Matthew Clapp

Myth

Why So Many Mythological Monsters Are Female

As figments of the imagination, the alien, creepy-crawly, fanged, winged and otherwise-terrifying creatures that populate myths have long helped societies define cultural boundaries and answer an age-old question: What counts as human, and what counts as monstrous?

Tech

The FutureBit Apollo BTC Miner

I've bought and built several miners, but none have been this easy. Plug it in, set it up, and let it run.

Tech

Artificial Intelligence Isn’t Magic

The coronavirus is helping to erode the hype around artificial intelligence; data scientists get the axe and some ‘old-fashioned’ solutions work better.

Tech

Zoom has serious consequences for mental health

In the past few years, people across the world have spent more time on video chat programs like Zoom and FaceTime than ever before. These applications mimic in-person encounters by allowing users to see the people they are communicating with.

Tech

Using machine learning to unravel long Covid

Long Covid, with its constellation of symptoms, is proving a challenging moving target for researchers trying to conduct large studies of the syndrome.

Mind

Why Americans don’t trust experts

How a society that is so good at creating knowledge can be so bad at applying it. Why don’t Americans trust the experts?

Motion

Is the Universe infinite?

As far as we can tell, there's no limit to how far it goes on; only a limit to how far we can see. Could the Universe truly be infinite?

Motion

Where did the Universe come from?

To answer any physical question, you must ask the Universe itself. But what happens when the answers aren't around anymore?

Motion

Scientists Find Unexplained Waves Inside the Sun That Defy Known Physics

The undetermined nature of the newly discovered waves promises "novel physics" about the Sun and stars, reports a new study.

Motion

Hunting the Ghost Particle

It came from deep space, moving at the speed of light, and crashed into Antarctica. Deep below the ice, it met its end. It wasn't an asteroid or alien spacecraft, but a particle that rarely interacts with matter, known as a neutrino.

Motion

The Mystery of Time’s Arrow

This simple model of the universe shows how one natural law points toward order.

Culture

Unidentified Aerial Phenomena

What, exactly, did the Navy encounter over 15 years ago off the Southern California coast, when fighter pilots spotted a UFO? These men were there, too⁠—and it’s time they tell their side of the story.