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Lizard Stowaways Revise Principle of Ecology
The movement of lizards around the Caribbean is forcing researchers to account for human activity in even their most basic ecological models.
‘Big Bang Signal’ Could All Be Dust
Cosmic dust in the high latitudes of the Milky Way could account for the entire swirl pattern that had been presented as proof of a leading Big Bang theory, according to a new data analysis from the Planck satellite.
Finding Dark Energy in the Details
The astrophysicist Joshua Frieman seeks to pinpoint the mysterious substance driving the accelerating expansion of the universe.
Evolution’s Random Paths Lead to One Place
A massive statistical study suggests that even though genetic changes happen at random, the final evolutionary outcome — fitness — is predictable.
The Thermodynamic Theory of Ecology
Nature’s large-scale patterns emerge from incomplete surveys that borrow ideas from information theory.
Quark Quartet Fuels Quantum Feud
Newly discovered particles are forcing physicists to extend their simple picture of subatomic interactions or replace it with a more nuanced understanding.
I Contain Multitudes
Our bodies are a genetic patchwork, possessing variation from cell to cell. Is that a good thing?
At Multiverse Impasse, a New Theory of Scale
Physicists have begun to explore the idea that mass and length may not be fundamental properties of nature. The hypothesis could help to avoid the conclusion that our world is just a weird bubble in an endlessly foaming multiverse.
A Grand Vision for the Impossible
Subhash Khot’s bold conjecture is helping mathematicians explore the precise limits of computation.