These Physicists Say They Found The Origin Of Reality

One of the most perplexing questions in the foundations of physics is how our shared sense of reality emerges out of quantum mechanics. This is because in quantum mechanics, it seems, different observers can arrive at different conclusions about what is real and what not. A group of physicists now used an approach called “Quantum Darwinism” to solve this tricky problem. At least they say they solved it. I am not so sure. Let’s have a look.

Breakthrough in Zero Friction Materials

Friction affects almost everything around us. It makes cars drive, our muscles contract, and even helps us walk. But in terms of technology, friction often means wasted energy — that’s why material scientists are always looking for ways to minimize it. In a recent paper, researchers say that they’ve found a material that can reduce friction to almost zero. Let’s take a look.

This Spacetime Quasicrystal Could Solve Physicists’ Biggest Problem

What is space, really? That’s one of the biggest questions in science. According to a pair of researchers from the Perimeter Institute, the answer to that is: a quasicrystal. What is a quasicrystal, and how is space a quasicrystal? Let’s take a look.

Why the AI bubble may be rational

There’s no doubt that AI is currently going through a boom cycle. Big tech firms are currently investing billions of dollars into the technology and AI startups are reaching massive valuations faster than you can blink. But is this upswing based in reality, or are we just going through another tech bubble that will inevitably burst? Let’s take a look.

Breakthrough In Data Storage Could Store Your Photos for 10000 Years

We’ve seen massive leaps in many different areas of tech over the past few years, and the next big revolution could be in data storage. In a recent paper, scientists at Microsoft revealed that they’ve found a way to store data for more than 10000 years by laser-etching pieces of glass. There are also a few other interesting ways that researchers are improving other storage technologies. Let’s take a look.

The Simulation Hypothesis Gets Scientific Backing

Do we live in a computer simulation? So far this question has been pursued mostly by philosophers because it was just too vague to make scientific sense of it. But this situation has changed now. Physicists are beginning to explore the consequences of the simulation hypothesis and a computer scientist has proposed a scientific framework to make sense of it. Let’s take a look.

Surprise! Milky Way Might Not Have a Black Hole After All

Using our observations and predictions based off of Einstein’s theory of general relativity, physicists are pretty sure that there’s a supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way. But according to a new paper, that prediction might be incorrect – instead, physicists claim that there’s actually a dense core of dark matter at the center of the galaxy instead. Let’s see if that makes sense, and what it might mean for physics.

The First Moon Landing Wasn’t Apollo — And We Just Found It

The first ever human spacecraft to land on the moon wasn’t Apollo 11 – it was the Soviet Luna 9 probe, which touched down three years before the Apollo lander. For decades, researchers have for some reason been unable to track down its location … up until now. In a recent paper, researchers wrote that they used a neural network to discover the probe (with 70-80% confidence). Let’s take a look.

Gen Z Isn't Dumber—Here's What's Actually Happening

We’ve seen massive leaps in many different areas of tech over the past few years, and the next big revolution could be in data storage. In a recent paper, scientists at Microsoft revealed that they’ve found a way to store data permanently by laser-etching pieces of glass. There are also a few other interesting ways that researchers are improving other storage technologies. Let’s take a look.

Finally! A Clue to the Havana Syndrome Mystery

Havana Syndrome is a mysterious ailment that has affected at least 1,500 people – the vast majority of them U.S. diplomats or government officials. Symptoms include headaches, dizziness, and blurred vision, all of which are symptoms of being targeted by a directed energy weapon. However, U.S. probes into Havana Syndrome haven’t turned up any meaningful results over the years, at least until now – recently, the Pentagon reportedly acquired a device that could have been causing the syndrome. Let’s take a look.

Nuclear Fusion Reactors Could Produce Dark Matter, Physicists Show

Fusion reactors, according to a recently published paper, could produce theoretical particles that might make up dark matter. More specifically, physicists predict that they might produce large quantities of axions, low-mass elementary particles that some physicists believe might explain dark matter. Let’s take a look.

20 Years BackRe(Action)

In case anyone is still reading this...

It's been 20 years since I set up this blog, briefly after I moved from Tucson to Santa Barbara. Since then, I have further moved along to Canada, got married, moved to Sweden, had two children, moved back to Germany, wrote two books, set up a YouTube channel and here we are.

The past few years have been difficult as I have developed some chronic health issues that my doctors can't quite pin down.

