Although dark matter makes up 80% of all matter in the universe, physicists are still struggling to understand exactly what it is. This perplexity is largely due to the fact that dark matter is invisible and difficult to study directly, but a dwarf galaxy named Reticulum 2 may have just changed the game. Many experts believe that when dark matter particles collide, high-energy light is … Continue reading Dark Matter Detected, or False Alarm?
The age distribution of human populations is unique among animal species. Children remain dependent on their parents for an extended time, and the elderly live long after the end of their reproductive period. Some scientists now speculate that microorganisms may be responsible for this unusual aspect of human nature. To test this idea, researchers created mathematical models of early hunter-gatherer societies and divided each population … Continue reading Big Role for Bacteria in Human Population Dynamics?
From Scientists recreate what may be life’s first spark How did life originate? This puzzle has been studied by scientists for hundreds of years. Authors of a >new paper in PNAS claim to have found a clue: they bombarded a chemical (formamide) found on the earth around the time life arose with high energy laser to simulate a meteor impact. They then looked for and … Continue reading New route to the origin of life? Probably not.
What do you think of when you hear the phrase ‘green technology’? Do solar panels, wind turbines, and electric cars come to mind? What about light-emitting diodes (LEDs)? Unlike many costly green technologies, LEDs are accessible to the majority of Individuals who want to help the environment and save money. Using an LED for 50,000 hours of white-light home lighting (i.e. LED light bulbs for … Continue reading Why the blue LED should light up your life (and won a Nobel Prize)
Presented by Jeong-Mo Choi, Bryan Weinstein, and Amy Gilson Did you know that principles and equations from physics can be used to study evolution? We’ll describe how physics-based models can be used to predict evolution, on the level of individual molecules and whole populations. First, Jeong-Mo will describe how scientists began to use quantitative models to study evolution and explain some of the things we’ve … Continue reading The Physics of Evolution: Equations shed new light on nature’s mysteries
Bisphenol A (BPA) is a chemical compound that has been used in the production of plastics, including cell phones, contact lenses, and food storage containers, for over 50 years. Scientists have recently shown that the BPA found on cash register receipts (to help develop the printed text) may be a significant source of BPA exposure, thanks to our generous use of hand sanitizers and other skin care products. That’s because hand sanitizers contain ingredients that dissolve BPA, and also increase the skin’s ability to absorb the chemical. Although further studies and larger sample sizes will be necessary to conclude whether BPA is a true hazard, this finding suggests that certain populations, such as cashiers, may be exposed to higher than average amounts of BPA on a regular basis – and keeping hands clean may not be helping. Continue reading Cash Register Receipts and Clean Hands
Figure 1~ Artist’s conception of the electron electric dipole moment (Adam West). Everything and Nothing Ask a physicist “Why is there something rather than nothing?” and you’re likely to provoke consternation. Science, the discipline most concerned with studying nature, may never be able to speak with authority about the reasons behind nature’s very existence, as that question may be forever inaccessible to the scientific method. But … Continue reading Looking Closer: The Search for the Electron Electric Dipole Moment
Presented by Stephen Portillo, Zachary Slepian, and Kate Alexander As the result of observational and theoretical breakthroughs starting in the twentieth century, the cosmology of the Big Bang Theory was established. A crucial part of this captivating story is explaining how, from the violence and chaos of the Big Bang, organized structures like our own Milky Way galaxy formed. The first part of this lecture … Continue reading Our Universe’s Story: Cosmos from chaos
Presented by Mike Goldman, Joey Goodknight, and Tansu Daylan What do the interior of an atom, the bottom of a volcanic caldera, and the center of the sun have in common? Mike will begin with an introduction to quantum mechanics, which explores its relationship with our everyday world. Some aspects of the quantum world seem perfectly sensible but other concepts, like superposition, are deeply counterintuitive. … Continue reading Exploring the Quantum World: From Plants to Pulsars
Two groups of researchers have recently reported a new light-powered method in which readily available chemical building blocks are coupled to produce useful complex molecules that cannot be easily found or made. Because these metal-catalyzed reactions require only visible light and mild conditions, they could be incredibly useful new methods for the cheap and environmentally friendly synthesis of pharmaceuticals and other valuable materials. Introduction Everything … Continue reading Light-Powered Construction of Valuable Molecules from Simple Chemical Building Blocks