Dell XPS 630 Desktop

Key Specs

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Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo E8200 (2.66GHz)
Memory: 2GB RAM
Storage: 500GB hard drive
Optical Drives: Double-layer DVD±RW
Graphics: nVidia GeForce 8800 GT
Operating System: Windows Vista Home Premium

Review

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It was just a matter of time before Dell jumped on the trend toward mainstream gaming machines—and its first effort is a winner. The XPS 630 is the best example we've yet seen of an everyday, affordable desktop that also excels with gaming, making you feel like you're getting more than your money's worth.



At $1,269, the XPS 630 costs a little more than two other mainstream machines we've looked at lately—Gateway's FX7020 and the Cyberpower Gamer Ultra CF 3870—but it noticeably outpaced both in terms of performance.

Powering the XPS 630 are a 2.66GHz Intel Core 2 Duo E8200 processor, 2GB of RAM, and the nVidia GeForce 8800 GT graphics card—the secret weapon of most mainstream gaming machines. And, in a big step forward for Dell, all of those components are plugged into an ATX motherboard. With this system, Dell has finally abandoned its proprietary designs, allowing for easier internal access and greater expandability post-purchase. Rounding out the offerings, you get a 500GB hard drive, double-layer 16x DVD±RW optical drive, 19-in-1 media-card reader, and Vista Home Premium as the OS.

The XPS 630 couldn't trounce the Gateway and Cyberpower in all our productivity tests (though the Dell was respectable across the board). But it delivered some impressive scores in our gaming benchmarks, starting with a more-than-solid 10,487 in Futuremark's 3DMark06 at 1,280x1,024 resolution, and handsome ratings of 8,883 at 1,600x1,200 and 6,338 at 2,560x1,600. The Gateway just eked ahead of the Dell on the last one, but the Dell regained its ground with a startling 137.7 frames per second (fps) in Company of Heroes at 1,280x1,024, a still-mighty 99.2fps at 1,600x1,200, and a more average 46.4fps at 2,560x1,200.

The wide leads vanished in the demanding DirectX 9 (DX9) title Supreme Commander, in which the XPS 630 consistently fell just behind both the Gateway and the Cyberpower systems. In our DX10 Company of Heroes and World in Conflict trials, the Dell still led the way but by considerably smaller margins. The XPS 630 was dead last, however, in all our DX10 tests with the highest resolutions, showing unplayable results of 8.3fps in Company of Heroes (2,560x1,600), 1fps in World in Conflict (2,560x1,600), and 8.9fps in Call of Juarez (1,920x1,200).

(This serves as an important reminder: these systems aren't intended for all-out performance freaks; they're just supposed to bring the thrill and fun of 3D gaming to the masses who can't shell out thousands of dollars to play the latest title at full-detail levels.)

Gaming aside, the XPS 630 offers some other worthy features. Its toolless, trapezoidal chassis is unusually sexy for this price. (Ours was black, but red is also available for yet another dash of flair.) The XPS 630 is also highly customizable, from security software (a 15-month McAfee subscription is an option) to upgradability. If you've got a bit more room on your credit card, you can add another 8800 GT in a Scalable Link Interface (SLI) configuration (you can also outfit your system with ATI graphics cards in CrossFire mode, if you want), an Intel Core 2 Extreme processor, more hard-drive space, a Blu-ray high-definition optical drive, and so on. The XPS 630 is not factory-overclocked, but Dell says its warranty covers overclocking for customers who choose to do so.

From what we've seen, the additions are not strictly necessary. As it stands, the XPS 630 is a well-tooled system that will bring you lots of enjoyment without breaking the bank.

Physicists Demonstrate Qubit-Qutrit Entanglement

For the first time, physicists have entangled a qubit with a “qutrit” – the 3D version of the 2D qubit. Qubit-qutrit entanglement could lead to advantages in quantum computing, such as increased security and more efficient quantum gates, as well as enable novel tests of quantum mechanics.

The research team, composed of physicists from the University of Queensland, the University of Bristol, and the University of Waterloo, has published its results in a recent issue of Physical Review Letters. The researchers made qutrits with biphotons (two correlated photons), resulting in “biphotonic qutrits.” Then, they entangled these qutrits with photonic qubits (made with one photon) using a combination of linear optic elements and measurements.

A qutrit, just as it sounds, is the quantum information analogue of the classical trit. Due to its quantum mechanical nature, a qutrit can exist in superpositions of its three basis states. This is similar to how a qubit can exist in superpositions of its two states. Because of the qutrit’s 3D nature, though, it can carry much more information than the qubit. (A string of n classical bits holds 1n states, a string of n qubits holds 2n states, and a string of n qutrits holds 3n states.)

