pcloadletter
Quality is a hard sell in big tech
I have noticed a trend in a handful of products I've worked on at big tech companies. I have friends...
10 months ago
I have noticed a trend in a handful of products I've worked on at big tech companies. I have friends at other big tech companies that have noticed a similar trend: The products are kind of crummy.
Here are some experiences that I have often encountered:
the UI is flakey and/or...
Blog - Practical...
The Bizarre Paths of Groundwater Around Structures
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
In 2015, an unusual incident...
over a year ago
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
In 2015, an unusual incident happened on the construction site for a sewage lift station in British Columbia, Canada. WorksafeBC, the provincial health and safety agency, posted a summary of the event on...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
The Reality of Real-World Evidence | Out-Of-Pocket
Real recognize real...sort of
a year ago
Real recognize real...sort of
NeuroLogica Blog
Reading The Mind with fMRI and AI
This is pretty exciting neuroscience news – Semantic reconstruction of continuous language from...
a year ago
This is pretty exciting neuroscience news – Semantic reconstruction of continuous language from non-invasive brain recordings. What this means is that researchers have been able to, sort of, decode the words that subjects were thinking of simply by reading their fMRI scan. They...
NeuroLogica Blog
Will Apple’s Vision Pro Change Anything?
For the first time in over a decade, Apple has announced a new product designed to change computing....
a year ago
For the first time in over a decade, Apple has announced a new product designed to change computing. There was the transition to personal computing with the Apple computer, then to portable computing with the iPhone, and now they hope to usher in the transition to virtual...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
SWORD Health And Virtual Musculoskeletal Care | Out-Of-Pocket
A first person account
a year ago
nanoscale views
Scientific travel
Particularly in these post-pandemic, climate-change-addled, zoom-enabled times, I appreciate the...
a year ago
Particularly in these post-pandemic, climate-change-addled, zoom-enabled times, I appreciate the argument that it's always worth asking, "Is this trip really necessary?" We are in the age of remote work and zoom seminars that are attended by people from all over the world. Is...
nanoscale views
Moiré and making superlattices
One of the biggest condensed matter trends in recent years has been the stacking of 2D materials and...
7 months ago
One of the biggest condensed matter trends in recent years has been the stacking of 2D materials and the development of moiré lattices. The idea is, take a layer of 2D material and stack it either (1) on itself but with a twist angle, or (2) on another material with a slightly...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Six (More) Healthcare Startup Ideas | Out-Of-Pocket
In collaboration with The Generalist, one of the few newsletters I read end-to-end every time
a year ago
In collaboration with The Generalist, one of the few newsletters I read end-to-end every time
NeuroLogica Blog
New Generation of Electric Robots
Boston Dynamics (now owned by Hyundai) has revealed its electric version of its Atlas robot. These...
8 months ago
Boston Dynamics (now owned by Hyundai) has revealed its electric version of its Atlas robot. These robot videos always look impressive, but at the very least we know that we are seeing the best take. We don’t know how many times the robot failed to get the one great video. There...
wadertales
A Whimbrel’s year
There’s a lot to fit into twelve months if you’re a Whimbrel. In the last paper from his PhD, Camilo...
over a year ago
There’s a lot to fit into twelve months if you’re a Whimbrel. In the last paper from his PhD, Camilo Carneiro assesses whether Icelandic Whimbrel can always manage to complete the annual cycle of migrate-breed-fatten-migrate-moult-fatten in just 365 days. What happens if a pair...
Drew Ex Machina
Catching Up: Talking about the Weather
After an unintended four-month hiatus publishing new work on the Drew Ex Machina website, I figured...
a year ago
After an unintended four-month hiatus publishing new work on the Drew Ex Machina website, I figured it was time to catch up on what I’ve been […]
Out-of-Pocket Blog
"AI sucks", Quantifying EMR burden, and Loneliness | Out-Of-Pocket
3 interesting papers I like
a year ago
3 interesting papers I like
Damn Interesting
The Kingpin of Shanghai
Respectable heads of state rarely admit to keeping company with gangsters. But in April 1927, about...
over a year ago
Respectable heads of state rarely admit to keeping company with gangsters. But in April 1927, about 15 years after the collapse of the last imperial dynasty, Chiang Kai-shek and China were at a crossroads. Chiang had followed a murky path to leadership of the Chinese Nationalist...
Chris Grossack's...
A Quick Application of Model Categories
Almost exactly a year ago (time flies!) I was thinking really hard about
model categories in...
a year ago
Almost exactly a year ago (time flies!) I was thinking really hard about
model categories in preparation for the HoTTEST summer school. I learned
a TON doing this, but I’ve just today seen a really nice (and somewhat concrete)
reason to care about the whole endeavor! I’d love...
Asterisk
The Myth of the Loneliness Epidemic
Are we really living through a uniquely lonely moment in American history? When it comes to...
a month ago
Are we really living through a uniquely lonely moment in American history? When it comes to friendship, this isn’t the first time that authorities have cried wolf.
Melting Asphalt
Here Be Sermons
I've long turned up my nose at sermons and related forms of mass moralizing. One reason, quite...
over a year ago
I've long turned up my nose at sermons and related forms of mass moralizing. One reason, quite simply, is that they bore me. Honesty good. Violence bad. My eyes glaze over. Empathy, rah! Racism, boo! Please, don't we know this…
Read more ›
Explorations of an...
Tour Extension to Halmahera In The North Moluccas
Del and Marcie joined me for a four-day extension to the nearby island of Halmahera, located in the...
a year ago
Del and Marcie joined me for a four-day extension to the nearby island of Halmahera, located in the North Moluccas. We were now on the east side of the deep-water trench informally known as Weber’s Line and the avifauna was even more in line with New Guinea and Australia....
Cremieux Recueil
Why America’s Racial Poverty Statistics Are a Lesson for Researchers
What if a single government employee could tell you an entire literature was wrong?
3 months ago
What if a single government employee could tell you an entire literature was wrong?
Interaction Magic -...
Units: the forgotten half of the statistic
From the millihelen to the microcentury, via jerk, pirate-ninjas and the Mongolian vowel separator.
over a year ago
From the millihelen to the microcentury, via jerk, pirate-ninjas and the Mongolian vowel separator.
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...
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
nanoscale views
Experimental techniques: bridge measurements
When we teach undergraduates about materials and measuring electrical resistance, we tend to gloss...
4 months ago
When we teach undergraduates about materials and measuring electrical resistance, we tend to gloss over the fact that there are specialized techniques for this - it's more than just hooking up a battery and an ammeter. If you want to get high precision results, such as measuring...
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,...
nanoscale views
Guide to faculty searches, 2024 edition
As you can tell from my posting frequency lately, I have been unusually busy. I hope to be writing...
2 months ago
As you can tell from my posting frequency lately, I have been unusually busy. I hope to be writing about more condensed matter and nano science soon. In the meantime, I realized that I have not re-posted or updated my primer on how tenure-track faculty searches work in physics...
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...
Light from Space
Sharpless 119
Sharpless 119 (Sh2-119), sometimes referred to as “The Clamshell Nebula” is an emission nebula in...
over a year ago
Sharpless 119 (Sh2-119), sometimes referred to as “The Clamshell Nebula” is an emission nebula in Cygnus. It's rarely photographed as there's other, brighter nebulæ nearby, such as the North America Nebula.
Click or tap to enlarge/double-tap to zoom
Total exposure time: 23h
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
IEEE Spectrum
The Cheesy Charm of the Clapper
“Clap on! Clap off! Clap on! Clap off! The Clapper!” This 1980s earworm of a jingle touted a gadget...
11 months ago
“Clap on! Clap off! Clap on! Clap off! The Clapper!” This 1980s earworm of a jingle touted a gadget to turn your lights, your TV, or any other electrical device on or off with the clap of your hands. If you watched any amount of American television back then, you probably saw the...
NeuroLogica Blog
GMOs – Ask a Farmer
The topic of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) is a great target for science communication...
4 months ago
The topic of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) is a great target for science communication because public attitudes have largely been shaped by deliberate misinformation, and the research suggests that those attitudes can change in response to more accurate information. It is...
nanoscale views
ARPA-E Roadshow
Today, Rice hosted the ARPA-E Roadshow, a series of presentations by ARPA-E program officers, MC-ed...
a year ago
Today, Rice hosted the ARPA-E Roadshow, a series of presentations by ARPA-E program officers, MC-ed by the director, Prof. Evelyn Wang. It was all about the energy transition, and it was pretty fascinating, particularly hearing from leaders of startups who were making...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
The Obstacles To Value-Based Care | Out-Of-Pocket
taking on risk is easier said than done
a year ago
taking on risk is easier said than done
Math Is Still...
An Explorer of Abyssal Depths Looks to Oceans on Other Worlds
The marine geochemist Chris German brings decades of experience studying seafloor hydrothermal vents...
a year ago
The marine geochemist Chris German brings decades of experience studying seafloor hydrothermal vents to NASA’s preparations for visits to other ocean worlds in our solar system.
The post An Explorer of Abyssal Depths Looks to Oceans on Other Worlds first appeared on...
Inverted Passion
Why time seems to pass faster as we age
1/ I’ve been mega-obsessed with this feeling. A year as a 36-year-old seems so much shorter as...
9 months ago
1/ I’ve been mega-obsessed with this feeling. A year as a 36-year-old seems so much shorter as compared to when I was a kid or even as a teen. It seems cosmically unfair – we have fewer years to live, and each year flies by faster. 2/ But, why is that happening? My tentative...
NeuroLogica Blog
Panspermia Again
Recently I was asked what I thought about this video, which suggests it is possible that life formed...
a year ago
Recently I was asked what I thought about this video, which suggests it is possible that life formed in the early universe, shortly after the Big Bang. Although no mentioned specifically in the video, the ideas presents are essentially panspermia – the idea that life formed in...
IEEE Spectrum
Ethernet is Still Going Strong After 50 Years
The Xerox Palo Alto Research Center in California has spawned many pioneering computer technologies...
a year ago
The Xerox Palo Alto Research Center in California has spawned many pioneering computer technologies including the Alto—the first personal computer to use a graphical user interface—and the first laser printer.
The PARC facility also is known for the invention of Ethernet, a...