We have also, despite many attempts, still not found a house for the family. This is partly because we live in one of the most expensive regions of Germany, and partly because we are tied to the area with my husband's employer being located nearby and the kids in school. My so-called "studio" is really just a piece of green cloth pinned to a basement wall, and it's sharing space with a treadmill, a cross-trainer and cubic meters of junk. That said, the most recent development is that we might have found a place after all, so if you stick around for a little longer maybe you'll get to see the new studio...

Research-wise I am afraid that my opinion of the current status of the foundations of physics has only gotten more negative. The entire research area that has gotten stuck on unscientific methodology that they pass on from one generation to the next. I cannot see any way that this problem will resolve, unless possibly because artificial intelligence will take over.

In the past 20 years, I have made many friends online and I think of you as my extended family. Thanks for sticking around.

I had to turn off comments on this blog long ago because it ended up being >95% junk. But you can join our community on patreon.

AI Is Bringing “The End of Theory”

AI is clearly having an impact in many areas of research, from biology to math. But recently, the technology has made strides in theoretical physics, with ChatGPT solving a theoretical problem that would normally be assigned to a physics PhD. Let’s take a look at how the rise of AI might affect the future of theoretical physics.

Will Quantum Computing Kill Bitcoin?

Quantum computing shows promise in a wide variety of fields, from biology to physics. One of the areas where it promises to have the biggest advantage is in code-breaking, or solving encryption algorithms. Unfortunately for any cryptocurrency enthusiasts out there, this means that crypto’s risk of losing all of its value goes up as quantum computing tech improves. I used to think this is a far-fetched worry (and not my problem anyway) but I have recently changed my mind.

We have given up on climate change and that’s bad

It seems clear that we have given up on trying to stop climate change. It worries me profoundly, not so much because of climate change itself, but because of what it says about our collective ability to make intelligent decisions.

Nuclear Fusion Breaks Multiple Records

Nuclear fusion is the energy source of the future. But after decades of waiting for progress, people are understandably growing more and more skeptical that our fusion-powered future is actually on its way. Recently, though, the headlines have been filled with stories of fusion companies across the globe breaking different milestones. Is this real progress or just more hype? Let’s take a look.

Physicists Rethink Time… And It Solves Several Big Problems

Einstein’s general relativity predicts singularities, such as those found inside black holes. These are places where spacetime ends and the curvature becomes infinitely large. This isn’t just mathematically uncomfortable, it also causes problems when you try to combine gravity with quantum physics. Luckily, a group of physicists claim they’ve figured out a solution to this problem. Let’s take a look.

The Quantum Computer Dream is Falling Apart

As we continue to research quantum computing, quantum advantage – the supposed advantage that quantum computers theoretically have over regular computers – continues to dry up. Today we’re covering how more quantum computing use cases are disappearing, and an unexpected problem with quantum computing in general.

Physicist Publishes Method For Communicating With Parallel Universes

In the many worlds theory of quantum physics, all possible outcomes of a quantum event occur, creating branching parallel worlds in which a different outcome is reality. According to a recently published paper, communication between those worlds should be possible under our current understanding of quantum physics. Sounds crazy? Let’s take a look.

We Live In Between Two HUGE Dark Matter Voids

Our universe is a very strange place, but a new dark matter simulation seems to suggest that we live in a particularly strange area in it. According to a new paper published by a group of astrophysicists, simulations seem to indicate that our galaxy cluster exists in a thin area of highly concentrated dark matter, which itself is located between two voids of dark matter. Let’s take a look.

I'm in the Epstein files. Kind of. And it's about.... quantum gravity

I got some questions about the appearance of my name in Jeffrey Epstein's inbox. Turns out to be about... quantum gravity, unbelievable as that sounds. Here is the story and why I am still pissed off about this.

The AI Maths Revolution Has Begun

Over the past few months, we’ve seen a growing number of headlines claiming that AI has solved math theorems that have remained unsolved for decades. Is this true? And if so, does this mean mathematicians will soon find themselves out of a job? Let’s take a look.

Microplastics: What the Evidence Really Says

You’ve probably seen the headlines about microplastics, which claim that the micrometer-scale bits of plastic are everywhere, causing a wide variety of health issues. But while the headlines get more and more extreme, the scientific research on microplastics doesn’t actually support the media’s claims. Let’s take a look.

A New Link Between Quantum Physics and Gravity

We know that Einstein’s general relativity is, strictly speaking, wrong. That’s because it doesn’t account for quantum effects despite the fact that those effects really do exist. In a new paper, physicists say they’ve re-done Einstein’s equations with quantum effects taken into account. According to them, there’s a “clear difference” between the two. Let’s take a look at what they’ve done and what it could mean for physics.

