Monthly Archives: September 2021

Maybe Lets Not Try to Clone Wooly Mammoths Right Now – New York Magazine

Posted: September 17, 2021 at 8:59 pm

Photo: Daniel Eskridge/Getty Images/iStockphoto

Messing with megafauna usually doesnt work out for the human parties involved, whether its a fictional island theme park overrun by killer dinosaurs or its Florida, where, in 1992, Hurricane Andrew released scores of exotic species held as pets, resulting in invasive Burmese pythons living in over 1,000 square miles of the state.

Into this legacy steps a company called Colossal, which plans to jumpstart natures ancestral heartbeat by cloning and re-introducing thousands of wooly mammoths in Siberia. Led by Harvard Medical School biologist George Church, the plan is to edit mammoth hair and tendencies into elephant DNA and produce mammoth embryos within several years.

There are potential benefits for the larger state of the world, if they can pull it off. Some researchers suggest that wooly mammoths helped transformed the now-mossy tundra into a fertilized grassland; if the Frankenstein version were able to achieve this feat again, the tundra could serve as a buffer against erosion and a potential carbon-dioxide sink to combat global warming. Colossal, which describes itself as the de-extinction company, also hopes the reanimation of the wooly mammoth could serve as a first step toward further genetic alterations to save endangered species on a planet threatened by biodiversity collapse by rewriting their DNA to allow them to adapt to a changing climate.

But as the New York Times notes, there are some obvious concerns with the ambitious venture:

If Colossal does manage to produce baby mammoth-like elephants, the company will face serious ethical questions. Is it humane to produce an animal whose biology we know so little about? Who gets to decide whether they can be set loose, potentially to change the ecosystems of tundras in profound ways?

Heather Bushman, a philosopher at the London School of Economics, said that whatever benefits mammoths might have to the tundra will need to be weighed against the possible suffering that they might experience in being brought into existence by scientists.

You dont have a mother for a species that if they are anything like elephants has extraordinarily strong mother-infant bonds that last for a very long time, she said. Once there is a little mammoth or two on the ground, who is making sure that theyre being looked after?

Considering the recent controversy surrounding much simpler gain-of-function research, perhaps its best to leave this idea in the ground for now or, even better, to actually put political resources toward preventing theworst outcomes of the climate crisis rather than play around with deep adaptation schemes that intentionally riff on Jurassic Park.

Daily news about the politics, business, and technology shaping our world.

The rest is here:

Maybe Lets Not Try to Clone Wooly Mammoths Right Now - New York Magazine

Posted in Cloning | Comments Off on Maybe Lets Not Try to Clone Wooly Mammoths Right Now – New York Magazine

Psychologists have uncovered a new uncanny phenomenon called the "clone devaluation effect" – PsyPost

Posted: at 8:59 pm

New research published in PLOS One provides evidence that duplicated human faces tend to elicit negative emotions in viewers. The findings serve as a warning that future robotic or cloning technology could provoke unpleasant psychological reactions.

The rapid development of humanoid technology is very exciting for people. However, when I imagined the future mass production of androids, I thought that we might be surrounded by human-like entities with the same face (like Agent Smith in the Matrix), said study author Fumiya Yonemitsu of Kyushu University, who is also a research fellow at the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science.

I love science fiction stories that frequently include such situations, but I was horrified to think that this is what the imagined future world would actually look like. I was also curious if this is an emotional response that humans have in general.

Our previous cognitive psychological research has repeatedly shown that unfamiliar and unknown objects evoke an uncanny feeling (e.g., Yamada et al., 2013), and the scene with all the same faces is exactly the kind of unfamiliar and unknown situation that violates our expectations of what a real scene should be like, Yonemitsu explained. I believe that such a situation also evokes a sense of uncanny, and this is the reason why I wanted to try to conduct this study.

In six experiments, which included 2,135 Japanese adults, the researchers consistently found evidence that clone human faces induced a sense of eeriness and improbability. The main finding in this research is that we have an eerie impression of people that have faces with the exact same appearance, which is named the clone devaluation effect, Yonemitsu told PsyPost.

This suggests an ironic future. Even if technology is highly advanced enough to overcome the uncanny valley, if we implement a large number of mass-produced humanoid robots all over the world, as we do with todays consumer electronics, there will be new uncanny phenomena.

The researchers found that as the number of the clone faces in a scene increased, so did subjective ratings of eeriness. Seeing four clone faces was viewed as stranger than viewing two clone faces. But the results appear to be limited to humanoid faces. Clone dog faces were not associated with heighted eeriness ratings, possibly because humans have difficulties in distinguishing the individual faces of other species. In addition, clone human faces drawn in anime and cartoons images were viewed as less eerie and improbable than clone faces in photographic images.

In our experiment, both the clone and non-clone faces used as stimulus images were edited by swapping the facial parts. Therefore, the amount of collage was the same in both conditions, and it is unlikely that the failure of image editing caused the clone devaluation effect, Yonemitsu explained.

Yonemitsu and his colleagues also examined the faces of famous twins. They found that the subjective eeriness of twins faces tended to be lower than that of clone non-twins faces. This could indicate that the duplication of identity, rather than just the duplication of facial features, is what induces eeriness.

This research does not argue that multiplets (e.g., twins) are eerie. As shown in the paper, the research provides findings that clone faces are less eerie when they are multiplets. I would like to strongly emphasize this point, as it is easily misleading, Yonemitsu explained.

But the study like all research includes some limitations.

The clone faces presented in this study were images only. We know that some concerns exist in this regard in terms of construct validity and practicality. The ideal measurement would be to actually produce a number of cloned humans or androids with the same face beyond the uncanny valley and ask people for their impressions. But that is realistically impossible, Yonemitsu said.

So should we just leave this problem alone? We did not think so. Therefore, future research will have to consider its limitations and go beyond them. For example, it will be necessary to have the participants look at the faces of the clones in a more realistic environment, for example, by using virtual reality or by using actual human beings who have been given special makeup to make them look the same.

The findings highlight the need to think critically about introducing new technology because of the potential for unpleasant psychological reactions, the researchers said.

