Density functional theory (DFT) is a cornerstone tool of modern physics, chemistry, and engineering used to explore the behavior of electrons. While essential in modeling systems with many electrons, it suffers from a well-known flaw called self-interaction error. A recent study has identified a new area where a correction for this error breaks down.
An international collaboration headed by researchers in the Department of Physics has shown that additive manufacturing offers a realistic way to build large-scale plastic scintillator detectors for particle physics experiments.
In 2024, the T2K Collaboration started to collect new neutrino data following several upgrades to the experiment that included new types of detectors. One of these, called SuperFGD, has a mass of about 2 tons of sensitive volume and is made of approximately two million cubes. Each cube is made of plastic scintillator (PS) material that emits light when a charged particle passes through it.
Neutrinos carry no charge, as their name indicates, but they sometimes interact with other particles, then produce electrons, protons, muons or pions that can be detected. Each PS cube is traversed by three orthogonal optical fibers that collect the scintillation light and guide it to 56,000 photodetectors. The data reveal three-dimensional (3D) particle tracks, which in turn allow researchers to learn more about neutrinos.
This Deep Dive AI podcast discusses The Origins of Us: Evolutionary Emergence and The Omega Point Cosmology by Alex M. Vikoulov, Book I of The Science and Philosophy of Information eBook/audiobook series. This book serves as both an accessible introduction and a standalone work, exploring some of the most profound questions in science and philosophy.
In this epic work, Vikoulov delves into the origins of life, consciousness, and intelligence, examining topics such as abiogenesis, noogenesis, and the rise of Homo sapiens. The book also presents The Omega Point Cosmology, which envisions a teleological progression of intelligence toward a cosmic destiny. It blends scientific exploration with digital physics, complexity theory, and transcendental metaphysics, offering a novel perspective on the interconnectedness of information, mind, and reality.
*The Origins of Us: Evolutionary Emergence and the Omega Point Cosmology by Alex M. Vikoulov is available as a Kindle eBook and Audible audiobook:
#OriginsOfUs #EvolutionaryEmergence #OmegaPointCosmology #SyntellectHypothesis #DigitalPhysics #HomoSapiens #ScienceOfInformation #PhilosophyOfInformation #AlphaPoint #OmegaPoint #abiogenesis #noogenesis #evolution #consciousness
Is an in-depth investigation featuring world renowned philosophers and scientists into the most profound philosophical debate of all time: Do we have free will?
Featuring: Sean Carroll, Daniel Dennett, Jerry Coyne, Dan Barker, Heather Berlin, Gregg Caruso, Massimo Pigliucci, Alex O’Conner, Coleman Hughes, Edwin Locke, Robert Kane, Rick Messing, Derk Pereboom, Richard Carrier, Trick Slattery, Dustin Kreuger, Steven Sharper, Donia Abouelatta.
Chapters.
Intro: — 0:00
Chapter 1: What is Free Will? — 4:19
Chapter 2: The Problem of Free Will — 15:29
Interlude: 22:33
Chapter 3: Libertarian Free Will — 23:16
Chapter 4: Compatibilism — 34:47
Chapter 5: Free Will Skepticism — 45:13
Interlude: The 3 Positions of Free Will — 55:45
Chapter 6: The Great Debate — 57:28
Chapter 7: Neuroscience — 1:07:28
Chapter 7: The Interaction Problem — 1:18:37
Chapter 8: Physics — 1:20:10
Chapter 8: Reduction & Emergence — 1:22:14
Chapter 9: Can We Have Determinism and Free Will? — 1:28:57
Chapter 10: Free Will and the Law — 1:45:57
Chapter 11: Should We Stop Using the Term Free Will? — 1:56:37
Outro: 2:00:38
Electronic devices rely on materials whose electrical properties change with temperature, making them less stable in extreme conditions. A discovery by McGill University researchers that challenges conventional wisdom in physics suggests that bismuth, a metal, could serve as the foundation for highly stable electronic components.
The researchers observed a mysterious electrical effect in ultra-thin bismuth that remains unchanged across a wide temperature range, from near absolute zero (−273°C) to room temperature.
“If we can harness this, it could become important for green electronics,” said Guillaume Gervais, a professor of physics at McGill and co-author of the study.
