computer

Chemical Air Pollution Morphs Into Something Even More Toxic, Study Shows

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Remnants of industrial chemicals in the air can potentially transform into new substances more toxic and persistent than the original pollution, according to a global study published on Wednesday.   Using samples gathered around the world, the study published in Nature found that these previously unidentified products are present in the atmospheres of 18 big … Read more

Flipped transistors make fleeter computer chips | Science

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Things are looking up for transistors. Researchers from IBM and Samsung have made the first prototype computer chip in which the transistors stand on their ends, a change that will make it possible to pack circuitry more tightly and enable faster or more energy-efficient devices. “It’s a major breakthrough,” says Dan Hutcheson, a semiconductor industry … Read more

Ada Lovelace | Mathematician and first computer programmer

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Acclaimed as a mathematical genius, Ada Lovelace is said to have understood the potential of the first computer blueprints better than their inventor. A serendipitous friendship with the mathematician, philosopher, inventor and mechanical engineer Charles Babbage brought her in contact with his early ideas for mechanical calculators and a preliminary prototype for a general-purpose computer. … Read more