Social nature of ants provides protection from climate change

A new study by University of Liverpool has provided new insight into the impact of climate change on ant populations. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

World-first mapping of the Aussie tiger prawn genome

James Cook University researchers have been part of the first-ever successful effort to map the genome of an iconic Australian seafood species—that of the Australian black tiger prawn—which may lead to bigger and more disease resistant farmed stock in the future. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Exploring flow transport in egg cells

Northwestern Medicine scientists discovered a new and unique transport mechanism within developing egg cells in fruit flies, according to a study published in eLife. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Telescopes trained on Parker Solar Probe's latest pass around the sun

As NASA's Parker Solar Probe completes its latest swing around the sun, it's doing so in full view of dozens of other spacecraft and ground-based telescopes. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Telling LGBTQA+ they can be helped, fixed or saved can cause significant harm

Religious LGBTQA+ conversion practices cause significant mental health harm and the health sector needs to recognize, support and respect survivors in ways that are affirming of sexual and gender diversity, say the authors of a Perspective published today by the Medical Journal o … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Camouflage or communication: How birds use odor

What senses do birds use? Obviously, they use hearing and sight—after all, they sing and often have colorful plumage. But what about the sense of smell? For a long time, it was thought that olfaction played no role in birds. In recent years, however, a number of papers have emerg … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Researchers make space for queer-spectrum identities in scientific surveys

To improve STEM classes, educators must understand STEM students and their experiences. Collecting data by asking the right questions is the first critical step toward creating positive change, two Colorado State University researchers say in a new study. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Microscopic ocean predator with a taste for carbon capture

A single-celled marine microbe capable of photosynthesis and hunting and eating prey may be a secret weapon in the battle against climate change. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Scientists propose a new mechanism by which oxygen may have first built up in the atmosphere

For the first 2 billion years of Earth's history, there was barely any oxygen in the air. While some microbes were photosynthesizing by the latter part of this period, oxygen had not yet accumulated at levels that would impact the global biosphere. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Earthquakes shake Indonesia, Philippines; no tsunami threat

Strong, shallow underwater earthquakes shook western Indonesia and the Philippine capital region Monday, but no serious damage was reported and no tsunami warnings were issued. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

17 die as cyclone lashes Mozambique, Malawi

The death toll from a cyclone that struck Mozambique this week climbed to 12 on Sunday as it moved towards Malawi killing five more after devastating wind and rain lashed the southern African countries. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Scientists estimate invasive insects will kill 1.4 million US street trees by 2050

A new study estimates that over the next 30 years, 1.4 million street trees will be killed by invasive insects, costing over 900 million dollars to replace. The findings are published in the British Ecological Society's Journal of Applied Ecology. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

New research study: 'Sky is not the limit' for solar geoengineering

There are practical limits to the height at which aerosols may be deployed in the atmosphere to deflect incoming sunlight and countervail global warming. Very high-altitude injections might be more effective, but such climate intervention comes with substantially increased costs … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

New scoring scale tracks the harmful effects of salt pollution in freshwater streams and rivers

The road salt that makes your drive to work easier on snowy days may be damaging the water quality in local rivers and streams long after winter is over. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Mozambique cyclone death toll climbs to 12

The death toll from a cyclone that struck Mozambique this week climbed to 12 on Sunday after devastating wind and rain lashed the southern African country. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Octopus ancestors lived before era of dinosaurs, study shows

Scientists have found the oldest known ancestor of octopuses – an approximately 330 million-year-old fossil unearthed in Montana. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Forget mammoths, study shows how to resurrect Christmas Island rats

Ever since the movie Jurassic Park, the idea of bringing extinct animals back to life has captured the public's imagination—but what might scientists turn their attention towards first? | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Endurance: Explorer Shackleton's ship found after a century

