Physics
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Astronomy
The sun shrinks a teensy bit when it’s feeling active
The radius of the sun gets slightly smaller during periods of high solar activity, researchers say.
- Tech
A new 3-D printer builds temporary electronics on your skin
A new 3-D printer that tracks and compensates for your slightest twitch can precisely print simple electronic devices onto your skin.
- Particle Physics
If real, dark fusion could help demystify this physics puzzle
Fusing dark matter particles might explain why galaxy cores have evenly distributed dark matter.
- Particle Physics
Mysterious neutrino surplus hints at the existence of new particles
Neutrinos show up in greater numbers than expected in an experiment, possibly bolstering the idea of a fourth type of the particle.
- Astronomy
A neutron star crash may have spawned a black hole
The neutron collision that took the astronomical community by storm last year probably created a black hole, researchers say.
- Tech
Future smart clothes could pack serious gadgetry
Casual daywear may someday contain some serious tech. But engineers have to take conventional electronics and make them comfortable to wear.
- Neuroscience
Here’s why scientists are questioning whether ‘sonic attacks’ are real
Sonic attacks would be hard to pull off and a terrible way of incapacitating diplomats, experts say.
- Astronomy
Two-faced star reveals a pulsar’s surprising bulk
An ultramassive pulsar is frying its stellar companion so that the star shows two different temperatures.
- Science & Society
Readers respond to pesticides, Hawking radiation and more
Readers had questions about pesticides, Hawking radiation and the intersection of science and the public.
- Particle Physics
Dark matter particles elude scientists in the biggest search of its kind
The XENON1T experiment saw no signs of hypothetical dark matter particles called WIMPs.
- Particle Physics
The inside of a proton endures more pressure than anything else we’ve seen
For the first time, scientists used experimental data to estimate the pressure inside a proton.
- Plants
Meet the speedsters of the plant world
Researchers have recently uncovered a diverse array of mechanisms that allow plants to move — often faster than the blink of an eye.
