Stephen Wolfram...
Useful to the Point of Being Revolutionary: Introducing Wolfram Notebook Assistant
Note: As of today, copies of Wolfram Version 14.1 are being auto-updated to allow subscription...
a week ago
Note: As of today, copies of Wolfram Version 14.1 are being auto-updated to allow subscription access to the capabilities described here. [For additional installation information see here.] Just Say What You Want! Turning Words into Computation Nearly a year and a half ago—just a...
brr
Cape Crozier
A nearby field camp, and my first helicopter flight!
over a year ago
A nearby field camp, and my first helicopter flight!
Blog - Practical...
These Metals Destroy Themselves to Prevent Rust
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
This is the old Howard...
over a year ago
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
This is the old Howard Frankland Bridge that carries roughly 180,000 vehicles per day across Old Tampa Bay between St. Petersburg and Tampa, Florida. A replacement for the bridge is currently under...
The Works in...
Issue 11: Nuclear sandboxes
Plus: Why Britain can’t seem to fix its housing market, gene-edited super-rice, and one weird trick...
a year ago
Plus: Why Britain can’t seem to fix its housing market, gene-edited super-rice, and one weird trick to reverse climate change.
ToughSF
Piracy in Space is Possible Part I: Dastardly DeltaV and Stealth Steamers
Space Piracy is a common science fiction trope. It has been continuously derided in Hard Science...
over a year ago
Space Piracy is a common science fiction trope. It has been continuously derided in Hard Science Fiction as silly and a holdover of the 'Space is an Ocean' analogy.
But is it really that unrealistic to have space pirates? Let's find out.
What is piracy?
A chinese Junk, by...
nanoscale views
Materials characterization techniques – a brief glossary
Suppose someone has synthesized or found what they think is a new material. How do people studying...
11 months ago
Suppose someone has synthesized or found what they think is a new material. How do people studying materials (condensed matter physicists, materials scientists, materials chemists) figure out what they have and understand its properties? That's the puzzle-solving aspect of...
NeuroLogica Blog
AI Companions – Good or Bad?
Often times the answer to a binary question is “yes”. Is artificial intelligence (AI) a powerful and...
5 months ago
Often times the answer to a binary question is “yes”. Is artificial intelligence (AI) a powerful and quickly advancing tool or is it overhyped? Yes. Are opiates useful medicines or dangerous drugs? Yes. Is Elon Musk a technological visionary or an eccentric opportunist? This is...
symmetry magazine
IceCube and NANOGrav open new windows onto the universe
New results from a neutrino telescope and a gravitational-wave observatory show how astronomers use...
a year ago
New results from a neutrino telescope and a gravitational-wave observatory show how astronomers use different forms of messengers to study the cosmos.
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Some crypto x healthcare ideas | Out-Of-Pocket
Decentralized EMRs, Insurance DAOs, and Drug Picking Models
a year ago
Decentralized EMRs, Insurance DAOs, and Drug Picking Models
Math Is Still...
The Hidden World of Electrostatic Ecology
Invisibly to us, insects and other tiny creatures use static electricity to travel, avoid predators,...
2 months ago
Invisibly to us, insects and other tiny creatures use static electricity to travel, avoid predators, collect pollen and more. New experiments explore how evolution may have influenced this phenomenon.
The post The Hidden World of Electrostatic Ecology first appeared...
Asterisk
You’re Invited to a Colonoscopy!
Colonoscopies are the first-line method for preventing colorectal cancer in America —and almost...
a year ago
Colonoscopies are the first-line method for preventing colorectal cancer in America —and almost nowhere else. But do they work? We finally have a comprehensive trial, but it’s left gastroenterologists with more questions than answers.
NeuroLogica Blog
New Type of Black Hole Discovered
ESA’s Gaia orbital telescope has recently discovered two new black holes. This, in itself, is not...
a year ago
ESA’s Gaia orbital telescope has recently discovered two new black holes. This, in itself, is not surprising, as that is Gaia’s mission – to precisely map the three-dimensional position of two billion objects in our galaxy, using three separate instruments. The process is called...
ToughSF
Particle Beams in Space
Science fiction is missing a realistic and grounded
look at particle beams. We plan to do just that...
over a year ago
Science fiction is missing a realistic and grounded
look at particle beams. We plan to do just that now.
After reading this, you might decide to give
particle beams their rightful place alongside lasers as a means of transmitting
power, propelling spacecraft or dealing damage...
Blog - Practical...
Why Bridges Need Sensors (and other structures too)
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
Almost immediately after I...
a year ago
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
Almost immediately after I started making videos about engineering, people started asking me to play video games on the channel. Apparently there’s roughly a billion people who watch online gaming these days,...
The Roots of...
Four lenses on AI risks
All powerful new technologies create both benefits and risks: cars, planes, drugs, radiation. AI is...
a year ago
All powerful new technologies create both benefits and risks: cars, planes, drugs, radiation. AI is on a trajectory to become one of the most powerful technologies we possess; in some scenarios, it becomes by far the most powerful. It therefore will create both extraordinary...
nanoscale views
Really doing mechanics at the quantum level
A helpful ad from Science Made Stupid.
Since before the development of micro- and...
a month ago
A helpful ad from Science Made Stupid.
Since before the development of micro- and nanoelectromechanical techniques, there has been an interest in making actual mechanical widgets that show quantum behavior. There is no reason that we should not be able to make a mechanical...
NeuroLogica Blog
Roleplaying Games May Help Autistic People
Gotta love the title of this paper: “A critical hit: Dungeons and Dragons as a buff for autistic...
3 months ago
Gotta love the title of this paper: “A critical hit: Dungeons and Dragons as a buff for autistic people“. Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) is a tabletop roleplaying game where a small group of people each play characters adventuring in an imaginary world run by the dungeon master (DM)....
Math Is Still...
Physicists Reveal a Quantum Geometry That Exists Outside of Space and Time
A decade after the discovery of the “amplituhedron,” physicists have excavated more of the timeless...
2 months ago
A decade after the discovery of the “amplituhedron,” physicists have excavated more of the timeless geometry underlying the standard picture of how particles move.
The post Physicists Reveal a Quantum Geometry That Exists Outside of Space and Time first appeared on...
symmetry magazine
Life along the future DUNE beamline
Unseen neutrinos, visible lives: A photographer journeys through the Midwest.
a year ago
Unseen neutrinos, visible lives: A photographer journeys through the Midwest.
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Healthcare, but funny | Out-Of-Pocket
US healthcare is a joke. Let's make it funny.
a year ago
US healthcare is a joke. Let's make it funny.
Math Is Still...
In Highly Connected Networks, There’s Always a Loop
Mathematicians show that graphs of a certain common type must contain a route that visits each point...
6 months ago
Mathematicians show that graphs of a certain common type must contain a route that visits each point exactly once.
The post In Highly Connected Networks, There’s Always a Loop first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Math Is Still...
A Multitalented Scientist Seeks the Origins of Multicellularity
The pathbreaking geneticist Cassandra Extavour pursues the secrets of multicellular life while...
10 months ago
The pathbreaking geneticist Cassandra Extavour pursues the secrets of multicellular life while balancing careers in both science and singing.
The post A Multitalented Scientist Seeks the Origins of Multicellularity first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Math Is Still...
A New Experiment Casts Doubt on the Leading Theory of the Nucleus
By measuring inflated helium nuclei, physicists have challenged our best understanding of the force...
a year ago
By measuring inflated helium nuclei, physicists have challenged our best understanding of the force that binds protons and neutrons.
The post A New Experiment Casts Doubt on the Leading Theory of the Nucleus first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Math Is Still...
Underground Cells Make ‘Dark Oxygen’ Without Light
In some deep subterranean aquifers, cells have a chemical trick for making oxygen that could sustain...
a year ago
In some deep subterranean aquifers, cells have a chemical trick for making oxygen that could sustain whole underground ecosystems.
The post Underground Cells Make ‘Dark Oxygen’ Without Light first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Explorations of an...
A Month In Northern Peru, Part 6: A Long, Sketchy Drive To Find Atuen Antpittas (February 8, 2024)
One of the fun aspects of birding during this particular period of history is that our understanding...
8 months ago
One of the fun aspects of birding during this particular period of history is that our understanding of how birds are related to each other is changing rapidly. Back in the "old days", our collective knowledge of these topics was a bit more rudimentary. Species were grouped...
Explorations of an...
A Quest Nature Tour To Borneo: Tabin Wildlife Reserve And Danum Valley
We left the Kinabatangan River behind and transferred to our next destination, the Tabin Wildlife...
a month ago
We left the Kinabatangan River behind and transferred to our next destination, the Tabin Wildlife Reserve. This is the largest swath of protected forest; an area of lowland primary and logged forest that is home to iconic species like the Bornean Pygmy Elephant, the Sun Bear and...
symmetry magazine
Will AI make MC the MVP of particle physics?
Particle physicists are building innovative machine-learning algorithms to enhance Monte Carlo...
a year ago
Particle physicists are building innovative machine-learning algorithms to enhance Monte Carlo simulations with the power of AI.
Bartosz Ciechanowski
Sound
Invisible and relentless, sound is seemingly just there, traveling through our surroundings to carry...
over a year ago
Invisible and relentless, sound is seemingly just there, traveling through our surroundings to carry beautiful music or annoying noises. In this article I’ll explain what sound is, how it’s created and propagated.
Throughout this presentation you will be hearing different sounds,...
nanoscale views
Dye-sensitized solar cells - an idea whose time has finally come?
Dyes are generally small molecules that have electronic transitions with energies corresponding...
11 months ago
Dyes are generally small molecules that have electronic transitions with energies corresponding to the visible spectrum of light (around 1-3 eV). Around 35 years ago, the idea was put forward, particularly by Michael Grätzel and Brian O'Regan, to couple dye molecules to...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
The Out-Of-Pocket Game plan | Out-Of-Pocket
How to build the on-boarding system for healthcare
a year ago
How to build the on-boarding system for healthcare
NeuroLogica Blog
What to Make of Havana Syndrome
I have not written before about Havana Syndrome, mostly because I have not been able to come to any...
8 months ago
I have not written before about Havana Syndrome, mostly because I have not been able to come to any strong conclusions about it. In 2016 there was a cluster of strange neurological symptoms among people working at the US Embassy in Havana, Cuba. They would suddenly experience...
nanoscale views
Large magnetic fields as a scientific tool
When I was at Berkeley at the beginning of the week to give a seminar, I was fortunate enough to...
10 months ago
When I was at Berkeley at the beginning of the week to give a seminar, I was fortunate enough to overlap with their departmental physics colloquium by Greg Boebinger, an accomplished scientist who is also an extremely engaging and funny speaker. Since 2004 he has been the...
Math Is Still...
How a NASA Probe Solved a Scorching Solar Mystery
The outer layers of the sun’s atmosphere are a blistering million degrees hotter than its surface....
7 months ago
The outer layers of the sun’s atmosphere are a blistering million degrees hotter than its surface. The hidden culprit? Magnetic activity.
The post How a NASA Probe Solved a Scorching Solar Mystery first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Math Is Still...
Elliptic Curve ‘Murmurations’ Found With AI Take Flight
Mathematicians are working to fully explain unusual behaviors uncovered using artificial...
9 months ago
Mathematicians are working to fully explain unusual behaviors uncovered using artificial intelligence.
The post Elliptic Curve ‘Murmurations’ Found With AI Take Flight first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Medical Tourism: A Tarpit Idea | Out-Of-Pocket
trust me, you're not the first to look into this
8 months ago
trust me, you're not the first to look into this
The Roots of...
A plea for solutionism on AI safety
Will AI kill us all?
This question has rapidly gone mainstream. A few months ago, it wasn’t...
a year ago
Will AI kill us all?
This question has rapidly gone mainstream. A few months ago, it wasn’t seriously debated very far outside the rationalist community of LessWrong; now it’s reported in major media outlets including the NY Times, The Guardian, the Times of London, BBC, WIRED,...
NeuroLogica Blog
The Next Step in Space Travel
The European Space Agency (ESA) has announced they are developing their own commercial space...
a year ago
The European Space Agency (ESA) has announced they are developing their own commercial space capsule. This will be used initially for cargo, but then eventually for crew as well. They anticipate a maiden voyage in 2028. I think this is a positive development. It seems we are...
nanoscale views
The fusion story of the day
There is a press conference going on right now announcing a breakthrough at the National Ignition...
over a year ago
There is a press conference going on right now announcing a breakthrough at the National Ignition Facility at Livermore. The NIF is an inertial confinement fusion facility that uses 192 laser beams to compress a fuel pellet containing deuterium and tritium. The pellet is...
