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A photon from the biggest cosmic explosion since the Big Bang appears to have defied Einstein. Scientists may finally know how
"We started from a very simple question: how did this photon survive a journey that, according to known physics, should have destroyed it?"
Business People: Hilton exec Mark Weinstein to lead Target marketing
RETAIL Target Corp., Minneapolis, announced that Mark Weinstein has joined the company as chief marketing and guest experience officer. Weinstein joins Target from Hilton, where he served as global chief marketing officer for all 28…
Deceiving US experts; proving Einstein wrong: 2025 China science breakthroughs
From the detonation of a hydrogen-based explosive to ending a century-old debate, here are some of the major science developments of the year.
With Trump, science and health in the US are in a horrifying place
'Albert Einstein said it best: "One thing I have learned in a long life: that all our science, measured against reality, is primitive and childlike — and yet it is the most precious thing we have,"' writes an L.A. Times reader.
Lightest-ever neutron star system proves Einstein right about relativity yet again
Einstein's theory of relativity just got put to the test by the lightest binary neutron star system ever discovered.
Using comic books to get serious about science
Nuclear engineer-turned-librarian Jim Ottaviani found his niche as a writer of nonfiction comic books about scientific superheroes. Move over, Marvel. Step aside, DC Comics: Einstein, Pasteur, and more, have muscled their way into the best-seller stratosphere.
Want to Boost Your Brain Health? A Neurologist Says to Change This 1 Thing About Your Daily Walk
A long-term study from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine revealed a powerful link between walking and cognitive resilience.
Who gets to be a genius? Matilda effect and the women missing from science
Albert Einstein is probably the most quoted scientist in the world, and among the lines most popularly credited to him is one he almost certainly never said.
Scientists produce record rubidium-potassium BEC in microgravity, paving way for ISS lab
Scientists using the MAIUS-B apparatus have produced a rubidium-potassium dual-species Bose-Einstein condensate at a record particle flux.
Scientists Need Your Help to Find Galaxies Bending Light in Space
You don't need a telescope or a physics degree to take part.
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.
A record breaking gravitational wave is helping test Einstein’s theory of general relativity
A newly detected gravitational wave, GW250114, is giving scientists their clearest look yet at a black hole collision—and a powerful way to test Einstein’s theory of gravity. Its clarity allowed scientists to measure multiple “tones” from the collision, all matching Einstein’s predictions. That confirmation is exciting—but so is the possibility that future signals won’t behave so neatly. Any deviation could point to new physics beyond our current understanding of gravity.
Scientists sculpt Einstein onto a crystal using only light
A light-sensitive crystal is opening the door to a new era of “light-written” technology. Arsenic trisulfide can be reshaped and permanently altered using simple light, creating ultra-fine optical patterns without expensive manufacturing tools. Scientists even etched a nanoscale portrait of Einstein and high-density patterns that could act as secure optical signatures. This breakthrough could power everything from advanced sensors to next-generation AR devices.
Scientists Just Found Where the Quantum World and Our World Meet: Free Fall
Tom Petty’s famous song applies to all of us, because of Einstein’s equivalence principle of gravity in free fall.
Harvey Weinstein sentenced to 15 years for sexual assault after retrial
Harvey Weinstein has been sentenced to 15 years behind bars.
New study favors 'fuzzy' dark matter as the backbone of the universe — contrary to decades of research
New research using a space-time phenomenon predicted by Einstein presents evidence that the invisible backbone of the universe may be much "fuzzier" than we realized.
Einstein College Opens IGNITE Community Teaching Lab to Expand Access to Bronx Science Education
The Albert Einstein College of Medicine has opened the IGNITE (Inspiring Growth in Next Generation Investigation, Training and Education) community teaching lab, the first of its kind in The Bronx. College officials said the state-of-the-art research lab provides high school and college students in Einstein’s pathway programs and across The Bronx with opportunities to experience science through hands-on learning and discovery.
Orange Lutheran baseball defeats Gahr in walk-off at Boras Classic
CJ Weinstein delivers an RBI single in the eighth for Orange Lutheran in a 2-1 win over Gahr at the Boras Classic.
Record-breaking gravitational wave puts Einstein's relativity to its toughest test yet — and proves him right again
A record-breaking gravitational wave signal let scientists "listen" to a distant black hole merger and put Einstein's gravity to its toughest test yet.
