NASA-NOAA satellite tracking Tropical Cyclone Kenanga

Tropical Cyclone Kenanga was at hurricane-force when NASA-NOAA's Suomi NPP satellite grabbed a visible image of the storm in the Southern Indian Ocean on Dec. 18. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

Trees grow more efficient leaves to compensate for hurricane damage

Some tree species heal from the ravages of hurricane damage by growing replacement leaves optimized for greater efficiency, according to a Clemson University field study presented at the British Ecological Society's annual conference. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

Criminal history strong indicator for future violent crime

A life sentence in many states rarely means offenders will spend a lifetime behind bars. In fact, offenders sentenced for murder served just 15 years on average before initial release from state prison, according to a recent Bureau of Justice Statistics report using national-leve … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

Unfair treatment by police linked to physiological impacts among black men

Advocates of proactive policing model argue that stopping and searching law abiding citizens is a minor inconvenience. However, researchers from Florida State University have found it might actually be getting under the skin of black men—literally. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

Scientists develop method to visualize a genetic mutation

A team of scientists has developed a method that yields, for the first time, visualization of a gene amplifications and deletions known as copy number variants in single cells. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

Dive-bombing for love: Male hummingbirds dazzle females with a highly synchronized display

When it comes to flirting, animals know how to put on a show. In the bird world, males often go to great lengths to attract female attention, like peacocks shaking their tail feathers and manakins performing complex dance moves. These behaviors often stimulate multiple senses, ma … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

New megalibrary approach proves useful for the rapid discovery of new materials

Different eras of civilization are defined by the discovery of new materials, as new materials drive new capabilities. And yet, identifying the best material for a given application—catalysts, light-harvesting structures, biodiagnostic labels, pharmaceuticals and electronic devic … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

GlueX completes first phase

An experiment that aims to gain new insight into the force that binds all matter together has recently completed its first phase of data collection at the U.S. Department of Energy's Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

Understanding dynamic stall at high speeds

When a bird in flight lands, it performs a rapid pitch-up maneuver during the perching process to keep from overshooting the branch or telephone wire. In aerodynamics, that action produces a complex phenomenon known as dynamic stall. Although many fixed-wing aircraft can withstan … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

Automakers denounce 'unrealistic' EU emissions targets

German and other European automakers warned Tuesday that EU plans to slash carbon dioxide emissions from new cars and vans by 2030 are "totally unrealistic" without a network to recharge electric cars and more effort to retrain workers. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

Elon Musk's SpaceX set to raise $500 mn: report

Elon Musk's rocket company SpaceX plans to raise $500 million to help launch its satellite internet service, The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

Disaster-linked losses in 2018 hit $155 billion: Swiss Re

Losses from natural and man-made disasters are estimated to total $155 billion (136 billion euros) this year, down sharply from a hurricane-plagued 2017, the reinsurance giant Swiss Re said Tuesday. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

NASA's 1st flight to moon, Apollo 8, marks 50th anniversary

Fifty years ago on Christmas Eve, a tumultuous year of assassinations, riots and war drew to a close in heroic and hopeful fashion with the three Apollo 8 astronauts reading from the Book of Genesis on live TV as they orbited the moon. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

Dream of augmented humans endures, despite sceptics

Brain implants, longer lives, genetically modified humans: for the prophets of transhumanism—the scientifically assisted evolution of humans beyond our current limitations—it is just a matter of time. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

Trump directs Pentagon to create 'Space Command'

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday ordered the creation of "Space Command," a new organizational structure within the Pentagon that will have overall control of military space operations. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

Scary statistic: 90.5 percent of plastic is not recycled

The world's burgeoning plastic waste crisis has won the attention of Britain's Royal Statistical Society, which chose 90.5 percent—the proportion of plastic waste that has never been recycled—as its international statistic of the year. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

Upwind wind plants can reduce flow to downwind neighbors

New National Science Foundation and Department of Energy-funded research highlights a previously unexplored consequence of the global proliferation of wind energy facilities: a wake effect from upwind facilities that can reduce the energy production of their downwind neighbors. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

The importance of 'edge populations' to biodiversity

More than two-thirds of Canada's biodiversity is made up of species that occur within the country's borders only at the very northern edge of their range. Biologists have long debated how much effort should be dedicated to conserving these "edge populations." One argument in thei … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

Extraordinary 'faithful father' revealed by study of smooth guardian frog of Borneo

Stay-at-home dads might find their spirit animal in the smooth guardian frog of Borneo. A new pair of research papers authored by an investigator at the University of Kansas shows the male of the smooth guardian frog species (Limnonectes palavanensis) is a kind of amphibian "Mr. … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

Research points to chemical and sensory cues that trigger infant-directed aggressive behavior in male mice

It may seem like one of the cruelest aspects of the natural world, but research has shown that infanticide is actually an instinctive behavior in many animals—and Catherine Dulac has begun deciphering the chemical and other sensory cues that drive the behavior. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

Recruiting ants to fight weeds on the farm

Harvester ants that eat weed seeds on the soil's surface can help farmers manage weeds on their farms, according to an international team of researchers, who found that tilling less to preserve the ants could save farmers fuel and labor costs, as well as preserve water and improv … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

