Science
Research breakthroughs and the scientific background needed to understand them.
- WikiARC-AGIARC-AGI is a benchmark series of tasks easy for people and hard for AI. ARC-AGI-3 went from 0.51% to 62.7% for AI within six months.Updated
- WikiArtemis programNASA's Artemis program aims to return astronauts to the Moon. Artemis II flew in April 2026; the first landing is now planned for Artemis IV in 2028.Updated
- WikiBattery critical mineralsLithium, nickel, cobalt, graphite and vanadium: the minerals batteries depend on, China's grip on refining, 2026 price spikes and export controls.Updated
- WikiBattery recyclingHow lithium-ion battery recycling works as an industry: feedstock, China's capacity lead, EU recycled-content rules and why volumes lag until the 2030s.Updated
- WikiBECCS (bioenergy with carbon capture and storage)BECCS burns or ferments biomass for energy and stores the CO2 underground. How it works, how much it removes, costs, limits and the Stockholm plant.Updated
- WikiBioMADEBioMADE is the US Manufacturing USA institute for bioindustrial manufacturing, building shared pilot and demonstration fermentation plants.Updated
- WikiCATLCATL is the world's largest battery maker, supplying about 39% of EV batteries in 2025. Its scale, finances, sodium-ion push and global expansion.Updated
- WikiCell-free protein synthesisCell-free systems express genes in a tube using extracted cellular machinery. Yields, uses in circuit prototyping and on-demand production, and 2026 funding.Updated
- WikiCERNCERN is the European laboratory for particle physics near Geneva. Its members, the LHC, the 2026 strategy update and its role in projects worldwide.Updated
- WikiChang'e lunar program (China)China's Chang'e programme has orbited, landed on and returned samples from the Moon, including the far side. Chang'e-7 slipped from 2026 to later.Updated
- WikiCommercial space stationsPrivate stations from Vast, Axiom, Starlab and others aim to replace the ISS around 2030. Their schedules, NASA's role and the open questions.Updated
- WikiDeepSeek-R1DeepSeek-R1 reported that reinforcement learning alone can teach a language model to reason. Its findings, publication and successors.Updated
- WikiDESI (Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument)DESI maps tens of millions of galaxies to measure dark energy. Its 2025 hint of evolving dark energy, its completed 2026 survey and what comes next.Updated
- WikiDirect air capture (DAC)Direct air capture pulls CO2 out of ambient air for storage. How it works, what it costs, and where Mammoth and STRATOS stand in October 2026.Updated
- WikiDNA synthesis order screeningSynthesis providers screen DNA orders and verify customers. How the US framework works, the free Common Mechanism tool, and where it falls short.Updated
- WikiDeep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE)DUNE is a Fermilab-led neutrino experiment beaming neutrinos 1,300 km to South Dakota. Its goals, scale, 2026 construction status and first-beam target.Updated
- WikiECMWF AIFS (Artificial Intelligence Forecasting System)The AIFS is ECMWF's operational AI weather model, running since 2025 beside its physics-based IFS. Performance, energy use and limits.Updated
- WikiElectron ptychographyElectron ptychography uses scattered electrons and algorithms to image atoms at record resolution. How it works and why materials scientists use it.Updated
- WikiEnhanced rock weatheringEnhanced weathering spreads crushed rock on farmland to lock up CO2. How it works, field-trial evidence, potential, and why measuring it is hard.Updated
- WikiEnzymatic DNA synthesisEnzymatic DNA synthesis uses polymerases instead of phosphoramidite chemistry to write DNA. Its length claims, pricing and 2026 commercial status.Updated
- WikiExtreme ultraviolet lithographyExtreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography prints the finest features on advanced chips using 13.5 nm light. How it works, who makes it and what is new.Updated
