Proposal for new water district sparks fear of Northern California 'water grab'

As California grapples with worsening cycles of drought, a proposal to create a new water district in Butte County has sparked fears of a profit-driven water grab by large-scale farmers and outside interests. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

'Unusual' ancient graves found near Arctic, but no remains discovered inside, study says

Just south of the Arctic Circle, within the vast forests of northern Finland, lies a sandy field dotted with dozens of "unusual" pits. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

NASA and Boeing chase jet contrails with science of climate impact in doubt

Scientific debate is getting heated over what to do about airplane contrails—the wispy lines of water vapor you often see trailing behind a jet. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

'Limbless' creature found digging beneath rotten tree in Vietnam: It's a new species

In Vietnam's driest and hottest region, a limbless forest creature took refuge under a rotten log, scrounging around for termites to eat. Suddenly, something lifted the nearly-blind animal into the air. It tried to defend itself, but to no avail. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

Indonesia's coal love affair still aflame despite pledges

Sania sits in front of her home in Indonesia, less than a kilometer from Southeast Asia's biggest coal complex, where chimneys pump dark gray smoke and a chemical smell into the air. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

Volunteer divers guard Oman's 'unique' coral reefs

On a sailing boat anchored off Oman's pristine Daymaniyat Islands, volunteer divers pull on wetsuits, check their scuba tanks and then take turns plunging into the clear turquoise water. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

11 bodies recovered after volcanic eruption in Indonesia, and 12 climbers are still missing

The bodies of 11 climbers were recovered Monday a day after a furious eruption of the Mount Marapi volcano as Indonesian rescuers searched for 12 apparently still missing. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

Following in polar bears' footprints: DNA from snow tracks could help monitor threatened animals

Polar bears are icons of the Arctic, elusive and vulnerable. Detailed monitoring of their populations is crucial for their conservation—but because polar bears are so difficult to find, we are missing critical data about population size and how well-connected those populations ar … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

Teaching physics from the din of flying discs

Disc golf is booming, with record numbers of players turning up each year to partake in the disc-throwing sport. It is also whizzing and whistling. In fact, the sound a disc makes while soaring through the air toward its target is full of information about how fast the disc is fl … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

Earth is running a fever. And UN climate talks are focusing on the contagious effect on human health

With Planet Earth running a fever, U.N. climate talks focused Sunday on the contagious effects on human health. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

El Niño helped steer storms away from U.S. this hurricane season. What about next year?

This year, a record-hot Atlantic Ocean went toe-to-toe with a strong El Niño for which weather phenomena would steer the hurricane season. The winner? | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

A six-planet solar system in perfect synchrony has been found in the Milky Way

Astronomers have discovered a rare in-sync solar system with six planets moving like a grand cosmic orchestra, untouched by outside forces since their birth billions of years ago. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

Bottlenose dolphins can sense electric fields, study shows

A small team of bio-scientists from the University of Rostock's Institute for Biosciences and Nuremberg Zoo's Behavioral Ecology and Conservation Lab, both in Germany, has found evidence that bottlenose dolphins can sense electric fields. In their study, reported in the Journal o … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

Nations rally behind renewables at COP28 climate talks

Nearly 120 nations pledged to triple the world's renewable energy within seven years at UN climate talks Saturday as the United States pushed to crank up nuclear capacity and slash methane emissions. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

To greenwash or do the right thing? Corporate dilemmas at COP28

They call the giant climate business expo running outside the COP28 United Nations talks in Dubai the "green zone". | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

As Dubai hosts climate talks, its air pollution soars

Dubai's glitzy skyline was obscured by a blanket of smog rated as "unhealthy" on Sunday as thousands of delegates attended a COP28 conference dedicated to the harmful effects of air pollution. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

50 oil and gas companies pledge to cut operational emissions

Fifty oil and gas companies representing 40 percent of global production pledged to decarbonize their operations by 2050 at the UN's COP28 climate talks in Dubai on Saturday. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

Maghreb farmers embrace drones to fight climate change

A drone buzzed back and forth above rows of verdant orange trees planted near Nabeul, eastern Tunisia. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

Strong earthquake that sparked a tsunami warning leaves 1 dead amid widespread panic in Philippines

A powerful earthquake that shook the southern Philippines killed at least one villager and injured several others as thousands scrambled out of their homes in panic and jammed roads to higher grounds after a tsunami warning was issued, officials said Sunday. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

New doubts over coral, safety at planned Olympic surf venue

The president of French Polynesia has questioned whether 2024 Olympic surfing can go ahead at the planned site in Tahiti, saying he was concerned about safety and damage to coral from a planned judging tower. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

New unified theory shows how past landscapes drove the evolution of Earth's rich diversity of life

Earth's surface is the living skin of our planet—it connects the physical, chemical and biological systems. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

As seas get warmer, tropical species are moving further from the equator

Climate change is causing tropical species in the ocean to move from the equator towards the poles, while temperate species recede. This mass movement of marine life, termed tropicalization, is leading to a cascade of consequences for ecosystems and biodiversity, and has the pote … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

Bashful golden mole detected in South Africa after 87 years

A golden mole that "swims" in sand has resurfaced in South Africa after 87 years in the wilderness when many specialists feared it had become extinct, researchers have said. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

Toxic chemicals in UK whales and dolphins are exceeding safe limits

Almost half of marine mammals around the UK are being poisoned by banned chemicals. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

A new possible explanation for the Hubble tension

The universe is expanding. How fast it does so is described by the so-called Hubble-Lemaitre constant. But there is a dispute about how big this constant actually is: Different measurement methods provide contradictory values. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

