Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · 27 August 2026 · From issue 28

Fundamental limits incorporating logical reasoning into Shannon’s information theory

A new formula sets the smallest message size needed to preserve logical conclusions, not just raw content.

Luis A. Lastras, Jonathan Lenchner et al.

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Also in issue 28 15 papers

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A computer model guesses wildfire causes, human or lightning, with 94.2% accuracy.
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Ancient seafloor vents lacked the strong chemical gradients needed to power the first life.
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In lab water, mild pressure alone triggered chemical reactions that turned carbon dioxide into methane gas.
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A computer method cut disagreement between physics experiments by up to 6 times.
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A new atom simulation method matches top tools while using simpler, more natural math.
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In a computer model, the cerebellum can gather evidence over time and steady decisions.
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A pulsar's light stayed steady through four spin-up glitches, unlike some similar stars.
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Big swings in deep water flow near the Labrador Sea mostly cancel each other out.
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A sensor glove measures tissue hardness and shape at once, in under half a second.
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Gut cells keep dying in a damaging chain reaction, even during medical remission.
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