- WikiFlow batteriesFlow batteries store energy in tanks of liquid electrolyte pumped through a cell stack. How they work, vanadium's role, and the first gigawatt-hour plant.Updated
- WikiFuture Circular Collider (FCC)The Future Circular Collider is CERN's proposed 90.7 km successor to the LHC. Its design, cost, the 2026 strategy decision and the funding question.Updated
- WikiGenesis Mission (US AI-for-science initiative)The Genesis Mission is the US government's DOE-led programme to accelerate science with AI, launched in November 2025. Goals and awards.Updated
- WikiGinkgo BioworksGinkgo Bioworks sells cell engineering services, lab automation and datasets. Its 2026 finances, restructuring and pivot to automation and government work.Updated
- WikiGNoME (Graph Networks for Materials Exploration)GNoME is Google DeepMind's deep-learning project that predicted 2.2 million new crystal structures. What it found and why critics push back.Updated
- WikiGoogle DeepMindGoogle DeepMind is Alphabet's AI research lab, maker of Gemini and AlphaFold. Its origins, leadership, models and 2026 news.Updated
- WikiIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)The IPCC is the UN body that assesses climate science. What it found in AR6, what is planned for AR7, and the 2026 dispute over its report timeline.Updated
- WikiIron-air batteriesIron-air batteries store energy by reversibly rusting iron and target 100-hour, multi-day grid storage. Form Energy's pilots, factory and 30 GWh project.Updated
- WikiJames Webb Space Telescope (JWST)Webb is NASA, ESA and CSA's 6.5-meter infrared space telescope at L2. What it is, what it has found, and the debates it has started.Updated
- WikiJCVI minimal cell (syn3.0 and syn3A)The JCVI minimal cell is a bacterium stripped to roughly 473 genes. What syn3.0 and syn3A are, what they are used for, and what remains unexplained.Updated
- WikiLarge Hadron Collider (LHC) and High-Luminosity LHCThe Large Hadron Collider is CERN's 27 km particle collider. Its history, the Higgs discovery, the end of Run 3 in 2026 and the High-Luminosity upgrade.Updated
- WikiLIGO, Virgo and KAGRA gravitational-wave detectorsThe LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA network detects gravitational waves from colliding black holes. Its O4 run, the record GW250114 signal and plans for 2026 onward.Updated
- WikiLK-99: the room-temperature superconductor that wasn'tLK-99 was claimed in July 2023 as a room-temperature superconductor. How replication showed otherwise within weeks, and the lessons for science.Updated
- WikiMars Sample ReturnMars Sample Return was the NASA-ESA plan to bring Perseverance's rock cores to Earth. Congress declined to fund it in 2026; China's Tianwen-3 is next.Updated
- WikiThe Materials ProjectThe Materials Project is an open, DOE-funded database of computed materials properties, now the hub for AI-driven materials discovery.Updated
- WikiMetamaterials and metasurfacesMetamaterials get their properties from engineered structure, not chemistry. Negative refraction, cloaking, and flat metalenses now in phones.Updated
- WikiMETRMETR is an AI evaluation group known for measuring how long a task AI agents can complete, and for trials of AI's effect on developers.Updated
- WikiMuon g-2 experimentFermilab's Muon g-2 experiment measured the muon's magnetic anomaly to 127 parts per billion. What it found and why the anomaly faded in 2025.Updated
- WikiNancy Grace Roman Space TelescopeRoman is NASA's wide-field infrared survey telescope, launched August 30, 2026, to study dark energy and take a census of exoplanets.Updated
- WikiNickelate superconductorsNickel-oxide superconductors are the fastest-moving high-temperature family. Pressure records to 96 K and thin films at 63 K without pressure.Updated
- WikiOcean-based carbon dioxide removalOcean CDR uses seawater chemistry or biology to store more CO2: alkalinity enhancement, direct ocean capture and seaweed. Methods, trials and limits.Updated
- WikiPerovskite-silicon tandem solar cellsPerovskite-on-silicon tandem cells beat the single-junction efficiency limit. Records to 35.5%, the first commercial modules, and what is unproven.Updated