IEEE Spectrum
Meet Mr. Internet: Vint Cerf
It was June 1973. For the past three months, Vint Cerf and Bob Kahn had been working together on a...
a year ago
It was June 1973. For the past three months, Vint Cerf and Bob Kahn had been working together on a problem Kahn had been pondering for some time: how to connect ground-based military computers seamlessly to communications satellites and mobile radios.
The two had been...
Asterisk
Lies, Damned Lies, and Manometer Readings
America’s HVAC labor force is plagued by dishonesty and frequently incapable of meeting industry...
10 months ago
America’s HVAC labor force is plagued by dishonesty and frequently incapable of meeting industry standards. Interventions in indoor air quality are the next frontier in pandemic prevention — but are they up to the task?
The Roots of...
Accelerating science through evolvable institutions
This is the written version of a talk presented to the Santa Fe Institute at a working group on...
a year ago
This is the written version of a talk presented to the Santa Fe Institute at a working group on “Accelerating Science.”
We’re here to discuss “accelerating science.” I like to start on topics like this by taking the historical view: When (if ever) has science accelerated in the...
Wanderingspace
Cassini’s Final Look at Enceladus
Taken on August 28, 2017. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute
This is from images...
over a year ago
Taken on August 28, 2017. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute
This is from images obtained by Cassini shortly before plunging into the Saturnian atmosphere. The images were taken over 14 hours and compiled into this animation.
nanoscale views
The 2022 Welch Conference
The last couple of weeks have been very full.
One event was the annual Welch Foundation conference...
over a year ago
The last couple of weeks have been very full.
One event was the annual Welch Foundation conference (program here). The program chair for this one was W. E. Moerner, expert (and Nobel Laureate) on single-molecule spectroscopy, and it was really a great meeting. I'm not just...
The Roots of...
Cellular reprogramming, pneumatic launch systems, and terraforming Mars
In December, I went to the Foresight Institute’s Vision Weekend 2023 in San Francisco. I had a lot...
11 months ago
In December, I went to the Foresight Institute’s Vision Weekend 2023 in San Francisco. I had a lot of fun talking to a bunch of weird and ambitious geeks about the glorious abundant technological future. Here are few things I learned about (with the caveat that this is mostly...
NeuroLogica Blog
UFOs and SGU on John Oliver
The most recent episode of John Oliver, Last Week Tonight, featured a discussion of the UFO...
8 months ago
The most recent episode of John Oliver, Last Week Tonight, featured a discussion of the UFO phenomenon. I’m always interested, and often disappointed, in how the mainstream media portrays skeptical topics. One interesting addition here is that Oliver actually referenced an SGU...
Uncharted...
Interesting News & Game Theory of Sex | Q3 2024
Trans & bathrooms, the end of nation states, woke pendulum, trigger warnings, is breastfeeding...
2 months ago
Trans & bathrooms, the end of nation states, woke pendulum, trigger warnings, is breastfeeding actually good for IQ, are differences in household work justified, and more
Quantum Frontiers
The rain in Portugal
My husband taught me how to pronounce the name of the city where I’d be presenting a talk late last...
10 months ago
My husband taught me how to pronounce the name of the city where I’d be presenting a talk late last July: Aveiro, Portugal. Having studied Spanish, I pronounced the name as Ah-VEH-roh, with a v partway to a hard b. … Continue reading →
The Roots of...
Who regulates the regulators?
IRBs
Scott Alexander reviews a book about institutional review boards (IRBs), the panels that review...
a year ago
IRBs
Scott Alexander reviews a book about institutional review boards (IRBs), the panels that review the ethics of medical trials: From Oversight to Overkill, by Dr. Simon Whitney. From the title alone, you can see where this is going.
IRBs are supposed to (among other things)...
Asterisk
Shutting the California Prison System’s Revolving Door
Between 2009 and 2014, California passed a series of laws to reduce the population in its prison...
5 months ago
Between 2009 and 2014, California passed a series of laws to reduce the population in its prison system, which for years had operated over capacity. Determining whether those laws worked was not a straightforward task.
Blog - Practical...
The Hidden Engineering of Landfills
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
This is the Puente Hills...
3 months ago
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
This is the Puente Hills Landfill outside of Los Angeles, California. The first truckload of trash was dumped here in 1957, and the trucks just kept coming. For more than five decades, if you threw something...
Stephen Wolfram...
Computing the Eclipse: Astronomy in the Wolfram Language
Basic Eclipse Computation It’s taken millennia to get to the point where it’s possible to accurately...
8 months ago
Basic Eclipse Computation It’s taken millennia to get to the point where it’s possible to accurately compute eclipses. But now—as a tiny part of making “everything in the world” computable—computation about eclipses is just a built-in feature of the Wolfram Language. The core...
Probably...
Think Python Goes to Production
Think Python has moved into production, on schedule for the official publication date in July — but...
9 months ago
Think Python has moved into production, on schedule for the official publication date in July — but maybe earlier if things go well. To celebrate, I have posted the next batch of chapters on the new site, up through Chapter 12, which is about Markov text analysis and generation,...
IEEE Spectrum
Edith Clarke: Architect of Modern Power Distribution
Edith Clarke was a powerhouse in practically every sense of the word. From the start of her career...
5 months ago
Edith Clarke was a powerhouse in practically every sense of the word. From the start of her career at General Electric in 1922, she was determined to develop stable, more reliable power grids.
During her first years at GE she invented what came to be known as the Clarke...
Math Is Still...
Elliptic Curves Yield Their Secrets in a New Number System
Ana Caraiani and James Newton have extended an important result in number theory to the imaginary...
a year ago
Ana Caraiani and James Newton have extended an important result in number theory to the imaginary realm.
The post Elliptic Curves Yield Their Secrets in a New Number System first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Math Is Still...
Physicists Who Explored Tiny Glimpses of Time Win Nobel Prize
The development of attosecond pulses of light allowed researchers to explore the frame-by-frame...
a year ago
The development of attosecond pulses of light allowed researchers to explore the frame-by-frame movement of electrons.
The post Physicists Who Explored Tiny Glimpses of Time Win Nobel Prize first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Out-of-Pocket Blog
The New Wave of Concierge Medicine | Out-Of-Pocket
This episode of Out-Of-Pocket is brought to you by…
5 months ago
This episode of Out-Of-Pocket is brought to you by…
IEEE Spectrum
50 Years Later, We’re Still Living in the Xerox Alto’s World
I’m sitting in front of a computer, looking at its graphical user interface with overlapping windows...
a year ago
I’m sitting in front of a computer, looking at its graphical user interface with overlapping windows on a high-resolution screen. I interact with the computer by pointing and clicking with a mouse and typing on a keyboard. I’m using a word processor with the core features and...
Blog - Practical...
This Bridge Should Have Been Closed Years Before It Collapsed
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
On January 28, 2022, about an...
6 months ago
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
On January 28, 2022, about an hour before dawn, the four-lane Fern Hollow Bridge in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, collapsed without warning. Five vehicles, including an articulating bus, fell with the bridge, and...
Sean Carroll
What I Look for in Podcast Guests
People often suggest guests to appear on Mindscape — which I very much appreciate! Several of my...
over a year ago
People often suggest guests to appear on Mindscape — which I very much appreciate! Several of my best conversations were with people I had never heard of before they were effectively suggested by someone. Suggestions could be made here (in comments below), or on the subreddit, or...
Math Is Still...
The #1 Clue to Quantum Gravity Sits on the Surfaces of Black Holes
A black hole formula worked out in the 1970s remains the most concrete clue physicists have about...
2 months ago
A black hole formula worked out in the 1970s remains the most concrete clue physicists have about the threads of the space-time fabric.
The post The #1 Clue to Quantum Gravity Sits on the Surfaces of Black Holes first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Blog - Practical...
What Is A Black Start Of The Power Grid?
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
November 1965 saw one of the...
over a year ago
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
November 1965 saw one of the most widespread power outages in North American history. On the freezing cold evening of the 9th, the grid was operating at maximum capacity as people tried to stay warm when a...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Scams, Frauds, and Audits | Out-Of-Pocket
Lots of money to be...not lost
a year ago
Lots of money to be...not lost
Math Is Still...
Meet the Eukaryote, the First Cell to Get Organized
All modern multicellular life — all life that any of us regularly see — is made of cells with a...
a month ago
All modern multicellular life — all life that any of us regularly see — is made of cells with a knack for compartmentalization. Recent discoveries are revealing how the first eukaryote got its start.
The post Meet the Eukaryote, the First Cell to Get Organized first...
Uncharted...
What Is Happening in Syria?
Assad’s regime has fallen, leaving a power vacuum. Why? Who are the winners and losers? What will...
a week ago
Assad’s regime has fallen, leaving a power vacuum. Why? Who are the winners and losers? What will happen next?
Math Is Still...
The ‘Accidental Activist’ Who Changed the Face of Mathematics
Throughout her 60-year career, Lenore Blum has developed new perspectives on logic and computation...
11 months ago
Throughout her 60-year career, Lenore Blum has developed new perspectives on logic and computation while championing women in mathematics and computer science. Now consciousness is on her mind.
The post The ‘Accidental Activist’ Who Changed the Face of Mathematics...
Math Is Still...
‘Entropy Bagels’ and Other Complex Structures Emerge From Simple Rules
Simple rules in simple settings continue to puzzle mathematicians, even as they devise intricate...
9 months ago
Simple rules in simple settings continue to puzzle mathematicians, even as they devise intricate tools to analyze them.
The post ‘Entropy Bagels’ and Other Complex Structures Emerge From Simple Rules first appeared on Quanta Magazine
ToughSF
Nuclear Reactor Lasers: from Fission to Photon
Nuclear reactor lasers are devices that can generate lasers from nuclear energy with little to no...
over a year ago
Nuclear reactor lasers are devices that can generate lasers from nuclear energy with little to no intermediate conversion steps.
We work out just how effective they can be, and how they stack up against conventional electrically-powered lasers. You might want to re-think your...
IEEE Spectrum
Taking the Measure of the Earthquake That Destroyed Tokyo
At 11:58 am on Saturday, 1 September 1923, the Kanto region of Japan started to shake. The...
a year ago
At 11:58 am on Saturday, 1 September 1923, the Kanto region of Japan started to shake. The earthquake began with a violent horizontal back-and-forth motion, followed by two vertical jolts, and then another horizontal shock even stronger than the first. The intensity of the tremor...
Probably...
Comparing Distributions
This is the second is a series of excerpts from Elements of Data Science which available from...
a month ago
This is the second is a series of excerpts from Elements of Data Science which available from Lulu.com and online booksellers. It’s from Chapter 8, which is about representing distribution using PMFs and CDFs. This section explains why I think CDFs are often better for plotting...
Andrew Fraknoi –...
Good Meteor Shower This Week
Wednesday evening and Thursday morning (Dec. 13-14) is the peak time for one of the best meteor...
a year ago
Wednesday evening and Thursday morning (Dec. 13-14) is the peak time for one of the best meteor showers of the year – the Geminids.
The post Good Meteor Shower This Week appeared first on Andrew Fraknoi - Astronomy Lectures - Astronomy Education Resources.
Andrew Fraknoi –...
Perseid Meteor Shower Aug 12-13, 2023
We make suggestions for how best to see the 2023 Perseid meteor shower.
The post Perseid Meteor...
a year ago
We make suggestions for how best to see the 2023 Perseid meteor shower.
The post Perseid Meteor Shower Aug 12-13, 2023 appeared first on Andrew Fraknoi - Astronomy Lectures - Astronomy Education Resources.
NeuroLogica Blog
Virtual Walking
When I use my virtual reality gear I do practical zero virtual walking – meaning that I don’t have...
9 months ago
When I use my virtual reality gear I do practical zero virtual walking – meaning that I don’t have my avatar walk while I am not walking. I general play standing up which means I can move around the space in my office mapped by my VR software – so I am physically walking to...
Probably...
How Does World Population Grow?
Recently I posed this question on Twitter: “Since 1960, has world population grown exponentially,...
a year ago
Recently I posed this question on Twitter: “Since 1960, has world population grown exponentially, quadratically, linearly, or logarithmically?” Here are the responses: By a narrow margin, the most popular answer is correct — since 1960 world population growth has been roughly...
Uncharted...
Wind and Solar, a Perfect Match
Also, why solar will beat wind, why they are so complementary, the nuclear renaissance, the poor...
a month ago
Also, why solar will beat wind, why they are so complementary, the nuclear renaissance, the poor state of German energy, and more.
Math Is Still...
Even a Single Bacterial Cell Can Sense the Seasons Changing
Though they live only a few hours before dividing, bacteria can anticipate the approach of cold...