Math Is Still...
Are There Reasons to Believe in a Multiverse?
Several areas of physics suggest reasons to think that unobservable universes with different natural...
a year ago
Several areas of physics suggest reasons to think that unobservable universes with different natural laws could lie beyond ours. The theoretical physicist David Kaplan talks with Steven Strogatz about the mysteries that a multiverse would solve.
The post Are There...
pcloadletter
The ChatGPT wrapper product boom is an uncanny valley hellscape
Here we go again: I'm so tired of crypto web3 LLMs.
I'm positive there are wonderful applications...
7 months ago
Here we go again: I'm so tired of crypto web3 LLMs.
I'm positive there are wonderful applications for LLMs. The ChatGPT web UI seems great for summarizing information from various online sources (as long as you're willing to verify the things that you learn).
But a lot fo the "AI...
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...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
“Mission-driven” should be more specific | Out-Of-Pocket
everything is a set of tradeoffs, let's be honest about that
8 months ago
everything is a set of tradeoffs, let's be honest about that
pcloadletter
Coding interviews are effective
Coding interviews are controversial. It can be unpleasant to code in front of someone else, knowing...
10 months ago
Coding interviews are controversial. It can be unpleasant to code in front of someone else, knowing you're being judged. And who likes failing? Especially when it feels like you failed intellectually.
But, coding interviews are effective.
One big criticism of coding interviews is...
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...
Quantum Frontiers
Film noir and quantum thermo
In four months, I’ll embark on the adventure of a lifetime—fatherhood. To prepare, I’ve been honing...
7 months ago
In four months, I’ll embark on the adventure of a lifetime—fatherhood. To prepare, I’ve been honing a quintessential father skill—storytelling. If my son inherits even a fraction of my tastes, he’ll soon develop a passion for film noir detective stories. … Continue reading →
Math Is Still...
How Selective Forgetting Can Help AI Learn Better
Erasing key information during training results in machine learning models that can learn new...
9 months ago
Erasing key information during training results in machine learning models that can learn new languages faster and more easily.
The post How Selective Forgetting Can Help AI Learn Better first appeared on Quanta Magazine
NeuroLogica Blog
Magnetohydrodynamic Drive – Silent Water Propulsion
DARPA, the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, is now working on developing a...
a year ago
DARPA, the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, is now working on developing a magnet-driven silent water propulsion system – the magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) drive. The primary reason is to develop silent military naval craft. Imagine a nuclear submarine with an MHD drive,...
Damn Interesting
The Unceasing Cessna Hacienda
Warren “Doc” Bayley was a man of the people. When he and his wife Judy opened their Las Vegas resort...
over a year ago
Warren “Doc” Bayley was a man of the people. When he and his wife Judy opened their Las Vegas resort in 1956, Bayley had no plans to compete with the flashier, corporate casinos at the center of the Strip. Instead, the Hacienda Hotel catered to families, as well as to locals who...
Asterisk
Intelligence Testing
Everyone agrees that AIs are getting smarter — but it’s surprisingly difficult to measure by how...
a year ago
Everyone agrees that AIs are getting smarter — but it’s surprisingly difficult to measure by how much.
Chris Grossack's...
Proving Another "Real Theorem" with Topos Theory
Another day, another post that starts with “So I was on mse…”, lol.
Somebody asked whether...
9 months ago
Another day, another post that starts with “So I was on mse…”, lol.
Somebody asked whether maximizing over a compact set is a continuous thing
to do. That is, given a continuous function $f : K \times X \to \mathbb{R}$ is the
function $x \mapsto \max_{k \in K} f(k,x)$...
Chris Grossack's...
Monoidal Monoidoidoids
So I was on the nlab the other day, and I saw a fantastic joke:
A 2-category is “just” a monoidal...
over a year ago
So I was on the nlab the other day, and I saw a fantastic joke:
A 2-category is “just” a monoidal monoidoidoid! Here’s a screenshot
in case the nlab page for 2-categories changes someday:
There’s a thing called the Category Theorist’s “Just”, which describes
the joy that many...
Blog - Practical...
What Happens When a Reservoir Goes Dry?
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
In June of 2022, the level in...
over a year ago
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
In June of 2022, the level in Lake Mead, the largest water reservoir in the United States formed by the Hoover Dam, reached yet another all-time low of 175 feet or 53 meters below full, a level that hasn’t been...
Math Is Still...
What Is Quantum Teleportation?
Teleporting people through space is still science fiction. But quantum teleportation is dramatically...
9 months ago
Teleporting people through space is still science fiction. But quantum teleportation is dramatically different and entirely real. In this episode, Janna Levin interviews the theoretical physicist John Preskill about teleporting bits and the promise of quantum technology. ...
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...
Beautiful Public...
Vehicle Crash Test Films from the 1970's and 1980s
Deep in the public archives of the NHTSA, there are thousands of films of some classic (and some...
over a year ago
Deep in the public archives of the NHTSA, there are thousands of films of some classic (and some ugly) 70’s and 80’s cars being smashed into smithereens.
nanoscale views
Molecular electronics in 2023
This past week I was fortunate to attend this meeting, the most recent in an every-few-years series...
a year ago
This past week I was fortunate to attend this meeting, the most recent in an every-few-years series that brings together a group of researchers interested in electronic transport in molecular systems. This brings together physicists and chemists, and this was the first one I've...
Probably...
Political Alignment and Outlook
This is the fourth in a series of excerpts from Elements of Data Science, now available from...
2 days ago
This is the fourth in a series of excerpts from Elements of Data Science, now available from Lulu.com and online booksellers. It’s from Chapter 15, which is part of the political alignment case study. You can read the complete chapter here, or run the Jupyter notebook on Colab....
Damn Interesting
Lofty Ambitions
One summer day in 1933, in a brief pocket of time between the two World Wars, a British man named...
over a year ago
One summer day in 1933, in a brief pocket of time between the two World Wars, a British man named Maurice Wilson clutched the stick of his tiny, open air biplane and watched his fuel gauge dwindle. He had only learned to fly two months earlier, but inexperience was not his...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Video Games x Healthcare | Out-Of-Pocket
Video games should be our models for engagement
a year ago
Video games should be our models for engagement
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Six Healthcare Startup Ideas | Out-Of-Pocket
In collaboration with The Generalist
a year ago
In collaboration with The Generalist
Confessions of a...
Predation of juvenile reef fish in coral patches at Ningaloo Reef
The second research article I have decided to discuss is one I had the pleasure to be involved with!...
over a year ago
The second research article I have decided to discuss is one I had the pleasure to be involved with! In fact, it was the first paper I was a co-author on, after linking up with the Department of Environment and Conservation through an ANNiMS internship program. The paper was...
The Works in...
Anemia and Malaria
In malaria endemic regions, being anemic could be keeping children safe
2 months ago
In malaria endemic regions, being anemic could be keeping children safe
NeuroLogica Blog
Are Animals Conscious?
This is a great scientific question because it challenges how we ask and answer scientific...
6 months ago
This is a great scientific question because it challenges how we ask and answer scientific questions. Are animals conscious? This is a question discussed in a recent BBC article that peaked my interest. They eventually get to a question that they should have opened with – how do...
Cremieux Recueil
Woke Madness
Why do more left-wing individuals tend to be more mentally ill?
3 months ago
Why do more left-wing individuals tend to be more mentally ill?
brr
The Beer Can
Connecting old and new.
a year ago
Blog - Practical...
The Wild Story of the Taum Sauk Dam Failure
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
Early in the morning of...
2 months ago
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
Early in the morning of December 14, 2005, pumps were nearly finished filling the upper reservoir at the Taum Sauk power station, marking the end of the daily cycle. Water rose to the top of the rockfill...
NeuroLogica Blog
Using Genetic Engineering To Fight Malaria
Despite robust efforts to fight it, malaria remains one of the most significant infectious diseases...
a year ago
Despite robust efforts to fight it, malaria remains one of the most significant infectious diseases affecting humans. According to UNICEF – ” In 2021, there were 247 million malaria cases globally that led to 619,000 deaths in total. Of these deaths, 77 per cent were children...
wadertales
Will head-starting work for Curlew?
83 captive-reared Curlew were released successfully in 2019, over 130 in 2021 and a similar number...
over a year ago
83 captive-reared Curlew were released successfully in 2019, over 130 in 2021 and a similar number in 2022 but this does not mean that head-starting is a solution to England’s Curlew problems. We don’t yet know the proportion of youngsters that survive the difficult ‘teenage...
wadertales
Inland feeding by coastal godwits
Species such as Dunlin and Knot are well-served by conservation measures that aim to protect...
over a year ago
Species such as Dunlin and Knot are well-served by conservation measures that aim to protect estuaries but the same is not necessarily true for Black-tailed Godwits. In a 2022 paper in the journal Wader Study, Clément Jourdan and colleagues describe the movements of ten tagged...
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...
Tikalon Blog by Dev...
Cold Brew Coffee
While employees are thankful for their employer's largesse in providing free coffee, any cursory...
5 months ago
While employees are thankful for their employer's largesse in providing free coffee, any cursory cost-benefit analysis shows that they get back more than they spend. Coffee's caffeine content boosts a person's focus and attention, and it reduces mental fatigue, all of these...
The Works in...
Youtube Rules
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
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Weird health insurance concepts | Out-Of-Pocket
Intercompany eliminations, copay shenanigans, and reference-based pricing
a month ago
Intercompany eliminations, copay shenanigans, and reference-based pricing
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.
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Provider Directories, Physician data, and Ribbon Health | Out-Of-Pocket
why can't I find any important info about my doctor lol
a year ago
why can't I find any important info about my doctor lol
Math Is Still...
Why the Human Brain Perceives Small Numbers Better
Neuroscientists recently discovered that small numbers have a different neural signature than larger...
a year ago
Neuroscientists recently discovered that small numbers have a different neural signature than larger ones, offering a new look into the brain’s number system and its connections to memory and mathematics.
The post Why the Human Brain Perceives Small Numbers Better...
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...
Cremieux Recueil
The Ottoman Origins of Modernity
Would we have the modern world without Islamic incursion into Southeastern Europe?
3 months ago
Would we have the modern world without Islamic incursion into Southeastern Europe?