Saturday Citations: Adorable kittens, violent pulsars, brand-new fusion reactor and a proposed giant cosmic void

This week in our wrap up, we lull you into a false sense of security with adorable lion cubs then ambush you with terrifying pulsars. We do this not out of a sense of malice but to prepare your mind for the possibility of a giant cosmic void. Also, Japan has launched a new fusion … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

Massive planet too big for its own sun pushes astronomers to rethink exoplanet formation

Imagine you're a farmer searching for eggs in the chicken coop—but instead of a chicken egg, you find an ostrich egg, much larger than anything a chicken could lay. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

US leads call to triple nuclear power at COP28

More than 20 nations including the United States called for a tripling of nuclear energy to drive down emissions on Saturday as world leaders assembled for a second day at UN climate talks in Dubai. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

Agriculture officials confirm 25th case of cattle anthrax in North Dakota this year

A new case of cattle anthrax has been confirmed in southwest North Dakota's Grant County, bringing the number of cases in the state to 25 this year, according to state agriculture officials. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

Over 110 countries support tripling renewables by 2030: EU chief

More than 110 countries want the COP28 climate negotiations to adopt a goal of tripling renewable energy and doubling energy efficiency by 2030, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Friday. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

Botany must feature more prominently on the school curriculum to promote awareness of climate change, study warns

Children must be taught more about the importance of plants if education about climate change and sustainability is to be effective, experts have warned. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

Social media influencers may affect more than voter opinions

If Thanksgiving dinner conversations have turned into heated political arguments over the past two decades, social media may be to blame. Popular social media figures—or influencers—who create or share distorted political messages may cause political parties to moderate their pol … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

Shrinking particle accelerators with cold plasma and a large picnic basket

Twenty-five feet below ground, SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory scientist Spencer Gessner opens a large metal picnic basket. This is not your typical picnic basket filled with cheese, bread and fruit—it contains screws, bolts, steel tubing, and many other parts and pieces tha … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

Researchers sound out Canadian military's plan to combat ocean noise pollution

A new study from Simon Fraser University researchers examines the Canadian military's efforts to reduce the impacts of underwater noise pollution on species during training exercises in the Pacific Ocean but caveat that more can still be done. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

Ghostlike dusty galaxy reappears in James Webb Space Telescope image

It first appeared as a glowing blob from ground-based telescopes and then vanished completely in images from the Hubble Space Telescope. Now, the ghostly object has reappeared as a faint, yet distinct galaxy in an image from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

Scientists navigate uncharted waters in fish immunology research

Upon infection or immunization, all jawed vertebrate species generate proteins called antibodies that bind and neutralize pathogens. Strong and long-lasting antibody responses in warm-blooded species such as mammals are produced in secondary lymphoid microstructures (SLMs) among … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

Hip hop dancing promotes awareness of disability rights and performance equality, study shows

Hip hop dancing can be used to spread awareness of disability rights and help those with sight problems to participate in performance equally, a new study says. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

Study illuminates formation of US east coast during break up of supercontinent Pangea

A recent study published in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth sheds new light on the formation of the East Coast of the United States—a "passive margin," in geologic terms—during the breakup of the supercontinent Pangea and the opening of the Atlantic Ocean around … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

Plant survey finds dozens of nonnative invasive species thriving in southwest Ohio

Botanist Denis Conover does not have to go far to study the growing problem of invasive plants. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

New understanding of 'oobleck-like' fluids contributes to smart material design

If you mix cornstarch and water in the right proportions, you get something that seems not-quite-liquid but also not-quite-solid. Oobleck flows and settles like a liquid when untouched but stiffens when you try to pick it up or stir it with a spoon. The properties of oobleck and … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

Flexible parental leave among immigrant mothers can promote integration

Mothers who took parental leave part-time or for shorter periods were more likely to engage in income-generating activities or pursue education. A new study uncovers surprising patterns in parental leave usage among newly arrived migrant women in Sweden, specifically focusing on … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

Health is finally a priority at COP28. Will it spur faster climate action?

Arianne Teherani has a loud, clear message for the negotiators at COP28: "Climate change is undermining human health, fundamentally, all over the world, right now." | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

Study on kids and a career: Traditional role models still largely exist

A representative survey by IU International University of Applied Sciences reveals there are still significant differences between the sexes in career trajectories. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

'Silent devastation' of drought set to increase globally under climate change, says UN report

Recent drought-related data compiled by the UN point to "an unprecedented emergency on a planetary scale, where the massive impacts of human-induced droughts are only starting to unfold." | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

Emissions inequality is getting worse—here's how to end the reign of the ultra-polluters

Climate change is overwhelmingly a problem of wealthy people. The wealthiest 1% of humanity produce over 1,000 times the emissions of the poorest 1%. In fact, these 77 million people are responsible for more climate-changing emissions than the poorest 66% (5 billion people) of hu … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

When physics meets biology: Prion protein orchestrates liquid–liquid phase separation with copper

In a study published in Science Advances, researchers from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ) and the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE-Berlin) shed light on the intricate dance between the prion protein and copper ions in the physiopathology of live … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

Vera Rubin telescope will generate a mind-boggling amount of data, say astronomers

When the Vera C. Rubin Observatory comes online in 2025, it will be one of the most powerful tools available to astronomers, capturing huge portions of the sky every night with its 8.4-meter mirror and 3.2-gigapixel camera. Each image will be analyzed within 60 seconds, alerting … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago

Researcher develops a chatbot with an expertise in nanomaterials

A researcher has just finished writing a scientific paper. She knows her work could benefit from another perspective. Did she overlook something? Or perhaps there's an application of her research she hadn't thought of. A second set of eyes would be great, but even the friendliest … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 12 months ago