Philosophy to the Rescue of Science
The pessimistic meta-induction—the argument that since past scientific theories have been shown to be false, we should expect that today’s will turn out false, too—makes the New York Times. . Elay Shech, professor of philosophy at Auburn University, takes up the topic in the context of current political disputes about science and our government’s seemingly increasing disregard of expertise: Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the secretary of health and human services, made a version of this argument in August when defending his decision to halt hundreds of millions of dollars in mRNA vaccine development despite the objections of vaccine scientists. He said that “science is always evolving” and the experts could not always be trusted. Shech accepts that “many widely accepted [scientific] theories have been discarded” but that the question, “why should we trust the ones we have now?” is misleading. Why? It implies that the only possible attitudes toward science are naïve faith and wholesale pessimism. It assumes that science is a single global entity that rises or falls all at once, when in reality, science is an array of local domains of inquiry, each with its own standards of evidence and degrees of reliability. In place of skepticism, Shech recommends “disciplined trust.” The first step in the direction of disciplined trust is recognizing that “there is no single scientific method used in all of science.” Shech writes: Newton’s deduction from observed phenomena is very different from Darwin’s inference to the best explanation, which in turn differs radically from Einstein’s thought experiments with light beams, trains and elevators. What people call “the scientific method” is really many distinct ways of investigating the world—different strategies for representing, experimenting and classifying. Since different areas of science employ different methods and rely on different kinds of evidence, to make a case for skepticism “you need to look at the evidence and methods in a specific area of inquiry.” And that case will not be “a sweeping claim about all of science” but rather about that particular area of inquiry with, for example, what might turn out to be “well-understood methodological problems.” Shech’s piece is “Science Keeps Changing, So Why Should We Trust It?” (NYT gift link). Discussion welcome (readers are advised to keep in..
James Webb telescope uses trippy Einstein prediction to probe the farthest reaches of the universe — Space photo of the week
The James Webb telescope peers through a warped bubble of space-time to study galaxies from the first billion years after the Big Bang.
What to know about the mistrial in Harvey Weinstein’s rape retrial
A New York has declared a mistrial in Harvey Weinstein’s rape case from the #MeToo-era that has gone to trial three times so far after a jury was unable to come to a unanimous decision | Talk 1370
An 'impossible' black hole merger may finally be solved thanks to Einstein's relativity — but it raises an even bigger mystery
New research suggests that a perplexing signal created by a pair of colliding black holes may have been warped by a space-time phenomenon known as gravitational lensing. This theory could finally explain the "impossible" size of the merging singularities, but it also poses a new problem.
Albert Einstein’s long nights and short naps: What science really says about sleep and creativity
Most of us treat sleep like something we squeeze in after everything else is done. Albert Einstein did the opposite.
Senator Kim Visits Warren County to Talk Healthcare and Jobs
Yesterday, Senator Andy Kim (D-NJ) visited Warren County with focused visits on expanding affordable healthcare and improving New Jersey’s workforce development pipeline as part of his Einstein Corridor initiative. “I leave these visits inspired by the dedication I witnessed from those in Warren County who are training NJ’s next generation of workers and pushing to ensure access to quality healthcare in some of our most rural communities,” said Senator Kim. “There is so much unique potential in each corner of our state – I’m excited to bring the ideas discussed with[...]
Weinstein accuser continues testifying after saying she was struggling with stress
The accuser at Harvey Weinstein’s rape retrial has resumed testifying. She returned to the witness stand Friday, a day after she said was having difficulty focusing. She faced further questioning
Clint Reilly, influential California political consultant, dies at 79
Reilly ran successful campaigns for California's most recognizable politicians, including Dianne Feinstein, Barbara Boxer and Nancy Pelosi. He later turned his attention to real estate and local media
How can scientists visualize cellular life with greater precision? - Salk Institute for Biological Studies
Highlights Salk researchers collaborated with scientists at Albert Einstein College of Medicine to develop a new class of probes for imaging living cells The probes, called visible-spectrum antigen-stabilizable fluorescent nanobodies (VIS-Fbs), generate high-contrast images with minimal disruption to normal cellular activity The technology enables more precise investigation of complex biological processes, including cell signaling, development, and disease progression LA JOLLA—Fluorescent proteins have revolutionized science, enabling researchers to tag and visualize individual molecules in living cells, tissues, and animals. Using these tools, researchers have watched viruses infect cells in real time, observed cellular trash collection, and tracked the signaling that spurs tumor growth.
“Nurturing tomorrow’s Einsteins in Dalseong-gun”: DGIST Science Creativity School opens admissions for the 2027 academic year
- Advanced education in four fields—mathematics, physics, chemistry, and life science—with full tuition support for sixth-grade elementary and first-year middle school students in Dalseong-gun - “Taught Directly by DGIST Faculty”: Customized advanced education for gifted students in the region
Jurors struggle to decide Harvey Weinstein's rape retrial
The jury in Harvey Weinstein’s rape retrial says it's at loggerheads, but a judge has told the panel to keep trying for a verdict. The signs of stalemate emerged Friday,
Einstein's equations may explain the universe without dark energy
Mathematicians have uncovered what they argue is a fundamental flaw in the standard model of the universe, potentially challenging the need for dark energy. Their calculations suggest that the mathematical framework used to describe cosmic expansion is inherently unstable and that the universe could accelerate naturally under Einstein's original theory of gravity. The findings also raise surprising questions about whether our location in the universe is as ordinary as scientists have long assumed.
