Normally, electrons in wires collide with atoms and lose energy. But superconductors carry current without losses: in them, electrons move in pairs. The paradox is that like charges repel, making it harder for them to pair up than for magnets with the same poles. In copper-oxygen crystals, the environment solves this problem. Missing electrons ('holes') create crowding, like in a packed subway car where strangers are pressed together. Many years ago, John Bardeen suggested that electron repulsion could be turned into attraction through collective effects. In the quantum world, the field of particles rearranges itself via superposition of states and energy uncertainty, giving rise to entanglement. The repulsion is screened, and electrons stick together in pairs — a single quantum 'soup', flowing without friction. This mechanism, based on quantum thermodynamics, explains the material's phases from magnet to the mysterious 'strange metal'. The main surprise: it requires a very specific density of holes, just a little more, and the pairs break apart. Understanding this promises superconductors that work without cooling.