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.
Math Is Still...
Astronomers Dig Up the Stars That Birthed the Milky Way
There once was a cosmic seed that sprouted the Milky Way galaxy. Astronomers have discovered its...
a year ago
There once was a cosmic seed that sprouted the Milky Way galaxy. Astronomers have discovered its last surviving remnants.
The post Astronomers Dig Up the Stars That Birthed the Milky Way first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Math Is Still...
Computer Scientists Prove That Heat Destroys Quantum Entanglement
While devising a new quantum algorithm, four researchers accidentally established a hard limit on...
3 months ago
While devising a new quantum algorithm, four researchers accidentally established a hard limit on entanglement.
The post Computer Scientists Prove That Heat Destroys Quantum Entanglement first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Math Is Still...
A Brief History of Tricky Mathematical Tiling
The discovery earlier this year of the “hat” tile marked the culmination of hundreds of years of...
a year ago
The discovery earlier this year of the “hat” tile marked the culmination of hundreds of years of work into tiles and their symmetries.
The post A Brief History of Tricky Mathematical Tiling first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Actually good 2024 healthcare predictions | Out-Of-Pocket
I know, enough predictions. But these are good!
a year ago
I know, enough predictions. But these are good!
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
Melting Asphalt
2015 Meta
Time for my annual blogging review. And only 11 days late! I'll keep it brief. Blog stats I...
over a year ago
Time for my annual blogging review. And only 11 days late! I'll keep it brief. Blog stats I published a paltry six full essays this year. Don't get me wrong: I'm proud of them. But still, six. It would be…
Read more ›
Explorations of an...
A Month In Northern Peru, Part 10: The Owlet Lodge (February 11 and 12, 2024)
February 11, 2024
Laura and I were looking forward to our one-night visit to the Owlet Lodge. Up to...
5 months ago
February 11, 2024
Laura and I were looking forward to our one-night visit to the Owlet Lodge. Up to this point we had only stayed at cheap hotels, while we had also eaten simply, with at least two meals each day consisting of sandwiches/snacks that we prepared. For once, someone...
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 –...
Math Is Still...
The Year in Biology
Biologists used artificial intelligence to make discoveries about molecules and the brain, and...
4 days ago
Biologists used artificial intelligence to make discoveries about molecules and the brain, and overturned long-held assumptions about the immune system and RNA.
The post The Year in Biology first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Asterisk
The Death and Life of Prediction Markets at Google
Over the past two decades, Google has hosted two different internal platforms for predictions. Why...
a month ago
Over the past two decades, Google has hosted two different internal platforms for predictions. Why did the first one fail — and will the other endure?
Uncharted...
Become a World-Class Communicator
I’m running a 2nd cohort of my course: How to Become a World-Class Communicator, starting in two...
2 months ago
I’m running a 2nd cohort of my course: How to Become a World-Class Communicator, starting in two weeks, on November 4th!
The Works in...
The duplication crisis: the other replication crisis
How bad publishing incentives hinder long-term thinking in computational biology research
3 months ago
How bad publishing incentives hinder long-term thinking in computational biology research
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...
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.
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
Chris Grossack's...
Finiteness in Sheaf Topoi
The notion of “finiteness” is constructively subtle in ways that can be
tricky for people new to...
4 months ago
The notion of “finiteness” is constructively subtle in ways that can be
tricky for people new to the subject to understand. For a while now I’ve
wanted to figure out what’s going on with the different versions of “finite”
in a way that felt concrete and obvious (I mentioned...
NeuroLogica Blog
Virtual Walking
When I use my virtual reality gear I do practical zero virtual walking – meaning that I don’t have...
9 months ago
When I use my virtual reality gear I do practical zero virtual walking – meaning that I don’t have my avatar walk while I am not walking. I general play standing up which means I can move around the space in my office mapped by my VR software – so I am physically walking to...
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...
Probably...
Ears Are Weird
In a previous article, I looked at 93 measurements from the ANSUR-II dataset and found that ear...
3 months ago
In a previous article, I looked at 93 measurements from the ANSUR-II dataset and found that ear protrusion is not correlated with any other measurement. In a followup article, I used principle component analysis to explore the correlation structure of the measurements, and found...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Scams, Frauds, and Audits | Out-Of-Pocket
Lots of money to be...not lost
a year ago
Lots of money to be...not lost
Math Is Still...
The Computing Pioneer Helping AI See
Alexei Efros has spent his career learning how machines see differently from humans. Now he’s...
a year ago
Alexei Efros has spent his career learning how machines see differently from humans. Now he’s helping to bridge the gap.
The post The Computing Pioneer Helping AI See first appeared on Quanta Magazine
nanoscale views
Artificial intelligence, extrapolation, and physical constraints
Disclaimer and disclosure: The "arrogant physicist declaims about some topic far outside their...
6 months ago
Disclaimer and disclosure: The "arrogant physicist declaims about some topic far outside their domain expertise (like climate change or epidemiology or economics or geopolitics or....) like everyone actually in the field is clueless" trope is very overplayed at this point, and...
NeuroLogica Blog
Living a Hybrid Life
The cultural effects of the COVID pandemic can still be felt reverberating through society. One of...
4 months ago
The cultural effects of the COVID pandemic can still be felt reverberating through society. One of the positive effects, in my opinion, was the sudden boost to remote technology – connecting remotely for meetings and other uses through Zoom or a similar application. This...
ToughSF
Fusion without Fissiles: Superbombs and Wilderness Orion
Fusion technology today relies on expensive, building-sized equipment for ignition, or the help of...
over a year ago
Fusion technology today relies on expensive, building-sized equipment for ignition, or the help of an already powerful fission detonation. What if we could do away with both?
Fusion power without the need for fissiles, but also small enough to be launched into space. It is...
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
Math Is Still...
What Is Entropy? A Measure of Just How Little We Really Know.
Exactly 200 years ago, a French engineer introduced an idea that would quantify the universe’s...
a week ago
Exactly 200 years ago, a French engineer introduced an idea that would quantify the universe’s inexorable slide into decay. But entropy, as it’s currently understood, is less a fact about the world than a reflection of our growing ignorance. Embracing that truth is leading to a...
Math Is Still...
Doubts Grow About the Biosignature Approach to Alien-Hunting
Recent controversies bode ill for the effort to detect life on other planets by analyzing the gases...
9 months ago
Recent controversies bode ill for the effort to detect life on other planets by analyzing the gases in their atmospheres.
The post Doubts Grow About the Biosignature Approach to Alien-Hunting first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Math Is Still...
Alan Turing and the Power of Negative Thinking
Mathematical proofs based on a technique called diagonalization can be relentlessly contrarian, but...
a year ago
Mathematical proofs based on a technique called diagonalization can be relentlessly contrarian, but they help reveal the limits of algorithms.
The post Alan Turing and the Power of Negative Thinking first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Math Is Still...
The Computer Scientist Peering Inside AI’s Black Boxes
Cynthia Rudin wants machine learning models, responsible for increasingly important decisions, to...
a year ago
Cynthia Rudin wants machine learning models, responsible for increasingly important decisions, to show their work.
The post The Computer Scientist Peering Inside AI’s Black Boxes first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Math Is Still...
Michel Talagrand Wins Abel Prize for Work Wrangling Randomness
The French mathematician spent decades developing a set of tools now widely used for taming random...
9 months ago
The French mathematician spent decades developing a set of tools now widely used for taming random processes.
The post Michel Talagrand Wins Abel Prize for Work Wrangling Randomness first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Damn Interesting
Breaking a Bit
It’s been a busy summer, and the large shortfall in donations last month has been demoralizing, so...
a year ago
It’s been a busy summer, and the large shortfall in donations last month has been demoralizing, so we’re taking a week off to rest and recuperate. The curated links section will be (mostly) silent, and behind the scenes we’ll be taking a brief break from our usual researching,...
Inverted Passion
Notes from the book “Hooked”
I re-read the book Hooked by Nir Eyal and these are my notes. 1/ The key question that the book...
11 months ago
I re-read the book Hooked by Nir Eyal and these are my notes. 1/ The key question that the book answers is: how to make habit-forming products. And its answer is a model that involves four stages: a) trigger; b) action; c) variable reward; d) investment 2/ Why should products be...
nanoscale views
What is a spin glass?
As mentioned previously, structural glasses are materials in which there is no periodic lattice (no...
a year ago
As mentioned previously, structural glasses are materials in which there is no periodic lattice (no long-range spatial order) and the building blocks get "stuck" in some configuration, kinetically unable to get to the true energetic minimum state which would almost certainly be a...
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...
IEEE Spectrum
The Invention That Let Fiber Optics Span the Globe
Plenty of big stories from the year 1985 had their moment in the sun and are now all but forgotten:...
a year ago
Plenty of big stories from the year 1985 had their moment in the sun and are now all but forgotten: New Coke, “We Are the World,” the rise of desktop publishing. But one at-the-time obscure invention from that year has long eclipsed the frothy headlines of its time, because it...
nanoscale views
APS March Meeting 2024, Day 4 and wrap-up
Because of the timing of my flight back to Houston, I really only went to one session today, in...
9 months ago
Because of the timing of my flight back to Houston, I really only went to one session today, in which my student spoke as did some collaborators. It was a pretty interesting collection of contributed talks.
The work that's been done on spin transport in multiferroic...
Quantum Frontiers
The rain in Portugal
My husband taught me how to pronounce the name of the city where I’d be presenting a talk late last...
10 months ago
My husband taught me how to pronounce the name of the city where I’d be presenting a talk late last July: Aveiro, Portugal. Having studied Spanish, I pronounced the name as Ah-VEH-roh, with a v partway to a hard b. … Continue reading →
NeuroLogica Blog
A Climate Debate Regarding Health Effects – Part III
Part 3 Hi Steve, and thank you for your timely response, and for even considering hosting this...
a year ago
Part 3 Hi Steve, and thank you for your timely response, and for even considering hosting this debate. There has been, and continues to be a “blackout” on almost all discussion regarding the science behind climate change. If “The science” is truly “settled”, it is a pretty shaky...