Two-sun planets keep disappearing: Here’s why scientists point to Einstein
Science News: The idea of a planet orbiting two suns has long captured both scientific curiosity and public imagination. Popularised by science fiction, such worlds.
Harvey Weinstein defense urges acquittal as rape retrial nears a close
Harvey Weinstein’s defense has urged jurors to put an end to a #MeToo-era rape case that has gone to trial three times. An attorney for Weinstein argued Tuesday that the
Scientists confirm Newton’s gravity law
Gravity has survived its largest-scale test yet, holding up across distances of up to 230 megaparsecs, or about 750 million light-years. University of Pennsylvania physicists found that the force weakens with distance almost exactly as Newton’s equations predict, a relationship later incorporated into Einstein’s theory of general relativity. Galaxies and galaxy clusters move faster than...
Francis Halzen wins 2026 Nobel Prize in physics
Among past laureates are some of the most celebrated figures in science, including Albert Einstein, Marie and Pierre Curie, Max Planck and Niels Bohr.
The 'nostalgia effect': Scientists produce less disruptive work as they age
You probably know that Einstein changed the face of physics with his theory of relativity in his twenties. What you may not know is that he spent his later career on a crusade against quantum mechanics, ...
Harvey Weinstein sentenced to 15 years after being convicted of sexually assaulting ex-“Project Runway” staffer
The disgraced producer appeared in court on Sept. 23.
What to know about Harvey Weinstein's cases after his recent mistrial
NEW YORK (AP) — A New York judge declared a mistrial Friday in Harvey Weinstein ’s rape case from the #MeToo-era that has gone to trial three times so far
Jeff Bezos Says 'I Would Love To See A Trillion Humans Living In The Solar System' — Then We Could Have '1,000 Mozarts And 1,000 Einsteins'
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos isn't thinking small. He's thinking a trillion people big. On the "Lex Fridman Podcast" in 2023, Bezos laid out a vision that sounds more like science fiction than a business...
Whale Song Appears To Travel Faster Than The Speed Of Sound Without Breaking Einstein's Theory Of Special Relativity
A phenomenon observed in whale song makes soundwaves appear faster than they should be. It's possible in light, too, but despite whales being very smart, they haven't found a way to break the speed limit of the universe… yet.
NFL Alumni Health Partners with Wellgistics Health to Deploy Technology to Improve Health Outcomes for Former NFL Players and Rural Communities
Wellgistics Health to leverage EinsteinRx™ AI pharmacy hub and PharmacyChain™ smart contracts to drive healthcare
More than 200 registered nurses at Jefferson Health in Greater Philadelphia announce plans to unionize
Nurses at Jefferson Bucks Hospital, Einstein Center One and Jefferson Health Willowcrest plan to join PASNAP.
A Physicist Who Thinks in Poetry from the Cosmic Edge
In her second pop-science book, theoretical cosmologist Chanda Prescod-Weinstein returns to her celestial and cultural roots.
Scientists observe Einstein's gravity in the quantum world
An international team including Nobel Prize-winning physicist Professor Sir Roger Penrose has observed a long-predicted effect of gravity on a falling quantum object for the first time. The result shows ...
UW’s Seidel Named to DOE’s 21-Member Office of Science Advisory Commit
While a rancher may not be thinking about Einstein’s theory of relativity when using GPS to guide his tractor through a field or the proud owner of a new iPhone may not dwell over quantum mechanics, U
Crystal made from 13-sided 'einstein' shape bends light in ways nobody imagined
Scientists carved a 13-sided shape called an "einstein" into a chip and discovered that it steers light in ways no other crystal does.
How Healthcare Policy Shifts Are Reshaping Care for Vulnerable Patients
The Bronx is the poorest congressional district in America and the sickest county in the state of New York. Montefiore Einstein, the academic medical center in the Bronx, serves a population that is 85% dependent on Medicaid and Medicare. As federal Medicaid rules tighten and funding shrinks, more ...
Scientists Observe Einstein’s Gravity in The Quantum World
An international team of researchers directly measured gravity’s predicted effect on the quantum phase of freely falling atoms.
Einstein’s “biggest blunder” may finally have an explanation
Scientists have uncovered a surprising connection between quantum gravity and an exotic quantum state of matter that could explain why the universe isn’t expanding wildly fast. The study suggests that the very shape of space-time may protect the cosmological constant from disruptive quantum effects.
Clint Reilly, influential SF political strategist and San Francisco Examiner owner, dies at 79
For decades, Clint Reilly was one of the most influential figures operating behind the scenes of Bay Area politics, managing campaigns for Nancy Pelosi, Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein, advising candidates and helping professionalize a political consulting industry that would grow into a year-round enterprise. He died Sunday at 79.
