Researchers from Japan developed a new binarized neural network (BNN) scheme using ternary gradients to address the computational challenges of IoT edge devices. They introduced a magnetic RAM-based computing-in-memory architecture, significantly reducing circuit size and power consumption. Their design achieved near-identical accuracy and faster training times compared to traditional BNNs, making it a promising solution for efficient AI implementation in resource-limited devices, such as those used in IoT systems.

Published today in Nature Human Behaviour, “When Combinations of Humans and AI Are Useful” is the first large-scale meta-analysis conducted to better understand when human-AI combinations are useful in task completion, and when they are not. Surprisingly, the research has found that combining humans and AI to complete decision-making tasks often fell short; but human-AI teams showed much potential working in combination to perform creative tasks.

A research team led by Associate Professor LI Mujun, Professor ZHANG Shiwu, and Professor HU Bing from the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) developed porous magnetic soft grippers (PMSGs) that can gently and quickly grasp delicate living things. They can handle a variety of objects, from thin wires to fragile organisms, and have potential applications in biomedicine and scientific research. Their findings were published in Advanced Materials.

Recently, the research team of Prof. WANG Qian from the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) and Prof. BAI Fang from ShanghaiTech University have collaborated to propose a deep learning model for predicting protein conformational changes. This achievement has been published online in Advanced Science.

A team of researchers from the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC), led by Professors LEI Jiuhou, ZHU Baoyou, and Associate Professor LIU Feifan, has made significant strides in understanding the mechanisms behind corona discharges at thunderstorm cloud tops, a phenomenon that plays a critical role in the Earth's atmospheric chemistry. Their findings, published in the prestigious journal Nature Communications on August 26, introduce a new conceptual model that could reshape our understanding of these high-altitude electrical discharges.

A research team led by Prof. TAN peng from the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) has proposed a new type of battery that could provide energy on Mars. The battery, which uses Martian atmospheric components as fuel for its reactions, has higher energy density and longer stable cycling than previous designs. The study was published in Science Bulletin.

New power system architecture will greatly increase the difficulty and vulnerability of the power system operation and control. The high integration of information and communication technology (ICT) promotes comprehensive information sharing, but it also highlights the urgency of establishing modeling and analysis methods for ICT-based power secondary systems. In this paper, simulation modeling methods for power secondary systems are proposed to achieve information sharing under interconnectivity and interoperability criteria. The smart substation secondary system with complex functional descriptions is taken as the research object. Firstly, a structural model of intelligent electronic devices (IEDs) is proposed that meets the interconnectivity requirements. Secondly, a functional model of IEDs with built-in algorithms for secondary business in power systems is proposed, as well as power communication protocol models that meets the interoperability requirements under IEC 61850 standard. Thus, through the state design in the process domain, the IED function in the node domain and data exchange between IEDs in the network domain can be achieved. Finally, taking a typical 220kV substation line current protection as an example, the entire process of protection setting modification and protection actions after a fault occurred are simulated by correlating the operating status of the power primary system, verifying the correctness of the proposed simulation models.