Machine learning can get a boost from quantum physics. On certain types of machine learning tasks, quantum computers have an exponential advantage over standard computation, scientists report in the June…
Category: Physics
How neutrinos could ensure a submarine’s nuclear fuel isn’t weaponized
Nuclear submarines might provide rogue nations with a path to nuclear weapons. But neutrinos could help reveal attempts to go from boats to bombs. Neutrinos, lightweight subatomic particles that are…
High-energy neutrinos may come from black holes ripping apart stars
When a star gets too close to a black hole, sparks fly. And, potentially, so do subatomic particles called neutrinos. A dramatic light show results when a supermassive black hole…
Experiments hint at why bird nests are so sturdy
To build its nest, a bird won’t go for any old twig. Somehow, birds pick and choose material that will create a cozy, sturdy nest. “That’s just totally mystifying to…
The Large Hadron Collider has restarted with upgraded proton-smashing potential
After a hiatus of more than three years, the Large Hadron Collider is back. Scientists shut down the particle accelerator in 2018 to allow for upgrades (SN: 12/3/18). On April…
Muons spill secrets about Earth’s hidden structures
Inside Egypt’s Great Pyramid of Giza lies a mysterious cavity, its void unseen by any living human, its surface untouched by modern hands. But luckily, scientists are no longer limited…
A new nuclear imaging prototype detects tumors’ faint glow
A type of light commonly observed in astrophysics experiments and nuclear reactors can help detect cancer. In a clinical trial, a prototype of an imaging machine that relies on this…
The W boson might be extra hefty. If so, it could hint at new physics
There’s something amiss with a mass. A new measurement of the mass of an elementary particle, the W boson, has defied expectations. The result hints at a possible flaw in…
How light from black holes is narrowing the search for axions
The search for a hypothetical subatomic particle that could signal new physics just narrowed a bit — thanks to the light swirling around a gargantuan black hole in another galaxy.…
This fabric can hear your heartbeat
Someday our clothing may eavesdrop on the soundtrack of our lives, capturing the noises around and inside us. A new fiber acts as a microphone — picking up speech, rustling…
