An international collaboration led by Nagoya University in Japan sheds new light on the relationship between quantum theory and thermodynamics. The research group demonstrated that while the laws of quantum theory alone do not inherently prevent violations of the second law of thermodynamics, any quantum process can be implemented without actually violating the law. This surprising result suggests a peaceful coexistence between quantum theory and thermodynamics, despite their logical independence. This discovery could have profound implications for understanding the thermodynamic limits of quantum technologies, such as quantum computing and nanoscale engines. 

AI transformational impact is well under way. But as AI technologies develop, so too does their power consumption. Now, researchershave developed a new spintronic device that can potentially revolutionize AI hardware through higher efficiency and lower energy costs.

Osaka Metropolitan University researchers have developed a highly accurate method for predicting rents by applying computer vision and machine learning models to street view images.

Kavli IPMU researchers are part of an international team that has found dark matter dominating the halos of two supermassive black holes 13 billion light years away.

"We feel sorry because we cry," wrote philosopher and psychologist William James, "angry because we strike, afraid because we tremble," suggesting that emotional bodily responses like crying cause cognitive changes, such as feelings of sorrow.

 

In reality, research has shown that human bodily responses and cognitive shifts affect each other in both directions. We feel sorry because we cry, but also cry when feeling sorry. So how then for our primate cousins? To date, their connections have remained largely unexplored.

 

Now a team of researchers at Kyoto University has led a study on six Japanese macaques living in KyotoU's Center for the Evolutionary Origins of Human Behavior, in Aichi prefecture. The researchers focused on self-scratching -- a bodily response linked to negative emotions like anxiety and fear -- and its relationship to pessimistic judgment bias, which is the tendency to expect a negative outcome when faced with ambiguous information.

A research team from Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine has made a major discovery on how the CUL5 gene affects CAR-T cell therapy, an advanced cancer therapy. The study, published in Nature Communications, reveals that reducing the activity of the CUL5 gene helps CAR-T cells fight cancer more effectively. These findings could improve immunotherapy for patients with aggressive cancers such as leukemia. 

Understanding how cells transform into specialized types during human development is a central challenge in biology. This complex process, known as cell differentiation, holds the key to understanding developmental biology and advancing regenerative medicine. A team of researchers in Japan has developed a new computational tool, scEGOT, which provides new insights into this process by addressing the limitations of previous methods and enabling the analysis of single cell dynamics across different cell types.

Air pollution is a growing health issue worldwide, and its impacts are often underestimated in aging societies like Japan. A new study led by researchers from the University of Tokyo highlights how fine particulate pollution, or PM2.5, not only worsens health outcomes, but also creates significant socioeconomic challenges in regions with aging populations and limited medical resources. The researchers hope these findings motivate policymakers to tackle the interrelated issues behind this problem.

Electroencephalography (EEG) may offer a more accessible alternative to functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) for guiding transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) when treating aphasia. Researchers from Institute of Science Tokyo found an 80% agreement between EEG and fMRI in identifying brain regions activated during language tasks. Furthermore, EEG-guided tDCS improved picture-naming speed in participants, indicating its potential for innovative therapies in language disorders.

Epoxy resins are coatings and adhesives used in a broad range of familiar applications, such as construction, engineering and manufacturing. However, they often present a challenge to recycle or dispose of responsibly. For the first time, a team of researchers, including those from the University of Tokyo, developed a method to efficiently reclaim materials from a range of epoxy products for reuse by using a novel solid catalyst.