These theoretical megastructures represent one way an advanced civilization might harvest energy from stars.
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Electromagnetism, both nuclear forces, and even the Higgs force are mediated by known bosons. What about gravity? Does it require gravitons?
We need more data centers for AI. Developers are getting creative about where to build them.
When cosmic inflation came to an end, the hot Big Bang ensued as a result. If our cosmic vacuum state decays, could it all happen again?
If you bring too much mass or energy together in one location, you’ll inevitably create a black hole. So why didn’t the Big Bang become one?
Black holes are the most massive individual objects, spanning up to a light-day across. So how do they make jets that affect the cosmic web?
The Universe is expanding, and individual, bound structures are all receding away from one another. How, then, are galaxies still colliding?
Without wormholes, warp drive, or some type of new matter, energy, or physics, everyone is limited by the speed of light. Or are they?
From the tiniest subatomic scales to the grandest cosmic structures of all, everything that exists depends on two things: charge and mass.
Dark matter doesn’t absorb or emit light, but it gravitates. Instead of something exotic and novel, could it just be dark, normal matter?
The material is both stronger and lighter than those used to make conventional power plant turbines.
The Universe isn’t just expansion, but the expansion itself is accelerating. So why can’t we feel it in any measurable way?
A look back at the rise of solar power in the US and what’s next.
A $30,000 electric vehicle with 400 miles of range that charges in under 10 minutes remains a pipe dream over the near future.
The Universe has been creating stars for nearly all 13.8 billion years of its history. But those photons can’t match the Big Bang’s light.
The laws of physics obey certain symmetries and defy others. It’s theoretically tempting to add new ones, but reality doesn’t agree.
Inflation, dark matter, and string theory are all proposed extensions to the prior consensus picture. But what does the evidence say?
Scientists have been chasing the dream of harnessing the reactions that power the Sun since the dawn of the atomic era. Interest, and investment, in the carbon-free energy source is heating up.
For every proton, there were over a billion others that annihilated away with an antimatter counterpart. So where did all that energy go?
Einstein’s most famous equation is E = mc², which describes the rest mass energy inherent to particles. But motion matters for energy, too.
The highest-energy particles could be a sign of new, unexpected physics. But the simplest, most mundane explanation is particularly iron-ic.
Almost everyone asserts that the Big Bang was the beginning of everything, followed by inflation. Has everyone gotten the order wrong?
From the earliest stages of the hot Big Bang (and even before) to our dark energy-dominated present, how and when did the Universe grow up?
The last naked-eye Milky Way supernova happened way back in 1604. With today’s detectors, the next one could solve the dark matter mystery.
The Universe is expanding, and the Hubble constant tells us how fast. But how can it be a constant if the expansion is accelerating?
A wave of innovation is coursing through the nuclear industry — but ingrained opposition is the biggest roadblock.
Within our observable Universe, there’s only one Earth and one “you.” But in a vast multiverse, so much more becomes possible.
The evolution of quantum technology is far from over.
Most fundamental constants could be a little larger or smaller, and our Universe would still be similar. But not the mass of the electron.
There may be more energy in methane hydrates than in all the world’s oil, coal, and gas combined. It could be the perfect “bridge fuel” to a clean energy future.