The physical laws that we know were born in the Big Bang and allowed the formation of atoms, particles, stars, planets, and galaxies. We know that each of these entities is governed by different rules, but we also know that there are rules that apply regardless of scale. Perhaps this is why dark matter filaments resemble the axons of neurons, or "universal" mathematics appears that explains the movement of particles and the evolution of epidemics.

This week a study published in Nature Physics has unveiled the universal principles of self-assembly, a process by which particles of very different sizes, from atoms to small balls, are grouped together. The researchers have used laser pulses to create temperature differences capable of facilitating this assembly, both in small particles and in whole cells, emulating a relevant process in the formation of crystals or multicellular organisms. But perhaps the interesting thing is that knowing these universal principles of self-assembly could have many different applications.

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