2 months ago
Though they live only a few hours before dividing, bacteria can anticipate the approach of cold weather and prepare for it. The discovery suggests that seasonal tracking is fundamental to life.
The post Even a Single Bacterial Cell Can Sense the Seasons Changing first...
NeuroLogica Blog
Is The Boring Company Useful?
Elon Musk has a complicated legacy. Most people I encounter who bother to express an opinion tend to...
a year ago
Elon Musk has a complicated legacy. Most people I encounter who bother to express an opinion tend to be either a fan or hater. I am neither. He’s a complicated and flawed person who has accomplished some interesting things, but also has had some epic failures. People like a clean...
nanoscale views
What is turbulence? (And why are helicopters never quiet?)
Fluid mechanics is very often left out of the undergraduate physics curriculum. This is a shame, as...
6 months ago
Fluid mechanics is very often left out of the undergraduate physics curriculum. This is a shame, as it's very interesting and directly relevant to many broad topics (atmospheric science, climate, plasma physics, parts of astrophysics). Fluid mechanics is a great example of how...
NeuroLogica Blog
Using Plants as Biofactories
When you think about it, plants are self-reproducing solar-powered biological factories. They are...
a year ago
When you think about it, plants are self-reproducing solar-powered biological factories. They are powered by the sun, extract raw material from the air and soil, and make all sorts of useful molecules. Mostly we use them to make edible molecules (food), but also to make textiles,...
Math Is Still...
How Will We Know We’re Not Alone?
The first planet beyond our solar system was identified just 30 years ago. Since then, thousands...
3 days ago
The first planet beyond our solar system was identified just 30 years ago. Since then, thousands have been found and characterized. As we look for more, exoplanet experts are also probing for signs of alien biospheres hundreds of light-years away. In this episode, co-host Janna...
Interaction Magic -...
Light Engineering
Exploring the physics and engineering of light pipes, where optics and mechanical design meet.
over a year ago
Exploring the physics and engineering of light pipes, where optics and mechanical design meet.
NeuroLogica Blog
The Physics of Flocks
Most people have watched large flocks of birds. They are fascinating, and have interested scientists...
8 months ago
Most people have watched large flocks of birds. They are fascinating, and have interested scientists for a long time. How, exactly, do so many birds maintain their cohesion as a flock? It’s obviously a dynamic process, but what are the mechanisms? When I was young I was taught...
Math Is Still...
What Is the Nature of Time?
Time is all around us: in the language we use, in the memories we revisit and in our predictions of...
9 months ago
Time is all around us: in the language we use, in the memories we revisit and in our predictions of the future. But what exactly is it? The physicist and Nobel laureate Frank Wilczek joins Steve Strogatz to discuss the fundamental hallmarks of time.
The post What Is...
nanoscale views
What is a Wigner crystal?
Last week I was at the every-2-years Gordon Research Conference on Correlated Electron Systems at...
5 months ago
Last week I was at the every-2-years Gordon Research Conference on Correlated Electron Systems at lovely Mt. Holyoke. It was very fun, but one key aspect of the culture of the GRCs is that attendees are not supposed to post about them on social media, thus encouraging presenters...
Math Is Still...
‘Embryo Models’ Challenge Legal, Ethical and Biological Concepts
With embryolike constructs built entirely from stem cells, researchers can revolutionize our...
a year ago
With embryolike constructs built entirely from stem cells, researchers can revolutionize our understanding of development. But how close to an embryo is too close?
The post ‘Embryo Models’ Challenge Legal, Ethical and Biological Concepts first appeared on Quanta...
IEEE Spectrum
The Meeting of the Minds That Launched AI
The Dartmouth Summer Research Project on Artificial Intelligence, held from 18 June through 17...
a year ago
The Dartmouth Summer Research Project on Artificial Intelligence, held from 18 June through 17 August of 1956, is widely considered the event that kicked off AI as a research discipline. Organized by John McCarthy, Marvin Minsky, Claude Shannon, and Nathaniel Rochester, it...
Probably...
Think Stats 3rd Edition
I am excited to announce that I have started work on a third edition of Think Stats, to be published...
2 months ago
I am excited to announce that I have started work on a third edition of Think Stats, to be published by O’Reilly Media in 2025. At this point the content is mostly settled, and I am revising chapters to get them ready for technical review. If you want to start reading now, the...
NeuroLogica Blog
Electronic Noses
I am always sniffing around (pun intended) for new and interesting technology, especially anything...
2 months ago
I am always sniffing around (pun intended) for new and interesting technology, especially anything that I think is currently flying under the radar of public awareness but has the potential to transform our world in some way. I think electronic nose technology fits into this...
Asterisk
All Aboard the Bureaucracy Train
The United States has the most expensive transportation infrastructure in the world. That’s because...
10 months ago
The United States has the most expensive transportation infrastructure in the world. That’s because we refuse to learn from experts, other countries, and our own history.
NeuroLogica Blog
Immune Cells to Fight Cancer
There is a recent medical advance that you may not have heard about unless you are a healthcare...
a year ago
There is a recent medical advance that you may not have heard about unless you are a healthcare professional or encountered it from the patient side – CAR-T cell therapy. A recent study shows the potential for continued incremental advance of this technology, but already it is a...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Thirty Madison and Condition-Specific Care | Out-Of-Pocket
I wanted to use this as an opportunity to talk a little bit about scalable telemedicine + specialist...
a year ago
I wanted to use this as an opportunity to talk a little bit about scalable telemedicine + specialist care.
Explorations of an...
Parque Provincial Caá Yarí
Our swing through Misiones province of northeastern Argentina was coming to a close with just a...
a year ago
Our swing through Misiones province of northeastern Argentina was coming to a close with just a couple of days remaining. When researching this part of Argentina, I kept noticing one particular area that had a number of interesting eBird reports, but very little information on...
nanoscale views
Bob Curl - it is possible to be successful and also a good person
I went to a memorial service today at Rice for my late colleague Bob Curl, who died this past...
over a year ago
I went to a memorial service today at Rice for my late colleague Bob Curl, who died this past summer, and it was a really nice event. I met Bob almost immediately upon my arrival at Rice back in 2000 (though I’d heard about him from my thesis advisor, who’d met him at the Nobel...
Drew Ex Machina
Top Ten Posts of 2022
Now that we are at the end of 2022, it is time to look back at this year’s material published on...
a year ago
Now that we are at the end of 2022, it is time to look back at this year’s material published on Drew Ex Machina and see […]
Explorations of an...
Cañadon de Profundidad and Iguazú Falls
February 4, 2023
For our second day in Misiones, Laura and I ventured over to a small park only a...
a year ago
February 4, 2023
For our second day in Misiones, Laura and I ventured over to a small park only a half-hour drive from our accommodations in Posadas. Our main reason for visiting Parque Provincial Cañadón de Profundidad was to search for Creamy-bellied Gnatcatcher, of which...
NeuroLogica Blog
Grief Tech
In the awesome show, Black Mirror, one episode features a young woman who lost her husband. In her...
7 months ago
In the awesome show, Black Mirror, one episode features a young woman who lost her husband. In her grief she turns to a company that promises to give her at least a partial experience of her husband. They sift through every picture, video, comment, and other online trace of the...
Quantum Frontiers
How I didn’t become a philosopher (but wound up presenting a named philosophy lecture anyway)
Many people ask why I became a theoretical physicist. The answer runs through philosophy—which I...
8 months ago
Many people ask why I became a theoretical physicist. The answer runs through philosophy—which I thought, for years, I’d left behind in college. My formal relationship with philosophy originated with Mr. Bohrer. My high school classified him as a religion … Continue reading →
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Retail and community pharmacies are changing | Out-Of-Pocket
COVID tailwinds are changing the role of the pharmacy and pharmacist
a year ago
COVID tailwinds are changing the role of the pharmacy and pharmacist
Math Is Still...
Quantum Complexity Shows How to Escape Hawking’s Black Hole Paradox
Inside of a black hole, the two theoretical pillars of 20th-century physics appear to clash. Now a...
a year ago
Inside of a black hole, the two theoretical pillars of 20th-century physics appear to clash. Now a group of young physicists think they have resolved the conflict by appealing to the central pillar of the new century — the physics of quantum information.
The post...
NeuroLogica Blog
The Threat of Technology
In my second book (shameless plug alert) – The Skeptics’ Guide to the Future – my coauthors and I...
a year ago
In my second book (shameless plug alert) – The Skeptics’ Guide to the Future – my coauthors and I try to imagine both the utopian and dystopian versions of the future, brought about by technology, either individually or collectively. This topic has come up multiple times recently...
Sean Carroll
The Zombie Argument for Physicalism (Contra Panpsychism)
The nature of consciousness remains a contentious subject out there. I’m a physicalist myself — as I...
over a year ago
The nature of consciousness remains a contentious subject out there. I’m a physicalist myself — as I explain in The Big Picture and elsewhere, I think consciousness is best understood as weakly-emergent from the ordinary physical behavior of matter, without requiring any special...
brr
McMurdo Postal Mail
How to mail things to and from Antarctica!
over a year ago
How to mail things to and from Antarctica!
Math Is Still...
What Is the Nature of Consciousness?
Consciousness, our experience of being in the world, is one of the mind’s greatest mysteries, but as...
a year ago
Consciousness, our experience of being in the world, is one of the mind’s greatest mysteries, but as the neuroscientist Anil Seth explains to Steven Strogatz, research is making progress in understanding this elusive phenomenon.
The post What Is the Nature of...
Wanderingspace
OSIRIS-REX Leaves Bennu
The OSIRIS-REX mission in on a two year trajectory back to Earth after capturing fragments of the...
over a year ago
The OSIRIS-REX mission in on a two year trajectory back to Earth after capturing fragments of the near Earth asteroid Bennu after successfully executing a sample touchdown last fall. [LINK]
The sampling of of the asteroid’s surface is shown above.
Explorations of an...
Argentina!
Laura and I landed in Buenos Aires on the morning of January 9, a little bleary-eyed and feeling the...
a year ago
Laura and I landed in Buenos Aires on the morning of January 9, a little bleary-eyed and feeling the effects from the three flights and two layovers. But we had made it. Nearly six years had passed since I last visited Buenos Aires. It had been the final port of call on my...
Probably...
Migration and Population Growth
On a recent run I was talking with a friend from Spain about immigration in Europe. We speculated...
6 months ago
On a recent run I was talking with a friend from Spain about immigration in Europe. We speculated about whether the population of Spain would be growing or shrinking if there were no international migration. I thought it might be shrinking, but we were not sure. Fortunately, Our...
Math Is Still...
The Mathematician Who Sculpted the Shape of Space
Eugenio Calabi, who died on September 25, conceived of novel geometric objects that later became...
a year ago
Eugenio Calabi, who died on September 25, conceived of novel geometric objects that later became fundamental to string theory.
The post The Mathematician Who Sculpted the Shape of Space first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Scheduling, Medicaid Opportunities, and Health MBAs with Sandy Varatharajah | Out-Of-Pocket
misconceptions, opportunities, and more
a year ago
misconceptions, opportunities, and more
Math Is Still...
The Researcher Who Explores Computation by Conjuring New Worlds
Russell Impagliazzo studies hard problems, the limits of cryptography, the nature of randomness and...
9 months ago
Russell Impagliazzo studies hard problems, the limits of cryptography, the nature of randomness and more.
The post The Researcher Who Explores Computation by Conjuring New Worlds first appeared on Quanta Magazine
The Roots of...
Event, Feb 29: “Towards a New Philosophy of Progress” in Boston and on Zoom
On Thursday, February 29, I’ll be giving my talk “Towards a New Philosophy of Progress” to the New...
10 months ago
On Thursday, February 29, I’ll be giving my talk “Towards a New Philosophy of Progress” to the New England Legal Foundation, for their Economic Liberty Speaker Series. The talk will be held over breakfast at NELF’s offices in Boston, and will also be livestreamed over Zoom. See...
Math Is Still...
The Year in Physics
From the smallest scales to the largest, the physical world provided no shortage of surprises this...
a year ago
From the smallest scales to the largest, the physical world provided no shortage of surprises this year.
The post The Year in Physics first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Asterisk
A Field Guide to AI Safety
AI safety is starting to go mainstream, but the researchers who’ve been immersed in it for over a...
a year ago
AI safety is starting to go mainstream, but the researchers who’ve been immersed in it for over a decade still have strong disagreements.
The Roots of...
What is progress?
In one sense, the concept of progress is simple, straightforward, and uncontroversial. In another...
