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We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Tech
‘You Are Here’ maps course for directionally challenged
A Boston Globe technology reporter chronicles the evolution of navigational and mapmaking tools in "You Are Here."
- Tech
Animated movies made by computer
A 17-minute animated movie made with a computer in 1964 took 2,000 hours of film processing and cost $600 per minute. The 2013 animated film Frozen cost about $1.5 million per minute to make.
- Tech
To do: Exhibits to explore this May in D.C. and New York
Events include a celebration of science and original watercolor paintings from John James Audubon.
- Computing
App could cut jet lag short
A new app calculates lighting schedules to help travelers adjust quickly to new time zones.
By Meghan Rosen - Tech
Atlantic razor clam inspires robot to dig deeper
A robot digs using the same method as the Atlantic razor clam.
- Tech
Soft robots go swimming
A new robotic fish can wiggle and writhe like the real thing.
By Meghan Rosen - Quantum Physics
U.S. marches to tick of new clock
The atomic clock NIST-F2 has launched as the country’s official civilian time and frequency standard.
- Computing
A tale of touching tubes
Mathematicians solve the challenge of putting seven cylinders in contact without using their ends.
- Tech
Mindless: Why Smarter Machines are Making Dumber Humans
Simon Head argues that computer business systems leave middle managers and workers with little creative latitude. They acquire fewer skills and their wages stagnate, hurting their job quality and buying power.
By Nathan Seppa - Tech
English Channel tunnel
First proposed in 1802 as a tunnel for horse-drawn carriages, the Channel Tunnel, or Chunnel, was built starting in 1987 and opened in 1994.
- Tech
Early advantages pay off in public opinion on Twitter
Twitter data show that having a slight advantage early in the formation of public opinion can be beneficial even though the state of the opinions level off over time.
- Tech
Shining a light on radio waves
A new device detects faint signals by first converting them to laser pulses.