Philip Ball
Philip Ball is a freelance writer based in London, and the author of many books on science and its interactions with the broader culture. His latest book is How Life Works.
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AI Is the Black Mirror
Why the kinship between artificial intelligence and the human mind is terrifying.
When Reality Came Undone
100 years ago, a circle of physicists shook the foundation of science. It’s still trembling.
How Life Really Works
Just as I uncovered a new way to understand life, I got news about my own.
Mirror-Image Life
This biochemist is determined to create a new life form by reversing the shape of molecules.
What Is a Beautiful Experiment?
Finding beauty in science is timeless. But we shouldn’t let it blind us.
The Day Oppenheimer Feared He Might Blow Up the World
The story behind the scare that an atomic bomb would ignite the atmosphere into a fireball.
ChatGPT Is a Mirror of Our Times
What language AIs make up for in efficiency they lack in humanity.
The Fifth Force of Physics Is Hanging by a Thread
As scientists chase tantalizing hints of a new force, modern physics hangs in the balance.
Authenticity in the Age of the Fake
As science blurs the real and unreal, we are learning to distinguish them in new ways.