9 months ago
In one sense, the concept of progress is simple, straightforward, and uncontroversial. In another sense, it contains an entire worldview.
The most basic meaning of “progress” is simply advancement along a path, or more generally from one state to another that is considered more...
IEEE Spectrum
How Tech Automated the January 6 Investigations
Josh Coker’s Facebook page doesn’t show any MAGA memes or Trump quotes. He wasn’t live-streaming on...
11 months ago
Josh Coker’s Facebook page doesn’t show any MAGA memes or Trump quotes. He wasn’t live-streaming on 6 January 2021, and no one has ever stepped forward to identify him as one of the mob that stormed the US Capitol that day.
Oregon, Ohio, with five counts connected to the failed...
IEEE Spectrum
The Forgotten History of Chinese Keyboards
Today, typing in Chinese works by converting QWERTY keystrokes into Chinese characters via a...
6 months ago
Today, typing in Chinese works by converting QWERTY keystrokes into Chinese characters via a software interface, known as an input method editor. But this was not always the case. Thomas S. Mullaney’s new book, The Chinese Computer: A Global History of the Information Age,...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Ciitizen And The Patient Data Marketplace | Out-Of-Pocket
The path to our personal health record
a year ago
The path to our personal health record
Math Is Still...
The Cosmos Teems with Complex Organic Molecules
Wherever astronomers look, they see life’s raw materials.
The post The Cosmos Teems with...
a month ago
Wherever astronomers look, they see life’s raw materials.
The post The Cosmos Teems with Complex Organic Molecules first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Quantum Frontiers
Explorations in Quantum TiqTaqToe
Several years ago, while scrolling through YouTube, I came across a video of Paul Rudd playing...
a year ago
Several years ago, while scrolling through YouTube, I came across a video of Paul Rudd playing something called “Quantum Chess.” I had no idea what it was, nor did I know that it would become one of the most gloriously … Continue reading →
Math Is Still...
The Year in Computer Science
Artificial intelligence learned how to generate text and art better than ever before, while computer...
a year ago
Artificial intelligence learned how to generate text and art better than ever before, while computer scientists developed algorithms that solved long-standing problems.
The post The Year in Computer Science first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Beautiful Public...
Special Database 18: 3,248 Mugshots Used for Training Image Recognition Systems
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has maintained a dataset of mugshot photos...
a year ago
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has maintained a dataset of mugshot photos of 1,573 people for decades, including 175 minors, until we asked about them.
Tikalon Blog by Dev...
Baseball Mud
A manufactured baseball has a smooth surface with very little friction, and this makes it hard for a...
6 months ago
A manufactured baseball has a smooth surface with very little friction, and this makes it hard for a baseball pitcher to throw with great accuracy. Pitchers in the early days of baseball enhanced the friction by several ad hoc techniques that included rubbing with tobacco juice...
Math Is Still...
How Chain-of-Thought Reasoning Helps Neural Networks Compute
Large language models do better at solving problems when they show their work. Researchers are...
9 months ago
Large language models do better at solving problems when they show their work. Researchers are beginning to understand why.
The post How Chain-of-Thought Reasoning Helps Neural Networks Compute first appeared on Quanta Magazine
IEEE Spectrum
Touchscreens Are Out, and Tactile Controls Are Back
Tactile controls are back in vogue. Apple added two new buttons to the iPhone 16, home appliances...
a month ago
Tactile controls are back in vogue. Apple added two new buttons to the iPhone 16, home appliances like stoves and washing machines are returning to knobs, and several car manufacturers are reintroducing buttons and dials to dashboards and steering wheels.
With this...
NeuroLogica Blog
Some Thoughts on Aging
If either of the two presumptive nominees for the major political parties in the US are elected in...
5 months ago
If either of the two presumptive nominees for the major political parties in the US are elected in November they will be the oldest person ever to be inaugerated as president. What implications does this have? As a neurologist who sees patients every workday of various ages,...
Math Is Still...
The New Math of How Large-Scale Order Emerges
The puzzle of emergence asks how regularities emerge on macro scales out of uncountable constituent...
6 months ago
The puzzle of emergence asks how regularities emerge on macro scales out of uncountable constituent parts. A new framework has researchers hopeful that a solution is near.
The post The New Math of How Large-Scale Order Emerges first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Explorations of an...
Monsoon Season In Arizona, Part 2: The Huachucas
September 1, 2024
For the first and only time in the trip I managed a much-needed seven hours of...
2 months ago
September 1, 2024
For the first and only time in the trip I managed a much-needed seven hours of sleep. Unfortunately, some of the others were woken up earlier than they would have liked. The owner of Beatty's Guest Ranch (he lives in a different building on the property) owns a...
NeuroLogica Blog
About Those Lab Leak Documents
It was recently revealed that the House subcommittee probing the origins of COVID-19 accidentally...
a year ago
It was recently revealed that the House subcommittee probing the origins of COVID-19 accidentally released a “trove” of documents related to their investigations. The documents include e-mails and internal communications among the scientists and experts who put together the first...
Math Is Still...
A Mutation Turned Ants Into Parasites in One Generation
A new genetics study of ant “social parasites” shows how complex sets of features can emerge rapidly...
a year ago
A new genetics study of ant “social parasites” shows how complex sets of features can emerge rapidly and potentially split species.
The post A Mutation Turned Ants Into Parasites in One Generation first appeared on Quanta Magazine
The Roots of...
Quote quiz: “drifting into dependence”
Quote quiz: who said this? (No fair looking it up). I have modified the original quotation slightly,...
a year ago
Quote quiz: who said this? (No fair looking it up). I have modified the original quotation slightly, by making a handful of word substitutions to bring it up to date:
It might be argued that the human race would never be foolish enough to hand over all power to AI. But we are...
Drew Ex Machina
An ISS Success Story: CyMISS (Tropical Cyclone Intensity Measurements from the ISS) to the Hurricane...
The team at Tropical Weather Analytics (TWA), where this author is the Chief Scientist, had the...
4 months ago
The team at Tropical Weather Analytics (TWA), where this author is the Chief Scientist, had the honor of having our poster about our previous work on […]
Math Is Still...
Insects and Other Animals Have Consciousness, Experts Declare
A group of prominent biologists and philosophers announced a new consensus: There’s “a realistic...
8 months ago
A group of prominent biologists and philosophers announced a new consensus: There’s “a realistic possibility” that insects, octopuses, crustaceans, fish and other overlooked animals experience consciousness.
The post Insects and Other Animals Have Consciousness,...
Math Is Still...
Physicists Spot Quantum Tornadoes Twirling in a ‘Supersolid’
New observations of microscopic vortices confirm the existence of a paradoxical phase of matter that...
a month ago
New observations of microscopic vortices confirm the existence of a paradoxical phase of matter that may also arise inside neutron stars.
The post Physicists Spot Quantum Tornadoes Twirling in a ‘Supersolid’ first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Math Is Still...
Topologists Tackle the Trouble With Poll Placement
Mathematicians are using topological abstractions to find places where it’s hard to vote. ...
9 months ago
Mathematicians are using topological abstractions to find places where it’s hard to vote.
The post Topologists Tackle the Trouble With Poll Placement first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Casey Handmer's blog
Entrepreneurship changed the way I think
A quick note with some self reflection on the eve of my 37th year and after nearly three years of...
3 months ago
A quick note with some self reflection on the eve of my 37th year and after nearly three years of running a hardware start up. I never saw myself as a founder. At some point a few years ago I realized nearly all my friends were founders or managers of their own business, but I...
Math Is Still...
Across a Continent, Trees Sync Their Fruiting to the Sun
European beech trees more than 1,500 kilometers apart all drop their fruit at the same time in a...
6 months ago
European beech trees more than 1,500 kilometers apart all drop their fruit at the same time in a grand synchronization event now linked to the summer solstice.
The post Across a Continent, Trees Sync Their Fruiting to the Sun first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Prescription Drug Commercials: Why are you the way you are? | Out-Of-Pocket
And is direct-to-consumer pharma marketing bad? Maybe not
a year ago
And is direct-to-consumer pharma marketing bad? Maybe not
nanoscale views
APS March Meeting 2024 - coming soon
This week I'm going to be at the APS March Meeting in Minneapolis. As I've done in past years, I...
9 months ago
This week I'm going to be at the APS March Meeting in Minneapolis. As I've done in past years, I will try to write up some highlights of talks that I am able to see, though it may be hit-or-miss. If readers have suggestions for sessions or talks that they think will be...
Math Is Still...
Tiny Jets on the Sun Power the Colossal Solar Wind
A new analysis argues that ubiquitous eruptions in the sun’s corona explain the vast flow of charged...
a year ago
A new analysis argues that ubiquitous eruptions in the sun’s corona explain the vast flow of charged particles seen streaming out through the solar system.
The post Tiny Jets on the Sun Power the Colossal Solar Wind first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Drew Ex Machina
Pioneer 3: JPL’s First Moonshot Attempt
With the new push by the United States and other space faring powers to renew the exploration of the...
over a year ago
With the new push by the United States and other space faring powers to renew the exploration of the Moon, miniaturized spacecraft have been made part […]
Math Is Still...
The Best Neighborhoods for Starting a Life in the Galaxy
Some neighborhoods in the Milky Way may be better suited for making habitable planets than others. ...
11 months ago
Some neighborhoods in the Milky Way may be better suited for making habitable planets than others.
The post The Best Neighborhoods for Starting a Life in the Galaxy first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Explorations of an...
HWY 101 - Forest Birding Near Iguazú
Highway 101 is the main corridor that runs east-west along the top end of Misiones Province in...
a year ago
Highway 101 is the main corridor that runs east-west along the top end of Misiones Province in Argentina. Though this road looks like a major artery on Google Maps, in practice it is nothing more than a clay track that receives very little traffic - mainly, just a few locals...
Many Worlds
The Familiar, Yet So Different, Hydrocarbon Rivers of Titan
There are three planets or moons in our solar system known to now have, or once had, surface rivers,...
a year ago
There are three planets or moons in our solar system known to now have, or once had, surface rivers, lakes, deltas and a hydrologic system. There’s Earth, of course, Mars long ago when it was warmer and wetter, and the so different yet so similar rivers of hydrocarbons on...
NeuroLogica Blog
Managing Plastic Waste
The world produces 350-400 million metric tons of plastic waste. Less than 10% of this waste is...
a month ago
The world produces 350-400 million metric tons of plastic waste. Less than 10% of this waste is recycled, while 25% is mismanaged or littered. About 1.7 million tons ends up in the ocean. This is not sustainable, but whose responsibility is it to deal with this issue? The debate...
Inverted Passion
How to be a messy thinker
I love thinking about thinking. Give me a research paper on rationality, cognitive biases or mental...
7 months ago
I love thinking about thinking. Give me a research paper on rationality, cognitive biases or mental models, and I’ll gobble it up. Given the amount of knowledge I’ve ingested on these topics, I had always assumed that I’m a clear thinker. Recently, though, it hit me like a...
Tikalon Blog by Dev...
Spiderweb Microphone
Microphones convert sound into an electrical signal for subsequent amplification, as in auditorium...
3 months ago
Microphones convert sound into an electrical signal for subsequent amplification, as in auditorium public address systems; or transmission, as in landline and mobile phones. The most common types of microphones are carbon, used in early telephones, condenser, electret, dynamic,...
Math Is Still...
The Computer Scientist Who Builds Big Pictures From Small Details
To better understand machine learning algorithms, Lenka Zdeborová treats them like physical...
2 months ago
To better understand machine learning algorithms, Lenka Zdeborová treats them like physical materials.
The post The Computer Scientist Who Builds Big Pictures From Small Details first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Math Is Still...
How a DNA ‘Parasite’ May Have Fragmented Our Genes
A novel type of “jumping gene” may explain why the genomes of complex cells aren’t all equally...
a year ago
A novel type of “jumping gene” may explain why the genomes of complex cells aren’t all equally stuffed with noncoding sequences.
The post How a DNA ‘Parasite’ May Have Fragmented Our Genes first appeared on Quanta Magazine
ToughSF
Hypervelocity Tether Rockets
Rotating tethers can reach incredible velocities when they are built out of high strength materials....
over a year ago
Rotating tethers can reach incredible velocities when they are built out of high strength materials. With some design features, they can greatly surpass the exhaust velocities of chemical or even nuclear rockets. They can become propulsion systems with impressive performance......
Math Is Still...
How the Ancient Art of Eclipse Prediction Became an Exact Science
The timing of the total eclipse on April 8, 2024, will be known to within a second, thousands of...
8 months ago
The timing of the total eclipse on April 8, 2024, will be known to within a second, thousands of years after fearful humans first started trying to anticipate these cosmic events.