Many Worlds
After Seven Years Away Exploring an Asteroid, OSIRIS-REx is Landing Soon with Precious Samples
Bits of pebbles and dust from the asteriod Bennu that were collected during the long journey of the...
a year ago
Bits of pebbles and dust from the asteriod Bennu that were collected during the long journey of the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft should be landing in the Utah desert later this month. The delivery will be a first for NASA — its first sample return from an asteroid and one of a very...
Asterisk
Sins of the Children
The circle of life on Chelicer 14d.
5 months ago
The circle of life on Chelicer 14d.
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
NeuroLogica Blog
Making Fuel from Sunshine
When it comes to big problems it’s generally a good idea to remember some basic principles. One is...
a year ago
When it comes to big problems it’s generally a good idea to remember some basic principles. One is that there is no free lunch. This is a cliche because it’s true. Another way to put this is – there are no solutions, only trade offs. Sometimes there is a genuine advance that does...
Explorations of an...
Uruguay Part 1: Relaxed Birding In The Countryside
Uruguay is one of the smallest countries in South America and the only one that is entirely situated...
a year ago
Uruguay is one of the smallest countries in South America and the only one that is entirely situated south of the Tropic of Capricorn. Uruguay was first settled by hunter-gatherers around 13,000 years ago, while the predominate tribe when Europeans arrived was the Charrúa people....
IEEE Spectrum
What It Takes To Let People Play With the Past
Media Archaeology Lab is one of the largest public collections in the world of obsolete, yet...
2 months ago
Media Archaeology Lab is one of the largest public collections in the world of obsolete, yet functional, technology. Located on the University of Colorado Boulder campus, the MAL is where you can watch a magic lantern show, play Star Castle on a Vectrex games console, or check...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Placebos Are Getting Stronger | Out-Of-Pocket
Should we incorporate them into clinical practice?
a year ago
Should we incorporate them into clinical practice?
NeuroLogica Blog
Update on Quantum Computers
There has been a lot of quantum computer news since I last wrote about the topic. But this is still...
a year ago
There has been a lot of quantum computer news since I last wrote about the topic. But this is still a technology that is slowly advancing in the background, while actual applications have been limited. There is a threshold effect at play – at some point, quantum computers will be...
pcloadletter
My articles don't belong on certain social networks
I write this blog because I enjoy writing. Some people enjoy reading what I write, which makes me...
6 months ago
I write this blog because I enjoy writing. Some people enjoy reading what I write, which makes me feel really great!
Recently, I took down a post and stopped writing for a few months because I didn't love the reaction I was getting on social media sites like Reddit and Hacker...
wadertales
Flexible nesting behaviour
In April and May, tens of thousands of Black-tailed Godwits return to Iceland, having spent the...
2 months ago
In April and May, tens of thousands of Black-tailed Godwits return to Iceland, having spent the summer in Western Europe, particularly Britain & Ireland but also France, Portugal and Spain. For early arrivals, the conditions they encounter vary markedly between years. In a cold...
Asterisk
What I Won’t Eat
A reflection on ethics, animal cognition, and chocolate cake.
a year ago
A reflection on ethics, animal cognition, and chocolate cake.
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...
NeuroLogica Blog
Factory Farming is Better Than Organic Farming
Some narratives are simply ubiquitous in our culture (every culture has its universal narratives)....
5 days ago
Some narratives are simply ubiquitous in our culture (every culture has its universal narratives). Sometimes these narratives emerge out of shared values, like liberty and freedom. Sometimes they emerge out of foundational beliefs (the US still has a puritanical bent). And...
NeuroLogica Blog
Tandem Perovskite Silicon Solar Panels Are Coming
It’s pretty clear that we are at an inflection point with adoption of solar power. For the last 18...
a year ago
It’s pretty clear that we are at an inflection point with adoption of solar power. For the last 18 years in a row, solar PV electricity capacity has increased more (as a percentage increase) than any power source. Solar now accounts for 4.5% of global power generation. Wind...
nanoscale views
APS March Meeting 2024, Day 3
My highlights today are a bit thin, because I was fortunate enough to spend time catching up with...
9 months ago
My highlights today are a bit thin, because I was fortunate enough to spend time catching up with collaborators and old friends, but here goes:
Pedram Roushan from Google gave an interesting talk about noisy intermediate-scale quantum experiments for simulation. He showed some...
NeuroLogica Blog
Hybrid Biopolymer Transistors – Implications for Brain Machine Interface
There are several technologies which seem likely to be transformative in the coming decades. Genetic...
a year ago
There are several technologies which seem likely to be transformative in the coming decades. Genetic bioengineering gives us the ability to control the basic machinery of life, including ourselves. Artificial intelligence is a suite of active, learning, information tools....
Quantum Frontiers
Quantum Frontiers salutes an English teacher
If I ever mention a crazy high-school English teacher to you, I might be referring to Mr. Lukacs....
6 months ago
If I ever mention a crazy high-school English teacher to you, I might be referring to Mr. Lukacs. One morning, before the first bell rang, I found him wandering among the lockers, wearing a white beard and a mischievous grin. … Continue reading →
NeuroLogica Blog
What Policies Affect Climate Change?
What is the potential for climate change policy to affect climate change? I often discuss, here and...
a year ago
What is the potential for climate change policy to affect climate change? I often discuss, here and on the SGU, the science of climate change, and specifically focus on what we can do about it, mostly by reducing our CO2 emissions. Often I get push back explicitly promoting the...
Cremieux Recueil
Focusing on Healthcare’s Administrative Costs Is Misguided
Substantial thinking about healthcare reform starts with acknowledging that administrative bloat...
2 weeks ago
Substantial thinking about healthcare reform starts with acknowledging that administrative bloat isn't the big problem
Quantum Frontiers
Eight highlights from publishing a science book for the general public
What’s it like to publish a book? I’ve faced the question again and again this year, as my book...
over a year ago
What’s it like to publish a book? I’ve faced the question again and again this year, as my book Quantum Steampunk hit bookshelves in April. Two responses suggest themselves. On the one hand, I channel the Beatles: It’s a hard … Continue reading →
Beautiful Public...
Highway Photologs
Highway departments all around the country had "photolog" programs, some dating back as early as...
over a year ago
Highway departments all around the country had "photolog" programs, some dating back as early as 1961. Each year, specially tricked out vans would drive each mile of state road snapping photos to document the status of roadways.
Drew Ex Machina
Rockets Falling from Orbit: The Saturn V That Launched NASA’s Skylab
In recent years, the uncontrolled reentries of the spent 22-metric ton core stages of China’s new...
over a year ago
In recent years, the uncontrolled reentries of the spent 22-metric ton core stages of China’s new Long March 5B heavy lift launch vehicle, used to orbit […]
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Healthcare, but funny | Out-Of-Pocket
US healthcare is a joke. Let's make it funny.
a year ago
US healthcare is a joke. Let's make it funny.
Math Is Still...
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
NeuroLogica Blog
New Asteroid Probably Won’t Hit Earth
NASA recently discovered a 50 meter wide asteroid whose orbit will come close to Earth. They...
a year ago
NASA recently discovered a 50 meter wide asteroid whose orbit will come close to Earth. They estimate a close approach in 2046, which will likely bring the asteroid within 1.1 million miles of the Earth, about four times the distance of the moon. However, there is always...
symmetry magazine
India’s gem at CERN: Archana Sharma
The first Indian scientist to join CERN was recently recognized with the highest honor of India for...
a year ago
The first Indian scientist to join CERN was recently recognized with the highest honor of India for overseas citizens.
Math Is Still...
How Can Some Infinities Be Bigger Than Others?
All infinities go on forever, so how is it possible for some infinities to be larger than others?...
a year ago
All infinities go on forever, so how is it possible for some infinities to be larger than others? The mathematician Justin Moore discusses the mysteries of infinity with Steven Strogatz.
The post How Can Some Infinities Be Bigger Than Others? first appeared on Quanta...
Math Is Still...
Nobel Prize Honors Inventors of ‘Quantum Dot’ Nanoparticles
The Nobel Prize for Chemistry has been awarded to three researchers who harnessed the quantum...
a year ago
The Nobel Prize for Chemistry has been awarded to three researchers who harnessed the quantum behaviors of semiconductor nanocrystals.
The post Nobel Prize Honors Inventors of ‘Quantum Dot’ Nanoparticles first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Bartosz Ciechanowski
Bicycle
There is something delightful about riding a bicycle. Once mastered, the simple action of pedaling...
a year ago
There is something delightful about riding a bicycle. Once mastered, the simple action of pedaling to move forward and turning the handlebars to steer makes bike riding an effortless activity. In the demonstration below, you can guide the rider with the slider, and you can also...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Medical Tourism: A Tarpit Idea | Out-Of-Pocket
trust me, you're not the first to look into this
8 months ago
trust me, you're not the first to look into this
Apoorva Srinivasan
an experiment in navigating the knowledge frontier beyond search
Lately, I've been experimenting with interfaces for large language models (LLMs) in my free time....
a year ago
Lately, I've been experimenting with interfaces for large language models (LLMs) in my free time. The fruit of this labor is something I'm calling "curie," an exploratory and sense-making tool designed to navigate complex topics.
0:00
...
NeuroLogica Blog
Should Japan Release Radioactive Water Into The Pacific?
Japan is planning on releasing treated radioactive water from the Fukushima nuclear accident into...
a year ago
Japan is planning on releasing treated radioactive water from the Fukushima nuclear accident into the ocean. They claim this will be completely safe, but there are protests going on in both Japan and South Korea, and China has just placed a ban on seafood from Japan. In a perfect...
Beautiful Public...
FAA Aviation Maps
Among all of the visual information published by the U.S. government, there may be no product with a...
10 months ago
Among all of the visual information published by the U.S. government, there may be no product with a higher information density than the Federal Aviation Administration’s aviation maps.
Blog - Practical...
Why There's a Legal Price for a Human Life
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
One of the very first...
a year ago
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
One of the very first documented engineering disasters happened in 27 AD in the early days of the Roman Empire. A freed slave named Atilius built a wooden amphitheater in a town called Fidenae outside of Rome....
Probably...
Density and Likelihood
It’s another installment in Data Q&A: Answering the real questions with Python. Previous...
