FQxI QSpace -> Articles

“The Entropic Price of Building the Perfect Clock: Q&A with Natalia Ares”

Experiments investigating the thermodynamics of clocks can teach us about the origin of time's arrow.

“Schrödinger’s A.I. Could Test the Foundations of Reality”

Physicists lay out blueprints for running a 'Wigner's Friend' experiment using an artificial intelligence, built on a quantum computer, as an 'observer.'

“Expanding the Mind (Literally): Q&A with Karim Jerbi and Jordan O'Byrne”

Using a brain-computer interface to create a consciousness 'add-on' to help test Integrated Information Theory.

“Quanthoven's Fifth”

A quantum computer composes chart-topping music, programmed by physicists striving to understand consciousness.

“The Math of Consciousness: Q&A with Kobi Kremnitzer”

A meditating mathematician is developing a theory of conscious experience to help understand the boundary between the quantum and classical world.

“Can We Feel What It’s Like to Be Quantum?”

Underground experiments in the heart of the Italian mountains are testing the links between consciousness and collapse theories of quantum physics.

“The Thermodynamic Limits of Intelligence: Q&A with David Wolpert”

Calculating the energy needed to acquire and compute information could help explain the (in)efficiency of human brains and guide the search for extra-terrestrial intelligence.

“Gambling Against the Second Law”

Using precision thermometry to make mini heat engines, that might, momentarily, bust through the thermodynamic limit.

“Mind and Machine: What Does It Mean to Be Sentient?”

Using neural networks to test definitions of 'autonomy.'

“Seeing is Believing”

Neuroscientists are testing the idea that what we see when we perceive the world is ultimately an internal projection.

“Dissolving the Self: Q&A with Aviva Berkovich-Ohana”

A neurobiologist is mapping the boundaries of consciousness during meditation.

“Over Gravity's Rainbow”

An alternative framework of physics, in which light's speed can vary, could render the universe ageless.

“Is the 'Fine-Tuned Universe' an Illusion?”

New FQXi report re-assesses claims that the cosmos is precisely tuned to foster life, challenging popular arguments for a multiverse.

“Good Vibrations”

Microbead 'motor' exploits natural fluctuations for power.

“A Stitch in Quantum Time”

How do you measure time near a black hole? Pulling apart the threads of spacetime’s fabric could provide an answer—and help unite general relativity and quantum mechanics, in...

“Reconstructing Physics”

New photon experiment gives new meta-framework, 'constructor theory,' a boost.

“The Quantum Engineer: Q&A with Alexia Auffèves”

Experiments seek to use quantum observations as fuel to power mini motors.

“Time to Think”

Philosopher Jenann Ismael invokes the thermodynamic arrow of time to explain how human intelligence emerged through culture.

“First Things First: The Physics of Causality”

Why do we remember the past and not the future? Untangling the connections between cause and effect, choice, and entropy.

“The Quantum Clock-Maker Investigating COVID-19, Causality, and the Trouble with AI”

Sally Shrapnel, a quantum physicist and medical practitioner, on her experiments into cause-and-effect that could help us understand time’s arrow—and build better healthcare algorithms.

“Connect the Quantum Dots for a New Kind of Fuel”

'Artificial atoms' allow physicists to manipulate individual electrons—and could help to reduce energy wastage in electronic devices.

“Lockdown Lab Life”

Grounded physicists are exploring the use of online and virtual-reality conferencing, and AI-controlled experiments, to maintain social distancing. Post-pandemic, these positive innovations could make science more accessible and...

“Is Causality Fundamental?”

Untangling how the human perception of cause-and-effect might arise from quantum physics, may help us understand the limits and the potential of AI.

“Can Time Be Saved From Physics?”

Philosophers, physicists and neuroscientists discuss how our sense of time’s flow might arise through our interactions with external stimuli—despite suggestions from Einstein's relativity that our perception of the...

“Building Agency in the Biology Lab”

Physicists are using optogenetics techniques to make a rudimentary agent, from cellular components, which can convert measurements into actions using light.

“Black Holes: Paradox Regained”

In 2004, Stephen Hawking famously conceded that black holes do not devour all information when they swallow matter—seemingly resolving the "black hole information paradox" that had perplexed physicists...

“Can Choices Curve Spacetime?”

Two teams are developing ways to detect quantum-gravitational effects in the lab.

“Think Quantum to Build Better AI”

Investigating how quantum memory storage could aid machine learning and how quantum interactions with the environment may have played a role in evolution.

“Outside the Box”

A proposed quantum set-up that could predict your game-playing strategy resurrects Newcomb’s classic quiz show paradox.

“The Quantum Engine That Simultaneously Heats and Cools ”

Tiny device could help boost quantum electronics.

“The Quantum Agent”

Investigating how the quantum measurement process might be related to the emergence of intelligence, agency and free will.

“The Quantum Refrigerator”

A tiny cooling device could help rewrite the thermodynamic rule book for quantum machines.

