Time is one of humanity’s greatest blind spots. We experience it as days, months, or years. But nature functions on much grander scales, measured in centuries, millennia and even longer intervals often lumped together as “deep time.” As paleontologists, we were trained to think in deep time. Yet, as conservationists, we’ve come to realize that… Continue reading We Need to Think about Conservation on a Different Timescale
Category: Quantum Stuff
The Deep Link Equating Math Proofs and Computer Programs
Some scientific discoveries matter because they reveal something new — the double helical structure of DNA, for example, or the existence of black holes. However, some revelations are profound because they show that two old concepts, once thought distinct, are in fact the same. Take James Clerk Maxwell’s equations showing that electricity and magnetism are… Continue reading The Deep Link Equating Math Proofs and Computer Programs
Echoes of Electromagnetism Found in Number Theory
Pairings like that between automorphic forms and Galois groups are called dualities. They suggest that different classes of objects mirror each other, which allows mathematicians to study either one in terms of the other. Generations of mathematicians have worked to prove the existence of Langlands’ hypothesized duality. Though they have only managed to establish it… Continue reading Echoes of Electromagnetism Found in Number Theory
In the Milky Way’s Stars, a History of Violence
With the cleaving of the cosmos into a home galaxy and a larger universe, the study of our finite home — and how it exists within that universe — could begin in earnest. Now, a century later, astronomers are still making unexpected discoveries about the only cosmic island we’ll ever inhabit. They may be able… Continue reading In the Milky Way’s Stars, a History of Violence
Are Naps Good for You?
It’s midafternoon. You’re full from lunch. The day is warm. You’re starting to feel drowsy. Should you give in to the comfort of a nap? From a health perspective, it may be worth it. Though there is some debate over whether napping benefits everyone, research suggests naps can boost at least some people’s cognitive performance… Continue reading Are Naps Good for You?
Six Ways to Stay Safe Outdoors in Extreme Heat
The summer sun has been anything but fun for many this year. Brutal temperatures torched records across the U.S. as they peaked globally in July. Relentless heat waves baked the Southwest and rolled into the Midwest and South, occasionally enveloping other regions that are completely unaccustomed to such extremes. Exposure to this kind of heat… Continue reading Six Ways to Stay Safe Outdoors in Extreme Heat
Hiroshima’s Anniversary Marks an Injustice Done to Blast Survivors
On August 6, 1945, the U.S. used an atomic bomb for the first time in history, against the city of Hiroshima. The U.S. dropped another atomic bomb on Nagasaki three days later. Experts estimate that the two bombs instantly killed more than 100,000 people. The movie Oppenheimer has rightly received critical acclaim as a masterful… Continue reading Hiroshima’s Anniversary Marks an Injustice Done to Blast Survivors
How Simple Math Moves the Needle
Imagine you’re rolling down the street in a driverless car when you see a problem ahead. An Amazon delivery driver got their van halfway past a double-parked UPS truck before realizing they couldn’t make it through. Now they’re stuck. And so are you. The street is too narrow to pull off a U-ey, so your… Continue reading How Simple Math Moves the Needle
Covid-19 mRNA Vaccines Win Nobel Prize for Medicine 2023
The Nobel Committee has awarded the 2023 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine to Katalin Karikó and Drew Weissman for their pioneering work in the development of mRNA vaccine technology, which made possible a timely vaccine response to the Covid-19 pandemic. Vaccines against the SARS-CoV-2 virus are credited with helping to curb the spread of… Continue reading Covid-19 mRNA Vaccines Win Nobel Prize for Medicine 2023
Physicists Who Explored Tiny Glimpses of Time Win Nobel Prize
To catch a glimpse of the subatomic world’s unimaginably fleet-footed particles, you need to produce unimaginably brief flashes of light. Anne L’Huillier, Pierre Agostini and Ferenc Krausz have shared the 2023 Nobel Prize in Physics for their pioneering work in developing the ability to illuminate reality on almost inconceivably brief timescales. Between the 1980s and… Continue reading Physicists Who Explored Tiny Glimpses of Time Win Nobel Prize