Although our research suggests that the great development of technology may bring us rather unpleasant situations in some aspects, we believe that research from a psychological point of view, such as this one, which anticipates future situations, plays an important role in order for people to smoothly accept the results of technological innovation and enjoy its benefits, Yonemitsu told PsyPost.

If we imagine the future, there could be a large number of psychological phenomena that we have not yet explored, and we can find many hints of them in science fiction works. I would like to end by saying that psychologists can greatly expand the scope of their research beyond the current realm.

The study, The clone devaluation effect: A new uncanny phenomenon concerning facial identity, was authored by Fumiya Yonemitsu, Kyoshiro Sasaki, Akihiko Gobara, and Yuki Yamada.

View post:

Psychologists have uncovered a new uncanny phenomenon called the "clone devaluation effect" - PsyPost

Posted in Cloning | Comments Off on Psychologists have uncovered a new uncanny phenomenon called the "clone devaluation effect" – PsyPost

$5M NSF Grant to Fund Research on Quantum Internet Foundations – Maryland Today

Posted: at 8:56 pm

The National Science Foundation (NSF) today announced a $5 million, two-year award to a University of Maryland-led multi-institutional team to develop quantum interconnectscrucial technology to connect quantum computers and pave the way for a quantum internet.

The team, QuaNeCQT (Quantum Networks to Connect Quantum Technology), has been developing the quantum versions of a modem and a routerfamiliar equipment in the world of standard, or classical computing, but a challenge to build for use with devices that operate based on the principles of quantum.

The devices allow ion trap quantum computersa leading approach to quantum information processing developed in part at the University of Marylandto exchange quantum information over distances measured in kilometers, eventually leading to the development of networks that could revolutionize numerous industries and help solve vexing societal problems.

Quantum networks are at an inflection point with the potential for significant expansion, said Edo Waks, a professor of electrical and computer engineering and associate director of UMDs Quantum Technology Center (QTC). But the scale-up cant happen without standardized modular hardware between the new computers that are emerging and the vast infrastructure of the current internet.

The hardware we are developing will address the critical gap, opening up the door to the future quantum internet that can connect quantum computers over continental distances, said Waks.

Other UMD team members include physics Assistant Professor and QTC Fellow Norbert Linke, and Mid-Atlantic Crossroads (MAX) Executive Director Tripti Sinha, assistant vice president and chief technology officer for UMDs Division of Information Technology. The team also includes Dirk Englund of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Saikat Guha of the University of Arizona.

The researchers plan to deploy this new technology in the Mid-Atlantic Region Quantum Internet (MARQI), UMD's regional quantum network footprint. The MARQI network will interconnect quantum computers at UMD, the Army Research Laboratory, MAX and IonQa leading quantum computing company focused on ion-trap computers that operates in UMDs Discovery Districtwith a potential for significant expansion.

During the first phase of research, the team developed working prototypes of the quantum router and modem. Using a process called quantum frequency conversion, the modem converts signals from a quantum computer to infrared photons that can propagate through optical fibers over long distances. The router is powered by a silicon photonic chip that manipulates quantum signals in the network using quantum teleportationan effect demonstrated in 2009 by researchers at UMDs Joint Quantum Institute that allows quantum states to be transferred between particles that are physically separate. The team has deployed these prototypes in the MARQI network and established direct links with the various nodes of the network.

A quantum network could revolutionize numerous industries that take advantage of quantum computing including computing, banking, medicine and data analytics It would also enable connection of many multiple small quantum computers into powerful distributed quantum computers that could potentially solve problems with significant societal impact, from curing diseases to new approaches to fighting climate change.

As quantum technology converges with the Internet, a new technology sector would emerge, the researchers say, bringing with it the potential for major economic growth by producing rapid technological innovation and creating a large number of new jobs for the future quantum workforce, just as the emergence of the Internet did toward the late 20th century.

Read the original post:

$5M NSF Grant to Fund Research on Quantum Internet Foundations - Maryland Today

Posted in Quantum Computing | Comments Off on $5M NSF Grant to Fund Research on Quantum Internet Foundations – Maryland Today

3 Quantum Computing Stocks to Buy for Their Promising Healthcare Potential – InvestorPlace

Posted: at 8:56 pm

Quantum computing stocks are gaining traction as this once-nascent industry is fast evolving. Wall Street is paying increased attention to the segment as companies move from the experimental research phase to developing commercially feasible computers that can solve the worlds most complex problems and revolutionize businesses in many industries. Thus, quantum computing stocks have become a hot item.

Overall, quantum computers offer computational power 100 million times faster than todays ordinary computers at the moment. They can process more information exponentially with each additional quantum bit, or qubit.

From advances in machine learning to healthcare, artificial intelligence (AI) and advanced cybersecurity capabilities, quantum computers are expected to have a significant impact across a wide range of industries. Therefore, I want to introduce three quantum computing stocks to invest in the rest of this year.

Multiple countries are already involved in the quantum computing race, and The Global Quantum Computing Market Size is expected to value USD 487.4 million in 2021 and is expected to reach USD 3728.4 million by 2030 at a CAGR of 25.40% over the forecast period from 2021 to 2030.

So, with that information, lets take a look at three of the top quantum computing stocks on the market right now.

Now, lets dive in and take a closer look at each one.

52-Week Range: $31.76 52.51Dividend Yield: 0.43%Expense Ratio: 0.40% per year

We start our discussion with an exchange-traded fund (ETF), namely the Defiance Quantum ETF. It invests in global businesses that are leading the technology and applications behind quantum computing, cloud platforms, machine learning, as well as other advanced computing technologies.

QTUM, which has 71 holdings, tracks the returns of the BlueStar Quantum Computing and Machine Learning Index. The fund was first listed in September 2018.

In terms of subsectors, we see Quantum Computing Technology (35.56%), followed by Machine Learning Services (21.44%), AI Chips (17.67%), GPU & Other Hardware (13.07%) and Big Data & Cloud Computing (9.39%). Close to 60% of the companies are U.S.-based. Others come from Japan (12.64%), the Netherlands (8.39%), Taiwan (4.11%) among others.

