Discover Magazine | Light

What Is This?: What Is This... A Hi-Tech Pin Cushion?

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 12:25:00 -0600

Hint: There are a lot fewer of them now than there were a few years ago.

The Brain: Humanity's Other Basic Instinct: Math

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 09:35:00 -0600

New research suggests that math has evolved its way right into our neurons—and monkeys', too.

A Tumultuous Year at the LHC

Thu, 12 Nov 2009 10:35:00 -0600

Physicist Lisa Randall describes the turbulent first year after the collider's premature celebration.

Visual Science: Polishing a Cosmic Spyglass

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 18:00:00 -0600

A tune-up for one of the most sophisticated imaging devices ever made

What is This? A Bioluminescent Mushroom?

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 08:50:00 -0500

What is This? A Bioluminescent Mushroom?

Hint: It's actually not on the ground, nor in the oceans, but up in the sky—way up in the sky.

Discover Interview: Roger Penrose Says Physics Is Wrong, From String Theory to Quantum Mechanics

Tue, 06 Oct 2009 11:20:00 -0500

One of the greatest thinkers in physics says the human brain—and the universe itself—must function according to some theory we haven't yet discovered.

Being Stephen Hawking

Tue, 29 Sep 2009 12:10:00 -0500

Former Nature editor John Maddox on one of the most famous scientists of our age

Stephen Hawking Is Making His Comeback

Fri, 11 Sep 2009 12:10:00 -0500

Stephen Hawking, the master of time, space, and black holes, steps back into the spotlight to secure his scientific legacy—and to explain the greatest mystery in physics: the origin of the universe.

Big Picture: 8 Ways Scientists Look at—But Don't Yet See—Dark Matter

Mon, 22 Jun 2009 12:45:00 -0500

Scientists hunt for the unseen matter that glues together the cosmos. But some wonder whether it even exists.

Darwin Plays Game Theory—and Wins

Fri, 22 May 2009 12:40:00 -0500

A computer simulation correctly predicts that ravens should have evolved a behavior called "gang foraging." How did researchers see this behavior? They tracked ravens by implanting carcasses with different-colored beads that the birds ingested and later coughed up.

The Biocentric Universe Theory: Life Creates Time, Space, and the Cosmos Itself

Fri, 01 May 2009 20:50:00 -0500

Stem-cell guru Robert Lanza presents a radical new view of the universe and everything in it.

20 Things You Didn't Know About... Tunnels

Wed, 29 Apr 2009 10:15:00 -0500

New York has a forgotten one, Texas has a $2 billion wasted one, and Switzerland's building the longest.

Big Picture: Where Do Old Colliders Go to Die?

Sat, 04 Apr 2009 13:20:00 -0500

After the LHC comes online, old accelerators will stand by, just in case they're necessary, get salvaged for spare parts, or just lie untouched in the ground for years.

Discover Interview: The Man Who Found Quarks and Made Sense of the Universe

Tue, 17 Mar 2009 09:15:00 -0500

Murray Gell-Mann had a smash success with particles, notorious dustups with Feynman, and a missed opportunity with Einstein.

20 Things You Didn't Know About... Time

Thu, 12 Mar 2009 08:45:00 -0500

3) Daylight Saving Time began as a joke by Benjamin Franklin, who proposed waking people earlier on bright summer mornings so they might work more during the day and thus save candles. 19) Time has not been around forever. Most scientists believe it was created along with the rest of the universe in the Big Bang, 13.7 billion years ago.

Metamaterial Revolution: The New Science of Making Anything Disappear

Tue, 10 Mar 2009 11:00:00 -0500

Engineers are working with metamaterials to create super-microscopes, optical computers, and yes, invisibility cloaks.

Field Notes: The Kilogram Isn't What It Used to Be—It's Lighter

Sun, 08 Mar 2009 20:00:00 -0500

Within a high-security, climate-controlled vault in France, the perfect kilogram is getting ever so slightly less massive—and no one knows why.

What is This? A Psychedelic Place Mat?

Wed, 14 Jan 2009 16:05:00 -0600

Actually, you'd be more likely to see this pattern in your wine glass.

Is Quantum Mechanics Controlling Your Thoughts?

Tue, 13 Jan 2009 08:00:00 -0600

The rules of quantum mechanics are turning up everywhere these days, and may be behind the efficiency of photosynthesis, the accuracy of our sense of smell, and even the source of our conscious mind.

The Father of Dark Matter Still Gets No Respect

Wed, 31 Dec 2008 09:05:00 -0600

Little-acknowledged Fritz Zwicky got there first on dark matter, neutron stars, and supernovas.

Discover Magazine | Light

What Is This?: What Is This... A Hi-Tech Pin Cushion?

The Brain: Humanity's Other Basic Instinct: Math

A Tumultuous Year at the LHC

Visual Science: Polishing a Cosmic Spyglass

What is This? A Bioluminescent Mushroom?

Discover Interview: Roger Penrose Says Physics Is Wrong, From String Theory to Quantum Mechanics

Being Stephen Hawking

Stephen Hawking Is Making His Comeback

Big Picture: 8 Ways Scientists Look at—But Don't Yet See—Dark Matter

Darwin Plays Game Theory—and Wins

The Biocentric Universe Theory: Life Creates Time, Space, and the Cosmos Itself

20 Things You Didn't Know About... Tunnels

Big Picture: Where Do Old Colliders Go to Die?

Discover Interview: The Man Who Found Quarks and Made Sense of the Universe

20 Things You Didn't Know About... Time

Metamaterial Revolution: The New Science of Making Anything Disappear

Field Notes: The Kilogram Isn't What It Used to Be—It's Lighter

What is This? A Psychedelic Place Mat?

Is Quantum Mechanics Controlling Your Thoughts?

The Father of Dark Matter Still Gets No Respect

Top 100 Stories of 2008: The Year in Physics

Top 100 Stories of 2008: #2: The LHC Begins Its Search for the "God Particle"

Top 100 Stories of 2008: #39: Amazonian Tribe Doesn't Have Words for Numbers

Top 100 Stories of 2008: #43: Next-Level Quantum Spookiness

Top 100 Stories of 2008: #69: Physicists Create a Perfect Place to Store Electricity