- WikiPrecision fermentationPrecision fermentation uses engineered microbes to brew specific proteins such as egg and dairy proteins. Approval routes and the 2026 capacity limit.Updated
- WikiProtein Data Bank (PDB)The Protein Data Bank is the open global archive of 3D biomolecular structures that trained AlphaFold. Size, history and role in AI.Updated
- WikiSelf-driving labs (autonomous laboratories)Self-driving labs pair AI with robots that plan, run and learn from experiments. The A-Lab, the controversy, and the 2025–26 start-up wave.Updated
- WikiSodium-ion batteriesSodium-ion batteries swap lithium for abundant sodium. How they compare with LFP, CATL's 2026 car and storage cells, and how far scale-up has come.Updated
- WikiSolid-state batteriesSolid-state batteries replace the liquid electrolyte with a solid. What they promise, why they are hard, and who is closest to production in 2026.Updated
- WikiSpaceX StarshipStarship is SpaceX's fully reusable super-heavy rocket and NASA's planned Moon lander. It reached orbit for the first time in September 2026.Updated
- WikiSynthetic yeast genome project (Sc2.0)Sc2.0 is the international effort to build a redesigned yeast genome. Its final chromosome synXVI, the debugging methods it created, and what comes next.Updated
- WikiTopological insulators and topological materialsTopological materials have properties fixed by mathematics, such as protected surface currents. What they are and why quantum computing cares.Updated
- WikiTwist BioscienceTwist Bioscience makes synthetic genes and DNA libraries at industrial scale. Its 2026 revenue, gene volumes and role in the synthetic biology supply chain.Updated
- WikiTwisted bilayer graphene and twistronicsTwisting two graphene sheets to a "magic angle" makes a superconductor. How twistronics works and its 2023-2026 fractional quantum Hall results.Updated
- WikiVera C. Rubin ObservatoryRubin Observatory in Chile began its 10-year Legacy Survey of Space and Time in mid-2026, imaging the southern sky every few nights.Updated
- WikiWeatherNext (GraphCast, GenCast)Google DeepMind's AI weather models, from GraphCast and GenCast to WeatherNext 2: how they work and how they compare.Updated
- ● DevelopingAI for science tracker: milestones and what to watchLive tracker of AI for science: protein AI, AI weather models, materials, autonomous labs and AI drug discovery, with dated milestones.Updated 25 confirmed1 disputed
- ● DevelopingClimate science and carbon removal trackerLive tracker of climate science and carbon removal: warming records, carbon budgets, IPCC talks, direct air capture, ocean trials and the CDR market.Updated 15 confirmed
- ● DevelopingBatteries and energy storage trackerA dated timeline of battery and energy storage milestones from 2024 to October 2026: prices, solid-state, sodium-ion, grid storage and trade policy.Updated 16 confirmed
- ● DevelopingMaterials science frontier trackerLive tracker of frontier materials science: superconductivity records, 2D and moiré materials, perovskite solar, and AI-driven discovery, 2023-2026.Updated 19 confirmed2 disputed
- ● DevelopingParticle physics and cosmology tracker: milestones 2024-2026A live timeline of particle physics and cosmology: LHC upgrade, the FCC decision, DESI, muon g-2, DUNE, dark matter and gravitational waves.Updated 26 confirmed
- ● DevelopingSpace exploration tracker: milestones, launches and discoveriesA dated log of milestones in space exploration and astronomy, 2024 to 2026: Artemis, Starship, Roman, Rubin, Mars samples, China, India, Europe and exoplanets.Updated 27 confirmed1 disputed
- AnalysisHas AI discovered new materials? The debate over GNoME and A-LabAI has predicted millions of crystals and robots have tried to make them. Why chemists dispute the claims, and what would count as proof.Updated
- AnalysisWhy biomanufacturing still fails at scale-upEngineered strains work in flasks and stall at industrial scale. The evidence on capacity, public plants and platform business models as of October 2026.Updated
