpaceX is making progress on its Starship spacecraftand work continues here in Florida at the Kennedy Space Center. Well hear from NASA Spaceflight dot coms managing editor Chris Gebhardt about the latest from Starbase and KSC.

RSVP to the Thursday, October 20 screening of When We Were Shuttle at Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex.

Your trusted news source for the latest Central Florida news, updates on special programs and more.

WMFE Journalistic Ethics Code | Public Media Code of Integrity

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From the Space Shuttle to Starship | 90.7 WMFE - WMFE

All of the World’s Spaceports on One Map – Visual Capitalist

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

Ranked: The Worlds Most Surveilled Cities

This may come as a surprise, but it wasnt until 2007 that the global urban population overtook the rural population. At that time, the two groups were split nearly 50/50, with around 3.3 billion people apiece.

Today, the percentage of people living in urban areas has grown to over 55%, and is expected to reach 68% by 2050. Due to this trend, many of the worlds largest cities have become home to tens of millions of people.

In response to such incredible density, governments, businesses, and households have installed countless security cameras for various purposes including crime protection. To grasp the scale of this surveillance, weve taken data from a recent report by Comparitech to visualize the most surveilled cities in the world.

Excluding China for the time being, these are the worlds 10 most surveilled cities.

Figures rounded

The top four cities all belong to India, which is the worlds second largest country by population. Surveillance cameras are playing a major role in the countrys efforts to reduce crimes against women.

Further down the list are cities from a variety of countries. One of these is Russia, which has expanded its use of surveillance cameras in recent years. Given the countrys track record of human rights violations, activists are worried that facial recognition technology could become a tool of oppression.

The only U.S. city on the list is Los Angeles, which contains some of the countrys wealthiest neighborhoods and municipalities. That includes Beverly Hills, which according to the Los Angeles Times, has over 2,000 cameras for its population of 32,500. That translates to about 62 cameras per 1,000 people, meaning that Beverly Hills would finish at #2 in the global ranking if it were listed as a separate entity.

IHS Markit estimates that as of 2021, there are over 1 billion surveillance cameras installed worldwide. The firm also believes that 54% of these cameras are located in China.

Because of limited transparency, its impossible to pinpoint how many cameras are actually in each Chinese city. However, if we assume that China has 540 million cameras and divide that amongst its population of 1.46 billion, we can reasonably say that there are 373 cameras per 1,000 people (figures rounded).

A limitation of this approach is that it assumes everyone in China lives in a city, which is far from reality. The most recent World Bank figures suggest that 37% of Chinas population is rural, which equates to over 500 million people.

With this in mind, the number of cameras per 1,000 people in a Tier 1+ Chinese city (e.g. Shanghai) is likely far greater than 373.

Chinas expansive use of cameras and facial recognition technology has been widely documented in the media. These networks enable the countrys social credit program, which gives local governments an unprecedented amount of oversight over its citizens.

For example, Chinas camera networks can be used to verify ATM withdrawals, permit access into homes, and even publicly shame people for minor offences like jaywalking.

This might sound like a dystopian nightmare to Western audiences, but according to Chinese citizens, its mostly a good thing. In a 2018 survey of 2,209 citizens, 80% of respondents approved of social credit systems.

If youre interested in learning more about surveillance in Chinese cities, consider this video from The Economist, which explores the opportunities and dangers of comprehensive state control.

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All of the World's Spaceports on One Map - Visual Capitalist

Where No Policy Has Gone Before: Insuring the Risks of Doing Business in Space – Workers Comp Forum

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

Richard Parker has 29 years of experience in the space industry. He is currently head of space insurance at Canopius and divisional president of Assure Space, an underwriting agency that provides space insurance, which he co-founded in 2011.

As we enter a new frontier of space development, the insurance industry is playing a key role in propelling space endeavors.

Considering that a typical telecommunications satellite in geostationary orbit costs around $200 million, and launching it into its proper orbit costs another $100 million, space insurance is essential for financing commercial space ventures.

Commercial human spaceflight has arrived. Rockets from companies run by Richard Branson, Jeff Bezos, and Elon Musk are regularly going to space. Massive satellite constellations in low-Earth orbit are being built to provide global satellite services.

And new commercial missions are being planned to return humans to the moon and to explore Mars by the end of the decade. These endeavors represent both opportunities and risks for space insurers.

Most space-related insurance to date has centered around the satellite services on which modern life increasingly depends.

In our interconnected, data-driven world, spacecraft provide a vital link in telecommunications and internet infrastructure. Satellites enable internet, television, banking, Earth observation, the Global Positioning System (GPS), weather, national defense, and communication between cell towers and networks in remote areas.

With increasing satellite launches driven by demand for broadband, the need to replace older satellites, and more regular resupply schedules for the International Space Station (ISS), considerable opportunities exist for space insurers.

Spacecraft and the rockets that launch them are becoming increasingly more complex, as are the business applications that ensure their seamless integration into our daily lives. This, combined with a limited number of launches per year and the potential for large losses, makes space insurance one of the most challenging types of insurance to underwrite.

In addition, two new challenges are significantly affecting the core business of space insurers.

The first is the risk of collision due to an increasing number of objects in low-Earth orbit. The deployment of over 2,000 satellites for Starlink and OneWeb into an already-congested environment containing both active and derelict satellites and rocket bodies has greatly raised the probability of collision. Recent anti-satellite demonstrations have added to the amount of both trackable and un-trackable debris in these orbits.

Potential regulation surrounding debris in low-Earth orbit is possible, as space debris could ultimately cause significant losses for space insurers and limit the use of certain orbits. How it will be cleaned up and who will fund these efforts could affect space insurance in terms of risk analysis and the potential to insure debris removal operations.

Tracking technology, automatic collision avoidance systems, debris removal, and in-orbit servicing also have the potential to reduce the risk of collision.

The second new challenge facing space insurers is the introduction of new launch vehicles. Several companies are currently developing rockets, both small and large.

For these vehicles to be commercially successful, they will need paying customers, who in turn will need insurance, for early flights. Insurers will then have to decide whether to insure the first, second, or third launch of a new rocket.

Renewed interest in space exploration, as well as the predicted rise of the space-for-space industry (when goods and services are produced in space for use in space), are fueling a number of emerging space endeavors. For example, NASA is working on multiple moon missions as a prelude to returning humans to the moon by 2024 and establishing a potential staging point for traveling onto Mars.

Many of these missions will be implemented by the commercial space industry. Their objectives will include mapping, demonstrating technology, and exploring the moons natural resources.

Many other countries are also working on moon missions; some will orbit the moon, others will land, and some will deploy rovers for detailed exploration. Canopius is already considering the requirements for space insurance for all or elements of these missions.

Space tourism is another new project. In addition to buying a seat on a commercial rocket into space, a private citizen can pay NASA to take a trip to the ISS.

To date, most space tourism has been funded by high-net-worth individuals who have not typically sought insurance. As additional players enter the market, they will need access to both insurance and funding for cutting-edge space projects.

The space insurance industry cautiously welcomes growth in commercial space endeavors. New launch vehicles, new satellite technology, and ambitious space missions require careful analysis of the design, manufacture, and testing of the hardware.

Underwriters need to be comfortable with the heritage, margins, and redundancy of these programs. Policy expertise is needed to ensure that the coverage is appropriate and addresses all potential scenarios. Financial modeling of individual space insurance risks and the overall space portfolio is necessary to calculate premium, establish strategy, and ensure results.

Much excitement in the space industry stems from innovative ideas that are pushing well beyond the boundaries of traditional space exploration or commercial satellite use.

Many space-related entrepreneurial business opportunities are being explored. Some of these include sending objects to space for the sole purpose of raising their value once back on Earth, increasing use of Earth observation combined with artificial intelligence, assembling spacecraft with components already in space, expanding the internet of things, and mining asteroids for materials to construct habitats or fueling stations.

Indeed, a boom in the space-for-space economy is not only possible, its expected. It may soon be possible to assemble commercial satellites in space, further reducing risk and launch costs. Again, insurers will facilitate these opportunities by providing coverage for the first-party physical loss of the assets involved, likely a requisite to secure funding.

Evolving legislation opens the possibility for additional space-related risks and resulting insurance implications. Increased regulation of the commercial space industry is imminent as the congressionally-mandated learning period surrounding space travel ends in 2023.

The commercial space industry, worried about onerous regulations slowing progress made in space travel, may be in direct opposition to those members of Congress who feel space travel should be regulated like commercial aviation.

Space insurance is important for both existing and future commercial space endeavors. It provides financial protection for current satellite operators, new entrepreneurs, and investors in an industry facing potential significant losses due to collisions in orbit, failure of launch vehicles or spacecraft, and loss of human life.

If insurers pull back from space by reducing exposures or coverage, or dramatically increasing premiums, the effect will be felt across the whole space industry. &

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Where No Policy Has Gone Before: Insuring the Risks of Doing Business in Space - Workers Comp Forum

New Publication from Exosome Diagnostics Demonstrates Proof-of-Concept for Monitoring Astronaut Health in Space – Yahoo Finance

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

Study indicates that noninvasive exosome-based liquid biopsy would be feasible for monitoring health and disease in people traveling in space

MINNEAPOLIS, Oct. 18, 2022 /PRNewswire/ --Bio-Techne Corporation (NASDAQ: TECH) today announced that Exosome Diagnostics, a Bio-Techne brand, has reported results from a proof-of-concept study for a novel exosome-based platform that could monitor key biological changes in astronauts in space. The peer-reviewed publication was issued in npj Microgravity, a Nature publication.