Many researchers have investigated the possibilities of entangling a qubit and qutrit, hoping to develop a valuable tool for improving quantum computing and exploring novel quantum phenomena, among other things. The authors’ result now makes such theoretical proposals experimentally testable.

“For me, the significance our paper is about how entangling systems to a qubit can be a great way to manipulate that system,” co-author Benjamin Lanyon of the University of Queensland told PhysOrg.com. “In our example, we use this technique to dramatically extend the range of possible transforms on qutrits – these higher dimensional quantum information carriers, which offer loads of advantages, but are otherwise really difficult to handle.”

In their study, the researchers show that qubit-qutrit entanglement can be a useful resource to manipulate the difficult-to-handle qutrits. The scientists built a non-linear qutrit polarizer, which involves creation of the entanglement and destructive measurement of the qubit. The result is to temporarily remove a single qutrit state from the qutrit’s superposition.

Lanyon explains that this is an example of a measurement-induced nonlinearity (MINL), which is known to be an extremely powerful tool to manipulate qubits and realize an optical quantum computer.

“Measurements on the output of optical circuits built from only linear elements (such as beamsplitters, phase shifters and mirrors) can give rise to a non-linear evolution of the input optical field, i.e. for all intents and proposes, the photons seem to have interacted,” said Lanyon. “This is surprising, since photons do not naturally interact in these systems, and the effect is called a measurement-induced nonlinearity. In the context of our study, the MINL gives rise to the non-linear evolution required to generate entanglement and remove a single logical state from a qutrit superposition.”

He also gave a visual description.

“Consider that there are a number of different paths that the photons could take through the optical circuit,” he said. “As in the double-slit experiment with electrons, the photons take all these paths at once, and, at the output, we end up with a large superposition. Now let’s make a measurement of the whole (or part) of the output state. Certain results mean that certain paths were not taken – and therefore we can get rid of paths this way, conditional on getting certain measurement outcomes. Very clever measurements can leave you with a path history that results in entanglement.”

The researchers also propose a number of extensions to their work. For example, a pair of entangled qubit-qutrit states could be used to create qutrit-qutrit entanglement, which would first require entangling the two qubits. High-brightness single-photon sources currently in development will help with these kinds of future experiments. The researchers also propose that using MINLs as a manipulation technique is not limited to photons, but can be applied to any type of bosonic quantum information carrier.

The scientists predict that higher dimensional entanglement will have applications including optimizing security in quantum information systems, and increasing channel capacity for quantum communication, among other uses.

Airline in first biofuel flight

The first flight by a commercial airline to be powered partly by biofuel has taken place.


A Virgin Atlantic jumbo jet has flown between London's Heathrow and Amsterdam using fuel derived from a mixture of Brazilian babassu nuts and coconuts.

Environmentalists have branded the flight a publicity stunt and claim biofuel cultivation is not sustainable.

Earlier this month, Airbus tested another alternative fuel - a synthetic mix of gas-to-liquid.

Virgin boss Sir Richard Branson said the flight marked a "vital breakthrough" for the entire airline industry.

"This pioneering flight will enable those of us who are serious about reducing our carbon emissions to go on developing the fuels of the future," he said.

But he said fully commercial biofuel flights were likely to use feedstocks such as algae rather than the mix used on the passenger-less flight.

Virgin's Boeing 747 had one of its four engines connected to an independent biofuel tank that it said could provide 20% of the engine's power.

The three other engines were capable of powering the plane on conventional fuel had there been a problem.

The company said the babassu tree, native to Brazil, and the coconuts did not compete with staple food sources and came from existing mature plantations.

Both products are commonly used in cosmetics and household paper products.

'Gimmick'

One problem with flying planes using biofuel is that it is more likely to freeze at high altitude.
The technology is still being manufactured by companies GE and Boeing, but Virgin believes airlines could routinely be flying on plant power within 10 years.

Kenneth Richter, of Friends of the Earth, said the flight was a "gimmick", distracting from real solutions to climate change.


"If you look at the latest scientific research it clearly shows biofuels do very little to reduce emissions," he said.

"At the same time we are very concerned about the impact of the large-scale increase in biofuel production on the environment and food prices worldwide.

"What we need to do is stop this mad expansion of aviation. At the moment it is the fastest growing source of greenhouse gases in the UK, and we need to stop subsidising the industry."

Greenpeace's chief scientist, Dr Doug Parr, labelled the flight a "high-altitude greenwash" and said less air travel was the only answer.
"Instead of looking for a magic green bullet, Virgin should focus on the real solution to this problem and call for a halt to relentless airport expansion."

