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Will AI Ever Have Common Sense?

July 18, 2024

Common sense has been viewed as one of the hardest challenges in AI. That said, ChatGPT4 has acquired what some believe is an impressive sense of humanity. How is this possible? Listen to this week’s “The Joy of Why” with co-host Steven Strogatz.

What Could Explain the Gallium Anomaly?

July 12, 2024

Physicists have ruled out a mundane explanation for the strange findings of an old Soviet experiment, leaving open the possibility that the results point to a new fundamental particle.

With Fifth Busy Beaver, Researchers Approach Computation’s Limits

July 2, 2024

After decades of uncertainty, a motley team of programmers has proved precisely how complicated simple computer programs can get.

Cryptographers Discover a New Foundation for Quantum Secrecy

June 3, 2024

Researchers have proved that secure quantum encryption is possible in a world without hard problems.

Electric ‘Ripples’ in the Resting Brain Tag Memories for Storage

May 21, 2024

New experiments reveal how the brain chooses which memories to save and add credence to advice about the importance of rest.

AI Starts to Sift Through String Theory’s Near-Endless Possibilities

April 23, 2024

Using machine learning, string theorists are finally showing how microscopic configurations of extra dimensions translate into sets of elementary particles — though not yet those of our universe.

Insects and Other Animals Have Consciousness, Experts Declare

April 19, 2024

A group of prominent biologists and philosophers announced a new consensus: There’s “a realistic possibility” that insects, octopuses, crustaceans, fish and other overlooked animals experience consciousness.

Dark Energy May Be Weakening, Major Astrophysics Study Finds

April 4, 2024

A generation of physicists has referred to the dark energy that permeates the universe as “the cosmological constant.” Now the largest map of the cosmos to date hints that this mysterious energy has been changing over billions of years.

Brain’s ‘Background Noise’ May Explain Value of Shock Therapy

March 18, 2024

Electroconvulsive therapy is highly effective in treating major depressive disorder, but no one knows why it works. New research suggests it may restore balance between excitation and inhibition in the brain.