Physics & Math, features and articles | Educational Science

Nov 30, 2010

Crystals With Pleats Reveal Order and Disorder

It turns out seamstresses aren't the only ones who use pleats to gather a flat fabric around a curved surface. Crystals can form pleats too, a recent study found. Getting a flat layer to form around something curved isn't easy: Imagine trying to cover a beach ball with wrapping paper....

Dec 31, 2009

Twisted Physics: Scientists Create Light Knots

Like your shoelaces or electrical cords, light can get twisted into knots. Now, scientists have used a computer-controlled hologram and theoretical physics to turn a light beam into pretzel-like shapes. The twisted feat not only led to some pretty cool images, but the results have implications for future laser devices,...

Nov 30, 2011

The Funniest Theories in Physics

Intro Nobel Prize winner Ernest Rutherford once said, all science is either physics or stamp collecting. (Ironically, Rutherford won his Nobel in chemistry, not physics). Physicists may not be the most modest people out there, but if there's one thing they are good at, it's coming up with names for...

Aug 31, 2011

What would it be like to travel faster than the speed of light?

Physicists at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) have made a mind-bending — and rule-bending — discovery: They've measured strange subatomic particles called neutrinos traveling faster than the speed of light. Superluminal travel may be a common trope in science fiction, but Einstein's theory of special relativity strictly forbids...

Aug 31, 2011

New Experiment Aims to Trap Bizarre Antimatter

A new project is underway at the European physics lab CERN to produce antimatter versions of protons and trap them for study. Antimatter is the spooky cousin of normal matter. For every regular subatomic particle, there is thought to be a corresponding antiparticle with equal mass and opposite charge. When...

Jun 30, 2011

Physicists Discover New Subatomic Particle

High-speed collisions at a giant atom smasher have produced what physicists say is a new particle, a heavier relative of the familiar neutron. The particle is called the neutral Xi-sub-b. When it's formed in the Fermilab Tevatron particle accelerator in Batavia, Ill., the neutral Xi-sub-b lasts just a mere instant...

Mar 31, 2011

Scientists Abuzz Over Controversial Rumor that God Particle Has Been Detected

A rumor is floating around the physics community that the world's largest atom smasher may have detected a long-sought subatomic particle called the Higgs boson, also known as the God particle. The controversial rumor is based on what appears to be a leaked internal note from physicists at the Large...

Sep 30, 2012

How Supersonic Skydiver Will Freefall Through Earth's Atmosphere

Veteran skydiver Felix Baumgartner plans to take a supersonic tour of Earth's atmospheric layers on Tuesday (Oct 9). The Austrian daredevil will attempt the world's highest skydive, a daring leap from 23 miles up that will send him plummeting earthward faster than the speed of sound. On the way down,...

Sep 30, 2012

World's Highest Skydive! Daredevil Makes Record-Breaking Supersonic Jump

This story was updated at 2:22 p.m. EDT. An Austrian daredevil plummeted into the record books today (Oct. 14), breaking the mark for highest-ever skydive after leaping from a balloon more than 24 miles above Earth's surface. Felix Baumgartner stepped into the void nearly 128,000 feet (39,000 meters) above southeastern...

Sep 30, 2012

Giant Strand of Elusive Dark Matter Seen in 3D

Astronomers have taken their first 3D look at a gigantic filament of dark matter, an invisible cosmic structure that can only be detected by its gravitational effects it has on its surroundings. The universe is thought to be structured like a tangled web, with long strings of mostly dark matter...

Aug 31, 2012

Sharper Curve, Stronger Egg

(ISNS) -- Breaking an egg is a lot easier along its side than at its tip, and scientists can now say exactly why -- and by how much. This new information could help bioengineers better understand the biological structure of egg-shaped cells -- and how those cells might respond to...

Jul 31, 2012

Invisible Dark Matter Likely Bountiful Near Sun

The area around our sun is probably rife with dark matter, the pervasive invisible stuff that populates the universe, a new study suggests. Dark matter is thought to be all around us, making up a large fraction of the mass in the universe. Yet whatever particles compose dark matter interact...

Jun 30, 2012

Giant Dark Matter Bridge Between Galaxy Clusters Discovered

A giant string of invisible dark matter has been discovered across the universe between a pair of galaxy clusters. The filament forms a bridge between two huge clusters called Abell 222 and Abell 223, which lie 2.7 billion light-years away. The universe is thought to be filled with such strings...

Jun 30, 2012

Who Deserves a Higgs Boson Nobel? One Scientist, or Many

There's the science, and then there's the glitter. As researchers celebrate the best-yet evidence of the existence of the Higgs boson, some are already thinking about who's going to get the Nobel Prize in physics for the seminal discovery. Stephen Hawking told the BBC that he thinks Peter Higgs, who...

May 31, 2012

'Peekaboo' Reveals Babies Understanding of Quantum Mechanics

Quantum mechanics, the bizarre set of rules that govern the behavior of elementary particles, is notoriously confounding. Even Albert Einstein — winner of a Nobel Prize for his work in the field — thought there was something dicey about the whole business. But then again, he was a grown man....