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The world is a very busy place, and it’s hard to stay on top of everything. Infoplease has got you covered. Here are the Science & Technology news events you need to know so far for October 2023.
- Three Scientists Share The Nobel Prize For Discovery Of Quantum Dots
- Scientists Examine The Asteroid Sample Brought To Earth 17 Days Ago
- Amazon Plans To Try Out Humanoids For Replacement Of Human Employees
- Cruise To Suspend The Operation Of Driverless Cars After Street Accident
Three Scientists Share The Nobel Prize For Discovery Of Quantum Dots
Photo Source: AP Photo
Wednesday, October 4, 2023 – The 2023 Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded to two American scientists and one Russian for the discovery and production of quantum dots, which helped fuel a revolution in nanotechnology.
Moungi Bawendi, Louis Brus, and Alexey Ekimov will split the prize equally for their findings on the unique features of nanomaterials and how to produce them, which cleared the door for wide-ranging applications in consumer electronics, biology, and medicine. Quantum dots are nanoparticles with properties determined by their size. They are commonly employed in television displays, and LED lamps, and to guide surgeons as they remove tumor tissue.
The Selection Committee was questioned on their choice to include a Russian, given the current situation with Ukraine, they said: “Selection is only based on the importance of contribution and nationality is not a factor that is considered.”
Source: The Guardian
Scientists Examine The Asteroid Sample Brought To Earth 17 Days Ago
Photo Source: AP Photo/NASA/Goddard/University of Arizona/CSA/York/MDA
Thursday, October 12, 2023 – In October 2020, NASA announced that the OSIRIS-REx craft landed on the Asteroid Bennu in a delicate maneuver 330 million km from Earth to pick up samples from the asteroids for studies on Earth. The return journey of the Probe has taken almost three years as it lands in a Texas Military facility.
Preliminary studies on the sample that was returned show black dust that is rich in carbon and water contents. The research team aims to send samples of the material all over the globe for studies while also preserving 70% of the material for future scientists to study.
According to the researchers, the Bennu samples will be used to test the idea that Asteroids were a vital piece of materials that delivered essential components to Earth millions of years ago to kickstart life. Given that the research is still in the preliminary stages, the scientists are still not sure of the quantity of Bennu particles that were returned.
Source: BBC
Amazon Plans To Try Out Humanoids For Replacement Of Human Employees
Photo Source: AP Photo/Jae C. Hong
Thursday, October 19, 2023 – Amazon has increased its usage of robots in recent years as pressure to decrease costs has increased. It announced last year that it was testing a massive robotic arm capable of picking up objects. It currently moves things around its warehouses with wheeled robots, and it has begun employing drones for deliveries in two U.S. states.
In recent events, It stated that it was testing a new robot dubbed Digit, which has arms and legs and can move, grip, and handle objects in the same way that humans do. According to Amazon, the purpose of this trial was to “free up employees to better deliver for our customers,” and that its robot systems had in fact assisted in the creation of “hundreds of thousands of new jobs” inside its operations. According to the corporation, it now has over 750,000 robots working “collaboratively” with its human employees, frequently performing “highly repetitive tasks.”
Source: BBC
Cruise To Suspend The Operation Of Driverless Cars After Street Accident
Photo Source: AP Photo/Terry Chea
Wednesday, October 25, 2023 – California has banned Cruise driverless taxis from San Francisco streets following an accident in which a pedestrian was dragged under its wheels. Cruise is one of two companies that have been granted permission to provide taxi rides with driverless cars in the city, and they have declared that they will be suspending operations in the city for the time being.
The incident had a pedestrian being impacted and subsequently dragged along the trajectory of a Cruise vehicle. As per Cruise’s statement, the vehicle successfully identified a potential collision and halted its movement. The vehicle thereafter tried to maneuver to the side of the road to prevent any additional hazards to road safety, resulting in the individual being pulled forward by roughly 20 feet.
Cruise asserted that the present situation had not been previously encountered and was attributable to multiple causes. Nonetheless, the Department of Motor Vehicles has argued that the occurrence suggests that Cruise’s vehicles may exhibit a deficiency in their capacity to react in a secure and suitable manner when confronted with pedestrian-related incidents.
Source: BBC
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