Raphael Bousso
@bousso.bsky.social
Theoretical physicist: gravity, quantum information, black holes, cosmology. Professor at UC Berkeley
"An extrajudicial execution by security forces. This is where we are: armed agents of the state killing civilians with an apparent belief in their total impunity."
Opinion | ‘Kristi Noem Needs To Go.’ Three Columnists on ICE in Minneapolis.
www.nytimes.com
January 26, 2026 at 6:35 PM
"An extrajudicial execution by security forces. This is where we are: armed agents of the state killing civilians with an apparent belief in their total impunity."
"The administration is urging Americans to reject the evidence of their eyes and ears. Ms. Noem and Mr. Bovino are lying in defiance of obvious truths. They are lying in the manner of authoritarian regimes that require people to accept lies as a demonstration of power."
Opinion | The Trump Administration Is Lying to Our Faces. Congress Must Act.
www.nytimes.com
January 25, 2026 at 10:15 PM
"The administration is urging Americans to reject the evidence of their eyes and ears. Ms. Noem and Mr. Bovino are lying in defiance of obvious truths. They are lying in the manner of authoritarian regimes that require people to accept lies as a demonstration of power."
Reposted by Raphael Bousso
Utterly inhumane behaviour. "In sworn court filings, a doctor who offered to render aid to Mr. Pretti described how agents initially hesitated and asked him for proof of a medical license."
www.nytimes.com/live/2026/01...
www.nytimes.com/live/2026/01...
Minneapolis Live Updates: State Seeks Access to Evidence as Federal Officials Blame Shooting Victim
www.nytimes.com
January 25, 2026 at 4:57 PM
Utterly inhumane behaviour. "In sworn court filings, a doctor who offered to render aid to Mr. Pretti described how agents initially hesitated and asked him for proof of a medical license."
www.nytimes.com/live/2026/01...
www.nytimes.com/live/2026/01...
Reposted by Raphael Bousso
Defenceless under the night
Our world in stupor lies;
Yet, dotted everywhere,
Ironic points of light
Flash out wherever the Just
Exchange their messages:
May I, composed like them
Of Eros and of dust,
Beleaguered by the same
Negation and despair,
Show an affirming flame.
— W.H. Auden, Sept. 1, 1939
Our world in stupor lies;
Yet, dotted everywhere,
Ironic points of light
Flash out wherever the Just
Exchange their messages:
May I, composed like them
Of Eros and of dust,
Beleaguered by the same
Negation and despair,
Show an affirming flame.
— W.H. Auden, Sept. 1, 1939
January 25, 2026 at 3:49 AM
Defenceless under the night
Our world in stupor lies;
Yet, dotted everywhere,
Ironic points of light
Flash out wherever the Just
Exchange their messages:
May I, composed like them
Of Eros and of dust,
Beleaguered by the same
Negation and despair,
Show an affirming flame.
— W.H. Auden, Sept. 1, 1939
Our world in stupor lies;
Yet, dotted everywhere,
Ironic points of light
Flash out wherever the Just
Exchange their messages:
May I, composed like them
Of Eros and of dust,
Beleaguered by the same
Negation and despair,
Show an affirming flame.
— W.H. Auden, Sept. 1, 1939
Reposted by Raphael Bousso
Masked government agents are conducting “show me your papers” stops, detaining 5-year-olds to use them as bait, and brutally murdering U.S. citizens.
Call it what it is — fascism.
History will not look fondly on politicians and so-called "leaders" of this country who stood by and enabled this.
Call it what it is — fascism.
History will not look fondly on politicians and so-called "leaders" of this country who stood by and enabled this.
January 25, 2026 at 1:24 AM
Masked government agents are conducting “show me your papers” stops, detaining 5-year-olds to use them as bait, and brutally murdering U.S. citizens.
Call it what it is — fascism.
History will not look fondly on politicians and so-called "leaders" of this country who stood by and enabled this.
Call it what it is — fascism.
History will not look fondly on politicians and so-called "leaders" of this country who stood by and enabled this.
“They weaponized decency, the last incorruptible defense we have against absolute misery and evil.”
