University of Chicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering (UChicago PME) researchers have explored a "quantum-inspired" technique to make the "ones" and "zeroes" for classical computer memory applications out of crystal defects, each the size of an individual atom. This turns milimeter-sized crystals into computer memory devices capable of storing terabytes of data. This interdisciplinary revolution in computer memory took its inspiration from the radiation dosimeters worn by hospital employees working with X-ray machines.

The process of separating useful molecules from mixtures of other substances accounts for 15% of the nation’s energy, emits 100 million tons of carbon dioxide and costs $4 billion annually.

In a new study, researchers at Case Western Reserve University have found these manufactured separation materials don’t function as intended because the pores are so packed with polymer they become blocked. That means the separations are inefficient and unnecessarily expensive.

As more satellites, telescopes, and other spacecraft are built to be repairable, it will take reliable trajectories for service spacecraft to reach them safely. Researchers in the Department of Aerospace Engineering in The Grainger College of Engineering, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign are developing a methodology that will allow multiple CubeSats to act as servicing agents to assemble or repair a space telescope. Their method minimizes fuel consumption, guarantees that servicing agents never come closer to each other than 5 meters, and can be used to solve pathway guidance problems that aren’t space related.

A new test developed at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign can predict the performance of a new type of cementitious construction material in five minutes — a significant improvement over the current industry standard method, which takes seven or more days to complete. This development is poised to advance the use of next-generation resources called supplementary cementitious materials — or SCMs — by speeding up the quality-check process before leaving the production floor.

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