Winner Announced In the World’s First ‘Quantum Chess’ Tournament

Aleksander Kubica is a postdoctoral fellow at Canada’s Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics and Institute for Quantum Computing. And he’s also the winner of the world’s first quantum chess tournament. (It’s now available for streaming on Twitch, and begins with a clip of the late Stephen Hawking playing a 2016 game against Ant-Man star Paul Rudd.) “It’s a complicated version of…

What’s the birthstone for December?

If you were born December, you’ve got 2 birthstones, turquoise and zircon. Source: https://earthsky.org/human-world/december-birthstone-zircon-turquoise…

Schedar shines brightly at the Queen’s heart

Orange-hued Schedar is the brightest star in the distinctive W-shaped northern constellation Cassiopeia the Queen. Source: https://earthsky.org/brightest-stars/schedar-short-life-of-burning-bright…

Prince Philip ‘collects books on UFOs and ET’

Recent reports suggest that the Queen’s husband has a keen interest in reading about the UFO phenomenon. The Duke, whose life story has been dramatize… Source: https://www.unexplained-mysteries.com/news/341202/prince-philip-collects-books-on-ufos-and-et…

‘The Queen’s Gambit’ Scores As Netflix Most-Watched Scripted Limited Series To Date

“The Queen’s Gambit,” a Netflix exclusive about an orphan chess prodigy, set the record as the most-watched scripted limited series to date on the streaming platform — with 62 million member accounts tuning in to the show in the first 28 days, according to the company. Variety reports: There’s a caveat, though: The way Netflix reports viewing is based on the…

The Eerie AI World of Deepfake Music

Artificial intelligence is being used to create new songs seemingly performed by Frank Sinatra and other dead stars. ‘Deepfakes’ are cute tricks — but they could change pop for ever. From a report: “It’s Christmas time! It’s hot tub time!” sings Frank Sinatra. At least, it sounds like him. With an easy swing, cheery bonhomie, and understated brass and string flourishes,…

Gamma Cephei: A future Pole Star

About two thousand years from now, Gamma Cephei, an inconspicuous star in the constellation Cepheus, will become our North Star. Source: https://earthsky.org/brightest-stars/star-errai-future-north-star…

Cockroach species found to live like ants with workers and a queen

Cockroaches were thought to be solitary insects, but a South American species bucks the trend – it lives in large groups and seems to have sterile workers led by a queen Source: https://www.newscientist.com/article/2256067-cockroach-species-found-to-live-like-ants-with-workers-and-a-queen/?utm_campaign=RSS%7CNSNS&utm_source=NSNS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_content=home…