“Dissolving Quantum Paradoxes”

The impossibility of building a perfect clock could help explain away microscale weirdness.

“Constructing a Theory of Life”

An all-encompassing framework of physics could help to explain the evolution of consciousness, intelligence, and free will.

“Usurping Quantum Theory”

The search is on for a fundamental framework that allows for even stranger links between particles than quantum theory—which could lead us to a theory of everything.

“Fuzzballs v Black Holes”

A radical theory replaces the cosmic crunchers with fuzzy quantum spheres, potentially solving the black-hole information paradox and explaining away the Big Bang and the origin of time.

“Thermo-Demonics”

A devilish new framework of thermodynamics that focuses on how we observe information could help illuminate our understanding of probability and rewrite quantum theory.

“Gravity's Residue”

An unusual approach to unifying the laws of physics could solve Hawking's black-hole information paradox—and its predicted gravitational "memory effect" could be picked up by LIGO.

“Could Mind Forge the Universe?”

Objective reality, and the laws of physics themselves, emerge from our observations, according to a new framework that turns what we think of as fundamental on its head.

“The Complexity Conundrum”

Resolving the black hole firewall paradox—by calculating what a real astronaut would compute at the black hole's edge.

“Quantum Dream Time”

Defining a ‘quantum clock’ and a 'quantum ruler' could help those attempting to unify physics—and solve the mystery of vanishing time.

“Whose Physics Is It Anyway? Q&A with Chanda Prescod-Weinstein”

Why physics and astronomy communities must take diversity issues seriously in order to do good science.

“Why Time Might Not Be an Illusion”

Einstein’s relativity pushes physicists towards a picture of the universe as a block, in which the past, present, and future all exist on the same footing; but maybe...

“Our Place in the Multiverse”

Calculating the odds that intelligent observers arise in parallel universes—and working out what they might see.

“Sounding the Drums to Listen for Gravity’s Effect on Quantum Phenomena”

A bench-top experiment could test the notion that gravity breaks delicate quantum superpositions.

“Watching the Observers”

Accounting for quantum fuzziness could help us measure space and time—and the cosmos—more accurately.

“Bohemian Reality: Searching for a Quantum Connection to Consciousness”

Is there are sweet spot where artificial intelligence systems could have the maximum amount of consciousness while retaining powerful quantum properties?

“Quantum Replicants: Should future androids dream of quantum sheep?”

To build the ultimate artificial mimics of real life systems, we may need to use quantum memory.

“Painting a QBist Picture of Reality”

A radical interpretation of physics makes quantum theory more personal.

“The Spacetime Revolutionary”

Carlo Rovelli describes how black holes may transition to "white holes," according to loop quantum gravity, a radical rewrite of fundamental physics.

“Riding the Rogue Quantum Waves”

Could giant sea swells help explain how the macroscopic world emerges from the quantum microworld? (Image credit: MIT News)

“Rescuing Reality”

A "retrocausal" rewrite of physics, in which influences from the future can affect the past, could solve some quantum quandaries—saving Einstein's view of reality along the way.

“Untangling Quantum Causation”

Figuring out if A causes B should help to write the rulebook for quantum physics.

“In Search of a Quantum Spacetime”

Finding the universe's wavefunction could be the key to understanding the emergence of reality.

“The Quantum Reality Paradox”

How the search for God’s limits led to the discovery of quantum contextuality—a weird phenomenon that could provide the 'magic' needed for super-fast computing.

“Collapsing Physics: Q&A with Catalina Oana Curceanu”

Tests of a rival to quantum theory, taking place in the belly of the Gran Sasso d'Italia mountain, could reveal how the fuzzy subatomic realm of possibilities comes...

“Dropping Schrödinger's Cat Into a Black Hole”

Combining gravity with the process that transforms the fuzzy uncertainty of the quantum realm into the definite classical world we see around us could lead to a theory...

“Does Quantum Weirdness Arise When Parallel Classical Worlds Repel?”

Quantum mechanics could derive from subtle interactions among unseen neighboring universes

“Wrinkles in Spacetime”

Searching for defects in the fabric of the cosmos could help physicists home in on the correct theory of quantum gravity.

“Blurring Causal Lines”

Quantum experiments mix past and future on the microscopic scale—opening the door to faster computers and revising our notion of causality.

“Quantum Cybernetics”

The quest for a meta-theory of quantum control that could one day explain physical systems, certain biological phenomena—and maybe even politics.

“Video Article: Solar-System-Sized Experiment to Put Time to the Test”

Is quantum theory or relativity right about the nature of time? Bouncing radar beams off the moons of Jupiter just might help sort things out.

“Conjuring a Neutron Star from a Nanowire”

Using tiny mechanical devices to create accelerations equivalent to 100 million times the Earth’s gravitational field—mimicking the arena of quantum gravity in the lab.

“Inferring the Limits on Reality (that Even the Gods Must Obey)”

The fuzziness of the quantum realm could arise from mathematical restrictions on what can ever be known.

