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How to Understand the Universe When You’re Stuck Inside of It
Lee Smolin’s radical idea to reimagine how we view the universe.
The Simple Idea Behind Einstein’s Greatest Discoveries
Lurking behind Einstein’s theory of gravity and our modern understanding of particle physics is the deceptively simple idea of symmetry. But physicists are beginning to question whether focusing on symmetry is still as productive as it once was.
Philosophers Debate New ‘Sonic Black Hole’ Discovery
Opinions differ about what recent measurements of a sound-trapping fluid reveal about light-trapping black holes.
How to Turn a Quantum Computer Into the Ultimate Randomness Generator
Pure, verifiable randomness is hard to come by. Two proposals show how to make quantum computers into randomness factories.
A New Law to Describe Quantum Computing’s Rise?
Neven’s law states that quantum computers are improving at a “doubly exponential” rate. If it holds, quantum supremacy is around the corner.
A Close Look at Newborn Planets Reveals Hints of Infant Moons
Astronomers have discovered a complex planetary system still swirling into existence.
Do Brains Operate at a Tipping Point? New Clues and Complications
New experimental results simultaneously advance and challenge the theory that the brain’s network of neurons balances on the knife-edge between two phases.
Physicists Debate Hawking’s Idea That the Universe Had No Beginning
A recent challenge to Stephen Hawking’s biggest idea — about how the universe might have come from nothing — has cosmologists choosing sides.
Quantum Leaps, Long Assumed to Be Instantaneous, Take Time
An experiment caught a quantum system in the middle of a jump — something the originators of quantum mechanics assumed was impossible.