5 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. If you get this post by email, the formatting might be broken — if so, you might want to read it on the site. likelihood Density and...
Confessions of a...
Shark Bay: a pristine template for marine ecosystems worldwide
Here in Western Australia, we are lucky to be in the global centre of seagrass diversity. As such,...
over a year ago
Here in Western Australia, we are lucky to be in the global centre of seagrass diversity. As such, we have a coastline dominated by many different species of seagrasses – from large, temperate seagrasses like Posidonia australis to small, tropical species like Halodule...
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.
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...
Blog - Practical...
You Spend More on Rust Than Gasoline (Probably)
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
In July of 1995, Folsom Lake,...
over a year ago
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
In July of 1995, Folsom Lake, a reservoir created by Folsom Dam in Northern California, reached its full capacity as snow continued to melt in the upstream Sierra. With the power plant shut down for...
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...
Math Is Still...
With ‘Digital Twins,’ The Doctor Will See You Now
By creating digital twins of patients, Amanda Randles wants to bring unprecedented precision to...
4 months ago
By creating digital twins of patients, Amanda Randles wants to bring unprecedented precision to medical forecasts.
The post With ‘Digital Twins,’ The Doctor Will See You Now first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Out-of-Pocket Blog
2022 Healthcare Predictions | Out-Of-Pocket
Nikstradamus strikes again
a year ago
Nikstradamus strikes again
Blog - Practical...
Merrimack Valley Gas Explosions: What Really Happened?
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
On September 13, 2018, a...
a year ago
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
On September 13, 2018, a pipeline crew in the Merrimack Valley in Massachusetts was hard at work replacing an aging cast iron natural gas line with a new polyethylene pipe. Located just north of Boston, the...
Many Worlds
Many Worlds Archive is Available
I had the pleasure of reporting and writing the Many Worlds column — sponsored by NASA’s NExSS...
a year ago
I had the pleasure of reporting and writing the Many Worlds column — sponsored by NASA’s NExSS initiative and the Lunar & Planetary Institute — for almost eight years. But the run came to an end in October. Now an archive of the more than 400 columns is easily available at...
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...
Beautiful Public...
1,000 Photos of Dolphin Fins
Scars, scratches and wounds abound in these photos as encounters with unknown creatures and boat...
a year ago
Scars, scratches and wounds abound in these photos as encounters with unknown creatures and boat propellers leave their marks, imprinting a story of close escapes and cheating death.
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Weird issues in value-based care | Out-Of-Pocket
Thoughts on value-based care from people actually building in it
2 months ago
Thoughts on value-based care from people actually building in it
NeuroLogica Blog
Subjective Neurological Experience
On the SGU we recently talked about aphantasia, the condition in which some people have a decreased...
3 months ago
On the SGU we recently talked about aphantasia, the condition in which some people have a decreased or entirely absent ability to imagine things. The term was coined recently, in 2015, by neurologist Adam Zeman, who described the condition of “congenital aphantasia,” that he...
Probably...
Happy Launch Day!
Today is the official publication date of Probably Overthinking It! You can get a 30% discount if...
a year ago
Today is the official publication date of Probably Overthinking It! You can get a 30% discount if you order from the publisher and use the code UCPNEW. You can also order from Amazon or, if you want to support independent bookstores, from Bookshop.org. I celebrated launch day by...
NeuroLogica Blog
The Next Step in Space Travel
The European Space Agency (ESA) has announced they are developing their own commercial space...
a year ago
The European Space Agency (ESA) has announced they are developing their own commercial space capsule. This will be used initially for cargo, but then eventually for crew as well. They anticipate a maiden voyage in 2028. I think this is a positive development. It seems we are...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
New Health Plans Need New Operating Systems with Flume Health | Out-Of-Pocket
this claim is automatic, programmatic, hypnotic, funky fresh
a year ago
this claim is automatic, programmatic, hypnotic, funky fresh
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...
Explorations of an...
2022 Part 5: October, November, December (Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand)
October
I was only home from Peru for a week when it was time to leave on the next adventure. While...
a year ago
October
I was only home from Peru for a week when it was time to leave on the next adventure. While Laura jetted off to Scotland to attend a friend's wedding, I flew to Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia, located on the island of Borneo to lead a tour for Worldwide Quest. I really enjoyed...
Asterisk
Can You Trust An AI Press Release?
Of course not. Here’s how leading AI labs mislead consumers, journalists, and each other.
5 months ago
Of course not. Here’s how leading AI labs mislead consumers, journalists, and each other.
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.
Stephen Wolfram...
Can AI Solve Science?
Note: Click any diagram to get Wolfram Language code to reproduce it. Wolfram Language code for...
9 months ago
Note: Click any diagram to get Wolfram Language code to reproduce it. Wolfram Language code for training the neural nets used here is also available (requires GPU). Won’t AI Eventually Be Able to Do Everything? Particularly given its recent surprise successes, there’s a somewhat...
Math Is Still...
Clashing Cosmic Numbers Challenge Our Best Theory of the Universe
As measurements of distant stars and galaxies become more precise, cosmologists are struggling to...
11 months ago
As measurements of distant stars and galaxies become more precise, cosmologists are struggling to make sense of sparring values.
The post Clashing Cosmic Numbers Challenge Our Best Theory of the Universe first appeared on Quanta Magazine
NeuroLogica Blog
The Physics of Flocks
Most people have watched large flocks of birds. They are fascinating, and have interested scientists...
7 months ago
Most people have watched large flocks of birds. They are fascinating, and have interested scientists for a long time. How, exactly, do so many birds maintain their cohesion as a flock? It’s obviously a dynamic process, but what are the mechanisms? When I was young I was taught...
NeuroLogica Blog
Accusation of Mental Illness as a Political Strategy
I am not the first to say this but it bears repeating – it is wrong to use the accusation of a...
3 months ago
I am not the first to say this but it bears repeating – it is wrong to use the accusation of a mental illness as a political strategy. It is unfair, stigmatizing, and dismissive. Thomas Szasz (let me say straight up – I am not a Szaszian) was a psychiatrist who made it his...
IEEE Spectrum
How the Designer of the First Hydrogen Bomb Got the Gig
Richard Garwin is one of the most decorated and successful engineers of the 20th century. The IEEE...
3 months ago
Richard Garwin is one of the most decorated and successful engineers of the 20th century. The IEEE Life Fellow has won the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the National Medal of Science, France’s La Grande Médaille de l’Académie des Sciences, and is one of just a handful of people...
Explorations of an...
A Quest Nature Tour To Borneo: Tabin Wildlife Reserve And Danum Valley
We left the Kinabatangan River behind and transferred to our next destination, the Tabin Wildlife...
a month ago
We left the Kinabatangan River behind and transferred to our next destination, the Tabin Wildlife Reserve. This is the largest swath of protected forest; an area of lowland primary and logged forest that is home to iconic species like the Bornean Pygmy Elephant, the Sun Bear and...
Interaction Magic -...
3 tips for co-designing with kids
Designing future sports products with a group of 11 year olds.
a year ago
Designing future sports products with a group of 11 year olds.
Wanderingspace
Europa Seen by Juno
Citizen scientist Björn Jónsson processed the image to enhance the color and contrast.
over a year ago
Citizen scientist Björn Jónsson processed the image to enhance the color and contrast.
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...
Asterisk
PEPFAR and the Costs of Cost-Benefit Analysis
In the early aughts, economists said it was a bad use of money to send antiretroviral drugs to treat...
10 months ago
In the early aughts, economists said it was a bad use of money to send antiretroviral drugs to treat HIV in low-income countries. Twenty years later, we can ask why they got it wrong.
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...
Math Is Still...
The Question of What’s Fair Illuminates the Question of What’s Hard
Computational complexity theorists have discovered a surprising new way to understand what makes...
6 months ago
Computational complexity theorists have discovered a surprising new way to understand what makes certain problems hard.
The post The Question of What’s Fair Illuminates the Question of What’s Hard first appeared on Quanta Magazine
brr
Redeployment Part Three
Off-continent after 446 days!
11 months ago
Off-continent after 446 days!
Blog - Practical...
How This Bridge Was Rebuilt in 15 Days After Hurricane Ian
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
On September 28, 2022,...
over a year ago
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
On September 28, 2022, Hurricane Ian made landfall on the western coast of Florida as a Category 4 storm, bringing enormous volumes of rainfall and extreme winds to the state. Ian was the deadliest hurricane to...
NeuroLogica Blog
Building A Robotic Hand
Roboticists are often engaged in a process of reinventing the wheel – duplicating the function of...
a year ago
Roboticists are often engaged in a process of reinventing the wheel – duplicating the function of biological bodies in rubber, metal, and plastic. This is a difficult task because biological organisms are often wondrous machines. The human hand, in particular, is a feat of...
nanoscale views
Generative AI and scientific images/diagrams
Generative AI for image generation is a controversial topic for many reasons. Still, as someone who...
11 months ago
Generative AI for image generation is a controversial topic for many reasons. Still, as someone who doesn't have a staff of graphic artists on hand to help make scientific illustrations, it has certainly been tempting to see whether it might be a useful tool. My brief...
The Works in...
How America Made Machines Make Machines
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
Math Is Still...
How the Brain Protects Itself From Blood-Borne Threats
To buffer the brain against menaces in the blood, a dynamic, multi-tiered system of protection is...
a year ago
To buffer the brain against menaces in the blood, a dynamic, multi-tiered system of protection is built into the brain’s blood vessels.
The post How the Brain Protects Itself From Blood-Borne Threats first appeared on Quanta Magazine
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 […]
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
Immune Cells to Fight Cancer
There is a recent medical advance that you may not have heard about unless you are a healthcare...
a year ago
There is a recent medical advance that you may not have heard about unless you are a healthcare professional or encountered it from the patient side – CAR-T cell therapy. A recent study shows the potential for continued incremental advance of this technology, but already it is a...
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...
Math Is Still...
Mathematicians Find Hidden Structure in a Common Type of Space
In 50 years of searching, mathematicians found only one example of a “subspace design” in a vector...
a year ago
In 50 years of searching, mathematicians found only one example of a “subspace design” in a vector space. A new proof reveals that there are infinitely more out there.