“The Quantum Thermodynamic Revolution”

Combining theories of quantum information with the science of heat and energy transfer could lead to new technologies.

“Face Off: Building a Toy Universe to Pit Quantum Theory Against Gravity”

Using superconducting circuits to create a curved-spacetime analog with stronger gravity than our cosmos.

“Is Gravity Time's Archer?”

A new model argues the forces between particles in the early universe loosed time's arrow, creating temporal order from chaos.

“Purifying Physics: The Quest to Explain Why the “Quantum” Exists”

A new framework for the laws underlying reality could explain why nature obeys quantum rules, the origin of time’s arrow, and the power of quantum computing.

“Searching for the Impossible”

A quest to discover which computational tasks can never be resolved.

“Six Degrees to the Emergence of Reality”

Physicists are racing to complete a new model of "quantum complex networks" that tackles the physical nature of time and paradoxical features of emergence of classical reality from...

“Quantum in Context”

An untapped resource could provide the magic needed for quantum computation—and perhaps even open the door to time travel.

“Spot the Difference to Reveal Exotic Particles”

Questioning the symmetrization postulate of quantum mechanics and the notion that electrons are indistinguishable could reveal whether hypothetical new particles exist.

“Life's Quantum Crystal Ball”

Does the ability to predict the future—perhaps with quantum help—define the fundamental difference between living and inanimate matter?

“Q&A with David Rideout: Testing Reality in Space”

Satellite experiments could soon investigate the boundaries of quantum physics and relativity.

“The Quantum Truth Seeker”

Watching particles fly through an interferometer might help to unveil higher-order weirdness behind quantum theory.

“Quantifying Occam”

Is the simplest answer always the best? Connecting Medieval monks to computational complexity, using the branch of mathematics known as category theory.

“Heart of Darkness”

An intrepid physicist attempts to climb into the core of black hole.

“Readers' Choice: Cheating the Causal Game”

A new quantum framework that blurs cause-and-effect at a fundamental level could improve information processing and lead to a theory of quantum gravity.

“Why Quantum?”

Entropy could explain why nature chose to play by quantum rules.

“Faster Than Light”

A controversial theory in which light broke its own speed limit in the early universe joins forces with string theory and loop quantum gravity to solve cosmic mysteries.

“Reality's NeverEnding Story”

A quantum version of Darwinian natural selection could enable the universe to write itself into being.

“The Quantum Dictionary”

Mark Van Raamsdonk is re-writing how we define the shape of our universe. Can such translations help to unite quantum theory and gravity?

“ Q&A with Paul Davies: What is Time?”

Where does time come from? Why does it seem to flow?

“Quantum Computers Get Real”

Fighting decoherence to scale up quantum technologies.

“The Accidental Universe”

Have we been fooled into seeing one form of reality, with particular fundamental forces and laws, based on the peculiar way that we have chosen to measure time?

“The Cosmic Hologram”

Is our universe an illusion projected backward in time from the future?

“Classic Article: The Art of Math”

A pictorial branch of mathematics could help physicists draw new conclusions about quantum gravity and the nature of time.

“Discord in the Quantum World”

An alternative quantum resource to entanglement could help physicists in the quest to construct a quantum computer.

“A View From the Top”

Thinking of causation as a "two-way street"—along which the passage of information can be inverted—could have implications for the origin of life.

“Classic Article: Black Holes, Paradox Regained”

In 2004, Stephen Hawking famously conceded that black holes do not devour all information when they swallow matter—seemingly resolving the "black hole information paradox" that had perplexed physicists...

“Quantum Biology: Making Waves in the Natural World”

Could quantum effects explain the mechanisms behind smell, photosynthesis and bird navigation?

“The Brain's Time Illusion”

Uncovering how the mind constructs our sense of time could help treat and prevent some psychological disorders.

“Video Article: Embracing Complexity”

Ideas inspired by microscopic physics and magnetism could help sustain the energy infrastructure, and predict the spread of disease, financial crises, and the fate of Facebook friendships.

“Cheating the Causal Game”

A new quantum framework that blurs cause-and-effect at a fundamental level could improve information processing and lead to a theory of quantum gravity.

“Time Dilation Gets a Quantum Twist”

Quantum vs general relativistic conceptions of time go head-to-head in a proposed table-top test.

“Charting the Post-Quantum Landscape”

Laser experiments explore territory beyond the quantum horizon to investigate the theory's limits.

“Video Article: Time to Go Retro”

A model of backward causation in which the future affects the past could help unite quantum mechanics and general relativity—and satisfy a challenge thrown down almost a century...

“Killing Time”

On the quest for a theory of quantum gravity, Edward Anderson must slay the "dragon" of time.

“Melting Spacetime”

To understand how spacetime might emerge from string theory, in the early cosmos, we need to heat up the equations, and thaw the space and time dimensions.

“Video Article: The Quantum Linguist”

Bob Coecke has developed a new visual language that could spell out a theory of quantum gravity—and help us understand human speech.