What to know about the mistrial in Harvey Weinstein’s rape retrial
A New York has declared a mistrial in Harvey Weinstein’s rape case from the #MeToo-era that has gone to trial three times so far after a jury was unable to
Is This Why Science Advances One Funeral at a Time?
Is This Why Science Advances One Funeral at a Time? As researchers age, they produce less disruptive work.
Studying Science in an Anti-Scientific Time
This Chronicle Review Deep Cut was first published in 2025. By Julianne Werlin Thanks for reading The Chronicle Review! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. Subscribe The last two decades have not been kind to science studies. Already bruised and battered by the “science wars” of the 1990s, by the 2000s sociologists of science — who had long argued that science had to be understood in its human context — were encountering the funhouse-mirror version of their own views in right-wing critiques of climate scientists. It was enough to give some prominent scholars pause. “Was I wrong to participate in the invention of this field known as science studies?” asked Bruno Latour, the most famous sociologist of science in the world, in 2003. “Should we apologize for having been wrong all along? Or should we rather bring the sword of criticism to criticism itself and do a bit of soul-searching here: What were we really after when we were so intent on showing the social construction of scientific facts?” In response, Latour proposed a change of method and attitude. Science studies, now chastened and contrite, would no longer seek to strip facts of their authority, but to enrich and enhance them. What this meant in practice was never fully clear. But his diagnosis of problems resonated, even if his solutions did not. Latour’s exercise in public hand-wringing signaled a shift in mood. By 2016, with the first election of Donald Trump, the idea that skepticism of science was a right-wing position, not a left-wing one, had become a commonplace, discussed eagerly in The New York Times. For liberals, vaccine denial during the Covid era and Trump’s second-term attacks on the funding of scientific research, covered extensively in these pages, added a new urgency to the defense of science on both practical and principled grounds. There was little appetite for a sociology or philosophy of science that emphasized the messiness and missteps of the scientific process rather than its integrity and triumphs. The distinguished historian of science Peter Dear’s new book, The World as We Know It: From Natural Philosophy to Modern Science (Princeton University Press, 2025), which seeks to tell the story of 18th- and 19th-century science for a general public, may seem comfortably remote from these bitter contests. In its 16 short chapters, Dear draws swift, sure sketches of major discoveries from Newton to Einstein, ably guiding the reader through debates on stellar nebulae, animal taxonomy, atomic chemistry, evolution, and other flashpoints in the history of science. But though a work of history, Dear’s book must still negotiate our polarized present. In a blurb on its back cover, the historian of biology Lynn K. Nyhart alludes to the “present moment, when scientific knowledge is being swamped by misinformation and its institutions are under siege.” Dear himself, in his conclusion, refers to the “yard signs” and “bumper stickers” that proclaim “Science Is Real.” One antidote to both anti-science propaganda and to reductive slogans in science’s defense is a robust history and philosophy of science: exactly what Dear’s scholarship has long offered. But his new book illustrates how difficult such work has become. Dear, an emeritus professor of history at Cornell University, is best known as a creative and philosophically minded historian of the Scientific Revolution. His edited volume The Literary Structure of Scientific Argument (1991) analyzed the rhetoric of Galileo’s thought experiments to brilliant effect. Discipline and Experience: The Mathematical Way in the Scientific Revolution (1995) was a major contribution to the analysis of scientific experiments in early modern Europe and beyond, while Revolutionizing the Sciences: European Knowledge in Transition, 1500-1700 (2001), now in its third edition, remains one of the best overviews of the profound epistemological upheavals of 16th- and 17th-century science. But Dear has also ventured into later periods. Nearly two decades ago, in The Intelligibility of Nature: How Science Makes Sense of the World (2006), he turned to the 18th and 19th centuries to sketch a history and theory of scientific knowledge. Aimed at a generalist audience, Dear’s simple prose belied serious philosophical ambitions. Science, Dear argued, has two aspects: “natural philosophy,” the quest to understand the true nature of the universe, and “instrumentality,” the applied skills and technologies that allow us to manipulate the world for human advantage. Both strands are ancient, but the innovation of the phenomenon we call “science” was to yoke them together. As Francis Bacon wrote, “Human knowledge and human power meet in one; for where the cause is not known, the effect cannot be produced,” an insight typically abridged to “knowledge is power.” Or, in Bertrand Russell’s characteristically blunt phrase, science has two functions, “1. to enable us to know things, and 2., to enable us to do things.” So far, so conventional. But Dear took issue with this familiar story in one respect. Bacon’s formula implied that theory and practice could be fused in a single method. In fact, Dear argued, the quest to understand nature and the desire to manipulate it were coupled only loosely. They could come together, but they could also pull apart. Focusing on natural philosophy, the “knowing” half of the scientific circle, he used a series of case studies from cosmology, taxonomy, chemistry, electromagnetism, and quantum theory