  The cores of compact stars reach the highest densities in nature and
therefore could consist of novel phases of matter. We demonstrate via a
detailed analysis of pulsar evolution that precise pulsar timing data can
constrain the star's composition, through unstable global oscillations
(r-modes) whose damping is determined by microscopic properties of the
interior. If not efficiently damped, these modes emit gravitational waves that
quickly spin down a millisecond pulsar. As a first application of this general
method, we find that ungapped interacting quark matter is consistent with both
the observed radio and x-ray data, whereas for ordinary nuclear matter some
additional enhanced damping mechanism is required.
