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Researchers discover hundreds of cosmic anomalies with help from AI
A team of astronomers have used a new AI-assisted method to search for rare astronomical objects in the Hubble Legacy Archive. The team sifted through nearly 100 million image cutouts in just two and a half days, uncovering nearly 1400 anomalous objects, more than 800 of which had never been documented before.
Google will settle its Assistant spying lawsuit for $68 million
“Ok Google, are you listening?”
Astronaut Ellison Onizuka Science Day Returns To Hilo
HILO, Hawaiʻi – On the 40th anniversary of the Space Shuttle Challenger tragedy, the life and legacy of Hawaiʻi’s first NASA astronaut was celebrated.
Astronomers unveil map of dark matter's distribution in universe
Using observations from the James Webb Space Telescope in a patch of the sky covering almost three times the area of the full moon, scientists have created the most detailed cosmic map to date of the mysterious substance called dark matter that accounts for most of the stuff that populates the universe.
Former astronaut on lunar spacesuits: "I don't think they're great right now"
These are just the difficulties of designing a spacesuit for the lunar environment."
Books that shaped a universe: Reiff reflects on science, curiosity and imagination
For more than five decades, Patricia Reiff has explored the forces that shape Earth’s place in space. But when the Rice professor of physics and astronomy took the stage Jan. 15 for Friends of Fondren Library’s Books That Shaped My World series, her focus shifted from spacecraft and data to the books and people that have influenced how she thinks, teaches and lives.
“Stars like the Sun don’t just stop shining,” but this one did
A distant Sun-like star suddenly went dark for months, stunning astronomers who quickly realized something massive was passing in front of it. Observations revealed a gigantic disk of gas and dust filled with vaporized metals, swirling around an unseen companion object. For the first time, scientists directly measured the motion of these metallic winds inside such a disk. The findings suggest that even ancient star systems can still experience catastrophic planetary smashups.
Artemis II’s Possible Impact on JWST Science Operations
NASA has recently begun preparations for the Artemis II mission, which will send four astronauts on a journey around the Moon
Gmail’s spam filter and automatic sorting are broken
Gmail’s spam filter is broken, leading to inboxes flooded with promotional emails and warnings to “be careful.”
Stanford Scientists Reveal Oldest Map of the Night Sky, Previously Lost to Time
SLAC researchers used X-ray beams and the particle accelerator to recover the work of an ancient astronomer, who made the earliest known attempt to log the stars.
Halley’s comet may need a new, medieval name
Astronomers suggest the honor should go to an 11th century monk known for a disastrous flying attempt.
Marginal gains, deception and entertainment: This is why players take Panenkas
Chipping a penalty down the middle is seen as a huge risk — great when it works, disastrous when it doesn't. But it's not quite that simple
Astronauts Reveal Critical Medical Tool Used in ISS Health Crisis
They said it was "super handy."
New astronaut exhibit set to launch at Orlando Science Center
The exhibit, “Mission: Astronaut,” will feature hands-on challenges and six immersive zones, with each activity connecting to core STEM principles.
NASA's Universe of Learning Unveils Fresh Facilitator Guides Inspired by Community Feedback
The goal of NASA's Universe of Learning (UoL) is to connect the public to the data, discoveries, and experts that span NASA’s Astrophysics missions. To make this possible, the NASA's UoL team creates engaging STEM experiences that let people explore data and discoveries from NASA’s Astrophysics missions and learn from the experts behind them.
Ubisoft cancels Prince of Persia remake as part of major reorganization
Big changes at Ubisoft.
Astrophysicist-Theologian to Discuss Science and Faith at Caltech Friday
Daily Newsmagazine and City Guide to Pasadena, California featuring local news, breaking news, events, weather, sports news, schools news, shopping, restaurants and more from Pasadena Now
The Future of the Planetary Science Analysis and Assessment Groups (AGs)
The Future of the Planetary Science Analysis and Assessment Groups (AGs)
Microsoft’s first Windows 11 update of 2026 stopped some computers from shuting down
Microsoft was forced to release an emergency update after the first Windows 11 update of 2026 stopped some computers from shutting down or hibernating.
