Scientists have found that an orbital magnetic shield can protect the Earth from solar storms, learned that black holes can exist without infinite density at the center, and also stated that modern individualism makes people love less. About these and other science news in the weekly NM review.
Protecting the Earth from solar storms using an orbital airbag
Astrophysicists have developed a radical plan to protect our planet from devastating solar flares. They proposed creating a giant magnetic airbag in space that would act as a shield. This artificial barrier will be able to deflect powerful streams of charged particles (solar wind), which can disable all power grids and satellites on Earth, returning humanity to the pre-industrial era.
The researchers came to this unusual solution using complex computer simulations. They calculated that if a special device was placed at a certain distance between the Earth and the Sun, it could generate a strong magnetic field. By interacting with cosmic plasma (hot ionized gas), this generator will create a kind of impenetrable bubble. Computer models have clearly shown that such a barrier will effectively redirect the dangerous emission of solar energy to the sides, preventing it from hitting our planet.
Although this project currently exists only on paper, scientists consider it very important for the future. Powerful solar storms are rare, but can cause trillions in losses to the global economy, destroying modern communications and energy systems overnight.
Mathematicians sounded the alarm due to the rapid development of neural networks
The successes of artificial intelligence have caused not only delight, but also serious concerns in the scientific community. More than 150 of the world’s leading scientists signed the Leiden Declaration, an official document warning of threats to the core values of science. They said that machines were becoming frighteningly smart and developing too quickly.
The researchers came to this conclusion after analyzing the latest achievements of AI in solving complex theorems. Scientists noticed that neural networks began to produce ready-made solutions without a human-understandable explanation of their steps. There is a risk of a situation where science will receive the correct answers, but people will no longer understand the essence of the mathematical laws themselves.
The authors of the declaration urge colleagues not to succumb to blind faith in technology and to maintain human control over the scientific process. In their opinion, mathematics has always been the art of understanding, not just finding the right answer, and if scientists completely shift this work to algorithms (sets of instructions for calculations), science will lose its deep meaning.
Black holes may exist without a mysterious singularity
Physicist Francesco Di Filippo has proposed a new look at the structure of black holes, which could revolutionize modern ideas about space. For a long time it was believed that at the center of any black hole there must be a singularity (the point at which gravity becomes infinite, and the laws of physics we know stop working).
To disprove this, the scientist created a complex theoretical model of a charged black hole that gradually evaporates, emitting Hawking radiation (the process of a black hole losing mass, predicted by physicist Stephen Hawking). Calculations have shown that the electromagnetic repulsion inside the object and the energy of the radiation itself are capable of holding back powerful gravitational compression.
As a result, the matter is not compressed into an infinitely dense point, and a singularity simply does not form. Although the study was conducted on objects with an electrical charge, the author noted that a similar mechanism could work for real cosmic black holes if they rotate very quickly. This discovery helps astrophysicists better understand what is really happening in the most extreme places in our Universe.
In the modern world people have begun to love less
Emotional attachments between romantic partners around the world are gradually weakening. This conclusion was reached by an international team of psychologists who discovered that modern relationships are losing their former intensity. People are increasingly moving away from each other, becoming colder towards their significant other.
Scientists came to these results after a large-scale study in which more than 60 thousand people from different countries took part. Volunteers filled out online questionnaires, rating on a scale of five how strongly they felt emotionally connected to their partner and wanted to maintain the union. It turned out that the main reason for the cooling of feelings was the growing individualism in society.
Researchers explain that a constant focus on one’s own success prevents people from being open. When it is difficult for a person to show his vulnerability and reveal his inner world, true intimacy simply does not form. However, psychologists note that less passionate relationships also have advantages – they are often calmer and more predictable.
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