Swapping bodies with another person would have a profound effect on the subject's behaviour and even their personality, a new study has revealed. Scientists at the Karolinska Institutet in Sweden discovered a way to allow people to experience the effect of swapping bodies, through a perceptual illusion, in order to understand the relationship between a person's psychological and physical sense of self. They found that when pairs of friends "switched bodies", each friend's personality became more like the other. "Body swapping is not a domain reserved for science fiction anymore," said Pawel Tacikowski, a postdoctoral researcher at the institute and lead author of the study. In order to create the illusion that the study's subjects had switched bodies, Dr Tacikowski and his team fitted them with virtual reality goggles showing live feeds of the other person's body from a first-person perspective.

The US plans to invest $1 billion (£760 million) in quantum computing and artificial intelligence research, the White House has announced. The initiative will fund 12 hubs around the country and help the US in its bid to compete with China and Europe in two of the most promising next-generation technologies. US Chief Technology Officer Michael Kratsios described the investment as "unprecedented" and a "defining achievement" of the Trump administration. "Built upon the uniquely American free market approach to technological advancement, these institutes will be world-class hubs for accelerating American innovation and building the 21st century American workforce," he said in a statement. Governments around the world are investing heavily in the development of AI and quantum computers, as well as technology giants like Alphabet and Alibaba.

An AI pilot has defeated a US Air Force pilot in a virtual F-16 dogfight in a "coming of age" moment for artificial intelligence. The US military's AlphaDogfight Trials was organised by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (Darpa) - a secretive branch of the US Department of Defense responsible for the development of futuristic technologies. It sought to demonstrate the "feasibility of developing effective, intelligent autonomous agents capable of defeating adversary aircraft in a dogfight." The winning AI pilot, developed by Heron Systems, defeated other AI adversaries before going on to beat a human pilot wearing a VR helmet by a score of 5 - 0 in the final. "We've gotten an opportunity to watch AI come of age [against] a very credible adversary in the human pilot," said Col. Dan Javorsek, program manager in Darpa's Strategic Technology Office.

Researchers have "digitally unwrapped" mummified animals from ancient Egypt, revealing previously undiscovered details about ritualistic mummification. Analysis of the 2,000-year-old animals – which include a bird, a kitten and a snake – was done using a technique that achieves a resolution 100-times higher than a medical CT scan. "Using micro CT we can effectively carry out a post-mortem on these animals, more than 2,000 years after they died in ancient Egypt," said Professor Richard Johnston from Swansea University, who led the research. "We were able to piece together new evidence of how they lived and died, revealing the conditions they were kept in, and possible causes of death. "These are the very latest scientific imaging techniques.

A breakthrough with biomorphic batteries could allow robots to store up to 72-times more energy through a system similar to biological fat reserves. Researchers at the University of Michigan – funded by the US Department of Defense – developed a new rechargeable zinc battery that integrates into the structure of a robot in order to free up space and reduce weight that conventional lithium-ion batteries create. "Robot designs are restricted by the need for batteries that often occupy 20 per cent or more of the available space inside a robot, or account for a similar proportion of the robot's weight," said Nicholas Kotov, a professor of engineering who led the research. "We don't have a single sac of fat, which would be bulky and require a lot of costly energy transfer. Distributed energy storage, which is the biological way, is the way to go for highly efficient biomorphic devices."

Researchers have achieved an efficiency record for transparent solar cells, paving the way for skyscraper windows to serve as power sources. A team from the University of Michigan used an organic, carbon-based design to transform sunlight into electricity with an efficiency rate of 8.1 per cent. Commercial solar cells, which are typically made using silicon rather than carbon, tend to have an efficiency rate of between 14 and 19 per cent. "Windows, which are on the face of every building, are an ideal location for organic solar cells because they offer something silicon can't, which is a combination of very high efficiency and very high visible transparency," said Stephen Forrest, a professor of engineering who led the research. The transparency of the solar cells used in the research had 43.3 per cent transparency, which is similar to the transparency of windows used in skyscrapers and tinted car windows.

Scientists have discovered a ground-breaking bio-synthetic material that they claim can be used to merge artificial intelligence with the human brain. The breakthrough, presented today at the American Chemical Society Fall 2020 virtual expo, is a major step towards integrating electronics with the body to create part human, part robotic "cyborg" beings. Connecting electronics to human tissue has been a major challenge due to traditional materials like gold, silicon and steel causing scarring when implanted. Scars not only cause damage but also interrupt electrical signals flowing between computers and muscle or brain tissue. The researchers from the University of Delaware were able to overcome this after various types of polymers.

A major breakthrough with fluorescents has allowed scientists to create the "brightest known materials in existence". The advance paves the way for a new class of materials that transform fluorescent dyes into solid objects, according to researchers from Indiana University in the US and the University of Copenhagen. There are more than 100,000 fluorescent dyes in existence but until now it was not possible to mix them in a predictable way in order to produce solid optical materials. The researchers formulated the new class of materials, called small-molecule ionic isolation lattices (SMILES), using positively charged fluorescent dyes to create a solid material. "These materials have potential applications in any technology that needs bright fluorescence or calls for designing optical properties, including solar energy harvesting, bioimaging, and lasers," said Amar Flood, a chemist at Indiana University and co-author of the study.

Smartphones could soon be able to fully recharge in under 15 minutes after a new fast-charging standard was introduced. Qualcomm's Quick Charge 5 will also allow phones to charge from 0 to 50 per cent in just five minutes, as well as introduce new safety features to prevent overheating. The "world's fastest commercial charging solution" will be up to four-times faster than current charging technologies, according to Qualcomm, and will find its way into commercial devices before the end of the year. It will be compatible with more than 250 smartphones, though it is not a feature that Apple supports. This means that only Androids, not iPhones, will benefit from the technology.

Cambridge University researchers have developed a "no-touch touchscreen" that uses artificial intelligence to predict a user's intention before their hand reaches the display. The screen was originally designed for use in cars, but the engineers who built it claim it could also have widespread applications during a pandemic. The "predictive touch" technology can be retrofitted to existing displays and could be used to prevent the spread of pathogens on touchscreens at supermarket check-outs, ATMs and ticket terminals at railway stations. Studies have shown that coronavirus can remain on plastic and glass for anywhere between two hours and a week, meaning touchscreens in public places need to be constantly disinfected to prevent transmission. "Touchscreens and other interactive displays are something most people use multiple times per day, but they can be difficult to use while in motion, whether that's driving a car or hanging the music on your phone while you're running," said Simon Godsill from the university's department of engineering.