Researchers have discovered the remarkably well-preserved wreck of polar explorer Ernest Shackleton's ship, Endurance, in 10,000 feet of icy water, a century after it was swallowed up by Antarctic ice during what proved to be one of the most heroic expeditions in history. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Amazon nears climate 'tipping point' faster than expected

Hammered by climate change and relentless deforestation, the Amazon rainforest is losing its capacity to recover and could irretrievably transition into savannah, with dire consequences for the region and the world, according to a study published Monday. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

With no respite from drought, officials call upon Californians to conserve water

The start of this year has been the driest in California's history. With the severe drought now in a third year, the state faces depleted reservoirs, a meager snowpack in the Sierra Nevada and a worsening water shortage on the Colorado River. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

'We want to be the UPS or FedEx of the moon': A startup's big moonshot

A California startup is joining much bigger players in the drive to explore settlement on the moon, as plans by NASA to send astronauts back there heats up the commercial lunar market. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Huge spiders to colonize US East Coast, but maybe it's a good thing

Big and scary-looking Joro spiders have spread from Asia to the southern United States and are now poised to colonize the country's cooler climes—but they're nothing to fear and might end up actually helping local ecosystems. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Stemming the tide of invasive species in Great Lakes

Ballast water release from ocean vessels has introduced hundreds of invasive species to coastal ecosystems worldwide, causing major disruptions to fisheries and biodiversity. Attempts to control aquatic invasions have met with mixed success in general. However, a new study sugges … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Scientists make leap forward for genetic sequencing

In a paper published today in Sciences Advances, researchers in the Department of Chemistry and the Department of Physics & Astronomy at the University of California, Irvine revealed new details about a key enzyme that makes DNA sequencing possible. The finding is a leap forward … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

How do blind cavefish survive their low-oxygen environment?

Cavefish have obvious adaptations such as missing eyes and pale colors that demonstrate how they evolved over millennia in a dark, subterranean world. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Mirror image biomolecule helps marine sea squirts lose their tails

Amino acids are the basic building blocks of living organisms and typically occur in a configuration known as the L-form. However, there are a few exceptional examples of the structural mirror image of the L-form (known as the D-form) present in animals. D-serine is a representat … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Forest survival strategies for extreme cyclones

Trees in forests are prone to damage from strong winds. Despite extreme weather events becoming more prevalent, scientists have not yet fully understood why some trees are damaged and other trees survive. A team of researchers led by Dr. Kana Kamimura of Shinshu University succee … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Advanced imaging reveals new cellular and molecular details of coral-algae relationship

Researchers at UC San Diego's Scripps Institution of Oceanography have discovered a novel molecular process that corals use to control the subcellular environment of the algae that live inside them. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Homing in on the Higgs boson interaction with the charm quark

Since the discovery of the Higgs boson a decade ago, the ATLAS and CMS collaborations at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) have been hard at work trying to unlock the secrets of this special particle. In particular, the collaborations have been investigating in detail how the Higgs … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

High-power laser being constructed for a new experimental facility

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory's decades of leadership in developing high-energy lasers is being tapped to provide a key component of a major upgrade to SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory's Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS). | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Record deforestation in Brazilian Amazon in February

Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon set a new record for the month of February, according to official data released Friday, the latest sign of a surge in destruction under President Jair Bolsonaro. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

High pond density benefits the dispersal of aquatic insects in urban areas

Urban ponds are paradise for aquatic life in the middle of the hustle and bustle of a city. In Finland, ponds are defined as freshwater bodies with diameter less than 200 meters, although there is no clear-cut distinction between the definition of ponds and small lakes. There are … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Chemical analysis reveals effects of wildfire smoke on grapes and wines

As wildfire season in the West grows in length and severity, it is taking a toll on the wine industry through the effects of wildfire smoke on the quality of wine grapes. Volatile compounds in the smoke from wildfires can be absorbed by grapes and produce an unpleasant taste know … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Manatees' prolonged suffering looks endless as seagrass fails to revive