Leadings names in the roster are Analog Devices (NASDAQ:ADI), Ambarella (NASDAQ:AMBA), Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ:AMD), Synaptics (NASDAQ:SYNA), and Splunk (NASDAQ:SPLK). The top 10 stock comprise close to 20% of net assets of $132.4 million.

Year-to-date, QTUM is up more than 25% and hit a record high in recent days. As the funds holdings show, there are not many pure-play quantum computing stocks. Instead, a large number of tech names are increasing their focus on the quantum realm. Despite the recent run-up in price, such names in the quantum computing space are likely to create many more quarters of shareholder value. Potential investors could consider buying the dips.

52-week Range: $105.92$152.84Dividend Yield: 4.8%

In June, International Business Machinesrevealed Europes first quantum computerin Germany. According to IBM, the Q System One is now Europes most powerful quantum computer. In this race, IBM is not alone and elsewhere, other tech giants, including Google (NASDAQ:GOOG, NASDAQ:GOOGL) (NASDAQ:GOOG), Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) and Honeywell (NASDAQ:HON), are also investing heavily in the quantum computing world.

IBM generates revenue from five segments namely cloud and cognitive software, global business services, global technology services, systems and global financing. While global technology services has the highest share in the top line with about 35%, cloud and cognitive business is the most lucrative business as it has more than 25% pre-tax margin.

The company announced second quarter financial figures at the end of July. Revenue was $18.7 billion implying 3% year-over-year (YOY) growth. Net income of $1.3 million meant a decline of 3% YOY. Diluted non-GAAP earnings per share (EPS) was $2.33. A year ago, it had been $2.18. Meanwhile, net cash from operating activities stood at $17.7 billion.

Management believes quantum computing will play a key role in healthcare as it could enable a range of disruptive use cases for providers and health plans by accelerating diagnoses, personalizing medicine, and optimizing pricing. Quantum-enhanced machine learning algorithms are particularly relevant to the sector.

On the results, CFO James Kavanaugh cited,We expanded operating margins and grew profit dollars in the quarter, providing a key contribution to our cash performance. The company expects to grow revenue for fiscal year 2021 and anticipates free cash flow of $11 billion-$12 billion in 2021.

So far in the year, IBM stock returned just over 9.3%, and hit a multi-year high in June. Since then, though the shares have come under pressure, and price-sales (P/S) ratio stands at 1.66 times. Potential investors could regard the recent decline in price as an opportunity to buy for the long-run.

52-week Range: $196.25 $305.84Dividend Yield: 0.76%

Our last stock is the tech giant Microsoft, which generates revenue from three segments namely Productivity and Business Processes (such as Office 365 and LinkedIn) , Intelligent Cloud (Azure, Premier Support Services, and Consulting Services) and More Personal Computing (Windows Commercial, Bing, and Xbox).

Microsofts fiscal year ends on June 30. At the end of July, the company issued Q4 2021 results. Revenue was $46.2 billion, up 21% YOY. Additionally, net income grew 47% YOY growth to $16.5 billion. Diluted EPS was $2.17 for the fourth quarter, up 49% from a year ago. The company also ended its fiscal year with $14.2 billion cash and equivalents.

Following the announcement, CFO Amy Hood said, As we closed out the fiscal year, our sales teams and partners delivered a strong quarter with over 20%top and bottom-line growth, highlighted by commercial bookings growth of 30% year over year.

For the next quarter, Microsoft shared its segment revenue guidance. Hence, in the Productivity and Business Processes segment, the company expects its revenue between $14.5 and $14.75 billion. For Intelligent Cloud, Microsoft anticipates revenue to be between $16.4 and $16.65 billion.

Microsoft highlights, From breakthroughs in physics and nanomaterials to seamless integration with Microsoft Azure, Microsoft is leading the way to scalable, accessible quantum computing. For example, analysts have been pointing out how Microsofts quantum technology could influence the power industry, healthecare privacy, and personalized medicine.

So far in 2021, MSFT stock is up more than 33% and reached a record high in late August. Moreover, the stock is trading at 13.38 times current sales. Therefore, interested readers could consider investing in the shares for the long-term around current levels.

On the date of publication, Tezcan Gecgil did not have (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to theInvestorPlace.comPublishing Guidelines.

TezcanGecgil has worked in investment management for over two decades in the U.S. and U.K. In addition to formal higher education in the field, she has also completed all 3 levels of the Chartered Market Technician (CMT) examination. Her passion is for options trading based on technical analysis of fundamentally strong companies. She especially enjoys setting up weekly covered calls for income generation.

See the original post:

3 Quantum Computing Stocks to Buy for Their Promising Healthcare Potential - InvestorPlace

Posted in Quantum Computing | Comments Off on 3 Quantum Computing Stocks to Buy for Their Promising Healthcare Potential – InvestorPlace

‘This Is The Beginning Of A New Industry’: College Park Looks To Quantum Computing To Spark Office Growth – Bisnow

Posted: at 8:56 pm

As College Park looks to growits commercial sector and generate demand for office space planned around the University of Maryland's campus, one emerging technology industryis providing promise: quantum computing.

Bisnow/Jon Banister

PGEDC's Ebony Stocks, Brandywine CEO Gerard Sweeney and University of Maryland President Darryll Pines.

College Park startup IonQreached a $2B dealin March that would make it the first quantum computing company to go public, and it is expectedto complete itsIPO later this month. Last week, IonQ and UMDannounced a partnership to develop a new quantum computing lab that they said would be the first of its kind inthe country.

Theuniversity is spending$20M to build the lab, and it has previously invested $300M into quantum science to helpadvancethe emerging sector. Leaders from the university and the county, speaking Wednesday at Bisnow's Future of Prince George's Countyevent in College Park, said the cityhas the ability to become a national hubfor quantum computing, potentially creating a new commercial real estate cluster around the campus.

University of Maryland President Darryll Pines, who was dean of theuniversity's engineering school before becoming presidentlast year, said he seesthe IonQ IPO and lab partnership as a major opportunity for College Park.