Astronauts who return from microgravity environments in space often suffer from vision impairment, intracranial pressure, and other health problems that are not well understood. Collectively, these symptoms are known as spaceflight-associated neuro-ocular syndrome (SANS). As astronauts are sent on longer missions, and as commercial spaceflight allows non-astronauts to reach microgravity, there is increasing demand for research into the biological mechanisms responsible for SANS and a reliable technique for diagnosing the syndrome.

Exosomes are particles packed with molecular cargo, including proteins and RNA, that are released by cells as part of a natural cell-to-cell communication system. Their molecular contents can reveal important information about health and disease. Exosomes are found in bodily fluids such as blood, cerebrospinal fluid, and urine. They can be accessed with noninvasive liquid biopsy methods, making them an ideal solution to the challenge of monitoring dynamic changes in astronauts traveling in space.

In the study reported in npj Microgravity, scientists from Exosome Diagnostics, Baylor College of Medicine, and NASA contractor KBR demonstrated that exosomes could be extracted from biofluids collected at the International Space Station and stored for future analysis, and that their molecular contents could reveal transcriptome-wide information about key pathways that could shed light on SANS.

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"Exosome Diagnostics has spent years developing and optimizing a platform for whole-transcriptome profiling based on exosome isolation and analysis. Our platform is designed for noninvasive monitoring of health and disease with a depth and breadth that are not possible using other approaches," said Johan Skog, Chief Scientific Officer and Vice President at Exosome Diagnostics. "We have worked closely with NASA to ensure that this technology will be applicable for space travelers, who are exposed to microgravity, different air composition, and radiation. This demonstration clearly shows that exosome-based analysis is a feasible and powerful approach for longitudinal monitoring of the dynamic biological changes that may arise from those conditions."

"We are excited about the potential for our technology to keep astronauts healthier, and also believe that our multi-analyte exosome analysis platform will enable a wide range of precision medicine applications here on Earth," said Kim Kelderman, President of the Diagnostics and Genomics Segment at Bio-Techne. "With an extremely robust and reproducible workflow, our approach to exosome analysis is useful for any research group interested in pathway profiling, patient stratification, and biomarker development."

Paper cited: Chakrabortty, S.K., Khodor, Y.L., Kitchen, R.R. et al. Exosome based analysis for Space Associated Neuro-Ocular Syndrome and health risks in space exploration. npj Microgravity 8, 40 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41526-022-00225-4https://www.nature.com/articles/s41526-022-00225-4

About Bio-Techne Corporation(NASDAQ: TECH)Contact: David Clair, Vice President, Investor Relationsdavid.clair@bio-techne.com612-656-441

Bio-Techne

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New Publication from Exosome Diagnostics Demonstrates Proof-of-Concept for Monitoring Astronaut Health in Space - Yahoo Finance

Orbex raises $63 million to help fund 1st vertical rocket launch from UK – Space.com

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

More money is pouring into the race to launch the first vertical rocket from the United Kingdom.

Scotland's Orbex received 40.4 million (roughly $63 million) in a Series C fundraising round as satellite launch activity accelerates rapidly in the region via companies like Virgin Orbit, Lockheed Martin and Astra.

Orbex CEO Chris Larmour stated Tuesday (Oct. 18) that his company has made "significant" strides in getting its environmentally friendly small-satellite launching rocket ready for action after the booster, called Prime, was unveiled to the public in May.

In photos: First look inside Orbex's Scotland rocket factory

Orbex has already notched numerous milestones including new customers, more manufacturing and "rapid development and testing" of Prime, Larmour said in the statement. "We're delighted to have closed this new funding round led by the Scottish National Investment Bank," he added.

Orbex has said it wants to get its Prime rocket off the ground later this year at Space Hub Sutherland, a new spaceport in northern Scotland that received planning permission in August 2020.

The 62-foot (19-meter) Prime is just one of a set of rockets competing for the small satellite business in the United Kingdom, however. The race to launch space rockets from the U.K. has attracted a clutch of companies seeking to prove not only business smarts, but environmental sensitivity as they launch in protected coastal areas or near heritage monuments.

Related: The UK really wants commercial spaceports. Will they see rockets fly in 2022?

A veteran Scottish rocket startup, Skyrora, plans orbital launches in 2023 from the Shetland Islands' SaxaVord Spaceport, using the 74-foot (22.7 meters) Skyrora XL. Skyrora has sent smaller rockets aloft before, but failed a debut vertical rocket launch to suborbital space earlier this month in Iceland with the 36-foot (11 m) Skylark L. Skyrora sent a shipping container to the Icelandic launch site with all the necessary rocket launch materials to make minimal mark on the coastal landscape, the company said at the time.

Lockheed Martin and its launch partner, ABL Space Systems, had hoped to launch into space from SaxaVord in 2022, but development and regulatory delays forced a slip into next year, according to SpaceNews (opens in new tab). ABL has yet to perform a test launch of the RS1 rocket from Kodiak Island in Alaska, which was initially slated for early 2022.

ABL may be close to that test launch; the usually quiet company announced via Twitter (opens in new tab) in September that they are finalizing their launch window with the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration. Last week, ABL released footage (opens in new tab) of a test fire of their E2 engines for an expected RS1 flight in Mojave, California.

Even Astra, a company based in California, is eyeing SaxaVord with hopes to launch ahead of the competition. The company already sent rockets to space from Kodiak Island and from Cape Canaveral, Florida. SaxaVord would offer even more orbital options for existing clients and launches may happen there as soon as 2023, Astra has said.

Related: Spaceport construction set to begin on UK's northernmost island

Horizontal launch capability is also coming to the UK soon. Virgin Orbit, which aims to send satellites into space from a horizontal rocket flying aboard a modified 747 plane known as Cosmic Girl, is readying to launch within weeks from another startup spaceport in Cornwall, on the southernmost tip of British land.

A quieter competitor, Black Arrow Space Technologies, is working on horizontal rocket launches using a repurposed crude bulk carrier near the coast of Wales. It is aiming for a maiden launch in 2023 using a small rocket to launch into low Earth orbit, with plans to heft as much as 5.5 tons (5 metric tons) on a larger launcher sometime down the line.

Outside of the U.K. there are even more European companies racing for orbital business, such as Bavaria's Rocket Factory Augsburg and Munich's Isar Aerospace, both of which have 2023 launches on the roster. Examples of other European competitors include HyImpulse, which is a spinoff from the German Aerospace Center, and Spain's PLD Space for suborbital launches.

Follow Elizabeth Howell on Twitter@howellspace (opens in new tab). Follow us on Twitter@Spacedotcom (opens in new tab)orFacebook (opens in new tab).

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Orbex raises $63 million to help fund 1st vertical rocket launch from UK - Space.com

Bay Area’s ‘The Infinite’ VR show is tribute to light, space – SFGATE

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

A couple of ground rules for living on the International Space Station: You never wear shoes (socks are just fine), and there is no shame in existing among clutter.

From my perspective, as viewed through immersive virtual reality goggles and headphones while inside a warehouse in the East Bay, the astronauts who float above Earth inside the space station are shoeless and messy.

I saw hallways crammed with boxes like ice cubes at the bottom of a glass, and there were floating wires sprouting out from the walls. The casual atmosphere helped to acculturate me to an otherwise out-of-world experience.

SFGATE travel editor Silas Valentino wears a VR headset as part of "The Infinite," an immersive space experience currently housedinside the Craneway Pavilion on the Richmond waterfront.

Like a ghost of the space station, I watched as astronauts floated between their regular duties growing greens in space, pumping iron to keep their muscles active and gazing over continents on the nearby blue planet relying on a calculated schedule to keep them, well, grounded.

The space station makes 16 orbits of Earth in a 24-hour period. Meaning, the astronauts are traveling through 16 sunrises and sunsets a day. To keep their sanity and busy workload, they abide by a constant schedule. Sometimes they need a reminder to return to their sleep chamber, which is attached to the ceiling and straps them in.

At 254 miles above us, the astronauts are no longer earthlings, but that doesnt mean theyve sacrificed their humanity. And drawing this connection is exactly the goal of the exhibit. Dubbed Space Explorers: The Infinite,the VR experience occupies part of the Craneway Pavilion in Richmond, which was once a Ford assembly plant located along the Richmond shoreline.

Astronaut Joseph R. Tanner, STS-115 mission specialist, waves toward the digital still camera of his spacewalk colleague, astronaut Heidemarie M. Stefanyshyn-Piper as the two share extravehicular activity (EVA) duties during the first of three scheduled spacewalks. The STS-115 astronauts and the Expedition 13 crewmembers are joining efforts this week to resume construction of the International Space Station.

Customers of The Infinite try out there headsets at Craneway Pavilion in Richmond on Thursday Oct. 13, 2022.

SFGATE culture editor Dan Gentile wears a VR headset as part of The Infinite, an immersive space experience currently housedinside the Craneway Pavilion on the Richmond waterfront, on Thursday Oct. 13, 2022.

A scene from VR scenes of The Infinite, an immersive space experience currently on display at Craneway Pavilion.

Footage from the International Space Station, upper left and lower right, is showcased in "The Infinite," which attendees view through a VR headset. (Images courtesy of The Infinite & by Charles Russo/SFGATE) Footage from the International Space Station, upper left and lower right, is showcased in "The Infinite," which attendees view through a VR headset. (Images courtesy of The Infinite & by Charles Russo/SFGATE)

The exhibition opened last week and will run until the end of the year, with the possibility of an extension. A joint venture of PHI Studio and Felix & Paul Studios, Space Explorers: The Infinite is a traveling circus that uses state-of-the-art technology (in particular, the Oculus Quest 2 headset) to place attendees inside the space station.