The post Mathematicians Find Hidden Structure in a Common Type of Space first appeared on Quanta...
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...
The Roots of...
What I’ve been reading, June 2023
A monthly feature. As usual, recent blog posts and news stories are omitted from this; you can find...
a year ago
A monthly feature. As usual, recent blog posts and news stories are omitted from this; you can find them in my links digests. In all quotes below, any emphasis in bold was added by me.
Books
Thomas S. Ashton, The Industrial Revolution, 1760–1830 (1948). A classic in the field,...
Asterisk
Making Sense of Moral Change
A conversation about abolitionism, moral progress, and the pitfalls of historical counterfactuals.
over a year ago
A conversation about abolitionism, moral progress, and the pitfalls of historical counterfactuals.
Cremieux Recueil
Just Pay Them Off
The International Longshoremen's Association is protecting people whose jobs are no longer...
2 months ago
The International Longshoremen's Association is protecting people whose jobs are no longer necessary. Stop fighting and just pay them so they go away.
Math Is Still...
In a Fierce Desert, Microbe ‘Crusts’ Show How Life Tamed the Land
Extreme microorganisms carpeting the Atacama Desert in Chile illuminate how life might have first...
a year ago
Extreme microorganisms carpeting the Atacama Desert in Chile illuminate how life might have first taken hold on Earth’s surface.
The post In a Fierce Desert, Microbe ‘Crusts’ Show How Life Tamed the Land first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Light from Space
The Rosette Nebula
Next to the Orion Nebula, the Rosette Nebula is definitely a must-do on the list of every aspiring...
a year ago
Next to the Orion Nebula, the Rosette Nebula is definitely a must-do on the list of every aspiring astrophotographer. Located not too far from Orion in Monoceros, this large H II region has spectacular features, centered around a star cluster.
Click or tap to...
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...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Fitbits, Bundled Payments, and Rollercoasters | Out-Of-Pocket
some papers I think are cool
a year ago
some papers I think are cool
Interaction Magic -...
Designing bikes or bike lanes?
Which impacts the cycling experience more: the design of the bike or the bike lanes? Interview and...
over a year ago
Which impacts the cycling experience more: the design of the bike or the bike lanes? Interview and podcast with city transport planners Catherine Osborn and David Wills.
Explorations of an...
2023 Part 5: Late Summer To Early Winter In Ontario
August and September
In the middle of August, I traveled to Letchworth State Park in New York for a...
11 months ago
August and September
In the middle of August, I traveled to Letchworth State Park in New York for a weekend with some of my family. It was wonderful to spend time with everyone, as well as to get in some hiking and find some species that I haven't seen before in Ontario (mostly...
Math Is Still...
With Fifth Busy Beaver, Researchers Approach Computation’s Limits
After decades of uncertainty, a motley team of programmers has proved precisely how complicated...
5 months ago
After decades of uncertainty, a motley team of programmers has proved precisely how complicated simple computer programs can get.
The post With Fifth Busy Beaver, Researchers Approach Computation’s Limits first appeared on Quanta Magazine
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
The Roots of...
What I’ve been reading, October 2023
A ~monthly feature. Last month was busy for me with a lot of travel and a lot of focus on The Roots...
a year ago
A ~monthly feature. Last month was busy for me with a lot of travel and a lot of focus on The Roots of Progress as a nonprofit organization, so I haven’t had as much time as I prefer for research and writing. Recent blog posts and news stories are generally omitted; you can find...
nanoscale views
Scientific publishing - where are we going?
I think it's safe to say that anyone involved in scientific publishing will tell you that it's a...
a year ago
I think it's safe to say that anyone involved in scientific publishing will tell you that it's a mess and the trends are worrisome. This week, this news release/article came out about this preprint which shows a number of the issues. In brief (not all of this is in the...
Math Is Still...
The #1 Clue to Quantum Gravity Sits on the Surfaces of Black Holes
A black hole formula worked out in the 1970s remains the most concrete clue physicists have about...
2 months ago
A black hole formula worked out in the 1970s remains the most concrete clue physicists have about the threads of the space-time fabric.
The post The #1 Clue to Quantum Gravity Sits on the Surfaces of Black Holes first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Math Is Still...
‘Magical’ Error Correction Scheme Proved Inherently Inefficient
Locally correctable codes need barely any information to fix errors, but they’re extremely long. Now...
11 months ago
Locally correctable codes need barely any information to fix errors, but they’re extremely long. Now we know that the simplest versions can’t get any shorter.
The post ‘Magical’ Error Correction Scheme Proved Inherently Inefficient first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Out-of-Pocket Blog
How To (Properly) Text Patients | Out-Of-Pocket
Do’s and don’ts + tactical tips from an actual doctor
8 months ago
Do’s and don’ts + tactical tips from an actual doctor
NeuroLogica Blog
Categorization and What’s In a Name
Categorization is critical in science, but it is also very tricky, often deceptively so. We need to...
11 months ago
Categorization is critical in science, but it is also very tricky, often deceptively so. We need to categorize things to help us organize our knowledge, to understand how things work and relate to each other, and to communicate efficiently and precisely. But categorization can...
Stephen Wolfram...
On the Nature of Time
The Computational View of Time Time is a central feature of human experience. But what actually is...
2 months ago
The Computational View of Time Time is a central feature of human experience. But what actually is it? In traditional scientific accounts it’s often represented as some kind of coordinate much like space (though a coordinate that for some reason is always systematically...
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...
Blog - Practical...
What Really Happened with the Substation Attack in North Carolina?
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
At around 7PM on the balmy...
a year ago
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
At around 7PM on the balmy evening of Saturday, December 3, 2022, nearly every electric customer in Moore County, North Carolina was simultaneously plunged into darkness. Amid the confusion, the power utility...
Explorations of an...
Parque Nacional Calilegua
Parque Nacional Calilegua protects around 76,000 hectares of east-slope yungas forest, making it the...
a year ago
Parque Nacional Calilegua protects around 76,000 hectares of east-slope yungas forest, making it the largest national park in northwestern Argentina. It would, therefore, feature prominently on our trip. Laura and I arrived in the general area during the afternoon of January 25,...
Quantum Frontiers
Let gravity do its work
One day, early this spring, I found myself in a hotel elevator with three other people. The cohort...
7 months ago
One day, early this spring, I found myself in a hotel elevator with three other people. The cohort consisted of two theoretical physicists, one computer scientist, and what appeared to be a normal person. I pressed the elevator’s 4 button, … Continue reading →
Probably...
Destructive Testing
Here’s another installment in Data Q&A: Answering the real questions with Python. Previous...
7 months ago
Here’s another installment in Data Q&A: Answering the real questions with Python. Previous installments are available from the Data Q&A landing page. sample_size Sample Size Selection¶ Here’s a question from the Reddit statistics forum. Hi Redditors, I am a civil engineer trying...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Decentralizing Journals and Peer Review DAOs | Out-Of-Pocket
the evolution of legitimacy in scientific publishing
a year ago
the evolution of legitimacy in scientific publishing
brr
McMurdo Postal Mail
How to mail things to and from Antarctica!
over a year ago
How to mail things to and from Antarctica!
Out-of-Pocket Blog
More 2022 predictions | Out-Of-Pocket
A curation of your 2022 predictions
a year ago
A curation of your 2022 predictions
NeuroLogica Blog
Decarbonizing Aviation and Agriculture
When we talk about reducing carbon release in order to slow down and hopefully stop anthropogenic...
2 months ago
When we talk about reducing carbon release in order to slow down and hopefully stop anthropogenic global warming much of the focus is on the energy and transportation sectors. There is a good reason for this – the energy sector is responsible for 25% of greenhouse gas (GHG)...
NeuroLogica Blog
A Greener Li-Ion Battery
It is increasingly obvious that battery technology is one of the keys to transitioning our...
6 months ago
It is increasingly obvious that battery technology is one of the keys to transitioning our civilization away from burning fossil fuels. Batteries facilitate the use of cheap, green, but intermittent energy sources. They also allow for the electrification of technology sectors...
Cremieux Recueil
Preregistration Is No Panacea
Stopping scientific cheaters requires setting up systems that can't be gamed
a month ago
Stopping scientific cheaters requires setting up systems that can't be gamed
Math Is Still...
Even a Single Bacterial Cell Can Sense the Seasons Changing
Though they live only a few hours before dividing, bacteria can anticipate the approach of cold...
2 months ago
Though they live only a few hours before dividing, bacteria can anticipate the approach of cold weather and prepare for it. The discovery suggests that seasonal tracking is fundamental to life.
The post Even a Single Bacterial Cell Can Sense the Seasons Changing first...
Inverted Passion
Getting things done by not trying
I recently finished a very short book with an intriguing title: Why Greatness Cannot be Planned....
2 months ago
I recently finished a very short book with an intriguing title: Why Greatness Cannot be Planned. It’s an unconventional self-help book disguised as a computer science research exposition (that’s why the publisher is Springer). I strongly recommend reading it. Here is a taste of...
NeuroLogica Blog
Will AI Make Work Redundant?
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is coming for your job. This, at least, is increasingly conventional...
a year ago
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is coming for your job. This, at least, is increasingly conventional wisdom, but I’m not so sure. In a recent interview, Elon Musk predicted that AI would “make paid work redundant.” I encountered the same opinion watching the latest season of...
nanoscale views
Wind-up nanotechnology
When I was a kid, I used to take allowance money and occasionally buy rubber-band-powered balsa wood...
7 months ago
When I was a kid, I used to take allowance money and occasionally buy rubber-band-powered balsa wood airplanes at a local store. Maybe you've seen these. You wind up the rubber band, which stretches the elastomer and stores energy in the elastic strain of the polymer, as in...
NeuroLogica Blog
Fossil Fuels – Reduce Demand or Supply?
This is a bit of a false choice – we can do both, or neither – but it is an important question and a...
a year ago
This is a bit of a false choice – we can do both, or neither – but it is an important question and a somewhat of a dilemma. Is the optimal path to reductions and eventual elimination of fossil fuel burning through reduced demand or supply? There are some interesting tradeoffs...
