Physics
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We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Physics
Notorious ‘Big G’ gets a little larger
Gravitational constant is difficult to measure, but physicists calculate with new number.
By Meghan Rosen - Tech
Letters to the editor
Readers respond to glowing plants, fracking worries and space hookups.
By Science News - Materials Science
Toylike blocks make lightweight, strong structures
Bucking trend toward reducing numbers of parts, MIT engineers suggest building planes from thousands of identical pieces.
By Meghan Rosen - Quantum Physics
Quantum teleportation approaches the computer chip
Researchers speedily transmit information from one tiny circuit to another on solid-state device.
By Andrew Grant - Physics
Key to Other Worlds
Excerpt from the August 17, 1963, issue of Science News Letter.
By Science News - Physics
Doppler effect takes a spin
Light’s twistiness allows researchers to measure rotating object’s speed.
By Andrew Grant - Physics
Under magnet’s sway, fluids form simple structures
Droplets wiggle, split and coalesce into simple and dynamic configurations.
By Andrew Grant - Tech
Sound waves put levitation on the move
Technique transports nonmagnetic particles such as cells, water droplets and coffee grounds.
By Meghan Rosen -
- Physics
Perfect mirror debuts
Material that reflects light without letting any escape could improve lasers.
By Andrew Grant - Physics
Particles defy gravity, float upstream
Inspired by tea leaves’ reverse route into a kettle, physicists demonstrate that water’s surface tension allows unexpected movement.
By Andrew Grant - Quantum Physics
Most precise clock
It would take more than 50 billion years for a new atomic clock to gain or lose a second.
By Andrew Grant