Scientific American Special 2023 Summer Mind-Bending Physics.pdf

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SPECIAL COLLECTOR’S EDITION
Mind
-
Bending
Physics
I N S I DE
Wormholes that bridge spacetime
•
Decaying black holes
Imaginary numbers
•
Are we in a holographic universe?
Giant galaxies that defy cosmology
•
New time dimensions
PLUS
:
Nothing is real, and physics proves it
SUMMER 2023
© 2023 Scientific American
ESTABLISHED 1845
Mind-Bending Physics
is published by the staff of
Scientific American, with
project management by:
Editor in Chief:
Laura Helmuth
Managing Editor:
Jeanna Bryner
Chief Newsletter Editor:
Andrea Gawrylewski
Creative Director:
Michael Mrak
Issue Designer:
Lawrence R. Gendron
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Brianne Kane
Perpetual
Puzzle
S
cientific
A
merican
recently asked a variety of physicists:
What is the most surprising
discovery in your field? Some common themes included the expansion of the universe,
neutrinos and their oscillations, and black holes. Particularly surprising was dark energy.
“None of us working in physics saw that coming!” said Katherine Freese, theoretical astro-
physicist at the University of Texas at Austin, about the unidentified force that makes up
most of the universe. Physics is full of
such mind-bending discoveries, many
of which have only just been made.
Take our baffling universe. Recent
data from the James Webb Space Tele-
scope reveal giant galaxies that formed
only a few hundred million years after
the big bang, conflicting with the gen-
erally accepted time line of cosmic
events (
page 4
). Those who work on the
so-called expansion problem in physics
(two measurements of the universe
that don’t agree) eagerly await further
data from JWST and several other im-
portant telescopes coming online this
decade (
page 14
). An upcoming experiment housed deep underground in a Sardinian mine
is designed to determine the weight of empty space—yes, it weighs something—and could
help solve some of these conundrums (
page 30
).
In other laboratories on Earth, researchers have designed materials that manipulate light
waves to make cloaking devices and other cool tech (
page 42
), and materials simulated with
light waves are revealing inexplicable physics (
page 70
). Some exotic materials change states
of matter regularly over time much like atomic crystal structures repeat in space (
page 58
),
and scientists recently transformed the matter phase of a substance and simultaneously
opened a new dimension in time (
page 66
).
Nothing alters spacetime more than black holes, which may connect through wormholes
to
other
black holes (
page  80
). The black hole boundary, called the event horizon, is where
all light is swallowed up, and studying it might explain what is beyond the observable edge
of the universe (
page 88
).
The physics of the event horizon is a long-standing problem in quantum mechanics.
Researchers have announced they have a way to study what happens to matter falling into
a black hole by harnessing the elusive glow of space particles during rapid acceleration
(
page  99
). Electrons are crucial to quantum experiments, though fundamentally perplex-
ing: they have spin, which gives them quantum properties, but they themselves can’t spin
(
page  102
). So where does their spin come from? Such brainteasers are common in quan-
tum physics, whose underlying mathematical foundations could not exist without appro-
priately called imaginary numbers (
page 106
).
Confounding these complexities is the work of Nobel-winning physicists who ran exper-
iments on entangled photons and determined that objects may lack definite properties until
they are observed (by us, namely). This work stemmed from the mystery of how quantum
theory itself works (
page  24
). For every puzzle in physics, there is a team looking for an
answer, which in turn cracks open a nesting doll of additional puzzles. And perhaps that is
the most surprising thing about physics.
Andrea Gawrylewski
Chief Newsletter Editor,
editors@sciam.com
FROM THE EDITOR
For every puzzle in
physics, there is a team
looking for an answer,
which in turn cracks
open a nesting doll
of additional puzzles.
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© 2023 Scientific American
SPECIAL EDITION
Volume 32, Number 3, Summer 2023
EXTREME UNIVERSE
4
Breaking Cosmology
JWST’s first images included unimaginably distant
galaxies that challenge theories of how quickly
these structures can form.
By Jonathan O’Callaghan
BLACK HOLES
80
Black Holes, Wormholes and Entanglement
Researchers cracked a paradox by considering what
happens when the insides of black holes are connected
by spacetime wormholes.
By Ahmed Almheiri
14
Twin Tensions
A debate over conflicting measurements of key
cosmological properties is poised to shape the
next decade of astronomy and astrophysics.
By Anil Ananthaswamy
88
A Tale of Two Horizons
Black holes and our universe have similar boundaries,
and new lessons from one can teach us about the other.
By Edgar Shaghoulian
20
The Holographic Universe Turns 25
The Ads/CFT duality conjecture, which suggests our
universe is a hologram, has enabled many significant
discoveries in physics.
By Anil Ananthaswamy
QUANTUM WEIRDNESS
94
Extreme Quantum Correlations
A playful demonstration of quantum pseudotelepathy
could lead to advances in communication
and computation.
By Philip Ball
24
The Universe Is Not Locally Real
Experiments with entangled light have revealed
a  profound mystery at the heart of reality.
By Daniel Garisto
99
That Elusive Quantum Glow
Once considered practically unseeable, a phenomenon
called the Unruh effect might soon be revealed
in  laboratory experiments.
By Joanna Thompson
30
The Weight of Nothing
The Archimedes experiment aims to measure the void
of empty space more precisely than ever before.
By Manon Bischoff
102
Spin Paradox
Quantum particles aren’t spinning, so where does
their spin come from?
By Adam Becker
PARTICLES AND MATERIALS
42
Tricking Light
Newly invented metamaterials can modify waves,
creating optical illusions and useful technologies.
By Andrea Alù
106
Imaginary Universe
Complex numbers are an inescapable part of standard
quantum theory.
By Marc-Olivier Renou, Antonio Acín
and Miguel Navascués
52
When Particles Break the Rules
Hints of new particles and forces may be showing up
at  physics experiments around the world.
By Andreas Crivellin
DEPARTMENTS
1
FROM THE EDITOR
Perpetual Puzzle
112
END NOTE
Star Spin Mystery
Scientists wondered why the insides of stars
are spinning so slowly.
By Clara Moskowitz and Lucy Reading-Ikkanda
Articles in this special issue are updated or adapted from previous issues of
Scientific American
and from ScientificAmerican.com and
Nature.
Copyright © 2023 Scientific American, a division
of Springer Nature America, Inc. All rights reserved. Scientific American Special (ISSN 1936-1513),
Volume 32, Number 3, Summer 2023, published by Scientific American, a division of Springer Nature
America, Inc., 1 New York Plaza, Suite 4600, New York, N.Y. 10004-1562. Canadian BN
No. 127387652RT; TVQ1218059275 TQ0001. To purchase additional quantities: U.S., $13.95 each;
elsewhere, $17.95 each. Send payment to Scientific American Back Issues, P.O. Box 3187, Harlan,
Iowa 51537.
Inquiries: fax 212-355-0408 or telephone 212-451-8415. Printed in U.S.A.
58
Crystals in Time
Surprising new states of matter contain patterns
that repeat like clockwork.
By Frank Wilczek
66
Parallel Time Dimensions
Physicists have devised a mind-bending error-
correction technique that could dramatically boost
the  performance of quantum computers.
By Zeeya Merali
70
Mimicking Matter with Light
Experiments that imitate materials with light waves
reveal the quantum basis of exotic physical effects.
By Charles D. Brown II
2
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SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN
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SPECIAL EDITION
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SUMMER 2023
© 2023 Scientific American
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24
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