"This is the beginning of a new industry; this is why you should care," Pines told the audience of around 175 commercial real estate professionals. "It's at the nascent stage right now, but the fact that it's sitting here in our backyard allows us to leverage it and allows us to build a quantum industry in this region."

Pines said College Park is particularly primed to benefit from this industry's growth because of itsDiscovery District, a150-acre mixed-use district in between the campus and the Metro station that the university is partnering with private developers to build. The Discovery District welcomed a new 297-room hotel in 2017anda WeWork coworking space in 2019, and it has several office, multifamily and retail projects in various stages ofdevelopment.

The latest project to move forward in the Discovery District is a 5-acre, $300M development from Brandywine Realty Trust. The university and its partner, Terrapin Development Co., selectedBrandywine in March to build 550K SF of office, 250 multifamily units and retail.

Courtesy of Brandywine Realty Trust

A rendering of the mixed-use project Brandywine plans to build in College Park's Discovery District.

Brandywine Realty Trust CEO Gerard Sweeney announced at Thursday'sevent that the project will be branded as Discovery Point, and he said heaims to start construction within 18 months. He said he thinks the project could support the city's emerging quantum computing sector.

"It will be a combination of office, academic research, translational labs and quantum computing support, so really space that we'll be building to support the growth and ecosystem within the university," Sweeney said.

Sweeney, whose Philadelphia-based company has completedsimilar projects around the University of Pennsylvaniacampus, compared the opportunity College Park has with quantum computing to thebooming cell and gene therapy industry in Philadelphia. That industrywas inits early stages a decade ago when Brandywine got involved, and Sweeney said because of U Penn's research leadership, Philadelphianow has 88 cell and gene therapy companies employing 56,000 people.

"When we looked at Discovery Point, we saw the same opportunity here," he said. "The vision is what it can be, not what it is. Our job is to translate what it is and how it looks and make sure it's an attractive platform to be really a physical accelerator to the mission of the university and Prince George's County of job creation."

Bisnow/Jon Banister

FSC First's Dawn Medley, Terrapin Development Co.'s Ken Ulman, Cybrary's Ralph Sita, COPT's Dean Lopez, Southern Management's Suzanne Hillman and Velocity Cos.' Brandon Bellamy.

Terrapin Development Co. President Ken Ulman, who previously served as Howard County Executive and unsuccessfully ran forlieutenantgovernor of Maryland before coming back to work oneconomic development around his alma mater, has an ambitious vision for College Park's tech industry.

"When we think about places in this country that are truly thriving, especially with the tech economy, whether it's Silicon Valley or Austin or Boston or the Research Triangle, what do they have in common? They have universities in those communities that understand their role in commercializing technology and producing a workforce," Ulman said.

"The University of Maryland hasn't always played that role," Ulman added. "We're now doing it. The first role is for UMD to reach its full mission and reach its potential to be able to be that full engine."

Ulman, in an email to Bisnow after the event, said he also worked with UMD tolaunchQuantum Start-up Foundry, an accelerator that offers space, resources and equipment to quantum computing companies that emerge out of the university or relocate to College Park.

"Our focus is truly the ecosystem, from training students in quantum to providing the space and resources necessary to access world-class equipment," he said. "It is rare to be at the start of a truly new technology revolution, and when the opportunity emerged, you must seize it and that's what President Pines and the team are doing."

Corporate Office Properties Trust, in partnership with UMD, has builtover 400K SF of office space in the Discovery District and hasat least 1M SF morein the pipeline. COPT Senior Vice President Dean Lopez said the area has receivedstrong leasing demand in the defense, cybersecurity and technology industries.

"The Discovery District has really evolved and continues to evolve into its own micromarket, and the proximity to the university as a big part of that," Lopez said. "What we've found is companies and organizations that land themselves in theDiscovery District, they don't want to leave, and if anything the challenge is keeping them there as they grow."

One of the companies that has grown in the Discovery District is Cybrary, which movedfrom Greenbelt to an 11K SF College Park space in 2019, and then last year expandedto a 26K SF space at COPT's new 4600 River Road building. Cybrary co-founder Ralph Sita said other jurisdictions including Virginia had tried to lure the company away, but it decided to stay in College Park because of the university.

"I've seen the growth, and I've seen what's happening at the University of Maryland, and I knew for Cybrary to attract great talent it was germane to our mission that we were associated with one of the best institutions in the country," Sita said.

Bisnow/Jon Banister

RISE Investment Partners' Brad Frome and Prince George's County Executive Angela Alsobrooks.

Prince George's County Executive Angela Alsobrooks saidthe county has worked with the university and IonQ on the quantum computing lab partnership, and she sees it as a growth engine that could be replicated in other parts of the county.

"The Discovery District is emblematic of what we see all across the county," Alsobrooks said. "There are so many amazing things about the opportunities that are here ... IonQ is just one example, but there are so many other things that are right now literally growing as a result of the relationship, so it only gets better from here."

Read the original:

'This Is The Beginning Of A New Industry': College Park Looks To Quantum Computing To Spark Office Growth - Bisnow

Posted in Quantum Computing | Comments Off on ‘This Is The Beginning Of A New Industry’: College Park Looks To Quantum Computing To Spark Office Growth – Bisnow

DoD Buys Two New Supercomputers That Rank Among Its Most Powerful Ever – Breaking Defense

Posted: at 8:56 pm

Sandia National Laboratory Computer Annex conducts the hourly walk-through of the Thunderbird supercomputer at 2 a.m.

WASHINGTON: The Pentagon recently completed a $68 million acquisition of two new supercomputing platforms and related technical services that rank among its most powerful supercomputers ever and will be among the top 100 performers globally.

These are significant assets, Kevin Newmeyer, deputy director of the Defense Departments High Performance Computing Modernization Program (HPCMP), told Breaking Defense. They bring to us an increase in our computing capacity and the latest advanced chips for artificial intelligence work and storage to support applications of both computational and machine learning concepts within the same computer that we hope will deliver products and services to the warfighter faster.