Each person is given a headset, and after a bit of fun initiation including a voiceover explaining how we are all a tribute to light and space you enter a large room with lightly padded flooring. After settling into your digital visuals, youre taught to avoid the red lines that indicate the barrier and to avoid stepping too close to other humans.

Jenna Starkey of San Francisco tries on the VR headset at "The Infinite," an immersive space experience currently housedinside the Craneway Pavilion on the Richmond waterfront.

The experience is broken up into four sections that softly guide you along to experiencing everyday life on the International Space Station. The finale has you seated in a theaterlike chair to sit back and view a spacewalk outside the station and above Earth.

The experience ends up becoming one part Neil Armstrong and one part P.T. Barnum. It is a dazzling outing and even brought a member of my group to tears by the time we returned to Earth.

Tickets for adults range from $44 on weekdays to $54 on weekends, and for children ages 8-12, its $24 on weekdays and $29 on weekends. The experience is wheelchair accessible and lasts for about an hour.

An advertisement on the exterior of the Craneway Pavilion in Richmond advertises "The Infinite," an immersive space experience currently housed inside.

Compared to Jeff Bezos Blue Origin (where a seat on a 2021 space flight was auctioned off for $28 million) or Virgin Galactics SpaceShipTwo (for which tickets are $450,000), the $54 ticket price for The Infinite feels manageable for the rest of us.

The experience is based on the series Space Explorers: The ISS Experience, which is billed as the largest production ever filmed in space, and its producers are not hyperbolic. Felix & Paul Studios worked with Time Studios to collaborate with the U.S. International Space Station National Laboratory, NASA and five other international space agencies.

The footage you see was shot over three years to compile more than 250 hours of virtual reality footage. The visual insights into life in space are parsed down into 60 mini clips that attendees activate by slapping at a glowing orb. To watch all 60 orbs would take at least two hours, and you really only have 35 minutes to spend inside the experience a wise marketing move by the producers to lure visitors back.

Attendees explore virtual space inside the Craneway Pavilion in Richmond as part of "The Infinite" on Oct. 13.

The show was designed and constructed in Montreal. For footage, the producers communicated with NASA in Houston to send directives to the astronauts on the space station. This was perhaps the most elaborate movie shoot of all time, and to top it off, the Canadarm contributed to some of the exterior shots from outside the space station.

Once the exhibit was finalized, it premiered in Montreal in July 2021, staying until November 2021. The plan is to stop in three cities per year until 2026. Prior to the Bay Area, the tour stopped in Houston and Tacoma, Washington.

Co-CEO Eric Albert told me it takes three weeks to set up each installation, and they hire about 50 people from each city to help put on the show. He added that the show is continuously evolving and adding or subtracting video clips for the orbs.

The Bay Area is the first to see a new clip from September 2019 of the astronauts gathering around the dinner table on the space station to celebrate one of the International Space Station crew members. Astronaut Hazza Al Mansouri from the United Arab Emirates was gifted a harmonica by one of his crewmates.

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Hazza, I know its not your birthday, he begins to say before another astronaut cuts him off.

Every day is your birthday in space! she says, as the crew continues floating in the most peculiar way.

A scene from "The Infinite," an immersive space experience currently on display at the Craneway Pavilion in Richmond.

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Bay Area's 'The Infinite' VR show is tribute to light, space - SFGATE

NASA asteroid-sampling mission on track for delivery next year – Space.com

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

The spacecraft at the center of NASA's first asteroid sample return mission has altered its trajectory in preparation for its return to Earth next year.

On Sept. 21 OSIRIS-REx spacecraft fired its thrusters for 30 seconds for a course correction. This is the first time the spacecraft carrying a sample of the near-Earth asteroid Bennu has altered its trajectory since leaving the space rock on May 10, 2021.

Asteroids are made up of material that is left over from the beginning of the solar system and the formation of its planets, including Earth. Scientists hope that by studying the dust and rock OSIRIS-REx returns on Sept. 24, 2023, they could learn more about the building blocks of the solar system, and potentially even those of life itself.

Related: The greatest asteroid missions of all time!

The sample-return mission OSIRIS-REx, formally known as the Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security-Regolith Explorer, is tasked with completing what is far from a straightforward "parcel drop," according to NASA.

The spacecraft must approach Earth with a precise speed and in the right direction to deliver the capsule containing the sample collected from Bennu to the planet's atmosphere safely.

"If the capsule is angled too high, it will skip off the atmosphere," Mike Moreau, OSIRIS-REx deputy project manager at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland, said in a statement. "Angled too low, it will burn up in Earth's atmosphere."

Additional course corrections like this one, therefore, will be essential over the coming year to ensure that the success of the seven-year-long mission, which launched on Sept. 8, 2016, and arrived at Bennu on Oct. 20, 2020.

If OSIRIS-REx stayed on its current trajectory, the spacecraft would pass Earth at a distance of about 1,370 miles (2,200 kilometers), so in July 2023, the spacecraft will begin a series of steering maneuvers.

"Over the next year, we will gradually adjust the OSIRIS-REx trajectory to target the spacecraft closer to Earth," Daniel Wibben, trajectory and maneuver design lead with KinetX Inc., which partners with Lockheed Martin's team that steers the spacecraft, said in the statement. "We have to cross Earth's orbit at the time that Earth will be at that same location."

The process will bring the spacecraft to around 155 miles (250 km) of Earth's surface. This is close enough to release its sample capsule into the atmosphere for a parachute-guided precision landing at the Air Force's Utah Test and Training Range in the Great Salt Lake Desert.

Next, NASA personnel will take the returned cargo to a newly built and specially engineered curation lab at Johnson Space Center in Houston. Scientists will use equipment such as specialized gloveboxes, tools and storage containers, all of which are being designed to keep the sample from being contaminated, and thus remain as close as possible to how it was when it was collected by OSIRIS-REx. Samples collected by the mission will also be sent to teams of scientists across the world and a large sample will be preserved for future generations to study.

Not all of the OSIRIS-REx mission's Bennu findings must wait for the sample, however.

Even before the spacecraft reaches Earth next year it has delivered data that could teach researchers more about the asteroid.

In July, scientists announced that data gathered by OSIRIS-REx about the surface of Bennu revealed that the asteroid is so loosely packed that if the spacecraft had attempted to land on it rather than firing its thrusters to back away quickly, it would have sunk beneath the asteroid's surface.

OSIRIS-REx has also provided NASA with data that is important in calculating the potentially hazardous object's future orbit until 2300. This information could be crucial in determining if Bennu, which has a diameter of 1,200 feet (490 meters), could impact Earth after its close approach in 2135.

"NASA's Planetary Defense mission is to find and monitor asteroids and comets that can come near Earth and may pose a hazard to our planet," Kelly Fast, program manager for the Near-Earth Object Observations Program at NASA, said in a 2021 statement.

"We carry out this endeavor through continuing astronomical surveys that collect data to discover previously unknown objects and refine our orbital models for them," she added. "The OSIRIS-REx mission has provided an extraordinary opportunity to refine and test these models, helping us better predict where Bennu will be when it makes its close approach to Earth more than a century from now."

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NASA asteroid-sampling mission on track for delivery next year - Space.com

Kings Island plans major announcement Wednesday: What it could be – WCPO 9 Cincinnati

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

MASON, OhioKings Island has done it again.

Cincinnati's favorite theme park has tweeted that they will announce something new for 2023 on Wednesday, without giving any hint about what it could be.

"What's new for 2023? Visit our website tomorrow to find out! Let the speculation begin," the park tweeted with a photo of the Eiffel Tower.

So we took up their offer and decided to speculate.

Why it probably won't be a roller coaster

While fans would love to see a new roller coaster, possibly to fill the empty space where Vortex once stood, that seems unlikely. Why? Because every time they announced a major coaster in the past decade, the park put out teasers weeks in advance.

Think about the posters hinting about space flight before Orion's announcement in 2019. Or all the teasing about axes, and broken wood, before the Mystic Timbers announcement in 2016.

A coaster rollout usually comes after a whole season of clues, and there have been none this year.

A flat ride?

Some coaster enthusiasts have speculated that Kings Island could get a new "flat" ride, or ground-based ride in 2023, that might possibly replace Sling Shot, the capsule on steel cables that was removed back in May.

Currently, that is just a big empty space near Adventure Express.

In addition, with parent Cedar Fair closing its California's Great America theme park near San Francisco, it is already moving some of those rides to other parks. Kings Island could get one of them.

Planet Snoopy revamp to "Camp" Snoopy

This one is getting some buzz, because several Cedar Fair parks have rebranded Planet Snoopy as Camp Snoopy the last few years.

Among them, Cedar Point and Carowinds, where the children's area has been repainted, spruced up, and turned into a summer-camp like environment.

Kings Island has not made many changes to Planet Snoopy in recent years: it might be time for an update.

Year-round operations?

This one was getting the most talk on Tuesday on Kings Island discussion boards, such as KI Central.

It is possible the park will add some weekend operations in January, February and March to make it officially a "year-round" park.

Why? Because sister parks Carowinds and Kings Dominion this week just announced they will be going to year-round ops.

And Kings Island doesn't want to sit there, closed, while Kings Dominion is running rides. After all, Kings Dominion has always been looked at as Kings Island's "kid sister."

Of course, the weather in Mason is a lot colder in January than in Charlotte, NC.

So the park would probably not be able to operate much more than it does during Winterfest, which means Mystic Timbers and Flight of Fear.

But Kings Island said "let the speculation begin," so we speculated.

