Scientists have discovered the first known material that is capable of remembering previous external stimuli—the first known memory material—despite not having an apparent mechanism that would be able to store any information. The discovery could be used as an alternative to silicon for use in powerful data processing and storageread more

Silicon is the second most common element in the Earth’s crust, after oxygen. However, aside from its non-organic use by certain sea sponges and microorganisms, very little silicon is used by Earth’s biology, despite making heavy use of other common elements, such as carbon, hydrogen, iron, magnesium and oxygen. This has presented a long-standing puzzle for scientists: why would nature ignore such an otherwise useful substance?
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