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Physics
In 1982, an experiment showed unprecedented evidence for exotic matter: magnetic monopoles. But without reproducibility, it didn't hold up.
As the Earth spins and wobbles on its axis and revolves elliptically around the Sun, each day differs from the last. "24 hours" isn't right.
There's a speed limit to the Universe: the speed of light in a vacuum. But you can beat the speed of light. Just travel through a medium!
If you look into a mirror, you'll notice that left-and-right are reversed, but up-and-down is preserved. The reason isn't what you think.
We live in a four-dimensional Universe, where matter and energy curve the fabric of spacetime. But time sure is different from space!
The sky and oceans are both blue. It's not because one reflects the other. Science explains them both, but for very different reasons.
There are two rival ideas to try to make sense of the Universe: dark matter or modified gravity. Can a new cosmic test settle the issue?
On Earth's surface, we accelerate at 1g: 9.8m/s². In orbit, the acceleration is only slightly less. So why, then, are astronauts weightless?
With the National Solar Observatory's incredible DKIST, we see the Sun in the highest resolution ever. Its latest images blew us all away.
The Earth is a massive planet, but doesn't form a truly perfect sphere. Here's how to understand our strongest and weakest gravity points.
Our Universe has a positive, non-zero value to the energy within empty space. Can we potentially save ourselves by considering vacuum decay?
Mathematics is our language for quantitatively describing reality, but it can also take us to worlds that never were. Physics needs more.
15mins
We experience only one small slice of the ruliad. What’s the ruliad? Stephen Wolfram explains.
Despite the brilliance of these cosmic beacons, only 1% of a core-collapse supernova's energy is observable. The other 99% is in neutrinos.
The LIGO facilities in the U.S. are the most sensitive gravitational wave detectors in the world. Their future remains uncertain.
54mins
What do the laws of physics, biological evolution, and your free will have in common? The same mathematical principle runs through all of them. Stephen Wolfram has spent 40 years finding it.
Over 800,000 fireworks explode in under an hour in the world's largest fireworks shows. How do natural auroral displays compare in energy?
When it comes to the big question of our cosmic origins, inflation is our leading theory. But did string theory ultimately cause inflation?
There's a lot of room in interplanetary, interstellar, and intergalactic space, but just how low the densities go is truly mind-boggling.
Newton's gravitational constant, G, is still known to just 3 significant figures in 2026. New measurements merely highlight our uncertainty.
Although a star's "birth" is well-defined, it doesn't correspond to an ignition event in its core. Here's how stars are actually born.
"Color" with respect to the strong force is just an analogy. Here's how to understand it without colors, group theory, or any advanced math.
Andy Weir’s novel blends humor, scientific rigor, and human ingenuity to make science fiction feel believable and thrilling.
The combination of charge conjugation, parity, and time-reversal symmetry is known as CPT. And it must never be broken. Ever.
7mins
Jim Al-Khalili explains how the past and future are more fluid than we may think.
In traveling through the expanding Universe, particles slow down while light and gravitational waves redshift. What degrades and what won't?
Even space and time are relative in Einstein's universe. That means our old notions of "where" and "when" no longer apply on cosmic scales.
The fundamental building blocks of reality are indivisible: quanta that cannot be split or divided. Our understanding remains incomplete.
Many reactions emit energy, often in large amounts, but cosmic efficiency is another metric altogether. Here's how to maximize your output.
Even the most brilliant mind in history couldn't have achieved all he did without significant help from the minds of others.