What's up in
Abstractions blog
Latest Articles
Off-the-Shelf Lens Assists Dark Matter Find
A camera lens often used by wildlife and sports photographers has helped astronomers learn about dark matter and galaxy formation.
From Gaia, a Twinkling Treasure Trove
The first star map from the ESA’s Gaia space telescope is poised to revolutionize our understanding of the Milky Way galaxy.
Responding Rapidly to Big Discoveries
How do scientists react to major breaking science news? For astrophysicists after the big gravitational waves announcement, it was meeting for two weeks in Santa Barbara, California.
The Strange Case of Typhoid Mary
The infamous case of Typhoid Mary underscores the importance of tolerance in understanding disease.
A New Step in Re-Creating First Life on Earth
An RNA molecule that can make copies of a variety of RNAs adds new support to the RNA-world theory.
Supersymmetry Bet Settled With Cognac
The absence of supersymmetry particles at the Large Hadron Collider has settled a 16-year-old bet among physicists.
New Measurement Deepens Proton Puzzle
A discrepancy in the measured size of the “deuteron” increases the chance that something is amiss in our understanding of atoms.
Air Traffic Control for Random Surfaces
Mathematicians have had a hard time finding commonalities in large groups of random shapes — until recently.
How to Grow a New Model Organism
To develop new model organisms, scientists will have to find species that are easy to grow in the lab.