Wanderingspace
Eclipse 2024 from Space
https://twitter.com/ThePlanetaryGuy
8 months ago
https://twitter.com/ThePlanetaryGuy
Sean Carroll
The Biggest Ideas in the Universe | 24. Science
For the triumphant final video in the Biggest Ideas series, we look at a big idea indeed: Science....
over a year ago
For the triumphant final video in the Biggest Ideas series, we look at a big idea indeed: Science. What is science, and why is it so great? And I also take the opportunity to dip a toe into the current state of fundamental physics — are predictions that unobservable universes...
Math Is Still...
How Does Math Keep Secrets?
Cryptography is the thread that connects Julius Caesar, World War II and quantum computing, and it...
4 months ago
Cryptography is the thread that connects Julius Caesar, World War II and quantum computing, and it now lies under nearly every part of modern life. In this week’s episode, computer scientist Boaz Barak and co-host Janna Levin discuss the past and future of secrecy. ...
Asterisk
The Great Inflection? A Debate About AI and Explosive Growth
A conversation about what happens to the economy when intelligence becomes too cheap to meter.
a year ago
A conversation about what happens to the economy when intelligence becomes too cheap to meter.
The Roots of...
Levels of safety for AI and other technologies
What does it mean for AI to be “safe”?
Right now there is a lot of debate about AI safety. But...
a year ago
What does it mean for AI to be “safe”?
Right now there is a lot of debate about AI safety. But people often end up talking past each other because they’re not using the same definitions or standards.
For the sake of productive debates, let me propose some distinctions to add...
Chris Grossack's...
Talk - Where Are The Open Sets?
I was invited to give a talk at HoTTEST 2022, and was more than
happy to accept! Ever since I was...
over a year ago
I was invited to give a talk at HoTTEST 2022, and was more than
happy to accept! Ever since I was first learning HoTT I was curious how
we could be sure that theorems in HoTT give us corresponding theorems in
“classical” homotopy theory. Earlier this summer I spent a lot of...
wadertales
Why count shorebirds? A tale from Portugal
The Sado Estuary is one of Portugal’s most important wetlands – a key link in the chain of sites...
a year ago
The Sado Estuary is one of Portugal’s most important wetlands – a key link in the chain of sites connecting Africa and the Arctic, on the East Atlantic Flyway. In a paper in Waterbirds, João Belo and colleagues analyse changes in numbers of waders wintering in this estuary over...
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
NeuroLogica Blog
Will Hydrogen BEV Hybrids Be A Thing?
I recently recorded a YouTube video on the notion of hydrogen fuel cell cars (it will be posted...
a year ago
I recently recorded a YouTube video on the notion of hydrogen fuel cell cars (it will be posted soon, and I will add the link when it’s up). One question I did not get into in the video, but which is an interesting thought experiment, is hydrogen – plug-in battery hybrid...
Math Is Still...
How to Build a Big Prime Number
A new algorithm brings together the advantages of randomness and deterministic processes to reliably...
a year ago
A new algorithm brings together the advantages of randomness and deterministic processes to reliably construct large prime numbers.
The post How to Build a Big Prime Number first appeared on Quanta Magazine
NeuroLogica Blog
AI-Fueled Scams
Digital life is getting more dangerous. Literally every day I have to fend off attempts at scamming...
7 months ago
Digital life is getting more dangerous. Literally every day I have to fend off attempts at scamming me in one way or another. I get texts trying to lure me into responding. I get e-mails hoping I will click a malicious link on a reflex. I get phone calls from people warning me...
Quantum Frontiers
The spirit of relativity
One of the most immersive steampunk novels I’ve read winks at an experiment performed in a...
over a year ago
One of the most immersive steampunk novels I’ve read winks at an experiment performed in a university I visited this month. The Watchmaker of Filigree Street, by Natasha Pulley, features a budding scientist named Grace Carrow. Grace attends Oxford as … Continue reading →
NeuroLogica Blog
Tong Test for Artificial General Intelligence
Most readers are probably familiar with the Turing Test – a concept proposed by early computing...
a year ago
Most readers are probably familiar with the Turing Test – a concept proposed by early computing expert Alan Turing in 1950, and originally called “The Imitation Game”. The original paper is enlightening to read. Turing was not trying to answer the question “can machines think”....
Eukaryote Writes...
A point of clarification on infohazard terminology
“Infohazard” means any kind of information that could be harmful in some fashion. Let’s use “memetic...
over a year ago
“Infohazard” means any kind of information that could be harmful in some fashion. Let’s use “memetic hazard” to describe information that could specifically harm the person who knows it.
Chris Grossack's...
Building Objects with Category Theory
Typically category theory is useful for showing the uniqueness
of certain objects by checking that...
a year ago
Typically category theory is useful for showing the uniqueness
of certain objects by checking that they satisfy some
universal property. This makes them unique up to unique isomorphism.
However, category theory can also be used in order to show that objects
exist at all, usually...
symmetry magazine
Physics fashion and collider couture
Symmetry is back with more physics-themed Halloween costumes.
a year ago
Symmetry is back with more physics-themed Halloween costumes.
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.
Math Is Still...
A Close-Up View Reveals the ‘Melting’ Point of an Infinite Graph
Just as ice melts to water, graphs undergo phase transitions. Two mathematicians showed that they...
a year ago
Just as ice melts to water, graphs undergo phase transitions. Two mathematicians showed that they can pinpoint such transitions by examining only local structure.
The post A Close-Up View Reveals the ‘Melting’ Point of an Infinite Graph first appeared on Quanta...
Uncharted...
🪐 How Will We Ride to Mars?
Do we need a station on the Moon? How hard is it to get to Mars? What are the main challenges?
2 months ago
Do we need a station on the Moon? How hard is it to get to Mars? What are the main challenges?
nanoscale views
News items for the new year
After I was not chosen to be Speaker of the US House of Representatives, I think it’s time to...
a year ago
After I was not chosen to be Speaker of the US House of Representatives, I think it’s time to highlight some brief items:
Here is a great blog post by a Rice grad alum, Daniel Gonzales, about flow to approach faculty searches. I had written a fair bit on this a number of years...
The Roots of...
Making every researcher seek grants is a broken model
When Galileo wanted to study the heavens through his telescope, he got money from those legendary...
11 months ago
When Galileo wanted to study the heavens through his telescope, he got money from those legendary patrons of the Renaissance, the Medici. To win their favor, when he discovered the moons of Jupiter, he named them the Medicean Stars. Other scientists and inventors offered flashy...
nanoscale views
Brief items - light-driven diamagnetism, nuclear recoil, spin transport in VO2
Real life continues to make itself felt in various ways this summer (and that's not even an allusion...
5 months ago
Real life continues to make itself felt in various ways this summer (and that's not even an allusion to political madness), but here are three papers (two from others and a self-indulgent plug for our work) you might find interesting.
There has been a lot of work in recent...
Cremieux Recueil
2024 SAT Data Drop
The College Board has just released the latest SAT data. Here's a review.
2 months ago
The College Board has just released the latest SAT data. Here's a review.
Math Is Still...
The Social Benefits of Getting Our Brains in Sync
Our brain waves can align when we work and play closely together. The phenomenon, known as...
8 months ago
Our brain waves can align when we work and play closely together. The phenomenon, known as interbrain synchrony, suggests that collaboration is biological.
The post The Social Benefits of Getting Our Brains in Sync first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Wanderingspace
New View of IO from JUNO!
From processor Ted Styrk, “The Juno Jupiter orbiter flew by Io, Jupiter's super-volcanic moon, on...
a year ago
From processor Ted Styrk, “The Juno Jupiter orbiter flew by Io, Jupiter's super-volcanic moon, on May 16, returning arguably the best imagery of the moon since the Galileo Orbiter around the beginning of this century. Definitely the best since New Horizons in 2006.”
Math Is Still...
To Defend the Genome, These Cells Destroy Their Own DNA
Under a microscope, cells in a worm embryo deliberately eliminated one-third of their genome — an...
a year ago
Under a microscope, cells in a worm embryo deliberately eliminated one-third of their genome — an uncompromising tactic that may combat harmful genetic parasites.
The post To Defend the Genome, These Cells Destroy Their Own DNA first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Math Is Still...
The Deep Link Equating Math Proofs and Computer Programs
Mathematical logic and the code of computer programs are, in an exact way, mirror images of each...
a year ago
Mathematical logic and the code of computer programs are, in an exact way, mirror images of each other.
The post The Deep Link Equating Math Proofs and Computer Programs first appeared on Quanta Magazine
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
The Works in...
Issue 17: No great stagnation in cruise ships
Plus: animals as chemical factories, how progress lost its glamour, and how Madrid built 120 miles...
2 weeks ago
Plus: animals as chemical factories, how progress lost its glamour, and how Madrid built 120 miles of metro in twelve years.
NeuroLogica Blog
Using Cement for Energy Storage
Imagine if every house, every building, came with 1-2 days (or possibly more) of energy storage....
a year ago
Imagine if every house, every building, came with 1-2 days (or possibly more) of energy storage. What if every wind turbine could store a day’s worth of the energy it produces on average? How beneficial would it be if the most common building material the world could be used to...
Math Is Still...
Hobbyist Finds Math’s Elusive ‘Einstein’ Tile
The surprisingly simple tile is the first single, connected tile that can fill the entire plane in a...
a year ago
The surprisingly simple tile is the first single, connected tile that can fill the entire plane in a pattern that never repeats — and can’t be made to fill it in a repeating way.
The post Hobbyist Finds Math’s Elusive ‘Einstein’ Tile first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Math Is Still...
How the Higgs Field (Actually) Gives Mass to Elementary Particles
In this article adapted from his new book, "Waves in an Impossible Sea," physicist Matt Strassler...
3 months ago
In this article adapted from his new book, "Waves in an Impossible Sea," physicist Matt Strassler explains that the origin of mass in the universe has a lot to do with music.
The post How the Higgs Field (Actually) Gives Mass to Elementary Particles first appeared on...
Quantum Frontiers
Astrobiology meets quantum computation?
The origin of life appears to share little with quantum computation, apart from the difficulty of...
a year ago
The origin of life appears to share little with quantum computation, apart from the difficulty of achieving it and its potential for clickbait. Yet similar notions of complexity have recently garnered attention in both fields. Each topic’s researchers expect only … Continue...