- AnalysisThe DNA synthesis screening policy debateShould synthesis screening be a funding condition, a statutory rule or an industry norm? The evidence and the competing positions as of October 2026.Updated
- AnalysisThe Hubble tension and evolving dark energy: is cosmology broken?Is the standard model of cosmology cracking? The evidence on the Hubble tension and DESI's evolving dark energy hint, and the competing explanations.Updated
- AnalysisSigns of life beyond Earth: how strong is the evidence?K2-18 b and the Cheyava Falls rock on Mars produced the strongest claimed hints of life yet. What the data show, what critics say and what would settle it.Updated
- AnalysisAfter the LHC: the debate over the next big colliderShould Europe build the 15 billion franc Future Circular Collider? The evidence on cost, physics case, alternatives and China's CEPC as of October 2026.Updated
- AnalysisPerovskite solar: ready for rooftops, or still a lab record?Perovskite-silicon tandems set efficiency records, but can they last decades outdoors? The evidence on durability and commercial readiness compared.Updated
- AnalysisDo reasoning models really reason? The debate over their limitsReasoning models win maths olympiads yet fail some simple tasks, and their written reasoning is not always faithful. The evidence, weighed.Updated
- AnalysisRoom-temperature superconductors: how close, and how to tell?After LK-99 and a retracted Nature paper, how close is room-temperature superconductivity, and what evidence should convince us? Views compared.Updated
- AnalysisHow close are solid-state batteries?Toyota, BYD, Samsung SDI and QuantumScape promise solid-state batteries by 2027-28. The evidence on whether that is a breakthrough or a niche start.Updated
- ExplainerAI for science in 2026: a crash courseA crash course on AI for science: protein prediction and design, AI weather models, materials and drug discovery, autonomous labs.Updated
- ExplainerCarbon budgets explained: how much CO2 is left for 1.5 °CWhat a carbon budget is, why warming tracks cumulative CO2, how much is left for 1.5 °C as of 2026, and why carbon removal enters the picture.Updated
- ExplainerClimate science and carbon removal in 2026: a crash courseA sourced crash course on climate science and carbon removal: warming, carbon budgets, tipping points, direct air capture, markets and the 2026 frontier.Updated
- ExplainerClimate tipping points: coral reefs, AMOC, ice sheets and the AmazonWhat climate tipping points are, why scientists say coral reefs are passing one, and what is known about AMOC, ice sheet and Amazon risks in 2026.Updated
- ExplainerDark matter and dark energy, explainedWhat dark matter and dark energy are, how we know they exist, how scientists search for them, and what the 2025-26 DESI and LZ results showed.Updated
- ExplainerBatteries and energy storage in 2026: a crash courseA sourced crash course on batteries and energy storage: lithium-ion, LFP vs NMC, solid-state, sodium-ion, grid storage and supply chains as of October 2026.Updated
- ExplainerHow 2D materials work: graphene, stacks and twistsGraphene and other atom-thin crystals behave unlike bulk materials. How they are made, stacked and twisted, and what they could do for chips.Updated
- ExplainerHow frontier AI capabilities are measuredHow researchers measure what frontier AI can do: benchmarks like SWE-bench, Humanity's Last Exam and ARC-AGI, and METR time horizons.Updated
- ExplainerHow AI designs new proteins, drugs and materialsHow generative AI proposes new proteins, drug molecules and crystals, and why every design still has to be made and tested in a lab.Updated
- ExplainerHow AI predicts protein structuresWhy a protein's 3D shape matters, how AlphaFold-style models predict it from sequence, and what they still get wrong.Updated
- ExplainerHow AI weather models workHow machine-learning weather models learn from decades of past weather, why they are so fast, and how forecasters now use them.Updated