The post How the Ancient Art of Eclipse Prediction Became an Exact Science first...
Asterisk
The Fault in Our Forecasts
It’s impossible to predict when an earthquake will strike. This puts seismologists in a nearly...
6 months ago
It’s impossible to predict when an earthquake will strike. This puts seismologists in a nearly impossible bind: how can they convince the public to take earthquakes seriously without crying wolf?
ToughSF
Advanced Solar Energy in Space: Part I
Solar Thermal Rockets can be efficient and have high performance. However, they remain...
over a year ago
Solar Thermal Rockets can be efficient and have high performance. However, they remain temperature-limited to an exhaust velocity of 12km/s.
How do we surpass this limit?
The limits
NASA's Suntower concept.
Solar Thermal Rockets have been shown to have great potential if...
Damn Interesting
To Hell With Facebook
The earliest known version of the idiom “the straw that broke the camel’s back” was written by the...
over a year ago
The earliest known version of the idiom “the straw that broke the camel’s back” was written by the English philosopher Thomas Hobbes of Malmesbury in 1677, though it was concerned with horses and feathers:
“The last Dictate of the Judgement, concerning the Good or Bad, that may...
NeuroLogica Blog
Living a Hybrid Life
The cultural effects of the COVID pandemic can still be felt reverberating through society. One of...
4 months ago
The cultural effects of the COVID pandemic can still be felt reverberating through society. One of the positive effects, in my opinion, was the sudden boost to remote technology – connecting remotely for meetings and other uses through Zoom or a similar application. This...
Math Is Still...
Avi Wigderson, Complexity Theory Pioneer, Wins Turing Award
The prolific researcher found deep connections between randomness and computation and spent a career...
8 months ago
The prolific researcher found deep connections between randomness and computation and spent a career influencing cryptographers, complexity researchers and more.
The post Avi Wigderson, Complexity Theory Pioneer, Wins Turing Award first appeared on Quanta Magazine
brr
Showering at the South Pole
Potable water, and not much of it.
a year ago
Potable water, and not much of it.
nanoscale views
What is the thermal Hall effect?
One thing that physics and mechanical engineering students learn early on is that there are often...
a year ago
One thing that physics and mechanical engineering students learn early on is that there are often analogies between charge flow and heat flow, and this is reflected in the mathematical models we use to describe charge and heat transport. We use Ohm's law,...
Many Worlds
The Makeup of Red Dwarf Solar Systems May Seriously Limit the Formation of Habitable Planets
Jupiter is often described as the “big brother” planet of our solar system that made the formation...
a year ago
Jupiter is often described as the “big brother” planet of our solar system that made the formation and evolution of Earth possible. In the early days of the solar system, massive Jupiter helped the planet grow rapidly while serving as a gravity well that shielded the planet from...
Quantum Frontiers
Crossing the quantum chasm: From NISQ to fault tolerance
On December 6, I gave a keynote address at the Q2B 2023 Conference in Silicon Valley. Here is a...
a year ago
On December 6, I gave a keynote address at the Q2B 2023 Conference in Silicon Valley. Here is a transcript of my remarks. Toward quantum value The theme of this year’s Q2B meeting is “The Roadmap to Quantum Value.” I … Continue reading →
NeuroLogica Blog
Scammers on the Rise
Good rule of thumb – assume it’s a scam. Anyone who contacts you, or any unusual encounter, assume...
10 months ago
Good rule of thumb – assume it’s a scam. Anyone who contacts you, or any unusual encounter, assume it’s a scam and you will probably be right. Recently I was called on my cell phone by someone claiming to be from Venmo. They asked me to confirm if I had just made two fund...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
How Healthcare Payments Work with Candid Health | Out-Of-Pocket
A walkthrough of how money flows between payers and providers
a year ago
A walkthrough of how money flows between payers and providers
Probably...
Life in a Lognormal World
At PyData Global 2023 I will present a talk, “Extremes, outliers, and GOATs: On life in a lognormal...
a year ago
At PyData Global 2023 I will present a talk, “Extremes, outliers, and GOATs: On life in a lognormal world”. It is scheduled for Wednesday 6 December at 11 am Eastern Time. Here is the abstract: The fastest runners are much faster than we expect from a Gaussian distribution, and...
IEEE Spectrum
Inside the Three-Way Race to Create the Most Widely Used Laser
The semiconductor laser, invented more than 60 years ago, is the foundation of many of today’s...
5 months ago
The semiconductor laser, invented more than 60 years ago, is the foundation of many of today’s technologies including barcode scanners, fiber-optic communications, medical imaging, and remote controls. The tiny, versatile device is now an IEEE Milestone.
The possibilities of...
Math Is Still...
A Tower of Conjectures That Rests Upon a Needle
On its surface, the Kakeya conjecture is a simple statement about rotating needles. But it underlies...
a year ago
On its surface, the Kakeya conjecture is a simple statement about rotating needles. But it underlies a wealth of mathematics.
The post A Tower of Conjectures That Rests Upon a Needle first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Tikalon Blog by Dev...
Plant Sounds
My early adulthood coincided with the New Age movement and its belief in many discredited past...
4 months ago
My early adulthood coincided with the New Age movement and its belief in many discredited past ideas, such as astrology. One New Age idea that seemed strange at the time was that talking to plants helped them to grow. What could be more New Age than a hippie chick talking to a...
Wanderingspace
Neptune from the James Webb Space Telescope
Webb’s latest image is the clearest look at Neptune's rings in 30+ years, and our first time seeing...
over a year ago
Webb’s latest image is the clearest look at Neptune's rings in 30+ years, and our first time seeing them in infrared light. Take in Webb's ghostly, ethereal views of the planet and its dust bands, rings and moons: https://go.nasa.gov/3RXxoGq #IAC2022
NeuroLogica Blog
Eating Methane
Methane is the forgotten greenhouse gas (sort of). Often, when discussing how best to reduce...
a year ago
Methane is the forgotten greenhouse gas (sort of). Often, when discussing how best to reduce anthropogenic climate change, we talk about decarbonizing our electrical and transport sectors, and carbon removal. But methane is also a greenhouse gas, contributing to global warming,...
Math Is Still...
How Base 3 Computing Beats Binary
Long explored but infrequently embraced, base 3 computing may yet find a home in cybersecurity. ...
4 months ago
Long explored but infrequently embraced, base 3 computing may yet find a home in cybersecurity.
The post How Base 3 Computing Beats Binary first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Out-of-Pocket Blog
2024 Healthcare Predictions, Out-Of-Pocket Style | Out-Of-Pocket
I'm not a fortune teller, I'm a fortune, teller
a year ago
I'm not a fortune teller, I'm a fortune, teller
nanoscale views
Recent papers to distract....
Time for blogging has continued to be scarce, but here are a few papers to distract (and for readers...
a month ago
Time for blogging has continued to be scarce, but here are a few papers to distract (and for readers who are US citizens: vote if you have not already done so!).
Reaching back, this preprint by Aharonov, Collins, Popescu talks about a thought experiment in which angular...
Probably...
How Many Books?
If you like this article, you can read more about this kind of Bayesian analysis in Think Bayes....
11 months ago
If you like this article, you can read more about this kind of Bayesian analysis in Think Bayes. Recently I found a copy of Probably Overthinking It at a local bookstore and posted a picture on Twitter. Aubrey Clayton replied with this question: It’s a great question with what...
Math Is Still...
Risky Giant Steps Can Solve Optimization Problems Faster
New results break with decades of conventional wisdom for the gradient descent algorithm. ...
a year ago
New results break with decades of conventional wisdom for the gradient descent algorithm.
The post Risky Giant Steps Can Solve Optimization Problems Faster first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Ins and Outs of Fundraising Today | Out-Of-Pocket
Some stuff I’ve learned doing a little healthcare startup investing
a year ago
Some stuff I’ve learned doing a little healthcare startup investing
Explorations of an...
Parque Nacional Calilegua
Parque Nacional Calilegua protects around 76,000 hectares of east-slope yungas forest, making it the...
a year ago
Parque Nacional Calilegua protects around 76,000 hectares of east-slope yungas forest, making it the largest national park in northwestern Argentina. It would, therefore, feature prominently on our trip. Laura and I arrived in the general area during the afternoon of January 25,...
Math Is Still...
New Proof Finds the ‘Ultimate Instability’ in a Solar System Model
For the first time, mathematicians have proved that planetary orbits in a solar system will always...
a year ago
For the first time, mathematicians have proved that planetary orbits in a solar system will always be unstable.
The post New Proof Finds the ‘Ultimate Instability’ in a Solar System Model first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Quantum Frontiers
A peek inside Northrop Grumman’s subatomic endeavors
As the weather turns colder and we trade outdoor pools for pumpkin spice and then Christmas carols,...
over a year ago
As the weather turns colder and we trade outdoor pools for pumpkin spice and then Christmas carols, perhaps you’re longing for summer’s warmth. For me, it is not just warmth I yearn for: This past summer, I worked as a … Continue reading →
Damn Interesting
A Trail Gone Cold
Iceland is known to the rest of the world as the land of Vikings and volcanos, an island caught...
9 months ago
Iceland is known to the rest of the world as the land of Vikings and volcanos, an island caught between continents at the extremities of the map. Remote and comparatively inhospitable, it was settled only as long ago as the 9th century, and has seen little additional in-migration...
NeuroLogica Blog
Unifying Cognitive Biases
Are you familiar with the “lumper vs splitter” debate? This refers to any situation in which there...
a year ago
Are you familiar with the “lumper vs splitter” debate? This refers to any situation in which there is some controversy over exactly how to categorize complex phenomena, specifically whether or not to favor the fewest categories based on similarities, or the greatest number of...
The Works in...
The Cocktail Revolution
How bad drinks became good, and good drinks became great
a year ago
How bad drinks became good, and good drinks became great
NeuroLogica Blog
What Is Orbitronics
You have definitely heard of electronics. You may (if you are a tech nerd like me) have heard of...
2 months ago
You have definitely heard of electronics. You may (if you are a tech nerd like me) have heard of spintronics and photonics. Now there is also the possibility of orbitronics. What do these cool-sounding words mean? Electronic technology is one of those core technologies that has...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Exits & Outcomes Is Good | Out-Of-Pocket
moar newsletters
a year ago
Eukaryote Writes...
Internet Harvest (2020, 3)
Repairs, number stations, the only good Twitters, a low-key infohazard about pictures of...
over a year ago
Repairs, number stations, the only good Twitters, a low-key infohazard about pictures of butterflies, and more.
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Out-Of-Pocket’s 2025 Predictions | Out-Of-Pocket
I’m like 50% right every year, I just never know which 50%
6 days ago
I’m like 50% right every year, I just never know which 50%
brr
South Pole Topography
The relentless accumulation (and management) of snow.
a year ago
The relentless accumulation (and management) of snow.
Out-of-Pocket Blog
How should physicians get paid? | Out-Of-Pocket
Should money and care be separate?
a year ago
Should money and care be separate?
IEEE Spectrum
What If the Worst AI Fear Is AI Fear Itself?
It’s been just about a year now—a nonprofit called the Future of Life Institute posted an open...
9 months ago
It’s been just about a year now—a nonprofit called the Future of Life Institute posted an open letter reflecting people’s darkest fears about artificial intelligence.
“Contemporary AI systems are now becoming human-competitive at general tasks,” it said. It called for a pause in...
Inverted Passion
A primer on dopamine
1/ I recently made notes on the book “Hooked” but wasn’t satisfied by the depth of explanation in...
11 months ago
1/ I recently made notes on the book “Hooked” but wasn’t satisfied by the depth of explanation in it. 2/ I wanted to get down into neuroscience of habit-forming products and that inevitably lead me to the (in)famous neurotransmitter dopamine. 3/ Before we dive into what dopamine...
Wanderingspace
Ganymede Sets Behind Jupiter as Seen by Hubble
An image taken by the Hubble Space Telescope reminds us of how powerful this aging scope really is....
over a year ago
An image taken by the Hubble Space Telescope reminds us of how powerful this aging scope really is. Magnitudes sharper than the images originally sent by Pioneer as it passed by in the 1970s.
IEEE Spectrum
This Wearable Computer Made a Fashion Statement
Google Glass debuted, the artist Lisa Krohn designed a prototype wearable computer that looked like...
5 months ago
Google Glass debuted, the artist Lisa Krohn designed a prototype wearable computer that looked like no other. The Cyberdesk was an experiment in augmented reality. At a time when computers were mostly beige and boxy, Krohn envisioned a pliable, high-tech garment that fused...