Willem Pennings
ClockSquared Mini, a word clock wristwatch
About a year ago, I had some time to spare over the summer and decided to challenge myself with a...
over a year ago
About a year ago, I had some time to spare over the summer and decided to challenge myself with a project that I call “Clocksquared Mini”. It is Clocksquared, but in a tiny wristwatch package. This gives rise to a major challenge, as everything has to be shrunk down approximately...
Math Is Still...
A New Idea for How to Assemble Life
If we want to understand complex constructions, such as ourselves, assembly theory says we must...
a year ago
If we want to understand complex constructions, such as ourselves, assembly theory says we must account for the entire history of how such entities came to be.
The post A New Idea for How to Assemble Life first appeared on Quanta Magazine
nanoscale views
APS March Meeting 2023, Day 2
I ended up spending more time catching up with people this afternoon than going to talks after my...
a year ago
I ended up spending more time catching up with people this afternoon than going to talks after my session ended, but here are a couple of highlights:
There was an invited session about the metal halide perovskites, and there were some interesting talks. My faculty colleague...
NeuroLogica Blog
Rats!
What killed off the dodo? Humans first arrived at Mauritius island in the late 1500s. They found on...
6 months ago
What killed off the dodo? Humans first arrived at Mauritius island in the late 1500s. They found on this island fat flightless birds who nested on the ground and were a convenient way to restock their ship’s food supply. Within 80 years the dodo went extinct. But hunting was not...
NeuroLogica Blog
ChatGPT Performs At University Level
We are still sorting out the strengths and weaknesses of the new crop of artificial intelligence...
a year ago
We are still sorting out the strengths and weaknesses of the new crop of artificial intelligence (AI) applications, the poster-child of which is ChatGPT. This is a so-called large language model application using a “generative pre-trained transformer”. Essentially these types of...
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
Tikalon Blog by Dev...
US Independence Day
Tikalon is on a short holiday in celebration of US Independence Day, July 4, 2024. Our next article...
5 months ago
Tikalon is on a short holiday in celebration of US Independence Day, July 4, 2024. Our next article will be posted on Monday, July 15, 2024. View my version of the iconic image of George Washington's crossing of the Delaware River in which he encounters some unusually large...
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...
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 Roots of...
Why consumerism is good actually
“Consumerism” came up in my recent interview with Elle Griffin of The Post. Here’s what I had to say...
a year ago
“Consumerism” came up in my recent interview with Elle Griffin of The Post. Here’s what I had to say (off the cuff):
I have to admit, I’ve never 100% understood what “consumerism” is, or what it’s supposed to be. I have the general sense of what people are gesturing at, but it...
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...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
GPT-3 x Healthcare: Democratizing AI | Out-Of-Pocket
ICD-10 vs. GPT-3, who will win?
a year ago
ICD-10 vs. GPT-3, who will win?
Math Is Still...
What Happens in a Mind That Can’t ‘See’ Mental Images
Neuroscience research into people with aphantasia, who don’t experience mental imagery, is revealing...
4 months ago
Neuroscience research into people with aphantasia, who don’t experience mental imagery, is revealing how imagination works and demonstrating the sweeping variety in our subjective experiences.
The post What Happens in a Mind That Can’t ‘See’ Mental Images first...
Chris Grossack's...
Life in Johnstone's Topological Topos 1 -- Fundamentals
I’ve been thinking a lot about the internal logic of topoi again, and I
want to have more examples...
5 months ago
I’ve been thinking a lot about the internal logic of topoi again, and I
want to have more examples of topoi that I understand well enough to
externalize some statements. There’s more to life than just a localic
$\mathsf{Sh}(B)$, and since I’m starting to feel like I understand...
Asterisk
My Primal Scream of Rage: The Big Alcohol Study That Didn't Happen
Five years ago, the National Institutes of Health cancelled the largest study on alcohol ever...
a year ago
Five years ago, the National Institutes of Health cancelled the largest study on alcohol ever planned. Here’s why — and why you should be mad too.
NeuroLogica Blog
Apologizing for Uri Geller
A recent New York Times article tries to rehabilitate the reputation of Uri Geller, famed...
a year ago
A recent New York Times article tries to rehabilitate the reputation of Uri Geller, famed spoon-bending magician, by simply telling a one-sided narrative. From my perspective as a skeptic, this was a terrible article that missed the real issue, glossed over glaring defects in...
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 Brain Region That Controls Movement Also Guides Feelings
The cerebellum is responsible for far more than coordinating movement. New techniques reveal that it...
11 months ago
The cerebellum is responsible for far more than coordinating movement. New techniques reveal that it is, in fact, a hub of sensory and emotional processing in the brain.
The post The Brain Region That Controls Movement Also Guides Feelings first appeared on Quanta...
Probably...
Standard deviation of a count
This post is part of a new project with the working title Data Q&A: Answering the real questions...
8 months ago
This post is part of a new project with the working title Data Q&A: Answering the real questions with Python. In each installment, I’ll take a question from Reddit’s statistics forum and answer it, using Python code to demonstrate. My answer is in a Jupyter notebook — see the...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Healthcare in India | Out-Of-Pocket
From the eyes of someone on the ground
a year ago
From the eyes of someone on the ground
nanoscale views
Items of interest
The time since the APS meeting has been very busy, hence the lack of posting. A few items of...
9 months ago
The time since the APS meeting has been very busy, hence the lack of posting. A few items of interest:
The present issue of Nature Physics has several articles about physics education that I really want to read.
This past week we hosted N. Peter Armitage for a really fun...
Casey Handmer's blog
Solar and batteries for generic use cases
A brief note on using solar and batteries as generic power sources. Over the last few years of work...
a month ago
A brief note on using solar and batteries as generic power sources. Over the last few years of work at Terraform Industries, we’ve developed several useful heuristics to understand how rapid progress in solar and battery costs will change industry. This includes the bifurcation...
Asterisk
Why We Shut Down
In international development, it’s not enough to try to do good. We need the tools to tell if a...
5 months ago
In international development, it’s not enough to try to do good. We need the tools to tell if a project is really working — and the incentive to end it if it’s not.
Math Is Still...
Brain’s ‘Background Noise’ May Explain Value of Shock Therapy
Electroconvulsive therapy is highly effective in treating major depressive disorder, but no one...
9 months ago
Electroconvulsive therapy is highly effective in treating major depressive disorder, but no one knows why it works. New research suggests it may restore balance between excitation and inhibition in the brain.
The post Brain’s ‘Background Noise’ May Explain Value of...
Math Is Still...
The Year in Math
Landmark results in Ramsey theory and a remarkably simple aperiodic tile capped a year of...
a year ago
Landmark results in Ramsey theory and a remarkably simple aperiodic tile capped a year of mathematical delight and discovery.
The post The Year in Math first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Asterisk
Pew Problems
A conversation about religion, fertility, and the American family.
a year ago
A conversation about religion, fertility, and the American family.
Cremieux Recueil
Evaluating a Sitting Senator's Healthcare Claims
If you're a public official who wants to to use numbers, use correct numbers, and if you're going to...
4 days ago
If you're a public official who wants to to use numbers, use correct numbers, and if you're going to speculate, try not so speculate wildly, lest you end up telling brazen lies to the American people
Confessions of a...
Reflections of a postgrad lecturer-in-training: Part 1
In a previous post, I mentioned that I was beginning a stint as postgraduate teaching intern at UWA,...
over a year ago
In a previous post, I mentioned that I was beginning a stint as postgraduate teaching intern at UWA, and that part of the internship involved keeping a reflective journal. So I’ve decided that instead of merely writing down my thoughts (and possibly becoming lazy about it as the...
Cremieux Recueil
Grading the World's Shortest Manifesto
It gets an F and the student has earned the death penalty
a week ago
It gets an F and the student has earned the death penalty
Math Is Still...
How Many Microbes Does It Take to Make You Sick?
Exposure to a virus isn’t an all-or-nothing proposition. The concept of “infectious dose” suggests...
a year ago
Exposure to a virus isn’t an all-or-nothing proposition. The concept of “infectious dose” suggests ways to keep ourselves safer from harm.
The post How Many Microbes Does It Take to Make You Sick? first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Blog - Practical...
4 Myths About Construction Debunked
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
Construction is something you...
over a year ago
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
Construction is something you probably either love or hate, depending on your commute or profession. Obviously, as a civil engineer, it’s something I think a lot about, and over the past 6 years of reading...
Math Is Still...
Can Psychedelics Improve Mental Health?
Research suggests that psychedelic drugs can reopen critical periods of brain development to create...
6 months ago
Research suggests that psychedelic drugs can reopen critical periods of brain development to create opportunities for re-learning and psychological healing. In this episode, co-host Janna Levin speaks with Gül Dölen, a neuroscientist studying the therapeutic potential of...
nanoscale views
A few quick highlights
It's been a very busy time, hence my lower posting frequency. It was rather intense trying to...
a year ago
It's been a very busy time, hence my lower posting frequency. It was rather intense trying to attend both the KITP conference and the morning sessions of the DOE experimental condensed matter PI meeting (pdf of agenda here). A few quick highlights that I thought were...
IEEE Spectrum
100 Years Ago, IBM Was Born
Happy birthday, IBM! You’re 100 years old! Or are you?
It’s true that the businesses that formed IBM...
10 months ago
Happy birthday, IBM! You’re 100 years old! Or are you?
It’s true that the businesses that formed IBM began in the late 1800s. But it’s also true that a birth occurred in February 1924, with the renaming of the Computing-Tabulating-Recording Co. as the International Business...
Math Is Still...
Tiny Language Models Come of Age
To better understand how neural networks learn to simulate writing, researchers trained simpler...
a year ago
To better understand how neural networks learn to simulate writing, researchers trained simpler versions on synthetic children’s stories.
The post Tiny Language Models Come of Age first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Blog - Practical...
The Hidden Engineering of Wildlife Crossings
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
This is the Wallis Annenberg...
5 days ago
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
This is the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing under construction over the 101 just outside Los Angeles, California. When it’s finished in a few years, it will be the largest wildlife crossing (*of its kind) on...
