If you took introductory physics, you learned about the “fundamental forces.” It goes something like this: All interactions are the result of one or more of five basic forces: strong nuclear, weak nuclear, gravity, electric, and magnetic. “Doing physics,” then, means identifying the forces in play. There’s a problem, though,Continue Reading
Now the ball behaves more like you would expect. Its horizontal velocity decreases so that it falls behind the original car. But it’s still not going to hit your windshield. With air drag and loss of energy on impact with the ground, each bounce is a little lower than theContinue Reading
Quantum computing has enormous potential, but it faces a scalability problem. For such a machine to be useful in real terms, multiple quantum processors need to be assembled in a single location. This increases a processor’s power but also its size, making it less practical and more delicate. Scientists areContinue Reading
All the tech we rely on, from cars to smartphones, was engineered using physics. You don’t need to know the science to use these things. But a well-rounded human should understand at least some of the key concepts—along with some music, art, history, and economics. Robert Heinlein said it allContinue Reading
Although fans of A Song of Ice and Fire might still be hankering for the long-delayed next book in the series, bestselling sci-fi/fantasy author George R.R. Martin has instead added a different item to his long list of publications: a peer-reviewed physics paper just published in the American Journal ofContinue Reading