Asterisk
Rebuilding After the Replication Crisis
Over a decade has passed since scientists realized many of their studies were failing to replicate....
over a year ago
Over a decade has passed since scientists realized many of their studies were failing to replicate. How well have their attempts to fix the problem actually worked?
nanoscale views
Foams! (or, why my split pea side dish boils over every Thanksgiving)
Foams can be great examples of mechanical metamaterials.
Adapted from TOC figure of this...
3 weeks ago
Foams can be great examples of mechanical metamaterials.
Adapted from TOC figure of this paper
Consider my shaving cream. You might imagine that the (mostly water) material would just pool as a homogeneous liquid, since water molecules have a strong attraction for one...
nanoscale views
Intriguing papers - exquisite thermal measurements + automated materials discovery/synthesis
It's a busy time, but I wanted to point out a couple of papers from this past week.
First, I want...
a year ago
It's a busy time, but I wanted to point out a couple of papers from this past week.
First, I want to point to this preprint on the arxiv, where the Weizmann folks do an incredibly technically impressive thing. I'd written recently about the thermal Hall effect, when a...
Math Is Still...
How Quantum Physicists Explained Earth’s Oscillating Weather Patterns
By treating Earth as a topological insulator — a state of quantum matter — physicists found a...
a year ago
By treating Earth as a topological insulator — a state of quantum matter — physicists found a powerful explanation for the movements of the planet’s air and seas.
The post How Quantum Physicists Explained Earth’s Oscillating Weather Patterns first appeared on Quanta...
Light from Space
The Soul of the Heart Nebula
A spectacular emission Nebula, the Heart Nebula is one of the classics of Northern Hemisphere...
over a year ago
A spectacular emission Nebula, the Heart Nebula is one of the classics of Northern Hemisphere amateury astronomy.
In the gallery below, I've highlighted 3 very different areas of the image:
Left: Planetary Nebula WeBo-1
Middle: Melotte 15 in the... heart of the Heart...
Math Is Still...
Echoes of Electromagnetism Found in Number Theory
A new magnum opus posits the existence of a hidden mathematical link akin to the connection between...
a year ago
A new magnum opus posits the existence of a hidden mathematical link akin to the connection between electricity and magnetism.
The post Echoes of Electromagnetism Found in Number Theory first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Blog - Practical...
How Railroad Crossings Work
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
If you’ve ever ridden a bike,...
11 months ago
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
If you’ve ever ridden a bike, driven a car, or operated pretty much any other vehicle on earth, there’s a fact you’ve probably taken for granted: you can see farther than it takes to stop. Within the span...
Explorations of an...
Borneo: Tour Extension To Peninsular Malaysia
After the main Borneo tour had finished, eight of the travellers joined Laura and I on a tour...
a year ago
After the main Borneo tour had finished, eight of the travellers joined Laura and I on a tour extension to peninsular Malaysia. We split our time between two distinct regions: the foothill forests at Fraser’s Hill, and the steamy lowlands of Taman Negara.
Dusky Leaf Monkey -...
Explorations of an...
Borneo: Quest For The Bulwer's Pheasant
The Bulwer's Pheasant was one of the first birds to grab hold of my attention when I first flipped...
3 weeks ago
The Bulwer's Pheasant was one of the first birds to grab hold of my attention when I first flipped through the pages of my Borneo field guide many years ago. This pheasant of Bornean hill forest is nearly unbelievable-looking (the male, that is). He has a deep maroon chest and a...
Wanderingspace
Uranus is not as boring as we thought
“An animation of three near-infrared images of Uranus captured by the JWST Space Telescope with...
a month ago
“An animation of three near-infrared images of Uranus captured by the JWST Space Telescope with assigned representative colors. During processing, I aligned the rings separately to reduce the bubbling effect caused by different inclinations, making the planet appear to rotate on...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
The Ins-and-Outs of Cancer Care Navigators With Laura Stratte | Out-Of-Pocket
What are cancer care navigators and what issues do they face?
a year ago
What are cancer care navigators and what issues do they face?
The Works in...
History is in the making
It's technology and ideas, not politics, that change our lives the most. History should reflect...
3 weeks ago
It's technology and ideas, not politics, that change our lives the most. History should reflect that.
Math Is Still...
Computer Scientists Inch Closer to Major Algorithmic Goal
A new paper finds a faster method for determining when two mathematical groups are the same. ...
a year ago
A new paper finds a faster method for determining when two mathematical groups are the same.
The post Computer Scientists Inch Closer to Major Algorithmic Goal first appeared on Quanta Magazine
NeuroLogica Blog
Should Japan Release Radioactive Water Into The Pacific?
Japan is planning on releasing treated radioactive water from the Fukushima nuclear accident into...
a year ago
Japan is planning on releasing treated radioactive water from the Fukushima nuclear accident into the ocean. They claim this will be completely safe, but there are protests going on in both Japan and South Korea, and China has just placed a ban on seafood from Japan. In a perfect...
Math Is Still...
Secret Messages Can Hide in AI-Generated Media
In steganography, an ordinary message masks the presence of a secret communication. Humans can never...
a year ago
In steganography, an ordinary message masks the presence of a secret communication. Humans can never do it perfectly, but a new study shows it’s possible for machines.
The post Secret Messages Can Hide in AI-Generated Media first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Out-of-Pocket Blog
What does longevity medicine actually mean? | Out-Of-Pocket
An interview with a practicing longevity medicine doctor
a month ago
An interview with a practicing longevity medicine doctor
symmetry magazine
A collaboration pairs Fermilab with fashion students
Fashion students at the College of DuPage successfully designed gear to protect Fermilab’s SPOT...
a year ago
Fashion students at the College of DuPage successfully designed gear to protect Fermilab’s SPOT robot from radioactive dust.
In a recent demonstration for Engineers Week in Chicago, an engineering physicist took the stage accompanied by an unusual guest: a...
Beautiful Public...
Highway Photologs
Highway departments all around the country had "photolog" programs, some dating back as early as...
over a year ago
Highway departments all around the country had "photolog" programs, some dating back as early as 1961. Each year, specially tricked out vans would drive each mile of state road snapping photos to document the status of roadways.
Eukaryote Writes...
Fiber arts, mysterious dodecahedrons, and waiting on “Eureka!”
Why didn't we invent knitting before 1000 CE?
over a year ago
Why didn't we invent knitting before 1000 CE?
Drew Ex Machina
First Pictures: NASA’s Mars Pathfinder – July 4, 1997
During the morning hours of July 4, 1997, I experienced a strange sense of déjà vu as I sat glued to...
over a year ago
During the morning hours of July 4, 1997, I experienced a strange sense of déjà vu as I sat glued to the television set watching live […]
Math Is Still...
Can Information Escape a Black Hole?
Black holes are inescapable traps for most of what falls into them — but there can be exceptions....
8 months ago
Black holes are inescapable traps for most of what falls into them — but there can be exceptions. The theoretical physicist Leonard Susskind speaks with co-host Janna Levin about the black hole information paradox and how it has propelled modern physics.
The post Can...
ToughSF
Thermal Decomposition of CO2 with Nuclear Heat
A lot of
effort must and will be put into combating climate change. We can however
directly attack...
over a year ago
A lot of
effort must and will be put into combating climate change. We can however
directly attack the root cause of it by reducing the amount of CO2 that we have released
into the atmosphere.
We can enlist the help of
ultra-high-temperature nuclear reactors to do this rapidly...
nanoscale views
New paper - plasmons, excitons, and steering energy
We have a new paper out in Nano Letters (arxiv version here), and I wanted to explain a bit about it...
a year ago
We have a new paper out in Nano Letters (arxiv version here), and I wanted to explain a bit about it and why I think it's a really cool result.
I've written before about the Purcell Effect. When we study quantum mechanics, we learn that the rates of processes, like the...
Inverted Passion
Usefulness grounds truth
Are LLMs intelligent? Debates on this question often, but not always, devolve into debates on what...
5 months ago
Are LLMs intelligent? Debates on this question often, but not always, devolve into debates on what LLMs can or cannot do. To a limited extent, the original question is useful because it creates an opening for people to go into specific. But, beyond that initial use, the question...
IEEE Spectrum
Who Really Invented the Rechargeable Lithium-Ion Battery?
Fifty years after the birth of the rechargeable lithium-ion battery, it’s easy to see its value....
a year ago
Fifty years after the birth of the rechargeable lithium-ion battery, it’s easy to see its value. It’s used in billions of laptops, cellphones, power tools, and cars. Global sales top US $45 billion a year, on their way to more than $100 billion in the coming decade.
The first...
Math Is Still...
Computation Is All Around Us, and You Can See It if You Try
Computer scientist Lance Fortnow writes that by embracing the computations that surround us, we can...
6 months ago
Computer scientist Lance Fortnow writes that by embracing the computations that surround us, we can begin to understand and tame our seemingly random world.
The post Computation Is All Around Us, and You Can See It if You Try first appeared on Quanta Magazine
NeuroLogica Blog
Microbes Aboard the ISS
As I have written many times, including in yesterday’s post, people occupying space is hard. The...
11 months ago
As I have written many times, including in yesterday’s post, people occupying space is hard. The environment of space, or really anywhere not on Earth, is harsh and unforgiving. One of the issues, for example, rarely addressed in science fiction or even discussions of space...
NeuroLogica Blog
Possible Sign of Life on Exoplanet
The James Webb Space Telescope spectroscopic analysis of K2-18b, an exoplanet 124 light years from...
a year ago
The James Webb Space Telescope spectroscopic analysis of K2-18b, an exoplanet 124 light years from Earth, shows signs that the atmosphere may contain dimethyl sulphide (DMS). This finding is more impressive when you know that DMS on Earth is only produced by living organisms, not...
Math Is Still...
What a Contest of Consciousness Theories Really Proved
A five-year “adversarial collaboration” of consciousness theorists led to a stagy showdown in front...
a year ago
A five-year “adversarial collaboration” of consciousness theorists led to a stagy showdown in front of an audience. It crowned no winners — but it can still claim progress.
The post What a Contest of Consciousness Theories Really Proved first appeared on Quanta...
Math Is Still...
In the ‘Wild West’ of Geometry, Mathematicians Redefine the Sphere
High-dimensional spheres can have a much wider variety of structures than mathematicians thought...
a year ago
High-dimensional spheres can have a much wider variety of structures than mathematicians thought possible.
The post In the ‘Wild West’ of Geometry, Mathematicians Redefine the Sphere first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Math Is Still...
The AI Tools Making Images Look Better
Researchers have discovered ways around a fundamental trade-off between accuracy and beauty in...
a year ago
Researchers have discovered ways around a fundamental trade-off between accuracy and beauty in digital images.
The post The AI Tools Making Images Look Better first appeared on Quanta Magazine
NeuroLogica Blog
Making Computers More Efficient
An analysis in 2021 found that 10% of the world’s electricity production is used by computers,...
a year ago
An analysis in 2021 found that 10% of the world’s electricity production is used by computers, including personal use, data centers, the internet and communication centers. The same analysis projected that this was likely to increase to 20% by 2025. This may have been an...
Asterisk
Why You’ve Never Been In A Plane Crash
The United States leads the world in airline safety. That’s because of the way we assign blame when...
10 months ago
The United States leads the world in airline safety. That’s because of the way we assign blame when accidents do happen.
nanoscale views
Strategic planning + departmental reviews
It's been a while since I've written a post about the ways of academia, so I thought it might be...
a year ago
It's been a while since I've written a post about the ways of academia, so I thought it might be time, though it's not exactly glamorous or exciting. There are certain cycles in research universities, and two interrelated ones are the cycle of departmental strategic planning and...
Wanderingspace
The Green Light of Day
Image of tire tracks on Mars with an unusual green tone. . Taken by Perseverance on February 4th.
over a year ago
Image of tire tracks on Mars with an unusual green tone. . Taken by Perseverance on February 4th.
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Secret Research Techniques | Out-Of-Pocket
A magician always reveals his tricks for the purposes of engagement
a year ago
A magician always reveals his tricks for the purposes of engagement
Out-of-Pocket Blog
The Curious Case of Professional Employer Organizations | Out-Of-Pocket
A tale about complexity, risk skimming, and what counts as an “employee” or “company”
3 months ago
A tale about complexity, risk skimming, and what counts as an “employee” or “company”
Bartosz Ciechanowski
Airfoil
The dream of soaring in the sky like a bird has captivated the human mind for ages. Although many...
9 months ago
The dream of soaring in the sky like a bird has captivated the human mind for ages. Although many failed, some eventually succeeded in achieving that goal. These days we take air transportation for granted, but the physics of flight can still be puzzling.
