56 The PCB Magazine • April 2016
Quantum Computer Factors Numbers,
Could be Scaled Up
What are the prime factors, or multipliers, for the
number 15? most grade school students know
the answer—3 and 5—by memory. A larger
number, such as 91, may take some pen and pa-
per. An even larger number, say with 232 digits,
can (and has) taken scientists two years to factor,
using hundreds of classical computers operating
in parallel.
Building Living, Breathing
Supercomputers
The substance that provides energy to all the
cells in our bodies, Adenosine triphosphate
(ATP), may also be able to power the next gen-
eration of supercomputers. That is what an inter-
national team of researchers led by Prof. nicolau,
the Chair of the Department of Bioengineering
at mcGill, believe.
Quantum Dot Solids: This Generation's
Silicon Wafer?
Just as the single-crystal silicon wafer forever
changed the nature of electronics 60 years ago,
a group of Cornell researchers is hoping its work
with quantum dot solids—crystals made out of
crystals—can help usher in a new era in elec-
tronics.
New ORNL Method Could Unleash
Solar Power Potential
measurement and data analysis techniques devel-
oped at the Department of Energy's oak Ridge
national laboratory could provide new insight
into performance-robbing flaws in crystalline
structures, ultimately improving the performance
of solar cells.
In Emergencies, Should You Trust a Robot?
In emergencies, people may trust robots too much
for their own safety, a new study suggests. In a
mock building fire, test subjects followed instruc-
tions from an "emergency guide robot" even after
the machine had proven itself unreliable—and af-
ter some participants were told that the robot had
broken down.
Investors Paying Closer Attention to
Corporate Governance Strategies
Poor corporate governance can lead to ineffective
strategic decisions and a weak culture and man-
agement that can ultimately lead to increased en-
vironmental and social risks. For investors, such
risks can destroy the value of a business, irrespec-
tive of the attractiveness or price of its assets or its
market share.
The Future of Fuel Cells:
Better-Performing and Less Expensive
To the uninitiated, fuel cells are typically com-
pared to batteries. The working principle of
each is generally the same: a chemical reaction
produces a quantity of energy which is then
converted into usable electric power. But unlike
a battery, you never recharge a fuel cell. you
keep feeding it fuel and it keeps producing elec-
tricity.
Stretchable Electronics that
Quadruple in Length
EPFl researchers have developed conductive
tracks that can be bent and stretched up to four
times their original length. They could be used
in artificial skin, connected clothing and on-body
sensors.
Emergence of 5G and Industry 4.0
to Ignite the Global Test and
Measurement Market
The ubiquity of connected devices and the ris-
ing relevance of the Internet of Things (IoT) will
provide a huge boost to the test & measurement
market, specifically, the communication testing
segment.
China's Infrastructure Initiative
Driving Financial Reform
China's "Belt and Road" infrastructure initiative is
an essential part of the country's domestic eco-
nomic rebalancing and its outbound ambitions.
The initiative entails investing billions of dollars
into infrastructure such as railways, highways and
ports that link mainland China and the dozens of
countries to its west and south.
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