Column | The abhorrent power of the photograph of a 5-year-old held by ICE
An image like this could once change history. Can one still?
www.washingtonpost.com
January 23, 2026 at 6:00 AM
“They weaponized decency, the last incorruptible defense we have against absolute misery and evil.”
"We have three years left with a mad king. It does not feel sustainable."
Opinion | Trump’s Norway Letter Proves This Isn’t Sustainable
www.nytimes.com
January 22, 2026 at 5:25 PM
"We have three years left with a mad king. It does not feel sustainable."
Great work deporting those dangerous criminals. Brave ICE heroes putting themselves in harm's way for our protection
ICE detains four children from Minnesota school district, including 5-year-old
Columbia Heights Public Schools district officials accused ICE officers of using the 5-year-old “as bait.” A 10-year-old and her mother were also detained.
wapo.st
January 22, 2026 at 5:21 PM
Great work deporting those dangerous criminals. Brave ICE heroes putting themselves in harm's way for our protection
Classic Onion Headline, except it’s in The NY Times
January 8, 2026 at 7:55 PM
Classic Onion Headline, except it’s in The NY Times
Reposted by Raphael Bousso
Hmm. The best evidence that dark energy is evolving rather than constant just got a little weaker.
The statistical significance of observational results don’t really have “momentum,” but we’ll have to continue to wait and see about this one.
The statistical significance of observational results don’t really have “momentum,” but we’ll have to continue to wait and see about this one.
A little less than a year ago, a large team of cosmologists reported evidence that dark energy (which drives the acceleration of the expansion of the Universe) evolves over time. This made a huge splash but has also been viewed with healthy skepticism. Today they report that evidence has weakened. 🧪
The Dark Energy Survey Supernova Program: A Reanalysis Of Cosmology Results And Evidence For Evolving Dark Energy With An Updated Type Ia Supernova Calibration
We present improved cosmological constraints from a re-analysis of the Dark Energy Survey (DES) 5-year sample of Type Ia supernovae (DES-SN5YR). This re-analysis includes an improved photometric cross...
arxiv.org
November 12, 2025 at 12:11 PM
Hmm. The best evidence that dark energy is evolving rather than constant just got a little weaker.
The statistical significance of observational results don’t really have “momentum,” but we’ll have to continue to wait and see about this one.
The statistical significance of observational results don’t really have “momentum,” but we’ll have to continue to wait and see about this one.
Congratulations to my wonderful colleague John Clarke! And to Berkeley, and to UC. And to everyone who still believes that foundational research is worth investing in
John Clarke, UC Berkeley emeritus professor, awarded 2025 Nobel Prize in Physics | Letters & Science
ls.berkeley.edu
October 7, 2025 at 11:55 PM
Congratulations to my wonderful colleague John Clarke! And to Berkeley, and to UC. And to everyone who still believes that foundational research is worth investing in
Reposted by Raphael Bousso
3 new Physics Nobel Laureates from the University of California! 🥂🤙 (and one less parking space for the rest of us at Berkeley 🙃)
October 7, 2025 at 10:03 AM
3 new Physics Nobel Laureates from the University of California! 🥂🤙 (and one less parking space for the rest of us at Berkeley 🙃)
Everything is completely normal. Nothing to see here
September 18, 2025 at 10:16 PM
Everything is completely normal. Nothing to see here
Reposted by Raphael Bousso
Industrial scale corruption
www.nytimes.com/2025/09/15/u...
www.nytimes.com/2025/09/15/u...
Anatomy of Two Giant Deals: The U.A.E. Got Chips. The Trump Team Got Crypto Riches.
www.nytimes.com
September 15, 2025 at 3:53 PM
Industrial scale corruption
www.nytimes.com/2025/09/15/u...
www.nytimes.com/2025/09/15/u...
“The damage that has been done to our world-leading scientific research infrastructure will take decades to repair, if we are ever able to.”
