The second law of thermodynamics is among the most sacred in all of science, but it has always rested on 19th century arguments about probability. New arguments trace its true source to the flows of quantum information.

Physicists Rewrite the Fundamental Law That Leads to Disorder

Susan Valot narrates in-depth news episodes based on Quanta Magazine's articles about mathematics, physics, biology and computer science.

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Physics

Life Sciences

The placenta has a unique trick for keeping immune defenses on standby, even when no viral infections threaten a pregnancy.

During Pregnancy, a Fake 'Infection' Protects the Fetus

A recent neurological study provides an unprecedented look at how number sense works in the human brain.

Why the Human Brain Perceives Small Numbers Better

An Icelandic peninsula that hadn't seen any volcanism for 800 years has now awoken. Eruptions could continue for decades or even centuries.

Inside Scientists' Life-Saving Prediction of the Iceland Eruption

Physics is a rich well of inspiration for mathematicians to draw from.

Echoes of Electromagnetism Found in Number Theory

Using large language models to generate training data for smaller models might be more effective than vacuuming up text from the internet and filtering out the garbage.

Physicists Rewrite the Fundamental Law That Leads to Disorder

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