A breakthrough in graphene technology has led to a new form of the material capable of supporting 50,000 times it’s own weight. At densities between 3 and 0.5 milligrams per cubic centimeter, it’s also about 1,000 times lighter than Styrofoam. As if that weren’t enough, it can be squeezed down to less than 20% of its original size [...]

Our current models of the universe are remarkably close to telling us where the universe came from, and the answer is amazing, fascinating, and perhaps to some, disconcerting. They suggest that it came from nothing, and spell out just how this could occur. The answer is nothing short of amazing, but also remarkably complex. The task of [...]

I didn’t see much point in posting a review over Thanksgiving break, so here’s a look back on the past two weeks in science. And quite a bit has happened: The LHC may have discovered a new state of matter (not quite as exciting as a new particle, but important stuff nonetheless). The existence of an arrow of time has been confirmed. [...]

MIT physicists working at the LHC may have discovered a new kind of matter by accident. The existence of this type of matter, called “color-glass condensate,” was proposed shortly before the discovery. The heavy-ion group, led by Gunther Roland, was colliding lead nuclei with protons at near the speed of light and measuring the [...]

Up until the the 1960s, physicists believed that time worked the same forward as it did backward. For example, in classical physics, if you reversed the momentum of every particle in the universe, the universe would look exactly like a tape being run in reverse. This of course begs the question: if the laws of physics work the same way [...]

Supernova SN 2011fe, the supernova involved in the study A special class of supernova, called a Type Ia supernova, has a remarkably consistent brightness (roughly 5 billion times brighter than the sun). This consistency has been used to estimate the distance of galaxies in the universe. It was studies of these supernovas that allowed [...]

Here’s what science has taught us in the past week: First off, you can take a look at my new interview with Cliff Pickover about The Medical Book, and how medical science has (and hasn’t) changed over the years. For the first time ever, the rare decay of a Bs meson into two muons has been observed. For every billion times the decay [...]

All images from “The Medical Book” About a year ago, I had an opportunity to speak with Dr. Cliff Pickover about our shared fascination for the fundamental forces of the universe. I thought we had an interesting discussion, so when I got in touch for help with a project, I was happy when he offered another interview. With a Ph.D. in [...]

Another look back on this week in science: A new study replicates the results of previous research, suggesting that gargling sugar water can temporarily help with self control by activating the motivational parts of the brain. Simulations by researchers at Carnegie suggest special crystals that keep their electrical fields can be used as [...]

A new study demonstrates that if you gargle sugar water, without even drinking it, this can temporarily help you maintain your self control. Previous studies had suggested the already counterintuitive idea that drinking sugar water could help with self control, but the new study demonstrates that the energy from sugar has nothing to do [...]