It's great that the popular press still runs science articles.
What's not so great:
1. There is no link to the original paper.
2. The description of the phenomenon has been so contorted that it's impossible to understand exactly what was found or its significance.
The article notes:
> “Somehow, these potassium atoms decide to divide up into two loosely linked sub-lattices,” Hermann says. But as scientists turned up the heat, x-ray images showed the four chains disappearing, and researchers argued about what exactly was happening.
Fine, there's debate about how to explain the experiment.
> The computer models confirmed that between about 20,000 and 40,000 times atmospheric pressure and 400 to 800 Kelvin (260 to 980 degrees Fahrenheit), the potassium entered what’s called a chain-melted state, in which the chains dissolved into liquid while the remaining potassium crystals stayed solid.
That's just one explanation consistent with the data. Clearly, there are others.
The article gives the false impression that some smoking gun has been found. Far from it.
What's not so great:
1. There is no link to the original paper.
2. The description of the phenomenon has been so contorted that it's impossible to understand exactly what was found or its significance.
The article notes:
> “Somehow, these potassium atoms decide to divide up into two loosely linked sub-lattices,” Hermann says. But as scientists turned up the heat, x-ray images showed the four chains disappearing, and researchers argued about what exactly was happening.
Fine, there's debate about how to explain the experiment.
> The computer models confirmed that between about 20,000 and 40,000 times atmospheric pressure and 400 to 800 Kelvin (260 to 980 degrees Fahrenheit), the potassium entered what’s called a chain-melted state, in which the chains dissolved into liquid while the remaining potassium crystals stayed solid.
That's just one explanation consistent with the data. Clearly, there are others.
The article gives the false impression that some smoking gun has been found. Far from it.