Its the HPCMPs job to give DoD military and civilian as well as defense contractor scientists, engineers, and technologists access to such supercomputers to solve some of the militarys most computationally complex problems.

The problems range from climate/weather/ocean modeling and simulation, space/astrophysical sciences, and acoustics to signal/image processing, data/decision analytics, and electronics, networks, and C4I systems. Newmeyer said the most common use case is computational fluid dynamics, which is required for making complicated calculations in areas such as aircraft and ship design and engineering.

For the latest acquisition, the Pentagon chose Penguin Computings TrueHPC supercomputing platform. The two new supercomputers, according to the company, will provide DoD with a combined total of over 365,000 cores, more than 775 terabytes of memory, and a total of 47 petabytes of high-performance storage, including over 5 petabytes of high-performance flash storage.

Thats about 150,000 computers all stacked together, operating as one thing, Newmeyer said. If you laid them end to end, you would work your way pretty much across the country.

What does all that compute power get you? An additional 17.6 petaFLOPS, in total. FLOPS or floating point operations per second are the standard measure of a supercomputers performance. FLOPS are determined by how many real numbers a computer can process per second while accounting for the trade-off between range and precision of calculations.

FLOPS are a measure of computational power for solving computer-based problems. Its the horsepower of a machine, Penguins Vice President of Federal Sales Tom Ireland told Breaking Defense.

PetaFLOPS number one quadrillion (1,000,000,000,000,000). To put that in perspective, HPCMP currently has a total capacity across all of its supercomputers of approximately 100 petaFLOPS, according to Newmeyer. That includes the Navys most powerful (known) supercomputer, Narwhal, which is capable of 12.8 petaFLOPS. The known part of the Air Forces most powerful supercomputer, Mustang, is capable of 4.87 petaFLOPS. (Part of Mustang is classified, Newmeyer noted.) Penguins two TrueHPC supercomputers expected to register at 8.5 petaFLOPS and 9 petaFLOPS will be two of HPCMPs most powerful computers ever, Ireland said.

According to the Top500 Project, the fastest supercomputer in the world, as of June 2021, is Japans Fugaku, which registered 442.01 petaFLOPS in November 2020, taking the top spot from IBMs Summit (148.6 petaFLOPS), which is housed at the Department of Energys Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

The Pentagons upgrade in supercomputing power comes amid an intense technological race against near-peer rival China. According to the Top500, China currently leads the world in the total number of supercomputers with 188, but when ranked by performance, the US has five of the top 10 most powerful supercomputers in the world, while China has two of the top 10. No other country has more than one in the top 10.

Ireland noted that Penguin, which has been building supercomputers for 20 years, has for years been running programs at the Department of Energy, which has the most powerful (known) supercomputers in the US. Fifteen of Penguins debuts over 20 years have made the Top500, and were DoD to run official benchmarks on these two new supercomputers, they would rank within the top 100 worldwide, Ireland said.

The Navys DoD Supercomputing Resource Center (DSRC) at Stennis Space Center in Mississippi will house one of the new platforms, while the other will go to the Air Force Research Labs DSRC at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio.

But first Penguin has to build, deploy, and integrate them into HPCMPs network, known as the Defense Research Engineering Network (DREN). Ireland said Penguins TrueHPC consists of about 1,500 nodes, which must be engineered to work as one, giant machine.

The trick with distributed computing meaning its taking what heretofore was done on a mainframe-style computer where its all on a board, and its broken up into separate, discrete servers is making sure that is an adequate platform for any given application, Penguins Chief Strategy Officer Matt Jacobs told Breaking Defense. To make sure that balance between the elements is right and theres an appropriate amount of compute to solve the problem.

Jacobs said some of the key elements include data patterns, network traffic, and storage capacity, which all must be brought together in a way that doesnt strand investment in any given element of those resources and that its an effective production platform for the workload application. Thats really the art, he added.

Jacobs said that Penguin generally builds these types of platforms in a couple of months, but like many companies worldwide, Penguin has encountered challenges in the global supply chain, especially around chips. Jacobs and Ireland said the supply chain hiccups are beyond the companys control, but said they still wouldnt significantly delay the project.

Notably, the platforms will include over 100 NVIDIA graphics processing units, or GPUs, to bolster DoDs AI and machine learning capabilities, Ireland said.

Ultimately, Ireland said, the project is about keeping the US warfighter equipped with state-of-the-art technologies to solve compute problems. Were keeping our warfighters current. You dont want them fighting wars with F-14s when theres F-22s.

Its unclear how long the era of supercomputers will last, as the US and China, among others, race ahead towards quantum computing, which uses quantum mechanics to make a technological leap in processing power. But Newmeyer said hes not concerned traditional supercomputing platforms will become obsolete anytime soon.

Youll still have a use for these types of machines, he said. Any quantum computer built in the near future is going to be highly expensive to operate, and [quantum computers] are only more useful for certain applications maybe in some stuff around hypersonics, certainly cryptology, navigation there quantum has a key role. But for general computation, [quantum] is an awful lot of money.

More:

DoD Buys Two New Supercomputers That Rank Among Its Most Powerful Ever - Breaking Defense

Posted in Quantum Computing | Comments Off on DoD Buys Two New Supercomputers That Rank Among Its Most Powerful Ever – Breaking Defense

Explore Trends and COVID-19 Impact on Quantum Computing Market 2021 Research Report and Industry Forecast till 2027 | Know More Stillwater Current -…

Posted: at 8:56 pm

The latest industry report entitled theGlobal Quantum Computing Market 2021that focuses on market analyzes of the important factors with an in-depth approach and enables the user to assess the long-term based demand also predicts specific executions. This report provides qualitative analysis, explaining product scope and elaborating industry insights and outlook to 2026. Theglobal Quantum Computing market is a significantreferral for crucial and well-known players in the current market. The information itemized in the report offers an exhaustive appraisal of the major dynamics of the Quantum Computing market like the opportunities, market trends, limits, and business strategies. In addition, the report also shows the present fundamental industry events together with their relevant effect on the market. The market study report also involves the top key players in the global Quantum Computing market such as (Google, IBM, DWave, Intel, Microsoft, 1QBIT, Anyon Systems, Cambridge Quantum Computing, ID Quantique, IonQ, QbitLogic, QC Ware, Quantum Circuits, Qubitekk, QxBranch, Rigetti Computing).