The Ring Nebula is hiding a giant structure made of iron
A huge bar of iron has been discovered lurking inside the iconic Ring Nebula. The structure is enormous, spanning hundreds of times the size of Pluto’s orbit and containing a Mars-sized amount of iron. It was detected using a new instrument that allowed astronomers to map the nebula in far greater detail than ever before. The origin of the iron bar is still a mystery, with one theory suggesting it could be the remains of a vaporized planet.
China's Shenzhou-21 crew continues with science experiments, life in orbit
China's Shenzhou-21 astronauts have steadily advanced scientific experiments in several fields aboard China's space station over the past week.The crew consists of mission commander Zhang Lu and astronauts Wu Fei and Zhang Hongzhang. They have been in
Astronomers aim to take ‘revolutionary’ moving image of black hole
Newly appointed Cambridge professor says feat would accelerate scientific knowledge by an order of magnitude
Astronomers finally find an atmosphere around a rocky exoplanet - Futura-Sciences
From Io’s volcanoes to Enceladus’s geysers, our Solar System is a study in contrasts. The exoplanet realm is just as rich—and scientists are hunting for signs of life or, at least, clues to how life ... Read more
Nasa readies its most powerful rocket for round-the-moon flight
Artemis II mission could launch on 6 February, sending astronauts on a 685,000-mile journey
Casting is dead. Long live casting!
Fifteen years after laying the groundwork for casting, Netflix has pulled the plug on the technology, but there’s still life left in second-screen playback control.
NASA astronauts back on Earth after unprecedented medical emergency on ISS
The SpaceX Crew-11 Dragon spacecraft splashed down this morning as four astronauts completed an unprecedented medical evacuation of the International Space Station (ISS).
New Trump Funding Cuts to Cause ‘Catastrophic’ Effect on Mental Health Services Across Tennessee
President Trump terminates SAMSA grants, cutting $2 billion in federal funding for addiction, homelessness, and mental illness programs across the U.S.
NASA brings astronauts home early after health issue in first-ever evacuation
NASA completed its first-ever medical evacuation from space, bringing four astronauts back to Earth early after a health issue aboard the International Space Station.
Astronaut With Mystery Health Issue Forces NASA's First Medical Evacuation from Space
NASA's SpaceX Crew-11 mission is ending early to bring back a member with a medical issue. Astronauts who spend a long time in space may have brain changes, 'baby feet' and more.
Rural areas have darker skies but fewer resources for students interested in astronomy – telescopes in schools can help
Stargazing can stimulate an interest in space in kids and lead to a passion for science. But rural schools often lack the resources to nurture these interests.
New study finds astronauts' brains change after space travel
Following spaceflight, the brain shifts "upward and backward within the skull", with sensory and motor regions showing the largest shift, the study found.
A $2,500 full body scan said he was healthy. Then he had a catastrophic stroke.
Prenuvo promotes full body MRI scans to detect hazardous conditions early. But medical associations say they may cause unnecessary alarm or a false sense of security.
Circinus Galaxy Zoom
This zoom-in video shows the location of the Circinus galaxy on the sky. It begins with a ground-based photo of the constellation Circinus by the late astrophotographer Akira Fujii. The video closes in on the Circinus galaxy, using views from the Digitized Sky Survey and the Dark...
Astronomers may have already spotted the 'Great Comet of 2026' — and it could soon be visible to the naked eye
Recently discovered Comet C/2025 R3 (PanSTARRS) will make its closest approach to the sun and Earth in late April and could potentially be visible to the naked eye. It may end up being the brightest comet of the year.
The first political storm of 2026: Trump’s misadventure in Venezuela
The Trump administration’s invasion of Venezuela was based on false pretenses, and could lead to another costly and disastrous “forever” war.
Google’s AI Inbox could be a glimpse of Gmail’s future
It’s more AI than I need right now.
Local business strategist helps solopreneurs search into their stars for success
“I want to make sure that they can be as powerful as who they are just with their own gifts, with their energetic alignment, with their precise actions for them,” said Woods, a Master Astrologer and Business Strategist.
