All articles by Philip Ball – Page 2
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OpinionProtein filaments allow ‘diary’ of cell events to be read
Expression recording islands show when and where cells responded
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OpinionExploring AlphaFold’s knowledge of energy landscapes
The algorithm needs a little help to find the global energy minimum
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OpinionQuantum computing has its limits
Error-prone qubits mean quantum systems do not yet surpass classical methods
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OpinionA promising breakthrough in liquid condensate compartmentalisation
Tears are RNA solvent droplets that could help engineer new functions into bacteria
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OpinionCracking codons
Understanding how chemistry links RNA triplets to the properties of amino acids
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OpinionJames Lovelock, a gentleman scientist
Philip Ball reflects on the legacy of the creator of the Gaia hypothesis, who has died aged 103
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OpinionPeriod of discovery
Chemical space contained sufficient information to formulate the periodic system 25 years before Mendeleev
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OpinionFrom prebiotic soup to fine-grained RNA world
Theories about how life emerged need to be closely attuned to conditions on the early Earth
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OpinionIs there a natural order in which complex objects appear?
Assembly theory suggests there might be
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OpinionBeyond the transition state
Entropy production could be a key guide to predicting how a reaction product forms
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ArticleCausal emergence might explain how living systems can operate
Life does not run like clockwork
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OpinionA century of curly arrows
Celebrating the simple symbols that – along with their straight counterparts – encapsulate complex chemical behaviours
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ResearchDirect evidence emerges for the existence of two forms of liquid water
Low temperature experiments with sugary solution reveal transition from low- to high-density states at pressure
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OpinionNed Seeman’s legacy
A system based on DNA ‘tiles’ can embody Darwinian evolution, raising new possibilities for understanding natural selection and materials development
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OpinionDon’t let the burden of proof squeeze the life out of ideas
Extraordinary claims can be extraordinarily stimulating
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ResearchQuantum double-slit experiment done with molecules for the first time
Researchers prepare ‘new type of matter’ to conduct classic wave–particle duality experiment
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OpinionVolta’s ink spills its secrets
Chemical analysis of manuscripts can reveal details of their author’s life and motivations
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OpinionA vaccine for all seasons?
Phase 1 clinical trials have begun on a candidate that could work against a wide range of flu viruses
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OpinionHidden details in iconic portrait of Lavoisiers reveal fears of coming revolution
As the French Revolution neared the Lavoisiers were reimagined as scientific progressives rather than out of touch aristocrats
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ResearchObserving the life and death of a single excited-state molecule
Individual pentacene’s triplet lifetime – and how it is cut short by a nearby oxygen – measured with atomic resolution