Physics
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Physics
Mayo is weirdly great for understanding nuclear fusion experiments
Mayonnaise’s texture is perfect for mimicking what a fusion fuel capsule goes through after it’s blasted with lasers.
- Particle Physics
The possibilities for dark matter have just shrunk — by a lot
The LZ dark matter experiment has ruled out weakly interacting massive particles, or WIMPs, with a wide range of properties.
- Physics
The world’s fastest microscope makes its debut
Using a laser and an electron beam, the microscope can snap images of moving electrons every 625 quintillionths of a second.
- Climate
Zigzag walls could help buildings beat the heat
A corrugated exterior wall reflects heat to space and absorbs less heat from the ground, keeping it several degrees cooler than a flat wall.
- Physics
Paper cut physics pinpoints the most hazardous types of paper
Dot matrix printer paper is the most treacherous, physicists report. Magazine paper comes in second.
- Particle Physics
Dark matter experiments get a first peek at the ‘neutrino fog’
The hint of fog marks a new way to observe neutrinos, but points to the beginning of the end for this type of dark matter detection.
- Chemistry
A new element on the periodic table might be within reach
Scientists made the known element 116 with a beam of titanium atoms, a technique that could be used to make the undiscovered element 120.
- Physics
Can light spark superconductivity? A new study reignites debate
Brief blasts of light might make some materials into fleeting superconductors. Magnetic measurements strengthen the case for this controversial claim.
- Materials Science
Jurassic Park’s amber-preserved dino DNA is now inspiring a way to store data
DNA is capable of encoding all sorts of data. Storing it in an amberlike material may keep that information safe for nearly forever.
- Physics
Advanced nuclear reactors need a different type of uranium. Here’s 4 things to know
The nuclear fuel of the future may be HALEU, high-assay low-enriched uranium. But questions about the material remain.
- Earth
Something weird is happening to Earth’s inner core
A new study claims to confirm that the inner core is now rotating more slowly than it was over a decade ago, but some researchers remain skeptical.
- Physics
A black hole made from pure light is impossible, thanks to quantum physics
A “kugelblitz” is a black hole made of concentrated electromagnetic energy. But it’s not possible to make one, according to new calculations.