Oddball 'platypus galaxies' spotted by James Webb telescope may challenge our understanding of galaxy formation
Astronomers spotted nine galaxies with characteristics that have never been seen as a collection before. It's possible this is a newly found type of star-forming galaxy.
NASA Spaceline Current Awareness List #1,181 31 December 2025 (Space Life Science Research Results)
NASA Spaceline Current Awareness List
Google’s Ex-CEO Backs Start-Up Approach to Big Telescopes for Space and Astronomy
Eric and Wendy Schmidt are backing a start-up-like approach to building a giant space telescope and powerful ground observatories.
I lost my daughter and discovered a terrifying legal reality
Shawnee Baker's daughter had catastrophic brain injuries and was kept on life support. She didn't have a healthcare proxy allowing her to die.
A galaxy cluster hotter than the surface of the sun is shocking researchers : Short Wave
Most astronomers agree that young galaxy clusters should be relatively cool compared to older ones. But researchers recently found a very young cluster that’s hotter than the surface of the sun. More on why the finding is so shocking, plus elephant’s remarkable sniffing abilities and a new discovery about butterfly migration in this episode of Short Wave. Interested in more science news? Email us your question at shortwave@npr.org.Listen to every episode of Short Wave sponsor-free and support our work at NPR by signing up for Short Wave+ at plus.npr.org/shortwave.
Scientists Discover Cloud-9, a Starless ‘Galaxy That Wasn’t’
Astronomers announced the discovery of a starless cloud of hydrogen gas, a pristine relic of the cosmos that is almost as old as time itself.
Tempe salad shop, popular Phoenix gastropub receive perfect health inspection scores
While there are no restaurants on this week's Dirty Dining list, several eateries received perfect scores from Maricopa County health inspectors.
YouTube will now let you filter Shorts out of search results
The company is making a few changes to search filters, including adding a new ‘Popularity’ one.
NASA cancels spacewalk and considers early crew return from ISS due to medical issues
NASA is considering the early return of Crew-11 from the International Space Station after an unidentified astronaut experienced a medical problem.
Congress limits cuts to NASA's science budget to 1%
In a significant reversal for the nation’s space agency, NASA’s science programs have been spared from a catastrophic “train wreck” budget. According to an article on the ARS Technica website, while the White House initially proposed slashing science funding by nearly 50 percent last summer—even ordering “closeout” plans for dozens of active missions—Congress has stepped in to restore the agency’s ... Read More
Astronaut snaps spectacular photo of lightning above Italy
NASA astronaut Nichole Ayers spotted the summer storm while aboard the International Space Station.
Galaxies with ‘hoop skirts’ are more common than we thought
The discovery of thousands more galaxies with stars ringing their main disks could help astronomers study galactic evolution more generally.
Life Science Fills Day as Expedition 74 Nears Thursday Spacewalk
Exercise research and biomedical science promoting healthy humans on and off Earth topped the schedule aboard the International Space Station on Tuesday. Meanwhile, two NASA astronauts are preparing for the year’s first spacewalk, scheduled to begin Thursday.
Caltech, a Science Powerhouse, Hires Ray Jayawardhana as Its New President
Ray Jayawardhana, the incoming president, is an astrophysicist, but leaders at the California Institute of Technology also praised his credentials as a communicator at a time when science is under attack.
Scientists Identify 'Astronomy’s Platypus' with NASA’s Webb Telescope
After combing through NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope’s archive of sweeping extragalactic cosmic fields, a small team of astronomers at the University of
The new science and business of oral biologics
Biologics are built for precision. The gastrointestinal tract is built for demolition. Between stomach acid, digestive enzymes, and the physical barricade of the intestinal wall, most large molecules do not merely struggle to get absorbed. They get dismantled.
NASA Hubble Helps Detect 'Wake' of Betelgeuse’s Elusive Companion Star
New Hubble and ground-based observations allowed astronomers to track the influence of a recently discovered companion star around Betelgeuse.
Dems jump on health care messaging amid disastrous premium spike
Let’s be clear about who’s getting hit the hardest: the so-called “missing middle,” who are doing everything “right” and still getting squeezed.
