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Today, we have a selection of fascinating developments in STEM for you to peruse!
Atoms are the foundation of everything on Earth. Everything you can see and interact with is composed of billions upon billions of individual atoms that all interact with one another in unique and complex ways. Small-scale simulations of atomic behavior have been commonplace in the world of STEM for a long time, but the immense complexity of how atoms interact with one another has made it difficult to ramp up the scale of our simulations. It would simply require too much computational power to produce an accurate simulation of millions of atoms at once--or so we thought. A team of researchers at Harvard University recently harnessed the power of one of the world's most powerful supercomputers to simulate a whopping forty-four million atoms at once. This simulation utilized the power of an AI neural network to predict and stabilize the interactions between the individual atoms, making it easier for the supercomputer to process. This new technology has been packaged into a program called Allegro, which researchers can use to simulate a wide variety of large molecules on an atomic level. Atomic simulations of this scale have fairly limited usefulness due to the general accuracy of simpler methods of simulating multi-million atom molecules; however, in addition to being a massive leap forward in simulation technology, this new program holds a lot of promise for the future of simulating other complex systems and reactions. Check out the article above to see a video of the simulation in action and learn more about the applications of this new technology!
If I were to tell you that scientists have taken the first step towards being able to beam solar energy from space down to Earth, what would you think? You might think it sounds like something out of a science fiction story, but, earlier this year, a project launched by Caltech demonstrated that such a thing is very much within the realm of possibility. Caltech's MAPLE (Microwave Array for Power-transfer Low-orbit Experiment) was launched in January of this year, and, after surviving the rigors of launch and the harsh environment of space, it was able to demonstrate for the first time how solar energy harvested in space could be transferred from one place to another. It accomplished this by harnessing a principle known as interference (which you can demonstrate by dipping both your hands in water at the same time and watching how the ripples interact with one another) to focus solar-generated electromagnetic waves in one specific direction where they could be picked up by another element in the array--or even receivers on Earth. This is the first experiment to successfully demonstrate a wireless transfer of power, and it accomplished this feat using materials and structures that possess a number of qualities that will be necessary for implementing the technology en masse in the future, such as being light-weight and flexible. Though wireless power transfer as a technology is very much still in its infancy, this development has brought it distinctly from the realm of theory and into the realm of reality. Check out the article above to learn more about the technologies at play in wireless power transfer and its potential future applications in science's search for sustainable energy.
Aging is one of the hottest topics in research and medicine, with many scientists examining the ways our bodies age in search of ways to delay or overcome the degenerative processes we experience in the latter years of our lives. One molecule that has been of particular interest in the study of aging is taurine, a type of nutrient found in meat and fish. Compared to those in their younger years, older people and animals have radically decreased levels of taurine, and scientists have long been investigating why this might be the case. In the course of this research, it has been discovered that restoring the taurine levels in older animals to where they were at younger stages of life had a marked impact on the animals' health and longevity. Experimental mice enjoyed a 10-to-12% boost to their lifespan, and their physical and neurological health was noticeably better than their untreated peers. This type of response has been observed in a few different species, including worms, and, more importantly, rhesus monkeys. If similar results could occur in humans, it is possible we might be able to extend our average lifespan by seven or eight years--and mitigate some of the negative symptoms associated with aging along the way. While this simple solution seems like it could be just what the doctor ordered to combat aging, it is important to note that a great deal more research is essential before supplemental taurine can be advocated. Researchers still don't know why taurine levels decrease with age or what complications might arise from maintaining high levels of taurine into old age. For now, it is best thought of as an interesting new thread to consider; check out the article above to learn more!
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