Renowned astrophysicist and educator Alex Filippenko joins Brian Greene to discuss an increasingly disturbing cosmological mismatch known as the Hubble Tension, a gap that may require a radical rewriting of the history of the universe.
This program is part of the Big Ideas series, supported by the John Templeton Foundation.
Participant: Alex Filippenko.
Moderator: Brian Greene.
0:00:00 — Introduction.
0:00:50 — Welcome to Alex Filippenko.
0:03:58 — The Most Important Lesson of Science.
0:06:47 — The Hubble Tension.
0:12:04 — Measuring the Expansion Rate of the Universe.
0:23:31 — How far out can we measure?
0:27:10 — Galaxies with Type 1A Supernovae and Cepheids.
0:32:57 — Cosmic Distance Ladder Summary.
0:37:30 — The Universe’s Expansion Rate Today.
0:47:20 — How can we be certain the measurements are correct?
0:51:00 — CMB and using Theoretical Models to Extrapolate the Expansion Rate.
1:00:57 — Positive outcomes to this tension.
1:02:14 — Filippenko’s thoughts on the position of Wendy Freedman’s recent paper.
1:14:09 — Will the Cepheid data set remain at 42?
1:16:55 — Filippenko’s thoughts on the Hubble tension.
1:22:40 — How Cosmology became a precision science.
1:25:11 — Is Inflation a Falsifiable Theory?
1:29:30 — Filippenko’s view of Inflation and the Multiverse.
1:31:08 — Filippenko’s view of Cyclic Inflation and Steinhardt and Penrose’s theories.
1:35:15 — Falsifiable Aspects of Inflation.
1:41:54 — Discovering the Accelerated Expansion of the Universe.
1:47:54 — Filippenko’s thoughts on Saul Perlmutter’s team’s analysis methods.
1:50:47 — Filippenko’s reaction to the initial discovery.
1:59:04 — Thoughts on Dark Energy and the Great Rip.
2:01:58 — Conclusion.
2:03:16 — Credits.
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Check out a variety of courses on your favorite subjects on Brilliant! First 30 days are free and 20% off the annual premium subscription when you use our link ➜ https://brilliant.org/sabine.
Why time passes is one of the biggest mysteries in physics, as the fundamental laws of nature don’t reflect a difference between moving forward and backward in time. In a new paper, researchers have shown that time might actually be able to run in two directions, meaning we might have a twin universe where time runs opposite our universe’s. Let’s take a look.
Paper: https://www.nature.com/articles/s4159… video comes with a quiz which you can take here: https://quizwithit.com/start_thequiz/.… 🤓 Check out my new quiz app ➜ http://quizwithit.com/ 💌 Support me on Donorbox ➜ https://donorbox.org/swtg 📝 Transcripts and written news on Substack ➜ https://sciencewtg.substack.com/ 👉 Transcript with links to references on Patreon ➜ / sabine 📩 Free weekly science newsletter ➜ https://sabinehossenfelder.com/newsle… 👂 Audio only podcast ➜ https://open.spotify.com/show/0MkNfXl… 🔗 Join this channel to get access to perks ➜
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This video comes with a quiz which you can take here: https://quizwithit.com/start_thequiz/.…
🤓 Check out my new quiz app ➜ http://quizwithit.com/
💌 Support me on Donorbox ➜ https://donorbox.org/swtg.
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Point of view invarience.
Talk by James Ladyman (University of Bristol)
Mini-Workshop Website: https://harvardfop.jacobbarandes.com/
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPRe-yID_EaQwvCZM7hU9Hw.
Harvard foundations of physics workshop series.
A new theory suggests gravity could possibly be the result of entropy—which would mean everything in the universe would fall apart if it all remained unchanged.
Physicists from the National University of Singapore (NUS) have synthesized very pure superconducting materials and redefined the critical role of hydrogen in the newly discovered nickel-oxide superconductors.
Their findings were published concurrently in the journals Nature Communications and Physical Review Letters.
Superconductivity is an exciting phenomenon where electrical resistance disappears, and it holds transformative potential for revolutionizing energy technologies. Despite its potential, the origin and fundamental mechanism of superconductivity remain one of the greatest mysteries in physics.
