Lifeboat Foundation

To discover how light interacts with molecules, the first step is to follow electron dynamics, which evolve at the attosecond timescale. The dynamics of this first step have been called charge migration (CM). CM plays a fundamental role in chemical reactions and biological functions associated with light–matter interaction. For years, visualizing CM at the natural timescale of electrons has been a formidable challenge in ultrafast science due to the ultrafine spatial (angstrom) and ultrafast temporal (attosecond) resolution required.

Experimentally, the sensitive dependence of CM on molecular orbitals and orientations has made the CM dynamics complex and difficult to trace. There are still some open questions about molecular CM that remain unclear. One of the most fundamental questions: how fast does the charge migrate in molecules? Although molecular CM has been extensively studied theoretically in the last decade by using time-dependent quantum chemistry packages, a real measurement of the CM speed has remained unattainable, due to the extreme challenge.

As reported in Advanced Photonics, a research team from Huazhong University of Science and Technology (HUST), in cooperation with theoretical teams from Kansas State University and University of Connecticut, recently proposed a high harmonic spectroscopy (HHS) method for measuring the CM speed in a carbon-chain molecule, butadiyne (C₄H₂).

Future computers could be built smaller than ever before using the tiny biological skeletons that hold our cells together.

That’s according to one team of scientists, who have devised a way to make computer chips using cytoskeletons — protein scaffolds that give cells their shape.

Continue reading “Future computers could be built using proteins that make up cells” »

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Here it is, the bio computer. A new type of parallel computing method that could rival the infamous quantum computer at a much lower price while being more practical to boot.

Continue reading “Nano-Biological Computing — Quantum Computer Alternative!” »

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Continue reading “The Insane Biology of: Slime Mold” »

Ever wonder why the most advanced robots always seem to have hard bodies? Why not more pliable ones, like humans have?

Researchers working on so-called “soft robotics” attempt to incorporate the feel of living organisms into their creations. But the field hasn’t taken off because the softer components haven’t been easy enough to mass-produce and incorporate into the designs—until now.

University of Virginia researchers have invented a manufacturing process for weaving soft materials such as fabrics, rubbers and gels so that they can be compatible with gadgets, which may lead to a soft robotics revolution.

Almost all forms of modern consumer technology are powered by electrochemical energy, otherwise known as batteries. Lithium-ion batteries, for example, transform chemical reactions into direct current energy while also producing a few side effects (mainly heat). But what if there was another way to power gadgets—say, lasers?

That’s the idea behind new research from the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering and CU-Boulder. In a new study published this month in the journal Nature Materials, the team—led by chemical and electrical engineering professor Ryan Hayward—explored ways to leverage tiny crystals and directly transform light into mechanical work. At scale, such a breakthrough could remove the need for bulky batteries and all of the thermal management that comes with it.

Does our increasing dependency on technology diminish our human potential? In this episode, visionary scientist Gregg Braden discusses the current transhuman movement – the merging of technology and human biology, often referred to as the singularity. He describes three levels of tech integration where the final level replaces our natural biology. In a time of rapid evolution, reflection and discernment are key. Braden highlights what we can do to release the conditioning of a technology-dependent society and how to follow the natural rhythms within ourselves.

Enter AI. Multiple deep learning methods can already accurately predict protein structures— a breakthrough half a century in the making. Subsequent studies using increasingly powerful algorithms have hallucinated protein structures untethered by the forces of evolution.

Yet these AI-generated structures have a downfall: although highly intricate, most are completely static—essentially, a sort of digital protein sculpture frozen in time.

A new study in Science this month broke the mold by adding flexibility to designer proteins. The new structures aren’t contortionists without limits. However, the designer proteins can stabilize into two different forms—think a hinge in either an open or closed configuration—depending on an external biological “lock.” Each state is analogous to a computer’s “0” or “1,” which subsequently controls the cell’s output.

In many cases, cells are very active in their movement and serve as power generators. The ability of cells to produce physical forces is one of the basic functions of the body. When running, for example, the forces generated in the cells cause the muscles to contract and the breath to work. It has been possible to measure even the forces experienced by individual proteins by force sensors developed in the past, but previously intracellular forces and mechanical strains could not have been measured.

Together with the scientists from The Ohio State University OSU, cell biology researchers at Tampere University have developed a force sensor that can be attached to the side of a mechanically responding protein, allowing it to sense forces and strain on the protein within the cell.

The development of the micro-sized sensor began on a conference travel in December 2019.