In this article we’ll...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Let’s Talk About Obesity Drugs | Out-Of-Pocket
we're entering a new era for these treatments
a year ago
we're entering a new era for these treatments
NeuroLogica Blog
Trust in Science
How much does the public trust in science and scientists? Well, there’s some good news and some bad...
a year ago
How much does the public trust in science and scientists? Well, there’s some good news and some bad news. Let’s start with the bad news – a recent Pew survey finds that trust in scientist has been in decline for the last few years. From its recent peak in 2019, those who answered...
NeuroLogica Blog
Starship Explodes in Successful Launch
A common joke in the medical world is, “The operation was a success, but the patient died.” The...
a year ago
A common joke in the medical world is, “The operation was a success, but the patient died.” The irony comes from how we might define “success”. On April 20th SpaceX conducted the maiden launch of the fully assembled Starship, including a Starship rocket on top of a super heavy...
Chris Grossack's...
Finiteness in Sheaf Topoi
The notion of “finiteness” is constructively subtle in ways that can be
tricky for people new to...
4 months ago
The notion of “finiteness” is constructively subtle in ways that can be
tricky for people new to the subject to understand. For a while now I’ve
wanted to figure out what’s going on with the different versions of “finite”
in a way that felt concrete and obvious (I mentioned...
pcloadletter
Impact-based performance evaluation in big tech is terrible
My theory is that some performance consultants got paid a lot of money one day for a single word:...
10 months ago
My theory is that some performance consultants got paid a lot of money one day for a single word: "impact."
If you have worked in big tech, you're probably all too familiar with this word because your annual performance evaluations are based on your impact.
As an employee,...
NeuroLogica Blog
How We Determine What to Believe as True
Psychologists have been studying a very basic cognitive function that appears to be of increasing...
a year ago
Psychologists have been studying a very basic cognitive function that appears to be of increasing importance – how do we choose what to believe as true or false? We live in a world awash in information, and access to essentially the world’s store of knowledge is now a trivial...
Melting Asphalt
Going Critical
Background: This is an interactive blog post. I wanted to host it here, but don't know how to make...
over a year ago
Background: This is an interactive blog post. I wanted to host it here, but don't know how to make it play nice with WordPress. So I decided to host it on another part of the site instead. Click here for…
Read more ›
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Silly little rules in healthcare | Out-Of-Pocket
The industry is chock full of ‘em, here's 3
6 months ago
The industry is chock full of ‘em, here's 3
Math Is Still...
Radio Maps May Reveal the Universe’s Biggest Magnetic Fields
A controversial technique has produced detailed maps of the magnetic fields in colossal galaxy...
10 months ago
A controversial technique has produced detailed maps of the magnetic fields in colossal galaxy clusters. If confirmed, the approach could be used to reveal where cosmic magnetic fields come from.
The post Radio Maps May Reveal the Universe’s Biggest Magnetic Fields...
Stephen Wolfram...
Can AI Solve Science?
Note: Click any diagram to get Wolfram Language code to reproduce it. Wolfram Language code for...
9 months ago
Note: Click any diagram to get Wolfram Language code to reproduce it. Wolfram Language code for training the neural nets used here is also available (requires GPU). Won’t AI Eventually Be Able to Do Everything? Particularly given its recent surprise successes, there’s a somewhat...
Math Is Still...
Bats Use the Same Brain Cells to Map Physical and Social Worlds
New research in social bats raises the intriguing possibility that evolution can reprogram the...
a year ago
New research in social bats raises the intriguing possibility that evolution can reprogram the brain’s “place cells,” which are typically associated with location, to encode all kinds of environmental information.
The post Bats Use the Same Brain Cells to Map Physical...
brr
Brr Wants A Job
8 months post-ice, it's time for something new!
5 months ago
8 months post-ice, it's time for something new!
brr
Mud Murdo
The beautiful ambiance of a McMurdo summer.
over a year ago
The beautiful ambiance of a McMurdo summer.
NeuroLogica Blog
Moon Spacesuit Prototype Unveiled
Good spacesuits are deceptively difficult to design, even with today’s technology. NASA is planning...
a year ago
Good spacesuits are deceptively difficult to design, even with today’s technology. NASA is planning to return to the moon in 2025 (if all goes well) but the spacesuit the astronauts will wear is one piece to the puzzle they have not completed yet (the other being the lunar...
Math Is Still...
‘Quantum Memory’ Proves Exponentially Powerful
Researchers are exploring new ways that quantum computers will be able to reveal the secrets of...
2 months ago
Researchers are exploring new ways that quantum computers will be able to reveal the secrets of complex quantum systems.
The post ‘Quantum Memory’ Proves Exponentially Powerful first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Blog - Practical...
Where Does Grounded Electricity Actually Go?
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
Imagine this scenario: You...
a year ago
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
Imagine this scenario: You have a diesel-powered generator on a stand that is electrically isolated from the ground. Run a wire from the energized slot of an outlet to an electrode driven into the ground. Don’t...
NeuroLogica Blog
UFOs – Has the Narrative Shifted
In an interview for Newsweek, Michio Kaku was asked about UFOs. Here’s his response: Well, first of...
a year ago
In an interview for Newsweek, Michio Kaku was asked about UFOs. Here’s his response: Well, first of all, I think that there’s been a game changer. In the old days, the burden of proof was on the true believers to prove that what they saw last night was a flying saucer of some...
The Works in...
Escape to the country
What makes a successful New Town?
4 months ago
What makes a successful New Town?
Explorations of an...
2023 Part 4: Indonesia and Ecuador
September
The island of Sulawesi must be on the bucket list for any naturalist with a strong...
11 months ago
September
The island of Sulawesi must be on the bucket list for any naturalist with a strong interest in biogeography. Though Borneo is situated only a few hundred kilometers to the west, and the Moluccas are not far to the east, the species composition of Sulawesi is...
Many Worlds
Many Worlds Archive is Available
I had the pleasure of reporting and writing the Many Worlds column — sponsored by NASA’s NExSS...
a year ago
I had the pleasure of reporting and writing the Many Worlds column — sponsored by NASA’s NExSS initiative and the Lunar & Planetary Institute — for almost eight years. But the run came to an end in October. Now an archive of the more than 400 columns is easily available at...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Scaling Organizations, Patient Payments, and Collections with Lora Rosenblum | Out-Of-Pocket
Why am I getting bills 6 months later, Lora pls help
a year ago
Why am I getting bills 6 months later, Lora pls help
Explorations of an...
Frustrating Times at Parque Nacional El Palmar
Parque Nacional El Palmar is located near Argentina's eastern border, a few hours north of Buenos...
a year ago
Parque Nacional El Palmar is located near Argentina's eastern border, a few hours north of Buenos Aires. The main habitat found in this national park is palm savannah, a severely fragmented ecosystem found in northeastern Argentina, Uruguay and barely into southern Brazil. PN El...
Math Is Still...
The Unraveling of Space-Time
This special issue of Quanta Magazine explores the ultimate scientific quest: the search for the...
2 months ago
This special issue of Quanta Magazine explores the ultimate scientific quest: the search for the fundamental nature of reality.
The post The Unraveling of Space-Time first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Math Is Still...
Covid-19 mRNA Vaccines Win Nobel Prize for Medicine 2023
Katalin Karikó and Drew Weissman have been awarded the 2023 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine...
a year ago
Katalin Karikó and Drew Weissman have been awarded the 2023 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for discoveries leading to mRNA vaccines, such as those that protect against COVID-19.
The post Covid-19 mRNA Vaccines Win Nobel Prize for Medicine 2023 first appeared on...
The Works in...
Two Assault Rifles
A new section from Stewart Brand's Maintenance on Books in Progress
a year ago
A new section from Stewart Brand's Maintenance on Books in Progress
NeuroLogica Blog
Coal vs Natural Gas
In the last 18 years, since 2005, the US has decreased our CO2 emissions due to electricity...
a year ago
In the last 18 years, since 2005, the US has decreased our CO2 emissions due to electricity generation by 32%, 819 million metric tons of CO2 per year. Thirty percent of this decline can be attributed to renewable energy generation. But 65% is attributed to essentially replacing...
Math Is Still...
Game Theory Can Make AI More Correct and Efficient
Researchers are drawing on ideas from game theory to improve large language models and make them...
7 months ago
Researchers are drawing on ideas from game theory to improve large language models and make them more consistent.
The post Game Theory Can Make AI More Correct and Efficient first appeared on Quanta Magazine
nanoscale views
Continuing Studies course, take 2
A year and a half ago, I mentioned that I was going to teach a course through Rice's Glasscock...
10 months ago
A year and a half ago, I mentioned that I was going to teach a course through Rice's Glasscock School of Continuing Studies, trying to give a general audience introduction to some central ideas in condensed matter physics. Starting in mid-March, I'm doing this again. Here is a...
Math Is Still...
The Enduring Mystery of How Water Freezes
Making ice requires more than subzero temperatures. The unpredictable process takes microscopic...
6 months ago
Making ice requires more than subzero temperatures. The unpredictable process takes microscopic scaffolding, random jiggling and often a little bit of bacteria.
The post The Enduring Mystery of How Water Freezes first appeared on Quanta Magazine
nanoscale views
Some interesting links - useful lecture notes, videos
Proposal writing, paper writing, and course prep are eating a lot of my bandwidth right now, but I...
a year ago
Proposal writing, paper writing, and course prep are eating a lot of my bandwidth right now, but I wanted to share a few things:
David Tong at Cambridge is a gifted educator and communicator who has written lecture notes that span a wide swath of the physics curriculum, from...
Math Is Still...
Novel Architecture Makes Neural Networks More Understandable
By tapping into a decades-old mathematical principle, researchers are hoping that Kolmogorov-Arnold...
3 months ago
By tapping into a decades-old mathematical principle, researchers are hoping that Kolmogorov-Arnold networks will facilitate scientific discovery.
The post Novel Architecture Makes Neural Networks More Understandable first appeared on Quanta Magazine
ToughSF
Moto-Orion: Mechanized Nuclear Pulse Propulsion
The Orion nuclear pulse propulsion concept has been around for over six decades now. It is powerful...
over a year ago
The Orion nuclear pulse propulsion concept has been around for over six decades now. It is powerful and robust, but lacks the flexibility and features we expect from many more modern designs.
Can we give it those additional capabilities?
That cutaway is one of Matthew Paul...
IEEE Spectrum
Sci-fi and Hi-fi
Many a technologist has been inspired by science fiction. Some have even built, or rebuilt, entire...
9 months ago
Many a technologist has been inspired by science fiction. Some have even built, or rebuilt, entire companies around an idea introduced in a story they read, as the founders of Second Life and Meta did, working from the metaverse as imagined by Neal Stephenson in his seminal 1992...
Damn Interesting
The Traveler and His Baggage
On 19 May 1943, a news report from Berlin deepened the already dreary gloom that clung to the people...
over a year ago
On 19 May 1943, a news report from Berlin deepened the already dreary gloom that clung to the people of Nazi-occupied Paris. Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels proudly announced to the world that the German capital of Berlin was officially judenfrei–free of all Jews. As this...
Eukaryote Writes...
[UPDATE to most recent post]
I edited the post “A point of clarification on infohazard terminology” in response to a good point...
over a year ago
I edited the post “A point of clarification on infohazard terminology” in response to a good point of feedback, and changed a terminology proposal. I’m writing a separate update in case the old unedited version is still lodged in your RSS feed. Read the new one instead! It’s the...
Math Is Still...
Mathematicians Identify the Best Versions of Iconic Shapes
Researchers are discovering the shortest knots and fattest Möbius strips, among other “optimal...
11 months ago
Researchers are discovering the shortest knots and fattest Möbius strips, among other “optimal shapes.”
The post Mathematicians Identify the Best Versions of Iconic Shapes first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Light from Space
Elephant Trunk & IC 1396
A beautiful nebula in Cepheus. The middle bottom left of the image shows the “Elephant Trunk”, but...
over a year ago
A beautiful nebula in Cepheus. The middle bottom left of the image shows the “Elephant Trunk”, but the whole nebula IC 1396 shows much impressive detail. A whole layer of dark nebulas overlaps everything, looking like a giant explosion frozen in time.
Total exposure time: 18h...
NeuroLogica Blog
Is Music Getting Simpler
I don’t think I know anyone personally who doesn’t have strong opinions about music – which genres...
8 months ago
I don’t think I know anyone personally who doesn’t have strong opinions about music – which genres they like, and how the quality of music may have changed over time. My own sense is that music as a cultural phenomenon is incredibly complex, no one (in my social group) really...
Math Is Still...
