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In this week's science news, we covered a raft of technological advances, the departure of 3I/ATLAS, penguin-slaughtering pumas and AI cracking 'impossible' math problems.
(Image credit: Japan Ministry of Defense/Wikimedia Commons | Adrián A. Astorgano for Future)
Fabricated from the rare earth element tantalum, the processor is an important step on the road to stable quantum computing. However, scientists still need to overcome key challenges, such as the processors' millisecond decoherence time and the extreme scarcity of tantalum.
The comet, which is up to several miles wide and 7 billion years old, is now traveling at 130,000 mph (210,000 km/h) on a path out of our solar system.
But that doesn't mean it's the last we'll be hearing of the interstellar object, which has generated a frenzy of speculation surrounding its (incredibly doubtful) alien origins. 3I/ATLAS will leave our solar system after passing Pluto in 2029, giving scientists and spacecraft plenty of time to observe it.
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Or could we chase down 3I/ATLAS before it leaves our solar system? As farfetched as it may sound, some scientists are eager to send a spacecraft after the comet before it leaves.
Doing so would not only reveal further clues as to how the comet formed, but also help to answer whether we're alone in our universe, Live Science reveals in this fascinating Science Spotlight.
Turtles' bodies are protected by hard shells that are surprisingly varied between species. But how did these natural suits of armor evolve in the first place? And can turtles really hide their heads inside their shells?
The strange behavior of pumas (Puma concolor) in Monte León National Park in Patagonia, Argentina shone a light on the surprising knock-on effects of conservation efforts this week. Pumas were forced out of the region by sheep farmers in the 20th century, but the apex predators returned when the national park was established in 2004.
So far, so typical, but scientists were surprised after the pumas set their sights on a colony of roughly 40,000 Magellanic penguins (Spheniscus magellanicus) that had settled in their absence. The pumas that ate the penguins began tolerating each other more than usual.
The new behavior suggests that restoring wildlife in changed habitats does more than just reset the clock — it creates entirely new behaviors and ecosystems.
Artificial intelligence models are making steady progress in cracking increasingly difficult math problems, but will they soon eclipse humans in cracking the hardest unsolved conjectures? Or is it all just hype? Live Science spoke with some of the world's best mathematicians to find out.
Something for the weekend
If you're looking for something a little longer to read over the weekend, here are some of the best crosswords, skywatching guides and opinion pieces published this week.
This week’s science photo displays one of the most powerful, and longest lasting, cosmic explosions ever detected — a seven-hour blast that ripped from a dying star at 99% the speed of light.
The event, dubbed GRB 250702B, is the longest-duration gamma-ray burst ever recorded and may have been caused by a supernova, a star being torn to shreds by a black hole, or a black hole and helium star merging.
Ben Turner is a U.K. based writer and editor at Live Science. He covers physics and astronomy, tech and climate change. He graduated from University College London with a degree in particle physics before training as a journalist. When he's not writing, Ben enjoys reading literature, playing the guitar and embarrassing himself with chess.
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