25 August 2021
Quantum theory can’t be the final answer and some theorists are exploring new ways to formulate physical laws – and yet there is no guarantee that any theory can completely describe the universe
25 August 2021
After “quantum supremacy”, the next step is scaling up and mastering the errors that dog qubits. But some researchers reckon the noise might always to be too high for useful quantum computers
25 August 2021
There is tantalising evidence to suggest that photosynthesis in some bacteria depends on quantum coherence and birds’ amazing feats of navigation rely on entanglement
25 August 2021
In principle, there should be no limit on how large objects can get and still display quantum behaviour like superpositions. Physicists testing the idea hope to reveal clues about quantum gravity
25 August 2021
The way we calculate the properties of subatomic particles with quantum theory goes haywire when it comes to hypothetical particles of gravity, but there may be a clever workaround
25 August 2021
The maths suggests the reality we get from quantum probabilities is random, but there might be some hidden determinism at play – or perhaps the present can influence the past
25 August 2021
New research reveals hints of quantum states in tiny proteins called microtubules inside brain cells. If the results stand up, the idea that consciousness is quantum might come in from the cold
25 August 2021
Quantum phenomena “wash out” as particles interact with the environment, but classical properties survive. Are they selected in a process analogous to evolution by natural selection?
25 August 2021
Quantum objects exist as clouds of possibilities, only manifesting as something definite when we look at them. The implication is that we make reality – but objectivity may yet be rescued
25 August 2021
Particles in many places at once, spooky influences and cats that are dead and alive at the same time – these are the phenomena that earned quantum theory its reputation for weirdness
