Underground blobs may have triggered plate tectonics Giant blobs deep underground, left by Earth’s collision with the planet Theia 4.5 billion years ago, led to Earth’s first subduction about 200 million years later, which in turn triggered surface breaks that became tectonic-plate borders, according to computer modeling. Seismologists and geologists used existing data on the […]
Entanglement entropy is a measure of the degree of quantum entanglement between two subsystems constituting a two-part composite quantum system. But entanglement entropy also quantifies the information shared between a subsystem and its environment in a quantum many-body wavefunction. Interestingly, the finite-size scaling form of entanglement entropy has contributions that depend uniquely on universal physical […]
Ashes have always been a powerful and evocative metaphor representing a vanished and irretrievable past. However, we live in prodigious times, in which nothing can be taken for granted anymore, and the feat of reading the contents of some of the charred papyri of Herculaneum is a good example of this. The credit goes to […]
If you speak more than one language, you are probably familiar with not being able to sound like a native speaker. At least, you know you’re trying your best to speak a foreign language! And, you know, in the end, your accent is also part of your identity. But wouldn’t it feel quite discouraging if […]
Driving at night might be a scary challenge for a new driver, but with hours of practice it soon becomes second nature. For self-driving cars, however, practice may not be enough because the lidar sensors that often act as these vehicles’ “eyes” have difficulty detecting dark-coloured objects. New research describes a highly reflective black paint […]
High level of invisible auroras on Mars due to solar cycle The sun’s solar maximum, which happens once in its approximately 11-year cycle, has caused unprecedented global auroras on Mars, according to data from NASA. The proton auroras on Mars aren’t visible to the naked eye, but NASA’s Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution spacecraft have […]
Numerous physical systems—from classical electromagnetic fields to quantum particle fields—exhibit oscillating wave behavior. Specific settings exist, both in nature and in artificial systems, where these waves form patterns with holes, loops, and other distinct topological characteristics, often referred to as topological wave structures. Now, a team of researchers describes how these structures, which have previously […]
The rise of commercially viable generative artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to transform a vast range of sectors. This transformation will be particularly profound in contemporary military education. Generative AI will fundamentally reshape war gaming — analytical games that simulate aspects of warfare at tactical, operational or strategic levels — by allowing senior military […]
A new imaging technique can give scientists a much closer look at fibril assemblies, stacks of peptides like amyloid beta, most notably associated with Alzheimer’s disease. These cross-β fibril assemblies are also useful building blocks within designer biomaterials for medical applications, but their resemblance to their amyloid beta cousins, whose tangles are a symptom of […]
One of the things I mostly hated in school was having to practise my calligraphy skills, I found it monotonous and uninspiring. However, despite not having served to improve my handwriting, it may have helped me fixate new information during my studies, as new research points towards handwriting being better than typing for learning and […]