The Works in...
Links in Progress: All the single people
And how China will lose 51 million people in 10 years
5 days ago
And how China will lose 51 million people in 10 years
nanoscale views
Some interesting recent papers - lots to ponder
As we bid apparent farewell to LK99, it's important to note that several other pretty exciting...
a year ago
As we bid apparent farewell to LK99, it's important to note that several other pretty exciting things have been happening in the condensed matter/nano world. Here are a few papers that look intriguing (caveat emptor: I have not had a chance to read these in any real depth, so...
brr
Frost
Everyday objects, but cold.
a year ago
Everyday objects, but cold.
Math Is Still...
Neural Networks Need Data to Learn. Even If It’s Fake.
Real data can be hard to get, so researchers are turning to synthetic data to train their artificial...
a year ago
Real data can be hard to get, so researchers are turning to synthetic data to train their artificial intelligence systems.
The post Neural Networks Need Data to Learn. Even If It’s Fake. first appeared on Quanta Magazine
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...
NeuroLogica Blog
Evidence Suggests Lunar Cave
Astronomers have discovered multiple “pits” on the surface of the moon – these look superficially...
5 months ago
Astronomers have discovered multiple “pits” on the surface of the moon – these look superficially like craters, but on closer inspection are actually vertical pits. There has been considerable speculation that these pits might be cave openings. Now, an analysis of data from the...
Math Is Still...
Mollusk Eyes Reveal How Future Evolution Depends on the Past
The visual systems of an obscure group of mollusks provide a rare natural example of path-dependent...
9 months ago
The visual systems of an obscure group of mollusks provide a rare natural example of path-dependent evolution, in which a critical fork in the creatures’ past determined their evolutionary futures.
The post Mollusk Eyes Reveal How Future Evolution Depends on the Past...
Math Is Still...
Mathematicians Attempt to Glimpse Past the Big Bang
By studying the geometry of model space-times, researchers offer alternative views of the universe’s...
6 months ago
By studying the geometry of model space-times, researchers offer alternative views of the universe’s first moments.
The post Mathematicians Attempt to Glimpse Past the Big Bang first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Interaction Magic -...
The UX of LEGO Interface Panels
LEGO interface panels are beautiful, iconic, and great for learning interface design basics. I...
over a year ago
LEGO interface panels are beautiful, iconic, and great for learning interface design basics. I bought 52 of them from BrickLink to explore the design, layout and organisation of complex interfaces.
Out-of-Pocket Blog
The New (Experimental) Ways To Tackle The Mental Health Crisis | Out-Of-Pocket
let's try some new stuff to scale mental health care
a year ago
let's try some new stuff to scale mental health care
The Works in...
ARIA: Betting on science
An inside look at Britain's new DARPA
a year ago
An inside look at Britain's new DARPA
Math Is Still...
Are Robots About to Level Up?
Today’s AI largely lives in computers, but acting and reacting in the real world — that’s the realm...
4 months ago
Today’s AI largely lives in computers, but acting and reacting in the real world — that’s the realm of robots. In this week’s episode, co-host Steven Strogatz talks with pioneering roboticist Daniela Rus about creativity, collaboration, and the unusual forms robots of the future...
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...
Math Is Still...
Does Nothingness Exist?
Even empty space bubbles with energy, according to quantum mechanics — and that fact affects almost...
a year ago
Even empty space bubbles with energy, according to quantum mechanics — and that fact affects almost every facet of physical reality. The theoretical physicist Isabel Garcia Garcia explains to Steven Strogatz why it’s so important in modern physics to understand what a true vacuum...
NeuroLogica Blog
Controlling the Narrative with AI
There is an ongoing battle in our society to control the narrative, to influence the flow of...
10 months ago
There is an ongoing battle in our society to control the narrative, to influence the flow of information, and thereby move the needle on what people think and how they behave. This is nothing new, but the mechanisms for controlling the narrative are evolving as our communication...
NeuroLogica Blog
Carbon Fiber Structural Battery
I have written previously about the concept of structural batteries, such as this recent post on a...
3 months ago
I have written previously about the concept of structural batteries, such as this recent post on a concrete battery. The basic idea is a battery made out of material that is strong enough that it can bare a load. Essentially we’re asking the material to do two things at once – be...
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
ToughSF
Nuclear Conversion for Starship
There has been much discussion about converting the SpaceX Starship to use nuclear propulsion. It...
over a year ago
There has been much discussion about converting the SpaceX Starship to use nuclear propulsion. It would allow for a great increase in specific impulse and a massive extension of mission capabilities.
But is it actually worthwhile?
The image above is modified from...
Math Is Still...
The Geometric Tool That Solved Einstein’s Relativity Problem
Tensors are used all over math and science to reveal hidden geometric truths. What are they? ...
4 months ago
Tensors are used all over math and science to reveal hidden geometric truths. What are they?
The post The Geometric Tool That Solved Einstein’s Relativity Problem first appeared on Quanta Magazine
nanoscale views
Seeing through your head - diffuse imaging
From the medical diagnostic perspective (and for many other applications), you can understand why it...
2 weeks ago
From the medical diagnostic perspective (and for many other applications), you can understand why it might be very convenient to be able to perform some kind of optical imaging of the interior of what you'd ordinarily consider opaque objects. Even when a wavelength range is...
Probably...
Hazard and Survival
Here’s a question from the Reddit statistics forum. If I have a tumor that I’ve been told has a...
3 weeks ago
Here’s a question from the Reddit statistics forum. If I have a tumor that I’ve been told has a malignancy rate of 2% per year, does that compound? So after 5 years there’s a 10% chance it will turn malignant? This turns out to be an interesting question, because the answer...
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...
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...
symmetry magazine
How to put together an international physics experiment
To build the DUNE neutrino experiment and its associated accelerator upgrade, experts invent...
a year ago
To build the DUNE neutrino experiment and its associated accelerator upgrade, experts invent customized ways to transport fragile, expensive and highly specialized components.
On a late-September day, in the high-bay building of Daresbury Laboratory in the...
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...
Math Is Still...
Big Advance on Simple-Sounding Math Problem Was a Century in the Making
A new proof about prime numbers illuminates the subtle relationship between addition and...
2 months ago
A new proof about prime numbers illuminates the subtle relationship between addition and multiplication — and raises hopes for progress on the famous abc conjecture.
The post Big Advance on Simple-Sounding Math Problem Was a Century in the Making first appeared on...
Damn Interesting
Giving the Bird the Bird
We’re not going to post things on Twitter X anymore. The new owner keeps doing awful stuff. If you...
a year ago
We’re not going to post things on Twitter X anymore. The new owner keeps doing awful stuff. If you have enjoyed our mostly-daily curated links via the aforementioned collapsing service, we invite you to bookmark our curated links page, or follow us a number of other ways.
Rather...
Probably...
Bootstrapping a Proportion
It’s another installment in Data Q&A: Answering the real questions with Python. Previous...
2 months ago
It’s another installment in Data Q&A: Answering the real questions with Python. Previous installments are available from the Data Q&A landing page. Here’s a question from the Reddit statistics forum. How do I use bootstrapping to generate confidence intervals for a...
Drew Ex Machina
Tropical Weather Analytics and Phantom Space Partner on Hurricane Hunter Satellite Constellation
Tropical Weather Analytics, Inc. (TWA), with a revolutionary 3D measurement capability for improved...
a year ago
Tropical Weather Analytics, Inc. (TWA), with a revolutionary 3D measurement capability for improved hurricane forecasting and weather intelligence, is announcing a strategic partnership with Phantom Space […]
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...
The Works in...
Gentrification as a housing problem
The root cause of displacement is inflexible supply
5 months ago
The root cause of displacement is inflexible supply
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...
Math Is Still...
Is It Real or Imagined? How Your Brain Tells the Difference.
New experiments show that the brain distinguishes between perceived and imagined mental images by...
a year ago
New experiments show that the brain distinguishes between perceived and imagined mental images by checking whether they cross a “reality threshold.”
The post Is It Real or Imagined? How Your Brain Tells the Difference. first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Quantum Frontiers
What is the logical gate speed of a photonic quantum computer?
Terry Rudolph, PsiQuantum & Imperial College London During a recent visit to the wild western town...
a year ago
Terry Rudolph, PsiQuantum & Imperial College London During a recent visit to the wild western town of Pasadena I got into a shootout at high-noon trying to explain the nuances of this question to a colleague. Here is a more … Continue reading →
The Works in...
Notes on Progress: A winter's tale
Melting snow can make the season easier
a year ago
Melting snow can make the season easier
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...
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...
symmetry magazine
Applications of quantum mechanics at the beach
How does sunscreen work on the atomic level?
a year ago
How does sunscreen work on the atomic level?
IEEE Spectrum
The Marimba Virtuoso’s Desktop Planetarium
The United States was at the time approaching “peak space.” The previous year, cosmonaut Yuri...
a year ago
The United States was at the time approaching “peak space.” The previous year, cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin had become the first human to reach outer space, and on 12 September 1962 President Kennedy would announce the United States’ intention to put a man on the moon before the...
Math Is Still...
Microbes Gained Photosynthesis Superpowers From a ‘Proton Pump’
New research reveals how marine microbes use an extra membrane that once had digestive functions to...
a year ago
New research reveals how marine microbes use an extra membrane that once had digestive functions to boost their yield from photosynthesis.
The post Microbes Gained Photosynthesis Superpowers From a ‘Proton Pump’ first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Asterisk
Want Growth? Kill Small Businesses
The central question of development economics is simple: how can poor countries become rich? The...
5 months ago
The central question of development economics is simple: how can poor countries become rich? The answer is neither small-scale, targeted interventions nor broad generalizations about growth. Instead, we should focus on firms.
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...
Blog - Practical...
HEAVY CONSTRUCTION of a Sewage Pump Station - Ep 1
Check out our new series! This is the first episode of a five-part pilot series to gauge your...
a year ago
Check out our new series! This is the first episode of a five-part pilot series to gauge your interest in "How It's Made"-esque heavy construction videos. Drop a comment or send me an email to let me know what you think! Watch on YouTube above or ad-free on Nebula here.
The Roots of...
