Phys.org news
Phys.org / Medieval Japanese poetry and buried trees help elucidate volatile space weather
On Earth, extreme solar activity often appears as beautiful, benign auroras. But venturing beyond the safety of the Earth's magnetic field, one faces the full brunt of a temperamental star that can suddenly erupt with flares ...
Phys.org / Chimpanzee empire falls apart in rare instance of division and deadly violence
The largest group of wild chimpanzees known to scientists has permanently split in two. In a study published in Science, researchers from the University of Texas at Austin and other institutions report the first clearly documented ...
Phys.org / Mammal ancestors laid eggs—and this 250-million-year-old fossil proves it
A remarkable new discovery is shedding light on one of the greatest survival stories in Earth's history, and answering a decades-old scientific mystery. Lystrosaurus, a hardy, plant-eating mammal ancestor, rose to prominence ...
Phys.org / No more giants, no more heavy handaxes: Why early humans downsized their stone tools
For more than 1 million years, early humans in the Levant region of the eastern Mediterranean used a range of heavy tools, such as massive handaxes and stone balls, for important tasks, including processing animal carcasses. ...
Phys.org / AI-designed proteins built from scratch can recognize specific compounds
Professor Gyu Rie Lee of the Department of Biological Sciences successfully designed artificial proteins that selectively recognize specific compounds using AI through joint research with Professor David Baker. The research, ...
Phys.org / Hat wars of early modern England reveal how manners make the rebel
From refusing to doff hats in court to resisting hat-snatching highway robbers, England's relationship with hats goes far deeper than fashion, new research shows.
Phys.org / Street green space can help cool cities, but it will not be enough on its own
A new IIASA-led study finds that expanding street green space can reduce urban heat stress in cities worldwide, but even ambitious greening efforts are unlikely to offset a significant share of the additional heat expected ...
Phys.org / Plant-inspired water membrane filters CO₂ with constant selectivity and adjustable permeance
Gas separation membranes are vital for carbon capture, biogas upgrading, and hydrogen purification, all of which require the separation of carbon dioxide from gases like nitrogen, methane and hydrogen. However, the membranes ...
Phys.org / Megawatt structured light arrives with 3,070 optical vortices in one array
Optical vortices—light beams carrying orbital angular momentum (OAM)—are characterized by helical wavefronts and phase singularities. While they have been widely studied in recent decades, two fundamental limitations have ...
Phys.org / Non-producing oil and gas wells may emit microbial methane at rates 1,000 times higher than previously estimated
Microbial methane leaking from non-producing oil and gas wells is being emitted at rates about 1,000 times higher than previously estimated, according to a new study led by McGill University researchers. "Origins of Subsurface ...
Phys.org / Integrative experiment design reveals hidden patterns in decades-old social science research
Research from MIT Sloan School of Management has demonstrated a new way of designing social science experiments that can uncover patterns invisible to common approaches. In their paper titled "Integrative experiments identify ...
Phys.org / Hidden ocean feedback loop could accelerate climate change
The world's oceans may be quietly amplifying climate change in ways scientists are only beginning to understand. In a new study published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, University of Rochester scientists—including ...