Airbus ran its test using the world's largest passenger jet, the A380.

The three-hour flight from Filton near Bristol to Toulouse on 1 February was part of an ongoing research programme.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/7261214.stm

Hacker breaks link between iTunes and the iPod

Software letting iTunes users copy music and video to mobile phones has been released by the hacker known as DVD Jon


A notorious Norwegian hacker known as DVD Jon is preparing for another run-in with the music industry after he released software that lets iPod owners copy music and videos bought from iTunes and play it on other devices.

The program allows people to drag and drop songs from iTunes into a folder on their desktop, which in turn copies the files to other devices such as mobile phones and games consoles via the web.

In doing so, the software breaks the copy protection - known as 'digital rights management' or DRM - that is built into all music that is bought from iTunes. Music bought from iTunes can be played only on the iPod.

DoubleTwist, DVD Jon's company, maintains that its service is legal, but lawyers said that Apple would almost certainly seek to shut it down because the law now specifically targeted technologies which attempted to circumvent measures such as DRM.

The hacker has previously enabled iPod owners to play music bought from websites other than iTunes.

DoubleTwist's new software will initially enable files to be copied to Nokia N-series mobile phones, Sony Ericsson's Walkman and Cybershot handsets, as well as any smartphone powered by Microsoft's Windows Mobile operating system.

The program gets around Apple's DRM software by replaying a song in fast-forward and taking a copy of the audio track, using a process similar to that by which a CD is 'ripped' - or copied - to a computer.

About a hundred songs can be converted in half an hour, doubleTwist said, although there is a 5 per cent loss of sound quality - about the same as when a CD is copied.

A spokesman for the San Fransisco-based company said that its software was legal, because it only allowed a user who has already purchased music to copy it. "All we are facilitating are friends sending things to one another," Monique Farantzos, doubleTwists's chief executive and co-founder, told Reuters.

Lawyers today cast doubt on Ms Farantzos's claims, however, saying that the law had taken steps to protect Apple's efforts to control the way its music could be played, and that anyone circumventing measures such as DRM risked being found guilty of copyright infringement.

"I would be astonished if doubleTwist doesn't get a call from Apple," Paul Jones, a partner in intellectual property law at the London-based firm Harbottle & Lewis, said.

DVD Jon, whose real name is Jon Lech Johansen, has been an arch-enemy of the music and film indutries ever since he released software which broke the copy protection on Hollywood films, aged 16.

In 2003, Mr Johansen, now 24, developed the first of several programs which attempted to bypass the system developed by Apple for synchronising its iTunes store with iPods, leading to one of a series of run-ins with the firm.

IBM scientists look to DNA to build future chips

DNA strings could become the template for nanotubes and nanowires by 2028

February 21, 2008 (Computerworld) Looking for a way to continually shrink computer chips while still squeezing more transistors onto them, IBM scientists are working on a whole new way to build processors -- using DNA.

For the past year and a half, researchers at IBM have been working on creating a new way to make the patterns used to lay out the transistors and wires that go on a chip. Today, semiconductor manufacturers use optical lithography, which uses light to transfer the pattern. The problem, according to Joe Gordon, senior manager for materials for advanced technology at IBM, is that it's difficult to shrink the pattern using today's techniques.

And since Gordon said 50% of the improvement in processor performance comes from shrinking the pattern, scientists need to come up with a new way to create the patterns.

That's where the DNA strands come into play.

"Right now, the industry road map is [that] we'll get down to 22 nanometer-size features on a chip," said Gordon. "We're looking at ways to go down beyond that. It's very clear it will be difficult to go smaller than that using the optical lithography we know today. Using DNA will help us do that."

Greg Wallraff, a staff scientist at IBM, explained that the researchers are laying single molecules of DNA onto the chip's surface and using them as a template for assembling electronic components, like nanotubes and nanowires. The DNA used by the researchers comes from a virus, he added.

Wallraff said the IBM research team is working with California Institute of Technology scientist Paul Rothemund, who has developed a way to assemble single molecules of DNA into complex structures. Building on that research, the IBM scientists are trying to wrangle the DNA into usable templates.

"People say DNA is the blueprint for life," said Wallraff. "The specific structure of DNA has unique features. It's basically programmable. You can design DNA into unique shapes, with specific attachment sites. Then we pour this DNA solution onto a silicon substrate, and the DNA assembles itself exactly where we want it to on the chip, and then we assemble the components on top of that."