There._______________________

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Kings Island plans major announcement Wednesday: What it could be - WCPO 9 Cincinnati

The Best Online Gambling Sites for 2022 – casino

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

Whether you live miles from Las Vegas, or even your nearest casino or bookmakery, the truth is most land-based casinos and sportsbooks can't compete with what online casinos and gambling sites have to offer. Internet gambling can provide hassle-free sign-ups, super-quick banking and a choice of games and sports betting opportunities you won't find in a live setting.

Gambling online offers a huge selection of games that you can try out for free first. Lots of casinos even have sportsbooks, bingo and poker rooms attached. Funds can easily be transferred from one tab to another, giving real-money players in USA even more choice. Simply log into your preferred casino or sports betting website to play hundreds of slots games, craps, blackjack and roulette, or have a bet on the big football match or UFC fight.

Online gambling sites offer lucrative welcome bonuses to new players. These bonuses give you hundreds of dollars, pounds or Euros in free cash in return for choosing them as your number one casino or bookmaker. You may get free spins on the latest slot, or free bets to use on specific sports events, which are great ways of earning real money with minimal risk.

All online casinos and sportsbooks abide by the strictest security standards. Regulated online gambling sites use industry-standard 128-bit or higher encryption to protect players. They also have independent auditors in place to test the software before it hits the market. Auditors make sure that a casino site's payouts are accurate on a regular basis.

Players across the globe can log in to a gaming account from their mobile device and access the best in sportsbooks, table games and slots. This means you can play for real money at a time and place to suit your needs. All the sites we recommend have optimised their mobile gaming experiences, so check out our shortlist and download the top gambling app for your smartphone, whether youre playing on iPhone, iPad or Android.

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The Best Online Gambling Sites for 2022 - casino

Online Gambling Market – Mordor Intelligence

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

Market Overview

The online gambling market is projected to record a CAGR of 11.49% during the forecast period (2022-2027).

The COVID-19 pandemic positively impacted the market, as consumers turned more toward the online platform to bridge their financial, social, and psychological crises during lockdowns. With the COVID-19 outbreak, the demand for internet-based gambling worldwide increased due to the sudden shutdown of educational institutions and the rising adoption of the work-from-home culture. Several operators went digital in response to the closure of many gambling establishments. Many players expanded their online gambling offerings, and bingo operators moved their offerings online, positively impacting the market.

Casinos worldwide are predicted to have huge success due to the multi-layer taxation environment in the business. The rising trend for remote gambling is boosting the growth of the online betting market. The number of female consumers in casinos is also rising. The cashless mode of payment is more convenient for consumers, which is driving the online gambling market. Furthermore, various companies are concentrating on the advancement of innovative platforms to cater to several requirements and needs of the customers to achieve a competitive edge in the market.

Online gambling companies are significantly growing with their sports betting options, as it was legalized in the United States by the Supreme Court in 2018, which is boosting the market. For instance, in 2021, Entain PLC declared the launch of Gambling Responsibly America in the United States, a trustworthy gaming app. This app has a tool to assist and support consumers. It also has educational resources to help consumers if they face any gambling issues. In the Netherlands, the government proposed the latest regulation in July 2020, which modernizes the outdated gambling law that offers extra tax revenue and effective prevention against addiction and ensures only fair games, which are offered to around 2 million players among the Dutch public.

Online gambling is typically betting on casino or sports-type games over the internet. The online gambling market has been segmented by game type, end user, and geography. For each segment, the market sizing and forecast have been done based on value (USD million).

Report scope can becustomized per your requirements. Click here.

The rising adoption of mobile and online payment gateways made payment options convenient for consumers and online players. Online payment provides a safe and secured mode of transaction, which is accepted by the online gaming industry. This factor is boosting the growth of the online gambling market. The online betting segment is predominantly rising with the online sports category, especially in football events, such as the FIFA World Cup and the European championships. Many online sports betting companies are sponsoring different teams as a part of their marketing initiatives by acquiring or merging with several companies for strategic expansions. In August 2021, DraftKings Inc. and Golden Nugget Online Gaming Inc. entered a definitive agreement for DraftKings and acquired Golden Nugget Online Gaming in an all-stock transaction. The acquisition enabled DraftKings to leverage Golden Nuggets well-known brands (iGaming) product experience and the existing database of more than 5 million customers.

To understand key trends, Download SampleReport

The current legislative framework for online betting in the United States allows only bookmakers licensed in Nevada, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey to operate legally, as these are the three states where online betting is regulated. Pennsylvania is the fourth and biggest state to legalize and regulate online gambling. There are various types of online casinos, sportsbooks, and online sports betting apps live in New Jersey. New Jersey's Division of Gaming Enforcement oversees and regulates New Jerseys online gaming sites. It handles licensing for the sites, tax revenue collection, and game testing and approval. New Jersey is currently the largest market for regulated online gambling in the United States. Canada is largely an unregulated country in terms of online gaming. At the same time, Mexico is reviewing its gambling laws intending to regulate the online gambling sector to align with the rest of the nations gambling industry. Therefore, the increasing regularization of online gambling in the North American countries and their respective states is expected to drive the market further.

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The casino gambling market is highly fragmented and comprises regional and global players. Key players like Bet365, Entain PLC, The Flutter Entertainment PLC, and Kindred Group PLC dominate the market. Major players are focusing on mergers and acquisitions, partnerships, and product innovations to expand their presence in the market and enhance their brand portfolio to cater to consumer preferences. Merger and acquisition is the most preferred strategy in the online gambling market, followed by expansion. Key players compete on various factors, including offerings, quality of gambling content, user experience, brand equity, personalized payoffs, and access to various platforms. Advanced distribution network and manufacturing expertise give an upper edge to the manufacturers to expand their range of products worldwide.

1. INTRODUCTION

1.1 Study Assumptions and Market Definition

1.2 Scope of the Study

2. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

3. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

4. MARKET DYNAMICS

4.1 Market Drivers

4.2 Market Restraints

4.3 Porter's Five Forces Analysis

4.3.1 Threat of New Entrants

4.3.2 Bargaining Power of Buyers/Consumers

4.3.3 Bargaining Power of Suppliers

4.3.4 Threat of Substitute Products

4.3.5 Intensity of Competitive Rivalry

5. MARKET SEGMENTATION

5.1 By Game Type

5.1.1 Sports Betting

5.1.1.1 Football

5.1.1.2 Horse Racing

5.1.1.3 E-sports

5.1.1.4 Other Sports

5.1.2 Casino

5.1.2.1 Live Casino

5.1.2.2 Baccarat

5.1.2.3 Blackjack

5.1.2.4 Poker

5.1.2.5 Slots

5.1.2.6 Others Casino Games

5.1.3 Lottery

5.1.4 Bingo

5.2 By End User

5.2.1 Desktop

5.2.2 Mobile

5.3 By Geography

5.3.1 North America

5.3.1.1 United States

5.3.1.2 Canada

5.3.1.3 Mexico

5.3.1.4 Rest of North America

5.3.2 Europe

5.3.2.1 Germany

5.3.2.2 United Kingdom

5.3.2.3 Russia

5.3.2.4 France

5.3.2.5 Spain

5.3.2.6 Italy

5.3.2.7 Rest of Europe

5.3.3 Asia-Pacific

5.3.3.1 Oceanic Countries

5.3.3.2 Rest of Asia-Pacific

5.3.4 Rest of the World

5.3.4.1 South America

5.3.4.2 Middle-East and Africa

6. COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE

6.1 Market Share Analysis

6.2 Strategies Adopted by Players

6.3 Most Active Companies

6.4 Company Profiles

6.4.1 Betsson AB

6.4.2 888 Holdings PLC

6.4.3 Sport Pesa

6.4.4 Kindred Group PLC

6.4.5 Entain PLC

6.4.6 William Hill PLC

6.4.7 Bet365

6.4.8 LeoVegas AB

6.4.9 Flutter Entertainment PLC

6.4.10 1X Corp. NV

*List Not Exhaustive

7. MARKET OPPORTUNITIES AND FUTURE TRENDS

8. IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON THE MARKET

**Subject to Availability

What is the study period of this market?

The Online Gambling Market market is studied from 2016 - 2027.

What is the growth rate of Online Gambling Market?

The Online Gambling Market is growing at a CAGR of 11.49% over the next 5 years.

Which region has highest growth rate in Online Gambling Market?

North America is growing at the highest CAGR over 2021- 2026.

Which region has largest share in Online Gambling Market?

Europe holds highest share in 2021.

Who are the key players in Online Gambling Market?

Flutter Entertainment PLC, Entain PLC, BETSSON AB, Bet365, Kindred Group PLC are the major companies operating in Online Gambling Market.

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Online Gambling Market - Mordor Intelligence

Does Your Choice of Music Matter When Playing Online Casinos? – Substream Magazine

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

People often consider the image of a roulette wheel or slot machine when they hear the word gambling. People also frequently refer to video poker machines when discussing the game. However, many people overlook the critical role theme plays in gambling. Music for slot titles is typically referred to as gambling themes. Software companies and academic studies confirm that playing music while playing a video game improves the overall experience. Playing a game without music, however, is just not as effective. Casino titles are in a fantasy world where players can forget their daily worries. People playing games at online gambling websites want to focus on simply relaxing and unwinding. They typically choose this entertainment option because it offers them that effect. So heres what gambling music does to gamers.