Far Out | Sean M. Carroll, Willa Glickman
As scientists and researchers make sense of some of the major discoveries from the turn of the twenty-first century, “the present moment in the science of
www.nybooks.com
August 17, 2025 at 9:28 PM
“The damage that has been done to our world-leading scientific research infrastructure will take decades to repair, if we are ever able to.”
A public lecture/fireside chat at a pub in Marin, hosted by Wonderfest
Gravity as a Quantum Computer – Dr. Raphael Bousso (UC Berkeley)
YouTube video by Wonderfest Science
youtu.be
August 2, 2025 at 8:52 PM
A public lecture/fireside chat at a pub in Marin, hosted by Wonderfest
(Hint: bad but probably not the worst. Also, we do have a solution.)
The worst prediction in the history of science
New scientific accounts of the universe are expected to fit with observation and predicted results from established theories. But at the heart of modern physics, there's reason to think this is not th...
iai.tv
July 27, 2025 at 6:55 AM
(Hint: bad but probably not the worst. Also, we do have a solution.)
Reposted by Raphael Bousso
On behalf of the hundreds of thousands of children he killed?
Elon says he was punched in the face by his 5-year-old son.
May 30, 2025 at 7:02 PM
On behalf of the hundreds of thousands of children he killed?
Rubio just told 275000 people who did nothing wrong that he plans to destroy everything they worked for their entire life. This is utter madness and depravity
U.S. Will ‘Aggressively’ Revoke Visas of Chinese Students, Rubio Says
www.nytimes.com
May 29, 2025 at 3:09 AM
Rubio just told 275000 people who did nothing wrong that he plans to destroy everything they worked for their entire life. This is utter madness and depravity
In a universe with many matter fields, the geometry does not fluctuate. Then we know what we mean by the Generalized Second Law of Thermodynamics, and we know what we mean by a Bounce (or cyclic) Cosmology. My recent theorem says you can't have both.
Do singularities exist? I'd always thought they were purely mathematical artifacts, but recent work in mathematical physics work from @bousso.bsky.social and others hint otherwise (for sufficiently broad definitions of "singularities" and "exist").
www.quantamagazine.org/singularitie...
www.quantamagazine.org/singularitie...
Singularities in Space-Time Prove Hard to Kill | Quanta Magazine
Black hole and Big Bang singularities break our best theory of gravity. A trilogy of theorems hints that physicists will need to go to the ends of space and time to find a fix.
www.quantamagazine.org
May 27, 2025 at 5:44 PM
In a universe with many matter fields, the geometry does not fluctuate. Then we know what we mean by the Generalized Second Law of Thermodynamics, and we know what we mean by a Bounce (or cyclic) Cosmology. My recent theorem says you can't have both.
Reposted by Raphael Bousso
Do singularities exist? I'd always thought they were purely mathematical artifacts, but recent work in mathematical physics work from @bousso.bsky.social and others hint otherwise (for sufficiently broad definitions of "singularities" and "exist").
www.quantamagazine.org/singularitie...
www.quantamagazine.org/singularitie...
Singularities in Space-Time Prove Hard to Kill | Quanta Magazine
Black hole and Big Bang singularities break our best theory of gravity. A trilogy of theorems hints that physicists will need to go to the ends of space and time to find a fix.
www.quantamagazine.org
May 27, 2025 at 2:42 PM
Do singularities exist? I'd always thought they were purely mathematical artifacts, but recent work in mathematical physics work from @bousso.bsky.social and others hint otherwise (for sufficiently broad definitions of "singularities" and "exist").
www.quantamagazine.org/singularitie...
www.quantamagazine.org/singularitie...
Science in the US is being actively destroyed simply by deliberately doing nothing. This article does not mention DOE, NSF, etc but it’s the same story. Processing freeze means: grants appear on paper but disappear in real life
The hidden ways Trump, DOGE are shutting down parts of the U.S. government
Limits on spending have incapacitated parts of agencies as varied as the National Park Service and the Pentagon.
www.washingtonpost.com
May 12, 2025 at 3:37 AM
Science in the US is being actively destroyed simply by deliberately doing nothing. This article does not mention DOE, NSF, etc but it’s the same story. Processing freeze means: grants appear on paper but disappear in real life