to show how theories changed over time, in dialogue with practice, but never reducible to it. Take the case of matter, the basic substrate of the physical world. In the 18th and 19th centuries, scientists not only disagreed about what it was, but also about how well it could be known. In 1789, the chemist Antoine Lavoisier dismissed speculation about the atomic composition of chemicals as “discussions entirely of a metaphysical nature,” as he sought to orient chemistry away from philosophical abstraction and toward laboratory results. But in the 19th century, atoms returned with a vengeance in the atomic chemistry of John Dalton, who wanted to explain the underlying structure of nature. It was not just that Dalton and Lavoisier had a different set of experimental results, or even a different theory, Dear showed. What counted as an explanation had changed. In arguing that scientific theories depended on their intelligibility to human beings with complex arrays of beliefs and commitments, Dear was in sympathy with science studies. Key figures such as the sociologist Steven Shapin emphasized the importance of psychological mechanisms like trust in the formation and acceptance of scientific ideas. But in focusing on the scientific pursuit of knowledge, not its politics or economics, Dear resisted the more cynical perspective of some of his colleagues. The Intelligibility of Nature strikes a very different note than Shapin’s collection of a few years later, Never Pure: Historical Studies of Science as If It Was Produced by People With Bodies, Situated in Time, Space, Culture, and Society, and Struggling for Credibility and Authority (2010), to name just one example. Walking a very fine line, Dear depicted science as driven at once by complex social dynamics and by the intellectual power of real discoveries. It was a testament not only to his own acumen but also to the vitality of the field that he was able to do so. Nearly two decades later, The World as We Know It returns to the questions broached in The Intelligibility of Nature. Like Dear’s earlier study, it begins with the Newtonian cosmos and ends with debates between Einstein and Bohr on quantum physics. Beyond its terminal figures, many of the same characters appear in both studies, including the naturalists John Ray and the Comte de Buffon; the chemists Étienne François Geoffroy, Antoine Lavoisier, and John Dalton; as well as Charles Darwin and Michael Faraday, among others. Its subject is nearly identical: As in The Intelligibility of Nature, The World as We Know It considers natural philosophy as opposed to instrumentality, here defined as the “desire to create a picture of what the world is really like — the world as God knows it — rather than simply having instrumental or operational control over it.” The two books also overlap in insights — and sometimes even in language. The reader who has learned in The Intelligibility of Nature that Buffon’s method of classifying animals “reflected his belief in the importance of the senses and empiricism in learning about nature (a doctrine associated with Newton and the philosopher John Locke)” will experience a sense of déjà vu on reading, in The World as We Know It, that the classification “reflects Buffon’s commitment to the epistemological stance of Newton and his philosophical underlaborer John Locke, who stressed the role of the senses in creating natural knowledge.” Later in the passage, we read that, “because of its stress on understanding the ways of life of animals in their environments, Buffon’s approach could almost be labeled (anachronistically) as ‘ecological.’” And again, “an anachronistic way of putting it would be to say that Buffon recommends an ecological mode of understanding.” Likewise, in The Intelligibility of Nature we read of Dalton that he was initially drawn to meteorology, and that: He did a bit of experimental work on these things, especially having to do with the water-holding capacity of gases, but his real interest lay in understanding what, at an underlying natural-philosophical level, was really going on physically.” Whereas, in The World as We Know It: He did experimental work on these things, especially concerning the water-holding capacity of gases — although not at a very refined level quantitatively — but he was continually trying to develop a theoretical conception of what was happening physically. The final full chapter of each book closes on the same resigned note. Intelligibility: These days, most serious work on the natural philosophical underpinnings and implications of quantum mechanics is performed not by physicists but by philosophers of science. Among scientific practitioners themselves, Bohr’s attempt to use instrumentality as sufficient grounds for a respectable science has met with a high degree of success. And again, in The World as We Know It: Bohr’s and Einstein’s concerns are now questions that are mostly discussed by philosophers of science rather than by physicists themselves. The marginalization of these sorts of questions amounts to the demise of natural philosophy, at least in physics, in the 20th century. Quantum mechanics “works,” and that’s good enough for most scientists who encounter it. Examples could be multiplied. When handling the same subject matter, some echoes are inevitable. Scholars should not feel that because they have written “Isaac Newton died in 1727” in one book, in the next they must describe him as perishing, expiring, or meeting his maker. But the repetitions of language and arguments (not to mention six reproduced images) threaded throughout The World as We Know It are more extensive than that. They should have been caught by Princeton University Press or its reviewers, and revised. Because the two books have so much in common, it is easy to see where they diverge. The World as We Know It is a less theoretical work than its predecessor. The sociology