Archive

Many microbes and cells are in deep sleep, waiting for the right moment to activate. Biologists discovered a widespread protein that abruptly shuts down a cell’s activity — and turns it back on just as fast.

Researchers have proved that secure quantum encryption is possible in a world without hard problems.

By studying the geometry of model space-times, researchers offer alternative views of the universe’s first moments.

Electrons have been seen uniting into entities with fractions of electric charge, this time without a magnetic field coaxing them into it.

To calculate the amount of carbon stored inside peatlands, researchers developed a unified theory of “bog physics” applicable around the world.

Particle physicists in search of the next theory of reality are consulting a mathematical structure that they know will never fail: a table of possibilities known as the S-matrix.

Drugs that target the neurotransmitter serotonin have long been prescribed to treat depression. Now the spotlight is turning to other aspects of brain chemistry. In this episode, the neuropharmacologist John Krystal shares findings that are overturning our understanding of depression.

The topologist Danny Calegari discusses the inevitability of disappointment in math, and how to learn from it.

New experiments reveal how the brain chooses which memories to save and add credence to advice about the importance of rest.