Ethan Siegel
A theoretical astrophysicist and science writer, host of popular podcast "Starts with a Bang!"
Ethan Siegel is a Ph.D. astrophysicist and author of "Starts with a Bang!" He is a science communicator, who professes physics and astronomy at various colleges. He has won numerous awards for science writing since 2008 for his blog, including the award for best science blog by the Institute of Physics. His two books "Treknology: The Science of Star Trek from Tricorders to Warp Drive" and "Beyond the Galaxy: How humanity looked beyond our Milky Way and discovered the entire Universe" are available for purchase at Amazon. Follow him on Twitter @startswithabang.
We have electric charges and currents in electromagnetism, so why not magnetic ones, too? “It is possible to commit no mistakes and still lose. That is not a weakness. That is […]
The idea that there might only be one fundamental force might be a fundamental mistake. “Even if there is only one possible unified theory, it is just a set of […]
If we started all over again, could our Solar System’s second planet have been the inhabited one? “It was the Venus I had prayed to, it was my prayer, though […]
An awful op-ed about how science is no different than other disciplines misses some fundamental facts. “Philosophy of science is about as useful to scientists as ornithology is to birds.” […]
And are likely due to subsurface water, geysers and an incredible process. “Have you entered the springs of the sea? Or have you walked in search of the depths?” –Job […]
If they change and distort spacetime as the ripples pass through, could what was once inside actually get out? “Find a place inside where there’s joy, and the joy will burn […]
After 4th of July this past Monday, here’s the science behind how they work! “Celebrate the independence of your nation by blowing up a small part of it.” -The Simpsons This […]
Why Everest and the Grand Canyon are so small. Yes, SMALL! “How well I have learned that there is no fence to sit on between heaven and hell. There is a […]
If it’s such a light element, why are Earth’s stores of it buried beneath the surface? “I have this one little saying, when things get too heavy just call me helium, […]
It’s the ‘nightmare scenario’ for some. But for Sabine Hossenfelder, it might be a dream come true. This article was authored by Sabine Hossenfelder. Sabine is a theoretical physicist specialized in […]
Combined with Hubble, it creates our longest-baseline view. “It used to be that Pluto was a misfit. Now it turns out that Earth is the misfit. Most planets in the […]
There’s a small rock orbiting our planet more distant than the Moon we know. Does that mean we have two Moons? “You can be the Moon and still be jealous of […]
It’s more than a conclusion that most scientists agree on; it’s the basis for all the science we do now! “Those who know that the consensus of many centuries has sanctioned […]
The massive black holes that formed LIGO’s first event were a surprise, and then a mystery. Here’s the long-awaited solution! “Black holes can bang against space-time as mallets on a […]
And the wisdom from an exclusive interview with Larry Niven. Ever since humanity had the thought that the distant, twinkling stars might be Suns like our own, with their own planetary […]
Now that LIGO’s found two pairs of merging black holes, what does the future hold? “We shall not cease from exploration, and the end of all our exploring will be to […]
The New York Times claimed that aliens must have existed at some point. But science is less certain. “There are two possible outcomes: if the result confirms the hypothesis, then you’ve […]
Over 300,000 light years long, a new record! “Mozart’s music is like an X-ray of your soul — it shows what is there, and what isn’t.” –Isaac Stern From 500 million light years […]
They’re not just for dogs and cats to lay in; there’s a real, physical story behind them! “The sacred rights of mankind are not to be rummaged for among old parchments […]
It doesn’t interact with normal matter hardly at all, and yet it may be necessary for life itself. “The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are.” –Joseph Campbell Dark […]
Earlier claims from NASA’s Fermi GBM team indicated that they just might. Here’s the nail in that coffin! “If you’ve seen one gamma-ray burst, you’ve seen one gamma-ray burst!” –Common quote among […]
The detection of a second binary black hole merger officially begins the robust era of a new kind of astronomy. “It turned out that nature was very kind, and there […]
Light pollution may be taking away the night sky, but it’s only a short journey to dark conditions for all of us. “In order for the light to shine so brightly […]
A 200 word journey from the Big Bang to modern humans. “It surprises me how disinterested we are today about things like physics, space, the universe and philosophy of our existence, […]
The four fundamental forces have ruled our Universe for over 50 years, now. Are we on the brink of discovering a new one? “The new claim now is [a] boson with […]
It depends where you look. The answer is relatively awesome! “If everything seems under control, you’re not going fast enough.” –Mario Andretti One of Einstein’s most famous fundamental laws is that […]
Om nom nom nom nom… “That what wrong with the media today. All they have is questions, questions, questions. They never have cookies.” –Cookie Monster When most people think of black […]
It’s the most mysterious “stuff” our Universe has. So why are we so sure it’s real? “The Universe is made mostly of dark matter and dark energy, and we don’t know […]
The most distant world ever imaged by fly-by reveals a richer terrain than anyone ever expected. “The cosmic game changed forever in 1992. Before then, logic told us that there […]
Stephen Hawking said there’s a way out. Stephen Hawking lied. “Not only does God play dice, but… he sometimes throws them where they cannot be seen.” –Stephen Hawking By definition, black […]