newscientisttech.com— An experimental breakthrough that could dramatically increase the capacity, speed and reliability of computer hard drives has been announced by an international team of physicists.
May 12, 2007View in Crawl 4
Oh yeah another breakthrough. Reading about life-changing technologies every single day since the first days of slashdot. Nothing from all these new techs has entered my everyday life except the DVD (Wow!) technology.
But this doesn't sound like a storage device but more of a way to move data. That still doesn't address the issue of where it is being stored and read from in the first place.
You guys remember POD bots for Counter-Strike? How they'd have those little scripted conversations? That's what some Digg discussions remind me of. Mindless filth.
At the speeds they're talking about here, this technology is a ways off from replacing ram. ram latency is measured in nanoseconds. They've been testing this process with millisecond pulses.
Sounds more like a delay line to me.<a class="user" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delay_line_memory">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delay_line_memory</a>Specifically not the mercury type.That is, this stores date by taking advantage of the fact that there is finite amount of time it takes for a signal to propagate down a wire. By putting in signals rapidly, multiple signals will be inside the wire at any given time. Do it fast enough and you can store a noticeable amount of data in there.Still, even if the pulses are a nanosecond long, you won't be able to store many in the wire.Or am I misunderstanding this? The term "racetrack" memory would imply the data is moving along the wire.
Yeah, doing something in the lab is one thing. Making it work work commercially by the millions like current HD tech is another. Maybe it will work, maybe it won't.
IBM of late has made a move into spintronic atomic storage with IBM's Parkins new approach, referred to as "racetrack memory". Its interesting to note that pancake motors, electric field generators, etc. all use the concept of creating strong EMF fields by subatomic particles moving through serial wires. Not only will there be increased EMF, heat and energy needs of the device but when the wire develops an open in any wire there goes the memorey device. High stray EMF magnetic fields could also pose a health problem to users as well as other electronics in the circuit. How does IBM propose handling the EMF crosstalk between wires possibly effecting neighboring wires data ? These and many other question need to be answered before this technology can be said to be reliable holding a customers data. <a class="user" href="http://colossalstorage.net/spintronics.htm">http://colossalstorage.net/spintronics.htm</a>
Um, you guys are still using disposable batteries? Let me introduce you to the "rechargeable" battery.Once upon a time, back in the 1980's there were NiCad (Nickel Cadmium) batteries. You put them into a machine that plugged into the wall outlet called a "charger". At first these machines were big and expensive because people wanted one machine that could charge all types of common battery sizes from AAA to D and even the boxy 9V battery with both terminals on the same end. (these days only really used in smoke detectors)Over time people noticed that they were only really using AA and AAA anymore so smaller, cheaper "chargers" came on the market.Then in the 90's the switch to NiMH (Nickel Metal Hydride) began. These batteries that looked and worked very much like the NiCad cousins, did not suffer from the "memory effect" where you had to completely drain your rechargeable batteries or they would gradually lose their ability to charge.As time went on NiMH batteries have become faster to charge, and higher capacity, and can deliver more power in a short burst than even the old fashioned disposable alkaline or newer disposable lithium batteries that plague the Earth's environment. These days it makes little sense to use disposable batteries (especiallly as the price of disposables from reliable companies creeps ever closer to the price of a good set of NiMHs. Personally I haven't used disposable batteries at all in years except in applications where the circuit design is so incredibly simple that to the battery it appears to be a short circuit, thus causing the battery to over heat (my "poverty wizard" camera flash triggers that I bought from Hong Kong on eBay) everything else that doesn't have a built in Lithium Ion battery has NiMH.
orangeryMay 13, 2007
Oh yeah another breakthrough. Reading about life-changing technologies every single day since the first days of slashdot. Nothing from all these new techs has entered my everyday life except the DVD (Wow!) technology.
liuiteMay 13, 2007
there is all this talk about Nanowire and nanodots...when will i have my Nanocomputer?
