Phys.org news

Phys.org / New study of global reef growth over past 12,000 years offers insights into impact of rising ocean temperatures

Coral reefs over the past 12,000 years grew best when the ocean temperature was 77 degrees Fahrenheit (25 degrees Celsius), according to new research from Florida Tech. Recent ocean warming and regional and local disturbances ...

Mar 12, 2026
Phys.org / Seals and sea lions provide clues to evolution of vocalization

Neuroscientists have uncovered new insights into a key evolutionary question: Why can humans talk when most animals can't? The journal Science published the research led by Emory University and the New College of Florida. ...

Mar 12, 2026
Phys.org / Seeing global trade through the lens of physics

New research from the Complexity Science Hub (CSH) shows why widely used algorithms for measuring economic complexity produce trustworthy results and how these tools may benefit diverse areas such as ecology, social science, ...

Mar 12, 2026
Phys.org / Turning penicillin into a lethal force against bacteria again

When many disease-causing bacteria encounter penicillin, they are not always destroyed right away, shifting into a temporary survival state called antibiotic tolerance. This state allows them to withstand drug levels that ...

Mar 12, 2026
Phys.org / AI accelerates elucidation of nuclear forces with explosive neutron star data

A research team is using astrophysical explosions to understand the mysterious forces at work in some of the smallest building blocks in nature: atomic nuclei. In new research published in Nature Communications, the team ...

Mar 12, 2026
Phys.org / Lost page of legendary Archimedes palimpsest found in France

It all started off as a joke, a French researcher told AFP. But what the team found was a piece of history—a long-lost page from a legendary manuscript by ancient Greek mathematician Archimedes which had been languishing, ...

Mar 12, 2026
Phys.org / Allowing atoms to come and go can open the door to better materials modeling

Most materials, especially metals and ceramics, are crystals. Their atoms are arranged in three-dimensional lattices that repeat the same exact pattern, over and over again. But there's a well-known saying in materials science: ...

Mar 12, 2026
Phys.org / Uncovering a patchwork of fresh and salty groundwater beneath Great Salt Lake's south shore

Thanks to upstream diversions and climate change, Utah's Great Salt Lake has shrunk by 70% since 1989, exposing about 800 square miles of playa and mudflats—along with numerous curiosities. While a potential environmental ...

Mar 12, 2026
Phys.org / Wolves kill—and ravens remember where

When a wolf pack runs down its prey, the first on the scene is often the raven. Even before the predators have had time to dig in, the ravens are already in line, waiting to take advantage of the odd scrap of meat that becomes ...

Mar 12, 2026
Phys.org / Musicality is rooted in human biology, not just culture, says professor

Humans are fundamentally "musical animals"—and our capacity for music is rooted in biology, not just culture. This is the conclusion of new work by University of Amsterdam professor of Music Cognition Henkjan Honing. In ...

Mar 12, 2026
Phys.org / Musicologists map medieval chant tropes to 9th-century political borders

The spread of a particular genre of music reflects the borders between medieval empires in Europe. This is shown by a study conducted by a musicologist at the University of Würzburg, appearing in Transactions of the International ...

Mar 12, 2026
Phys.org / Shell game: How oysters enlist help from microbes

For an oyster, creating an internal environment for calcification that forms its distinctive hard shell is essential. But new Harvard research has found that these bivalves may outsource the work, coordinating with microbes ...

Mar 12, 2026