Physics
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Science & Society
Here’s why putting a missile defense system in space could be a bad idea
Expanding missile defense capabilities could put the world on a slippery slope to space warfare.
- Materials Science
A new plastic film glows to flag food contaminated with dangerous microbes
Plastic patches that glow when they touch some types of bacteria could be built into food packaging to reduce the spread of foodborne illness.
- Physics
A key constant’s new measurement hints ‘dark photons’ don’t exist
New measurement of the fine-structure constant is the most precise yet.
- Physics
Einstein’s general relativity reveals new quirk of Mercury’s orbit
A tiny effect of general relativity on Mercury’s orbit has been calculated for the first time.
- Microbes
This material uses energy from ambient light to kill hospital superbugs
A quantum dot–powered material could help reduce the number of hospital-acquired infections, including those with drug-resistant bacteria.
- Particle Physics
The search for mysterious dark matter underdogs steps up
Dark matter particles called axions are finally being put to the test.
- Animals
In a colony, king penguins behave like molecules in a 2-D liquid
Positions of king penguins in a breeding colony resemble molecules in a 2-D liquid.
- Materials Science
Toxic chemicals turn a new material from porous to protective
A new material switches from a comfortable, breathable form to a sealed-up, protective state when exposed to dangerous chemicals.
- Science & Society
How many scientists do you know in real life?
Editor in Chief Nancy Shute ponders about memorable scientists and how we can make it easier for people to connect to their work.
- Physics
How physicists will remember Stephen Hawking
Researchers reflect on Stephen Hawking's contributions to the field and the cosmological puzzles he left behind.
- Materials Science
Eggshell nanostructure protects a chick and helps it hatch
The nanoscale structure of a chicken eggshell changes to fulfill different functions as the egg incubates.
- Materials Science
Live heart cells make this material shift color like a chameleon
A new material made of heart cells from rats and hydrogel changes color as the living cells contract and relax.
