Phys.org news
Phys.org / Extreme plasma acceleration in monster shocks offers new explanation for fast radio bursts
In a new study published in Physical Review Letters, scientists have performed the first global simulations of monster shocks—some of the strongest shocks in the universe—revealing how these extreme events in magnetar ...
Phys.org / Self-assembling 'bundlemers' could reshape next-generation protein-based materials
Proteins are the building blocks of life. These biomolecules comprise chains of amino acids that fold into precise shapes to perform specific jobs in nature. But these elegant structures form only under narrow pH and temperature ...
Phys.org / Watching a critical green-energy catalyst dissolve, atom by atom
Iridium oxide is one of the most important—and most problematic—materials in the global push toward clean energy. It is currently the most reliable catalyst used in the conversion of energy to chemicals by electrolysis, ...
Phys.org / Aerobic respiration began hundreds of millions of years earlier than previously thought, study suggests
Oxygen is a vital and constant presence on Earth today. But that hasn't always been the case. It wasn't until around 2.3 billion years ago that oxygen became a permanent fixture in the atmosphere, during a pivotal period ...
Phys.org / The surprising power of a tiny, disordered protein in a mitochondrial supercomplex
For decades, scientists assumed that order drives efficiency. Yet in the bustling machinery of mitochondria—the organelles that crank out adenosine triphosphate (ATP), the universal "energy currency" of cells—one of the ...
Phys.org / New 3D method maps Paleolithic engravings at submillimeter resolution
A team of archaeologists from the Universitat Jaume I, the University of Barcelona, and the Catalan Institution for Research and Advanced Studies (ICREA) has developed a new methodology that allows for a much more detailed, ...
Phys.org / Compound in 500-million-year-old fossils sheds new light on Earth's carbon cycle
A UT San Antonio-led international research team has identified chitin, the primary organic component of modern crab shells and insect exoskeletons, in trilobite fossils more than 500 million years old, marking the first ...
Phys.org / Artificial light is reshaping caracal behavior, limiting where the South African wild cat can hunt
Artificial light is one of the most ingrained features of modern life. For humans, light after dark offers convenience and a sense of safety. For wildlife, it's a growing environmental disturbance. "When humans introduce ...
Phys.org / Study reveals microscopic origins of surface noise limiting diamond quantum sensors
A new theoretical study led by researchers at the University of Chicago and Argonne National Laboratory has identified the microscopic mechanisms by which diamond surfaces affect the quantum coherence of nitrogen-vacancy ...
Phys.org / Engineered enzymes enable greener one-pot amide synthesis for drug manufacturing
A single type of chemical structure that shows up again and again in modern medicine is the amide bond that links a carbonyl group (C=O) to a nitrogen atom. They're so ubiquitous that 117 of the top 200 small-molecule drugs ...
Phys.org / When silicon fills the role of carbon: Debut of all-silicon cyclopentadienides
Carbon's unique chemical properties allow it to be an essential building block for life on Earth and many other molecules we rely on for day-to-day life—but what about carbon's neighbor? Silicon is located one row below ...
Phys.org / Scientists discover 'levitating' time crystals that you can hold in your hand
Time crystals, a collection of particles that "tick"—or move back and forth in repeating cycles—were first theorized and then discovered about a decade ago. While scientists have yet to create commercial or industrial ...