The attachment sites on DNA, which is where the nanowires and transistors would attach on the template, can be made much closer together than with traditional pattern manufacturing techniques. With DNA, the attachment sites are 4nm to 6nm apart. Normally, they're about 45nm apart.

"Think of it as tiling a floor. These DNA pieces are like tiles," explained Gordon. "Each tile has some array of electronic components. Those tiles are placed on a chip in a larger array so there are thousands or millions on a chip. The second step, which we don't know how to do yet, would be to wire them all together. We've got sizes well below conventional lithography."

Once the nanotubes and wires are laid onto the template, the DNA would be extracted. Wallraff said millions of the DNA templates would be needed for a single chip.

Gordon noted that the research team is far from figuring out the whole process needed to make the DNA model work. "We don't have a good picture of exactly how you would do everything," he said. "How do we make the tiles stick together in the right places? Can we get the nanowires to attach to the tiles in the right places? Can we wire them up?"

Wallraff said the next steps will be connect all the tiles together and check the defect levels during assembly.

Actually using this pattern technique is probably 10 to 20 years away, he noted.

IBM scientists look to DNA to build future chips - ComputerWorld, 22.02.2008

In Germany, installed the most powerful supercomputer in Europe JUGENE

In the city Yyulih Research Center in western Germany has been installed the most powerful supercomputer in Europe JUGENE, the website reported Informationsdienst Wissenschaft. In the world ranking the most productive computers JUGENE debuted in second place - the first line, like the previous few years, remains with the BlueGene / L.


At the official launch ceremony was attended by computer Prime Minister Juergen Ruettgers and Secretary of State Thomas Rachel. According to the Chairman of the Board of Directors of a research centre in Yyulihe, JUGENE is the most powerful supercomputer in the world, used for civilian purposes.

Supercomputer JUGENE able to perform 167 trillion mathematical operations per second. Supercomputer, which is the most powerful representative of a series of machines BlueGene / P, 65 is equipped with thousands of processors. The computer was created by IBM.

First place in the ranking of the most powerful supercomputing for a number of years keeps repeatedly improved machine BlueGene / L production of the same IBM. Peak performance supercomputer that is more than 596 trillion operations per second.

Research topics on the Juelich supercomputers:
O Pollutants in the Soil
O magma in the Earth's core
O Chemical reactions in the atmosphere
O Galaxies and the formation of stars
O Polymers in Solutions
O Lasers and Particle Physics
O protein folding in cells
O Biological membranes
O Aviation and Auto Engineering
O Fire protection and evacuation scenarios

Specifications of the Juelich supercomputer JUGENE:
O Architecture: IBM's Blue Gene / P
O Performance, theoretical: 223 teraflops
O performance, measured: 167 teraflops
O Processors: 65 536
O type of processors: Power PC 450
O Frequency: 850 megahertz
O Main memory: 32 terabytes
O bandwidth Storage: 13.6 GB / s
O Local network bandwidth: 5.1 GB / s
O Network latency: 160 nanoseconds
O Electric power: 560 kW

sourse - http://idw-online.de/pages/de/news248084

Building the WorldWide Hydrogen Super Highway...

What is the Interstate Traveler Hydrogen Super Highway? It is a collection of vital municipal utilities bundled into what we call the Conduit Cluster providing a first of its kind full integration of solar powered hydrogen production and distribution with a high speed magnetic levitation ( MagLev ) public transit network built along the right of way of the US Interstate Highway Systems, and any other permissible right of way where such a machine would be of benefit. The Interstate Traveler, also known as the Interstate Traveler Rail, is accessed by Traveler Stations that are built within the right of way of the Interstate Highway within the land locked real-estate of the clover leaf interchanges providing maximum ease of access for people who live anywhere near the Interstate Highway.


What problem does the Interstate Traveler Solve? The newscasters tell us every day about the difficult times people are having all over the world. Everywhere there is over crowding, urban sprawl, public utility failures, traffic jams, car accidents, utility poles that are easily damaged by bad weather, and backed up sewer systems that contaminate local public waters. The science of all these problems being significant unto themselves as a business, a municipal responsibility and as a personal plight. The Interstate Traveler creates a more resilient solution to all of these problems in a single relatively inexpensive mass produced rapid transit rail system.

It has become ever more popular for new urban areas to be developed with underground utilities, and as the ever increasing population grows into new areas and redevelops old ones, there will be a need for both a highly efficient light rail system, and a need for massive upgrades in the basic public utility conduits such as electricity, water, and liquid waste.

Ultimately, we are creating a massive functional upgrade to the efficiency of the United States public infrastructure as a whole by implementing a nested domain address system for a National Public Transit Network.



sourse - http://www.interstatetraveler.us