Quote quiz answer
Here’s the answer to the recent quote quiz:
The author was Ted Kaczynski, aka the Unabomber. The...
a year ago
Here’s the answer to the recent quote quiz:
The author was Ted Kaczynski, aka the Unabomber. The quote was taken from his manifesto, “Industrial Society and Its Future.” Here’s a slightly longer, and unaltered, quote:
First let us postulate that the computer scientists succeed in...
NeuroLogica Blog
Harvesting Energy from Water Vapor
I did not plan to write yet another post about energy, but this popped up and I had to write about...
a year ago
I did not plan to write yet another post about energy, but this popped up and I had to write about it. UMASS researchers have produced a device that generates electricity by harvesting charge from water vapor. They write: The common feature of these materials is that they are...
Confessions of a...
Marine science, the environment, and the 2013 Australian election
I’ve been a bit reluctant to write about the upcoming election in this blog; after all the point of...
over a year ago
I’ve been a bit reluctant to write about the upcoming election in this blog; after all the point of this blog has never been about anything political! However, for better or worse the state of our environment (including our oceans) are inextricably linked to politics, so here...
NeuroLogica Blog
Hunger Circuitry
One of the organizing principles that govern living organisms is homeostasis. This is a key feature...
a year ago
One of the organizing principles that govern living organisms is homeostasis. This is a key feature of being alive – maintaining homeostatic equilibrium both internally and externally. Homeostatic systems usually involve multiple feedback loops that maintain some physiological...
NeuroLogica Blog
A Lifecycle Analysis of Electric Vehicles
This article is part of my informal series on EVs, sorting through the claims, reality, and...
a year ago
This article is part of my informal series on EVs, sorting through the claims, reality, and propaganda. There are many complicated factors to sort through, but overall, in my opinion, most concerns about EVs are outdated or overblown. There are definitely locations and use...
NeuroLogica Blog
Big Ring Challenges Cosmological Principle
University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) PhD student Alexia Lopez, who two years ago discovered a...
11 months ago
University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) PhD student Alexia Lopez, who two years ago discovered a giant arc of galaxy clusters in the distant universe, has now discovered a Big Ring. This (if real) is one of the largest structures in the observable universe at 1.3 billion light...
symmetry magazine
Vera C. Rubin Observatory brings the universe to everyone
The Rubin Observatory is making education and outreach a top priority.
a year ago
The Rubin Observatory is making education and outreach a top priority.
Sean Carroll
George B. Field, 1929-2024
George Field, brilliant theoretical astrophysicist and truly great human being, passed away on the...
4 months ago
George Field, brilliant theoretical astrophysicist and truly great human being, passed away on the morning of July 31. He was my Ph.D. thesis advisor and one of my favorite people in the world. I often tell my own students that the two most important people in your life who you...
Math Is Still...
How to Build an Origami Computer
Two mathematicians have shown that origami can, in principle, be used to perform any possible...
10 months ago
Two mathematicians have shown that origami can, in principle, be used to perform any possible computation.
The post How to Build an Origami Computer first appeared on Quanta Magazine
NeuroLogica Blog
Oldest Evidence of Humans In Americas
Exactly when Homo sapiens came to the Americas has not been firmly established, and new evidence has...
a year ago
Exactly when Homo sapiens came to the Americas has not been firmly established, and new evidence has just thrown another curve ball into the controversy. There is evidence of a large culture of humans throughout North America from 12-13,000 years ago, called the Clovis Culture....
Out-of-Pocket Blog
AI in healthcare - defensibility, capabilities, and cost reduction | Out-Of-Pocket
7 months ago
Wanderingspace
Dust Storm On Mars
A dust storm in Olympia Planum's north polar dune fields was triggered by a late Martian summer cold...
8 months ago
A dust storm in Olympia Planum's north polar dune fields was triggered by a late Martian summer cold front. As the northern polar cap shrinks fast, it releases cold air that sometimes moves south, like on Earth. These cold fronts strengthen in late summer and early fall due to...
Math Is Still...
Hopes of Big Bang Discoveries Ride on a Future Spacecraft
Physicists and cosmologists will have a new probe of primordial processes when Europe launches the...
8 months ago
Physicists and cosmologists will have a new probe of primordial processes when Europe launches the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) next decade.
The post Hopes of Big Bang Discoveries Ride on a Future Spacecraft first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Math Is Still...
How (Nearly) Nothing Might Solve Cosmology’s Biggest Questions
By measuring the universe’s emptiest spaces, scientists can study how matter clumps together and how...
a year ago
By measuring the universe’s emptiest spaces, scientists can study how matter clumps together and how fast it flies apart.
The post How (Nearly) Nothing Might Solve Cosmology’s Biggest Questions first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Math Is Still...
How the Square Root of 2 Became a Number
Useful mathematical concepts, like the number line, can linger for millennia before they are...
6 months ago
Useful mathematical concepts, like the number line, can linger for millennia before they are rigorously defined.
The post How the Square Root of 2 Became a Number first appeared on Quanta Magazine
symmetry magazine
Listening to the radio on the far side of the moon
LuSEE-Night will demonstrate whether an experiment to search for ancient radio signals can survive...
a year ago
LuSEE-Night will demonstrate whether an experiment to search for ancient radio signals can survive the moon’s unforgiving environment.
Math Is Still...
Debate May Help AI Models Converge on Truth
How do we know if a large language model is lying? Letting AI systems argue with each other may help...
a month ago
How do we know if a large language model is lying? Letting AI systems argue with each other may help expose the truth.
The post Debate May Help AI Models Converge on Truth first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Light from Space
The Path to the Pillars of Creation
Famously photographed by the Hubble Space Telescope, here's my first look at the Pillars of Creation...
over a year ago
Famously photographed by the Hubble Space Telescope, here's my first look at the Pillars of Creation in the Eagle Nebula (Messier 16).
Total exposure time: 16h 5m
Shot from my driveway near Tucson, AZ in April & May 2022
Telescope: William Optics RedCat 51 (250mm focal length ƒ
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 ›
Blog - Practical...
Engineering The Largest Nuclear Fusion Reactor
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
This is my friend Jade,...
a year ago
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
This is my friend Jade, creator of the Up and Atom channel. She makes these incredible math and physics explainers that I absolutely love, and she recently got the opportunity to visit ITER (eater) in France....
Math Is Still...
Cryptographers Discover a New Foundation for Quantum Secrecy
Researchers have proved that secure quantum encryption is possible in a world without hard problems....
6 months ago
Researchers have proved that secure quantum encryption is possible in a world without hard problems.
The post Cryptographers Discover a New Foundation for Quantum Secrecy first appeared on Quanta Magazine
brr
South Pole Signage
Please close doors quietly!
a year ago
Please close doors quietly!
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...
Beautiful Public...
Visualizing Rivers and Floodplains with USGS Data
Using USGS elevation data to visualize stunning views of the flow of water through rivers and...
over a year ago
Using USGS elevation data to visualize stunning views of the flow of water through rivers and floodplains.
Explorations of an...
Borneo 2024: Introduction And Pre-Tour Birding
About a month ago, I returned to Sabah in east Malaysia for my fourth tour of duty as a guide for...
a month ago
About a month ago, I returned to Sabah in east Malaysia for my fourth tour of duty as a guide for Quest Nature Tours. I've always said that Borneo is one of my favourite tours that I run and even after three previous trips I was looking forward to returning. One of the main...
Math Is Still...
The Year in Computer Science
Researchers got a better look at chatbots’ thoughts, amateurs learned just how complicated simple...
3 days ago
Researchers got a better look at chatbots’ thoughts, amateurs learned just how complicated simple systems can be, and codes became expert self-fixers.
The post The Year in Computer Science first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Math Is Still...
How Did Altruism Evolve?
If evolution favors the survival of the fittest, where did the impulse to help others come from?...
10 months ago
If evolution favors the survival of the fittest, where did the impulse to help others come from? Host Janna Levin speaks with Stephanie Preston, a neuropsychologist who studies the biology of altruism.
The post How Did Altruism Evolve? first appeared on Quanta...
NeuroLogica Blog
Light and Distance in an Expanding Universe
Commenter Lal asks in the topic suggestions: “Media reports that light has been travelling from that...
6 months ago
Commenter Lal asks in the topic suggestions: “Media reports that light has been travelling from that distant galaxy for 13 and a half billion years, which I assume is true, but this neither represents the original nor the current distance to that galaxy in terms of light years. I...
Blog - Practical...
HEAVY CONSTRUCTION of a Sewage Pump Station - Ep 4
This is the fourth episode of a five-part pilot series to gauge your interest in "How It's...
a year ago
This is the fourth episode of a five-part pilot series to gauge your interest in "How It's Made"-esque heavy construction videos. Drop a comment or send me an email to let me know what you think! Watch on YouTube above or ad-free on Nebula here.
Math Is Still...
The Simple Geometry That Predicts Molecular Mosaics
By treating molecules as geometric tessellations, scientists devised a new way to forecast how 2D...
a year ago
By treating molecules as geometric tessellations, scientists devised a new way to forecast how 2D materials might self-assemble.
The post The Simple Geometry That Predicts Molecular Mosaics first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Bartosz Ciechanowski
Mechanical Watch
In the world of modern portable devices, it may be hard to believe that merely a few decades ago the...
over a year ago
In the world of modern portable devices, it may be hard to believe that merely a few decades ago the most convenient way to keep track of time was a mechanical watch. Unlike their quartz and smart siblings, mechanical watches can run without using any batteries or other...
NeuroLogica Blog
Being Trans Is Not A Mental Illness
On the current episode of the SGU, because it is pride month, we expressed our general support for...
a year ago
On the current episode of the SGU, because it is pride month, we expressed our general support for the LGBTQ community. I also opined about how important it is to respect individual liberty, the freedom to simply live your authentic life as you choose, and how ironic it is that...
Explorations of an...
The Terror Bird's Relative
January 21, 2023
Laura and I left Salta before dawn so that we could be at our first birding...
a year ago
January 21, 2023
Laura and I left Salta before dawn so that we could be at our first birding location nice and early. The forecasted weather would be few degrees warmer than normal summer temperatures, and we wanted to make the most of our morning.
Our goal for the day was to...
The Works in...
