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Mathematicians Find an Infinity of Possible Black Hole Shapes

January 24, 2023

In three-dimensional space, the surface of a black hole must be a sphere. But a new result shows that in higher dimensions, an infinite number of configurations are possible.

Standard Model of Cosmology Survives a Telescope’s Surprising Finds

January 20, 2023

Reports that the James Webb Space Telescope killed the reigning cosmological model turn out to have been exaggerated. But astronomers still have much to learn from distant galaxies glimpsed by Webb.

Q&A

Starfish Whisperer Develops a Physical Language of Life

January 11, 2023

Nikta Fakhri is adapting and extending concepts from physics to describe how tiny biological components give rise to living organisms.

New Algorithm Closes Quantum Supremacy Window

January 9, 2023

Random circuit sampling, a popular technique for showing the power of quantum computers, doesn’t scale up if errors go unchecked.

Inside Ancient Asteroids, Gamma Rays Made Building Blocks of Life

January 4, 2023

A new radiation-based mechanism adds to the ways that amino acids could have been made in space and brought to the young Earth.

The Year in Physics

December 22, 2022

In a year filled with sweet new observations in astronomy and tantalizing breakthroughs in condensed matter physics, the brand-new space telescope takes the cake.

‘Fullertubes’ Join the Family of Carbon Crystals

December 20, 2022

The buckminsterfullerene revolution never came, but some researchers are eagerly exploring the properties of newfound carbon crystals known as fullertubes.

Q&A

She Turns Fluids Into ‘Black Holes’ and ‘Inflating Universes’

December 12, 2022

By using fluids to model inaccessible realms of the cosmos, Silke Weinfurtner is “looking for a deeper truth beyond one system.” But what can such experiments teach us?

Asymmetry Detected in the Distribution of Galaxies

December 5, 2022

Two new studies suggest that certain tetrahedral arrangements of galaxies outnumber their mirror images, potentially reflecting details of the universe’s birth. But confirmation is needed.

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