Physics Buzz

Crowd-Sourced Einstein@Home Data Analysis Discovers New Pulsars
Tuesday, February 12, 2013
Imagine a world in which something huge was going on behind the peaceful wax and wane of the little light on your sleeping computer. Animation of a pulsar / NASA That time is now. Scientists report that the global crowd-sourced astronomical data... more

Bang Goes the Theory: Coming to America
Monday, February 11, 2013
There's a British invasion afoot today. The BBC science show "Bang Goes the Theory" premieres tonight on BBC America. So how does this show distinguish itself from the abundance of other educational science shows on TV today? Part of the appeal stems fr... more

Oscar Sci-Tech Awards Honor Ingenious Screen Science And Engineering
Friday, February 08, 2013
This year's awards showcase the interplay between art and science. Image property of DreamWorks Animation Rights information: bit.ly/QafmwK The goal of every movie is for the audience to suspend its collective disbeli... more

Q&A on LEGO SLAC Particle Accelerator
Thursday, February 07, 2013
Buried deep underground lies one of the longest buildings in the world: the SLAC linear particle accelerator – colloquially, the "linac". Most who pass by don't get the chance to see the 2-mile netherworld through which electrons fly at nearly the speed ... more

Podcast: The Good, The Bad, The Radiation
Wednesday, February 06, 2013
This week on the podcast I talk with Robert Gale and Eric Lax, the authors of the new book "Radiation: What it is, what you need to know."  Most people associate radiation with it's harmful effects and the mistakes made by people entrusted to manag... more

Bathtub Physics: Using Bubbles to Battle Gravity
Tuesday, February 05, 2013
Don't try this in the tub. Scientists applied an electric field across a soap bubble and discovered that the electric field could draw fluid up through the soapy film – against gravity. The researchers also found that the strength of the electric field c... more

Turn Your Phone Into a Spectrometer — For Free!
Monday, February 04, 2013
Our world is filled with different light sources: fluorescent office lights, sodium street lamps, and bright neon lights to name a few. Now you can see all of the emission spectra of these light sources with our new iPhone app: SpectraSnapp. Did I mentio... more