Livers were shriveled, muscles resembled cooked celery, guts held sand from desperation foraging and none were pregnant. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Study finds links between circadian rhythms, metabolism and addiction

A new University of California, Irvine-led study establishes important conceptual connections between the fields of circadian rhythms, metabolism, and addiction. Going beyond current studies on substance use disorders, which focus on the impact of addictive drugs on the brain, th … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Newly identified softshell turtle lived alongside T. rex and Triceratops

Anewly described softshell turtle that lived in North Dakota 66.5 million years ago at the end of the Cretaceous Period, just before the end-Cretaceous mass extinction, is one of the earliest known species of the genus, according to new research shared in the journal Cretaceous R … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Using ions to find molecules

When we think of ions, we usually think of single atoms that have lost or gained some electrons, but entire molecules can also become ions. In a new publication that was highlighted as an Editor's Suggestion in Physical Review Letters this week, physicists from the University of … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Using electrons to accelerate molecular recognition

A team of researchers affiliated with multiple institutions in the U.S. and China and one in Australia has developed a way to use electrons to accelerate molecular recognition. In their paper published in the journal Nature, the group describes their technique and possible uses f … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Patented molecules that counteract the effect of the most common anticoagulant drug

A study performed by researchers from the Institute for Advanced Chemistry of Catalonia (IQAC-CSIC) from the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) has discovered and synthesized several molecules that inhibit the effect of the most common anticoagulant drug. This drug is very … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Discovery of a new catalyst for highly active and selective carbon dioxide hydrogenation to methanol

A new catalyst of Cd/TiO2, enabling 81% methanol selectivity at 15.8% CO2 conversion with the CH4 selectivity below 0.7% was discovered. The combination of experimental and computational studies show that the unique electronic properties of Cd cluster supported on TiO2 are respon … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Voles cut grass to watch flying predators

A tiny rodent trims tall grasses so it can watch the skies for flying predators, new research shows. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Ask or aks? How linguistic prejudice perpetuates inequality

Teacher and artist Sunn M'Cheaux has been posting on social media about "linguicism" after a reader asked him about the word "ax," saying: "Why did we struggle saying 'ask?' Like when I was little, I always said 'ax." Like I couldn't say the word correctly." | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Extensive study of bacteria on intertidal rockweed across the North Atlantic

Algae such as rockweeds are a fundamental part of marine ecosystems, providing habitat and food to many other marine organisms while also providing ecosystem services. Algae produce oxygen as a by-product of photosynthesis, so oxygenation of the water and atmosphere is one such e … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Study: In Tempe, AZ, COVID-19 pandemic had stronger impact on policing and crime than George Floyd's death

A new study examined the impact of COVID-19 and George Floyd's death on police work in the Tempe, Arizona, police department. The study examined weekly trends in crime and officer activities, as well as footage from body-worn cameras. The impact of the pandemic and Floyd's death … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Study finds social media verification not enough to sell products

Social media influencers are some of the most powerful celebrities of the internet era, and verification—the blue check mark that indicates the account has been vetted and the user's identity has been confirmed—is one of the most highly sought-after tools of the trade. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Researcher makes magnetic reconnection breakthrough that may help predict space weather

A West Virginia University postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Physics and Astronomy has made a breakthrough in the study of magnetic reconnection, which could prevent space storms from wreaking havoc on the Earth's satellite and power grid systems. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Analyzing the cost-free culture in the consumption of digital journalistic information in Spain

An investigation by the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (UC3M) analyzes the low willingness of citizens to pay for the consumption of journalistic information on the Internet and the industry's inability to monetize digital content. | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago

Fast grocery deliveries are likely to get more expensive

COVID rapidly accelerated the overall trend towards internet ordering of all retail sales with UK online purchases approaching 30% in 2021. With a strong trend towards home delivery this has also created an opportunity for "quick" grocery delivery services via apps such as Gorill … | Continue reading


@phys.org | 2 years ago