Chinese quantum computer completes 2.5-billion-year task in minutes

[Computers]( [Chinese quantum computer completes 2.5-billion-year task in minutes]( [A diagram of an optical circuit, where photons (red) are sent through a maze of beam splitters and mirrors and a quantum computer like Jiuzhang calculates the output]( A Chinese quantum computer called Jiuzhang has apparently achieved "quantum supremacy" – conducting a calculation in 200 seconds that would take a regular supercomputer a staggering 2.5 billion years to complete. [Read more]( Special Promotion for New Atlas Readers [The Jillian Michaels Fitness App helps you get healthy and fit in 2021]( Jillian Michaels Fitness app includes over 800 workouts ranging from HIIT to targeted routines. Even if you’re new to 'bod'-building, this app allows you to work at your own speed, while choosing the routines that are right for you. [Read more]( [Energy]( [Massive 853-foot-tall wind turbines are coming to America's East Coast]( [Each Haliade-X will stand 260 meters (853 ft) tall, with a 220-meter (722-ft) rotor incorporating three 107-meter (351-ft) blades]( America's first "commercial scale" offshore wind energy project has decided to use GE's colossal Haliade-X turbines, the world's largest. Standing as tall as an 85-story building, with 722-foot rotors, each one is a 12-13 MW generator. [Read more]( [Automotive]( [Aptera opens orders on 1,000-mile solar EV that never needs charging]( [Aptera's "never charge" solar EV gives you up to 45 miles of range a day without plugging in, and can be fitted with batteries allowing up to 1,000 miles between plug-ins on long trips]( With three square meters of solar panel on the roof, and a body so ludicrously efficient that it can squeeze up to four times as much range out of a kilowatt-hour as other EVs, the new Aptera becomes the first EV you can drive daily and never charge. [Read more]( [Space]( [World's largest solar telescope captures its first dramatic sunspot image]( [A high-resolution image of a sunspot captured by the NSF's Inouye Solar Telescope on January 28, 2020]( Astronomers have released a stunningly detailed image captured by the by the Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope, revealing the structure of a massive sunspot as it temporarily darkened the Sun’s surface on January 28, 2020. [Read more]( [Architecture]( [The best buildings of 2020]( [Zaha Hadid Architects' Opus, in Dubai, is one of the 10 stunning projects to make our pick of the best buildings of the year]( 2020 has produced more than its fair share of superb architecture. From a hotel with a hole in the middle, to a village community building made from mud, take a look at the fantastic projects that make up our top 10 buildings of 2020. [Read more]( [Materials]( [Durable new bioplastic can hold boiling liquids]( [Shi-Qing Wang, Ph.D., (center), polymer science Ph.D. students Travis Smith (left) and Masoud Razavi hold samples of the newly developed PLA plastic]( Making plastic materials out of biomass offers a number of environmental benefits, but these bioplastics tend to underperform in a few key areas. Scientists may have found a solution to one such shortcoming; the inability to contain boiling liquids. [Read more]( [Space]( [SpaceX launches upgraded Dragon capsule with extra cargo space]( [Loaded into the expanded cargo bay of the new Dragon are supplies and equipment for more than 250 science investigations]( SpaceX’s Cargo Dragon capsule became the first commercial spacecraft to dock with the International Space Station (ISS) in 2012, and after more than eight years, the company has launched a new and improved version to the ISS. [Read more]( [Medical]( [Anti-aging gene therapy restores vision to mice with glaucoma]( [A new gene therapy has restored vision in mice with glaucoma or age-related vision loss]( Using gene therapy, Harvard scientists have restored vision to mice suffering glaucoma by rewinding the aging process in their cells. The team says the research is a proof of concept for slowing the symptoms of aging with epigenetics. [Read more]( [3D Printing]( [Review: Doodling in three dimensions with the 3Doodler Pro+]( [Doodling in the air with the 3Doodler Pro+ 3D printing pen]( We've been following the WobbleWorks developments since the first Kickstarter in 2013, even raising our doodles off the page on a number of occasions. The professional-grade Pro+ went on sale at the end of October, and we've been giving it a whirl. [Read more]( [Outdoors]( [Cirrus 620 pickup camper turns Ford F-150 into cozy micro-home]( [With the Cirrus 620, nuCamp presents a pickup camper optimized for popular half-ton trucks]( America loves pickup trucks, especially half-ton pickups. But pickup campers often exceed half-ton truck payloads. NuCamp fixes the issue with its Cirrus 620, a fully equipped 4-season camper light enough for half-tons. [Read more]( [Environment]( [Deep-diving robots to study carbon absorption of "marine snow" algae]( [Robots deployed from the RV Investigator will study the role algae play in removing carbon from the atmosphere]( Algae plays an important role in removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, and a first-of-a-kind research expedition is set to highlight just how important that role might be by studying the density of dead algae at various depths. [Read more]( [Space]( [Hayabusa2 returns asteroid samples to Earth after fiery reentry]( [Artist's impression of Hayabusa2]( The re-entry capsule carrying samples of the asteroid Ryugu collected by Japan's Hayabusa2 deep-space probe has returned to Earth and been recovered after blazing a fiery path in the night sky over Australia. [Read more]( [Health & Wellbeing]( [Dieting based on blood type debunked yet again in new clinical trial]( [Clinical trial data has revealed a plant-based diet conferred the same beneficial metabolic effects regardless of a person's specific blood type]( A new study looking at data from a clinical trial investigating the beneficial effects of a plant-based diet has found a person’s blood type has no effect on weight loss or cardiometabolic health in response to the dietary intervention. [Read more]( [Bicycles]( [Specialized releases its lightest-ever carbon bike – for kids]( [The Specialized Hotwalk Carbon weighs less than 5 pounds]( Because they're quickly outgrown and have to take a lot of abuse, toddlers' bicycles often seem kind of cheap and clunky compared to "real" bikes. For parents who just don't want to go that route, Specialized is now offering the Hotwalk Carbon balance bike. [Read more]( [Good Thinking]( [Bottom of the barrel: Worst crowdfunding campaigns of 2020]( [New Atlas rounds up more of the worst ideas to ever grace crowdfunding platforms this year]( The bottom of the crowdfunding barrel never seems to dry up. Once again New Atlas pulls on its thickest gloves and boots and wades into that murky world of ideas and innovations that are somehow both half-baked and completely cooked at the same time. [Read more]( [Military]( [T-7A trainer jet's "real-as-it-gets" flight simulator enters production]( [The T-7A Red Hawk simulation trainer can link digitally with an actual aircraft]( Boeing has begun production of the “real-as-it-gets” ground-based training system (GBTS) flight simulator of the US Air Force's new T-7A Red Hawk training jet. For immersive realism, each unit features dynamic motion seats and 8K native projectors. [Read more]( [Science]( [Rubbery polymer could make for safer training of sniffer dogs]( [A detection dog in training]( While bomb-sniffing dogs provide an invaluable service, training them using actual explosives can be risky for both the canines and their handlers. A new process could help, utilizing a harmless polymer that quickly absorbs the scent of explosives. [Read more]( [Urban Transport]( [Folding electric scooter can be carried in the hand or in a backpack]( [Top speed is 12.4 mph, and per charge range shapes up as 12.4 miles, or 5.5 miles when using an airplane-safe battery]( Micro-mobility startup WheelKinetic has launched a squat little electric scooter called the BooZter which folds down to a portable package that can be carried by hand or thrown in a backpack. [Read more]( You are receiving this email because you signed up for our daily newsletter at [newatlas.com]( (or [gizmag.com]( before August 2016). [Update profile]( | [Unsubscribe]( Copyright New Atlas © 2020