Agnetic fields could hold the key to star formation

Astronomers have discovered new magnetic fields in space, which could shed light on how stars are formed and uncover the mysteries behind one of the most famous celestial images. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

New research uses sound waves to amplify light

Yale scientists have created a new type of silicon laser that uses sounds waves to amplify light. A study about the discovery appears June 8 in the online edition of the journal Science. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

500-year-old Leaning Tower of Pisa mystery unveiled by engineers

Why has the Leaning Tower of Pisa survived the strong earthquakes that have hit the region since the middle ages? This is a long-standing question a research group of 16 engineers has investigated, including a leading expert in earthquake engineering and soil-structure interactio … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

Amazon unveils nearly hands-free streaming TV device

Alexa for couch potatoes is coming: Amazon's new streaming TV device will let users shout out when they want to turn on the TV, flip channels or search for sitcoms—all without pushing any buttons. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

Scientists discover bees understand the concept of zero

Scientists have discovered honeybees can understand the concept of zero, putting them in an elite club of clever animals that can grasp the abstract mathematical notion of nothing. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

Juno solves 39-year old mystery of Jupiter lightning

Ever since NASA's Voyager 1 spacecraft flew past Jupiter in March, 1979, scientists have wondered about the origin of Jupiter's lightning. That encounter confirmed the existence of Jovian lightning, which had been theorized for centuries. But when the venerable explorer hurtled b … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

Flying car startup backed by Google founder offers test flights

A flying car project backed by Google co-founder Larry Page was closer to take-off on Wednesday, with a model for test flights by aspiring buyers. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

As solar wind blows, our heliosphere balloons

What happens when the solar wind suddenly starts to blow significantly harder? According to two recent studies, the boundaries of our entire solar system balloon outward—and an analysis of particles rebounding off of its edges will reveal its new shape. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

New tools reveal prelude to chaos

Picture a herd of sheep or cattle emerging from a shed or barn to graze a field. They head straight out of their digs to the pleasure of the pasture pretty much as one entity, but as the land opens up and the "grass gets greener" they disperse randomly in a motion that has neithe … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

Transferring quantum information using sound

Quantum physics has led to new types of sensors, secure data transmission methods and researchers are working toward computers. However, the main obstacle is finding the right way to couple and precisely control a sufficient number of quantum systems (for example, individual atom … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

Scientists find pre-earthquake activity in central Alaska

Earth scientists consistently look for a reliable way to forecast earthquakes. New research from University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute professor Carl Tape may help in that endeavor, due to a unique set of circumstances. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

Quantum stopwatch stores time in a quantum memory

Physicists have developed a "quantum stopwatch"—a method that stores time (in the form of states of quantum clocks) in a quantum memory. In doing so, the method avoids the accumulation of errors that usually occurs when measuring the duration of a sequence of events. In this way, … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

Globular clusters 4B years younger than previously thought

Globular clusters could be up to 4 billion years younger than previously thought, new research led by the University of Warwick has found. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

Quantum is key to securing blockchain

Although blockchain is traditionally seen as secure, it is vulnerable to attack from quantum computers. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

German spy agency can keep tabs on internet hubs: court

Germany's spy agency can monitor major internet hubs if Berlin deems it necessary for strategic security interests, a federal court has ruled. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

Team discover how microbes survive clean rooms and contaminate spacecraft

Rakesh Mogul, a Cal Poly Pomona professor of biological chemistry, was the lead author of an article in the journal Astrobiology that offers the first biochemical evidence explaining the reason the contamination persists. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

NASA CubeSats steer toward Mars

NASA has achieved a first for the class of tiny spacecraft known as CubeSats, which are opening new access to space. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

Massive AI Twitter probe draws heat map of entrepreneurial personality

A world's first QUT-led study has used artificial intelligence to analyse regional personality characteristics estimated solely from language patterns in 1.5 billion Twitter posts and uncover hotspots and cold spots of entrepreneurial personality and activity across the US. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

AI-based method could speed development of specialized nanoparticles

A new technique developed by MIT physicists could someday provide a way to custom-design multilayered nanoparticles with desired properties, potentially for use in displays, cloaking systems, or biomedical devices. It may also help physicists tackle a variety of thorny research p … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

A 'self-eating' rocket engine could put satellites in orbit more easily

A 'self-eating' rocket engine which could place small satellites in orbit more easily and more affordably is under development at universities in Scotland and Ukraine. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

Emissions of banned ozone-eating chemical somehow are rising

Something strange is happening with a now-banned chemical that eats away at Earth's protective ozone layer: Scientists say there's more of it—not less—going into the atmosphere and they don't know where it is coming from. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

Evidence found of magnetism at the edges of graphene

A team of researchers from the U.K., Germany and Russia has found evidence of magnetism at the edges of graphene. In their paper published in the journal Nature, the researchers describe how they made their discovery and why they believe it is important. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

Researchers have identified 121 giant planets that may have habitable moons

We've all heard about the search for life on other planets, but what about looking on other moons? | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

Scientists develop material that could regenerate dental enamel

Researchers at Queen Mary University of London have developed a new way to grow mineralised materials which could regenerate hard tissues such as dental enamel and bone. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

Gravitational wave event likely signaled creation of a black hole

The spectacular merger of two neutron stars that generated gravitational waves announced last fall likely did something else: birthed a black hole. This newly spawned black hole would be the lowest mass black hole ever found. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

Facebook sinking fast among US teens: survey

Facebook is rapidly losing ground against rival internet platforms in attracting and keeping US teenagers, a survey showed Thursday. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

Earth slows the solar wind to a gentle breeze

As Earth orbits the sun at supersonic speed, it cuts a path through the solar wind. This fast stream of charged particles, or plasma, launched from the sun's outer layers would bombard Earth's atmosphere if not for the protection of Earth's magnetic field. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

Why do older male birds father more illegitimate children?

