Artificial intelligence using neural networks performs calculations digitally with the help of microelectronic chips. Physicists at Leipzig University have now created a type of neural network that works not with electricity but with so-called active colloidal particles. In their publication in Nature Communications, the researchers describe how these microparticles can be used as a physical system for artificial intelligence and the prediction of time series.
“In our realization, we use synthetic self-propelled particles that are only a few micrometers in size,” explains Cichos. “We show that these can be used for calculations and at the same time present a method that suppresses the influence of disruptive effects, such as noise, in the movement of the colloidal particles.” Colloidal particles are particles that are finely dispersed in their dispersion medium (solid, gas or liquid).
For their experiments, the physicists developed tiny units made of plastic and gold nanoparticles, in which one particle rotates around another, driven by a laser. These units have certain physical properties that make them interesting for reservoir computing.
“Each of these units can process information, and many units make up the so-called reservoir. We change the rotational motion of the particles in the reservoir using an input signal. The resulting rotation contains the outcome of a calculation,” explains Dr. Xiangzun Wang. “Like many neural networks, the system needs to be trained to perform a particular calculation.”
The researchers were particularly interested in noise. “Because our system contains extremely small particles in water, the reservoir is subject to strong noise, similar to the noise that all molecules in a brain are subject to,” says Cichos.
“This noise, Brownian motion, severely disrupts the functioning of the reservoir computer and usually requires a very large reservoir to remedy. In our work, we have found that using past states of the reservoir can improve computer performance, allowing smaller reservoirs to be used for certain computations under noisy conditions.”
Cichos adds that this has not only contributed to the field of information processing with active matter, but has also yielded a method that can optimize reservoir computation by reducing noise.
More information: Xiangzun Wang et al, Harnessing synthetic active particles for physical reservoir computing, Nature Communications (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-44856-5
Journal information: Nature Communications
News
GHCE Concept
From the preface of the book Global Health Care Equivalency in the Age of Nanotechnology, Nanomedicine and Artificial Intelligence, Edited by Frank Boehm: Since the publication of my first book (Nanomedical Device and Systems [...]
Novartis, Ionis drug failure spurs questions
Pelacarsen didn’t protect heart health despite lowering levels of a protein particle, “Lp(a),” in a large clinical trial — a result with important implications for cardiovascular drug research. Dive Brief: An RNA drug from [...]
New injectable treatment helps the brain rebuild after stroke
Biomedical engineers at Duke University have created an injectable biomaterial that may help the brain recover from damage left behind by an ischemic stroke. In experiments with mice, the material transformed the cavity created [...]
Scientists Discover a Hidden “Immune Organ” Inside the Skull
Researchers discovered lymph node-like immune hubs inside skull bone marrow that appear to act as rapid-response centers for the brain. For decades, the brain was thought to operate largely apart from the immune system. [...]
Engineered tRNAs and lipid nanoparticles target nonsense mutation cystic fibrosis
Researchers have developed a potential new approach for treating a form of cystic fibrosis caused by so-called nonsense mutations, combining chemically modified transfer RNAs with lipid nanoparticles designed to deliver the therapy directly to [...]
New pancreatic cancer drug carries a $39,800 monthly list price
A groundbreaking treatment for one of the most common forms of pancreatic cancer has been approved in pill form by the FDA. Revolution Medicines’ oral tablet daraxonrasib, branded as Rasonque, reduced the risk of [...]
Researchers Have Discovered a New Way To Reduce Chronic Nerve Pain
A cancer-linked protein called BRAF may help drive chronic nerve pain, and existing cancer drugs targeting it reduced pain sensitivity in preclinical models. Chronic nerve pain can persist long after an injury and often [...]
Our books now available worldwide!
Online Sellers other than Amazon, Routledge, and IOPP Indigo Global Health Care Equivalency in the Age of Nanotechnology, Nanomedicine and Artifcial Intelligence Global Health Care Equivalency In The Age Of Nanotechnology, Nanomedicine And Artificial [...]
Quantum-Enabled Regenerative Health: Reimagining Wellness, Precision Health and Longevity Medicine
Introduction Healthcare is approaching a frontier where the quantum portfolio could influence not only how disease is diagnosed and treated, but how health itself is measured, modeled, predicted and preserved. Quantum computing, quantum simulation, [...]
FDA Clears First-of-Its-Kind Nonmedication Treatment for PTSD
The FDA has cleared a system that uses brain activity data to personalize magnetic stimulation for PTSD, adding a new nonmedication treatment option. Every day in the United States, approximately 17.5 veterans die by suicide, [...]
FDA approves breakthrough drug to treat advanced pancreatic cancer
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved on Wednesday a drug that could extend the survival of those with metastatic pancreatic cancer. The drug, called daraxonrasib, will be sold under the brand name Rasonque [...]
AI Decodes a Hidden DNA Signal Linked to Disease-Causing Mutations
Machine learning identifies the likely “initiator” and enables new predictions about DNA mutations that can cause disease. Every human cell depends on tens of thousands of genes being switched on at the right time [...]
Pope Leo Urges Global Response to Congo’s Deadliest Ebola Outbreak
Pope Leo called for international action to address the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The epidemic has claimed over 2,500 lives and is the nation's largest recorded outbreak. The Pope emphasized [...]
Is there a summer COVID-19 surge this year? Yep, it’s ramping up again
Hantavirus. Ebola. West Nile. Measles. And, of course, cyclospora — that stomach parasite making people miserable across the country. Americans have plenty to worry about this summer. But remember COVID-19? It may not be [...]
Natural Compound in Broccoli Could Help Treat a Rare, Incurable Neurological Disease
Swinburne researchers have discovered how broccoli could help treat an extremely rare and incurable disease that affects only about 200 Australians. A naturally occurring compound in broccoli is being investigated as a possible treatment [...]
Antibody recycling, FcRn and the next generation of biologics
FcRn plays a central role in regulating the half-life of IgG antibodies and albumin, making it a critical target in both antibody engineering and autoimmune disease therapy. This article explores the biology of FcRn, [...]
