Doubling down on Schrödinger’s cat
Yale physicists have given Schrödinger’s famous cat a second box to play in, and the result may help further the quest for reliable quantum computing. (more…)
Tag Archives: paradox
Rettet die Biene: Informationen und Tipps für Verbraucher
Europaweit kollabieren ganze Bienenvölker. In Deutschland starben in den letzten Jahren jährlich bis zu 30 Prozent der Bienenvölker; und auch weltweit berichten Imkerinnen und Imker von einem plötzlichen Rückgang ihrer Bienenpopulationen. Greenpeace zeigt im neuen Ratgeber „Rettet die Biene“, wie jeder Einzelne zum Bienenschutz beitragen kann.
Das weltweite Bienensterben betrifft uns alle. Ein Drittel unserer Nahrungsmittel gäbe es ohne bestäubende Insekten wie die Bienen nicht. Bienen besuchen viele unterschiedliche Blüten wie Raps, Sojabohnen, Zwiebeln, Gurken, Brokkoli und Sonnenblumen – aber auch Äpfel, Orangen, Blaubeeren, Avocados, Tee und Kaffee. (more…)
Syria Policy Warning over Weapons of Mass Destruction Risk
Policy-makers have been warned that premature military action in Syria could lead to uncontrolled access to weapons of mass destruction and a prolonged, bitter insurgency following any intervention that resulted in the sudden collapse of the Syrian security forces.
Despite the desire to prevent further bloodshed, taking direct action to try to end the conflict could be the “worst option” and could only serve to further destabilise the situation in the volatile country.
General (Retd) Professor Sir Paul Newton co-wrote the report alongside distinguished Middle Eastern scholars at the University of Exeter’s Strategy and Security Institute, of which he is Director. He said: “Although it may appear attractive in the short-term, the one scenario that must be avoided is sudden, uncontrolled state collapse. This may seem like a paradox given the pressing need to end humanitarian suffering and the risk of the conflict spreading. However, it could be catastrophic. If unmanaged disintegration of the Syrian state were to occur, access to weapons of mass destruction would be uncontrolled.” (more…)
What Bacteria Don’t Know Can Hurt Them
Many infections, even those caused by antibiotic-sensitive bacteria, resist treatment. This paradox has vexed physicians for decades, and makes some infections impossible to cure.
A key cause of this resistance is that bacteria become starved for nutrients during infection. Starved bacteria resist killing by nearly every type of antibiotic, even ones they have never been exposed to before. (more…)
Quantum Quirk: JILA Scientists Pack Atoms Together to Prevent Collisions in Atomic Clock
In a paradox typical of the quantum world, JILA scientists have eliminated collisions between atoms in an atomic clock by packing the atoms closer together. The surprising discovery, described in the Feb. 3 issue of Science Express, can boost the performance of experimental atomic clocks made of thousands or tens of thousands of neutral atoms trapped by intersecting laser beams
JILA is jointly operated by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the University of Colorado Boulder. (more…)