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Other Bristol events

Tomorrow's technology today

Please note that this pub is accessible for wheelchair users. There are no gender neutral toilets.
Past event - 2018
16 May Doors 7.00pm
Event 7.30pm to 10pm
The Kings Head, Whitehall Road,
Bristol BS5 7BH
Sold Out!
The digital age has lead to a succession of smaller, cleaner and less power-hungry technologies, but we are approaching the fundamental limits of technology as we know it. To handle the Internet of Things, big data and AI we need more computing power, better connectivity and better security. An entirely new method of computing will be necessary: quantum computing. But whilst we look to the future, we need to come to terms with the consequences of another age in our past: the nuclear age. How can the technology of today help clean up the technology of the past, the present and the future?

Quantum computing with diamonds and light

Joe Smith (PhD Student in Quantum Engineering)
Today the basic on/off block of computation in your phone is the size a fingernail grows in a second. However, at this size, weird quantum effects start to overthrow the on/off behaviour. A breakthrough in Bristol has been to repurpose silicon tech for a new type of computation where individual photons, harnessing the weird nature of quantum mechanics, can calculate exciting new problems faster than ever thought possible. Integrated in this device, small nano pieces of diamond capture atom-like defects to switch and control these photons.

Rise of the Nuclear Drones

Dean Connor (Demonstrator @ The Interface Analysis Centre)
How can drones assist with nuclear remediation? Using high-resolution radiation mapping combined with photogrammetry, it is now possible to examine contaminated sites in ever-greater resolution. While not only permitting greater spatial coverage, the use of autonomous systems also serves to eliminate operator dose.

Thinking about humans as energy fields

David Glowacki (Royal Society Research Fellow, University of Bristol)
We have been developing algorithms for interpreting the human form as a dynamic energetic field, which can create ripples and waves. The result allows humans to use their movement to sculpt invisible fields, driving graphics and soundscapes. This offers a glimpse into the beauty of movement, allowing us to imagine how we interact with the hidden energy matrix and atomic world. Scientifically we are exploring how they may be used to drive research; artistically they allow us to contemplate emergence, dissipation, and the interconnected dynamism of an (increasingly hectic!) world.
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