Surprising Science — March 12, 2014

The Accidental Universe

A weekly newsletter featuring the biggest ideas from the smartest people

Alan Lightman on whether our universe may be an accident.

A weekly newsletter featuring the biggest ideas from the smartest people

A digital illustration of a human brain with blue veins and a glowing light at the top, set against a black background.

How Neuralink’s chief competitor is tapping into the brain without surgery

“Neurotech is not just about the brain,” says Synchron CTO Riki Banerjee, explaining how their tech can help with paralysis, brain diseases, and beyond.

An abstract illustration features a bell curve with red dots and a percentage labeled 49%. The background includes a monochrome portion of a face with wide-open eyes peeking below the curve.

Thinking

Everyday Philosophy: Bad at probability? That might be a blessing.

How black and white is your thinking?

Starts With A Bang

Ask Ethan: Do gravitons need to exist?

Electromagnetism, both nuclear forces, and even the Higgs force are mediated by known bosons. What about gravity? Does it require gravitons?

A close-up of a neoclassical building's facade with ornate carvings and columns, featuring an emblem at the center, reflects the grandeur often associated with the global elite.

The Present

A surprising share of the global elite went to Harvard

A survey of more than 6,000 of the world’s richest, most influential people shows that 9% of them attended Harvard University.

Starts With A Bang

Gold, frankincense, and myrrh: one gift was made in a neutron star

When three wise men gifted baby Jesus with gold, frankincense, and myrrh, they had no idea one was made from colliding neutron stars.

Up Next

“Lord of the Flies,” Still Haunting at 60

On the 60th anniversary of its publication, Lord of the Flies continues to be a valuable literary and cultural reference point and, more surprisingly, an instructive manual about contemporary political life—and its liabilities.