“When you look at someone through rose-colored glasses, all the red flags just look like flags.”
– Wanda Pierce
1. 3DHI = The Pringles of Computer Chips
Ever built a computer? Neither have I, but I’m familiar with the components. A traditional CPU consists of a 2D integrated silicon die, meaning all the different CPU cores, for example, are next to each other on the same plane – hence “2D.” However, in a more efficient 3D heterogeneously integrated (3DHI) CPU, all cores are stacked on top of each other! LIKE PRINGLES! Oh, the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency is giving Arizona State University some money to make 3DHI chips in the United States too.
2. Ain’t Nothing Beta About 5G!
Betacom is working with 15 leading tech companies to accelerate Industry 4.0 initiatives powered by private 4G/5G wireless networks. The Betacom Private 5G Ecosystem includes Google, Intel, Ingram Micro Inc., Qualcomm, ADB SAFEGATE, Axis Communications, Evolon, Solis Energy, SVT Robotics, Vecna Robotics, CDW, QuayChain, Airspan, Druid Software, and FibroLAN. It will provide joint technology development and validation, sales incentives, tools, training, and go-to-market initiatives. More like Alphacom, am I right?
3. The Long Arm of the Moon
Motiv Space Systems and NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory are building a robotic arm that can operate in the frigid temperatures of the moon's south pole. The Cold Operable Lunar Deployable Arm is made of bulk metallic glass, which does not require a wet lubricant at its joints. Its motor controllers have an updated voltage converter that can withstand extreme cold. The 6.5-foot arm is designed to be part of a future lunar rover. Success could enable more experimentation in chillier regions of our solar system.
4. Positive-Sum Automation
Only some 10% of U.S. manufacturers have deployed industrial robots, owing to design limitations, workforce challenges, and high integration costs, according to Ben Armstrong, a research scientist and executive director at MIT’s Industrial Performance Center. However, these reports neglect the difficulty of getting robots from major suppliers. If you ask me, industrial robot arms are flat-out too expensive, and new affordable robots get assassinated a few years after release. Seriously, what happened to Eva?
5. The Almighty Micron
Micron Technology Inc. has formed the Northeast University Semiconductor Network, a partnership of 21 universities and colleges focused on developing the next generation of the U.S. semiconductor industry's workforce. The network, which includes Virginia Tech, will share industry-backed technical content, expand experiential learning programs, and bolster student research opportunities to champion the effort to modernize and enhance student curriculum, as well as, hopefully, to reach more underrepresented students.
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