of knowledge that organized The Intelligibility of Nature has been reduced in scale and folded into readings and examples. The taut interplay between history and theory, which gave the earlier study so much interest, is there, but it is subtle. In the earlier book, the case studies demonstrated theoretical claims about the character and development of science. In the later work, each narrative of discovery is an end in itself. Insights emerge from the history, but they do not control the organization of the study. With the theory muted, it can be hard to understand the logic uniting Dear’s sprawling history of more than two centuries of scientific knowledge. The 16 brisk chapters cover an enormous amount of material. But the closer the volume edges to comprehensiveness, the more obvious the missing elements become. A chapter on “Institutions and Pedagogy,” describing the birth of the research university, illustrates the problem. Inserted roughly halfway through the book, the unnumbered chapter is designed as an “entr’acte,” in acknowledgement that it does not fit the study’s organization around scientific discoveries. Yet as Dear is well aware, no general history of the development of modern science can bracket its 19th-century institutionalization and professionalization. It was the 19th-century university, after all, that gave us the “scientist,” a term coined by the Cambridge philosopher William Whewell. Dear’s history of scientific discoveries implies a wider social and institutional history, but it remains largely subterranean, only occasionally extruded under the pressure of the narrative. It must be said that the balance is not all on the side of the earlier study. There are some advantages to the more historical, less theoretical organization of The World as We Know It. Dear’s accounts of paradigm shifts are remarkably lucid, no small accomplishment given that they span fields and centuries. He makes excellent use of the wealth of new scholarship on Darwin and his influences, to which he has himself contributed. It is satisfying to see puzzle pieces from Buffon’s natural history, Georges Cuvier’s animal taxonomy, Thomas Robert Malthus’s demography, and Charles Lyell’s geology recombined seamlessly in the Darwinian jigsaw. Likewise, Dear’s discussion of stellar nebulae, divided between chapters two and 15, shows vividly how Newton, Kant, Herschel, and Hubble reimagined insights and observations as they sought to discover whether the diffuse light that filtered through early telescopes was a glowing, gaseous substance or discrete but distant stars. Yet despite such pleasures, the book remains a more modest work than The Intelligibility of Nature. Dear has clearly not changed his views about the history of science. But in the two decades that have elapsed, the discipline and the world around it have changed, making it harder to write a sociologically and philosophically ambitious history of science for the general reader. That is a shame, because in the age of Silicon Valley and biotechnology, both the reciprocity and the tensions Dear identified between the epistemological and instrumental ambitions of science are more evident than ever. In recent years, some of the most exciting new books on the history of science in early modernity have focused precisely on this pressure point. Important studies such as Pamela H. Smith’s From Lived Experience to the Written Word (2022), James Poskett’s Horizons: The Global Origins of Modern Science (2022), and Vera Keller’s The Interlopers: Early Stuart Projects and the Undisciplining of Knowledge (2023) all shed new light on how early modern science negotiated the relationship between its instrumental and epistemological ambitions, or in Russell’s phrase, knowing and doing. There is every opportunity for a philosophically informed approach to draw new insights from this wealth of material. Dear, unfortunately, has not done so in The World as We Know It. But for future scholars of the history of science, his body of work over nearly four decades may provide just the model. Julianne Werlin is an associate professor of English at Duke University. Thanks for reading The Chronicle Review! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. Subscribe
Alain Aspect, Nobel laureate in physics: ‘Einstein was so smart that he would have had to recognize quantum entanglement’
The pioneer of quantum computing talks about how Albert Einstein would have reacted to his experiments, the hype around the technology, and the parallels between physics and his new hobby: magic
These tiny swimming robots can navigate 'artificial space-time' mazes using Einstein's relativity
The tiny bots follow patterns of light and "artificial space-time," navigating like craft following the curved space around a black hole.
Einstein’s Lost Theory Said Gravity Changes Speed of Light and a New Experiment Claims It Was Right
New claims challenge inconsistencies in one of the foundational principles of physics.
The rise of 'quantum gravity?' Einstein's theory seen in the quantum realm for 1st time
"These two pillars of modern physics have so far eluded all attempts at a unified theoretical framework, but this complex experiment gives more hints as to how such a unification may be achieved."
Scientists observe Einstein’s gravity in the quantum world for the first time
Physicists have directly observed a long-predicted quantum effect of gravity, putting one of Einstein’s foundational ideas to a striking new test. Using ultracold atoms, researchers split an atom’s quantum wave so that one part was held in place while the other fell freely under gravity, then reunited the two to measure the tiny difference that emerged.
Free-falling atoms in space put a new twist on Galileo’s gravity test
Rubidium atoms on China’s Tiangong space station fell with the same acceleration, upholding a cornerstone of Einstein’s general theory of relativity.
