Simulated accretion disks may explain black hole growth Researchers using the Mega Ampere Generator for Plasma Implosion Experiments produced spinning columns that mimicked artificial accretion disks by accelerating and then colliding plasma jets. One of the research team’s primary goals is to understand how black holes are able to grow when accretion disks’ orbits stay […]
Thomas Kibble’s research on phase transitions and topological defects is most significant. Actually, the Kibble-Zurek mechanism (KZM) is a paradigmatic theory to describe the dynamics across both classical continuous phase transitions and quantum phase transitions. The Kibble-Zurek mechanism describes the non-equilibrium dynamics and the formation of topological defects in a system which is driven through […]
So far, contraception has been practically exclusive to women. They are the ones not only responsible for the matter, but also the ones to suffer the brunt of the side effects of current contraceptive methods. Arrdc5, a new gene identified in mice, might hold the key to male contraception. This gene, common to several mammal […]
Thanks to data from a magnified, multiply imaged supernova, a team of researchers has successfully used a first-of-its-kind technique based on the Refsdal method to measure the expansion rate of the Universe. Their data provide insight into a longstanding debate in the field and could help scientists more accurately determine the Universe’s age and better […]
Chemical engineering • Economics • Food processing • Materials
Authors: Mireia Martín, Life Cycle Thinking Group, Department of Graphic Design and Engineering Projects. University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU) and Erlantz Lizundia, Life Cycle Thinking Group and BCMaterials One of the consequences of global population growth is an increase in food waste. This is a relevant issue not only in terms of the waste […]
Human pangenome captures genetic diversity A draft human pangenome published in Nature aggregates the genomic sequences of 47 people from Africa, the Americas, Asia and Europe and captures more genetic variation than previous reference genomes have. The researchers computationally aligned the sequences to form a map with branching paths that indicate genetic variation, and the […]
Two-dimensional (2D) materials are an ideal platform to artificially engineer heterostructures with new functionalities due to the weak van der Waals bonding between layers. Monolayers hosting symmetry-broken phases, such as superconductivity, magnetism, ferroelectricity, charge density waves (CDWs), or multiferroicity, represent the most interesting building blocks to design novel phases of matter. One of the main […]
Public events In our series about theory and observation (as well as in the philosophical literature dealing with this question), the truth is that most of what we have said is more about theory than about observation (perhaps with the only exception of our third entry). Philosophers of science have devoted a lot of effort […]
Polaritons attract wide attention due to their ability to confine and guide light at the nanometre scale. These capacities are key for the development of ultrasmall resonators and waveguides that can be used for sensing, heat transfer and optical circuitry applications. But, what are polaritons in the first place? If, for the sake of the […]
Author: Marta Sánchez-López is a PhD candidate at the Dept. of Linguistics and Basque Studies (UPV/EHU), The Bilingual Mind research group. What if I told you that language can incriminate you? Yes, it is true, the way you speak tells so much about yourself. Humans use language to communicate about events of the world and […]