Philip Ball

Contributing Writer

Latest Articles

How Big Can the Quantum World Be? Physicists Probe the Limits.

August 18, 2021

By showing that even large objects can exhibit bizarre quantum behaviors, physicists hope to illuminate the mystery of quantum collapse, identify the quantum nature of gravity, and perhaps even make Schrödinger’s cat a reality.

Cells Form Into ‘Xenobots’ on Their Own

March 31, 2021

Embryonic cells can self-assemble into new living forms that don’t resemble the bodies they usually generate, challenging old ideas of what defines an organism.

Alchemy Arrives in a Burst of Light

September 30, 2020

Researchers have shown how to effectively transform one material into another using a finely shaped laser pulse.

Wormholes Reveal a Way to Manipulate Black Hole Information in the Lab

February 27, 2020

A proposal for building wormhole-connected black holes offers a way to probe the paradoxes of quantum information.

Quantum Darwinism, an Idea to Explain Objective Reality, Passes First Tests

July 22, 2019

Three experiments have vetted quantum Darwinism, a theory that explains how quantum possibilities can give rise to objective, classical reality.

The Quantum Theory That Peels Away the Mystery of Measurement

July 3, 2019

A recent test has confirmed the predictions of quantum trajectory theory.

Quantum Leaps, Long Assumed to Be Instantaneous, Take Time

June 5, 2019

An experiment caught a quantum system in the middle of a jump — something the originators of quantum mechanics assumed was impossible.

Neuroscience Readies for a Showdown Over Consciousness Ideas

March 6, 2019

To make headway on the mystery of consciousness, some researchers are trying a rigorous new way to test competing theories.

Mysterious Quantum Rule Reconstructed From Scratch

February 13, 2019

The new work promises to give researchers a better grip on the core mystery of quantum mechanics.

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