The Impact of Music on Game Development

Music that speeds up or changes tempo can reduce stress levels for players. This reduces the chances of them experiencing fear when playing, which leads to a decreased likelihood of anger when they lose. Since this tempo change increases gamblers payouts, its considered a positive effect on their game. Software developers must find the right balance when creating music to encourage motivation and keep anger in check. This is because a fast theme increases listeners energy, making them more likely to spend money. Playing titles past their imposed time limits encourage extended play time at the pay by phone casino and deposit a more significant sum. Players feel inspired to make impulsive decisions when listening to slow music.

Music has a significant effect on how someone acts, as well as its ability to calm someone down. Playing themes with exceptional jazz qualities can have this effect, which leads people to stay in a game longer. Playing the game with a soft theme helps players become more comfortable and feel at home in their game world. This leads to them spending more time playing and feeling less stressed. It also causes their heart rate to decrease and move to a lower zone. Playing cards longer than usual and being relaxed while doing so positively affect players risk assessment. Additionally, playing cards longer than normal makes the player feel good, which leads to increased pleasure and the likelihood of them returning to play.

The Style of Slot and Casino Music

Casino slot games come equipped with a wide variety of music tracks. This means choosing music for a casino slot game can help players focus and relax, leading to increased profitability for casinos. Additionally, choosing a theme for a casino slot game can help players stay longer since it helps them focus on the game. Music is often chosen for specific game themes. For example, popular rock bands might create themes for slot machine titles. This is because most games use music to represent the theme. Slot machines allow rock music fans to express their individuality through the titles they play. Many slots based on famous rock bands like Guns N Roses and KISS are wildly successful thanks to the inclusion of the theme. Music plays an integral role in rock culture, and slot players happily accept this fact.

The Sense of Excitement and Mystery

Casino games have an always-on background theme that causes players to remain on their toes. Thanks to the continuous soundtrack, this helps people be creative and think outside the box. Even the most focused player, when playing slots or blackjack, isnt able to tune out the music. Many online slots utilize themes and graphics to create a sense of realism. These features are intended to help players get used to them before they start playing. Creating an immersive experience allows players to feel as if theyre in a creepy forest or the interior of Mount Olympuss ancient gold mine. This was done to normalize players experiences before they started playing. Music has a dramatic influence on how people act and interact. As such, its an essential part of modern culture. You can perform at phone systems and casinos from the safety of your own home. The theme you play through your home stereo system affects peoples moods and behavior.

Affecting the Players Choices

People have different tastes and preferences when it comes to games. Some people only like specific themes or titles, such as slot machines, blackjack, or poker. People with diverse tastes can be found in both music and art. Playing video titles can provide relaxation and a sense of accomplishment. Music can have a dramatic effect on a persons emotional state while they play a game. This may be difficult to notice, but it can cause someone to play another game if their music makes them uncomfortable. Youre more likely to change titles if you play the theme that makes you dislike or loops. People are powerfully affected by the theme; this is why music is an integral part of any game. Playing a video game with an awesome theme makes players want to stay in the game even if they dont understand its reason. Music dramatically impacts peoples emotions and thoughts, which is why its such a vital part of any game.

Final Thoughts

Creating emotional responses through music is a common marketing tactic. Choosing the correct tune can help you make the desired emotional response, such as creating a calm or comfortable emotional state in your target audience. This can help your overall marketing strategy be more effective by producing an emotional response from your audience. Casino patrons gather the musical cues from gambling titles to influence their emotional states. Accordingly, avoiding casinos that utilize sounds through online or terrestrial means is imperative. Music has been incorporated into casino games since the 1970s. People believe any casino-style game must include music because its a standard part of software and venues. Thanks to this belief, many software companies, and media add themes to their projects. Anyone can agree that choosing the best song for a concert is essential. Additionally, any theme fan can agree that certain pieces can improve shows.

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Does Your Choice of Music Matter When Playing Online Casinos? - Substream Magazine

Key differences between online and land-based casino – Auralcrave

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

Millions of people around the world are addicted to gambling. And for some of them, this activity became not just a hobby, but a stable source of income. Even in the last century, it was the only place where you could enjoy gambling in Australian online casino real money 2022. But thanks to modern technologies, thousands of online casinos operate on the market, which open up new opportunities for players. Lets look at the main differences between these gambling establishments and decide which option is best.

A casino is a place where players can enjoy their favorite gambling games: slots, slot machines, table card games and many other entertainments. Every year, such establishments offer more and more options for entertainment, and online casinos can boast an even more diverse game library.

The principle of operation of an Internet casino coincides with a stationary casino, but all games here are virtual, and monetary operations are carried out with the help of a computerized system. But here too, players can interact with real people thanks to games with live dealers.

There are still many old-fashioned people who play exclusively in land-based casinos. This allows them to truly relax, forget about the hustle and bustle and enjoy the refined atmosphere. But technological progress does not stand still. With the help of the Internet, people have the opportunity to play at any convenient time and in any convenient place. Every year, more and more gamblers prefer online gambling. Thanks to the focus on mobile devices, new opportunities and freedom are opening up for players. Below we have discussed in detail the features, advantages, and disadvantages of these two types of casinos.

You can also read Will Macau Ever Be The Worlds Casino Capital Again?

Lets consider the main advantages of online casinos that operate on the Internet:

But are online casino services suitable for everyone? Such a virtual gaming platform is ideal for people who value their time, want to enjoy a wide selection of entertainment and big winnings. But there may be a lack of real communication and social connections, because mostly you will interact only with the computer.

Stationary casinos boast a long history. For a long time it was entertainment for influential and wealthy people who wanted to enjoy luxurious surroundings, quality service and socializing with other wealthy guests.

Visiting a real casino, you can enjoy the luxurious environment, elegant interior and colorful slot machines. You will have the opportunity to touch the buttons, hold the chips in your hands, listen to the sounds of slots and the inspired conversations of other gambling enthusiasts.

Only in a stationary casino you can enjoy such an incredible atmosphere, music, and atmosphere. In addition, here you will have the opportunity to establish your social connections and make new useful acquaintances. Popular influential casinos provide their customers with additional services. Here you can visit a bar, enjoy delicious dishes in a restaurant or even spend the night in a luxury hotel.

And no matter what variety of games and comfort online casinos provide, they will never allow you to experience such an experience and get unbelievable emotions. Stationary casinos are full of neon lights, red carpets and exquisite furniture. Here, under the highest ceilings, the spirit of adrenaline and excitement seems to be hovering. Therefore, many continue to play exclusively in land-based casinos.

If you value personal communication, new acquaintances and meetings with real people, you will definitely get unforgettable emotions from visiting a stationary casino. You may not get huge winnings, but you can enjoy a sophisticated atmosphere and pleasant company. But if you value your time and do not want to leave the house once again, then an online casino is an ideal alternative. Its a convenient, versatile and secure method to help you enjoy your favorite games anytime, anywhere.

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Key differences between online and land-based casino - Auralcrave

Nordic gaming dominance is still alive and well – Win.gg

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

Marta Juras October 18, 2022 9:49 am

Playing video games is one of the truly international hobbies, with people from all around the world involved in video games. While the majority of gamers are young men, all demographics are increasingly enjoying gaming as an activity. Japan, South Korea, and America have a long history of dominating the world of gaming but in recent years, the Nordic countries have become the true leaders.

The countries included within the designation of Nordic are Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Denmark. For a region with a relatively small population the population of all of the Nordic countries combined is just under 30 million these countries dominate multiple facets of the gaming industry. This article will look at three gaming sectors that are dominated by Nordic players or companies.

Game development

In the early days of video game development, there were only a handful of companies that developed the vast majority of games. Most of these companies were based in the United States or Japan. However, we are currently in the middle of an indie developer renaissance. Small game studios have sprung up all over the world, with a concentration in the Nordic countries.

According to a recent evaluation of the industry, there are nearly 500 gaming companies operating in Nordic countries today. These companies cover every sector of the industry, from console games and PC games to online and mobile games.

One of the biggest game companies is the Sweden-based Embracer Group. Embracer Group is a conglomerate of 120 game development studios, including Coffee Stain Studios, 3D Realms, Neon Giant and Tarsier Studios.

Finland is particularly known for its mobile game studios. They were, in fact, among the earliest mobile game developers (think Snake!) and continue to innovate and improve the industry. Finland is also the home of Housemarque, an early indie studio that has produced quality games for decades.

Esports

Competitive esports are finally recognized as a sport like any other they require specialized skills, endurance, stamina, teamwork, and strategic abilities. The biggest esports games are Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO), PlayerUnknowns Battlegrounds, Valorant, League of Legends, Dota 2, Fortnight, Overwatch, and Rocket League. Since the earliest days of esports, Nordic players have been among the elite across most of the most popular esports games.

Two of the most successful Nordic esports teams are Astralis and Fnatic. Astralis is based in Denmark and is a CSGO team. Its current active roster includes esports icons like Andres Xyp9x Hjsleth, Lukas gla1ve Rossander, and Benjamin blameF Bremer.

The team is headed by gla1ve, one of the best players in the world, having led Astralis to four victories in major tournaments. His dedication to the game is impressive he continued playing despite a collapsed lung during the 2016 Assembly Winter tournament.

Fnatic provides Astralis with tough competition in CSGO. While the Fnatic organization is British, their elite CSGO team has always been based in Sweden. This is one of the first years in which the majority of the players on the team arent Swedish. KRIMZ is currently the only Swedish player on the team and he has been essential to their success in the six years he has played with Fnatic. He is considered one of the most consistent players in the game and has a reputation for his amazing clutch ability.

Online gambling

The third gaming sector in which Nordic countries are dominating is online gambling. Online gambling is very popular across all of the Nordic countries we can look at Thrills casino as an example. This online casino is geared primarily towards Nordic and Northern European players, despite the potential for a global audience.