When female birds have chicks as the result of an extra-marital fling, the fathers are almost always older males, and scientists are finding out why. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

Atomic-scale manufacturing now a reality

Scientists at the University of Alberta have applied a machine learning technique using artificial intelligence to perfect and automate atomic-scale manufacturing, something which has never been done before. The vastly greener, faster, smaller technology enabled by this developme … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

Ocean waves play greater role in trapping CO2 than previously understood

For decades scientists have investigated the influence of the world's oceans in trapping greenhouse gasses. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

Britain's supply of electric cars at risk from Brexit: think-tank

Britain risks a shortage of electric cars after Brexit as carmakers will lose an incentive to sell low-emission vehicles there, a Brussels-based think-tank warned. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

How a particle may stand still in rotating spacetime

When a massive astrophysical object, such as a boson star or black hole, rotates, it can cause the surrounding spacetime to rotate along with it due to the effect of frame dragging. In a new paper, physicists have shown that a particle with just the right properties may stand per … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

Could a particle accelerator using laser-driven implosion become a reality?

Laser pulse compression technology invented in the late 1980s resulted in high-power, short-pulse laser techniques, enhancing laser intensity 10 million-fold in a quarter of a century. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

Mars rocks may harbor signs of life from four billion years ago

Iron-rich rocks near ancient lake sites on Mars could hold vital clues that show life once existed there, research suggests. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

Bumblebees confused by iridescent colors

Iridescence is a form of structural colour which uses regular repeating nanostructures to reflect light at slightly different angles, causing a colour-change effect. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

New evidence for existence of Planet Nine

A large international team of researchers has found what they are describing as more evidence of the existence of Planet Nine. In their paper posted on the arXiv preprint server, the group describes the behavior of a newly discovered distant object as suggestive of an influence o … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

A simple mechanism could have been decisive for the development of life

The question of the origin of life remains one of the oldest unanswered scientific questions. A team at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) has now shown for the first time that phase separation is an extremely efficient way of controlling the selection of chemical building … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

How can you tell if a quantum memory is really quantum?

Quantum memories are devices that can store quantum information for a later time, which are usually implemented by storing and re-emitting photons with certain quantum states. But often it's difficult to tell whether a memory is storing quantum or merely classical information. In … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

Pairing AI with optical scanning for real-world product authentication

Today IBM Research is introducing IBM Crypto Anchor Verifier, a new technology that brings innovations in AI and optical imaging together to help prove the identity and authenticity of objects. We're rolling this technology out with one of our first clients, GIA (Gemological Inst … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

Tech 'Nobel' awarded to Finnish physicist for small smart devices

Finnish materials physicist Tuomo Suntola, who developed a groundbreaking technology to reduce the size of complex devices, on Tuesday won Finland's take on the Nobel science prizes. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

A hidden world of communication, chemical warfare, beneath the soil

The soil supporting a field of crops teems with life. Untold numbers of bacteria and fungi strive for space and food. Most are harmless. Many are vital to creating healthy soil. But farmers worry about a handful of species that cause devastating crop diseases, and they often turn … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

Nanoparticles derived from tea leaves destroy lung cancer cells

Nanoparticles derived from tea leaves inhibit the growth of lung cancer cells, destroying up to 80% of them, new research by a joint Swansea University and Indian team has shown. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

Oogle pushes artificial intelligence for upgraded news app

For its updated news application, Google is doubling down on the use of artificial intelligence as part of an effort to weed our disinformation and help users get viewpoints beyond their own "filter bubble." | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

Giraffes surprise biologists yet again

New research from the University of Bristol has highlighted how little we know about giraffe behaviour and ecology. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

Platform for mobile networks would bring services up to speeds of 100 Gbps

Even though mobile internet link speeds might soon achieve 100 Gbps, this doesn't necessarily mean network carriers will be free of data-handling challenges that effectively slow down mobile data services, for everything from individual device users to billions of Internet-of-Thi … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

New catalyst upgrades greenhouse gas into renewable hydrocarbons

A new technology from U of T Engineering is taking a substantial step towards enabling manufacturers to create plastics out of two key ingredients: sunshine and pollution. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

New theory describes intricacies of a splashing droplet

As a single raindrop falls to the ground, it can splash back up in a crown-like sheet, spraying smaller droplets from its rim before sinking back to the surface—all in the blink of an eye. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago

Astronomers find fastest-growing black hole known in space

Astronomers at ANU have found the fastest-growing black hole known in the Universe, describing it as a monster that devours a mass equivalent to our sun every two days. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 6 years ago