Get Free Sample PDF (including COVID19 Impact Analysis, full TOC, Tables and Figures) of Market Report @https://www.syndicatemarketresearch.com/sample/quantum-computing-market

The research report mainly covers the present market growth rates (%) of theGlobal Quantum Computing marketand its size on the basis of recent 5 years history data besides the company profile of top players/producers. The top to bottom statistics by segments of the market assist to monitor future benefits & to settle on crucial decisions for advancement. The report focuses on developments and trends, markets and materials, SWOT analysis, scope, technologies, CAPEX cycle and the changing format of The Global Quantum Computing Market.

Global Quantum Computing Market Analysis by Manufacturers/Players, by Product Type, Application, and Regions

Moreover, this report portrayed the primary product type, segments and sub-segments of the industry. This brief outline includes the business overview, revenue share, latest events, product offering, methods, and administration offering of the dominant players. An accurate appraisal of the leading organizations, together with their strategic aptitudes, containing innovation, cost, and consumer satisfaction have been included in this study report relating to themarket. The raw numbers incorporated into the worldwide Quantum Computing market report are included with the recognition and contribution from a global group of talented experts to give an up-to-date situation of the current advancements in the market.

The report provides comprehensive guidelines on the essential methodologies that have energized the market development nearby the technique that would be victorious in the expected time. The report also incorporates geographically of the Quantum Computing market as North America, South America, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and the Asia Pacific.

Do Inquiry For Customization & More Info Here:https://www.syndicatemarketresearch.com/inquiry/quantum-computing-market

This intensive regional assessment provides the readers with a clear view of the most persuasive trends prevailing in each geographies area. Aside from this, the report additionally covers industry size and offers of these regions, together with expected measurements, which are useful for organizations in understanding the consumption growth of these regions. In addition, the worldwide Quantum Computing market is surveyed as far as income (USD Million) and volume.

The Global Quantum Computing Market divided by Product Type such as (Hardware, Software, Services). Further, this analysis report is segmented by Application/end users like (Simulation, Optimization, Sampling) based on historical and estimated industry share and compounded annual growth rate (CAGR in %) with sizeand Revenue (Million USD).

The analysis has utilized scientific instruments such as competitive overview helps and Porters Five Forces Analysis in translating the extent of strategies related to the usage in the global Quantum Computing market in the anticipated stage.

This Study Report Offers Following Objectives:

1. Forecast and analysis of the global Quantum Computing market sales, share, value, status (2016-2018) and forecast (2021-2026).2. Analyze the regionalas well as country level segments, share evolution for global Quantum Computing Market.3. Analysis of global industry-leading manufacturers/players.4. Define and analyze the market competition landscape, SWOT analysis.5. Forecasts and analysis of the segments, sub-segments and the regional markets based on the last of 5 years market history.6. Analysis of the Quantum Computing market by Type, by Application/end users and region wise.7. Forecast and analysis of the Global Quantum Computing Market Trends, Drivers, Investment Opportunities, Openings, Risk, Difficulties, and recommendations.8. Analyze the significant driving factors, trends that restrict the market growth.9. Describe the stakeholders opportunities in the market by identifying the high-growth segments.

There are 15 Key Chapters Covered in the Global Quantum Computing Market:

Chapter 1, Industry Overview of Global Quantum Computing Market;Chapter 2, Classification, Specifications and Definition of market segment by Regions;Chapter 3, Industry Suppliers, Manufacturing Process and Cost Structure, Chain Structure, Raw Material;Chapter 4, Specialized Information and Manufacturing Plants Analysis, Limit and Business Production Rate, Manufacturing Plants Distribution, R&D Status, and Technology Sources Analysis;Chapter 5, Complete Market Research, Capacity, Sales and Sales Price Analysis with Company Segment;Chapter 6, Analysis of Regional Market that contains the United States, Europe, India, China, Japan, Korea & Taiwan;Chapter 7 & 8, Quantum Computing Market Analysis by Major Manufacturers, The segment Market Analysis (by Type) and (by Application);Chapter 9, Regional Market Trend Analysis, Market Trend by Product Type and by Application:Chapter 10 & 11, Supply Chain Analysis, Regional Marketing Type Analysis, Global Trade Type Analysis;Chapter 12, The global Quantum Computing industry consumers Analysis;Chapter 13, Research Findings/Conclusion, deals channel, traders, distributors, dealers analysis;Chapter 14 and 15, Appendix and data source of Quantum Computing market.

Note In order to provide a more accurate market forecast, all our reports will be updated before delivery by considering the impact of COVID-19.(*If you have any special requirements, please let us know and we will offer you the report as you want.)

About Syndicate Market Research:

At Syndicate Market Research, we provide reports about a range of industries such as healthcare & pharma, automotive, IT, insurance, security, packaging, electronics & semiconductors, medical devices, food & beverage, software & services, manufacturing & construction, defense & aerospace, agriculture, consumer goods & retailing, and so on. Every aspect of the market is covered in the report along with its regional data. Syndicate Market Research committed to the requirements of our clients, offering tailored solutions best suitable for strategy development and execution to get substantial results. Above this, we will be available for our clients 247.

Contact Us:

Syndicate Market Research244 Fifth Avenue, Suite N202New York, 10001, United States+1 347 535 0815 |Email ID:sales@syndicatemarketresearch.comWebsite:www.syndicatemarketresearch.com |Blog:Syndicate Market Research Blog

Go here to read the rest:

Explore Trends and COVID-19 Impact on Quantum Computing Market 2021 Research Report and Industry Forecast till 2027 | Know More Stillwater Current -...

