The US Department of Education will forgive $39 billion in student debt by updating a technical requirement under

Bitcoin’s price has crashed dramatically, amid what seems to be a broader worry in the financial markets. The world’s biggest cryptocurrency has fallen more than 7 per cent over the last 24 hours, and almost 12 per cent in the last week. Other large digital currencies saw similar falls, though not as stark. Ethereum, the second biggest cryptocurrency by market cap, has lost around 10 per cent of its value in the last week. The troubles mean that the crypto market as a whole is down 5.7 per cent over the last 24 hours, according to tracking website Coinmarketcap. Trading volumes increased sharply, too, and were up almost 80 per cent over the last 24 hours. Thursday’s drop in the price of the cryptocurrency was the biggest one day fall since November 2022. That happened when large exchange FTX collapsed, sending shockwaves through the crypto markets and leading to widespread fears. This time around, there was no obvious connection to events in the cryptocurrency market. Instead, investors seemed concern about the economy more generally, and more traditional assets were also hit by falls in recent days. Wall Street’s main indexes fell on Friday, extending declines to the fourth session on a drag from megacap growth stocks, as evidence of a resilient U.S. economy fanned fears of interest rates staying higher for longer. The three main US stock indexes are on track for sharp weekly losses as a spate of strong economic data, including a fall in weekly jobless claims, caused investors to dial back expectations of rate cuts and drove up government bond yields. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note hit a ten-month high of 4.328 per cent in the previous session and came within a whisker of its highest level since 2007. “The drivers really have been of late the rising Treasury yields and that is signaling a more risk-off investor sentiment,” said Art Hogan, chief market strategist at B Riley Wealth. “Investors are looking at (better-than-expected economic data) and saying the Fed likely isn’t restrictive enough yet.” Traders see a nearly 91% chance of the Fed holding rates at current levels at its September meeting, according to the CME Group’s FedWatch tool. On Friday, rate-sensitive big technology and growth stocks such as Apple, Microsoft, Tesla and Nvidia slipped between 0.7% and 2.8% even as Treasury yields took a breather. The communication services and technology sectors housing major growth stocks fell 1.6% and 1.0% respectively. The tech-heavy Nasdaq hit an over two-month low and is set to post the biggest weekly declines of the three major indices, down 3 per cent so far. The CBOE volatility index hit its highest in nearly three months, reflecting rising investor anxiety. Additional reporting by Reuters

Scientists have discovered how to double the efficiency of an ultra-lightweight solar cell, which they claim could be used to harvest the Sun’s energy in space at a never-before-seen scale. The next-generation solar panels, built by a team from the University of Pennsylvania, use layers that are over a thousand times thinner than a human hair, yet capable of absorbing a comparable amount of sunlight to commercially available solar cells. The extreme thinness earned them the label two-dimensional, or 2D TMDC, as they are only a few atoms thick. The ability to produce more electricity per weight compared to traditional silicon solar cells makes them highly suitable for sending into space to harvest the Sun’s energy, according to the researchers. “High specific power is actually one of the greatest goals of any space-based light harvesting or energy harvesting technology,” said Deep Jariwala from the University of Pennsylvania. “This is not just important for satellites or space stations, but also if you want real utility-scale solar power in space. The number of [silicon] solar cells you would have to ship up is so large that no space vehicles currently can take those kinds of materials up there in an economically viable way.” By modelling the innovative solar cell computationally, Professor Jariwala and his team were able to come up with a design that has double the efficiency compared to what had previously been demonstrated. A paper detailing the research, titled ‘How good can 2D excitonic solar cells be?’, was published in the scientific journal Device on Tuesday. The researchers now hope to figure out how to achieve large-scale production for the design. “I think people are slowly coming to the realisation that 2D TMDCs are excellent photovoltaic materials, though not for terrestrial applications, but for applications that are mobile, more flexible, like space-based applications,” said Professor Jariwala. “The weight of 2D TMDC solar cells is 100 times less than silicon or gallium arsenide solar cells, so suddenly these cells become a very appealing technology.” The concept of space-based solar arrays was first theorised more than 50 years ago, with scientists noting that the Sun’s energy could be converted into microwaves and beamed down to ground-based receiving stations that convert them into electricity. It has several advantages over terrestrial setups, as they would not be limited by cloud cover or the Sun’s typical cycle. Research has accelerated in recent years following several major breakthroughs and developments with solar energy harvesting and orbital rocket launches, including the emergence of private space companies like SpaceX that have significantly reduced the cost of delivering payloads into space. Last month, Japanese space agency JAXA announced that it was aiming to set up the first satellite transmitters for a commercial-scale solar farm in space by 2025. The European Space Agency is also planning to establish a development program for this untapped renewable energy resource through its Solaris programme. Read More Japan aims to beam solar power from space by 2025 Electric car drives for 100 hours non-stop on futuristic road Scientists smash world record for solar power window material Apple don’t want you to buy a headset - they’re selling a vision of the future Apple lets people get brand new iPhone update early – but there’s a very big warning

The extreme heat blanketing the Mediterranean is set to peak in parts of Italy on Tuesday, triggering fresh

In a scene Ford hopes to see across Europe "soon", the first hands-free car model allowed on the UK's fastest roads zoomed down a motorway before slowing down as...

Julis Johnson seeks the profits generated by Nicki Minaj's 'I Lied' and asks the court to either halt its usage or ensure he is credited

A broad coalition of America’s largest businesses from Apple Inc. to Intel Corp. protested the abrupt way in

PlayStation fans have had many opportunities to see their favorite franchises on big and small

Nearly 3 gigawatts of offshore wind capacity could be imperiled if the US government imposes a 20-kilometer (12.4-mile)

Plants make sounds when they’re distressed and humans are only hearing them now for the first time, scientists have found. New research has discovered that sounds are used by plants to communicate with their ecosystems – and they could be studied and used to improve growing conditions for plants in the future. Itzhak Khait of Tel Aviv University led the research, which involved studying tobacco and tomato plants. As the findings showed, the plants made high-frequency noise which could be detected five metres away. The study was published in the journal Cell, and the results “can alter the way we think about the plant kingdom, which has been considered to be almost silent until now”. Not only that, but by studying the sounds emitted by the plants experts could tell whether they were in need of water or suffering from cuts. Lilach Hadany, an evolutionary biologist at Tel Aviv University, told Vice: “We started this project from the evolutionary question: why are plants mute? It appears that plants could have a lot to benefit from acoustic communication.” “We were particularly happy that the sounds turned out to be informative – containing information on the type of the plant and the type of the stress.” The findings could change the way plants are grown and communicate with their environments in future, given that we now know information can be conveyed via the sounds. Hadany went on to say: “What we do know is that there are sounds in the air, and they contain information. “Thus, natural selection may be acting on other organisms (animals and plants) to whom the sounds are relevant, to be able to hear the sounds and interpret them. That includes animals that can hear the sounds and can use the information to choose a food source or a laying site, or potentially plants that can prepare for the stress.” The team said in the study: “Plant sound emissions could offer a way for monitoring crops water and possibly disease states—questions of crucial importance in agriculture. “In times when more and more areas are exposed to drought due to climate change, efficient water use becomes even more critical, for both food security and ecology.” Sign up for our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

CLEVELAND--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sep 6, 2023--

The NBA 2K24 best 3 point shooters are Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Luke Kennard, Buddy Hield, and Malcom Brogodn.