New method for observing individual atoms confirms century-old quantum mechanical theory
Physicists have used a new method for observing individual atoms interacting in free space for the first time. The new method confirms a century-old theory of quantum mechanics. For the first time, scientists have observed atoms floating and interacting freely in space. The discovery helps confirm some of the most basic principles of quantum mechanics, which were first predicted more than a century ago but had never been directly tested.
Mathematicians have solved the ‘crowd problem’ that explains why public spaces turn into chaos
Why do some crowds move in an orderly fashion while others degenerate into chaotic messes? New research led by an MIT mathematician may finally solve the thorny crowd problem.
12,000 New Solutions to the Three-Body Problem
The three-body problem is a notoriously difficult puzzle in physics and mathematics, and an example of how complex the natural world is. Two objects orbiting each other, like a lonely planet around a star, can be described with just a line or two of mathematical equations. However, add a third body, and the math gets much more complicated. Since each object influences the others with its gravity, calculating a stable orbit in which all three objects coexist is a difficult task.
Antimatter Engine Already in Development. What is Antimatter and How Was It Discovered?
Antimatter is the same as regular matter, except that it has the opposite electrical charge. For example, an electron, which has a negative charge, has an antimatter partner known as a positron. A positron is a particle with the same mass as an electron, but with a positive charge.
Equations that changed the world
Mathematical equations give meaning to reality and help us see things we previously couldn’t see. So it’s no surprise that new developments in mathematics have often gone hand in hand with advances in our understanding of the universe. Here are a few equations that have revolutionized history, from tiny particles to the vast cosmos.
Definitions, axioms and key concepts of quantum physics
Quantum mechanics, or quantum physics, is a set of scientific laws that describe the strange behavior of photons, electrons, and other subatomic particles that make up the universe. On the smallest scales, the universe behaves very differently from the everyday world we see around us. Quantum mechanics is the branch of physics that describes this strange behavior of microscopic particles—atoms, electrons, photons, and almost everything else in the molecular and submolecular realm.
Schrödinger’s cruel thought experiment was repeated, but without the cat and not mentally
The thought experiment known as Schrödinger’s cat is one of the most famous and misunderstood concepts in quantum mechanics. By thinking deeply about it, researchers have come to some impressive discoveries about physical reality.
Mathematicians have stumped the most advanced models of generative artificial intelligence
Current AI models struggle to solve research-grade math problems: The most advanced AI systems we have today solve just 2% of the hundreds of problems we face. According to the Epoch AI research institute, these problems typically take hours or days of work from mathematicians with PhDs to solve. But in new tests, the most advanced AI models on the market got fewer than 2% of these problems right.
It’s Not Science Fiction Anymore: The Connection Between Quantum Computers, Teleportation, and Time Crystals (Plus, a Little History)
The long-term promise of reliable quantum computing is hard to overstate. Its potential to cure disease, create much-needed material breakthroughs, and even solve big problems like climate change is not technological bluster, it’s a real possibility. Time crystals are an entirely new form of matter in which particles move forever and don’t lose energy.
The History of Pi (π) – Approximate Past and Quantum Future
Representations of pi (π) help scientists use values that are close to the real thing without having to store a million digits. Creating a new pi required using a series, which is a structured set of terms that either converge to a single expression or diverge. In a new study, physicists use principles of quantum mechanics to build a new model of the abstract concept of π. Or, more accurately, they built a new model that happens to include a cool new representation of π. But what does this mean, and why do we need different representations of π?