HP eyes 2015 release for 3D integrated photonic chips
It’s unavoidable — mention HP and images of the TouchPad come floating to the surface. What most geek folk don’t realize, however, is that the company recently famous for open sourcing webOS has been hard at work behind-the-scenes prepping for the next stage in computing: integrated photonics. The project, codenamed Corona, aims to create stackable 3D chips that communicate using inbuilt, microscopic lasers made from gallium. This new breed of CPUs is on track to combine “256 general purpose cores organized in 64 four-core clusters” created using a 16nm process for a performance boost of up to six times faster than traditional circuitry. Why do this? Well, the nature of optical communication would not only speed up the rate at which the various cores could relay data (a theoretical 20 terabytes per second), but would also drastically lower power requirements from a current 160 watts to 6.4 watts. Sounds like the future, indeed, but as with all things forward-facing, many of the necessary components are still being developed, so take that 2015 target date with a heady amount of sodium chloride.
HP eyes 2015 release for 3D integrated photonic chips originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 08 Mar 2012 02:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Feast your eyes on this vibrant collateral designed…
Feast your eyes on this vibrant collateral designed by TOKY for the 2012 Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis Gala. via dwl
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Iced-out diamond planet catches astronomers’ eyes
If you thought Kim Kardashian’s engagement ring was a ridiculous rock, you haven’t seen the ludicrously large diamond planet, J1719-1438. Scientists at the Swinburne University of Technology in Melbourne recently spotted this celestial body that’s so dense, it’s believed to be crystalline carbon — i.e. a ginormous diamond similar in size to Jupiter. Since the 60s, astrophysicists like Marc Kuchner have theorized that carbon-heavy stars can burn out, crystallize and form diamonds under the right pressure. Supporting the idea, a white dwarf star spotted in 1992, BPM 37093, had cooled and crystallized over the course of 12 years — even copping the nickname “Lucy” after the Beatles jam. Although astronomers in Australia, Britain and Hawaii have all identified the newly spotted precious planet J1719-1438, they are still unsure if the crystallized carbon rock will be all sparkly mountains up close — dashing the hopes and dreams of material girls everywhere.
Iced-out diamond planet catches astronomers’ eyes originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 28 Aug 2011 00:17:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Sony eyes electric car future, wants to soon sell you Li-ion batteries
Sony must be smelling dolla dolla bills in the EV-charged streets because the company just announced its intentions to fab lithium-ion batteries for the cars mid-decade. The statement, made from its plant in Motomiya, hinges on a future market flush with consumer demand for the earth-friendly autos, and could see the construction of several dedicated factories. Given the Japanese company’s recent history eating bits of competitor dust (hello Wii and iPod), we understand its forward-facing desire to become king of this Li-ion hill. But the mega-electronics maker isn’t placing all of its batteries in one fuel-source just yet — it’s “also [considering] developing batteries for gasoline-electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids” — should they win the green energy popularity contest. While we applaud the company for encouraging adoption of the environmentally-friendlier tech, we’d much rather see them make batteries for this bad boy from tomorrowland.
Sony eyes electric car future, wants to soon sell you Li-ion batteries originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 13 Jul 2011 20:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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