Eukaryote Writes...
Internet Harvest (2020, 2)
Internet Harvest is a selection of the most succulent links on the internet that I’ve recently...
over a year ago
Internet Harvest is a selection of the most succulent links on the internet that I’ve recently plucked from its fruitful boughs. Feel free to discuss the links in the comments. Also, semi-intentionally, none of the links in this harvest are COVID-19-related. If you want some...
IEEE Spectrum
The Forgotten History of Chinese Keyboards
Today, typing in Chinese works by converting QWERTY keystrokes into Chinese characters via a...
6 months ago
Today, typing in Chinese works by converting QWERTY keystrokes into Chinese characters via a software interface, known as an input method editor. But this was not always the case. Thomas S. Mullaney’s new book, The Chinese Computer: A Global History of the Information Age,...
NeuroLogica Blog
England Allows Gene-Edited Crops
This has been somewhat of a quiet revolution, but a new law in England may bring it to the...
a year ago
This has been somewhat of a quiet revolution, but a new law in England may bring it to the foreground. The Precision Breeding Act will now allow gene-edited plants to be developed and marketed in England (not Northern Ireland, Wales, or Scotland). The innovation is that the law...
IEEE Spectrum
Why the Art of Invention Is Always Being Reinvented
Every invention begins with a problem—and the creative act of seeing a problem where others might...
a month ago
Every invention begins with a problem—and the creative act of seeing a problem where others might just see unchangeable reality. For one 5-year-old, the problem was simple: She liked to have her tummy rubbed as she fell asleep. But her mom, exhausted from working two jobs, often...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
The New Price Transparency Laws And Turquoise Health | Out-Of-Pocket
Are we actually moving to a healthcare shopping experience?
9 months ago
Are we actually moving to a healthcare shopping experience?
The Works in...
Issue 14: A peasant surprise
Plus: Giving yourself the Zika virus, cut-and-cover railway tunnels, and more reasons to donate your...
10 months ago
Plus: Giving yourself the Zika virus, cut-and-cover railway tunnels, and more reasons to donate your organs.
IEEE Spectrum
The Man Who Coined The Word "Robot" Defends Himself
You’re familiar with Karel Čapek, right? If not, you should be—he’s the guy who (along with his...
11 months ago
You’re familiar with Karel Čapek, right? If not, you should be—he’s the guy who (along with his brother Josef) invented the word “robot.” Čapek introduced robots to the world in 1921, when his play “R.U.R.” (subtitled “Rossum’s Universal Robots”) was first performed in Prague. It...
The Works in...
The Maintenance Race was just the beginning
A new book from Stewart Brand, serialized on Works in Progress
a year ago
A new book from Stewart Brand, serialized on Works in Progress
Explorations of an...
Black-fronted Piping-Guans at Parque Provincial Urugua-í
February 8, 2023
Laura and I left the environs of Iguazú Falls and worked our way south and then...
a year ago
February 8, 2023
Laura and I left the environs of Iguazú Falls and worked our way south and then east, our destination being Parque Provincial Uragua-í. This park is a little bit off of the standard birding route and is not frequently visited by foreign birders. And, because...
Articles - Chris...
Moved to tears
20 years ago, on January 15 2004, a little before 2 AM Pacific time, was
the payoff.
It was...
10 months ago
20 years ago, on January 15 2004, a little before 2 AM Pacific time, was
the payoff.
It was cause for celebration. But first, I wept.
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...
The Works in...
How to start an advance market commitment
A practical guide from the founders of Frontier
6 months ago
A practical guide from the founders of Frontier
NeuroLogica Blog
Some Battery News
I have been following battery technology pretty closely, as this is a key technology for the...
a year ago
I have been following battery technology pretty closely, as this is a key technology for the transition to green energy. The most obvious application is in battery electric vehicles (BEVs). The second most obvious application is in grid storage. But also there are all the...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
AI in healthcare - defensibility, capabilities, and cost reduction | Out-Of-Pocket
7 months ago
Uncharted...
Where Geniuses Hide Today
Where are today’s Michelangelos?
2 weeks ago
Where are today’s Michelangelos?
wadertales
Conservation beyond boundaries
When an environmental impact assessment concludes that only a small number of shorebirds will be...
a year ago
When an environmental impact assessment concludes that only a small number of shorebirds will be affected by a new airport, because relatively small flocks are counted during field surveys, is there an assumption that the birds encountered are always the same individuals? What if...
Stephen Wolfram...
Yet More New Ideas and New Functions: Launching Version 14.1 of Wolfram Language & Mathematica
For the 36th Time… the Latest from Our R&D Pipeline There’s Now a Unified Wolfram App Vector...
4 months ago
For the 36th Time… the Latest from Our R&D Pipeline There’s Now a Unified Wolfram App Vector Databases and Semantic Search RAGs and Dynamic Prompting for LLMs Connect to Your Favorite LLM Symbolic Arrays and Their Calculus Binomials and Pitchforks: Navigating Mathematical...
Asterisk
From Warp Speed to 100 Days
During the COVID pandemic, we learned to design vaccines within weeks. Now, the bottleneck is...
a year ago
During the COVID pandemic, we learned to design vaccines within weeks. Now, the bottleneck is testing that they work. To get even faster, we need innovations in clinical trial design.
Math Is Still...
Why Is It So Hard to Define a Species?
The idea of a species is fundamental to the way that many people understand the structure of life on...
a month ago
The idea of a species is fundamental to the way that many people understand the structure of life on Earth. But ask 10 specialists how they define the concept and you might get 10 answers. In this episode, co-host Janna Levin speaks with evolutionary biologist Kevin de Queiroz...
NeuroLogica Blog
Is Music Getting Simpler
I don’t think I know anyone personally who doesn’t have strong opinions about music – which genres...
8 months ago
I don’t think I know anyone personally who doesn’t have strong opinions about music – which genres they like, and how the quality of music may have changed over time. My own sense is that music as a cultural phenomenon is incredibly complex, no one (in my social group) really...
NeuroLogica Blog
For Movies – Animals Don’t Sound Real Enough
What does a majestic eagle sound like, or the hoot of a spider monkey, or the roar of a bear? Unless...
a year ago
What does a majestic eagle sound like, or the hoot of a spider monkey, or the roar of a bear? Unless you have an interest in movie tropes, or listen regularly to the SGU, you may have a complete misconception about the sounds these and many other animals make. Eagles, for...
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
Moon Spacesuit Prototype Unveiled
Good spacesuits are deceptively difficult to design, even with today’s technology. NASA is planning...
a year ago
Good spacesuits are deceptively difficult to design, even with today’s technology. NASA is planning to return to the moon in 2025 (if all goes well) but the spacesuit the astronauts will wear is one piece to the puzzle they have not completed yet (the other being the lunar...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Research papers and the patient perspective | Out-Of-Pocket
we can make improvements with some better studies
a year ago
we can make improvements with some better studies
NeuroLogica Blog
A Climate Debate Regarding Health Effects – Part I
This is the first entry in an exchange between me and Scott Hastings, who requested the exchange....
a year ago
This is the first entry in an exchange between me and Scott Hastings, who requested the exchange. This is his opening arguments. My response will be tomorrow’s post. Part I: Hi Steven, first of all, I am tremendously grateful to you for taking time to engage with me on this...
Math Is Still...
Grad Students Find Inevitable Patterns in Big Sets of Numbers
A new proof marks the first progress in decades on a problem about how order emerges from disorder. ...
4 months ago
A new proof marks the first progress in decades on a problem about how order emerges from disorder.
The post Grad Students Find Inevitable Patterns in Big Sets of Numbers first appeared on Quanta Magazine
NeuroLogica Blog
Everything Will Evaporate
What will be the ultimate fate of our universe? There are a number of theories and possibilities,...
a year ago
What will be the ultimate fate of our universe? There are a number of theories and possibilities, but at present the most likely scenario seems to be that the universe will continue to expand, most mass will eventually find its way into a black hole, and those black holes will...
Confessions of a...
A first step into the unknown world of academia…….
At the beginning of this blog I did promise to include some writings that would at least be...
over a year ago
At the beginning of this blog I did promise to include some writings that would at least be semi-useful (hopefully!) to future students hoping to move into a career in marine science; so here it goes! From today I am beginning a year long Postgraduate Teaching Internship at UWA....
Quantum Frontiers
The Book of Mark
Mark Srednicki doesn’t look like a high priest. He’s a professor of physics at the University of...
a year ago
Mark Srednicki doesn’t look like a high priest. He’s a professor of physics at the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB); and you’ll sooner find him in khakis than in sacred vestments. Humor suits his round face better than channeling … Continue reading →
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...
The Works in...
Making architecture easy
Architecture is inherently public, which means buildings should be agreeable, not unpopular works of...
4 weeks ago
Architecture is inherently public, which means buildings should be agreeable, not unpopular works of genius
Asterisk
Why Is Everyone Suddenly Furious About AI Regulation?
Please tell us, because we're stumped.
7 months ago
Please tell us, because we're stumped.
Probably...
Where’s My Train?
Yesterday I presented a webinar for PyMC Labs where I solved one of the exercises from Think Bayes,...
4 months ago
Yesterday I presented a webinar for PyMC Labs where I solved one of the exercises from Think Bayes, called “The Red Line Problem”. Here’s the scenario: The Red Line is a subway that connects Cambridge and Boston, Massachusetts. When I was working in Cambridge I took the Red Line...
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
NeuroLogica Blog
The Next Step in Space Travel
The European Space Agency (ESA) has announced they are developing their own commercial space...
a year ago
The European Space Agency (ESA) has announced they are developing their own commercial space capsule. This will be used initially for cargo, but then eventually for crew as well. They anticipate a maiden voyage in 2028. I think this is a positive development. It seems we are...
Probably...
Life in a Lognormal World
At PyData Global 2023 I will present a talk, “Extremes, outliers, and GOATs: On life in a lognormal...
a year ago
At PyData Global 2023 I will present a talk, “Extremes, outliers, and GOATs: On life in a lognormal world”. It is scheduled for Wednesday 6 December at 11 am Eastern Time. Here is the abstract: The fastest runners are much faster than we expect from a Gaussian distribution, and...
