Black Holes, Quantum Entanglement and the No-Go Theorem
Graphic from Scientific American.
Our team at Los Alamos National Laboratory, along with other collaborators, has focused on studying algorithms for quantum computers and, in particular, machine-learning algorithms—what some like to call artificial intelligence. The research sheds light on what sorts of algorithms will do real work on existing noisy, intermediate-scale quantum computers and on unresolved questions in quantum mechanics at large.
In particular, we have been studying the training of variational quantum algorithms. They set up a problem-solving landscape where the peaks represent the high-energy (undesirable) points of the system, or problem, and the valleys are the low-energy (desirable) values. To find the solution, the algorithm works its way through a mathematical landscape, examining its features one at a time. The answer lies in the deepest valley. (Full Story)
Bette Korber, a computational biologist at the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico, said she expected variant Delta to become the most common variant in the US within weeks. “It’s really moving quickly,” Korber told Buzzfeed. (Full Story)
NASA's IBEX satellite creates first-ever 3D map of the sun's heliosphere
Graphic from NASA.
In a monumental example of NASA's ongoing solar cartography efforts, the boundary of the sun's mysterious heliosphere has finally been mapped in 3D for the first time ever, providing a wealth of new insights as to how solar and interstellar winds intersect and interact.
To achieve this task, NASA's Earth-orbiting IBEX satellite detects particles that emerge from the sun's heliosheath, which can then be recorded and labeled. Led by Dr. Dan Reisenfeld of the Los Alamos National Laboratory, this endeavor forced Reisenfeld and his colleagues to dissect IBEX data to chart the edges of this cosmic zone known as the heliopause. (Full Story)
Los Alamos National Lab prepares for fire season
Preperations for fire season.
Los Alamos National Laboratory is working to protect the wildlands around its campus from fires. “As time moves on, the vegetation grows. We just got a recent rain here in the last two days, the grass component will come back stronger, two days of drying and we’re back to a dry component,” said LANL Wildland Fire Manager Richard Nieto.
The lab’s Wildland Fire Division maintains the roads and evacuation routes through its wilderness areas. They also do regular tours with the Los Alamos Fire Department to come up with response plans.
In the last couple of years, LANL has removed 2,500 felled trees and donated the wood to local pueblos. They have also upgraded bridges on lab property to better accommodate fire response. (Full Story)
