Computers & Peripherals
Scientists say it's high 'noon' for microwave photons
February 15, 2011 5:11 am | News | CommentsAn important milestone toward the realization of a large-scale quantum computer, and further demonstration of a new level of the quantum control of light, were accomplished by a team of scientists at UC Santa Barbara and in China and Japan.
Watson paces humans in Round 1 of three ‘Jeopardy!’ matches
February 15, 2011 4:53 am | by Frazier Moore, AP Television Writer | News | CommentsSo far, the human vs. machine bout is a tie. Originally filmed in January, the three “Jeopardy!” episodes airing this week are a test of IBM’s Watson computer and its ability to deal with the many subtleties, puns, and riddles that make Jeopardy! a great deal harder to program for than, say, the famous 1997 chess matches between Garry Kasparov and Deep Blue. The outcome of the matches is still under wraps.
ORNL's Jaguar helps BMI win award, nation save fuel
February 14, 2011 5:38 am | News | CommentsSouth Carolina-based BMI Corp. used computing time on the Jaguar supercomputer to analyze complex models of tractor trailers. The work led them to create undertray add-on components that could improve average fuel mileage from 6 to 6.5 mpg. The increase is significant: 18-wheelers collectively travel 130 billion miles per year.
Harvard and MITRE produce world's first programmable nanoprocessor
February 10, 2011 4:13 am | News | CommentsEngineers and scientists collaborating at Harvard Univ. and the MITRE Corporation have developed and demonstrated the world’s first programmable nanoprocessor.
IBM, Samsung sign patent cross-license deal
February 8, 2011 3:47 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsIBM and Samsung Electronics Co. announced this week they have signed a patent cross-license agreement, which means each will license its respective patent portfolios to the other. In 2010, IBM was the top producer of new patents in the U.S., while South Korea's Samsung was also among the top 10.
Future surgeons may use robotic nurse
February 4, 2011 3:13 am | News | CommentsSurgeons of the future might use a system that recognizes hand gestures as commands to control a robotic scrub nurse or tell a computer to display medical images of the patient during an operation.
Advancing lights possible path to creating next-gen computer chips
February 3, 2011 3:55 am | News | CommentsUniv. of Maryland researchers have made a breakthrough in the use of visible light for making tiny integrated circuits. Though their advance is probably at least a decade from commercial use, they say it could one day make it possible for companies like Intel to continue their decades long tread of making ever smaller, faster, and cheaper computer chips.
New hardware developed to boost communication speed on multi-core chips
January 31, 2011 3:43 am | News | CommentsComputer engineers at North Carolina State Univ. have developed hardware that allows programs to operate more efficiently by boosting the speed at which the “cores” on a computer chip communicate with each other.
Revolutionizing computer memory
January 20, 2011 3:43 am | News | CommentsResearchers from North Carolina State Univ. have developed a new device that represents a significant advance for computer memory, making large-scale “server farms” more energy efficient and allowing computers to start more quickly.
IBM study: Midsize businesses invest in more analytics and cloud computing
January 19, 2011 5:50 am | News | CommentsMore than half of midsize companies are planning to increase their information technology budgets over the next 12 to 18 months, according to an IBM global study of more than 2,000 midsize companies representing more than 20 countries. Two-thirds are adopting cloud technologies, and almost as many are pursuing analytics for greater insight and efficiency.
Ant-based cyber defense
January 17, 2011 11:55 am | News | CommentsTo protect computational infrastructure in the event of an attack, software engineers at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory have developed a framework for decentralized coordination based on eusocial, or top-level, behaviors seen in ant colonies. The thinking is that this approach will be more efficient and effective on a large scale than a centralized response.
Study: Estimating land available for biofuel crops
January 11, 2011 3:20 am | News | CommentsUsing detailed land analysis, Univ. of Illinois researchers have found that biofuel crops cultivated on available land could produce up to half of the world’s current fuel consumption. The study identified land around the globe available to produce grass crops for biofuels, with minimal impact on agriculture or the environment.
New algorithm breaks bottlenecks
January 11, 2011 2:57 am | by Larry Hardesty, MIT News Office | News | CommentsAs sensors that do things like detect touch and motion in cell phones get smaller, cheaper, and more reliable, computer manufacturers are beginning to take seriously the decade-old idea of"smart dust". In order for such networks to make collective decisions, however, they need to integrate information gathered by many devices. A team from MIT and the Israel Institute of Technology has developed a new algorithm that handles bottlenecks much more effectively than its predecessors. The algorithm is designed to work in so-called ad hoc networks overseeing the network as a whole.
Records broken in patent totals for 2010
January 10, 2011 12:26 pm | News | Comments2010 patent grants hit an all-time high, 31% over 2009. Once again, IBM tops the list as the first company to break 5,000 patents in a single year, and it did so handily. Other notable filers include Apple, Qualcomm, NEC, and SAP, all of which saw 70+% gains in patents this year.
Unraveling structures in DVD materials
January 10, 2011 4:23 am | News | CommentsAlthough the storage of films and music on a DVD is part of our digital world, the physical basis of the storage mechanism is not understood in detail. Now, researchers from Jülich, Finland, and Japan provide insight into the read and write processes in a DVD. This knowledge should enable improved storage materials to be developed.
Apple's absence to be felt at CES gadget show
January 4, 2011 5:07 am | by Peter Svensson, AP Technology Writer | News | CommentsOn Thursday, the largest trade show of any kind will begin in Las Vegas. Apple, typically the elephant in the room at this event, will be absent this year. However, the company’s successful iPad tablet is driving forward a new segment of consumer electronics that in turn is fostering innovation in materials, electronics, and display technology.
Sloppy arithmetic proves useful for computer chip
January 3, 2011 2:55 am | by Larry Hardesty, MIT News Office | News | CommentsA computer chip that performs imprecise calculations could process some types of data thousands of times more efficiently than existing chips.
Suma mouse blends 3-D motion feedback with haptic input
May 3, 2010 11:56 am | Product Releases | CommentsOn the first day the Front End of Innovation 2010 conference in Boston, sponsor Cambridge Consultants showed off the latest iteration of its squeezable Suma mouse, which allows 3-D controls and motion feedback, as well as touch sensitive input. The technology is intended as much for research tasks as it is the consumer market.
Beyond Plug-and-Play
January 7, 2010 2:46 am | by Bill Kennedy | Application NotesComputer-based machining systems make basic metalcutting a largely plug-and-play process. In most cases, a 3-D CAD file run through a CAM package and posted to a CNC machine tool will produce a part that resembles the original model.
Gateway transformation
September 26, 2008 11:25 am | Award WinnersGates control the opening and closing of these transistors, which are insulated from the gate by a dielectric. Intel Corp. (Santa Clara, Calif.) saw an opportunity to reduce this transistor leakage and developed the Intel 45 nm High-k Metal Gate Transistor Technology for its new 45-nm process chips.
Getting better connected
August 31, 2005 8:00 pm | Award WinnersIn a joint effort, researchers from Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, NM, along with Logical Solutions, Milford, Conn., have developed Global-Link, a hardware solution tailored for the secure transmission of high-resolution video, keyboard and mouse using IP.
