21st Century Innovative Technologies and Developments as also discoveries, curiosity ( insolite)...

After seven years in the works, the world's fastest supercomputer has officially been completed in Japan and is now available for researchers to start using, for projects ranging from fighting climate change to discovering new drugs. 

Builds for the Fugaku supercomputer, hosted at Japanese scientific research institute Riken, started in 2014 in collaboration with Fujitsu, with the device pitched to become a future pillar of the country's high-performance computing infrastructure. 

The delivery of Fugaku's total 432 racks was completed in May 2020; since then, trials of the system have been on-going, mainly with projects aiming to accelerate research to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. The computer is now fully open for shared use, and Japan's Research Organization for Information Science and Technology (RIST) has already selected 74 research projects that will be implemented from next month. 

RIST has also urged researchers to submit proposals for new projects, and invited all applications to be sent in as part of a call for Trial Access Projects. 

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Two tiny, hopping rovers that landed on asteroid Ryugu last week have beamed back some incredible new views of the asteroid's rocky surface.

The Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency's (JAXA) Hayabusa2 sample-return mission dropped the two nearly identical rovers, named Minerva-II1A and Minerva-II1B, onto the surface of Ryugu on Sept. 21. In a new video from the eyes of Minerva-II1B, you can watch the sun move across the sky as its glaring sunlight reflects off the shiny rocks that cover Ryugu's surface.

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Ein uralter Asteroid ist das Ziel von Hayabusa 2. Die japanische Sonde hat sich neben dem Asteroiden Ryugu positioniert, der zwischen Erde und Mars um die Sonne kreist. Die Sonde sowie ein vom DLR entwickelter Roboter sollen auf dem Himmelskörper Proben nehmen.

Endlich angekommen: Nach dreieinhalb Jahren und einer Strecke von 3,2 Milliarden Kilometern ist die japanische Raumsonde Hayabusa 2 bei ihrem Ziel, dem Asteroiden Ryugu, angekommen. Sie soll Daten und Proben von dem Himmelskörper sammeln. Zu der Forschungsmission gehört auch ein deutsches Landefahrzeug.

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Siam Commercial Bank (SCB), in collaboration with Japan's SBI Remit, is using Ripple's blockchain enterprise solution to power real-time remittance payments between Japan and Thailand - a first for the corridor.

Approximately 40,000 Thai nationals currently live in Japan and total remittance flows from Japan to Thailand are roughly $250m a year. The rollout of this new service begins today, and supports individual funds transfers from JPY in Japan to THB in SCB savings accounts in Thailand.

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Saya first went viral in 2015, when her creators produced incredibly realistic renderings of her.

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Meet Kengoro, a robot modelled after humans who is capable of completing physical exercises. 

The humanoid machine can be seen doing push-ups and crunches, and can even play badminton.

Japanese researchers at the University of Tokyo's JSK lab has created the robot to closely resemble the anatomy of the human body. 

It features sensors in its joints and has over 100 motors that replicate the muscle and skeletal structure found in humans. It's creators believe that Kengoro can help us better understand our bodies and the neural networks that control them through the data it collects when doing exercises.

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Saturday update: More than 24 hours after they were released by the Hayabusa2 spacecraft to fly down to the surface of the asteroid Ryugu, the Japanese Space Agency has finally provided an update on the fate of the two tiny robots. And they're doing quite well indeed.

"We are sorry we have kept you waiting!" the space agency, JAXA, tweeted. "MINERVA-II1 consists of two rovers, 1a & 1b. Both rovers are confirmed to have landed on the surface of Ryugu. They are in good condition and have transmitted photos & data. We also confirmed they are moving on the surface."

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Hayabusa 2 has been travelling toward the space rock Ryugu since launching from the Tanegashima spaceport in 2014.

It is on a quest to study the object close-up and deliver rocks and soil from Ryugu to Earth.

It will use explosives to propel a projectile into Ryugu, digging out a fresh sample from beneath the surface.

Dr Makoto Yoshikawa, Hayabusa 2's mission manager, talked about the plan now that the spacecraft had arrived at its destination.

"At first, we will study very carefully the surface features. Then we will select where to touch down. Touchdown means we get the surface material," he told me.

A copper projectile, or "impactor" will separate from the spacecraft, floating down to the surface of the asteroid. Once Hayabusa 2 is safely out of the way, an explosive charge will detonate, driving the projectile into the surface.

"We have an impactor which will create a small crater on the surface of Ryugu. Maybe in spring next year, we will try to make a crater... then our spacecraft will try to reach into the crater to get the subsurface material."

"But this is a very big challenge."

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It looks VERY realistic!

Androidol U is a new life-like female android developed by Osaka University professor Hiroshi Ishiguro. Androidol U is a fully autonomous conversational robot that has a more compact air servo system, better voice and body movement coordination and softer body materials compared to previous androids.

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If you’re still skeptical as to whether the robot takeover will end humanity as we know it, then you may need to meet Alter. Alter is a new humanoid straight from Japan that runs entirely off a neural network, with 42 pneumatic actuators that help it generate its own movement patterns. And boy, are they freaky. All …

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