- ExplainerHow biomanufacturing worksFrom engineered strain to shipping product: fermenters, scale-up steps, and why pilot-plant capacity is the bottleneck for biomanufacturing in 2026.Updated
- ExplainerHow advanced chips are madeA step-by-step guide to making advanced chips: design software, wafer fabrication, lithography and packaging, at beginner and expert level.Updated
- ExplainerHow climate models and attribution science workHow climate models simulate the Earth, how scientists know warming is human-caused, and how rapid attribution links heatwaves to climate change.Updated
- ExplainerHow DNA synthesis and assembly workSynthetic biology starts by writing DNA. How oligos, genes and whole chromosomes are made and stitched together, and what limits length and cost.Updated
- ExplainerHow exoplanets are found, and how we look for signs of lifeTransits, wobbles, microlensing and direct imaging: how astronomers have found more than 6,000 exoplanets, and how they read alien atmospheres.Updated
- ExplainerHow genetic circuits workGenetic circuits make cells compute: sensors, logic and output genes built from DNA parts. How they are designed and how 2026 changed the method.Updated
- ExplainerHow global warming is measured: temperature and key indicatorsHow scientists measure global warming: temperature datasets, the 1850–1900 baseline, ocean heat, energy imbalance, sea level and CO2, as of October 2026.Updated
- ExplainerHow grid-scale energy storage worksHow power grids store electricity: lithium batteries, pumped hydro, flow batteries and multi-day iron-air storage, with US and global data for 2025-2026.Updated
- ExplainerHow lithium-ion batteries workHow a lithium-ion cell stores and releases energy: anode, cathode, electrolyte, separator, intercalation, dendrites, and how the technology was invented.Updated
- ExplainerHow particle colliders workHow particle accelerators and colliders work: radiofrequency cavities, superconducting magnets, luminosity, detectors, and why physicists want bigger machines.Updated
- ExplainerHow perovskite solar cells workPerovskites are cheap-to-make crystals that turn light into electricity. How they work, why tandems beat silicon, and why durability is the catch.Updated
- ExplainerHow rockets reach orbit, and why reusability mattersWhy getting to orbit is hard: orbital speed, the rocket equation, staging and why reusable boosters like Falcon and Starship change the economics.Updated
- ExplainerHow space telescopes work, and what Webb, Roman and Rubin each doWhy astronomers put telescopes in space or on mountaintops, why infrared matters, and how Webb, Roman and Rubin divide up the sky as of 2026.Updated
- ExplainerHow superconductivity worksSuperconductors carry current with zero loss below a critical temperature. What they are, why cooling matters, and the 2026 temperature records.Updated
- ExplainerHow the Standard Model of particle physics worksThe Standard Model in plain language: quarks, leptons, force carriers and the Higgs field, plus the gaps that physicists are trying to fill in 2026.Updated
- ExplainerLFP vs NMC: the battery chemistry splitWhy cheap lithium iron phosphate (LFP) overtook nickel-rich NMC in electric cars and grid storage, and where NMC still wins, with 2025-2026 data.Updated
- ExplainerMaterials science in 2026: a crash courseA sourced crash course on frontier materials: superconductors, LK-99, graphene and twistronics, perovskite solar, metamaterials and AI labs.Updated
- ExplainerParticle physics and cosmology in 2026: a crash courseA sourced crash course on particle physics and cosmology: the Standard Model, colliders, neutrinos, dark matter, dark energy and the Hubble tension in 2026.Updated
- ExplainerSpace exploration and astronomy in 2026: a crash courseA sourced crash course on space in 2026: Artemis and the Moon race, Starship, Mars samples, Webb, Roman, Rubin, exoplanets and the budget fight.Updated
- ExplainerSynthetic biology in 2026: a crash courseA sourced crash course on synthetic biology: writing DNA, genetic circuits, fermentation scale-up, key players and the frontier in October 2026.Updated