Science news

Laser and light communications news

Light communications is hot in news now. Here are few headlines: LiFi 802.11bb standard uses light for in-room data transmission up to 224GB/s https://www.cnx-software.com/2023/07/14/lifi-802-11bb-wifi-standard-uses-light-for-in-room-data-transmission-up-to-224gb-s/ The 802.11bb WiFi-like standard, also called LiFi, was ratified in June 2023. It enables data transmission up to 224GB/s at a few meters range within a room using light instead of

About leap seconds

Doing away with leap seconds has been up for debate since at least 2013, on grounds that they’re more trouble than they’re worth. Leap seconds have represented risks to important communications and computing systems. Time Lords decree an end to leap seconds before risky attempt to reverse time article tells that The Bureau International des

LUMI supercomputer

New European supercomputer is inaugurated in Finland. LUMI is the fastest and most energy-efficient supercomputer in Europe, ranked also the third fastest in the world. It will have an expected peak performance of 550 petaflops (550 million billion calculations per second) while being fully powered by renewable energy: LUMI uses natural cooling systems and its

James Webb telescope

The American space agency has achieved a major milestone in its preparation of the new James Webb Space Telescope. James Webb telescope mirror alignments has been finished, and the results are exceeding expectations. Still some work to go before actual science operation can start. NASA’s Webb Reaches Alignment Milestone, Optics Working Successfully https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-s-webb-reaches-alignment-milestone-optics-working-successfully James Webb:

James Webb Telescope

James Webb Space Telescope is a space telescope designed primarily to conduct infrared astronomy. The U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) led development of the telescope[8] in collaboration with the European Space Agency (ESA), and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA). The good space news has been that the the James Webb Space Telescope is

Special transverse sound wave

Research team at City University of Hong Kong (CityU) has discovered a new type of sound wave: The airborne sound wave vibrates transversely and carries both spin and orbital angular momentum like light does. The findings shattered scientists’ previous beliefs about the sound wave. “While the airborne sound is a longitudinal wave in usual cases,

Friday Fun: Ig Nobels

Ig Nobel spoof prizes are not as famous as the “real” Nobels – not quite. All the fun occurred online instead of traditional cerenomy. BBC reports: Upside-down rhino research wins Ig Nobel Prize https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-58507100 An experiment that hung rhinoceroses upside down to see what effect it had on the animals has been awarded one of

2-nanometer (nm) node chip

IBM has become the first in the world to introduce a 2-nanometer (nm) node chip. It claims will improve performance by 45% using the same amount of power. IBM Introduces the World’s First 2-nm Node Chip https://spectrum.ieee.org/nanoclast/semiconductors/nanotechnology/ibm-introduces-the-worlds-first-2nm-node-chip IBM has become the first in the world to introduce a 2-nanometer (nm) node chip. IBM claims this

The largest radio telescope is no more

A huge radio telescope in Puerto Rico has collapsed after decades of astronomical discoveries. The Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico was one of the largest radio telescopes in the world. It features prominently in the last part of the 1995 movie GoldenEye. At that that time the crash was fiction, but fiction became in some