Papers, translated
Real published physics research, summarized and explained without the jargon.
Why a Siren Changes Pitch as It Passes You
The same effect that changes an ambulance's sound also tells astronomers whether a galaxy is coming or going.
beginnerArticleThe Electromagnetic Spectrum: More Than Just Light
Visible light is only a tiny sliver of a much bigger picture — here's the rest of it.
beginnerArticleHow Do We Know How Far Away Stars Are?
You can't stretch a tape measure to a star — so astronomers use a trick you can try yourself, right now.
intermediateNews ArticleUltra-Cold Sensors Are Making Nuclear Material Monitoring More Precise
A new generation of quantum sensors is helping scientists tell nuclear materials apart with much less uncertainty.
advancedResearch PaperSqueezing More Reactive Oxygen Out of Plasma by Lowering the Pressure
A real research paper on how slightly reducing gas pressure can boost the output of reactive oxygen atoms in plasma devices.
advancedResearch PaperMapping 18.7 Million Galaxies to Understand Dark Energy
The largest map of the universe's large-scale structure ever assembled, released by an international collaboration of hundreds of scientists.
advancedResearch PaperFinding the Higgs Boson: The Particle That Gives Everything Mass
How two experiments at CERN confirmed a particle predicted nearly 50 years earlier.
intermediateResearch PaperRipples in Spacetime: The First Detection of Gravitational Waves
In 2015, scientists heard two black holes collide from 1.3 billion light-years away. Here's what that means.
intermediateArticleWhat Is Entropy, Actually?
It's usually described as 'disorder' — but the real story is stranger and more interesting than that.
intermediateArticleSix Facts About the Standard Model, Physics' Best Map of Reality
Everything you're made of, in one framework — and the big questions it still can't answer.