When It Comes to BlackRock’s ESG Pullback, Don’t Take Larry Fink at His Word

BlackRock recently walked back its public commitments to ESG in various ways. And for good reason. BlackRock has lost billions of dollars from state pension funds and others pulling out of ESG funds while it has taken a brand beating for its support of ESG.  The company has been the subject of ad campaigns, investigations,… Continue reading When It Comes to BlackRock’s ESG Pullback, Don’t Take Larry Fink at His Word

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Pierre de Fermat’s Link to a High School Student’s Prime Math Proof

Like many math students, I had dreams of mathematical greatness. I thought I was close once. A difficult algebra problem in college kept me working late into the night. After hours of struggle, I felt a breakthrough coming. I deftly manipulated expressions. I factored, multiplied and simplified, until my discovery finally revealed itself: $latex 1… Continue reading Pierre de Fermat’s Link to a High School Student’s Prime Math Proof

Could Jesus Build an Airplane? Balaam’s Donkey, Asmodeus, Ed and Lorraine Warren, & More Weird Questions

Podcast: Download MYS286: It’s time for another set of weird questions posed by Cy Kellett of Catholic Answers to Jimmy Akin, including this time: what if mankind fell after Adam and Eve; did Jesus know how to build an airplane; what happened with Balaam’s donkey; Ed and Lorraine Warren; and more. Get all new episodes… Continue reading Could Jesus Build an Airplane? Balaam’s Donkey, Asmodeus, Ed and Lorraine Warren, & More Weird Questions

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Rogue Worlds Throw Planetary Ideas Out of Orbit

It took Pearson months to align the resulting 12,500 JWST images of the Orion nebula, pixel by pixel. The formidable task was frustrated by the telescope’s exquisite sensitivity: Many of the faint objects typically used as landmarks blinded JWST’s ultra-sensitive eye. “The brown dwarfs that are normally difficult to see were wiping out bits of… Continue reading Rogue Worlds Throw Planetary Ideas Out of Orbit

During Pregnancy, a Fake ‘Infection’ Protects the Fetus

When you were a child, it seemed like an ingenious plan: Splash hot water on your face and stagger into the kitchen, letting out a moan that could make angels cry. One touch of your flushed forehead would convince your parents to diagnose a fever and keep you home from school. No matter how elaborately… Continue reading During Pregnancy, a Fake ‘Infection’ Protects the Fetus

People Who Speak Backward Reveal the Brain’s Endless Ability to Play with Language

In 2020 Adolfo García, a neurolinguist at Argentina’s University of San Andrés, had a chance encounter with a photographer who amused his models by chattering to them backward—the Spanish word casa (house) became “asac,” for instance. Upon learning that the photographer had been fluent in “backward speech” since childhood and was capable of holding a conversation… Continue reading People Who Speak Backward Reveal the Brain’s Endless Ability to Play with Language

Quantum Physics Isn’t as Weird as You Think. It’s Weirder

Down at the level of atoms and electrons, quantum physics describes the behavior of the very smallest objects. Solar panels, LED lights, your mobile phone and MRI scanners in hospitals: all of these rely on quantum behavior. It is one of the best-tested theories of physics, and we use it all the time.  On the… Continue reading Quantum Physics Isn’t as Weird as You Think. It’s Weirder

Google DeepMind Trains ‘Artificial Brainstorming’ in Chess AI

When Covid-19 sent people home in early 2020, the computer scientist Tom Zahavy rediscovered chess. He had played as a kid and had recently read Garry Kasparov’s Deep Thinking, a memoir of the grandmaster’s 1997 matches against IBM’s chess-playing computer, Deep Blue. He watched chess videos on YouTube and The Queen’s Gambit on Netflix. Despite… Continue reading Google DeepMind Trains ‘Artificial Brainstorming’ in Chess AI