New paper out in Physical Review C with Lance and Paul Stevenson on the effectiveness of quantum algorithms (and hence the usefulness of quantum computers) for modelling the structure of atomic nuclei.

journals.aps.org/prc/abstract/1…

The University of Edinburgh Frank Close You can also hear Peter Higgs in his own words, talking to Jim Al-Khalili on Life Scientific just after the Nobel and discovery.
bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03…

My favourite Life Scientific chuckle moment with the amazing Jim Al-Khalili:
Jim: 'Peter Higgs what is the Higg's Boson?'
Peter: '...well...theory...symmetry breaking...background field...mass differences...waves propagate...'
'Can you encapsulate that in say 30 seconds?'
'No'
LOL

A great series of short YouTube interviews by Paul Sen with historian of science, Simon Schaffer: Artificial Intelligence--Lessons from History youtube.com/playlist?list=… via YouTube

The final episode in my interview series with Cambridge historian Simon Schaffer is now online. This one’s about the roots of “big data” and how to deal with the fact that numbers dominate our lives. youtu.be/3wakZNjnBkg

I'm really excited and pleased to be included among such wonderful and illustrious company in this lovely new book by Andrew Copson.

The remarkable ⁦Dr. Jane Goodall & the Jane Goodall Institute⁩ turns 90 today. Here she is in conversation with ⁦Jim Al-Khalili⁩ in 2020 ⁦BBC Radio 4⁩ ⁦BBC Sounds⁩ - The Life Scientific, on living with wild chimpanzees. Producer Anna Buckley. bbc.co.uk/programmes/m00…

In 1985 an astronaut noticed this physical behavior of a handle, that turned out to be the proof of a theorem: the tennis racket theorem (also dubbed the Dzhanibekov effect)

In this essay, academic, author, and broadcaster Jim Al-Khalili breaks down why many explanations that scientists call “simple”—such as the idea that the Earth revolves around the sun—really aren’t simple at all. openmindmag.org/articles/the-d… #science

Climate models can’t explain 2023’s huge heat anomaly — we could be in uncharted territory nature.com/articles/d4158… Taking into account all known factors, the planet warmed 0.2 °C more last year than climate scientists expected. More and better data are urgently needed.

UK Electricity - right now 75.3% is Renewables
Only 5.8% fossil fuels!

Wind 54.8%
Solar 19.6%

I wonder when it was that (mostly younger) people started replacing the word “said” in conversation with “was like”, as in “..and I was like…”. It’s certainly been around for decades.

Keep an ear on BBC Radio 4 in April. Science Outrecah Fellow Hannah Critchlow has been chatting with Jim Al-Khalili on #TheLifeScientific .

The Norwegian Academy have announced the 2024 winner of the Abel Prize for Mathematics: Michael Talagrand “for his groundbreaking contributions to probability theory and functional analysis, with outstanding applications in mathematical physics and statistics.” #AbelPrize2024

Morning. My guest on #TheLifeScientific on BBC Radio 4 today is population biologist, Charles Godfray. We discuss mathematical modelling, tackling global food security and why parasitic wasps are not as nasty as you might think.

bbc.co.uk/programmes/m00…

Sad to hear that visionary primatologist and behavioural biologist, Frans de Waal, has died. He pioneered studies of animal cognition and our relationship with our nearest ape relatives. He was my guest on The Life Scientific back in 2016.

bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07…

1950: A. Einstein's Letter to Erwin Schrödinger where he talks about the famous Schrödinger's cat thought experiment ✉️

Dear Schrödinger,
You are the only contemporary physicist, besides Laue, who sees that one cannot get around the assumption of reality—if only one is honest.…

Lolz.