Posted in Quantum Computing | Comments Off on Explore Trends and COVID-19 Impact on Quantum Computing Market 2021 Research Report and Industry Forecast till 2027 | Know More Stillwater Current -…

UChicago, Duality Teams to Pitch at 2021 Chicago Venture Summit – Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation – Polsky Center for…

Posted: at 8:56 pm

Published on Tuesday, September 14, 2021

Several teams from the University of Chicago and Duality the worlds first accelerator focused exclusively on quantum technologies are pitching at the 2021 Chicago Venture Summit.

The venture capital conference takes place September 27-29 and brings together leading venture capital investors and innovation ecosystem leaders with founders.

>> Register for the Deep Tech Showcase, here.

Kicking off the conference on Monday, September 27, the Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation and Argonnes Chain Reaction Innovations program are hosting the 2021 Deep Tech Showcase as part of the larger event. The virtual showcase is from 2:00 to 3:30 p.m. (CST).

The Chicago Venture Summit has evolved to one of the Midwest regions largest VC events and a must-attend event for national investors, said Abin Kuriakose, executive vice president of innovation and venture strategy for World Business Chicago the City of Chicagos economic development organization chaired by the Mayor, and the organizers of the Chicago Venture Summit. We couldnt be more proud to showcase our citys most promising founders, many of them from the UChicago, Duality, and CRI ecosystems.

UChicago and Duality teams pitching include:

// AddGraft Therapeutics is developing a CRISPR-based therapeutic technology using skin cells to treat addiction. The researchers have developed a therapeutic platform that, through a one-time and first-of-its-kind treatment, will effectively cure someone of alcohol use disorder (AUD). The treatment is long-lasting, highly effective, and minimally invasive.

This is completed by using skin epidermal progenitor cells to deliver one or more therapeutic agents. First, the researchers harvest skin stem cells from an AUD patient and genetically modify them using a precise molecular scissor CRISPR. This process will introduce genes that can produce molecules that will significantly reduce the motivation to take or seek alcohol. Then, they re-implant these skin cells into the original host through a skin graft. After the graft has been re-implanted, the skin graft is able to produce these molecules as a bio engine throughout the lifetime of the graft.

Team members:

// Arrow Immuneis developing next-generation biologics for immuno-oncology in solid tumors. The company is developing protein engineering technology to retain IO molecules in the tumor microenvironment, both to function as monotherapies and to enhance response to checkpoint inhibitor immunotherapy.

The company has developed a powerful approach to mask these compounds such that they are inactive in the periphery yet are activated within the tumor, to limit immune-related adverse events and open the therapeutic window.

Team members:

// Axion Technologies is a Tallahassee, FL-based company, developing a quantum random number generator for high-performance computing systems. Its design enables embedding of unique digital signatures for hardware authentication. The company has received a NSF SBIR award.

Team members:

// Esya Labs mission is the early, precise, and cost-effective detection of neurodegenerative diseases. Its first-in-class product for Alzheimers Diseasewill provide a 360-degree perspective enabling early diagnosis, a personalized treatment plan based on ranked drug effectiveness for any given patient, and monitoring disease progression.

The platform uses synthetic DNA strands that have been engineered to function in a specific way. These so-called DNA nanodevices are used to measure lysosomes performance by creating chemical maps of their activity a process that had previously not been possible. The company in

Team members:

// Nanopattern Technologies is commercializing a quantum dot ink that enables the manufacturing of the next generation of energy-efficient, bright, and fast refresh rate displays and recently received a $1 million NSF SBIR grant.

In addition to displays, NanoPatterns patented technology is capable of patterning oxide nanoparticles for optics applications and Near Infrared (NIR) quantum dots for multispectral sensor applications.

Team members:

// qBraid is developing a cloud-based platform for managed access to other quantum computing software and hardware. The platform includes qBraid Learn and qBraid Lab. qBraid Learn is ready to host any courses developed by the quantum computing ecosystem, but the team has also developed their own educational content. qBraid provides a streamlined experience for first-time learners through its QuBes (quantum beginners) course. Hosted on the qBraid-learn platform, QuBes brings students up to speed on all the background knowledge (mathematics, coding, and physics) necessary to then introduce quantum computing.

qBraid-Lab provides a cloud-based integrated development environment (IDE) for quantum software developers. Unlike other in-browser development platforms, qBraids ecosystem specifically optimizes for quantum computing by providing development environments with all common quantum computing packages pre-installed.

The platform is being used by more than 2500 users from top universities, financial institutions, and various national labs. qBraid has also announced recent collaborations with various government agencies (Quantum Algorithms Institute in British Columbia, the Chicago Quantum Exchange, and the QuSteam) in the US and Canada.

Team members:

// Quantopticon, based in the UK, develops software for simulating quantum-photonic devices. The software has applications chiefly in the budding fields of quantum computing and ultra-secure quantum communications.

Quantopticon specializes in modelling quantum systems of the solid-state type, which are commonly embedded in cavity structures in order to control and enhance specific optical transitions.Its software for modelling interactions of light with matter is underpinned by an original and proprietary general methodology developed by the team from first principles.

The purpose of their software is ultimately to save quantum-optical designers time and money, by eliminating the need to carry out repeated experiments to test and optimize physical prototypes.

Team members:

// Super.tech is developing software that accelerates quantum computing applications by optimizing across the system stack from algorithms to control pulses. The company in August announced the launch of a software platform endeavoring to make quantum computing commercially viable years sooner than otherwise possible.

The platform, calledSuperstaQ, connects applications to quantum computers from IBM Quantum, IonQ, and Rigetti, and optimizes software across the system stack to boost the performance of the underlying quantum computers.

Team members:

Of the teams presenting, Axion, qBraid, Quantopticon, and Super.tech were selected from a competitive pool of applicants from all over the globe and vetted by an internal review process to participate in Cohort 1 of Duality.

Launched in April 2021,Duality is the first-of-its-kind accelerator aimed at supporting next-generation startups focused on quantum science and technology. The 12-month program provides world-class business and entrepreneurship training from theUniversity of Chicago Booth School of Business, Polsky Center, and the opportunity to engage the networks, facilities, and programming from the Chicago Quantum Exchange, the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Argonne National Laboratory, and P33.

