The confirmation that Einstein was incorrect about quantum was achieved by using qubits that were 30 meters apart
A new experiment uses superconducting qubits to demonstrate that quantum mechanics violates what's called local realism by allowing two objects to behave as a single quantum system no matter how large the separation between them. The experiment wasn't the first to show that local realism isn't how the Universe works—it's not even the first to
The Rocket Report discusses China’s sale of reusable engines and questions whether SpaceX can still secure funding
Welcome to Edition 5.36 of the Rocket Report! A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away, the space media were given a May 4 launch date for United Launch Alliance's Vulcan rocket. Alas, May the 4th, in 2023, wasn't meant to be. In this week's report, I explain why. As always, we welcome
New proof indicates that the rings of Saturn are younger than the planet
Astronomers had long assumed that Saturn's distinctive rings formed around the same time as the planet some 4.5 billion years ago in the earliest days of our Solar System. That assumption received a serious challenge from a 2019 analysis of data collected by NASA's Cassini spacecraft, suggesting that the rings were formed just 10 million
Moderna earns unexpected profits before increasing vaccine prices by 400%
Things are looking rosy for Moderna, as it reported unexpected first-quarter profits Thursday. But the company is not wavering in its plans to dramatically hike the price of its COVID-19 vaccines. Further ReadingModerna CEO brazenly defends 400% COVID shot price hike, downplays NIH’s roleWhile financial analysts expected the company to post revenue of $1.18 billion
Gene editing increases the lethality of viruses that kill bacteria
Broad-spectrum antibiotics are akin to nuclear bombs, obliterating every prokaryote they meet. They're effective at eliminating pathogens, sure, but they're not so great for maintaining a healthy microbiome. Ideally, we need precision antimicrobials that can target only the harmful bacteria while ignoring the other species we need in our bodies, leaving them to thrive. Enter
Recycling has another issue, which is the release of microplastics
The plastics industry has long hyped recycling, even though it is well aware that it’s been a failure. Worldwide, only 9 percent of plastic waste actually gets recycled. In the United States, the rate is now 5 percent. Most used plastic is landfilled, incinerated, or winds up drifting around the environment. Now, an alarming new
“Smoke archaeology” has uncovered evidence that suggests humans were frequenting Nerja Caves over 41,000 years ago
For over a decade, Maria Medina, an archaeologist affiliated with the University of Cordoba, has been conducting research on what she terms "smoke archaeology": trying to reconstruct Europe's prehistoric past by analyzing the remnants of torches, fire, and smoke in French and Spanish caves. Her latest discovery is that humans regularly visited the Caves of
An Arab mission with great ambition plans to explore seven asteroids, one of which is notably red
About a year and a half ago, the United Arab Emirates announced an ambitious deep space mission to explore the asteroid belt, with the aim of visiting seven different asteroids. The Arab country, working with the University of Colorado Boulder, aimed to launch the mission as soon as 2028. It envisioned the probe as a
EPA unveils regulations to eliminate carbon from power generation
Today, the Biden administration formally announced its planned rules for limiting carbon emissions from the electrical grid. The rules will largely take effect in the 2030s and apply to gas- and coal-fired generating plants. Should the new plan go into effect, the operators of those plants will either need to capture carbon or replace a
Ancient burial chamber discovered beneath Naples using cosmic rays
The ruins of the ancient necropolis of Neapolis lie some 10 meters (about 33 feet) below modern-day Naples, Italy. But the site is in a densely populated urban district, making it challenging to undertake careful archaeological excavations of those ruins. So a team of scientists turned to cosmic rays for help—specifically an imaging technique called