One of the reasons why online gambling is so popular and so successful in Nordic countries is because they have embraced sensible gambling legislation. These governments have acknowledged that people will play at online casinos no matter what, so the best course of action is to provide safe and secure access to online gambling. In doing so, they have created a healthy environment with plenty of safeguards for players.

Norway and Finland both maintain monopolies over online gambling in their countries, while Sweden and Denmark have instead chosen to focus on strong governmental oversight of independent online casinos. Both of these models work well, as evidenced by how popular legal online gambling is across the region.

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Nordic gaming dominance is still alive and well - Win.gg

Ontarios online gambling revenue tops $267M in Q2, up nearly 65% – Yahoo News

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

Ontario gamblers wagered more than $6 billion on sports, casino, and Esports in the province's new legal market for three months ended Sept. 30, according to the latest figures from iGaming Ontario. (Eric Bolte-USA TODAY Sports)

Ontarios new legal online betting market grew in its second quarter, raking in $267 million in total gaming revenue as more players and websites participated in sports, casino, and Esports wagering.

The second official release of financial figures from iGaming Ontario (iGO), a subsidiary of the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO), shows a nearly 65 per cent increase in overall gaming revenue for the province.

The report, released on Wednesday, covers the period of July 1 to Sept. 30. The figures do not include the government-owned Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG) iGaming platform, or the free bets or other promotional wagers offered by various websites.

Total wagers placed during the quarter amounted to $6.04 billion, up 48 per cent from the $4.08 billion booked in iGOs inaugural financials released in August. The latest report shows the market grew to 24 operators running 42 gaming websites, from 18 running 31 sites in the previous quarter.

Active player accounts and average monthly spend increased as well, according to the report. iGO counted 628,000 active accounts, up from 492,000 in the first quarter. Average monthly spend jumped more than 25 per cent to $142 from $113.

Following Ottawa's move to legalize new forms of betting last summer, including individual sports games and events, Ontario has set itself apart from other provinces by allowing private companies to compete with government-run betting outlets.

While iGO's latest figures show the industry gaining traction, revenue is on track to fall well short of some early forecasts.

U.S. consulting firm VIXIO GamblingCompliance estimated the Ontario market to be worth about $1.6 billion in gross gaming revenue this year, rising to $2.36 billion in 2023.

Private companies operating in the province took their first bets on April 4. The promise of an open, competitive market in Ontario has lured a number of industry heavyweights like Boston-based DraftKings (DKNG) to the province. However, restrictions on advertising free bets and other inducements, as well as competitors from outside the new legal system, have posed headwinds.

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"We always said that we didn't think we'd be able to achieve quite the same share as we believe we will be able to achieve in the U.S.," DraftKings CEO Jason Robins told analysts on an Aug. 5 post-earnings conference call.

A number of private sportsbooks and online betting websites that operated for years outside of Ontarios laws have joined the legal market, like industry giant Bet365. In August, Wall Street analysts told Yahoo Finance Canada that companies with roots in the so-called grey market are likely to dominate the early innings of the new legal industry in Ontario by leveraging their experience in Canada's most populous province.

Earlier this month, the AGCO set Oct. 31 as the deadline for illegal betting platforms to transition into the legal market. The agency says unregulated operators must halt their operations by this date to avoid jeopardizing the eligibility for registration.

Jeff Lagerquist is a senior reporter at Yahoo Finance Canada. Follow him on Twitter @jefflagerquist.

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Ontarios online gambling revenue tops $267M in Q2, up nearly 65% - Yahoo News

Massachusetts Sports Betting Should Soon Have Clear Vision on Potential Operators – Sports Betting Dime

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

Oct 2, 2022; Green Bay, Wisconsin, USA; New England Patriots running back Damien Harris (37) celebrates with tight end Hunter Henry (85) after scoring a touchdown during the fourth quarter against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports

Massachusetts online sports betting should have a clear vision of its potential operators by tonight.

Amidst a six-hour Massachusetts Gaming Commission meeting last week, the commissioners made an interesting note that all potential sports betting operators must submit a scoping survey to the commission by tonight at 5 p.m. in order to have their licenses application considered.

The Massachusetts Gaming Commission released the scoping survey for companies intending to apply for a Category 1, Category 2, or Category 3 sports bettering operator license or to be vendors for who with licenses.

The survey seeks specific company information from prospective applicants and will provide the commission with preliminary information ahead of the full applications.

While most of the retail sports betting licensing partners are already known, this process could provide valuable insight to which companies are planning to apply for one of seven coveted untethered online sports betting licenses in the Commonwealth.

As per the states sports betting bill, each of the three Massachusetts casinos will be able to offer up to two online sports betting skins, each state racetrack will have access to one, and seven untethered online sports betting operator licenses will be up for grabs. Thats a total of 15 online sports betting licenses.

Last month, 42 sports betting operators submitted notices of intent to the gaming commission to operate sports betting in the state. This was not a binding agreement to apply for a license, nor was it required to submit a license application.

There are three casinos in the state and all three have partnerships with online operators already.

Raynham Park and Suffolk Downs have yet to announce any partnerships.

While a timeline for retail or online sports betting has yet to be announced,the Massachusetts Gaming Commission will likely institute a universal launch strategy for retail sports betting on the suggestion of the operators. The commission will reveal a start date that entities can begin offering retail sports betting and any or all approved operators will be able to launch at that time.

Two weeks ago, the Massachusetts Gaming Commission approved a motion to launch retail sports betting by late January and online sports betting in the Commonwealth by early March.

The commissioners approved the motion by a vote of 4-0, with Commissioner Nakisha Skinner abstaining from the decision.

Both dates can potentially be pushed back if the Commission receives public input that would make the start date too difficult, or if the staff receives a larger than expected number of sports betting license applications.

The commissioners did note in their vote that public input affecting the launch dates could force the windows to move back. They also noted that high numbers of applicants for online sports betting could also force the online launch date back as well.

Sports betting applicants seeking one of the seven untethered online sports betting licenses will be judged on a scoring system that will take into account six separate categories:

The commission must decide how scoring will be implemented into the application process, however. They will either be scored on a pass/fail basis, by numeric scoring, meets/exceeds expectations, or a combination of the methods.

The Gaming Commission staff suggest a combination of the methods, which would then necessitate further oral interviews or written responses to commission questions.

Gambling Regulatory Writer and Editor

Covering regulatory developments in online gambling. Editing/writing/creating a newsletter for readers across all formats.

Gambling

Covering regulatory developments in online gambling. Editing/writing/creating a newsletter for readers across all formats.

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Massachusetts Sports Betting Should Soon Have Clear Vision on Potential Operators - Sports Betting Dime

Strategic Partnership Agreement to Develop the Quantum Computing Market in Japan and Asia-Pacific – PR Newswire

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

TOKYO, CAMBRIDGE, England and BROOMFIELD, Colo., Oct. 18, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Mitsui & Co., Ltd ("Mitsui") and Quantinuum have signed a strategic partnership agreement to collaborate in the delivery of quantum computing in Japan and the Asia-Pacific region.

Mitsui, which is committed to digital transformation, and Quantinuum, one of the world's leading quantum computing companies, integrated across hardware and software, have entered this strategic partnership to develop quantum computing use cases, which are expected to drive significant business transformation and innovation in the future.

Mitsui and Quantinuum will accelerate collaboration, cooperation, and development of new business models. They will jointly pursue quantum application development and provide value added services to organizations working across a variety of quantum computing domains, which is expected to be worth US$450B US$850B worldwide by 2040.*

Yoshio Kometani, Representative Director, Executive Vice President and Chief Digital Information Officer of Mitsui & Co., Ltd. stated:"We are very pleased with the strategic partnership between Mitsui and Quantinuum. By combining Quantinuum's cutting-edge quantum computing expertise and diverse quantum talents with Mitsui's broad business platform and network, we will work together to provide new value to our customers and create new business value in a wide range of industrial fields."

Ilyas Khan, Founder and CEO of Quantinuum stated:"The alliance between Mitsui and Quantinuum demonstrates our shared commitment to accelerating quantum computing across all applications and use cases in a diverse range of sectors, including chemistry, finance, and cybersecurity. Today's announcement reinforces our belief in the global quantum leadership shown by corporations and governments in Japan, pioneered by corporate leaders like Mitsui."

Details of the Strategic Partnership

Collaboration areas and applications

Recent Achievements by Quantinuum

About Mitsui & Co., Ltd.

Location: 1-2-1 Otemachi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo

Established: 1947

Representative: Kenichi Hori, President and Representative Director

Mitsui & Co., Ltd. (8031: JP) is a global trading and investment company with a diversified business portfolio that spans approximately 63 countries in Asia, Europe, North, Central & South America, The Middle East, Africa and Oceania.

Mitsui has about 5,500 employees and deploys talent around the globe to identify, develop, and grow businesses in collaboration with a global network of trusted partners. Mitsui has built a strong and diverse core business portfolio covering the Mineral and Metal Resources, Energy, Machinery and Infrastructure, and Chemicals industries.

Leveraging its strengths, Mitsui has further diversified beyond its core profit pillars to create multifaceted value in new areas, including innovative Energy Solutions, Healthcare & Nutrition and through a strategic focus on high-growth Asian markets. This strategy aims to derive growth opportunities by harnessing some of the world's main mega-trends: sustainability, health & wellness, digitalization and the growing power of the consumer.

Mitsui has a long heritage in Asia, where it has established a diverse and strategic portfolio of businesses and partners that gives it a strong differentiating edge, provides exceptional access for all global partners to the world's fastest growing region and strengthens its international portfolio.

