Quanta Science Podcast

New modeling studies suggest that birds migrate to strike a favorable balance between their input and output of energy. The post A Thermodynamic Answer to Why Birds Migrate first appeared on Quanta Magazine

In new computer experiments, artificial-intelligence algorithms can tell the future of chaotic systems. The post Machine Learning’s ‘Amazing’ Ability to Predict Chaos first appeared on Quanta Magazine

By making the first progress on the “chromatic number of the plane” problem in over 60 years, an anti-aging pundit has achieved mathematical immortality. The post Decades-Old Graph Problem Yields to Amateur Mathematician first appeared on Quanta Magazine

An unlikely team offers a controversial hypothesis about what enabled animal life to get more complex during the Cambrian explosion. The post Oxygen and Stem Cells May Have Reshaped Early Complex Animals first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Two teams of researchers have made significant progress toward proving the black hole stability conjecture, a critical mathematical test of Einstein’s theory of general relativity. The post To Test Einstein’s Equations, Poke a Black Hole first appeared on Quanta Magazine

A recently proposed experiment would confirm that gravity is a quantum force. The post Physicists Find a Way to See the ‘Grin’ of Quantum Gravity first appeared on Quanta Magazine

On November 16, 2018, more than 200 readers joined writers and editors from Quanta Magazine for a wide-ranging panel discussion that examined the newest ideas in fundamental physics, biology and mathematics research. The post Quanta Writers and Editors Discuss Trends in Science and Math first appeared on Quanta Magazine

The long, variable times that some diseases incubate after infection defies simple explanation. An idealized model of tumor growth offers a statistical solution. The post Why Don’t Patients Get Sick in Sync? Modelers Find Statistical Clues. first appeared on Quanta Magazine

The latest artificial intelligence systems start from zero knowledge of a game and grow to world-beating in a matter of hours. But researchers are struggling to apply these systems beyond the arcade. The post Why Artificial Intelligence Like AlphaZero Has Trouble With the Real World first appeared on Quanta Magazine

A new study challenges one of the most celebrated and controversial ideas in network science. The post Scant Evidence of Power Laws Found in Real-World Networks first appeared on Quanta Magazine

New algorithms show how swarms of very simple robots can be made to work together as a group. The post Smart Swarms Seek New Ways to Cooperate first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Cosmologists have shown that it’s theoretically possible for a contracting universe to bounce and expand. The new work resuscitates an old idea that directly challenges the Big Bang theory of cosmic origins. The post How the Universe Got Its Bounce Back first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Near an Australian desert mining camp, wild dingoes are losing their fear of humans. Their genetic and behavioral changes may echo those from the domestication of dogs. The post A Domesticated Dingo? No, but Some Are Getting Less Wild first appeared on Quanta Magazine

A series of fossil finds suggests that life on Earth started earlier than anyone thought, calling into question a widely held theory of the solar system’s beginnings. The post Fossil Discoveries Challenge Ideas About Earth’s Start first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Two mathematicians prove that under certain extreme conditions, the Navier-Stokes equations output nonsense. The post Mathematicians Find Wrinkle in Famed Fluid Equations first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Nobel laureate Susumu Tonegawa’s lab is overturning old assumptions about how memories form, how recall works and whether lost memories might be restored from "silent engrams." The post Light-Triggered Genes Reveal the Hidden Workings of Memory first appeared on Quanta Magazine

An eminent mathematician reveals that his advances in the study of millennia-old mathematical questions owe to concepts derived from physics. The post Secret Link Uncovered Between Pure Math and Physics first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Kidneys sniff out signals from gut bacteria for cues to lower blood pressure after meals. Our understanding of how the symbiotic microbes affect health is becoming much more molecular. The post How Bacteria Help Regulate Blood Pressure first appeared on Quanta Magazine

The oldest law of genetics says that gametes combine randomly, but experiments hint that sometimes eggs select sperm actively for their genetic assets. The post Choosy Eggs May Pick Sperm for Their Genes, Defying Mendel’s Law first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Elephants did not evolve to become huge animals until after they turned a bit of genetic junk into a unique defense against inevitable tumors. The post A Zombie Gene Protects Elephants From Cancer first appeared on Quanta Magazine