Forget Newton’s apple, scientists atoms to test gravity theory
Scientists have tested how Einstein’s theory of gravity affects tiny particles, in a breakthrough that could help bridge the two pillars of modern physics
A new theory of gravity could explain cosmic acceleration without dark energy
The accelerating expansion of the universe is usually explained by an invisible force known as dark energy. But a new study suggests this mysterious ingredient may not be necessary after all. Using an extended version of Einstein’s gravity, researchers found that cosmic acceleration can arise naturally from a more general geometry of spacetime. The result hints at a radical new way to understand why the universe keeps speeding up.
With Trump, science and health in the US are in a horrifying place
'Albert Einstein said it best: "One thing I have learned in a long life: that all our science, measured against reality, is primitive and childlike — and yet it is the most precious thing we have,"' writes an L.A. Times reader.
Harvey Weinstein hospitalized for 'heart and breathing issues'
Harvey Weinstein is facing another setback in his ongoing health battle.
August's solar eclipse inspires science involving jets, balloons and Einstein’s general theory of relativity
Solar eclipses are a rare and brief opportunity for scientists to gather data on everything from the physics of the sun to air pressure in the upper atmosphere
Harvey Weinstein\'s lawyers question his accuser at his rape retrial
Harvey Weinstein’s lawyers are getting their chance to query his accuser at his rape retrial. It’s the third time she has had to answer his lawyers’ questions in a New
Radio signal discovered at the center of our galaxy could put Einstein's relativity to the test
Scientists hope to probe the nature of general relativity through a possible pulsar found in the center of the Milky Way, near a supermassive black hole.
Why Satyendra Nath Bose was more than Einstein’s sidekick
The life of Indian physicist Satyendra Nath Bose illuminates how scientific genius can emerge from the most unexpected quarters
'Truly extraordinary': Mega-laser shooting at us from halfway across the universe is the brightest 'cosmic beacon' we've ever seen
Astronomers have discovered the brightest and most distant "megamaser" to date. The cosmic energy beam is shooting toward Earth from 8 billion light-years away and was spotted thanks to a weird space-time trick first predicted by Einstein.
Scientists tried to break Einstein’s speed of light rule
Einstein’s claim that the speed of light is constant has survived more than a century of scrutiny—but scientists are still daring to test it. Some theories of quantum gravity suggest light might behave slightly differently at extreme energies. By tracking ultra-powerful gamma rays from distant cosmic sources, researchers searched for tiny timing differences that could reveal new physics. They found none, but their results tighten the limits by a huge margin.
Panera Brands expands Einstein Bros. c-suite
Each new addition has years of leadership experience.
Clint Reilly, Political Consultant Known for Feuding, Dies at 79
As savvy as he could be volatile, he advised Nancy Pelosi and Dianne Feinstein, ran for mayor of San Francisco and bought The San Francisco Examiner.
Chinese scientists unveil reliable lunar clock that accounts for Einstein's relativity
A new software package detailed by Chinese scientists promises to tell what time it is on the moon, accounting for effects of relativity.
Crystal made from 13-sided 'einstein' shape bends light in ways nobody imagined
Scientists carved a 13-sided shape called an "einstein" into a chip and discovered that it steers light in ways no other crystal does.
APS science teacher selected as Albert Einstein fellow at Library of Congress
An Arlington educator was honored by county school leaders this week after being selected to participate in a prestigious federal fellowship program. Daniel Bernhardt, who teaches science at Swanson Middle School, has been selected as an Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellow and appointed teacher in residence at the Library of Congress for the 2026-27 school
The shape behind the Einstein problem just revealed strange new physics
A mathematical shape famous for covering a surface without ever repeating has revealed an unexpected ability to twist light into unusual chiral patterns. The discovery could lead to new ways of controlling light, polarization, and advanced optical devices.
When a SpaceX rocket crashes into the moon, scientists will be watching
On Aug. 5, 2026, an abandoned piece of space junk is predicted to crash into the moon near a spot called Einstein Crater. Astronomers will be watching because the collision and aftermath may be visible ...
What to know about the mistrial in Harvey Weinstein’s rape retrial
A New York has declared a mistrial in Harvey Weinstein’s rape case from the #MeToo-era that has gone to trial three times so far after a jury was unable to
The Future Albert Einstein Believed In
The brilliant physicist fought for the promise of a diverse, meritocratic America. We need his optimism today.
Harvey Weinstein is going on trial again in a New York rape case
Harvey Weinstein is going on trial again on a rape charge in New York City, after years of #MeToo infamy, legal peril and prison | KCBS All News 106.9FM and 740AM
Advancing CAR-T Cell Science in Lupus: Meet the First Recipients of the Lupus Research Alliance–Genentech Fund
The inaugural recipients of the Lupus Research Alliance (LRA)– Genentech Award on Immune Resetting Therapies for Lupus (LGA-IRT) are… Anne Davidson, MBBS, The Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T cell therapy can lead to long-lasting remission in lupus, but it is not yet clear how it works at a cellular level or […]
Scientists Just Found Where the Quantum World and Our World Meet: Free Fall
Tom Petty’s famous song applies to all of us, because of Einstein’s equivalence principle of gravity in free fall.
