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Abstractions blog

A Kagome lattice with atomic spin arrows placed on the edges.
quantum physics

Quantum Simulators Create a Totally New Phase of Matter

By Charlie Wood
December 2, 2021
Read Later

One of the first goals of quantum computing has been to recreate bizarre quantum systems that can’t be studied in an ordinary computer. A dark-horse quantum simulator has now done just that.

Close-up video of bubbles in a lava lamp moving and splitting under the influence of heat.
origins of life

At the Dawn of Life, Heat May Have Driven Cell Division

By Carrie Arnold
November 23, 2021
Read Later

A mathematical model shows how a thermodynamic mechanism could have made protocells split in two.

A video of gold streaks representing particles flying toward each other; when they collide, gold streaks shoot and spiral out in many directions.
particle physics

The Algorithm That Lets Particle Physicists Count Higher Than Two

By Charlie Wood
November 22, 2021
Read Later

Through his encyclopedic study of the electron, an obscure figure named Stefano Laporta found a handle on the subatomic world’s fearsome complexity. His algorithm has swept the field.

Orange spheres representing quantum bits.
explainers

How Quantum Computers Will Correct Their Errors

By Katie McCormick
November 16, 2021
Read Later

Quantum bits are fussy and fragile. Useful quantum computers will need to use an error-correction technique like the one that was recently demonstrated on a real machine.

An image with Lego blocks representing polynomials and their factors.
polynomials

Mathematicians Find Structure in Biased Polynomials

By Tamar Lichter Blanks
November 9, 2021
Read Later

New work establishes a tighter connection between the rank of a polynomial and the extent to which it favors particular outputs.

immunology

The Brain Can Recall and Reawaken Past Immune Responses

By Esther Landhuis
November 8, 2021
Read Later

The brain not only helps to regulate immune responses, but also stores and retrieves “memories” of them.

Photo of the freshwater sponge Spongilla.
evolution

Sponge Genes Hint at the Origins of Neurons and Other Cells

By Viviane Callier
November 4, 2021
Read Later

A new study of gene expression in sponges reveals the complex diversity of their cells as well as some possibly ancient connections between the nervous, immune and digestive systems.

quantum physics

An Ultra-Precise Clock Links the Quantum World With Gravity

By Katie McCormick
October 25, 2021
Read Later

Time was found to flow differently between the top and bottom of a single cloud of atoms. Physicists hope that such a system will one day help them combine quantum mechanics and Einstein’s theory of gravity.

astrophysics

A Hint of Dark Matter Sends Physicists Looking to the Skies

By Jonathan O'Callaghan
October 19, 2021
Read Later

After a search of neutron stars finds preliminary evidence for hypothetical dark matter particles called axions, astrophysicists are devising new ways to spot them.


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