This New Pyramid-Like Shape Always Lands With the Same Side Up
A tetrahedron is the simplest Platonic solid. Mathematicians have now made one that’s stable only on one side, confirming a decades-old conjecture.
Efforts to Ground Physics in Math Are Opening the Secrets of Time
By proving how individual molecules create the complex motion of fluids, three mathematicians have illuminated why time can’t flow in reverse.
AC or DC: Which Is Better?
Your gadgets run on direct current, but the electricity in your home is alternating current. What’s up with that?
A ‘Grand Unified Theory’ of Math Just Got a Little Bit Closer
By extending the scope of a key insight behind Fermat’s Last Theorem, four mathematicians have made great strides toward building a unifying theory of mathematics.
The Hunt for a Fundamental Theory of Quantum Gravity
Black hole and Big Bang singularities break our best theory of gravity. A trilogy of theorems hints that physicists must go to the ends of space and time to find a fix.
Einstein Showed That Time Is Relative. But … Why Is It?
The mind-bending concept of time dilation results from a seemingly harmless assumption—that the speed of light is the same for all observers.
Student Solves a Long-Standing Problem About the Limits of Addition
A new proof illuminates the hidden patterns that emerge when addition becomes impossible.
Space Elevators Could Totally Work—If Earth Days Were Much Shorter
What would it take to run a cable from the ISS to Earth? Depends how fast you want the Earth to rotate.
How the Universe and Its Mirrored Version Are Different
From living matter to molecules to elementary particles, the world is made of “chiral” objects that differ from their reflected forms.
Are Those Viral ‘Cooling Blankets’ for Real?
According to physics, any blanket can cool you—for a few minutes. But a real cooling blanket is possible with phase-change materials.