Bookmarks (72)

Maintenance of the software that’s used for the hardest physics calculations rests almost entirely with a retiree. The situation reveals the problematic incentive structure of academia. The post Crucial Computer Program for Particle Physics at Risk of Obsolescence first appeared on Quanta Magazine

The unprecedented experiment explores the possibility that space-time somehow emerges from quantum information. The post Physicists Create a Wormhole Using a Quantum Computer first appeared on Quanta Magazine

The work — the first-ever limit on how many whole numbers can be written as the sum of two cubed fractions — ends “a recurring embarrassment for number theorists.” The post Mathematical Trio Advances Centuries-Old Number Theory Problem first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Researchers discover that to sharpen its control over precision maneuvers, the brain uses comparisons between control signals — not the signals themselves. The post The Brain Uses Calculus to Control Fast Movements first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Inspired by the results of a game-playing neural network, mathematicians have been making unexpected advances on an age-old math problem. The post AI Reveals New Possibilities in Matrix Multiplication first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Wei Ho, the first director of the Women and Mathematics program at the Institute for Advanced Study, combines algebra and geometry in her work on an ancient class of curves. The post A Mathematician Dancing Between Algebra and Geometry first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Proving that two polygons have the same area can be as easy as cutting them up and rearranging the pieces. The post The Simple Geometry Behind Brownie Bake Offs and Equal Areas first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Two physicists have calculated that the universe has a higher entropy — and is therefore more likely — than alternative possible universes. The post Why This Universe? A New Calculation Suggests Our Cosmos Is Typical. first appeared on Quanta Magazine

For more than 250 years, mathematicians have wondered if the Euler equations might sometimes fail to describe a fluid’s flow. A new computer-assisted proof marks a major breakthrough in that quest. The post Computer Proof ‘Blows Up’ Centuries-Old Fluid Equations first appeared on Quanta Magazine

New research in fish suggests that gut microbes can have a crucial early influence on the brain’s social development. The post The Gut Microbiome Helps Social Skills Develop in the Brain first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Albert Einstein’s ideas about space-time aren’t exactly intuitive, and they aren’t exactly Einstein’s, either. The post How to Think About Relativity first appeared on Quanta Magazine

An energy-efficient chip called NeuRRAM fixes an old design flaw to run large-scale AI algorithms on smaller devices, reaching the same accuracy as wasteful digital computers. The post New Chip Expands the Possibilities for AI first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Lattice cryptography promises to protect secrets from the attacks of far-future quantum computers. The post Cryptography’s Future Will Be Quantum-Safe. Here’s How It Will Work. first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Supergenes that lock inherited traits together are widespread in nature. Recent work shows that their blend of genetic benefits and risks for species can be complex. The post How Supergenes Fuel Evolution Despite Harmful Mutations first appeared on Quanta Magazine

A growing catalog of huge but dim galaxies such as Dragonfly 44 is forcing astronomers to invent new theories of galactic evolution. The post The Enduring Mystery of the Dragonfly 44 Galaxy first appeared on Quanta Magazine

For Lisa Kaltenegger and her generation of exoplanet astronomers, decades of planning have set the stage for an epochal detection. The post A Dream of Discovering Alien Life Finds New Hope first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Marine bacteria normally seen as single cells join together as a “microscopic snow globe” to consume bulky floating carbohydrates. The post Ocean Bacteria Reveal an Unexpected Multicellular Form first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Svetlana Jitomirskaya was born in Ukraine, but left the Soviet Union to escape sexism and antisemitism. Even though her work in mathematical physics has now been honored with one of the field’s top prizes, she finds herself still fighting old battles. The post A Mathematician Who Fled to Freedom but Still Stares Down Doubts first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Far from being an abstract mathematical curiosity, knot theory has driven many findings in math and beyond. The post Why Mathematicians Study Knots first appeared on Quanta Magazine

The discovery of a hot spot for horizontal gene transfer draws attention to the possible roles of parasites and ecology in such changes. The post How Genes Can Leap From Snakes to Frogs in Madagascar first appeared on Quanta Magazine

A recent gamma-ray burst known as the BOAT — “brightest of all time” — appears to have produced a high-energy particle that shouldn’t exist. For some, dark matter provides the explanation. The post Brightest-Ever Space Explosion Reveals Possible Hints of Dark Matter first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Solve these puzzle questions to level up your Wordle game. The post How to Win at Wordle (Without Cheating) first appeared on Quanta Magazine

A team of physicists has entangled three photons over a considerable distance, which could lead to more powerful quantum cryptography. The post New Entanglement Results Hint at Better Quantum Codes first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Physical-collapse theories have long offered a natural solution to the central mystery of the quantum world. But a series of increasingly precise experiments are making them untenable. The post Experiments Spell Doom for Decades-Old Explanation of Quantum Weirdness first appeared on Quanta Magazine

