Is it just a stringy coincidence?

Math and Science News from Quanta Magazine View this email in your browser QUANTUM GRAVITY | ALL TOPICS   In a Numerical Coincidence,  Some See Evidence for String Theory By NATALIE WOLCHOVER In a quest to map out a quantum theory of gravity, researchers have used logical rules to calculate how much Einstein's theory must change. The result matches string theory perfectly. Read the article NEUROSCIENCE   Neural Noise Shows the Uncertainty of Our Memories By VERONIQUE GREENWOOD The electrical chatter of our working memories reflects our uncertainty about their contents. Read the article Related:  Brain's 'Background Noise' May Hold Clues to Persistent Mysteries by Elizabeth Landau (2021) ASTROPHYSICS   Any Single Galaxy Reveals the Composition of an Entire Universe By CHARLIE WOOD A digital discovery raises the odds that the real cosmos may be hiding a link between the large and the small. Read the blog Related:  How Artificial Intelligence Is Changing Science by Dan Falk (2019) COMPUTATIONAL COMPLEXITY   Computer Scientists Eliminate Pesky Quantum Computations By NICK THIEME For years, intermediate measurements made it hard to quantify the complexity of quantum algorithms. New work establishes that those measurements aren't necessary after all. Read the blog QUANTA SCIENCE PODCAST   Researchers Defeat Randomness to Create Ideal Code Podcast hosted by SUSAN VALOT; Story by MORDECHAI RORVIG By constructing a multidimensional graph, researchers have finally created a method for coding a transmission that can immediately identify any corruption. Listen to the podcast Read the article Around the Web No Knowledge, No Problems Computer scientist Amit Sahai explains "zero-knowledge proofs" — a way to prove something without revealing any additional information — at five levels of difficulty for WIRED. Sahai has used this concept to hide the inner workings of computer programs from would-be hackers. In a 2014 article for Quanta, Erica Klarreich wrote about Sahai's pioneering work in "program obfuscation." Intentional Icarus The Parker probe recently entered the sun's corona, giving us the closest-ever view of our star, Marina Koren writes for The Atlantic. Much about the sun remains a mystery despite its proximity to us. In 2019 Natalie Wolchover wrote for Quanta about scientists' attempts to understand the gamma rays emanating from our star. Follow Quanta Simons Foundation 160 5th Avenue, 7th Floor New York, NY 10010 Unsubscribe | About Quanta Privacy Policy | Terms | Contact Us   Copyright © 2022 Quanta Magazine, an editorially independent division of the Simons Foundation