NASA's Hubble Examines Cloud-9, First of New Type of Object
A team using Hubble uncovered a new type of astronomical object — a starless, gas-rich, dark-matter cloud, a remnant of early galaxy formation.
Pete Carroll fired by Raiders after disastrous 3-14 run in 2025
The Raiders will be looking for yet another head coach.
Policy Changes Bring Renewed Focus on High-Deductible Health Plans
Policy changes, anticipated increases in premium costs for enrollees, and new standards for health savings accounts may encourage consumers to seek out plans with lower premiums but higher deductibles. This issue brief explores the features of bronze and catastrophic plans, coverage and costs, and the complicated choices consumers face.
Need an MRI? Want vintage clothing? Try these new NJ businesses
Brokedown Palace is a gastropub in Wayne. Vintage Queens NYC in Englewood has women's fashion back to the 1890s.
Miami-Dade: When local politics become rogue US foreign policy
South Florida's anti-Castro lobby is already rallying for Cuba next after Saturday's regime change operation in Venezuela
Tricorder Tech For Everyone: NASA's STELLA Open Science Instrument
NASA has just authored apaper on a new way for people with a wide variety of interests to use - and build - sensor technology that is a preview of the devices we will use to explore other planets.
Serie A official Week 18 line-ups: Inter vs. Bologna
Lautaro Martinez and Marcus Thuram lead the way as Inter try to keep top spot and seek Supercoppa revenge against Bologna’s Jonathan Rowe and Santiago Castro.It kicks off at San Siro at 19.45 GMT (2...
Science Sunday: Slllllither into spring break camp
The camp will give kids an insight into subjects like LEGO robots, geology, astronomy, forensics and more.
Beyond the Super Bowl and the semiquincentennial: Your big sneak peek at 2026 entertainment events to come
You made it through a harrowing 2025 and a half-decade of challenge. Now, put aside your fears of catastrophic climate change, the collapse of American democracy, and AI data centers stretching from sea to shining sea — for just a moment — and plan some fun in the year ahead.
Rockets Cruise Past Nest in Wire-to-Wire Beatdown
Rockets dominated from the tip, leading wire-to-wire. Şengün's return sparked a relentless offensive surge, leaving Nets outmatched.
Friday Bird Droppings: The Orioles didn’t get Imai
The Japanese righty signed with the Astros, taking another SP candidate off the board for the Birds.
Cicadas, astronauts, measles and jazzy reptiles led 2025 science stories
Woo! Science looks back on a year of science reptiles, including the return of astronauts way too long in space, a ruckus of cicadas, and artistic lizard.
Cicadas, astronauts, measles and jazzy reptiles led 2025 science stories
Woo! Science looks back on a year of science reptiles, including the return of astronauts way too long in space, a ruckus of cicadas, and artistic lizard.
The audacious plan to make rocket fuel on the moon
Using lunar ice to make rocket fuel could help future lunar settlements sustain themselves and provide a launch pad for astronauts to reach Mars.
Scientists Just Clocked a ‘Rogue’ Planet the Size of Saturn
Astronomers just measured the mass of a free-floating planet without a star for the first time
Astros land star Japanese pitcher Tatsuya Imai with uncommon contract
The Astros agreed to a deal with Imai that could be worth up to $63 million over three years
Tatsuya Imai reportedly agrees to 3-year deal with Astros worth up to $63 million
Tatsuya Imai posted a 1.92 ERA with the Seibu Lions last season in NPB.
Tatsuya Imai reportedly agrees to deal with Astros on 3-year deal worth up to $63 million
Tatsuya Imai posted a 1.92 ERA with the Seibu Lions last season in NPB.
Nathalie Cabrol, astrobiologist: ‘It’s an achievement of science to admit we don’t know what life is’
The French-American scientist heads the Carl Sagan Center and researches the potential for humans to inhabit the extreme environments of our galaxy
The Galaxy Next Door
The Large Magellanic Cloud—one of our closest neighboring galaxies—is a hotbed of star formation that is visible to both astronauts and Earth-based stargazers.
