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Category: Physics & chemistry

By The Generalist Posted on March 17, 2022March 16, 2022

Continent of stability (Part 2)

Beyond the boundaries of the natural elements may lie a whole new form of matter without protons or neutrons: quark matter. [2 of 2]

Categories: 19th century history, 20th century history, 21st century history, Physics & chemistry
By The Generalist Posted on March 14, 2022January 25, 2023

Continent of stability (Part 1)

Nuclear physicists predict an “island of stability” beyond the current end of the periodic table. But there’s another possibility even further out: an exotic “continent of stability.” [1 of 2]

Categories: 20th century history, 21st century history, Physics & chemistry
By The Generalist Posted on February 25, 2022January 25, 2023

Viking sunstone

The Vikings navigated by the position of the sun. But what did they do when it was cloudy?

Categories: Astronomy, Europe, Medieval history, Physics & chemistry, Technology, The oceans
By The Generalist Posted on February 24, 2022January 25, 2023

The scientists of Mars

When asked why we have no proof of extraterrestrial life, the Hungarian physicist Leo Szilard joked that Martians were already among us… they just called themselves Hungarians.

Categories: 20th century history, Computer science, Europe, Mathematics & statistics, North & Central America, Physics & chemistry, Technology
By The Generalist Posted on November 24, 2021January 25, 2023

Sludge of the universe

Many moons, dwarf planets, comets, and trans-Neptunian objects are covered in a kind of complex chemical sludge sometimes called “tholins.” And this sludge may be much more common throughout the universe.

Categories: Astronomy, Physics & chemistry
By The Generalist Posted on September 23, 2021September 22, 2021

Da Vinci’s fractal trees

Leonardo da Vinci observed that tree branches together are always as thick as the trunk beneath them. This is true, and there are some good ideas why.

Categories: Art, Europe, Mathematics & statistics, Physics & chemistry, Plants
By The Generalist Posted on August 16, 2021January 25, 2023

Science wars: Non-periodic crystals

Up until 1982, all crystals were believed to be, by definition, periodic. But then an Israeli materials scientist discovered something strange…

Categories: 20th century history, Middle East, North & Central America, Physics & chemistry
By The Generalist Posted on August 9, 2021August 8, 2021

Rolling uphill

The mechanical paradox is a device that seemingly defies the law of gravity: a pair of cones that roll uphill.

Categories: Physics & chemistry
By The Generalist Posted on April 23, 2021September 30, 2021

Sky compass

Bees use sunlight polarisation patterns to navigate. We can train ourselves to detect light polarisation too.

Categories: Animals, Health & medicine, Physics & chemistry
By The Generalist Posted on April 12, 2021April 8, 2021

Natural units (Part 2)

Whereas most units of measurement are arbitrary and human, Planck units are based only on four fundamental physical constants. [2 of 2]

Categories: Physics & chemistry, Sciences, Weights & measures
By The Generalist Posted on April 11, 2021January 25, 2023

Natural units (Part 1)

Most units of measurement are based on specific physical qualities or tangible reference objects. But they don’t have to be. [1 of 2]

Categories: Physics & chemistry, Sciences, Weights & measures
By The Generalist Posted on March 23, 2021April 28, 2021

The shadow of the volcano

What do the bicycle, Marmite, Mormonism, and Frankenstein have in common? A volcano in Indonesia.

Categories: 19th century history, Arts & recreation, Earth science, Europe, Food & agriculture, History, Literature, North & Central America, Physics & chemistry, Places, Religion & belief, Sciences, Southeast Asia, Technology
By The Generalist Posted on March 18, 2021January 25, 2023

Glowing snails

Just one species of land snail and a few species of freshwater snail glow in the dark.

Categories: Animals, Oceania, Physics & chemistry, Places, Sciences, Southeast Asia
By The Generalist Posted on March 17, 2021March 17, 2021

Fire Diamond 4-4-4

The Fire Diamond categorises hazardous substances according to flammability, instability, and danger to human health. One material ranks the maximum on all three scales.

Categories: Health & medicine, Physics & chemistry, Sciences
By The Generalist Posted on March 13, 2021April 21, 2021

Underwater ball sports

If you’re playing underwater rugby or football, how do you keep the ball from floating or sinking?

Categories: Games & sport, Physics & chemistry, Sciences
By The Generalist Posted on March 6, 2021April 28, 2021

Doomsday device

In 1950 Leo Szilard warned the world that a single device capable of annihilating all life on Earth was theoretically possible.

Categories: 20th century history, History, Military, Physics & chemistry, Sciences, Technology

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