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Phys.org / Ancient clay figurine from Guatemala may bear the oldest written numbers in Mesoamerica

A clay figurine, small enough to cradle in your hand, with 11 dots arranged in columns where its head should be, may depict the oldest known example of written numbers in Mesoamerica.

Jun 11, 2026
Phys.org / Black hole feeding bursts may explain JWST's Little Red Dots in early universe

A new theoretical study may have cracked one of the most puzzling discoveries of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST): Little Red Dots, spotted across the early universe. The paper, posted to the arXiv preprint server on ...

Jun 8, 2026
Phys.org / 'Black hole stars'—Webb finds strongest evidence yet

The complex puzzle known as little red dots has become more complete since their initial discovery by NASA's James Webb Space Telescope in 2022. Now a particular little red dot's spectrum is helping connect many of the pieces.

Jun 10, 2026
Phys.org / Electron matter waves gain ultrafast torque that flips handedness in femtoseconds

Many natural processes, ranging from magnetism to chemical reactions, entail the movement and rotation of particles at very small scales. In quantum mechanics, particles exhibit both particle-like and wave-like behaviors, ...

Jun 11, 2026
Phys.org / Scientists discover collagen, the human body's most abundant protein, is liquid-like inside cells

Collagen, the protein that builds skin, bones, tendons and organs, exists inside cells as a liquidlike droplet rather than the long, rigid rod seen in textbooks over the last half-century, according to a new study from the ...

Jun 11, 2026
Tech Xplore / From safety hazard to climate solution: Technology tackling fugitive methane from coal mines

Every underground coal mine has one thing in common: Coal seams leak methane gas into the tunnel network, presenting a serious safety hazard. The control is the same the world over: continuously pump fresh air through the ...

22 hours ago
Phys.org / Iberian DNA remained largely unchanged for six centuries before Roman influence, study finds

A study led by a UAB research team of Biological Anthropology has analyzed the genome of 54 newborns with the aim of tracking the genetic history of their culture since it developed in the Early Iron Age until the start of ...

Jun 9, 2026
Science X / How tokens unlock robust cooperation in human societies even when memory fails

Humans stand out in their ability to collaborate with people they may never meet again, often at their own expense. Scientists have long been intrigued by this unique feature, which facilitates everything from international ...

Jun 11, 2026
Phys.org / Human evolution was messy and gradual, not an abrupt revolution, argues archaeologist

It is generally accepted by archaeologists that modern humans originated in Africa and dispersed worldwide, while other hominins went extinct. Yet how and when Homo sapiens dispersed out of Africa, and whether it was an abrupt ...

Jun 10, 2026
Phys.org / Can AI help coastal cities prepare for rising seas and extreme events?

Our novel artificial intelligence model can predict extreme storm surges with high accuracy, including under future climate conditions. Because the AI model runs much faster, it can help researchers and practitioners better ...

Jun 9, 2026
Phys.org / Tabletop experiment helps reconcile fundamental physics

Assistant Professor Haocun Yu is something of a scientific diplomat. In a recent Physical Review Letters publication, she and her colleagues show how a tabletop experiment can bring together two bedrock physics theories that ...

Jun 8, 2026
Phys.org / Space telescopes are now overwhelmed by satellite trails

Unfortunately, there's more bad news to report on the clear skies front. A new paper, available on the arXiv preprint server from researchers at NASA's Ames Research Center, reports that 73.3% of images the agency's new SPHEREx ...

Jun 9, 2026