Physics
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Physics
Microwaved grapes make fireballs, and scientists now know why
Electromagnetic waves bounce back and forth inside a grape, creating plasma.
- Physics
Japan puts plans for the world’s next big particle collider on hold
The jury is still out on whether Japan will host the world’s first “Higgs factory” — the International Linear Collider.
- Cosmology
Hidden ancient neutrinos may shape the patterns of galaxies
The gravitational pull of subatomic particles born in the universe’s first second seem to influence how galaxies cluster into rings.
- Chemistry
Here’s how long the periodic table’s unstable elements last
Most elements on the periodic table have at least one stable form. But some don’t. Here’s how long those unstable members endure.
- Chemistry
Extreme elements push the boundaries of the periodic table
The hunt for the next elements on the periodic table might turn up superheavy atoms that flaunt the rules of chemistry.
- Science & Society
Scientists set sail for the elusive island of stability
Editor in Chief Nancy Shute discusses the search for the island of stability and the future of the periodic table.
- Physics
Supernovas show the universe expands at the same rate in all directions
Analyzing supernovas indicates that expansion rates agree within 1 percent across large regions of sky.
- Physics
The quest for quasicrystals is a physics adventure tale
In ‘The Second Kind of Impossible,’ physicist Paul Steinhardt recounts his journey to find quasicrystals in nature.
- Quantum Physics
LIGO will be getting a quantum upgrade
Quantum squeezing of light will help scientists make better gravitational wave detectors.
- Earth
Muons reveal the whopping voltages inside a thunderstorm
Particle physics sheds new light on the electric potential of thunderstorms.
- Materials Science
A new insulation material is practically weightless yet still durable
Extreme heat and temperature swings are no match for this lightweight insulator.
- Quantum Physics
Photons reveal a weird effect called the quantum pigeonhole paradox
Quantum particles seem to disobey a fundamental principle of mathematics.