Degrowth and the monkey's paw
Fifteen years ago, when I worked in the “social innovation” field, there was a world-view that was...
a year ago
Fifteen years ago, when I worked in the “social innovation” field, there was a world-view that was very popular among my colleagues about what was wrong with society and how to fix it. The idea was that people and governments needed to stop seeing economic growth as a good thing,...
Math Is Still...
Can Thermodynamics Go Quantum?
The Industrial Revolution brought us the laws of thermodynamics, and new ideas about work, energy...
3 months ago
The Industrial Revolution brought us the laws of thermodynamics, and new ideas about work, energy and efficiency. In this episode, co-host Steven Strogatz speaks with theoretical physicist Nicole Yunger Halpern about what these concepts might mean in the age of quantum mechanics....
Explorations of an...
The End Of An Era - Reflections On Our Travels
(Written on April 23, 2023)
In just a few days time, Laura and I will board a jet bound for another...
a year ago
(Written on April 23, 2023)
In just a few days time, Laura and I will board a jet bound for another international destination. Our flight home to Toronto isn't that unique of a scenario, as we have flown on plenty of planes headed home since we began our international travels...
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
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.
nanoscale views
Brief items
A few tidbits that I encountered recently:
The saga of Ranga Dias at Rochester draws to a close,...
4 weeks ago
A few tidbits that I encountered recently:
The saga of Ranga Dias at Rochester draws to a close, as described by the Wall Street Journal. It took quite some time for this to propagate through their system. This is after multiple internal investigations that somehow were...
Math Is Still...
Unfolding the Mysteries of Polygonal Billiards
The surprisingly subtle geometry of a familiar game shows how quickly math gets complicated. ...
10 months ago
The surprisingly subtle geometry of a familiar game shows how quickly math gets complicated.
The post Unfolding the Mysteries of Polygonal Billiards first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Probably...
Think Python third edition!
I am happy to announce the third edition of Think Python, which will be published by O’Reilly Media...
10 months ago
I am happy to announce the third edition of Think Python, which will be published by O’Reilly Media later this year. You can read the online version of the book here. I’ve posted the Preface and the first four chapters — more on the way soon! You can read the Early Release and...
Quantum Frontiers
Discoveries at the Dibner
This past summer, our quantum thermodynamics research group had the wonderful opportunity to visit...
10 months ago
This past summer, our quantum thermodynamics research group had the wonderful opportunity to visit the Dibner Rare Book Library in D.C. Located in a small corner of the Smithsonian National Museum of American History, tucked away behind flashier exhibits, the Dibner is … Continue...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
How To Self-Publish A Children's Book and How Much You Can Expect To Make | Out-Of-Pocket
spoiler: you will make very little lol
a year ago
spoiler: you will make very little lol
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...
Notes on Progress: Selective breeding and chicken welfare
We've bred larger and larger chickens. Now can we breed happier ones?
over a year ago
We've bred larger and larger chickens. Now can we breed happier ones?
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
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 Theory Unites Gravity and Quantum Mechanics
One of the greatest mysteries of modern science is how to unite the two overarching theories of...
a year ago
One of the greatest mysteries of modern science is how to unite the two overarching theories of physics – quantum mechanics and general relativity. If physicists could somehow unite these two theories, which currently do not play well together, then we might get to a deeper “one...
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.
NeuroLogica Blog
AC vs DC and other Power Questions
I was away last week, first at CSICON and then at a conference in Dubai. I was invited to give a 9...
a month ago
I was away last week, first at CSICON and then at a conference in Dubai. I was invited to give a 9 hour seminar on scientific skepticism for the Dubai Future Foundation. That sounds like a lot of time, but it isn’t. It was a good reminder of the vast body of knowledge that is...
NeuroLogica Blog
How Much Carbon do Living Things Store?
Since we are in a “all hands on deck” situation when it comes to climate change, we need to take a...
a year ago
Since we are in a “all hands on deck” situation when it comes to climate change, we need to take a look at all potential strategies for delaying and blunting global warming. The game at this point is all about peak warming – how much will the Earth warm before temperatures peak...
Willem Pennings
Balancing cube
This cube manages to balance itself on a corner, and can simultaneously rotate around its axis in a...
10 months ago
This cube manages to balance itself on a corner, and can simultaneously rotate around its axis in a controlled manner. It does so using clever controls and a set of three reaction wheels. The original idea for this device comes from researchers at ETH Zürich, who demonstrate...
nanoscale views
Meetings this week
This week is the 2023 DOE experimental condensed matter physics PI meeting - in the past I’ve...
a year ago
This week is the 2023 DOE experimental condensed matter physics PI meeting - in the past I’ve written up highlights of these here (2021), here (2019), here (2017), here (2015), and here (2013). This year, I am going to have to present remotely, however, because I am giving a...
Math Is Still...
Quanta Relaunches Hyperjumps Math Game
Explore a universe of numbers and arithmetic in our new and improved interactive math game,...
10 months ago
Explore a universe of numbers and arithmetic in our new and improved interactive math game, Hyperjumps!
The post Quanta Relaunches Hyperjumps Math Game first appeared on Quanta Magazine
nanoscale views
Thoughts on undergrad solid-state content
Figuring out what to include in an undergraduate introduction to solid-state physics course is...
8 months ago
Figuring out what to include in an undergraduate introduction to solid-state physics course is always a challenge. Books like the present incarnation of Kittel are overstuffed with more content than can readily fit in a one-semester course, and because that book has grown...
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...
Fossilized Molecules Reveal a Lost World of Ancient Life
A new analysis of ancient sediments fills a gap in the fossil record — revealing a massive dynasty...
a year ago
A new analysis of ancient sediments fills a gap in the fossil record — revealing a massive dynasty of ancient eukaryotes, which may have reigned for 800 million years and shaped the history of life of Earth.
The post Fossilized Molecules Reveal a Lost World of Ancient...
NeuroLogica Blog
Gradient Nanostructured Steel
Science fiction writers, who have to think deeply about the possible nature of future technology,...
a year ago
Science fiction writers, who have to think deeply about the possible nature of future technology, often invent new sci-fi materials in order to make their future technology seem plausible. They seem to understand the critical role that material science plays in advancing...
Math Is Still...
The S-Matrix Is the Oracle Physicists Turn To in Times of Crisis
Particle physicists in search of the next theory of reality are consulting a mathematical structure...
7 months ago
Particle physicists in search of the next theory of reality are consulting a mathematical structure that they know will never fail: a table of possibilities known as the S-matrix.
The post The S-Matrix Is the Oracle Physicists Turn To in Times of Crisis first appeared...
Math Is Still...
Cryptography Tricks Make a Hard Problem a Little Easier
Researchers have shown how to find the simplest description of a data set faster than by simply ...
8 months ago
Researchers have shown how to find the simplest description of a data set faster than by simply checking every possibility.
The post Cryptography Tricks Make a Hard Problem a Little Easier first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Asterisk
Crash Testing GPT-4
Can we tell if an AI model is safe before it’s released? The group that tested GPT–4 is trying to...
a year ago
Can we tell if an AI model is safe before it’s released? The group that tested GPT–4 is trying to figure out how.
Math Is Still...
An Enormous Gravity ‘Hum’ Moves Through the Universe
Astronomers have found a background din of exceptionally long-wavelength gravitational waves...
a year ago
Astronomers have found a background din of exceptionally long-wavelength gravitational waves pervading the cosmos.
The post An Enormous Gravity ‘Hum’ Moves Through the Universe first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Out-of-Pocket Blog
More weird rules in healthcare | Out-Of-Pocket
3 liters of blood, sequential billing, COBRA, and more
6 months ago
3 liters of blood, sequential billing, COBRA, and more
Explorations of an...
Monsoon Season In Arizona, Part 3: Hunter Canyon to Portal
September 2, 2024
We awoke to another beautiful sunrise in the Huachuca Mountains. I could get used...
2 months ago
September 2, 2024
We awoke to another beautiful sunrise in the Huachuca Mountains. I could get used to this view.
View from Beatty's Guest Ranch - Miller Canyon, Cochise County, Arizona
This was our final morning in this region; we had plans to make the long drive eastwards...
Cremieux Recueil
Trump Should Finish What He Started
A guestpost calling for Trump to finish radically reforming the tax system
3 weeks ago
A guestpost calling for Trump to finish radically reforming the tax system
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...
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...
‘The Rest of the World Disappears’: Claire Voisin on Mathematical Creativity
The recipient of the 2024 Crafoord Prize in Mathematics discusses math as art, math as language, and...
9 months ago
The recipient of the 2024 Crafoord Prize in Mathematics discusses math as art, math as language, and math as abstract thought.
The post ‘The Rest of the World Disappears’: Claire Voisin on Mathematical Creativity first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Math Is Still...
Overexposure Distorted the Science of Mirror Neurons
After a decade out of the spotlight, the brain cells once alleged to explain empathy, autism and...
8 months ago
After a decade out of the spotlight, the brain cells once alleged to explain empathy, autism and theory of mind are being refined and redefined.
The post Overexposure Distorted the Science of Mirror Neurons 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...
The Works in...
Apply to come to Invisible College
Our new residential seminar for 18 to 22-year-olds, during August 2024
8 months ago
Our new residential seminar for 18 to 22-year-olds, during August 2024
Cremieux Recueil
Food Deserts Are Not Real
They're more like bad habit neighborhoods
3 months ago
They're more like bad habit neighborhoods
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
Bubble Nebula and Neighborhood
The constellation of Cassiopeia is full of rich gas clouds and a myriad of different Nebulas and...
over a year ago
The constellation of Cassiopeia is full of rich gas clouds and a myriad of different Nebulas and Star Clusters.
Click or tap to enlarge/double-tap to zoom
Total exposure time: 37h 20m (134,400s)
Image resolution: 4,784 × 6,840px (1.919″/px)
Shot from my driveway near
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...
The Roots of...
Can we “cure” cancer?
In an excellent recent essay on “big visions for biology,” Sam Rodriques writes:
Ask most biologists...
a year ago
In an excellent recent essay on “big visions for biology,” Sam Rodriques writes:
Ask most biologists about the cure for cancer, and they will tell you it doesn’t exist: cancer is many diseases that are mostly unrelated to each other, and that all have to be cured one at a...