The Houston Rockets Close 2025 With Five Hard Lessons
Houston's 2025 season reveals critical truths: urgency must be earned, defense is foundational, and structure fuels sustainable success.
Rockets Control Three Quarters, Pacers' Fourth Isn't Enough
Durant's 30 points fueled Houston's dominance. A late Pacers surge narrowed the gap, but Houston's control ultimately prevailed. Pacers leave empty-handed with a ninth straight loss in Houston.
From triumph to heartbreak: Houston’s 2025 sports moments
Houston's 2025 sports scene was a rollercoaster of change and triumphs, from iconic Astros transitions and star trades to local high school wins.
The spiders on the icecaps of Mars
Astrobiologists think they could point to more habitable areas on the red planet
Time runs faster on Mars and scientists just proved it
Thanks to Einstein’s relativity, time flows differently on Mars than on Earth. NIST scientists have now nailed down the difference, showing that Mars clocks tick slightly faster—and fluctuate over the Martian year. These microsecond shifts could play a big role in future Mars navigation, communications, and even a solar-system-wide internet. It’s a small time gap with big consequences for space exploration.
News & Rumors: The Crawfish Boil 12/29/2025
All the news and rumors around the Houston Astros and from around MLB – it’s in here! A late night offseason Crawfish Boil for the holidays – December 29, 2025 Cliff’s notes version: Ruiz led the AL with 67 SB in 2023, but has only 76 AB the last 2 seasons combined between the A’s […]
‘Too complacent’: how Blair’s advisers misjudged his disastrous WI speech
Former PM’s team suggested initial less-politicised drafts seemed patronising and appealed to ‘fuddy-duddy Britain’
Figuring out what went wrong in Eagles' disastrous 2nd half in win over Bills
The Eagles’ offense did some good things in the first half Sunday, but when you can measure your 2nd-half yardage in inches, that’s not a good sign.
This Castro clinic was on the front lines of HIV care. After 60 years, it’s still changing lives
From AIDS to COVID to addiction care, the Castro-Mission Health Center has quietly shaped San Francisco’s public health for six decades.
Mercury: The planet that shouldn't exist
Mercury has long baffled astronomers because it defies much of what we know about planet formation. A new space mission arriving in 2026 might solve the mystery.
Waterbury's Water Disaster is a Political Lesson For All
Waterbury suffered another catastrophic breakdown of its water system this month, the second since September, with most of the city and parts of its suburbs having to go without water […]
Scientists may have found the best place for humans to land on Mars
A newly identified region on Mars may hold the key to future human landings. Researchers found evidence of water ice less than a meter beneath the surface, close enough to be harvested for water, oxygen, and fuel. The location strikes a rare balance between sunlight and cold, helping preserve the ice. It could also offer clues about whether Mars once supported life.
Google is letting some people change their @gmail address
Google is letting some people change their @gmail address, and they can swap back to their old email at any point.
Astronomers discover one of the Universe’s largest spinning structures
Scientists have discovered a giant cosmic filament where galaxies spin in sync with the structure that holds them together. The razor-thin chain of galaxies sits inside a much larger filament that appears to be slowly rotating as a whole. This coordinated motion is far stronger than expected by chance and hints that galaxy spin may be inherited from the cosmic web itself. The finding opens a new window into how galaxies formed and how matter flows across the Universe.
A Christmas tree 80 light-years wide appears in space
This Christmas, astronomers are highlighting a spectacular region of space that looks remarkably like a glowing holiday tree. Known as NGC 2264, this distant star-forming region sits about 2,700 light-years away and is filled with newborn stars lighting up clouds of gas and dust. The stars form a triangular shape called the Christmas Tree cluster, crowned by the dramatic Cone Nebula and wrapped in the swirling Fox Fur Nebula below. Together, these features create a festive cosmic scene spanning nearly 80 light-years, showing how young stars shape their surroundings on a truly galactic scale.
