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A Cosmic-Ray Hunter Takes to the Sky
Angela Olinto’s new balloon experiment takes her one step closer to the unknown source of the most energetic particles in the universe.
A Cosmic Burst Repeats, Deepening a Mystery
After a surprise discovery, astrophysicists are racing to understand superenergetic flashes of radio waves that sometimes beep out from distant galaxies.
Physicists Attack Math’s $1,000,000 Question
Physicists are attempting to map the distribution of the prime numbers to the energy levels of a particular quantum system.
Quantum Questions Inspire New Math
In order to fully understand the quantum world, we may have to develop a new realm of mathematics.
A New Blast May Have Forged Cosmic Gold
For decades, researchers believed that violent supernovas forged gold and other heavy elements. But many now argue for a different cosmic quarry.
19 Women Leading Math and Physics
Top women in mathematics and physics discuss how they got to where they are — and why there aren’t more of them.
‘Digital Alchemist’ Seeks Rules of Emergence
Computational physicist Sharon Glotzer is uncovering the rules by which complex collective phenomena emerge from simple building blocks.
Inside the Knotty World of ‘Anyon’ Particles
A new class of quantum particle is about to emerge from the tangled considerations of quantum statistics.
Physicists Uncover Geometric ‘Theory Space’
A decades-old method called the “bootstrap” is enabling new discoveries about the geometry underlying all quantum theories.