Chinese researchers hack “Unhackable” quantum encryption, reveal method
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Quantum communications systems, and quantum encryption, are supposed to be unhackable, but they aren’t. According to experts, and the pioneering companies looking to commercialise the technology, the greatest promise of quantum communications, such as the world’s first quantum video call that took place recently,...
NASA to test revolutionary X-Ray communications system on the ISS soon
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Traditional RF communications in space are slow, and can be blocked by the Earth’s atmosphere during re-entry, X-Ray communications have no such problems. Recently NASA tested the world’s first interplanetary space internet by sending a selfie from the Arctic to the International Space Station...
Companies are building the tech to bring Star Trek’s Holodecks to life
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF The ultimate sci-fi concept, Holodecks have been talked about since they were first shown on TV, and now several companies are building the tech to make them a reality. San Jose holographic display start up Light Field Lab and Los Angeles graphics company OTOY, which focuses on cloud...
Qualcomm releases its first WiGig chipsets to push WiFi to gigabit speeds
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF The combination of Gigabit WiFi and 5G now mean it’s possible to ditch your traditional fiber based broadband provider, and cut another chord. Earlier this month, the Wi-Fi Alliance announced that the next generation of Wi-Fi devices will be called “Wi-Fi 6,” all but...
Two algorithms left to their own devices ended up accidentally colluding with one another
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF It’s nearly impossible to predict the impact that competing, or even collaborating, algorithms will have on business, and as our society depends on them more, that’s a problem. Last year Facebook’s Artificial Intelligence (AI) agents made up their own language to talk to one...
A decade after the first person was cured of HIV, another is in remission
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF The HIV and AIDS epidemics have claimed the lives of millions of people, and now there may be a cure, but there’s a big catch. News has emerged from the UK that a man has been in remission from HIV for a year and...
Dutch firm unveils the world’s first autonomous self-balancing energy grid for EV’s
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF New powerful technologies are letting us revolutionise how we generate and deliver electricity, and autonomous, self-balancing energy grids are now a thing. A little while ago I wrote about the US Department of Energy’s plans to create the world’s first autonomous energy grid, but...
Scientists discovered a way to read information directly from black holes
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF The physics behind Quantum Mechanics mean scientists have discovered a way to read information directly from within blackholes, which is just awesome. Black holes are gravitational monsters, squeezing gas and dust down to a microscopic point like great cosmic trash compactors, and they’re getting...
Researchers have created a digital nose that can sniff out disease
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF There are many ways to detect disease, and one of the most effective ways is using smell, so scientists have developed a digital nose. An electronic nose typically identifies odours by detecting the “fingerprint” of a chemical compound across an array of sensors that are...
JP Morgan becomes the first major US bank to roll its own crypto coins
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Bitcoin may have its critics, but noone can argue the impact that cryptocurrencies have had on the world, and now one of the US’ biggest banks is jumping on the bandwagon. With talks of China creating the first blockchain based national cryptocurrency and Ohio...
SK Telecom launches Quantum Encryption Gateway “to make self-driving cars unhackable”
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Autonomous cars and vehicles present a clear opportunity for cyber criminals to wreak chaos on our roads, but first they’d have to break the vehicles’ unbreakable quantum encryption. If you, like many people, have ever wondered how we’ll be able to stop cyber criminals...
Russian researchers used a common inkjet printer to print advanced Nano-Sensors
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF As we develop more nanoscale things we need to be able to keep track of them and monitor them and now we have an inexpensive way to achieve that. Researchers from ITMO University in Russia have created a new type of optical Nano-Sensor that...
US Military puts the call out for autonomous AI’s that can defend its networks
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF After the US Pentagon announced it can no longer keep up with the variety or voracity of cyber attacks the US DOD wants to develop autonomous AI’s that can. After a damning admission from the Pentagon that warned that the US military can no...
Elon Musk’s SpaceX capsule lands successfully in crucial step toward human spaceflight
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF One of Elon Musk’s ambitions is to allow people to live off world, but first you have to get them there and this is the first step in a long journey. SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft, which Elon Musk first showed off a few months ago,...
World first as Google DeepMind’s AI crushes the world’s top Starcraft players
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Starcraft is a game of strategy, and as a result DeepMind’s AI had to learn an entirely new type of game play in order to thrash its opponents. AI agents developed by Google’s DeepMind subsidiary have finally beaten human pros at Starcraft II — a first...
Star Trek like Replicator manufacturing tech unveiled for first time
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF The way we manufacture products today is wasteful and unsustainable, so we’re developing new ways to make the things we love. Recently I wrote an article about a new form of 3D Printing, called 3D Holographic Printing, printing with light not conventional materials, that...
Facebook 3D photos sources depth information straight from your camera
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF The cameras in our gadgets can do alot more than take photos, and with just a minor tweak we can use them to create living 3D photos. Leveraging the extra “depth” data found in some iPhone photographs, Facebook today announced the rollout of 3D Photos – images...
India wants to turn its beaches into fuel for Thorium Reactors
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Thorium reactors produce thousands times less radioactive waste than their nuclear counterparts, and are much safer, but the technology is taking a long time to take off. The tropical beaches of India probably bring to mind sun-dappled palms, fiery fish curries and dreadlocked backpackers,...
A US start up has created the world’s first fully autonomous vertical farm
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF As global population grows we need new ways to produce affordable quality food, and vertical farms are increasingly the answer. Vertical farms that can grow eight times the crops using no chemicals, herbicides or pesticides, and with 99 percent less water than traditional farms...
SpaceX seeks FCC approval to bring space based internet to the entire US
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Laying down hundreds of thousands of miles of fibre optic cable has had its day as space based internet platforms compete with established telcos. Private spaceflight firm SpaceX has been publicly planning to deploy a network of “Starlink” satellites to offer broadband internet for several years...
