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The Quantastic Journal

At Quantastic, we love to explore science, tech, and math vis-à-vis humanity. Our mission is to bring scientific knowledge, exploration, and debate through compelling stories to interested readers. Each story seeks to educate, inspire curiosity, and motivate critical thinking.

Your story matters: Join us on April 25th for Draft Day 2025

Your story matters: Join us on April 25th for Draft Day 2025

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The Woman Who Can Smell Parkinson’s Disease

The Woman Who Can Smell Parkinson’s Disease

Joy Milne’s unusual talent may help doctors diagnose diseases before symptoms hit

Bill Sullivan Jr

Apr 22

Submission Guidelines for the Quantastic Journal

Submission Guidelines for the Quantastic Journal

Join the Quantastic Writers’ Circle and Submit Your Story!

Jun 26, 2024

Recent Population Changes in US Metropolitan Areas —Gainers and Losers 2020–2024

Recent Population Changes in US Metropolitan Areas —Gainers and Los...

Metropolitan growth comes with population loss between 2020 and 2024 in five of our largest metros

Apr 20

Amazon’s Ocelot: a Cat (Qubit) to Change the Game in Quantum Error Correction?

Amazon’s Ocelot: a Cat (Qubit) to Change the Game in Quantum Error ...

How cat qubits and bosonic codes are reshaping quantum error correction — one photon at a time.

Paolo Molignini, PhD

Apr 16

The Curse of No Return: Why a Random Walker Rarely Finds the Same Point in Our Universe

The Curse of No Return: Why a Random Walker Rarely Finds the Same P...

The drunkard’s path, from Euclidean transience to Minkowski causality

Apr 19

Return of the Soil Bacteria

Return of the Soil Bacteria

Discovery of a new class of broad-spectrum antibiotic, a lasso-shaped molecule call lariocidin, in slow-growing soil bacteria.

Kevin Blake, PhD

Apr 12

What the Study Really Said: A Guide for the Science-Curious

What the Study Really Said: A Guide for the Science-Curious

What you need to know before using a study to support your arguments during a scientific or policy debate.

René F. Najera, MPH, DrPH

Apr 11

What Makes a Drug “AI-Developed”?

What Makes a Drug “AI-Developed”?

I’m building a database of AI drug candidates, and it’s more confusing than you’d think.

Apr 5

How to Create a 4D Hyper-Fractal: The Magic Menger Hyper-Sponge

How to Create a 4D Hyper-Fractal: The Magic Menger Hyper-Sponge

The fascinating geometric construct and visualization of a hypercube that confines a fractal four-dimensional Menger sponge—a universal…

Apr 3

Backing the Blue with Science: What Research Says About Preventing Police Suicide

Backing the Blue with Science: What Research Says About Preventing Police Suicide

Modified American Flags with blue stripes do nothing against what is responsible for most law enforcement deaths.

René F. Najera, MPH, DrPH

Apr 1

Numerical Free Physics Intuition: Is It Faster to Fall Through the Earth or Orbit to the Other Side?

Numerical Free Physics Intuition: Is It Faster to Fall Through the Earth or Orbit to the Other Side?

Numerical free intuition in the physical sciences will become more important than ever as we learn to interact with AI "colleagues" to…

Mar 28

Would an AI Emulation of Someone’s Brain Be Conscious? — Would it Be an Upload of Their Mind?

Would an AI Emulation of Someone’s Brain Be Conscious? — Would it Be an Upload of Their Mind?

The study of whole brain emulation could help us get a better performing AGI, even if it is not the fastest route to a minimal …

Mar 27

LEGO’s DNA Helix Isn’t “Right”

LEGO’s DNA Helix Isn’t “Right”

The Evolution of STEM is a wonderful set marred by an unfortunate scientific inaccuracy.

Kevin Blake, PhD

Mar 26

Spice up Your Life: How Your Spice Rack Can Transform Your Gut and Boost Your Mood

Spice up Your Life: How Your Spice Rack Can Transform Your Gut and Boost Your Mood

Discover the science-backed link between spices, gut health, and mental clarity — and how to harness their power today

Dr. Hatem El-Nagar

Mar 24

How to Tell if a Wellness Product Might Be a Scam

How to Tell if a Wellness Product Might Be a Scam

A scientist explains how to apply critical thinking skills to protect you from health scams

Bill Sullivan Jr

Mar 24

A Simple Look at Simple Random Walks

A Simple Look at Simple Random Walks

A drunken man always returns home, but a drunken bird will eventually be lost.