The Lawlessness of Large Numbers
Mathematicians can often figure out what happens as quantities grow infinitely large. What about...
a year ago
Mathematicians can often figure out what happens as quantities grow infinitely large. What about when they are just a little big?
The post The Lawlessness of Large Numbers first appeared on Quanta Magazine
The Works in...
How to start an advance market commitment
A practical guide from the founders of Frontier
6 months ago
A practical guide from the founders of Frontier
Cremieux Recueil
Rich Country, Poor Country
Growth is our most precious resource and small amounts of it make a big difference
3 months ago
Growth is our most precious resource and small amounts of it make a big difference
The Works in...
Issue 14: A peasant surprise
Plus: Giving yourself the Zika virus, cut-and-cover railway tunnels, and more reasons to donate your...
10 months ago
Plus: Giving yourself the Zika virus, cut-and-cover railway tunnels, and more reasons to donate your organs.
Math Is Still...
Math Proof Draws New Boundaries Around Black Hole Formation
For a half century, mathematicians have tried to define the exact circumstances under which a black...
a year ago
For a half century, mathematicians have tried to define the exact circumstances under which a black hole is destined to exist. A new proof shows how a cube can help answer the question.
The post Math Proof Draws New Boundaries Around Black Hole Formation first...
NeuroLogica Blog
UFOs and the Pandemic
Did UFO reporting increase during the pandemic? A group of researchers set out to answer that...
a year ago
Did UFO reporting increase during the pandemic? A group of researchers set out to answer that question, and recently published their results. Their hypothesis was two-fold, including the notion that people had more free time during the shutdown and perhaps spent more time out...
Math Is Still...
How Do Merging Supermassive Black Holes Pass the Final Parsec?
The giant holes in galaxies’ centers shouldn’t be able to merge, yet merge they do. Scientists...
2 months ago
The giant holes in galaxies’ centers shouldn’t be able to merge, yet merge they do. Scientists suggest that an unusual form of dark matter may be the solution.
The post How Do Merging Supermassive Black Holes Pass the Final Parsec? first appeared on Quanta Magazine
IEEE Spectrum
Fakes: Not an Internet Thing, a Human Thing
Every day, as the Internet becomes more indispensable to modern life, the drawbacks of deep...
a year ago
Every day, as the Internet becomes more indispensable to modern life, the drawbacks of deep engagement with the virtual realm capture as much attention as the wide-ranging benefits. On the Internet, of course, anyone can in all too many forums pretty much say anything—regardless...
nanoscale views
Wind-up nanotechnology
When I was a kid, I used to take allowance money and occasionally buy rubber-band-powered balsa wood...
7 months ago
When I was a kid, I used to take allowance money and occasionally buy rubber-band-powered balsa wood airplanes at a local store. Maybe you've seen these. You wind up the rubber band, which stretches the elastomer and stores energy in the elastic strain of the polymer, as in...
NeuroLogica Blog
ChatGPT Almost Passes Medical Licensure Exams
The emergence of several AI applications for public use, such as Dalle-2, Midjourney, and ChatGPT,...
a year ago
The emergence of several AI applications for public use, such as Dalle-2, Midjourney, and ChatGPT, had made AI one of the biggest science news items of the past year. I have written about it here extensively myself, and have been using these applications extensively to get a feel...
Math Is Still...
The Colorful Problem That Has Long Frustrated Mathematicians
The four-color problem is simple to explain, but its complex proof continues to be both celebrated...
a year ago
The four-color problem is simple to explain, but its complex proof continues to be both celebrated and despised.
The post The Colorful Problem That Has Long Frustrated Mathematicians first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Math Is Still...
‘Groups’ Underpin Modern Math. Here’s How They Work.
What do the integers have in common with the symmetries of a triangle? In the 19th century,...
3 months ago
What do the integers have in common with the symmetries of a triangle? In the 19th century, mathematicians invented groups as an answer to this question.
The post ‘Groups’ Underpin Modern Math. Here’s How They Work. first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Math Is Still...
All Life on Earth Today Descended From a Single Cell. Meet LUCA.
The clearest picture yet of our “last universal common ancestor” suggests it was a relatively...
a month ago
The clearest picture yet of our “last universal common ancestor” suggests it was a relatively complex organism living 4.2 billion years ago, a time long considered too harsh for life to flourish.
The post All Life on Earth Today Descended From a Single Cell. Meet...
NeuroLogica Blog
The Social Media Dilemma
Australia is planning a total ban on social media for children under 16 years old. Prime Minister...
a month ago
Australia is planning a total ban on social media for children under 16 years old. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese argues that it is the only way to protect vulnerable children from the demonstrable harm that social media can do. This has sparked another round of debates about...
Math Is Still...
Electric ‘Ripples’ in the Resting Brain Tag Memories for Storage
New experiments reveal how the brain chooses which memories to save and add credence to advice about...
7 months ago
New experiments reveal how the brain chooses which memories to save and add credence to advice about the importance of rest.
The post Electric ‘Ripples’ in the Resting Brain Tag Memories for Storage first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Math Is Still...
Math That Connects Where We’re Going to Where We’ve Been
Recursion builds bridges between ideas from across different math classes and illustrates the power...
9 months ago
Recursion builds bridges between ideas from across different math classes and illustrates the power of creative mathematical thinking.
The post Math That Connects Where We’re Going to Where We’ve Been first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Explorations of an...
2023 Part 3: Spring And Summer In Ontario
April (continued)
Laura and I returned to Ontario in late April and I immediately jumped back into...
11 months ago
April (continued)
Laura and I returned to Ontario in late April and I immediately jumped back into the local birding/naturalist scene. Spring is such a dynamic time of year and I tried to maximize every opportunity. In late April I spent a couple of days on Manitoulin Island,...
Math Is Still...
Cells Across the Tree of Life Exchange ‘Text Messages’ Using RNA
Cells across the tree of life can swap short-lived messages encoded by RNA — missives that resemble...
3 months ago
Cells across the tree of life can swap short-lived messages encoded by RNA — missives that resemble a quick text rather than a formal memo on letterhead.
The post Cells Across the Tree of Life Exchange ‘Text Messages’ Using RNA first appeared on Quanta Magazine
NeuroLogica Blog
How To Prove Prevention Works
Homer: Not a bear in sight. The Bear Patrol must be working like a charm. Lisa: That’s specious...
10 months ago
Homer: Not a bear in sight. The Bear Patrol must be working like a charm. Lisa: That’s specious reasoning, Dad. Homer: Thank you, dear. Lisa: By your logic I could claim that this rock keeps tigers away. Homer: Oh, how does it work? Lisa: It doesn’t work. Homer: Uh-huh. Lisa:...
Math Is Still...
An Old Conjecture Falls, Making Spheres a Lot More Complicated
The telescope conjecture gave mathematicians a handle on ways to map one sphere to another. Now that...
a year ago
The telescope conjecture gave mathematicians a handle on ways to map one sphere to another. Now that it has been disproved, the universe of shapes has exploded.
The post An Old Conjecture Falls, Making Spheres a Lot More Complicated first appeared on Quanta Magazine
pcloadletter
RSS is still pretty great
I think a lot about information and information consumption. The way the Internet made information...
10 months ago
I think a lot about information and information consumption. The way the Internet made information readily available is phenomenal. Sadly, the signal-to-noise ratio here is pretty low. For me, consuming RSS feeds[1] offers the best way to read the kind of high-quality information...
ToughSF
Starship Lite: from rapid Interplanetary to Interstellar
Elon Musk
stated that a stripped-down SpaceX Starship could become an interplanetary
boost vehicle...
over a year ago
Elon Musk
stated that a stripped-down SpaceX Starship could become an interplanetary
boost vehicle able to push probes towards the farthest objects in our Solar
System.
What
other missions could the Starship ‘Lite’ do, and how quickly?
Near SSTO
Rockets performance
scales...
NeuroLogica Blog
The Threat of Technology
In my second book (shameless plug alert) – The Skeptics’ Guide to the Future – my coauthors and I...
a year ago
In my second book (shameless plug alert) – The Skeptics’ Guide to the Future – my coauthors and I try to imagine both the utopian and dystopian versions of the future, brought about by technology, either individually or collectively. This topic has come up multiple times recently...
IEEE Spectrum
Franklin’s Franklins Were Freakishly Un-Fakeable
To make something hard to fake, you can use exotic materials or clever tricks. Benjamin Franklin, a...
a year ago
To make something hard to fake, you can use exotic materials or clever tricks. Benjamin Franklin, a printer by vocation, a scientist by avocation, leaned on cleverness, developing measures that are still in use.
Those black arts have now yielded to the latest analytical...
IEEE Spectrum
Why L. Ron Hubbard Patented His E-Meter
zombie mysteries, historical fiction, pirate adventure tales, and westerns.
science fiction. The...
8 months ago
zombie mysteries, historical fiction, pirate adventure tales, and westerns.
science fiction. The publishers of Astounding Science Fiction approached Hubbard to write stories that focused on people, rather than robots and machines. His first story, “The Dangerous Dimension,” was...
The Works in...
The Maintenance Race was just the beginning
A new book from Stewart Brand, serialized on Works in Progress
a year ago
A new book from Stewart Brand, serialized on Works in Progress
Melting Asphalt
The Elephant in the Brain
It's finally here! The Elephant in the Brain: Hidden Motives in Everyday Life — my first book,...
over a year ago
It's finally here! The Elephant in the Brain: Hidden Motives in Everyday Life — my first book, coauthored with Robin Hanson — is now widely available. You can find the ebook version on Kindle, Google Play, and iBooks. It's also…
Read more ›
Stephen Wolfram...
When Exactly Will the Eclipse Happen? A Multimillennium Tale of Computation
Updated and expanded from a post for the eclipse of August 21, 2017. Preparing for April 8, 2024 On...
8 months ago
Updated and expanded from a post for the eclipse of August 21, 2017. Preparing for April 8, 2024 On April 8, 2024, there’s going to be a total eclipse of the Sun visible on a line across the US. But when exactly will the eclipse occur at a given location? Being able to predict...
Math Is Still...
What Could Explain the Gallium Anomaly?
Physicists have ruled out a mundane explanation for the strange findings of an old Soviet...
5 months ago
Physicists have ruled out a mundane explanation for the strange findings of an old Soviet experiment, leaving open the possibility that the results point to a new fundamental particle.
The post What Could Explain the Gallium Anomaly? first appeared on Quanta Magazine
IEEE Spectrum
Chuck E. Cheese’s Animatronics Band Bows Out
That may have been the last time I entered a Chuck E. Cheese pizzeria. And yet, when I heard that...
2 weeks ago
That may have been the last time I entered a Chuck E. Cheese pizzeria. And yet, when I heard that the company was phasing out the animatronic bands from all but five locations by the end of this year, I felt a twinge of nostalgia. Much to my surprise, I was truly sad that the...
Casey Handmer's blog
SLS is still a national disgrace
Four years ago, unable to find a comprehensive summary of the ongoing abject failure known as the...
2 months ago
Four years ago, unable to find a comprehensive summary of the ongoing abject failure known as the NASA SLS (Space Launch System), I wrote one. If you’re unfamiliar with the topic, you should read it first. It is hard to …
nanoscale views
CHIPS and Science - the reality vs the aspiration
I already wrote about this issue here back in August, but I wanted to highlight a policy statement...
2 months ago
I already wrote about this issue here back in August, but I wanted to highlight a policy statement that I wrote with colleagues as part of Rice's Baker Institute's Election 2024: Policy Playbook, which "delivers nonpartisan, expert insights into key issues at stake on the 2024...
Damn Interesting
Breaking a Bit
It’s been a busy summer, and the large shortfall in donations last month has been demoralizing, so...
a year ago
It’s been a busy summer, and the large shortfall in donations last month has been demoralizing, so we’re taking a week off to rest and recuperate. The curated links section will be (mostly) silent, and behind the scenes we’ll be taking a brief break from our usual researching,...
The Works in...
Links in Progress: Expanding the Mediterranean's busiest port
Plus: New tunnels, monorails, canals, small modular reactors, and horseless carriages
a month ago
Plus: New tunnels, monorails, canals, small modular reactors, and horseless carriages
Out-of-Pocket Blog
How MainStreet gets you government $ | Out-Of-Pocket
Get government tax credits for your health startup
a year ago
Get government tax credits for your health startup
Math Is Still...
Why Is This Shape So Terrible to Pack?
Two mathematicians have proved a long-standing conjecture that is a step on the way toward finding...
5 months ago
Two mathematicians have proved a long-standing conjecture that is a step on the way toward finding the worst shape for packing the plane.
The post Why Is This Shape So Terrible to Pack? first appeared on Quanta Magazine
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