For more information on Mitsui & Co's businesses visit, https://www.mitsui.com/jp/en/index.html

About Quantinuum

Location: Cambridge, U.K., Broomfield, Colorado, U.S.A.

Established: December 2021 (through the merger of Honeywell Quantum Solutions (U.S.) and Cambridge Quantum Computing (U.K.))

Representative: Ilyas Khan, CEO; Tony Uttley, COO; Shuya Kekke, CEO & Representative Director, Japan

Quantinuum is one of the world's largest integrated quantum computing companies, formed by the combination of Honeywell Quantum Solutions' world-leading hardware and Cambridge Quantum's class-leading middleware and applications. Science-led and enterprise-driven, Quantinuum accelerates quantum computing and the development of applications across chemistry, cybersecurity, finance, and optimization. Its focus is to create scalable and commercial quantum solutions to solve the world's most pressing problems in fields such as energy, logistics, climate change, and health. The company employs over 480 individuals, including 350 scientists, at nine sites across the United States, Europe, and Japan.

Selected major customers (in Japan): Nippon Steel Corporation, JSR Corporation

http://www.quantinuum.com

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1923231/Quantinuum.jpgPhoto - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1923232/Quantinuum_System_Model.jpg

SOURCE Quantinuum LLC

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Strategic Partnership Agreement to Develop the Quantum Computing Market in Japan and Asia-Pacific - PR Newswire

Quantum Leap: "The big bang of quantum computing will come in this decade" – CTech

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

In the few images that IBM has released, its quantum computing lab looks like the engine room of a spaceship: bright white rooms with countless cables dangling from the ceiling down to a floating floor, pierced with vents. This technological tangle is just the background for the main show: rows of metal supports on which hang what look like... white solar boilers.

There, within these boilers, a historical revolution is taking shape. IBM, a computing dinosaur more than a century old, is trying to reinvent itself by winning one of the most grueling, expensive and potentially promising scientific races ever: the race to develop the quantum computer. "We are living in the most exciting era in the history of computing," says Dario Gil, Senior Vice President of IBM and head of the company's research division, in an exclusive interview with Calcalist. "We are witnessing a moment similar to the one recorded in the 40s & 50s of the last century, when the first classic computers were built." A few weeks after this conversation, his statements were further confirmed, when the Nobel Prize Committee announced the awarding of the prize in the field of physics to three researchers whose research served as a milestone in the development of the field.

The name Dario Gil shakes a lot of quanta and cells in the brains, and maybe even in the hearts, of physicists and computer engineers all over the world. This is the person who leads the most advanced effort in the world to develop a quantum computer. In September, when Gil landed in Tel Aviv for a short visit to give the opening lecture at the IBM conference, the hall was packed with senior engineers, researchers from the top universities in Israel, and representatives of government bodies - all enthralled by what Gil had to say.

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Dario Gil.

(Photo: Elad Gershgoren)

Gil (46) was born in Spain and moved to the United States to study at MIT University. He completed his doctoral studies there, and immediately after graduation began working at IBM in a series of research and development positions. Since 2019, he has been leading the company's research division, which has 3,000 engineers at 21 sites, including Israel. Under his management, in 2016, IBM built the first quantum computer whose services are available to anyone: if you have a complicated question, you can go to the IBM Quantum Experience website, remotely access one of the quantum computers through the cloud - and, perhaps, receive an answer. But as with everything related to quantum computing, it just sounds simple.

"Quantum computing is not just a name for an extremely fast computer," says Gill. In fact, he explains, the quantum computer is no longer a supercomputer that uses the same binary method that is accepted in every classical computer, but a completely new machine, another step in the evolution leading from strings of shells, through beaded invoices and calculating bars, to gear-based mechanical computers, to the electronic computer and now to the quantum computer. "Essentially, the quantum computer is a kind of simulator of nature, through which it is possible to simulate natural processes, and thus solve problems that previously had no solution," explains Gil. "If the classical computer is a combination of mathematics and information, then quantum computing is a combination of physics and information."

This connection makes it possible to solve certain types of problems with unprecedented speed: Google, which is also developing a quantum computer, claimed in 2019 that it had reached "quantum supremacy" a demonstration of a calculation that a quantum computer would perform more efficiently than a classical computer. The researchers at Google showed how a quantum computer performed in 200 seconds a calculation that they claim would have required a classical computer ten thousand years to complete. This claim has since been disproved by other researchers, who have presented an algorithm that allows a classical computer to perform the same calculation in a reasonable amount of timebut even this Google failure provides an idea of the enormous power a quantum computer will have.

"The quantum computer does not make the classical computer superfluous: they will live together, and each of them will solve different problems," explains Gil. "It's like asking you how to get from point A to point B: you can walk, ride a bicycle, travel by car or fly. If the distance between these points is 50 km, you won't fly between them, right? Accordingly, it is a mode suitable for a classic computer. A quantum computer allows you to fly, even to the moon, and quickly."

You will soon explain to me how it works, and in which areas exactly, but before that, let's start from the bottom line: what can we do with it?

"Quantum computing will make it possible to crack a series of problems that seemed unsolvable, in a way that will change the world. Many of these issues are related to energy. Others are related to the development of new and exciting materials. We tend to take the materials available to us for granted, but in the past there were eras that were defined by the materials that dominated them - The Stone Age', the 'Bronze Age', the 'Iron Age'. Quantum computing will help us develop materials with new properties, therefore the first sector that is already using it is industry, especially the car industry: the car manufacturers are interested in better chemistry, which will enable the production of more efficient and durable batteries for electric vehicles. For a normal computer this is a huge task, and to complete it we have to give up accuracy and settle for approximate answers only, but quantum computing can help quickly develop materials that will fit the task, even without entering the lab. The efficiency of a quantum computer when it comes to questions in chemistry is also used in the pharmaceutical industry, There they are beginning to make initial use of such computers to examine the properties of molecules, and in this way to speed up the development of new drugs; and also in the fertilizer industry, which will be able to develop substances whose production will not harm the environment.

The uses are not limited to the material world. "For the financial sector, for example, the quantum computer enables the analysis of scenarios, risk management and forecasting, and the industry is already very interested in such possible applications, which could provide the general public with dramatically improved performance in investment portfolios, for example.

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IBM.

(Photo: Shutterstock)

At the same time, there are industries that quantum computing will force to recalculate their course, and the information security industry is at the forefront. The modern encryption systems (mainly RSA, one of whose developers is the Israeli Prof. Adi Shamir) are asymmetric: each recipient publishes a code that allows the information sent to them to be encrypted ("public key"), which includes the product of two large prime numbers that are kept secret. To decipher the encrypted information, this product must be broken down into factors - but without knowing what the initial numbers are, "this task would require a normal computer to calculate for many years," explains Gil. "However, for the quantum computer, such a calculation can be a matter of seconds."

There is a real threat here to an entire industry, the logic behind which has been built since the 1970s, and now suddenly the ground is cracking under it.

"True, a normal computer needs ten thousand years to solve an encryption that a quantum computer would solve in an instant. That is why the quantum computer threatens the world of cyberspace and encryption, which are the basis of all global information security. This is an example that is not related to physics or nature, but simply to the stronger and faster computing power of the quantum computer.

The computer that works against all the rules of intuition

To understand the power of the quantum computer, this concept, "quantum computing", must first be broken down. The first step is to stop thinking in the familiar concepts of one and zero. Forget about bits and binaries. The key to understanding quantum computing is the recognition that this dichotomy is not there: instead of the bit, quantum computing relies on a basic unit of information called a qubit (short for "quantum bit"). The qubit is simultaneously one, zero and everything in between.

This is the moment to stop and explain the theory that underlies the quantum computer, and which seems to go against common sense. "Quantum theory makes it possible to explain the behavior of very, very small particles," Gil explains. "At school we are presented with a model of an atom that looks like a planet, with a nucleus and electrons moving around, but at the beginning of the 20th century, this model turned out to be not very accurate." This happened when physicists such as Max Planck and Albert Einstein realized that light, which until then physics saw as a wave, also behaves as a particle - and the energy of this particle can only be described in "quantum" jumps, that is, as discrete packets. In the decades that followed, this theory was developed more and more, and proved to be effective in describing a variety of phenomena in the world of particles. And yet, its deep meanings remain obscure even today.

Such is, for example, the idea that a particle is in more than one place. According to quantum theory, a particle moving between two points moves simultaneously in all the paths between them, a state called "superposition". It's not that we don't know its exact location: it just doesn't have one. Instead, it has a distribution of possible locations that coexist. In other words, reality is not certain, but probabilistic.

And this is not the only puzzle posed by quantum theory. Another confusing concept is "entanglement", a situation in which several particles exhibit identical physical values, and respond simultaneously to a change in one of them, even if they are at a great distance from each other. Gil suggests thinking of it as tossing two coins: anyone who has studied statistics knows that the probabilities of getting a "head" or a "tail" on each of them are independent. But in the quantum model, if the coins (representing particles here) are intertwined, then tossing one of them will result in the same result in the other. "Einstein didn't believe in interweaving, and hated these patterns," Gil says with a smile.

Measurements that affect the results? A reality that is not absolute but statistical? Particles that become twins even at infinite distance? If these ideas sound puzzling, incomprehensible or counter-intuitive to you, you are not alone: "Whoever comes across quantum theory and is not left stunned, has not understood it," said the physicist Niels Bohr, Einstein's contemporary and his great nemesis, who won the Nobel Prize for his contribution to the development of the theory (Einstein, by the way, had reservations about Bohr's interpretation of the theory's conclusions). Another physicist who won the Nobel Prize for his contribution to the theory, Richard Feynman, commented on this when he said: "If you think you have understood quantum theory, you have not."

