True North.

The Weekend Edition.

News Items is “the most valuable newsletter out there.” — Peggy Noonan.

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1. South China Morning Post:

In a breakthrough that could redefine the future of computing, Chinese scientists have developed the world’s first carbon-based microchip capable of running artificial intelligence tasks using a novel ternary logic system, leapfrogging today’s binary-dependent technology.

The achievement, led by researchers from Peking University and Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications, marks a pivotal step towards next-generation semiconductors that could outperform silicon in speed, efficiency and scalability.

The team unveiled a carbon nanotube (CNT) transistor chip that processes data not just in ones and zeros, but also a third state, enabling computations to occur faster and with less energy. In experiments, the chip demonstrated flawless accuracy in image recognition tasks, a milestone detailed in the January issue of the journal Science Advances.

CNTs are tiny tubes made from rolled-up sheets of graphene. They offer exceptional mechanical and electrical properties as well as excellent stability, and are mainly used as conductive additives in lithium-ion batteries.

However, due to their superior electrical characteristics and ultra-thin structure, CNTs are also a promising material for next-generation semiconductor technology. Compared to traditional silicon-based chips, CNTs offer higher carrier mobility, lower power consumption and the potential for even smaller transistor sizes – key advantages that could help overcome the limits of Moore’s Law, which predicts a doubling of semiconductor capacity every two years. (Sources: scmp.com, science.org)

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