Beautiful Public...
Mapping Volcano Eruptions With Drones
Drones have become an essential tool to map, measure and observe the extremely dangerous...
a year ago
Drones have become an essential tool to map, measure and observe the extremely dangerous environments surrounding volcanic eruptions.
Math Is Still...
How This Marine Worm Can Tell Moonglow From Sunbeams
For the first time, scientists have decoded the molecular structure of a protein that helps to sync...
a year ago
For the first time, scientists have decoded the molecular structure of a protein that helps to sync a biological clock to the phases of the moon.
The post How This Marine Worm Can Tell Moonglow From Sunbeams first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Wanderingspace
Morning and Night on Mars
Yeah. Um… Wow. Nice Job NASA. I’ll just copy/paste how The Planetary Society explained it:
“NASA's...
over a year ago
Yeah. Um… Wow. Nice Job NASA. I’ll just copy/paste how The Planetary Society explained it:
“NASA's Curiosity team made this artistic interpretation of the rover's view from high up Mt. Sharp by combining pictures taken at different times of day and adding colors to bring out the...
Apoorva Srinivasan
a review on protein language models
Protein “language” is a lot like human language. Given the similarities, researchers have been...
7 months ago
Protein “language” is a lot like human language. Given the similarities, researchers have been building and training language models on protein sequence data, replicating the success seen in other domains, with profound implications. In this post, I will explore how transformer...
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
NeuroLogica Blog
Non-Invasive Deep Brain Stimulation
We are rapidly entering the era of neuromodulation – using electrical and magnetic fields in order...
6 months ago
We are rapidly entering the era of neuromodulation – using electrical and magnetic fields in order to increase or decrease the activity of specific regions and circuits in the brain. Such treatments are already shown to be effective in treating some Parkinson’s symptoms,...
Math Is Still...
To Move Fast, Quantum Maze Solvers Must Forget the Past
Quantum algorithms can find their way out of mazes exponentially faster than classical ones, at the...
a year ago
Quantum algorithms can find their way out of mazes exponentially faster than classical ones, at the cost of forgetting the path they took. A new result suggests that the trade-off may be inevitable.
The post To Move Fast, Quantum Maze Solvers Must Forget the Past...
Math Is Still...
What Is the Nature of Consciousness?
Consciousness, our experience of being in the world, is one of the mind’s greatest mysteries, but as...
a year ago
Consciousness, our experience of being in the world, is one of the mind’s greatest mysteries, but as the neuroscientist Anil Seth explains to Steven Strogatz, research is making progress in understanding this elusive phenomenon.
The post What Is the Nature of...
nanoscale views
Intriguing papers - exquisite thermal measurements + automated materials discovery/synthesis
It's a busy time, but I wanted to point out a couple of papers from this past week.
First, I want...
a year ago
It's a busy time, but I wanted to point out a couple of papers from this past week.
First, I want to point to this preprint on the arxiv, where the Weizmann folks do an incredibly technically impressive thing. I'd written recently about the thermal Hall effect, when a...
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
Man Gets Pig Kidney Transplant
On March 16 surgeons transplanted a kidney taken from a pig into a human recipient, Rick Slayman. So...
9 months ago
On March 16 surgeons transplanted a kidney taken from a pig into a human recipient, Rick Slayman. So far the transplant is a success, but of course the real test will be how well the kidney functions and for how long. This is the first time such a transplant has been done into a...
Asterisk
Manufacturing Bliss
A growing community centered on the Bay Area is rediscovering the jhanas, a meditation technique...
8 months ago
A growing community centered on the Bay Area is rediscovering the jhanas, a meditation technique that practitioners claim could upend how we think about the brain — and transform our lives in the process.
Quantum Frontiers
Identical twins and quantum entanglement
“If I had a nickel for every unsolicited and very personal health question I’ve gotten at parties,...
a year ago
“If I had a nickel for every unsolicited and very personal health question I’ve gotten at parties, I’d have paid off my medical school loans by now,” my doctor friend complained. As a physicist, I can somewhat relate. I occasionally … Continue reading →
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...
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,...
Beautiful Public...
All of the 8,291 License Plates in America
States now offer a vast menu of personalized plate options for a dizzying array of organizations,...
a year ago
States now offer a vast menu of personalized plate options for a dizzying array of organizations, professions, sports teams, causes and other groups.
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,...
IEEE Spectrum
From Punch Cards to Python
In today’s digital world, it’s easy for just about anyone to create a mobile app or write software,...
3 months ago
In today’s digital world, it’s easy for just about anyone to create a mobile app or write software, thanks to Java, JavaScript, Python, and other programming languages.
But that wasn’t always the case. Because the primary language of computers is binary code, early programmers...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Newsletter One + Patient Zero | Out-Of-Pocket
Shall we begin?
a year ago
Asterisk
America Doesn’t Know Tofu
China has spent millennia exploring the culinary possibilities of soybean curds. The West has barely...
a year ago
China has spent millennia exploring the culinary possibilities of soybean curds. The West has barely scratched the surface.
Wanderingspace
Phobos over mount Sharp
Taken by the Curiosity rover. This is one of Mars tiny moons as seen from the ground. Impressive as...
over a year ago
Taken by the Curiosity rover. This is one of Mars tiny moons as seen from the ground. Impressive as it is only 14 long and you can actually see its shape from the surface. See Phobos below for reference.
NeuroLogica Blog
Have We Achieved General AI
As I predicted the controversy over whether or not we have achieved general AI will likely exist for...
a week ago
As I predicted the controversy over whether or not we have achieved general AI will likely exist for a long time before there is a consensus that we have. The latest round of this controversy comes from Vahid Kazemi from OpenAI. He posted on X: “In my opinion we have already...
Math Is Still...
Physicists Discover ‘Unobservable’ Phase Transition in Quantum Entanglement
Measurement and entanglement both have a “spooky” nonlocal flavor to them. Now physicists are...
a year ago
Measurement and entanglement both have a “spooky” nonlocal flavor to them. Now physicists are harnessing that nonlocality to probe the spread of quantum information and control it.
The post Physicists Discover ‘Unobservable’ Phase Transition in Quantum Entanglement...
Wanderingspace
Colorized View of Perseverance Landing
An artificially colorized view of Jezero Crater, showing the bird’s eye view of Perseverance...
over a year ago
An artificially colorized view of Jezero Crater, showing the bird’s eye view of Perseverance screaming towards Mars’s surface. The above image was enhanced by Kevin Gill into full color, taking images captured by Perseverance’s Lander Vision System Camera just after the heat...
NeuroLogica Blog
Some Future Tech Possibilities
It’s difficult to pick winners and losers in the future tech game. In reality you just have to see...
10 months ago
It’s difficult to pick winners and losers in the future tech game. In reality you just have to see what happens when you try out a new technology in the real world with actual people. Many technologies that look good on paper run into logistical problems, difficulty scaling, fall...
Math Is Still...
Even Synthetic Life Forms With a Tiny Genome Can Evolve
By watching “minimal” cells regain the fitness they lost, researchers are testing whether a genome...
a year ago
By watching “minimal” cells regain the fitness they lost, researchers are testing whether a genome can be too simple to evolve.
The post Even Synthetic Life Forms With a Tiny Genome Can Evolve first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Asterisk
Culture Studies
Montessori classrooms don’t have much in common with the Jesuit colleges of early modern Europe. But...
5 months ago
Montessori classrooms don’t have much in common with the Jesuit colleges of early modern Europe. But students in both settings learn more than a core curriculum — instead they’re taught a distinctive culture. And then they pass it on.
NeuroLogica Blog
Student Attitudes Toward AI in the Class
Researchers recently published an extensive survey of almost 6,000 students across academic...
a year ago
Researchers recently published an extensive survey of almost 6,000 students across academic institution in Sweden. The results are not surprising, but they do give a snapshot of where we are with the recent introduction of large language model AIs. Most students, 56%, reported...
NeuroLogica Blog
Latest Starship Launch
SpaceX has conducted their most successful test launch of a Starship system to date. The system they...
2 months ago
SpaceX has conducted their most successful test launch of a Starship system to date. The system they tested has three basic components – the Super Heavy first stage rocket booster, the Starship second stage (which is the actual space ship that will go places), and the...
Marine Madness
Culture Club: Time to let the cetaceans in?
Up until recently, culture has been thought of as a primarily human characteristic. However, recent...
over a year ago
Up until recently, culture has been thought of as a primarily human characteristic. However, recent studies shine a light on the fact that non-human animals including Cetaceans (dolphins and whales), may also possess it. They live in tightly-knit social communities, exhibit...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Patient Messaging Conundrum pt. 2 | Out-Of-Pocket
Some thoughts from an academic, a behavioral scientist, a patient, and more
a year ago
Some thoughts from an academic, a behavioral scientist, a patient, and more
symmetry magazine
What is neutral naturalness?
Indirectly testing this theory, motivated by the mysterious mass of the Higgs boson, could be within...
a year ago
Indirectly testing this theory, motivated by the mysterious mass of the Higgs boson, could be within reach for experiments at the Large Hadron Collider.
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...
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 →
Math Is Still...
Echoes of Electromagnetism Found in Number Theory
A new magnum opus posits the existence of a hidden mathematical link akin to the connection between...
a year ago
A new magnum opus posits the existence of a hidden mathematical link akin to the connection between electricity and magnetism.
The post Echoes of Electromagnetism Found in Number Theory first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Probably...
Smoking Causes Cancer
In the preface of Probably Overthinking It, I wrote: Sometimes interpreting data is easy. For...
a year ago
In the preface of Probably Overthinking It, I wrote: Sometimes interpreting data is easy. For example, one of the reasons we know that smoking causes lung cancer is that when only 20% of the population smoked, 80% of people with lung cancer were smokers. If you are a doctor who...
NeuroLogica Blog
Dog Soundboards
I am a lifelong dog owner, and like many dog owners am often impressed with how smart my dogs have...
3 months ago
I am a lifelong dog owner, and like many dog owners am often impressed with how smart my dogs have been. They pick up on subtle body language and non-verbal cues, they seem to understand specific words, and they are capable of successfully communicating their wants and desires....