The same Feynman is the father of quantum computing: he wanted to simulate the behavior of particles, but due to the probabilistic nature of the theory, a classical computer that would try to perform such a simulation would require an enormous amount of calculations, so that the simulation would become impractical. "Feynman, and like him other physicists, thought that the field of computing focused on mathematical horizons and moved too far away from nature, and that physics could be more connected to the world of information," explains Gil. "In a historic lecture he gave in 1981, Feynman claimed that there was nothing to give a classical computer to deal with particle simulation, because nature is not classical. He said, 'If we want to simulate nature, we need a machine that behaves like nature, in a quantum way.'" In 1998, this vision was realized, when the first quantum computer was built at the University of Oxford in Great Britain.

A quantum computer utilizes the enigmatic properties of quantum theory, those that are not fully understood by us, to perform calculation operations. In a normal computer, the basic unit of information is a "bit", which can have one of two values, 0 or 1; Using such bits makes it possible to perform any calculation imaginable - although some of these calculations may take a very long time. In a quantum computer, the qubit, thanks to superposition, represents not one absolute value, but a distribution of values. "You can think of it as a question of more dimensions: one and zero are just the ends, the poles of a coin for example, but it can also have a sideways tilt," explains Gil. Using statistical approaches it is possible to examine the state of the qubit and obtain useful results. This probabilistic approach is not suitable for every problem, but in solving certain problems it is infinitely more efficient than the classical computer's search for an absolute answer.

"Because of the entanglement effect, it is also possible to cause the qubits to influence each other," says Gil. And since each qubit represents an entire field of possibilities, each addition of a qubit increases the number of possible connections between the qubits with exponentially increasing power (in the classical computer, on the other hand, the addition of bits grows linearly). At the moment, IBM holds the record for qubits: last year it unveiled a quantum processor with 127 qubits, and its stated goal is to launch a processor with 433 qubits this year, and a processor with 1,021 qubits next year.

Three degrees colder than outer space

This ambition is more pretentious than it seems. It turns out that "building a machine that will behave like nature" is a complex story like no other: the qubits are very sensitive to outside influences, which makes building a computer a very complicated and expensive business. "The quantum computer is very powerful, but at the same time also very delicate," explains Gil: "It utilizes physical processes that occur in the world, but such processes are a system in which everything is connected, everything affects everything, and this can disrupt the results: if energy from the outside world goes inside and connect to the qubits, this will make them behave like normal bits, and thus the unique ability of quantum computation will be lost. Therefore, a quantum computer must be very isolated from the entire environment. The big challenge is to produce a system that is sufficiently isolated from the outside world, but not too isolated."

When I try to find out what the cost of building a quantum computer is - and IBM has already built 40 of them - Gil avoids a clear answer, but it is enough to hear what this effort entails: "There are several different approaches to building a quantum computer; IBM chose a cryogenic approach, meaning deep freezing, and the use of superconductors. The temperature in the computer is close to absolute zero: at the bottom of its case the temperature is minus 273 degrees Celsiusthree degrees less than the temperature of outer space, and less than one degree above absolute zero. The temperature should be close to absolute zero, but not reach it, because then there is no movement at all, Not even of the atoms."

The result is a cooling and protection case that resembles a water heater in its shape, and inside it has the calculation unit, whose shape gave it the nickname "chandelier" according to Gil and his team. "Inside the layers of protection there is a cylinder with the processor in it. Even if only a fraction of an energy particle enters the computer, literally a fraction of nothing, it will be enough to disrupt the results," Gil clarifies.

The great sensitivity, and the protection requirements derived from it, mean that the quantum computer is quite cumbersome: in the newest models, which try to include more and more qubits, the case already reaches a height of several meters. To some extent it is reminiscent of the first generations of classic computers, which looked like huge cabinets. Those classic computers kept getting smaller and smaller, until today we squeeze millions of times more computing power into a simple smartphone, but in the case of quantum computers, we cannot expect a similar process: "The quantum computer requires unique conditions that cannot be produced in a simple terminal device, and this will not change in the foreseeable future," Gil explains. "I believe that quantum computing will be a service that we can access remotely, as we access cloud services today. It will work similar to what IBM already enables today: the computer sits with us, and we make it possible to access the 'brain' and receive answers. Of the 40 computers we have built since 2016, today 20 are available to the public. About half a million users all over the world have already made use of the capabilities of the quantum computer we built, and based on this use, about a thousand scientific publications have already been published."

Google and Microsoft are heating up the competition

IBM is not the only company participating in the quantum computing race, but Gil exudes full confidence in its ability to lead it: according to him, most competitors only have parts of the overall system, but not a complete computer available to solve problems. Google, as mentioned, is a strong contender in this race, and it also allows remote access to its quantum computing service, Google Quantum AI; Microsoft is also working to provide a similar service on its cloud platform, Azure.

Meanwhile, quantum computing is a promise "on paper". The theoretical foundations for this revolution were laid already 40 years ago, the first proofs were presented more than 20 years ago, the industry has been buzzing around this field for several years - and we still haven't seen uses that would serve a regular person.

"If you go back to the 1940s, when the first computers were invented, you will see that even then the uses and advantages of the new invention were not clear. Those who saw the first computers said, 'Oh, great, you can use it to crack the code of encryption machines in wars, maybe even calculate routes of ballistic missiles, and that's it. Who's going to use it? Nobody,'" Gil laughs. "In the same way, the success of quantum computing will depend on its uses: how easy it will be to program, how large the community of users will be, what talents will get there. The quantum revolution will be led by a community, which is why education for this field is so important: we need more and more smart people to start to think 'how can I use quantum computing to advance my field'.

"What is beginning these days is the democratization phase of quantum computing, which will allow anyone to communicate with the computer without being an advanced programmer in the field: it will be possible to approach it with a question or a task that will be written in the classical languages of one or zero. That is why we are already seeing more use of quantum computing capacity today.

"There are also many startups that do not actually work to establish a quantum computer, but focus on various components of this world (for example, the Israeli company Quantum Machines, which develops hardware and software systems for quantum computers, and last July was selected by the Innovation Authority to establish the Israeli Quantum Computing Center). The activity of such companies creates a completely new ecosystem, thus promoting the industry and accelerating its development, just as is happening today in the field of ordinary computers. IBM will not rely only on itself either: we would like to benefit from the innovation of smart people in this field, of course also in Israel.

"I am convinced that the big bang of quantum computing will happen in this decade. Our ambition at IBM is to demonstrate 'quantum supremacy' already in the next three years. I believe that the combination of advances in artificial intelligence, together with quantum computing, will bring about a revolution in the industry of the kind that Nvidia made in its market (Nvidia developed unique processors for gaming computers, which made it the chip company that reached a billion dollar revenue the fastest.) Quantum computing can generate enormous value in the industry. It is phenomenally difficult, but it is clear to me that we will see the uses already in the current decade."

The Nobel Prize opens a new horizon for quantum computing

Quantum computing has ignited the imagination of researchers for many decades, but until now it has not left the confines of laboratories. However, the awarding of the Nobel Prize to three researchers in the field indicates that the vision is becoming a real revolution. Alain Aspect of France, the American John Clauser and Austrian Anton Zeilinger received the award for research they conducted (separately) since the 1970s, in which they examined the phenomenon of quantum entanglement (described in the article), proved its existence and laid tracks for its technological use.

The awarding of the Nobel Prize to the entanglement researchers proves that quantum computing is more than a mental exercise for a sect of physicists, and is a defining moment for companies that invest capital in the development of the field. They are pushed to this effort due to a fundamental change in the world in which they operate: in recent decades, the world of computing has operated according to "Moore's Law", which foresees that the density of transistors in computer processors will double every two years in a way that will increase the computing power of these chips. However, as the industry approaches the physical limit after which it will be impossible to cram more transistors onto a chip, the need to develop a quantum computer has become acute.

The numbers also signal that something is happening in the field. In 2020, the scope of the quantum computing market was less than half a billion dollars, but at the end of 2021, in a signal that the vision is beginning to be realized, the research company IDC published an estimate according to which in 2027 the scope of the market will reach $8.6 billion and investments in the field will amount to $16 billion (compared to $700 million in 2020 and $1.4 billion in 2021). IBM CEO Arvind Krishna also recently estimated that in 2027 quantum computing will become a real commercial industry.

VW teams with Canadian quantum computing company Xanadu on batteries – Automotive News Canada

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

Quantum computing, Ardey added in a release, might trigger a revolution in material science that will feed into the companys in-house battery expertise.

Leaving the bits and bytes of classical computing behind, quantum computers rely on qubits, and are widely seen as having potential to solve complex problems that traditional computers could not work through on reasonable timelines.

The automaker and Toronto-based technology firm have already been collaborating on research into material science, computational chemistry, and quantum algorithms for about a year. That early work set the foundation for the formal partnership, Volkswagen said.

The goal of the research is to develop quantum algorithms that can simulate how a blend of battery materials will interact more quickly than traditional computer models. Computational chemistry, which is traditionally used for such work, Ardey said, is reaching limitations when it comes to battery research.

Juan Miguel Arrazola, head of algorithms at Xanadu, said the partnership is part of the Canadian companys drive to make quantum computers truly useful.

Focusing on batteries is a strategic choice given the demand from industry and the prospects for quantum computing to aid in understanding the complex chemistry inside a battery cell.

Using the quantum algorithms, Volkswagen said it aims to develop battery materials that are safer, lighter and cheaper.

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VW teams with Canadian quantum computing company Xanadu on batteries - Automotive News Canada

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