Articles by Krystal Kasal
Phys.org / Snakes on trains: King cobras are 'hopping railways' to unsuitable habitats in India
King cobras are the world's longest venomous snakes. So, imagine seeing one a few feet away as you embark on a train in India. The Western Ghats King Cobra (Ophiophagus kaalinga)—a vulnerable king cobra species found in India's ...
Phys.org / 2D discrete time crystals realized on a quantum computer for the first time
Physical systems become inherently more complicated and difficult to produce in a lab as the number of dimensions they exist in increases—even more so in quantum systems. While discrete time crystals (DTCs) had been previously ...
Phys.org / Roadkill offers an ethical alternative to live wildlife in scientific research
A recent review of over 312 studies has identified dozens of unique uses of roadkill in scientific research. The review, published in Biology Letters, discusses the advantages of using roadkill instead of live wildlife and ...
Phys.org / Cuttlefish use polarized light to create a dramatic mating display invisible to humans
Many organisms leverage showy colors for attracting mates. Because color is a property of light (determined by its wavelength), it is easy for humans to see how these colors are used in animal courting rituals. Less obvious ...
Phys.org / How starfish control tube feet without a central nervous system or brain
Starfish, also known as sea stars, are equipped with an almost alien-like anatomy. Despite lacking a brain, blood, and central nervous system, these odd creatures still have locomotive abilities. The structure of their many ...
Phys.org / Shipping regulations to reduce pollution may have exacerbated Great Barrier Reef bleaching
Rising ocean temperatures have been implicated in mass coral bleaching events affecting the Great Barrier Reef (GBR). These events have been increasingly frequent, with major events occurring in 2016, 2017, 2020, 2022, 2024, ...
Phys.org / Four-eyed Cambrian fish fossils hint at origins of vertebrate pineal complex
New fossil evidence from China suggests that some of our vertebrate ancestors had four eyes. The study, published in Nature, takes a closer look at a structure found in multiple 518 million-year-old fossils, which appears ...
Phys.org / Largest canine gut microbiome catalog reveals hundreds of new bacterial strains
Researchers at the Waltham Petcare Science Institute in the UK recently revealed a complete taxonomic and functional catalog of the canine gut microbiome after analyzing samples from 107 healthy dogs across the U.S. and Europe. ...
Phys.org / SPHEREx imaging reveals increased sublimation activity on 3I/ATLAS
The interstellar object, 3I/ATLAS, was first discovered in July 2025, and made its closest approach to the sun (perihelion) in late October. New observations of 3I/ATLAS were taken in December from the SPHEREx observatory—a ...
Tech Xplore / Benchmarking framework reveals major safety risks of using AI in lab experiments
While artificial intelligence (AI) models have proved useful in some areas of science, like predicting 3D protein structures, a new study shows that it should not yet be trusted in many lab experiments. The study, published ...
Phys.org / Marine wildlife rarely interact with tidal turbines—and usually avoid collisions when they do, observations show
Tidal turbines harbor the potential to provide a natural, inexhaustible source of power, but have faced some regulatory hurdles and scientific uncertainty about risks to marine life.
Phys.org / Scientists transform enigmatic cell structures into devices for recording RNA activity
Scientists can peer into cells to get a limited view of their activity using microscopes and other tools. However, cells and the molecular events within them are dynamic, and developmental processes, disease progression and ...
Phys.org / Antarctic submillimeter telescope enables more complete view of the carbon cycle in star-forming regions
Chinese researchers have braved the cold and harsh environment of Antarctica in order to get a unique view of star formation in the interstellar medium (ISM). The Chinese National Antarctica and Arctic Research Expedition ...
Phys.org / Medieval burials shed light on Menga dolmen's multicultural significance over thousands of years
The Menga dolmen in Antequera, Spain, is a Neolithic monument and part of a UNESCO World Heritage site. The monument, built in the fourth millennium BCE, has seen continued use for burials and rituals through the Bronze Age, ...
Phys.org / Asexual yam species employs mimicry to trick birds and spread farther
Evolutionarily speaking, the ultimate goal of a lifeform is to reproduce and stave off extinction. Many plants and animals have evolved unique tricks to do so. One of these tricks is mimicry, which might be used to trick ...