Eukaryote Writes...
[UPDATE to most recent post]
I edited the post “A point of clarification on infohazard terminology” in response to a good point...
over a year ago
I edited the post “A point of clarification on infohazard terminology” in response to a good point of feedback, and changed a terminology proposal. I’m writing a separate update in case the old unedited version is still lodged in your RSS feed. Read the new one instead! It’s the...
IEEE Spectrum
Franklin’s Franklins Were Freakishly Un-Fakeable
To make something hard to fake, you can use exotic materials or clever tricks. Benjamin Franklin, a...
a year ago
To make something hard to fake, you can use exotic materials or clever tricks. Benjamin Franklin, a printer by vocation, a scientist by avocation, leaned on cleverness, developing measures that are still in use.
Those black arts have now yielded to the latest analytical...
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
Math Is Still...
What Has the Pandemic Taught Us About Vaccines?
Should Covid-19 vaccines be judged by how well they prevent disease or how well they prevent death?...
a year ago
Should Covid-19 vaccines be judged by how well they prevent disease or how well they prevent death? Anna Durbin, a public health expert and vaccine researcher, talks with Steven Strogatz about the science behind vaccines.
The post What Has the Pandemic Taught Us About...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
23andMe, a healthcare fund idea, and the NHS | Out-Of-Pocket
Some random musings coming from London
2 months ago
Some random musings coming from London
Damn Interesting
A Taste of Italy
In the mid-1800s, Italy was consumed by two parallel fights: one to rid itself of Austrian...
over a year ago
In the mid-1800s, Italy was consumed by two parallel fights: one to rid itself of Austrian domination (a holdover from the Holy Roman Empire) and the other for unification. At the time, Europe’s boot was a curious conglomeration of separate states, not all of which got along....
NeuroLogica Blog
The Science of Gift Giving
There is a lot of social psychology out there providing information that can inform our everyday...
a year ago
There is a lot of social psychology out there providing information that can inform our everyday lives, and most people are completely unaware of the research. Richard Wiseman makes this point in his book, 59 Seconds – we actually have useful scientific information, and yet we...
The Roots of...
Video: Intro to progress studies at Learning Night Boston
I got invited to speak at Learning Night Boston and give an intro to progress studies: why study...
a year ago
I got invited to speak at Learning Night Boston and give an intro to progress studies: why study progress, and why do we need a new philosophy of progress? There are then a few minutes of Q&A. (It was in a bar and the audio quality is poor, sorry.)
Probably...
Testing Percentiles
Here’s another installment in Data Q&A: Answering the real questions with Python. Previous...
7 months ago
Here’s another installment in Data Q&A: Answering the real questions with Python. Previous installments are available from the Data Q&A landing page. test_percentile Testing percentiles¶ Here’s a question from the Reddit statistics forum. I have two different samples (about 100...
Uncharted...
10 Other Places Where Geniuses Hide
Groups, networks, the Internet, IQ, state sponsorship, and many more
a week ago
Groups, networks, the Internet, IQ, state sponsorship, and many more
Blog - Practical...
Is the World Really Running Out of Sand?
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
If you have to know the answer...
2 months ago
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
If you have to know the answer right away, it’s no; or at least, my goal with this video is to convince you that the world is not running out of sand. But if it were that simple, I wouldn’t be here (right?) and...
brr
The Beer Can
Connecting old and new.
a year ago
Math Is Still...
The Researcher Who Explores Computation by Conjuring New Worlds
Russell Impagliazzo studies hard problems, the limits of cryptography, the nature of randomness and...
8 months ago
Russell Impagliazzo studies hard problems, the limits of cryptography, the nature of randomness and more.
The post The Researcher Who Explores Computation by Conjuring New Worlds first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Casey Handmer's blog
Potentially undervalued companies
I am routinely solicited for my technical opinion on new and interesting technologies and companies...
3 months ago
I am routinely solicited for my technical opinion on new and interesting technologies and companies developing them. 90% of the time, my answer is “I don’t know” but it continues to concern me that aspects of technical feasibility are evidently not legible to financial types (and...
Blog - Practical...
Which Is Easier To Pull? (Railcars vs. Road Cars)
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
Imagine the room you’re in...
a year ago
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
Imagine the room you’re in right now was filled to the top with gravel. (I promise I’m headed somewhere with this.) I don’t know the size of the room you’re in, but if it’s anywhere near an average-sized...
NeuroLogica Blog
Evolution and Copy-Paste Errors
Evolution deniers (I know there is a spectrum, but generally speaking) are terrible scientists and...
8 months ago
Evolution deniers (I know there is a spectrum, but generally speaking) are terrible scientists and logicians. The obvious reason is because they are committing the primary mortal sin of pseudoscience – working backwards from a desired conclusion rather than following evidence and...
symmetry magazine
Muon g-2 doubles down with latest measurement, explores uncharted territory
Fermilab's Muon g-2 experiment brings particle physics closer to a showdown between theory and...
a year ago
Fermilab's Muon g-2 experiment brings particle physics closer to a showdown between theory and experiment.
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...
Andrew Fraknoi –...
Black Hole Has Daily Meals Worthy of Thanksgiving
You think you ate too much? No matter how stuffed you were after Thanksgiving (or another...
3 weeks ago
You think you ate too much? No matter how stuffed you were after Thanksgiving (or another celebratory meal), it’s nothing compared to Quasar J0529-4351, which astronomers observed earlier this year to be consuming the mass of our entire Sun EACH and every day! They called it...
Probably...
Regrets and Regression
It’s another installment in Data Q&A: Answering the real questions with Python. Previous...
5 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. standardize Standardization and Normalization¶ Here’s a question from the Reddit statistics forum. I want to write a research...
NeuroLogica Blog
Robots and a Sense of Self
Humans (assuming you all experience roughly what I experience, which is a reasonable assumption)...
a month ago
Humans (assuming you all experience roughly what I experience, which is a reasonable assumption) have a sense of self. This sense has several components – we feel as if we occupy our physical bodies, that our bodies are distinct entities separate from the rest of the universe,...
Asterisk
Through a Glass Darkly
Nobody predicted the AI revolution, except for the 352 experts who were asked to predict it.
a year ago
Nobody predicted the AI revolution, except for the 352 experts who were asked to predict it.
Blog - Practical...
Which Power Plant Does My Electricity Come From?
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
In June of 2000, the power...
a month ago
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
In June of 2000, the power shut off across much of the San Francisco Bay area. There simply wasn’t enough electricity to meet demands, so more than a million customers were disconnected in California's largest...
Math Is Still...
Exoplanets Could Help Us Learn How Planets Make Magnetism
New observations of a faraway rocky world that might have its own magnetic field could help...
a year ago
New observations of a faraway rocky world that might have its own magnetic field could help astronomers understand the seemingly haphazard magnetic fields swaddling our solar system’s planets.
The post Exoplanets Could Help Us Learn How Planets Make Magnetism first...
NeuroLogica Blog
Dwarf Planet Ring Mystery
Scientists love mysteries, because that is where new discoveries lay. It is nice to find evidence...
a year ago
Scientists love mysteries, because that is where new discoveries lay. It is nice to find evidence consistent with existing theories, providing further confirmation, but it’s exciting to find evidence that cannot be explained with existing theories. Astronomers may have found such...
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....
Explorations of an...
Potrero de Yala - Dippers, Red-faced Guans And More
Laura and I were up early to make the most of our morning at Potrero de Yala. As dawn broke, we...
a year ago
Laura and I were up early to make the most of our morning at Potrero de Yala. As dawn broke, we slowly drove in along the entrance road, keeping an eye out for guans.
We found quite a few guans on and around the road but none were our hoped-for Red-faced Guans; they were all...
Explorations of an...
Borneo: Quest For The Bulwer's Pheasant
The Bulwer's Pheasant was one of the first birds to grab hold of my attention when I first flipped...
3 weeks ago
The Bulwer's Pheasant was one of the first birds to grab hold of my attention when I first flipped through the pages of my Borneo field guide many years ago. This pheasant of Bornean hill forest is nearly unbelievable-looking (the male, that is). He has a deep maroon chest and a...
Explorations of an...
A Quest Nature Tours Adventure To Sulawesi
The island of Sulawesi must be on the bucket list for any naturalist with a strong interest in...
a year ago
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 significantly...
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
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
Math Is Still...
The Brainstem Fine-Tunes Inflammation Throughout the Body
The evolutionarily ancient part of the brain that controls breathing and heart rate also regulates...
6 months ago
The evolutionarily ancient part of the brain that controls breathing and heart rate also regulates the immune system — a discovery about the brain-body axis made by experts on taste.
The post The Brainstem Fine-Tunes Inflammation Throughout the Body first appeared on...
brr
Redeployment Part Two
Station opening, and my flight out of Pole!
11 months ago
Station opening, and my flight out of Pole!
nanoscale views
Neutrality and experimental detective work
One of the remarkable aspects of condensed matter physics is the idea of emergent quasiparticles,...
a year ago
One of the remarkable aspects of condensed matter physics is the idea of emergent quasiparticles, where through the interactions of many underlying degrees of freedom, new excitations emerge that are long-lived and often can propagate around in ways very different than their...
Math Is Still...
Why the Brain’s Connections to the Body Are Crisscrossed
In all bilaterally symmetrical animals, from humans down to simple worms, nerves cross from one side...
a year ago
In all bilaterally symmetrical animals, from humans down to simple worms, nerves cross from one side of the body to the opposite side of the brain. Geometry may explain why.
The post Why the Brain’s Connections to the Body Are Crisscrossed first appeared on Quanta...
Math Is Still...
The Cryptographer Who Ensures We Can Trust Our Computers
Yael Tauman Kalai’s breakthroughs secure our digital world, from cloud computing to our quantum...
a year ago
Yael Tauman Kalai’s breakthroughs secure our digital world, from cloud computing to our quantum future.
The post The Cryptographer Who Ensures We Can Trust Our Computers first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Blog - Practical...
How the Hawaiian Power Grid Works
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
In January of 2024, right on...
9 months ago
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.]
