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Rewriting Physics Textbooks: Scientists Propose a Bold New Theory About the Universe’s Origins

A team of researchers, led by Raúl Jiménez, an ICREA scientist at the University of Barcelona’s Institute of Cosmos Sciences (ICCUB), and working in partnership with the University of Padua (Italy), has introduced a groundbreaking new theory about how the Universe began.

Published in Physical Review Research, their study offers a major shift in how scientists understand the earliest moments following the Big Bang.

The Big Bang is the leading cosmological model explaining how the universe as we know it began approximately 13.8 billion years ago.

Mathematical model sheds light on internal ocean waves and climate prediction

Deep below the surface of the ocean, unseen waves roil and churn the water. These internal waves, traveling between water layers of different temperatures and densities, draw cold, nutrient-rich water up from the depths and play a major role in oceanic circulation. Understanding and modeling their behavior is critical for developing more accurate simulations of an increasingly unpredictable climate.

In a Nature Communications paper, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) Math Professor Yuri V. Lvov, Ph.D. and a team of oceanographers develop a first-of-its-kind model of internal wave dynamics that lays the foundation for new, more reliable models of ocean circulation.

“Internal, wave-driven, vertical mixing is believed to be a main driver of oceanic circulation,” Lvov said. “It shapes Earth’s climate by influencing sea level rise, nutrient fluxes, , and anthropogenic heat and carbon uptake.”

Harvard’s ultra-thin chip could revolutionize quantum computing

Researchers at Harvard have created a groundbreaking metasurface that can replace bulky and complex optical components used in quantum computing with a single, ultra-thin, nanostructured layer. This innovation could make quantum networks far more scalable, stable, and compact. By harnessing the power of graph theory, the team simplified the design of these quantum metasurfaces, enabling them to generate entangled photons and perform sophisticated quantum operations — all on a chip thinner than a human hair. It's a radical leap forward for room-temperature quantum technology and photonics.

Scientists create an artificial cell capable of navigating its environment using chemistry alone

Researchers at the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC) have created the world’s simplest artificial cell capable of chemical navigation, migrating toward specific substances like living cells do.

This breakthrough, published in Science Advances, demonstrates how microscopic bubbles can be programmed to follow chemical trails. The study describes the development of a “minimal cell” in the form of a lipid encapsulating enzymes that can propel itself through chemotaxis.

Cellular transport is a vital aspect of many biological processes and a key milestone in evolution. Among all types of movement, chemotaxis is an essential strategy used by many living systems to move towards beneficial signals, such as nutrients, or away from harmful ones.

Navigating protein landscapes with a machine-learned transferable coarse-grained model

Designing simplified models for protein simulation has been a significant challenge for several decades. Using a diverse set of test proteins, and a deep-learning architecture, we have now developed a simple and chemically transferable force field for efficient simulation of protein sequences.

AI helps Latin scholars decipher ancient Roman texts

Around 1,500 Latin inscriptions are discovered every year, offering an invaluable view into the daily life of ancient Romans—and posing a daunting challenge for the historians tasked with interpreting them.

But a new artificial intelligence tool, partly developed by Google researchers, can now help Latin scholars piece together these puzzles from the past, according to a study published on Wednesday.

Inscriptions in Latin were commonplace across the Roman world, from laying out the decrees of emperors to graffiti on the city streets. One mosaic outside a home in the ancient city of Pompeii even warns: “Beware of the dog”

Plant virus triggers immune response that targets and destroys cancer cells

A virus that typically infects black-eyed peas is showing great promise as a low-cost, potent cancer immunotherapy—and researchers are uncovering why.

In a study published in Cell Biomaterials, a team led by chemical and nano engineers at the University of California San Diego took a closer look at how the (CPMV), unlike other plant viruses, is uniquely effective at activating the body’s immune system to recognize and attack cancer cells.

The study is titled “Comparative analyses for plant virus-based cancer immunotherapy drug development.”