Read the original post:

UChicago, Duality Teams to Pitch at 2021 Chicago Venture Summit - Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation - Polsky Center for...

Posted in Quantum Computing | Comments Off on UChicago, Duality Teams to Pitch at 2021 Chicago Venture Summit – Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation – Polsky Center for…

The Bizarre Story Of The Bitcoin Bros And Their Doomed Floating Utopia – IFLScience

Posted: at 8:56 pm

Who do you think of when you hear the word Bitcoin? Maybe a certain billionaire? A bored but ultimately generous hacker? El Salvador?

Whoever comes to mind, it probably isnt a seasteader like Grant Romundt, Rdiger Koch, or Chad Elwartowski, three men who last year collectively answered the question: What if a frontiersman had a baby with Captain Nemo, and that baby then pissed off a Greek god?

It was designed to be a utopia. In October 2020, Romundt, Koch, and Elwartowski clubbed together to buy a $9.5 million ex-cruise liner, the Pacific Dawn, which they renamedMS Satoshi after the founder of Bitcoin. They had a simple dream: to build a new society on the ocean, free from taxes, regulations, and fiat currency. At the heart of the community would be Satoshi, surrounded by a collection of space-age-looking pod homes and two floating platforms in the shape of a B for Bitcoin designed for farmland, parks, and manufacturing.

If youre thinking that all sounds a little pie in the sky or sea then you have better instincts than the Bitcoin bros did.

We were like, This is just sohard, Romundt told The Guardian for their deep dive on the project.

As the trio quickly learned, the high seas are not, as they are so often made out to be, a wild and lawless paradise. In fact, theyre some of the most highly regulated places on the planet especially for cruise ships.

I was thinking a week into the job, I can see Im going to be resigning, Peter Harris, the experienced cruise ship captain hired by Koch to pilot the Satoshi, told the Guardian. He didnt understand the industry He just thought he could treat it like his own yacht.

The problems started immediately. The ship, it turned out, was not legally seaworthy. The group had planned to dock off the coast of Panama, but instead, they were forced to sail to Gibraltar for essential checks and repairs. Even after this, they found insurers would refuse to cover the ship They wouldnt even tell us why we werent insurable, they just kept saying no, Romundt said.

When they finally made it to the Central American country they hoped to make their home, they ran into a problem that has plagued humanity since the dawn of time: what to do with all the effluent. Barred from discharging it into Panamanian waters, they would have to sail the 19 kilometers (12 miles) out to international waters every three weeks to dump the waste there instead.

And then there was the cost: $12,000 a day in fuel when they were on the move, and up to $1 million a month for upkeep even when docked. They couldnt make up the costs from potential Satoshi citizens for some reason, not that many people wanted to leave their friends, homes, jobs, and solid ground for a life of seasickness and cramped quarters.

The dream was doomed, and they knew it. The trio were forced to sell the ship before they even reached Panama We have lost this round, announced Elwartowski. In a final twist, the trio couldnt even scrap the Satoshi without running headlong into the realities of international law: the junkyard that bought her was based in India, a non-signatory to the Basel Convention governing the disposal of hazardous waste, and they were legally not allowed to send the ship there from a signatory country such as Panama.

The story has a happy ending at least for the Satoshi. It now sails with a new cruise line under the name Ambience; instead of a community of crypto-miners, it's now home to a few hundred globetrotting retirees. As for the seasteaders, theyre still harboring the dream of ocean colonization but theyre out of the cruise game for now. After all, as Elwartowski concluded a few months after the debacle: A cruise ship is not very good for people who want to be free.

[H/T:The Guardian]

Go here to read the rest:

The Bizarre Story Of The Bitcoin Bros And Their Doomed Floating Utopia - IFLScience

Posted in New Utopia | Comments Off on The Bizarre Story Of The Bitcoin Bros And Their Doomed Floating Utopia – IFLScience

Pokey LaFarge In The Blossom Of Their Shade – UNCUT

Posted: at 8:56 pm

Last years Rock Bottom Rhapsody partly detailed the existential crisis that befell LaFarge following his move from St Louis hometown to LA in 2018, a long dark night of the soul that brought out self-destructive tendencies. The follow-up, provisionally titled Siesta Love owing to its summery afternoon swing, is brighter in tone, charting his journey back to some kind of contentment. The pandemic, it transpires, worked in his favour, a cancelled tour giving him the space and time to fully recharge.

Opening track Get It Fore Its Gonetypifies the more carefree musical approach, a warm-breeze moment set to a quasi-calypso rhythm. Its a trick he repeats a few times during In The Blossom Of Their Shade, from the Caribbean-scented Mi Ideal (whose lyrics provide the album title) to the lovestruck Tropiclia of Yo-Yo. At other times, LaFarge and his band approximate choogling Creedence (Fine To Me) and the New Orleans R&B perfected by Dave Bartholomew and Fats Domino (Killing Time).

But these smart stylistic detours mask something a little deeper. Lyrically, LaFarge feels like hes still in the process of banishing a few demons. Long For The Heaven I Seekis a baleful country tune whose narrator is burdened by life, a plea for deliverance that follows in the weary bootsteps of Hank Williams. I strain to hear heavens bells ring/But Im tired of waiting for the angels to sing, laments LaFarge, his high, nasal voice sounding suitably Williams-like. Another teary cowboy ballad, Drink Of You, struggles to booze away time and trouble, while To Love Or Be Alone despite its balmy demeanour offers a bleak summation of a romantic relationship: Its in our nature to cheat/And also to kill/Its inevitable that one of us will.

Ultimately though, In The Blossom Of Their Shade strikes a hopeful note. Against a backdrop of societal chaos, Rotterdamenvisions a new utopia, before LaFarge bows out with Goodnight, Goodbye (Hope Not Forever), the implication being that the worst is now over.

Read the original:

Pokey LaFarge In The Blossom Of Their Shade - UNCUT

Posted in New Utopia | Comments Off on Pokey LaFarge In The Blossom Of Their Shade – UNCUT