Physics
- Cosmology
Galaxy’s gamma-ray glow may expose dark matter
An excess of gamma rays at the center of the Milky Way could be a signature of dark matter.
- Quantum Physics
Robert Redford film foretold Shor’s quantum computing bombshell
Twenty years ago, Peter Shor showed how quantum computers could break secret codes, turning the movie Sneakers from fiction to fact.
- Quantum Physics
Small step taken for quantum communication
A single atom can change the state of a photon, which may help build quantum networks.
- Physics
Meet Big Bird, highest-energy neutrino ever detected
Big Bird, the neutrino, struck the Antarctic ice with a record 2 million billion electron volts of energy.
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- Quantum Physics
U.S. marches to tick of new clock
The atomic clock NIST-F2 has launched as the country’s official civilian time and frequency standard.
- Materials Science
Oyster shells could inspire improved armor
Making tiny indentations in windowpane oyster shells has revealed some processes that could inspire better armor.
- Materials Science
Light filter lets rays through from only one direction
Angle-sensitive light filter could improve photography, telescopes and solar energy harvesting.
- Materials Science
Pearl coating inspires tougher ceramics
A material called mother of pearl, or nacre, has inspired the design of more durable, less brittle ceramics.
- Physics
A tractor beam reels in objects with sound
A tractor beam of focused sound waves has pulled on an object as large as a Toblerone chocolate bar.
- Materials Science
World’s thinnest material stretches, bends, twists
Graphene, the thinnest known material at one carbon atom thick, can be manipulated under the microscope using tricks from a variety of paper-cutting origami called kirigami.
- Chemistry
Milk protein a potential flame retardant
Protein found in milk offers a nontoxic way to extinguish fabric fires.
