If you’ve ever tended a garden or potted a plant, you know a few simple truths about green things—they require water and nutrients to survive and their roots are good indicators of their overall health. So we water on a regular schedule, provide for root growth and add nutrient-rich soils to ensure a balanced diet.…
New Algorithm Optimizes Quantum Computing Problem-solving
Tohoku University researchers have developed an algorithm that enhances the ability of a Canadian-designed quantum computer to more efficiently find the best solution for complicated problems, according to a study published in the journal Scientific Reports. Quantum computing takes advantage of the ability of subatomic particles to exist in more than one state at the same…
Supercomputers Aid Our Understanding of Complex Brain Waves
Even though electroencephalography (EEG) has been used for almost 100 years, this safe and painless test of brain activity remains an efficient method for recording aspects of rapid brain activity patterns supporting our thoughts and actions. Leveraging the power of the Comet supercomputer at the San Diego Supercomputer Center (SDSC) at UC San Diego, campus researchers have…
Scientists Discover How RNA Pol II Maintains Accurate Transcription With Supercomputer
The message of life is encoded in our genomic DNA through transcription of messenger RNAs and translation of proteins to perform cellular functions. To ensure accurate transcription—a process that transcribes genomic DNA into messenger RNA by adding nucleotides one by one like letters in the alphabet, an enzyme called RNA polymerase II would synthesize and…
Supercomputers Help Supercharge Protein Assembly
Red blood cells are amazing. They pick up oxygen from our lungs and carry it all over our body to keep us alive. The hemoglobin molecule in red blood cells transports oxygen by changing its shape in an all-or-nothing fashion. Four copies of the same protein in hemoglobin open and close like flower petals, structurally coupled to…
Modified Deep-learning Algorithms Unveil Features of Shape-shifting Proteins
Using artificial neural networks designed to emulate the inner workings of the human brain, deep-learning algorithms deftly peruse and analyze large quantities of data. Applying this technique to science problems can help unearth historically elusive solutions. One such challenge involves a biophysical phenomenon known as protein folding. Although researchers know that proteins must morph into…
Extremely Accurate Measurements of Atom States for Quantum Computing
A new method allows the quantum state of atomic “qubits”—the basic unit of information in quantum computers—to be measured with 20 times less error than was previously possible, without losing any atoms. Accurately measuring qubit states, which are analogous to the one or zero states of bits in traditional computing, is a vital step in…
Semiconductor: A New Contender for Scalable Quantum Computing
Quantum computing, along with 5G and AI, has been the focus for next-generation technology in the last few decades. Up to now, numerous physical systems have been investigated to build a test device for quantum computing, including superconducting Josephson junctions, trapped ions and semiconductors. Among them, the semiconductor is a new star for its high…
Supercomputer Simulations Shed Light on How Liquid Drops Combine
U.S. Department of Energy and Intel to Deliver First Exascale Supercomputer
Intel Corporation and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) will deliver the first supercomputer with a performance of one exaFLOP in the United States. The system being developed at DOE’s Argonne National Laboratory in Chicago—named “Aurora”—will be used to dramatically advance scientific research and discovery. The contract is valued at more than $500 million and will be delivered to…
Computer Program Developed to Find ‘Leakage’ in Quantum Computers
Artificial Intelligence Speeds Up
Exascale Computing Project Highlights Its ‘EXAALT’ Molecular Dynamics Effort
Researchers can run computer simulations of the physical movements of atoms and molecules and make inferences about the dynamic evolution of the system. This method of simulation, called molecular dynamics, is used at many computing centers across the country in areas such as materials science and biology. These simulations can yield extremely detailed understanding of…
Physicists Reverse Time Using Quantum Computer
Researchers from the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology teamed up with colleagues from the U.S. and Switzerland and returned the state of a quantum computer a fraction of a second into the past. They also calculated the probability that an electron in empty interstellar space will spontaneously travel back into its recent past. The study comes…
ORNL-led Collaboration Solves a Beta-Decay Puzzle With Advanced Nuclear Models
An international collaboration including scientists at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory solved a 50-year-old puzzle that explains why beta decays of atomic nuclei are slower than what is expected based on the beta decays of free neutrons. The findings, published in Nature Physics, fill a long-standing gap in physicists’ understanding of beta decay,…
NVIDIA to Acquire Mellanox for $6.9 Billion
NVIDIA and Mellanox today announced that the companies have reached a definitive agreement under which NVIDIA will acquire Mellanox. Pursuant to the agreement, NVIDIA will acquire all of the issued and outstanding common shares of Mellanox for $125 per share in cash, representing a total enterprise value of approximately $6.9 billion. Once complete, the combination…
IBM Achieves Highest Quantum Volume to Date, Establishes Roadmap for Reaching Quantum Advantage
At the 2019 American Physical Society March Meeting, IBM unveiled a new scientific milestone, announcing its highest quantum volume to date. Quantum volume is a measurement, a procedure developed by IBM, that determines how powerful a quantum computer is, accounting for both gate and measurement errors, device cross talk, as well as device connectivity and circuit compiler efficiency.…
Chain Reaction Innovations Project Aims to Fill Critical Computing Needs
The demand for computing power continues to accelerate with each passing year as consumers grow ever more reliant on smart phones and the data centers that keep them functional. Chad Husko, a physicist specializing in nanoscale optical materials and devices, believes advanced laser technology is critical to fulfilling this growing need. Husko, formerly the Alexei Abrikosov Fellow at…
New Hurdle Cleared in Race Toward Quantum Computing
Qubits, the units used to encode information in quantum computing, are not all created equal. Some researchers believe that topological qubits, which are tougher and less susceptible to environmental noise than other kinds, may be the best medium for pushing quantum computing forward. Quantum physics deals with how fundamental particles interact and sometimes come together…
Supercomputing Enables Sound Prediction Model for Controlling Noise
Noise-cancelling headphones have become a popular accessory for frequent flyers. By analyzing the background frequencies produced by an airplane in flight and generating an “anti-noise” sound wave that is perfectly out of phase, such headphones eliminate disturbing background sounds. Although the headphones can’t do anything about the cramped seating, they can make watching a film…
Exploring the Global Landscape of Quantum Technology Research
Researcher Uses Blue Waters Supercomputer to Model Galactic Atmospheres
Since the beginning of astronomy, scientists have historically spent countless hours, and more recently countless compute cycles, to understand the formation of our galaxy or galaxies in general. This research has advanced to the point where scientists can reasonably estimate how galaxies begin, but some mysteries remain. Before present-day, researchers were limited in the scope…
Pinnacle Engines Develops Efficient, Low-emission Gasoline Engine Using Supercomputing
A more efficient car engine? That’s the goal. An opposed-piston engine is more efficient than a traditional internal combustion engine. Pinnacle Engines is developing a multi-cylinder gasoline engine for automotive use. The team enhanced the engine’s reciprocating sleeve-valve system, thanks to a Department of Energy supercomputer. The result? An engine with better combustion and reduced…
Supercomputing Propels Jet Atomization Research for Industrial Processes
Whether it is designing the most effective method for fuel injection in engines, building machinery to water acres of farmland, or painting a car, humans rely on liquid sprays for countless industrial processes that enable and enrich our daily lives. To understand how to make liquid jet spray cleaner and more efficient, though, researchers have…
Supercomputer Advances Material Science in South Korea
Once the celebrations are over and the world-class supercomputer is installed and operational, it becomes imperative to deliver on the promised value of such a significant computational asset. World-class supercomputers such as the recently installed Korea Institute of Science and Technology Information (KISTI) NURION system (currently the 13th fastest system in the world as of…