We are much closer to Kessler Syndrome than we thought

The Kessler Syndrome is the idea that filling Earth’s orbit with too many satellites will inevitably cause failures to occur, leading to a cascading series of collisions that eventually distributes a layer of debris across the entire orbit, making it impossible to reach space from our planet. According to new research, we’re actually closer to this scenario than we thought. Let’s take a look.

Why does light exist?

Why does light exist? It's a consequence of what physicists call a "gauge symmetry" and in today's video I do my best to try and explain how that works.

Biofuels are Delusion, New Data Reveal

Biofuels are fuels made from plant oils. The idea is that using plants to create fuel for cars and generators should lower carbon emissions, as the plants take in carbon from the atmosphere as they grow. But according to new analysis, the reality of biofuels doesn’t match the models, and synthesizing and burning the fuels might actually increase the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Let’s take a look.

The Laws of Nature Are Ugly. Do We Have to Accept This?

In which I wonder whether we will just have to accept that the laws of nature are ugly

The Geothermal Advantage Nobody Talks About

Geothermal energy – using the heat from within the Earth to generate electricity – has been around as a concept for decades at this point. But recently, geothermal technology has improved by leaps and bounds, and it could be poised to become a major source of renewable energy alongside solar and wind power. Not only this, the technology can also be used as energy storage. Let’s take a look.

Quantum Physics Can Change the Past, Physicists Show

Quantum physics works extremely well. It predicts experiments with absurd accuracy… but conceptually it’s a disaster. Here’s one example – in a recently published paper, physicists have come up with a quantum physics paradox that seems to show that we can change the past with quantum physics. Let’s take a look.

Why does space have 3 dimensions?

Why does space have 3 dimensions? Why not 2? Or 4? Or 7? It’s because physics wouldn’t work properly. Let’s take a look at the major reasons for why physics needs 3 dimensions.

Finally a Use for String Theory

String theory was supposed to be physics’ grand theory of everything. While it’s (so far) failed in that aspect, string theory’s principles should still be useful because its mathematical framework is so solid. In a new paper, researchers have demonstrated that by applying string theory to networks in the world of biology. Let’s take a look.

The Multiverse Just Killed Our Dreams of a Final Theory

A unified theory – that explains the interactions in the standard model of particle physics from one common origin – has been a goal of physicists ever since the completion of the standard model. But according to a recently published paper which analyzed the properties of the laws of nature in a multiverse, a unified theory might be incompatible with the presence of life in our universe. Let’s take a look at both of these ideas and why they might be incompatible.

Action at a Distance Can Explain Dark Matter, Physicists Show

Physicists don’t actually know what the universe is really made of. The currently most popular theory is that most of the universe is made of dark matter, a mysterious type of matter that we can only detect through its gravitational pull on other objects. But according to a new paper, we’ve misunderstood how gravity works. The authors say that gravity really can do action at a distance and that explains the observations that we currently ascribe to dark matter. Let’s take a look.

Surveillance Tech Is Shockingly Advanced

Scientists across the globe are pushing surveillance technology to new levels that will probably shock you. Researchers are using radar to track people through walls and reconstructing sounds from visual recordings, while corporations like Walmart and Home Depot are quietly deploying Bluetooth tracking and facial recognition tech. Let’s take a look at the biggest developments coming to surveillance technology.

AI Is Coming For Scientists’ Jobs. Seriously.

AI has been rapidly advancing over the past few years, and the technology is now becoming more widely adopted by scientists. What will the consequences be? Will AI begin replacing scientists? How will publishers handle the influx of AI-assisted papers? Is this the beginning of the singularity? Let’s take a look.

We Thought This Particle Was Impossible To Measure!

The #1 most-wanted particle in physics is the graviton, a quantum of gravity. If physicists were to prove that gravitons exist, they would unambiguously prove that Einstein’s theory is ultimately wrong and must be replaced by a more complete theory that gives quantum properties to space and time. In a recent paper, a physicist came up with an ingenious experiment that could prove that gravitons do exist. Let’s take a look.

It’s The End Of An Era For Physics.

It’s a new year, and according to a new paper, physics is headed into a new era. Over the past few years, the field of physics has seen a major shift in research priorities – let’s take a look at that shift, why it’s happened, and where physics is headed next.