The positively charged particle at the heart of the atom is an object of unspeakable complexity, one that changes its appearance depending on how it is probed. We’ve attempted to connect the proton’s many faces to form the most complete picture yet. The post Inside the Proton, the ‘Most Complicated Thing You Could Possibly Imagine’ first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Harry Halpin wants our internet conversations to be more private. He’s helped create a new kind of network that might make it possible. The post The Computer Scientist Who’s Boosting Privacy on the Internet first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Recent explorations of unique geometric worlds reveal perplexing patterns, including the Fibonacci sequence and the golden ratio. The post Mathematicians Discover the Fibonacci Numbers Hiding in Strange Spaces first appeared on Quanta Magazine

In his senior year of high school, Daniel Larsen proved a key theorem about Carmichael numbers — strange entities that mimic the primes. The post Teenager Solves Stubborn Riddle About Prime Number Look-Alikes first appeared on Quanta Magazine

With stem cell technology and lab-grown brain organoids, Sergiu Paşca seeks the causes of autism and other neuropsychiatric conditions. The post Human Brains Are Hard to Study. He Grows Useful Substitutes. first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Letting human brain organoids grow in animal brains could be an ethical new option for experimental studies of neurological disorders. The post Lab-Grown Human Cells Form Working Circuits in Rat Brains first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Zero-knowledge proofs allow researchers to prove their knowledge without divulging the knowledge itself. The post How Do You Prove a Secret? first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Efforts to build a better digital “nose” suggest that our perception of scents reflects both the structure of aromatic molecules and the metabolic processes that make them. The post Machine Learning Highlights a Hidden Order in Scents first appeared on Quanta Magazine

The decades-old Sullivan’s conjecture, about the best way to minimize the surface area of a bubble cluster, was thought to be out of reach for three bubbles and up — until a new breakthrough result. The post ‘Monumental’ Math Proof Solves Triple Bubble Problem and More first appeared on Quanta Magazine

The chemists Carolyn Bertozzi, Morten Meldal and K. Barry Sharpless were recognized for their development of click chemistry and bioorthogonal chemistry. The post Molecule-Building Innovators Win Nobel Prize in Chemistry first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Alain Aspect, John Clauser and Anton Zeilinger have won the 2022 Nobel Prize in Physics for groundbreaking experiments with entangled particles. The post Pioneering Quantum Physicists Win Nobel Prize in Physics first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Svante Pääbo has been awarded the 2022 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for studying our extinct ancestors’ DNA. The post Geneticist Awarded Nobel Prize for Studies of Extinct Human Ancestors first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Readers rescued a Star Trek crew from a probabilistic predicament armed only with the power of mathematical reasoning. The post How Star Trek’s Lieutenant Uhura Overcame Astronomical Odds first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Even though we’ve learned a lot about this relative of smallpox, some mysteries remain due to a lack of political will. The post What We Know About Monkeypox first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Using inserted genetic circuitry, synthetic biologists controlled the growth of plant roots for the first time. The post Biologists Use Genetic Circuits to Program Plant Roots first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Of all the endless questions children and mathematicians have asked about infinity, one of the most fascinating has to do with its size. The post How Big Is Infinity? first appeared on Quanta Magazine

The past and the future are tightly linked in conventional quantum mechanics. Perhaps too tightly. A tweak to the theory could let quantum possibilities increase as space expands. The post Physicists Rewrite a Quantum Rule That Clashes With Our Universe first appeared on Quanta Magazine

A comprehensive mathematical framework treats wrinkling patterns as elegant solutions to geometric problems. The post The New Math of Wrinkling first appeared on Quanta Magazine

A new atomic-scale experiment all but settles the origin of the strong form of superconductivity seen in cuprate crystals, confirming a 35-year-old theory. The post High-Temperature Superconductivity Understood at Last first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Field research suggests a new explanation for the synchronized flashing in fireflies and confirms that a novel form of “chimeric” synchrony occurs naturally. The post How Do Fireflies Flash in Sync? Studies Suggest a New Answer. first appeared on Quanta Magazine

A simple geometric idea has been used to power advances in information theory, cryptography and even blockchain technology. The post How Mathematical Curves Enable Advanced Communication first appeared on Quanta Magazine

A custom-built machine learning algorithm can predict when a complex system is about to switch to a wildly different mode of behavior. The post Chaos Researchers Can Now Predict Perilous Points of No Return first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Robots can surpass the limitations on how high and far animals can jump, but their success only underscores nature’s ingenuity in making the most of what’s available. The post Record-Breaking Robot Highlights How Animals Excel at Jumping first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Richard Rusczyk, founder of Art of Problem Solving, has a vision for bringing “joyous, beautiful math” — and problem-solving — to classrooms everywhere. The post The Math Evangelist Who Preaches Problem-Solving first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Neural networks originally designed for language processing turn out to be great models of how our brains understand places. The post How Transformers Seem to Mimic Parts of the Brain first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Physicists have discovered that the ring of photons orbiting a black hole exhibits a special kind of symmetry, hinting at a deeper meaning. The post A Black Hole’s Orbiting Ring of Light Could Encrypt Its Inner Secrets first appeared on Quanta Magazine