Computer scientists developed a deep learning method to create realistic objects for virtual environments that can be used to train robots. The researchers used TACC’s Maverick2 supercomputer to train the generative adversarial network. The network is the first that can produce colored point clouds with fine details at multiple resolutions. To navigate built environments, robots…

Do data privacy concerns disproportionately affect people who access the internet primarily through cell phones? New research indicates that cell-mostly internet users are more likely to be exploited online, be victims of data leaks, have less knowledge of phone security practices, and have attitudes of resignation with regard to their agency over their data. Researchers…

Whether a robot or a person delivers your package, the carbon footprint would essentially be the same, according to a new study that could help inform the future of automated delivery as the pandemic fuels a dramatic rise in online shopping. The researchers examined the environmental impacts of advanced residential package delivery scenarios that use…

A multi-institutional team became the first to generate accurate results from materials science simulations on a quantum computer that can be verified with neutron scattering experiments and other practical techniques. Researchers from the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory; the University of Tennessee, Knoxville; Purdue University and D-Wave Systems harnessed the power of quantum…

Lead-based vacancy centers in diamonds that form after high-pressure and high-temperature treatment are ideal for quantum networks, find scientists. The modified crystal system could also find applications in spintronics and quantum sensors. The color in a diamond comes from a defect, or «vacancy,» where there is a missing carbon atom in the crystal lattice. Vacancies…

Scientists have developed a new type of coating that, when applied on a plastic surface, prevents fogging and ‘self-cleans’, overcoming the need for frequent reapplications. The durable coating of a thin double layered silicon dioxide — titanium dioxide film is applied through a two-step technique. Firstly, the plastic surface is treated with oxygen plasma, which…

Researchers have developed an electronic chip that can perform high-sensitivity intracellular recording from thousands of connected neurons simultaneously. This breakthrough allowed them to map synaptic connectivity at an unprecedented level, identifying hundreds of synaptic connections. For decades, researchers have used electrodes to listen in on and record these signals. The patch clamp electrode, an electrode…

According to new research using data from NASA’s retired planet-hunting mission, the Kepler space telescope, about half the stars similar in temperature to our Sun could have a rocky planet capable of supporting liquid water on its surface. Our galaxy holds at least an estimated 300 million of these potentially habitable worlds, based on even…

A research team has demonstrated the first sound projector that can track a moving individual and deliver an acoustic message as they move, to a high-profile tech and media conference in LA. Dr Gianluca Memoli and his colleagues demonstrated what they believe to be the world’s first sound projector with an autozoom objective in a…

Computational materials science experts have enhanced an algorithm that borrows its approach from the nesting habits of cuckoo birds, reducing the search time for new high-tech alloys from weeks to mere seconds. The scientists are investigating a type of alloys called high-entropy alloys, a novel class of materials that are highly sought after for a…