Jefferson Einstein health workers say North Philly pediatric practices closures will leave ‘a hole’ in communities
Four longstanding pediatric offices will close June 30 and three others will become part of the True North Pediatrics group, based in Pennsylvania.
The Blogs: Is the Israel-Palestine Conflict overrepresented in student politics?
From the blog of Ben Weinstein at The Times of Israel
Scientists Reveal Hidden Structure of a Quantum Fluid
The advance establishes a new solid-state platform for studying high-temperature Bose-Einstein condensates in semiconductor devices, and could one day advance quantum information science, quantum simulations, coherent optoelectronics, and future exciton-based devices.
Jury selection starts for Harvey Weinstein's latest retrial in N.Y. rape case
It's the third time that jurors will weigh whether he raped a woman.
Why AI Still Hasn't Had Its Einstein Moment
AI is having a remarkable run in science. It’s helping researchers predict protein structures, improve weather forecasts, discover new materials, and speed up drug discovery. Researchers are getting results far […]
Scientists are about to test Einstein’s gravity with exotic matter
Scientists have found a new way to create a controlled beam of muonium, an exotic atom containing a heavier cousin of the electron. The advance could allow researchers to test for the first time whether gravity acts on second-generation particles exactly as Einstein’s theory predicts. Any unexpected difference would be a major surprise and could potentially point toward new physics, including a hypothetical fifth force.
Was Einstein wrong about anything?
Albert Einstein is regarded as a genius, but even he admitted that his work wasn't perfect. So what did he get wrong?
Opening statements set for Tuesday in Harvey Weinstein's rape retrial
Opening statements are set for Tuesday in Harvey Weinstein’s third trial on a New York rape charge. Four days of jury selection wrapped up Friday. A jury of seven men
Einstein’s biggest “mistake” came back
Einstein’s abandoned cosmological constant made a spectacular comeback when astronomers discovered that the universe’s expansion is accelerating. It now sits at the heart of our best cosmological model—a model that works extraordinarily well, yet may still be wrong.
Harvey Weinstein is going on trial again in a New York rape case
Harvey Weinstein is going on trial again on a rape charge in New York City, after years of #MeToo infamy, legal peril and prison | 104.1 FM KMOX
Jefferson Health hit with $108 million verdict in Einstein birth injury case
The verdict is the biggest medical malpractice verdict in the city since a record-setting $183 million award against Penn Medicine three yeas ago in another birth-injury case.
Scientists challenge Einstein once again using light from distant galaxies
Scientists use distant gamma ray bursts to prove that light maintains its constant speed, reinforcing Einstein's theory.
Particles may not follow Einstein’s paths after all
Physicists have long struggled to unite quantum mechanics—the theory governing tiny particles—with Einstein’s theory of gravity, which explains the behavior of stars, planets, and the structure of the universe. Researchers at TU Wien have now taken a new step toward that goal by rethinking one of relativity’s core ideas: the paths particles follow through curved spacetime, known as geodesics. By creating a quantum version of these paths—called the q-desic equation—the team showed that particles moving through a “quantum” spacetime may deviate slightly from the paths predicted by classical relativity.
Harvey Weinstein rape charge dismissed after mistrial
Prosecutors are dismissing Harvey Weinstein's rape charge involving Jessica Mann.
'There is no conflict between quantum physics and gravity': Physicists prove Einstein's 'happiest thought' holds true at quantum scales
Physicists have proven a 100-year-old prediction of relativity by showing that Einstein's equivalence principle holds at quantum scales.
China's Einstein Probe detected a mysterious cosmic explosion — and scientists have no idea what caused it
The explosion, consisting of two mysterious double flares, matches no known space eruption.
Weinstein accuser finishes five days of tense testimony
The accuser at Harvey Weinstein’s rape retrial has finished testifying. She returned to the witness stand Friday, a day after she said was having difficulty focusing. She faced further questioning
Guide to Austin politics: The Daily Texan explains city government, local leaders’ roles
The city of Austin is currently developing their annual city budget and considering a bond issue, while several charter amendments (link once story is up) are up for a vote in November. With all this activity in City Hall, the Texan is providing a guide to new UT students on how Austin politics works and...
Scientists Reveal Hidden Structure of a Quantum Fluid
The advance establishes a new solid-state platform for studying high-temperature Bose-Einstein condensates in semiconductor devices, and could one day advance quantum information science, quantum simulations, coherent optoelectronics, and future exciton-based devices.