What's up in
optics
quantum physics
Physicists Pin Down How Quantum Uncertainty Sharpens Measurements
Throwing out data seems to make measurements of distances and angles more precise. The reason why has been traced to Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle.
biophysics
Mitochondria Double as Tiny Lenses in the Eye
The optical properties of mitochondrial bundles in the retina may improve how efficiently the eye captures light.
optics
Alchemy Arrives in a Burst of Light
Researchers have shown how to effectively transform one material into another using a finely shaped laser pulse.
Quantized Columns
Social Distancing From the Stars
Professional astronomers may not point their telescopes by hand anymore, but COVID-19 has still closed observatories and impeded research.
Abstractions blog
To Make the Perfect Mirror, Physicists Confront the Mystery of Glass
Sometimes a mirror that reflects 99.9999% of light isn’t good enough.
Insights puzzle
How to Design a Perpetual Energy Machine
This April, find the fatal flaws in two paradoxical claims — one about a perpetual source of energy and the other about whether you will ever see the solution to these puzzles.
Q&A
The Astronomer Who’d Rather Build Space Cameras
Jim Gunn shaped the theory of the evolution of the cosmos before building cameras and spectrographs for major observatories like the Hubble Space Telescope.
Abstractions blog
Laser Physicists, Including Third Woman Ever, Win Physics Nobel
Three researchers shared the Nobel Prize in Physics for advances in laser physics. The winners include a woman for the first time in 55 years.
algorithms
The New Science of Seeing Around Corners
Computer vision researchers have uncovered a world of visual signals hiding in our midst, including subtle motions that betray what’s being said and faint images of what’s around a corner.