Mar 21

Genes Interact with the Environment

Genes Interact with the Environment

But what exactly does that mean? Perhaps something more complex than captured by that phrase.

Mar 19

Why Did You Get Vaccinated and Still Get Sick?

Why Did You Get Vaccinated and Still Get Sick?

The immune system is complex, as are the viruses and bacteria we vaccinate against, and so are you.

René F. Najera, MPH, DrPH

Mar 17

What Happens to the Information that Falls into the Black Holes?

What Happens to the Information that Falls into the Black Holes?

Stephen Hawking (1976) has claimed that the evaporation of a black hole is not a unitary process. In semiclassical calculations, Hawking…

Anastasiya Khromova, Dr. rer. nat. 🇺🇦

Mar 16

The Realized Promise of Blood-based Cancer Testing: Liquid Biopsy

The Realized Promise of Blood-based Cancer Testing: Liquid Biopsy

As non-invasive, repeatable, fast, cost-effective method of studying cancer, it deserves our attention.

Daniel G. Camblor

Mar 14

The Pursuit of Immortality: A Journey Beyond Death and Time

The Pursuit of Immortality: A Journey Beyond Death and Time

“A human who lives only a few decades cannot master space, just as a mayfly with a one-day life span can never cross the ocean.”

Narthana Arumugam

Mar 12

Quantum Pointers to Classical Reality: Decoherence Dynamics of an ‘Alice–Bob’ CHSH Set-up in Closed…

Quantum Pointers to Classical Reality: Decoherence Dynamics of an ‘Alice–Bob’ CHSH Set-up in Closed…

Distinct Markovian reservoirs for Alice’s and Bob’s qubits with varying decay rates induce multiple relaxation timescales in correlation…

Mar 11

The History of Hantavirus and Why You’re Reading a Lot About It in 2025

The History of Hantavirus and Why You’re Reading a Lot About It in 2025

It’s everywhere in the news, so let me share its history along with a story of my own.

René F. Najera, MPH, DrPH

Mar 10

Superbugs on Your Plate: The Silent Threat Lurking in Your Meal

Superbugs on Your Plate: The Silent Threat Lurking in Your Meal

What seemed like a harmless meal led to a fight against an antibiotic-resistant infection — unveiling a deeper crisis in our food system.

Dr. Hatem El-Nagar

Mar 9

The Emergence of Classical Reality as Order Parameter Dynamics of Bell Type Quantum Violations

The Emergence of Classical Reality as Order Parameter Dynamics of Bell Type Quantum Violations

On the dynamics of quantum-to-classical transition, decoherence dynamics in Markovian open quantum systems, and the emergence of a…

Mar 8

The Ninja's Tale

The Ninja's Tale

A tail is a highly refined evolutionary adaption in and essential to the Snow Leopard, the Cheetah, the Marbled Cat of Borneo, the Kangaroo…

Mar 6

SSRI Medications: Their History, Effects, and Current Controversies

SSRI Medications: Their History, Effects, and Current Controversies

Along with attacks on science in general, medication for mental health disorders is being maligned. Here are some facts.

René F. Najera, MPH, DrPH

Mar 4

The Mathematics of Plaiting Braids: The Art That Led to Astonishing Algebraic Insights!

The Mathematics of Plaiting Braids: The Art That Led to Astonishing Algebraic Insights!

Braids and knots have been known to mankind since prehistoric Man tried to enhance the beauty of hair or manipulated strings into knots to…

Mar 3

Does Microsoft’s New Quantum Chip Really Work? — In the Era of Disinformation, Even Science Must …

Does Microsoft’s New Quantum Chip Really Work? — In the Era of Disinformation, Even Science Must …

Are we on the verge of functional topological quantum computers, or is this just an elaborately orchestrated marketing strategy…

Paolo Molignini, PhD

Mar 2

Human Consciousness Emerged from Our Brain’s Navigation System—Will AI Consciousness Emerge the…

Human Consciousness Emerged from Our Brain’s Navigation System—Will AI Consciousness Emerge the…

The evolution of AI has had many parallels to the evolution of animal intelligence, and as AI evolves, a consciousness could emerge for…

Mar 1

Teaching Your Robot Cat To Land On Her Feet

Teaching Your Robot Cat To Land On Her Feet

A deep dive into the mechanics of the cat righting reflex….

Feb 28

Are Humans Still Evolving?

Are Humans Still Evolving?

How to debate an evolution denier and other musings on the state of human evolution.

Mitchell Diamond

Feb 27

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