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A new theory proposes that the quantum properties of an object extend into an “atmosphere” that surrounds the material.
Cosmologists have predicted the existence of an oscillating signal that could distinguish between cosmic inflation and alternative theories of the universe’s birth.
Computer simulations and custom-built quantum analogues are changing what it means to search for the laws of nature.
String theorists elide a paradox about black holes by extinguishing the walls of fire feared to surround them.
A controversial new paper argues that universes with dark energy profiles like ours do not exist in the “landscape” of universes allowed by string theory.
A quickly closed loophole has proved that the “great smoky dragon” of quantum mechanics may forever elude capture.
By squeezing fluids into flat sheets, researchers can get a handle on the strange ways that turbulence feeds energy into a system instead of eating it away.
Scientists seek a single description of reality. But modern physics allows for many different descriptions, many equivalent to one another, connected through a vast landscape of mathematical possibility.
In an era when untestable ideas such as the multiverse hold sway, Michela Massimi defends science from those who think it hopelessly unmoored from physical reality.