"Data centers in space" is a concept that could actually work, study finds.

Data centers, the crux of all things digital, are also enormous energy and water hogs. While the industry has been putting in place more sustainable operating practices, they don't touch the eco-friendly benefits offered by another idea: data centers that operate in space. A new European study has found that not only is this concept technically feasible, but it could also eventually deliver a significant return on investment.

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Grant
Darwin NT

"Data centers in space" is a concept that could actually work, study finds.

Data centers, the crux of all things digital, are also enormous energy and water hogs. While the industry has been putting in place more sustainable operating practices, they don't touch the eco-friendly benefits offered by another idea: data centers that operate in space. A new European study has found that not only is this concept technically feasible, but it could also eventually deliver a significant return on investment.

1) Until a huge asteroid smashes in to the "boxes" and severely damages or destroys one or more of them.

2) Bits start flipping, scrambling the data due to cosmic rays / background radiation.

1) Until a huge asteroid smashes in to the "boxes" and severely damages or destroys one or more of them.

2) Bits start flipping, scrambling the data due to cosmic rays / background radiation.

Given that the ISS, satellites in their thousands, and the odd space telescope have managed to survive in space for years, along with being able to deal with cosmic radiation, means those points really aren't even remotely relevant.

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Grant
Darwin NT

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Grant
Darwin NT

An interesting type of liquid cooling- Vaccuum liquid cooling.

The entire pump mechanism operates using a differential vacuum.

...

One of the fascinating advantages of operating a negative-pressure liquid loop design is the ability to run thinner tubing and even forego the need for tuning clamps. With a positive-pressure system, the tubing is always fighting the system’s pressure across every inch of surface area.
Positive pressure systems require clamping to prevent leaks as the pressure works to push the tubing off the connection. The opposite is true in a negative pressure loop like Chilldyne’s. The tubing can be very thin (inexpensive), and connections can be basic fittings or no fittings at all, as the negative pressure constantly pulls the tubing into a snugger position. Connections will form tighter fittings as time passes, forcing a better seal as the system ages.

The practical advantage of the tubing size can’t be overlooked. Many of the positive pressure systems we’ve looked at have chassis loops that are significant in size. The Chilldyne negative pressure tubing is closer in size to thin 1GbE network cabling.

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Grant
Darwin NT

One of the world's first general-purpose computers just turned 80 years old.

Harvard University officially introduced the Harvard Mark I computer on August 7, 1944. Also known as the Automated Sequence Controlled Calculator or ASCC, the computer was the brainchild of US physicist Howard Aiken. IBM developed the system in about four years using Aiken's plans and military funding.

The Harvard Mark I is the first programmable computer ever built in the United States. The Register notes that Aiken developed the system's original concept and brought it to International Business Machines (IBM) in 1937. Sitting IBM CEO Thomas Watson Sr. approved and funded the innovative project in 1939.

The ASCC was completed and built in February 1944. IBM later disassembled it and shipped it to Harvard. The university hosted the machine while US government organizations employed its remarkable computing capabilities for military-related operations. In fact, the US Navy provided IBM with the additional funding needed to complete the project.

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Grant
Darwin NT

AI Godfather Fears Regulators Running Out of Time to Take Action

One of the most influential academics in the AI field worries we may be running out of time to regulate the technology.

A call to action
There was a time when Yoshua Bengio didn’t lose much sleep over AI safety. Bengio, considered one of the “Godfathers of AI,” long thought we were “decades away” from developing artificial intelligence capable of performing on par with humans. He assumed we could “reap the benefits” of AI for many years before confronting the risks.

He’s no longer so sure. His assumptions about the pace of AI development — and the potential societal threats posed by the technology — were upended after OpenAI released ChatGPT in late 2022. “I’ve completely changed my mind after we ended up with machines that can talk back to us,” said Bengio, whose seminal research in the field of deep learning — an approach to AI that mimics the way human brains operate — laid the foundation for today’s AI models.