BP agrees deal to sell £7.4bn stake in Castrol to US investment firm
Stonepeak will acquire 65% of lubricants business as part of wider plans for the oil company to pay down its debt
BP to Sell Majority Stake in Castrol Business for $6 Billion
The UK oil giant will divest a 65% stake, retaining the remaining interest via a joint venture, it said Wednesday. BP is shedding assets to reduce debt and turn around years of lagging performance that put the company in the crosshairs of activist shareholder Elliott Investment Management. It kicked off the sale process for Castrol back in February, when then-Chief Executive Officer Murray Auchincloss unveiled a strategic reset, promising to refocus on oil and gas, slash costs and reduce debt.
Gold, silver and platinum hit record highs as investors look for Santa rally; BP to sell stake in Castrol for $6bn
Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news
The disunity of science is a feature, not a bug
Mathematical models wield miraculous power, but mistaking them for reality has trapped science in a destructive quest for a “Theory of Everything.” Physicist and philosopher Ragner Fjelland argues that this leads to bloated, Frankenstein theories kept alive by clumsy, ad-hoc amendments, which reduce rather than boost science’s power. Fjelland calls for a radical shift in our attitude: we must reorientate towards creating entirely new theories, celebrating rather than lamenting disunity and diversity in science. Science, from the scientific revolution in the seventeenth century to the present day, has more or less developed in a “reductionist” way. The fundamental assumption is that all sciences may be ordered in a hierarchy that can be represented as an upside-down pyramid. At the top we find the human sciences, and at the bottom physics. Strong (or “ontological”) reductionism maintains that all theories at one level can be completely reduced to the lower level, all the way down to theories of atoms and elementary particles, or whatever is “at the bottom.” In the end, all diversity in the world can be unified in one fundamental theory. Hence it is called a final theory, or a Theory of Everything.One of the central figures in developing the idea of a Theory of Everything is the Dutch theoretical physicist Gerard 't Hooft, who received a Nobel Prize in physics in 1999 for his work. He emphasizes the non-empirical status of the theory:There exists no closely resembling alternative theory. This means that any slight change brought about in the rules would make the theory unlikely or inelegant. The theory will be a "package deal": take it, or leave it. This should hold both for the local laws and for the boundary conditions.This endeavor is not new. On the contrary, it goes all the way back to the birth of Western philosophy 2,500 years ago. The Babylonians made regular astronomical observations during a period of 600 years, from 747 BCE until 150 ACE. They developed mathematical techniques to predict astronomical phenomena, but they made no attempts at explaining them. However, the Greeks developed models, both material and theoretical, to explain the observed phenomena.The best example is Plato’s late dialogue Timaeus. Here he introduces a divine craftsman, the Demiurge, who has constructed the universe according to an original plan. Plato seems to have thought that the original plan is what is actually real, while the material world is merely an imperfect realization of it. He therefore does not, in the Timaeus, reconstruct the material universe, but the original plan, which can then be used to explain the material universe.Plato’s aim in producing a theoretical model is to reconstruct the original plan. That is what he carries out in Timaeus—and some modern physicists have embarked on the same project. For example, Einstein’s basic attitude is reflected in the title of Abraham Pais’ biography: “Subtle is the Lord...,” echoing Einstein’s comment, “Subtle is the Lord, but malicious He is not.” In an interview Einstein compared our situation to a child who enters a huge library. The child knows that someone has written the books, but he does not know the languages in which they are written. He suspects that there is a mysterious order, but he does not know what it is.___“We have all been working in what Husserl called the Galilean style; that is, we have all been making abstract mathematical models of the universe to which at least the physicists give a higher degree of reality than they accord the ordinary world of sensation.”Steven Weinberg, Nobel Prize in Physics (1979)___This Platonist view is contrary to a widespread impression of science, symbolized by the picture of the “father” of modern science, Galileo Galilei, with his telescope. According to this impression, Galileo liberated himself from the dominating metaphysics of his day—basically Aristotelian philosophy—and constructed a telescope that he directed towards the sky, showing that Jupiter has four moons. He also performed experiments with bronze balls rolling down inclined planes and found the law of freely falling bodies.However, in other cases Galileo emphasized the unreliability of our senses. It is easy to see why. He defended Copernicus’ heliocentric hypothesis. According to this hypothesis, we are not at