Fossils suggest flowers originated 50 million years earlier than thought

Scientists have described a fossil plant species that suggests flowers bloomed in the Early Jurassic, more than 174 million years ago, according to new research in the open-access journal eLife. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

Peering into Little Foot's 3.67 million-year-old brain

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@phys.org | 5 years ago

Why are people religious? A cognitive perspective

The quick and easy answer to why people are religious is that God – in whichever form you believe he/she/they take(s) – is real and people believe because they communicate with it and perceive evidence of its involvement in the world. Only 16% of people worldwide are not religiou … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

A new model of ice friction helps scientists understand how glaciers flow

Since the early 20th century, nearly all of Earth's glaciers have been retreating or melting. Glaciers cover 10 percent of the planet's land area and contain 75 percent of our fresh water. Moreover, the water from melting glaciers accounts for nearly two-thirds of the observed ri … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

Scientists gain insights into traffic cop function of gene expression protein

Scientists at the UNC School of Medicine have discovered a crucial quality-control mechanism inside cells that, when it fails, might contribute to major diseases including cancers. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

Flexible thermoelectric generator module: a silver bullet to fix waste energy issues

A team of researchers led by Osaka University developed an inexpensive large-scale flexible thermoelectric generator (FlexTEG) module with high mechanical reliability for highly efficient power generation. Through a change in direction of the top electrodes at the two sides of th … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

Mystery of coronae around supermassive black holes deepens

Researchers from RIKEN and JAXA have used observations from the ALMA radio observatory located in northern Chile and managed by an international consortium including the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ) to measure, for the first time, the strength of magnetic fie … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

Evidence for prison sentence discrimination against Muslims 'weak'

Offenders sentenced to prison who have Muslim names do not appear to be receiving unfairly long sentences, according to a new study of more than 8,000 UK Crown Court sentencing decisions. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

Researchers 'dig in' to how seed fraud impacts Kenyan farmers

For farmers, a productive harvest can mean money in the bank. Poor yield due to drought, pests and other environmental factors, on the other hand, can threaten livelihoods. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

California teens who volunteer and engage in civic life are healthier, aim higher in education, study finds

High school teens in California who volunteer, take part in community aid groups, and join school or other clubs are healthier and more likely to aspire to attending college, according to a study by the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

Pathogen predicament: How bacteria propel themselves out of a tight spot

Scientists have deciphered how some types of "swimming" bacteria have evolved to be able to escape when trapped in small spaces. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

Takeaway containers—the environmental cost of packing our favorite fast-foods

Scientists say more should be done to tackle the growing environmental impact of takeaway food containers. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

Solution to determine emotions of people in group photographs

The saying goes that a picture is worth a thousand words. But what if you can't tell what the picture shows? From awkward family photos to class photographs, sometimes it's tricky to tell what the people in the pictures are thinking. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

Nucleation of liquids visualised

Researchers from the UvA's Institute of Physics (IoP) and Leiden University have found a new way to visualise and measure the nucleation process responsible for the formation of liquid droplets in vapour. Their findings, published this week in Physical Review Letters, improve our … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

The Saturn Nebula reveals its complexity

A planetary nebula is the corpse that remains when a star dies. When planetary nebulae were observed for the first time with a telescope, they presented a roughly circular shape, resembling that of the gas giant planets. Hence their name, which remains in use even though they are … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

Is it unethical to give your cat catnip?

As the Christmas season gets underway thoughts turn to buying gifts for the entire family. For some, companion animals are on the gift list, particularly cats and dogs who share our homes and hearts. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

Rewilding war zones can help heal the wounds of conflict

Where the Iron Curtain once divided Europe with barbed wire, a network of wilderness with bears, wolves and lynx now thrives. Commemorating 100 years since the end of World War I, people wear poppies to evoke the vast fields of red flowers which grew over the carnage of Europe's … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

New environmental indicator for evaluating the positive climate impacts of products

VTT and LUT University alongside with Finnish companies have developed a method and guidelines for evaluating and communicating on the carbon handprint of products. The carbon handprint describes the positive climate impacts of a product. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

How to avoid overspending: uncover the psychology behind why people buy

Between 40% and 80% of purchases are impulse buys. Marketers often get blamed for this, but while marketing tactics may be cynical, manipulative, and even deceptive, shoppers are generally wise to their ways. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

Magnetoresistance ratio enhancement in Heusler-based alloy

Magnetic field sensors can enhance applications that require efficient electric energy management. Improving magnetic field sensors below the picoTesla range could enable a technique to measure brain activity at room temperature with millisecond resolution—called magnetic encepha … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago

Ozone levels are decreasing, but exposure of forests remains high

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@phys.org | 5 years ago

Assessing the promise of gallium oxide as an ultrawide bandgap semiconductor

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@phys.org | 5 years ago

Cargo ships are emitting boatloads of carbon, and nobody wants to take the blame

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@phys.org | 5 years ago

Advanced digital networks look a lot like the human nervous system

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@phys.org | 5 years ago

Smart charging keeps power grid from overloading

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@phys.org | 5 years ago

Oroville Dam earthquakes in February 2017 related to spillway discharge

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@phys.org | 5 years ago

The Anglo-Saxons were worse than the Vikings

The Vikings invaded England in the 9th and 10th centuries. They plundered, raped and burned towns to the ground. Or at least, this is the story we know from school and popular culture. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 5 years ago