Science journalist Adam Becker’s book “More Everything Forever” challenges the vision of a future where technology enhances human capabilities and lets us surpass biological limitations. Becker argues that this vision is unrealistic, laden with racism, sexism, and endless capitalism, and that the real challenges plaguing humanity, such as global warming and inequality, cannot be solved…
Science on The Soothsayer / page 23
Physicists at the Georgia Institute of Technology have introduced a novel method for generating entanglement between photons, a crucial step in building scalable quantum computers. This breakthrough approach leverages non-Abelian quantum holonomy to entangle photons in a deterministic way, eliminating the need for strong nonlinear interactions or probabilistic quantum measurements. The new method has the…
The United States is grappling with an ongoing opioid epidemic and mental health crisis, with nearly 50 million Americans estimated to have a substance use disorder in 2023. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), a federal agency that supports mental health care, suicide prevention, and addiction treatment, has faced funding cuts and…
Researchers at Zhejiang University in China have developed a groundbreaking 3D-printed hydrogel that can switch between soft and hard states, enabling novel applications such as smart medical bandages or information encryption. This innovative material has the potential to revolutionize the field of regenerative medicine, flexible electronics, and soft robotics. The team’s creation of a smart…
A new book, “Pseudoscience,” by Lydia Kang and Nate Pedersen, sheds light on the dangers of believing in scientific myths. The authors explore various pseudoscientific theories, including flat Earth theory, ley lines, and World Ice Theory, which have had devastating consequences in the real world. The book highlights the importance of skepticism and the need…
Researchers at RMIT University and the University of Melbourne have discovered a phenomenon where water droplets generate an electric charge when they stick and unstick from a surface. This breakthrough could lead to more efficient energy-harvesting devices and new applications in fields such as chemical reactions and fuel handling. The team conducted over 500 experiments…
Physicists at the Karlsruhe Tritium Neutrino (KATRIN) experiment have made a groundbreaking discovery, revealing that neutrinos have a mass of less than 0.45 electron volts. This finding is a significant step towards understanding the mysteries of neutrinos, which are the only class of fundamental particles with unknown mass. The researchers used a massive dataset of…
A team of researchers led by chemists at the University of British Columbia has made a groundbreaking discovery in the field of quantum physics. They have observed a superfluid phase in molecular hydrogen at a temperature of 0.4 K, a phenomenon that was previously only seen in helium and ultracold atomic gases. This breakthrough could…
Researchers at Pennsylvania State University and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory have developed a groundbreaking method to create “audible enclaves” – localized zones where sound is perceptible while remaining completely unheard outside. This innovation could transform personal audio experiences in public spaces and improve secure communications by allowing sound to be generated only at a specific…
Scientists at Ohio State University and the University of Toledo have made a significant breakthrough in developing a new type of photovoltaic battery that runs on the energy given off by nuclear waste. The battery uses a scintillator crystal to transform gamma rays into electricity, producing more than a microwatt of power. This innovation could…