Amazon has breathed new life into the Echo Spot: a bedside table with Alexa and a colorful display that shows the weather forecast, what songs or podcasts are playing, the latest news and, of course, the time. Echo Spot can display the time, forecast, or currently playing songs, audiobooks, and podcasts through its enhanced 1.73” … Read more
Time: It bends and curves, or appears to speed up or slow down, depending on your position or perception. So precisely measuring its passage is one of the most fundamental tasks in physics—and could help us land on Mars or even observe dark matter. Now, physicists from the US National Institute of Standards and Technology … Read more
Laser light passing through the transparent crystal and exciting the thorium core. Credit: James Terhune, Hudson Group, UCLA For nearly 50 years, physicists have dreamed of unlocking the secrets of increasing the energy state of the nucleus of an atom using a laser. This achievement would make it possible to replace today’s atomic clocks with … Read more
Researchers at JILA, a US research institute, have developed a new light-based atomic clock that is so precise that it can measure the smallest effects predicted by Einstein’s general theory of relativity. The clock will lead to a more precise definition of a second and could even lead to the discovery of new underground mineral … Read more
An extremely cold gas of strontium atoms is trapped in a web of light known as an optical lattice. The atoms are held in an ultrahigh vacuum environment, meaning there is almost no air or other gases present. This vacuum helps preserve the atoms’ delicate quantum states, which are fragile. The red dot you see … Read more
Enlarge / The fairing for the first test flight of Europe’s Ariane 6 rocket has been placed around the small group of satellites that will carry it into orbit. Welcome to edition 6.48 of the Rocket Report! Fresh off last week’s dramatic test flight of SpaceX’s Starship, teams in Texas are wasting no time preparing … Read more
Cartoon summary of experiential age-related DNA methylation programs delineating longevity versus malignancy among T cells. Credit: Nature aging (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s43587-024-00649-5 While most cell types experience functional decline after years of proliferation and replication, T cells can proliferate seemingly indefinitely and without damage. Scientists from St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and the University of Minnesota … Read more
Apple has added a new multicolor swatch to the font and color customization options on the lock screen in iOS 18, so you can now display the time in rainbow colors against your chosen background. Unlike the other color swatches, the multi-color option currently does not apply to widgets and the date, which turn white … Read more
A team led by glaciologists from UC Irvine used satellite radar data to reconstruct the impact of warm ocean water rising in a grounding zone extending several kilometers beneath the Thwaites Glacier in West Antarctica. The research, the subject of an article published in PNAS, will help climate modelers derive more accurate projections of sea … Read more