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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.
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We know the Standard Model isn’t all there is. So why haven’t we found a single particle outside of it? “I often feel a discomfort, a kind of embarrassment, when I […]
Spirals and ellipticals rule the Universe, but every so often, something far more intricate shows up. “For me, the study of these laws is inseparable from a love of Nature […]
If energy is always conserved, then what “gains” the energy that photons lose as the Universe expands? “…in every kind of chemical change no loss of matter occurs […] in all […]
How does he deliver presents to hundreds of millions of households in just one night? With physics, of course! “Our family was too strange and weird for even Santa Claus to […]
If there is a quantum theory of gravity, is String Theory the only game in town? “I just think too many nice things have happened in string theory for it to […]
An Applicant’s Guide To NASA Astronaut Selection This guest post was written by Brian Shiro: NOAA geophysicist, NASA researcher, and co-founder of Astronauts for Hire. “I wasn’t destined to be […]
Science is the best tool we have for predicting the future. Here’s what the next year ought to bring. “For last year’s words belong to last year’s language And next year’s […]
These stars are too hot and blue for their age, and the leading theory just got a strike against it. “Youth is the gift of nature, but age is a work […]
Both are beautiful gifts, but only one is a beautiful learning experience. “The time will come when diligent research over long periods will bring to light things which now lie […]
It’s rare to find a galaxy where the arms wrap around even a full 360 degrees. But after billions of years, why is that? “The farther we peer into space, the […]
How the “hierarchy problem,” or why gravity is so much weaker than everything else, might be the key to the entire Universe. “I just think too many nice things have […]
In Munich last week, physicists and philosophers debate what makes for a scientific theory. Surprisingly, no one agrees. This piece was written by Sabine Hossenfelder. Sabine is a theoretical physicist specialized […]
Not water, not ice, and definitely not aliens. Here’s how we know. “You are the salt of the earth. But remember that salt is useful when in association, but useless in […]
Neither astronomers nor native Hawaiians are to blame, but it’s up to everyone to get it right moving forward. “The cause of Hawaiian independence is larger and dearer than the life […]
Life on Earth may not be the only way. But could it be this different? This article is written by Jillian Scudder, currently a postdoctoral researcher at Sussex in the […]
Our Sun will someday become a red giant, and then a planetary nebula + white dwarf combination. Here’s what lies between. “It will be found that those contained in one article […]
Clear skies? Go out and watch! Want a better show? Read on! “Every moment of light and dark is a miracle.” –Walt Whitman When it comes to meteor showers, most people […]
Hawking’s greatest achievement is also the greatest source of misunderstanding. “Maybe that is our mistake: maybe there are no particle positions and velocities, but only waves. It is just that […]
Ice mountains, frozen nitrogen flats and surprisingly familiar features show what the outermost worlds looks like. “We’ve learned that the view of four inner rocky planets and four outer gas giants […]
After hydrogen and helium, the periodic table is full of surprises. “The two most common elements in the universe are hydrogen and stupidity.” –Harlan Ellison One of the most remarkable […]