Researchers have observed the X-ray emission of the most luminous quasar seen in the last 9 billion years of cosmic history, known as SMSS J114447.77-430859.3, or J1144 for short. The new perspective sheds light on the inner workings of quasars and how they interact with their environment. The research is published in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. Hosted by a galaxy 9.6 billion light years away from the Earth, between the constellations of Centaurus and Hydra, J1144 is extremely…

– a step upwards in medication. Don’t be surprised to see pills with unusual shapes in the future. At first sight they may look funny, but they can release pharmaceuticals inside the body in a controlled manner. Using a combination of advanced computational methods and 3D printing, objects are produced that dissolve in liquids in a predetermined manner. A group of Computer Scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Informatics in Saarbrücken, Germany, and the University of California at Davis,…

A research team, composed of climatologists and an astronomer, have used an improved computer model to reproduce the cycle of ice ages (glacial periods) 1.6 to 1.2 million years ago. The results show that the glacial cycle was driven primarily by astronomical forces in quite a different way than it works in the modern age. These results will help us to better understand the past, present, and future of ice sheets and the Earth’s climate. Earth’s orbit around the Sun…

Max Planck researchers from Dortmund programmed a tool that accurately recognises and picks proteins in electron cryo-tomography, substituting troublesome hand selection. Electron cryo-tomography (cryo-ET) is emerging as a powerful technique to provide detailed 3D images of cellular environments and enclosed biomolecules. However, one of the challenges of the methodology is the identification of protein molecules in the images for further processing. A research team around Stefan Raunser, Director at the MPI of Molecular Physiology in Dortmund, led by Thorsten Wagner,…

What does the inside of a carbon atom’s nucleus look like? A new study by Forschungszentrum Jülich, Michigan State University (USA) and the University of Bonn provides the first comprehensive answer to this question. In the study, the researchers simulated all known energy states of the nucleus. These include the puzzling Hoyle state. If it did not exist, carbon and oxygen would only be present in the universe in tiny traces. Ultimately, we therefore also owe it our own existence….

Researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Laser Technology ILT are developing technology for quantum networks of the future. Funded by the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, the institute is installing hardware of a network node on location, as it is also used in the quantum internet demonstrator of QuTech in Delft in the Netherlands. The hardware will initially serve as a test and development platform, which the scientists want to use to develop new components for networking quantum computers with partners…

… and discover new role for turbulence. Turbulent flows take on a surprising spin in an experiment inspired by the Earth’s core. A team of physicists has discovered a new role for a specific type of turbulence—a finding that sheds light on fluid flows ranging from the Earth’s liquid core to boiling water. The research, which appears in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, centered on turbulent convection—the movement of fluid when heated from below. “Our experiments…

High-resolution imaging of radio emissions from an ultracool dwarf show a double-lobed structure like the radiation belts of Jupiter. Astronomers have described the first radiation belt observed outside our solar system, using a coordinated array of 39 radio dishes from Hawaii to Germany to obtain high-resolution images. The images of persistent, intense radio emissions from an ultracool dwarf reveal the presence of a cloud of high-energy electrons trapped in the object’s powerful magnetic field, forming a double-lobed structure analogous to…

A group of researchers led by Andreas Wallraff, Professor of Solid State Physics at ETH Zurich, has performed a loophole-free Bell test to disprove the concept of “local causality” formulated by Albert Einstein in response to quantum mechanics. By showing that quantum mechanical objects that are far apart can be much more strongly correlated with each other than is possible in conventional systems, the researchers have provided further confirmation for quantum mechanics. What’s special about this experiment is that the…

Astronomers have found that supermassive black holes obscured by dust are more likely to grow and release tremendous amounts of energy when they are inside galaxies that are expected to collide with a neighbouring galaxy. The new work, led by researchers from Newcastle University, is published in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. Galaxies, including our own Milky Way, contain supermassive black holes at their centres. They have masses equivalent to millions, or even billions, times that of our Sun. These black…

A team of scientists from the Department of Energy’s Ames National Laboratory have developed a way to collect terahertz imaging data on materials under extreme magnetic and cryogenic conditions. They accomplished their work with a new scanning probe microscope. This microscope was recently developed at Ames Lab. The team used the ultralow temperature terahertz microscope to take measurements on superconductors and topological semimetals. These materials were were exposed to high magnetic fields and temperatures below liquid helium (below 4.2 Kelvins…

The spiral-shaped bacteria Helicobacter pylori are common and troublesome. More than 13 percent of Americans have an H. pylori infection, although rates vary with age, race and socioeconomic status. The microorganism uses its corkscrew-like tail to power forward through viscous fluids such as stomach mucus. When it arrives at the epithelium of the stomach wall, it can cause everything from ulcers to cancer. In a new study published by Physical Review Letters, FAMU-FSU College of Engineering researchers created a 3D model of this…

Robots can help find objects you’ve lost, thanks to new ‘artificial memory’. Engineers at the University of Waterloo have discovered a new way to program robots to help people with dementia locate medicine, glasses, phones and other objects they need but have lost. And while the initial focus is on assisting a specific group of people, the technology could someday be used by anyone who has searched high and low for something they’ve misplaced. “The long-term impact of this is…

Biophysicist at Göttingen University receives ERC Proof of Concept Grant. Professor Timo Betz, University of Göttingen, has been awarded a Proof of Concept (PoC) grant by the European Research Council (ERC) for his “TissMec” project to develop a 3D screening system to cultivate tissue and automatically stimulate and quantify its mechanical properties. PoC ERC grants provide top-up funding of €150,000 over 18 months to outstanding researchers, who have already received ERC funding, so that they can build on the innovation…

By observing spin structure in “magic-angle” graphene, a team of scientists led by Brown University researchers have found a workaround for a long-standing roadblock in the field of two-dimensional electronics. For two decades, physicists have tried to directly manipulate the spin of electrons in 2D materials like graphene. Doing so could spark key advances in the burgeoning world of 2D electronics, a field where super-fast, small and flexible electronic devices carry out computations based on quantum mechanics. Standing in the…

The SNO+ experiment has for the first time shown that neutrinos from a nuclear reactor over 240 km away can be detected with plain water. The Science Neutrinos are subatomic particles that interact with matter extremely weakly. They are produced in many types of radioactive decays, including in the core of the Sun and in nuclear reactors. Neutrinos are also impossible to block—they easily travel from the core of a nuclear reactor to a detector far away, and even through the Earth itself….