Wanderingspace
Space-X Looking Like 2001 Space Odyssey
Amazing shot. Looks like a movie.
a year ago
Amazing shot. Looks like a movie.
Melting Asphalt
Outbreak
Harry Stevens at The Washington Post recently published a very elegant simulation of how a disease...
over a year ago
Harry Stevens at The Washington Post recently published a very elegant simulation of how a disease like COVID-19 spreads. If you haven't already, I highly recommend checking it out. Today I want to follow up with something I've been working…
Read more ›
Math Is Still...
How Math Achieved Transcendence
Transcendental numbers include famous examples like e and π, but it took mathematicians centuries to...
a year ago
Transcendental numbers include famous examples like e and π, but it took mathematicians centuries to understand them.
The post How Math Achieved Transcendence first appeared on Quanta Magazine
The Works in...
Heat waves
Why a hotter world might be a more dangerous, violent, and less productive one
5 months ago
Why a hotter world might be a more dangerous, violent, and less productive one
NeuroLogica Blog
2023 Hottest Year on Record
What everyone knew was coming is now official – 2023 was the warmest year on record. This means we...
11 months ago
What everyone knew was coming is now official – 2023 was the warmest year on record. This means we can also say that the last 10 years are the hottest decade on record. 2023 dethrones 2016 as the previous warmest year and bumps 2010 out of the top 10. Further, in the last half of...
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!
NeuroLogica Blog
It’s Not Possible – Until Suddenly It Is
There are a couple of recent stories that remind me that perhaps the most powerful thing in the...
a year ago
There are a couple of recent stories that remind me that perhaps the most powerful thing in the world is political will. Often politicians and motivational speakers will say something along the lines of, “We can do anything, if we put our minds to it.” While this sounds like...
NeuroLogica Blog
The Speed of Gravity
I recently received an e-mail question from an SGU listener about the speed of gravity. They were...
a year ago
I recently received an e-mail question from an SGU listener about the speed of gravity. They were questioning a statement they heard by Neil DeGrasse Tyson that if the sun were magically plucked from existence, the Earth would not feel the effects for 8 minutes and 20 seconds –...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
"Non"-Profit Hospitals | Out-Of-Pocket
"We're investing in ourselves"
a year ago
"We're investing in ourselves"
Beautiful Public...
Pilot Manual for a 1940's U.S. Navy Blimp
This 122 page manual contains all of the operating instructions and technical details needed to...
a year ago
This 122 page manual contains all of the operating instructions and technical details needed to pilot this sleek, silver, 250 foot long, weaponized anti-submarine dirigible.
Light from Space
Lunar Eclipse Triptych
A total lunar eclipse is (next to the much rarer solar eclipses) a spectacle to behold and one of...
over a year ago
A total lunar eclipse is (next to the much rarer solar eclipses) a spectacle to behold and one of the few celestial events that happen in human timescales in the course of a few hours.
In mid-May 2022 there was a beautiful eclipse visible from North America and I have
Marine Madness
Book club: ‘Being Salmon Being Human’ by Martin Lee Mueller
Encountering the Wild in Us and Us in the Wild Norwegian and Pacific Northwest salmon industries...
over a year ago
Encountering the Wild in Us and Us in the Wild Norwegian and Pacific Northwest salmon industries remain largely overlooked and Martin Lee Mueller cleverly weaves the stories of artificially inseminated and reared salmon to highlight the long-standing notion of human...
ToughSF
Inter-Orbital Kinetic Energy Exchanges: Part I
Electrical power can be transferred between planets using high velocity masses. Kinetic Energy...
over a year ago
Electrical power can be transferred between planets using high velocity masses. Kinetic Energy Exchanges are an efficient concept that can output more energy than it consumes and only gets better with distance.
Guest writer Zerraspace (Zach Hajj) works out the details and...
The Works in...
Fermenting revolution
The Victorian fight against bad bread and its role in women’s liberation
a year ago
The Victorian fight against bad bread and its role in women’s liberation
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Dental Insurance, Value-Based Dental, and Beam Benefits | Out-Of-Pocket
Why doesn’t dental have value-based care?
a year ago
Why doesn’t dental have value-based care?
Probably...
The Gender Gap in Political Beliefs Is Small
In previous articles (here, here, and here) I’ve looked at evidence of a gender gap in political...
10 months ago
In previous articles (here, here, and here) I’ve looked at evidence of a gender gap in political alignment (liberal or conservative), party affiliation (Democrat or Republican), and policy preferences. Using data from the GSS, I found that women are more likely to say they are...
IEEE Spectrum
The First Virtual Meeting Was in 1916
At 8:30 p.m. on 16 May 1916, John J. Carty banged his gavel at the Engineering Societies Building in...
a month ago
At 8:30 p.m. on 16 May 1916, John J. Carty banged his gavel at the Engineering Societies Building in New York City to call to order a meeting of the American Institute of Electrical Engineers. This was no ordinary gathering. The AIEE had decided to conduct a live national meeting...
Damn Interesting
The Ancient Order of Bali
In the 1970s, the Indonesian island of Bali went through a period of rapid change. Along the...
a year ago
In the 1970s, the Indonesian island of Bali went through a period of rapid change. Along the stunning beaches on the southern side of the island, tourism boomed. Parking lots were put up, together with swinging hot spots and hotels of various colours. Hip young travellers from...
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,...
Math Is Still...
The Year in Physics
Physicists discovered strange supersolids, constructed new kinds of superconductors, and continued...
5 days ago
Physicists discovered strange supersolids, constructed new kinds of superconductors, and continued to make the case that the cosmos is far weirder than anyone suspected.
The post The Year in Physics first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Drew Ex Machina
First Pictures: Earthrise from Apollo 8 – December 24, 1968
The year 1968 was a tumultuous one in the US with many political and cultural changes punctuated by...
12 months ago
The year 1968 was a tumultuous one in the US with many political and cultural changes punctuated by the assassination of prominent public figures, violent protests […]
Drew Ex Machina
The Largest Launch Vehicles in Service – 1957 to the Present
With the successful launch of NASA’s Artemis I test flight, we now have a new holder of the title...
over a year ago
With the successful launch of NASA’s Artemis I test flight, we now have a new holder of the title “the largest launch vehicle in service”: the […]
Math Is Still...
Why Mathematical Proof Is a Social Compact
Number theorist Andrew Granville on what mathematics really is — and why objectivity is never quite...
a year ago
Number theorist Andrew Granville on what mathematics really is — and why objectivity is never quite within reach.
The post Why Mathematical Proof Is a Social Compact first appeared on Quanta Magazine
brr
South Pole Water Infrastructure
Fresh water from snow, at 70 below!
6 months ago
Fresh water from snow, at 70 below!
Math Is Still...
Diminishing Dark Energy May Evade the ‘Swampland’ of Impossible Universes
The largest-ever 3D map of the cosmos hints that the dark energy that’s fueling the universe’s...
4 months ago
The largest-ever 3D map of the cosmos hints that the dark energy that’s fueling the universe’s expansion may be weakening. One community of theoretical physicists expected as much.
The post Diminishing Dark Energy May Evade the ‘Swampland’ of Impossible Universes...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Malpractice, Expert Witnesses, and Lawsuits with Dr. Eric Funk | Out-Of-Pocket
Suits and White Coats
a year ago
NeuroLogica Blog
Artificial Diamond Boom
The history of aluminum, and what is now happening in the artificial diamond market, may tell us...
a year ago
The history of aluminum, and what is now happening in the artificial diamond market, may tell us something about a post-scarcity world. Aluminum is the most abundant metal in the Earth’s crust. However, it like to form with other elements and therefore it was very difficulty to...
Inverted Passion
What bootstraps intelligence?
A musing on how intelligence comes to be. The bedrock of intelligence is abstractions – the thing we...
3 months ago
A musing on how intelligence comes to be. The bedrock of intelligence is abstractions – the thing we do when we throw away a lot of information and just emphasise on a subset of it (e.g. calling that thing an apple instead of describing all its atoms and their x, y, z positions)....
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...
wadertales
WaderTales blogs in 2022
Here are brief summaries of the sixteen WaderTales blogs that were published in 2022. I have grouped...
over a year ago
Here are brief summaries of the sixteen WaderTales blogs that were published in 2022. I have grouped the blogs into sections; problems with trees, more research from Iceland, Curlews, news from the East Asian-Australasian Flyway, tracking and updates. As ever, I am grateful to...
NeuroLogica Blog
Finding Small Primordial Black Holes
Astrophysicists come up with a lot of whacky ideas, some of which actually turn out to be possibly...
2 weeks ago
Astrophysicists come up with a lot of whacky ideas, some of which actually turn out to be possibly true (like the Big Bang, black holes, accelerating cosmic expansion, dark matter). Of course, all of these conclusions are provisional, but some are now backed by compelling...
Asterisk
The Highway to NIMBYism
San Francisco’s history of collective decision-making helped prevent the city from being carved up...
7 months ago
San Francisco’s history of collective decision-making helped prevent the city from being carved up by highways. Today, that same legacy prevents the city from building what it desperately needs: more housing.
Beautiful Public...
The Naughty Words the FAA Removed From the Sky
New FOIA records from the FAA shed light on the frantic effort in 2015 to rename navigation...
6 months ago
New FOIA records from the FAA shed light on the frantic effort in 2015 to rename navigation waypoints related to Donald Trump and reveal the list of naughty waypoint names that were changed over the years.
symmetry magazine
Kétévi Assamagan pays it forward
Kétévi Assamagan's contributions to physics go beyond his research at the Large Hadron...
a year ago
Kétévi Assamagan's contributions to physics go beyond his research at the Large Hadron Collider.
Kétévi Assamagan first became interested in physics in high school—because he had to be. His school in Togo, in West Africa, required students to declare a major....
Math Is Still...
JWST Spots Giant Black Holes All Over the Early Universe
Giant black holes were supposed to be bit players in the early cosmic story. But recent James Webb...
a year ago
Giant black holes were supposed to be bit players in the early cosmic story. But recent James Webb Space Telescope observations are finding an unexpected abundance of the beasts.
The post JWST Spots Giant Black Holes All Over the Early Universe first appeared on...
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