Cosmic Crossword 2024

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Across
  1. 1. The graph that tells the story of rising CO2.
  2. 6. Nature’s endless loop of carbon through air, water, and earth.
  3. 10. The spacecraft that carried Yuri Gagarin into orbit.
  4. 11. A realm of icy objects and dwarf planets beyond Neptune.
  5. 12. The catastrophic asteroid impact that rewrote Earth’s biological script.
  6. 14. Ambitious project to send tiny spacecraft to neighboring stars.
  7. 15. According to Sapolsky, free will would be proven if this could act on its own independent of prior cause.
  8. 16. The rapid rotation of Venus’s atmosphere, far exceeding its surface rotation.
  9. 17. Heat bouncing off greenhouse gases, keeping Earth warmer.
  10. 18. Early Jurassic mammal nicknamed “Morgie.”
  11. 19. Saturn’s explorer, revealing its rings and moons.
  12. 23. NASA’s planned lunar hub for deeper space missions.
  13. 24. NASA’s successful Mars missions from the 1970s.
  14. 25. Substellar objects too small to ignite nuclear fusion.
  15. 27. The method of understanding complex systems by breaking them into simpler components.
  16. 29. A thought experiment featuring a being capable of perfect prediction if it knew the precise location and momentum of every particle.
  17. 32. Thresholds where small changes unleash irreversible climate impacts.
  18. 38. Fertilizing life outside the womb—a modern marvel.
  19. 39. Bohannon’s pick for humanity’s most game-changing invention.
  20. 41. Energy produced by splitting atomic nuclei.
  21. 42. This Eve was a "handy woman."
  22. 44. The ingenious “backwash” mechanism aiding mother-infant immunity.
  23. 45. The nearly unsolvable task of predicting the motion of three gravitationally interacting bodies.
  24. 49. Human spacecraft currently exploring interstellar space.
  25. 51. Venusian volcanic formations, flat and circular.
  26. 54. Named after Vulcan, the fiery Roman god.
  27. 58. Saturn’s moon with methane lakes and a dense atmosphere.
  28. 62. Groundbreaking effort to map humanity’s genetic blueprint.
  29. 63. Purgi; the pioneering genus of primates, a small step into the primate lineage.
  30. 65. A phenomenon where particles influence each other instantaneously over vast distances.
  31. 66. A hypothetical megastructure harvesting a star’s full energy.
  32. 67. High-speed transportation system operating in low-pressure tubes.
  33. 68. The first human in space, an icon of exploration.
  34. 69. The universe’s properties are naturally-tuned for our existence.
  35. 71. Neptune’s massive storm, a rival to Jupiter’s Red Spot.
  36. 72. Probe that landed on Titan, unveiling its mysterious surface.
  37. 73. The philosophy that every event, including moral decisions, is governed by prior causes.
  38. 74. The study of planets by comparing their features and processes.
  39. 75. A quantum mystery—when does a particle’s potential state collapse into reality?
  40. 76. Known as “Donna,” this species bridges the age of dinosaurs and mammals.
Down
  1. 2. The study of hormones and their effects.
  2. 3. Lucy; the star ancestor who walked the Earth 3 million years ago.
  3. 4. The boundary where the Sun’s solar wind meets interstellar wind.
  4. 5. The quantum counterpart to a classical computing bit.
  5. 6. Hypothesis that physics prevents time travel paradoxes.
  6. 7. The philosophy prioritizing individual freedom, often clashing with determinism.
  7. 8. The birthplace of the Keeling Curve and modern climate science.
  8. 9. Misguided predictions from past futurists; Novella’s 10 rules aim to keep future visions on track.
  9. 13. A fusion of man and machine; better known as a cyborg.
  10. 15. The brain’s remarkable ability to rewire and adapt throughout life.
  11. 20. When greenhouse gases can’t absorb more heat.
  12. 21. Tiny pioneers that gave Earth its first breathable air.
  13. 22. When two particles are intertwined so that one’s state instantly determines the other’s, no matter the distance.
  14. 26. The assumption that humans are the universe’s pinnacle.
  15. 28. Sapolsky used the “Turtles all the way down” metaphor to illustrate this chain of causes.
  16. 30. Placental mammals thriving after the Chicxulub impact.
  17. 31. Ardi; a hominin who walked upright but still clung to the trees.
  18. 33. The capacity to override impulses, central to debates on free will.
  19. 34. Hameroff and Penrose suggest that consciousness and free will emerge from this sub-neuronal structure.
  20. 35. Neptune’s icy moon with a retrograde orbit.
  21. 36. The oceans’ subtle swelling as water warms and expands.
  22. 37. The biological clock’s final tick in women’s reproductive lives.
  23. 40. Hypothetical cloud of icy bodies at the edge of the solar system.
  24. 43. Greek for “wanderer”; celestial bodies in motion.
  25. 46. Ultra-cooperative communities, epitomized by bees and ants.
  26. 47. The ancestral mothers whose genes echo in us today.
  27. 48. The reason the sky appears blue on Earth.
  28. 50. Revolutionary gene-editing tool rewriting the rules of biology.
  29. 52. How complex phenomena arise from simple individual interactions.
  30. 53. Astronauts’ life-changing view of Earth from space.
  31. 55. The quantum state where particles exist in multiple configurations simultaneously.
  32. 56. A life-sustaining organ that’s part baby, part mom, all genius.
  33. 57. The tendency of a convicted person to reoffend.
  34. 59. How trapped gases heat a planet’s atmosphere.
  35. 60. The apparent motion of stars due to Earth’s orbit.
  36. 61. The philosophical stance reconciling free will with deterministic principles.
  37. 64. Chose the gasoline engine, shaping the cars of present day.
  38. 70. Energy generated by combining atomic nuclei.