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Physics

Using interpretive dance, Cedric Tan, a biologist at the University of Oxford, explains his PhD thesis, "Sperm competition between brothers and female choice.

Art Meets Science

This is What Happens When You Ask Scientists to Explain Their PhDs in Dance

Watch this year’s winners of the “Dance Your Ph.D” contest animate sperm competition, cell division and sleep deprivation

(A to L) 3D estimates of front views and lateral views rendered as point clouds overlaid with reflectivity data.

This Camera Capture Images in the Dark, Using Just a Few Particles of Light

The most obvious application for this camera is for spying and surveillance, but it may also be used for remote sensing or to study microscopic structures

Strategy for pumping while seated.

What’s the Best Way to Swing a Playground Swing?

There is physics everywhere, including on the playground

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The Freshman at MIT Who is Revolutionizing Nanotechnology

Teenager Saumil Bandyopadhyay has harnessed cutting-edge physics to upend industries ranging from automobiles to astronomy

The seahorse may appear ungainly, but it’s actually a sophisticatedly engineered copepod-killing machine.

The Seahorse’s Odd Shape Makes It a Weapon of Stealth

The shape of the seahorse’s snout and its painfully slow movements create help create minimal water disturbance, increasing its odds of bagging prey

Water vortices surrounding a moving stingray’s body

Future Submarines May Glide Through the Water Like Stingrays

Cracking the underlying principles behind stingray movements is the first step to building future submarines

“The Simpsons” Has Been Secretly Teaching Its Fans Complicated Math

Several writers for The Simpsons completed degrees in math and physics before they turned to screen writing for the beloved cartoon

How Does a Tea Kettle Whistle?

This might seem like an obvious question, but it turns out that no one has looked into it until now

Archimedes Would Be Proud of This Now-Bright Norwegian Town

Inspiration for the idea traces back to the 212 BC legend about Archimedes’ burning mirrors used to set Roman battle ships ablaze

The In-Depth Science of Why a Beer Bottle Erupts When You Whack It

More than you ever thought you needed to know about the physics of erupting beer bottles

There’s a Universal Law of Urination in Mammals

They all take an average of about 21 seconds to empty their bladders, nearly regardless of how big they are

Your Cheat Sheet to the 2013 Nobel Prizes

Love them or hate them, here we provide you with the sound bytes you’ll need to at least discuss them

How Much Abuse Can a Single Lego Brick Take?

Forget iPads, if you want a long lasting toy stick with blocks

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Cow Tipping Never Was And Never Will Be a Thing People Actually Do

Scientists have actually taken the time to investigate the idea, and produced some hard numbers that indicated that cow-tipping “has no leg to stand on”

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Clouds Obscure Clear Climate Forecasts

Ride alongside NASA’s Airborne Science Laboratory as scientists try to figure out the role of clouds in climate change

Astronomers traced 2011 QF99, circled in green, across the sky to find that it shared an orbit with Uranus.

Temporary Companion Leads Uranus in Its Race Around the Sun

A small asteroid that orbits ahead of the seventh planet offers a clearer picture of the ongoing celestial pinball game in the solar system’s outer reaches

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The Star Tau Boo Flips Its Magnetic Field, Too

Scientists watched the magnetic field of a star 51 light years away flip back and forth

What is it that makes honey such a special food?

The Science Behind Honey’s Eternal Shelf Life

A slew of factors—its acidity, its lack of water and the presence of hydrogen peroxide—work in perfect harmony, allowing the sticky treat to last forever

This Astronomer Recreated Starry Night with Hubble Space Photos

Alex Parker used the top 100 images from the Hubble Space telescope to create his rendition of Starry Night

Here’s an Incredible Image of Venus Passing in Front of the Sun

The tiny black dot on the top lefthand side is Venus.

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