rest at the center of the universe, but moving at a tremendous speed through space. Why don’t we observe this motion? Galileo praises Copernicus because “with reason as his guide he resolutely continued to affirm what sensible experience seemed to contradict.” In other places he directly refers to Plato. SUGGESTED VIEWING The quest for a final theory With Michio Kaku Galileo’s Platonism goes back to his early writings. In The Assayer, published as early as 1623, Galileo compared the universe to a grand book that is written in the language of mathematics, and “its characters are triangles, circles, and other geometric figures without which it is humanly impossible to understand a single word of it.” Therefore, things that cannot be described by mathematics—for example, colors, smells and odors—are not real. They are merely subjective.This division into subjective and objective, advocated by Galileo and his younger contemporary René Descartes, is normally associated with a mechanistic world view, which is regarded as the opposite of Platonism. When we reduce something to, for example, molecules and atoms, we move “downwards.” In contrast, the Platonist moves “upwards,” to abstract entities. However, it only shows that when we address fundamental questions, we should be careful in applying everyday spatial metaphors like “up” and “down.”___Nature is complex, and we cannot in general construct mathematical models that adequately describe the world.___The endeavor of finding a Theory of Everything has been heavily criticized. In 2006, the theoretical physicist Lee Smolin published “The Crisis in Fundamental Physics.” He argued that one of the most fundamental principles of science is that we should only regard theories as scientific if we have the possibility to show that they are false by experiments. Although he did not refer to Karl Popper, other critics have referred to Popper and argued that a theory is not scientific if it cannot be falsified (see for example Ellis & Silk 2014).These were not the first physicists to be anti-reductionists. In 1972, the journal Science published an article by the physicist Philip Anderson with the title “More Is Different.” This is the kind of article a scientist would normally write only after he has won a Nobel Prize. However, Anderson won the Nobel Prize for physics five years later, in 1977. The article is amazing, not primarily because it argues in favor of anti-reductionism in general, but because it argues for anti-reductionism within physics itself. Anderson’s conclusion was:At each stage entirely new laws, concepts, and generalizations are necessary, requiring inspiration and creativity to just as great a degree as in the previous one. Psychology is not applied biology, nor is biology applied chemistry.We may say that Plato started the “unity of science movement,” based on Euclidean geometry as the model of all knowledge. A distinguishing mark of geometry is that all possible constructions can be reduced to a few fundamental principles. We have to acknowledge that this approach has limitations. In general, we can easily model technological systems. In addition, we may construct simplified and idealized models that capture important aspects of systems, from various perspectives and for various purposes. But nature is complex, and we cannot in general construct mathematical models that adequately describe the world. In a complex system, each level has its distinct, emergent, properties that are characteristic of this level. Therefore, a complex system should be investigated at different levels and from different perspectives. Instead of exclusively pursuing a scientific ideal based on the unity of science, we should acknowledge the diversity—or even the disunity—of science.
NFL Power Rankings entering Week 17: Ravens' disastrous season raises questions about John Harbaugh
CfA Science in the Press at AAS 247 | Center for Astrophysics
Cambridge, Mass. (December 22, 2025)— New scientific results from across the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian (CfA) will be revealed at multiple press conferences and presentations during the 247th meeting of the American Astronomical Society (AAS) from January 5-8, 2026 in Phoenix, Arizona.Presentations will highlight new research, including a deeper look into little red dots, a more complete census of active galactic nuclei, and uncovering properties of early universe dwarf galaxies, a look at Betelgeuse’s binary companion.
How systemic failures turn state mental hospitals into prisons
The share of people with severe mental illness in state psychiatric hospitals accused of serious crimes has risen steeply. The shift has all but halted the possibility of care before a catastrophic crisis.
This simulation reveals what really happens near black holes
Black holes are among the most extreme objects in the universe, and now scientists can model them more accurately than ever before. By combining Einstein’s gravity with realistic behavior of light and matter, researchers have built simulations that closely match real astronomical observations. These models reveal how matter forms chaotic, glowing disks and launches powerful outflows as it falls into black holes. It’s a major step toward decoding how these cosmic engines actually work.