Closed AccountMay 13, 2007
But this doesn't sound like a storage device but more of a way to move data. That still doesn't address the issue of where it is being stored and read from in the first place.
gawtmilkMay 13, 2007
You guys remember POD bots for Counter-Strike? How they'd have those little scripted conversations? That's what some Digg discussions remind me of. Mindless filth.
merrebornMay 13, 2007
At the speeds they're talking about here, this technology is a ways off from replacing ram. ram latency is measured in nanoseconds. They've been testing this process with millisecond pulses.
happyscrappyMay 13, 2007
Sounds more like a delay line to me.<a class="user" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delay_line_memory">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delay_line_memory</a>Specifically not the mercury type.That is, this stores date by taking advantage of the fact that there is finite amount of time it takes for a signal to propagate down a wire. By putting in signals rapidly, multiple signals will be inside the wire at any given time. Do it fast enough and you can store a noticeable amount of data in there.Still, even if the pulses are a nanosecond long, you won't be able to store many in the wire.Or am I misunderstanding this? The term "racetrack" memory would imply the data is moving along the wire.
jumangiMay 13, 2007
Yeah, doing something in the lab is one thing. Making it work work commercially by the millions like current HD tech is another. Maybe it will work, maybe it won't.
jawagasMay 13, 2007
I complain about batteries to every new person I meet. A car battery should be the size of a laptop battery, and laptop batteries shouldn't suck.
lordofshadowsMay 13, 2007
I dont know, breaking a pin off my harddrive doesnt sound like a cool idea.
jazstarMay 14, 2007
very cool but when im i going to get my crystal technology!!!(stargate etc etc)
nlspropulsionSep 14, 2007
IBM of late has made a move into spintronic atomic storage with IBM's Parkins new approach, referred to as "racetrack memory". Its interesting to note that pancake motors, electric field generators, etc. all use the concept of creating strong EMF fields by subatomic particles moving through serial wires. Not only will there be increased EMF, heat and energy needs of the device but when the wire develops an open in any wire there goes the memorey device. High stray EMF magnetic fields could also pose a health problem to users as well as other electronics in the circuit. How does IBM propose handling the EMF crosstalk between wires possibly effecting neighboring wires data ? These and many other question need to be answered before this technology can be said to be reliable holding a customers data. <a class="user" href="http://colossalstorage.net/spintronics.htm">http://colossalstorage.net/spintronics.htm</a>
aonaranApr 11, 2008
Um, you guys are still using disposable batteries? Let me introduce you to the "rechargeable" battery.Once upon a time, back in the 1980's there were NiCad (Nickel Cadmium) batteries. You put them into a machine that plugged into the wall outlet called a "charger". At first these machines were big and expensive because people wanted one machine that could charge all types of common battery sizes from AAA to D and even the boxy 9V battery with both terminals on the same end. (these days only really used in smoke detectors)Over time people noticed that they were only really using AA and AAA anymore so smaller, cheaper "chargers" came on the market.Then in the 90's the switch to NiMH (Nickel Metal Hydride) began. These batteries that looked and worked very much like the NiCad cousins, did not suffer from the "memory effect" where you had to completely drain your rechargeable batteries or they would gradually lose their ability to charge.As time went on NiMH batteries have become faster to charge, and higher capacity, and can deliver more power in a short burst than even the old fashioned disposable alkaline or newer disposable lithium batteries that plague the Earth's environment. These days it makes little sense to use disposable batteries (especiallly as the price of disposables from reliable companies creeps ever closer to the price of a good set of NiMHs. Personally I haven't used disposable batteries at all in years except in applications where the circuit design is so incredibly simple that to the battery it appears to be a short circuit, thus causing the battery to over heat (my "poverty wizard" camera flash triggers that I bought from Hong Kong on eBay) everything else that doesn't have a built in Lithium Ion battery has NiMH.