In January of 2024, right on the heels of a serious drought across the state, a major storm slammed into the Hawaiian islands of Oahu and Kauai. Severe winds caused damage to buildings, and heavy rain flooded...
Math Is Still...
The AI Pioneer With Provocative Plans for Humanity
While some fret about technology’s social impacts, Raj Reddy still believes in the power of...
2 weeks ago
While some fret about technology’s social impacts, Raj Reddy still believes in the power of artificial intelligence to improve lives.
The post The AI Pioneer With Provocative Plans for Humanity first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Uncharted...
Interesting News & Game Theory of Sex | Q3 2024
Trans & bathrooms, the end of nation states, woke pendulum, trigger warnings, is breastfeeding...
2 months ago
Trans & bathrooms, the end of nation states, woke pendulum, trigger warnings, is breastfeeding actually good for IQ, are differences in household work justified, and more
The Roots of...
If you wish to make an apple pie, you must first become dictator of the universe
The word “robot” is derived from the Czech robota, which means “serfdom.” It was introduced over a...
a year ago
The word “robot” is derived from the Czech robota, which means “serfdom.” It was introduced over a century ago by the Czech play R.U.R., for “Rossum’s Universal Robots.” In the play, the smartest and best-educated of the robots leads a slave revolt that wipes out most of...
Explorations of an...
A Rare Hummingbird Twitch In Ecuador
October 22, 2023
I recently returned from Ecuador where I had spent the previous couple of weeks....
a year ago
October 22, 2023
I recently returned from Ecuador where I had spent the previous couple of weeks. The main purpose of the trip was to lead a tour for Worldwide Quest to the Galápagos archipelago, but I made some time for a little extra-curricular birding as well. If I was going...
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.
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...
IEEE Spectrum
This 1920 Chess Automaton Was Wired to Win
The Mechanical Turk was a fraud. The chess-playing automaton, dressed in a turban and elaborate...
a year ago
The Mechanical Turk was a fraud. The chess-playing automaton, dressed in a turban and elaborate Ottoman robes, toured Europe in the closing decades of the 18th century accompanied by its inventor Wolfgang von Kempelen. The Turk wowed Austrian empress Maria Theresa, French emperor...
nanoscale views
Power and computing
The Wall Street Journal last week had an article (sorry about the paywall) titled "There’s Not...
7 months ago
The Wall Street Journal last week had an article (sorry about the paywall) titled "There’s Not Enough Power for America’s High-Tech Ambitions", about how there is enormous demand for more data centers (think Amazon Web Services and the like), and electricity production can't...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Sleep health is getting interesting | Out-Of-Pocket
The consumer and clinical worlds of sleep are colliding
a month ago
The consumer and clinical worlds of sleep are colliding
Quantum Frontiers
Always appropriate
I met boatloads of physicists as a master’s student at the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical...
4 months ago
I met boatloads of physicists as a master’s student at the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics in Waterloo, Canada. Researchers pass through Perimeter like diplomats through my current neighborhood—the Washington, DC area—except that Perimeter’s visitors speak math...
Drew Ex Machina
An ISS Success Story: CyMISS (Tropical Cyclone Intensity Measurements from the ISS) to the Hurricane...
The team at Tropical Weather Analytics (TWA), where this author is the Chief Scientist, had the...
4 months ago
The team at Tropical Weather Analytics (TWA), where this author is the Chief Scientist, had the honor of having our poster about our previous work on […]
Wanderingspace
Triton Image from Voyager Colored
Nice update to an old Voyager image with colors added based on actual colors captured in other...
over a year ago
Nice update to an old Voyager image with colors added based on actual colors captured in other images. See original post here by Jason Major.
Explorations of an...
Day Three at Río Bigal: A Rainout, Another Snake, And More Mothing Adventures
Part of the reason why I gave myself five nights to spend at Río Bigal was to mitigate in case I had...
a year ago
Part of the reason why I gave myself five nights to spend at Río Bigal was to mitigate in case I had a couple of days washed out by heavy rain. The eastern Andes of Ecuador receive a high amount of precipitation. Moisture-laden air from the Amazon basin drifts westwards to the...
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!
The Roots of...
The epistemic virtue of scope matching
Something a little bit different today. I’ll tie it in to progress, I promise.
I keep noticing a...
a year ago
Something a little bit different today. I’ll tie it in to progress, I promise.
I keep noticing a particular epistemic pitfall (not exactly a “fallacy”), and a corresponding epistemic virtue that avoids it. I want to call this out and give it a name.
The virtue is: identifying the...
The Works in...
The End of Combustion Vehicles
The final section of Ch.2 of Stewart Brand's Maintenance on Books in Progress
a year ago
The final section of Ch.2 of Stewart Brand's Maintenance on Books in Progress
NeuroLogica Blog
The Fight over Education
There is an ongoing culture war, and not just in the US, over the content of childhood education,...
a year ago
There is an ongoing culture war, and not just in the US, over the content of childhood education, both public and private. This seems to be flaring up recently, but is never truly gone. Republicans in the US have recently escalated this war by banning over 500 books in several...
wadertales
Learning lessons from Slender-billed Curlews
The 2024 Ibis paper, recommending that the Slender-billed Curlew should be classified as Extinct,...
a week ago
The 2024 Ibis paper, recommending that the Slender-billed Curlew should be classified as Extinct, tells a sad tale. We now know that, by the time that the Slender-billed Curlew Action Plan was published in 1996, it was already too late to save the species. Resources expended...
Asterisk
How We Can Regulate AI
The chips used to train the most advanced AIs are scarce, expensive, and trackable — giving...
a year ago
The chips used to train the most advanced AIs are scarce, expensive, and trackable — giving regulators a path forward.
NeuroLogica Blog
Why Do Species Evolve to Get Bigger or Smaller
Have you heard of Cope’s Rule or Foster’s Rule? American paleontologist Edward Drinker Cope first...
11 months ago
Have you heard of Cope’s Rule or Foster’s Rule? American paleontologist Edward Drinker Cope first noticed a trend in the fossil record that certain animal lineages tend to get bigger over evolutionary time. Most famously this was noticed in the horse lineage, beginning with small...
Asterisk
Prediction Markets Have an Elections Problem
Weeks after it was clear that Donald Trump lost the 2020 election, you could still make pennies on...
10 months ago
Weeks after it was clear that Donald Trump lost the 2020 election, you could still make pennies on the dollar betting Joe Biden would win. Why doesn’t smart money drive out dumb money in election markets?
Asterisk
The Fault in Our Forecasts
It’s impossible to predict when an earthquake will strike. This puts seismologists in a nearly...
6 months ago
It’s impossible to predict when an earthquake will strike. This puts seismologists in a nearly impossible bind: how can they convince the public to take earthquakes seriously without crying wolf?
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 →
nanoscale views
Faculty positions at Rice - follow-up
I had mentioned about 6 weeks ago that my department at Rice is searching in the quantum/AMO space...
a year ago
I had mentioned about 6 weeks ago that my department at Rice is searching in the quantum/AMO space for experiment and theory. Now I want to put the larger context of this out there - Rice has four quantum-related searches going on right now:
Quantum theory (PHYA):...
The Works in...
Notes on Progress: Artificial flavoring
"Artificial" didn't scare Americans in the 19th century. Why does it scare us now?
a year ago
"Artificial" didn't scare Americans in the 19th century. Why does it scare us now?
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
nanoscale views
Condensed matter on the public stage, and not in a good way
This week, condensed matter physics has been getting far more broad public attention than usual, and...
a year ago
This week, condensed matter physics has been getting far more broad public attention than usual, and while in the abstract I like our discipline getting noticed, this is definitely not how I’d have preferred it to happen.
First, more fun re Ranga Dias. Fresh off renewed...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
The New Clinic Buildouts | Out-Of-Pocket
Has software changed what's necessary in the clinic?
a year ago
Has software changed what's necessary in the clinic?
nanoscale views
Cavities and tuning physics
I've written before about cavity quantum electrodynamics. An electromagnetic cavity - a resonator...
a year ago
I've written before about cavity quantum electrodynamics. An electromagnetic cavity - a resonator of some kind, like your microwave oven chamber is for microwaves, or like an optical cavity made using nearly perfect mirrors - picks out what electromagnetic modes are allowed...
IEEE Spectrum
What Is an Electronic Sackbut?
If you, like me, think of musical synthesizers as an artifact of 1970s rock and disco, then you,...
10 months ago
If you, like me, think of musical synthesizers as an artifact of 1970s rock and disco, then you, like me, will be surprised to learn that the first electronic synthesizer predates those genres by several decades
In 1945, Hugh Le Caine, a physicist at Canada’s National Research...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Personalized Health Insurance and the Payer Stack | Out-Of-Pocket
Stacks on stacks on stacks
a year ago
Stacks on stacks on stacks
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,...
Stephen Wolfram...
Why Does Biological Evolution Work? A Minimal Model for Biological Evolution and Other Adaptive...
The Model Why does biological evolution work? And, for that matter, why does machine learning work?...
7 months ago
The Model Why does biological evolution work? And, for that matter, why does machine learning work? Both are examples of adaptive processes that surprise us with what they manage to achieve. So what’s the essence of what’s going on? I’m going to concentrate here on biological...
NeuroLogica Blog
Podcast Pseudoscience
A recent BBC article highlights some of the risk of the new age of social media we have crafted for...
a week ago
A recent BBC article highlights some of the risk of the new age of social media we have crafted for ourselves. The BBC investigated the number one ranked UK podcast, Diary of a CEO with host Steven Bartlett, for the accuracy of the medical claims recently made on the show. While...
Drew Ex Machina
Venera 8: The First Characterization of the Surface of Venus
Recent years has seen a marked increase in the planetary community’s interest in Venus after decades...
over a year ago
Recent years has seen a marked increase in the planetary community’s interest in Venus after decades of near-neglect. Part of this renewed interest is to understand […]
Math Is Still...
How Randomness Improves Algorithms
Unpredictability can help computer scientists solve otherwise intractable problems.
The...
a year ago
Unpredictability can help computer scientists solve otherwise intractable problems.
The post How Randomness Improves Algorithms first appeared on Quanta Magazine
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