Abstractions blog

In some ways, machine vision is superior to human vision. In other ways, it may never catch up.

Origin-of-life researchers have usually studied the potential of pure starting materials, but messy mixtures of chemicals may kick-start life more effectively.

A new measurement appears to have eliminated an anomaly that had captivated physicists for nearly a decade.

While studying materials made from DNA-coated nanoparticles, researchers found a new form of this matter: lattices in which smaller particles roam like electrons in metallic bonds.

At stake are fundamental ideas about how black holes form — and a six-way bet.

Researchers agree it’s a long shot, but transmissible cancers could theoretically evolve into independent species. Certain weird parasites might be living proof.

How do black holes merge and make gravitational waves? Maybe with a little help from their friends.

Researchers found that elongating certain brain signals in rats improved their memory. The work revealed a new property to look out for in the hunt for “biomarkers” of learning.

Experimenters in Germany have glimpsed the kind of strange, non-atomic matter thought to fill the cores of merging neutron stars.