Nuclear physics may be one of machine learning's newest frontiers

Since the 1940s, physicists have tried, but no one has yet created an efficient nuclear fusion reaction. AI and machine learning (ML) have, across many industries and applications, proved themselves quite capable at detecting subtle patterns in data that humans can't recognize. So could neural nets and the GPUs that power them help in nuclear fusion? The challenge, and it's a big one, would be to accelerate the worldwide quest to tame instabilities in hot plasmas and ultimately provide a source of sustainable, and carbon-free power.