STEM

Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics tend to join forces to advance the world that we observe and dwell in, it is because of this union that computer technology has advanced to identify problems so that solutions can be sought to make business practices more effective; that the health care industry can detect disease processes efficiently, that treatments are developed to target specific genes, as well as, the flow of energy can be monitored at an atomic level. 

Quantum Computing

Quantum information science (QIS) is the combining of physical science, mathematics, computer science, and engineering. Quantum science is the analysis, process and transmission of information using quantum mechanics to study the manipulation of states of matter. Currently technology is being developed to power quantum computing using nanotechnology. Quantum computers use various states to solve real life problems and perform complex computations, examples of these states include superposition and entanglement. Superposition is a quantum system that exists in all possible states at the same time until it is observed., whereas entanglement is the measurement of one member within a paired system who causes the other member to immediately assume a related value. A quantum computer processes information encoded in quantum bits, or qubits which is a system that exists in both superposition and entanglement states. D-Wave Systems is a quantum computing company that is leading the way in providing quantum computing systems, software, and services; additionally D-Wave also provide cloud services, application development tools, and professional services. 

Nanotechnology

Nanotechnology is an area of research in which extremely small matter is being studied, a nanometer is one billionth of a meter or 10 raised to the 9 power of a meter. Nanotech is used to study various aspects of science and engineering. The primary focus of nanotechnology is to identify and control the movement of small atoms and molecules. Identifying a nanoparticle requires a specialized microscope such as the scanning tunneling microscope (STM) and the atomic force microscope (AFM).
Nanotechnology can be used as a delivery system for medical drug and gene treatments via nanoparticles. Nanotech is also used for tumor detection using MRI (magnetic response imaging) and positron-emission tomography (PET) nuclear techniques for the identification of biomarkers in human diseases. Nanotechnology can also be used to clean contaminated soil and water, as well as, to provide us with a more energy-efficient environment with the development of energy-efficient fuel cells, batteries and solar panels. Currently nanotechnology is being used for the modification of the surface of dental implants to assist recipients with cellular and tissue response. 

DNA modification

CRISPR short for "clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats", which is the DNA found in bacterial cells that that were infected by a virus, that then infects the bacterial cell. Viruses are programmed infectious particles that insert their DNA information into a host and then makes copies of itself within the hosts DNA. Approximately half of a bacterial cells genetic information is composed of CRISPR. The Cas9 enzyme is used to cut DNA at a specific location and CRISPR collects the snipped pieces of DNA. The focus of this research is to study antiviral immunity, when CRISPR DNA is transcribed into RNA; the RNA can then be used to target and destroy  infectious particles. CRISPR can be used to treat food sources that contain bacteria to increase sustainability; in mammals and humans CRISPR can also  be used as a gene editing tool for the correction of genetic disorders by removing unwanted/disease causing gene mutations. In the future CRISPR will focus on its delivery method to ensure that healthy cells and tissues are not negatively impacted.

Particle Accelerators

Particle accelerator machines use electromagnetic fields to increase the speed and thereby movement of microscopically positive charged proton particles. An accelerator machine uses the electromagnetic fields to control the direction in which the particles travel. The electromagnetic field is formed from the acceleration of the charged particles; these machines are currently being used to better understand the fourth dimensions matter, energy, space and time. In physics particle accelerators are used to study collisions as the particles collide into one another or against a target; as collisions result in an exchange in energy. 

There are two basic types of particle accelerators:

1. linear accelerators which are utilized for fixed-target experiments 
2. circular accelerators that are utilized for both collisions and fixed-target experiments

Linear accelerators move particles along a linear, or straight line; whereas circular accelerators advance particles around a circular track. Currently there are 30,000 particle accelerators in the world which can be used for medicine, manufacturing, and food safety. When radioactive material is produced using the particle accelerators the materials can then be used for research and medicine. CERN has eight particle accelerators that are used to accelerate particles for larger machines like the LHC (Large Hadron Collider) which requires four particle accelerators to provide it with the particles that it needs. In the near future CERN will have a second generation LHC that is expected to start after 2025.