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Culture, history and society

Culture, history and society

Conspiracy theories, smartphone apps for identifying skin cancer, classical time crystals

13 Feb 2020 Hamish Johnston

In this latest instalment of the Physics World Weekly podcast we scratch our heads over why people believe in conspiracy theories and ask what physicists can do to help avoid the propagation of bizarre and sometimes dangerous ideas.

We also look at smartphone apps that allow someone to analyse a skin lesion to decide whether to seek medical advice; and we chat about a study that looks at the physics that drives lotus plants to have differently-shaped leaves.

Finally, we delve into the mysterious world of time crystals and discover why they could be governed by purely classical physics.

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