Phys.org news

Phys.org / Bringing complex field physics to the tabletop: A photonic stage for non-Abelian gauge fields

For most theories in physics, the order of operations has little impact on the result. When setting a dial to a certain position, for example, it doesn't matter whether it's turned clockwise or counterclockwise—the result ...

Jul 29, 2026
Phys.org / Non-monogamy may reduce jealousy overall, but feeling less desirable can still strain relationships

Comparing yourself with your partner is more common than you'd think. Psychologists even have a term for it: mate value discrepancy (MVD), which is the gap between how attractive, smart or successful each partner feels compared ...

Jul 29, 2026
Phys.org / Rare-earth ions could enable telecom-ready control of interacting qubits

Quantum technologies are devices and systems that exploit the laws of quantum mechanics and could perform tasks that are difficult or impossible to tackle using their classical counterparts. These technologies process and ...

Jul 29, 2026
Phys.org / Curiosity Mars rover discovers field of honeycomb textures

As NASA's Curiosity rover recently began climbing a Martian valley nicknamed "Valle Grande," it sent back images that were a familiar sight to mission scientists: honeycomb-like textures called polygonal fractures, each about ...

Jul 29, 2026
Phys.org / Early Cambrian fossil uncovers key buoyancy structure at the dawn of cephalopod evolution

Extant and ancient cephalopods—including octopuses, squids, extinct ammonites, cuttlefish and nautiluses—have all had to solve the problem of buoyancy, whether they have hard external shells or not.

Jul 29, 2026
Phys.org / Scientists discover 210-million-year-old dinosaur in Zimbabwe

A newly discovered dinosaur from Zimbabwe is offering fresh clues to how the animals diversified, suggesting they spread across distinct ecosystems in southern Africa, scientists said Wednesday.

Jul 29, 2026
Phys.org / Black hole 'blast' reaches 300,000 light-years

A team of researchers has discovered that winds generated by supermassive black holes are 100 times more powerful than previously thought, carrying energy across distances of approximately 300,000 light-years. The discovery ...

Jul 29, 2026
Phys.org / An entire world of fungi nearly a third of a mile underground could affect carbon storage estimates

Hundreds of feet below Earth's surface, rocks and water teem with fungi and support complex ecosystems of tiny organisms, according to a University of Michigan study that finds fungi are far more abundant deep underground ...

Jul 29, 2026
Phys.org / The oceans near Australia may be the best places to fertilize for removing carbon dioxide

Deploying ocean iron fertilization—a strategy for carbon dioxide capture—in higher latitudes rather than near the equator could reduce environmental impacts while still achieving removal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, ...

Jul 29, 2026
Phys.org / Ice Age artists carved thumbnail-size bird figurines from mammoth ivory 40,000 years ago

Excavations at Hohle Fels Cave in the UNESCO World Heritage area of the Swabian Jura in southwestern Germany have again yielded two spectacular 40,000-year-old depictions of birds carved from mammoth ivory. The two figurines ...

Jul 29, 2026
Phys.org / The cost of memory: How organisms balance thinking and sensing

Remembering the past can help living organisms make better decisions, but memory comes at a cost. Whether it is an animal searching for food or a single cell responding to its surroundings, storing and using information requires ...

Jul 29, 2026
Phys.org / Gobi fossil reveals 6-inch 'Cretaceous rabbit' belonged to a different mammal branch

A remarkably preserved fossil from Mongolia's Gobi Desert is reshaping scientists' understanding of mammal evolution during the age of dinosaurs.

Jul 29, 2026