Phys.org news

Phys.org / Advanced construction techniques and domestic layouts discovered in Roman-Byzantine villages of Syria

Having weathered nearly 1,500 years of time and exposure, the remains of Roman-Byzantine villages in Syria have been the subject of recent architectural investigations, which reveal remarkable design features, local construction ...

May 11, 2026
Phys.org / Why prescribed fire often fails: Scorched invasive shrubs can resprout instead of die

Invasive woody plants present a major ecological challenge in eastern U.S. forests by outcompeting native species and spreading quickly, forming dense thickets that crowd out native plants and disrupt ecosystems. Land managers ...

May 11, 2026
Phys.org / Researchers find coherent ferrons—polarization waves with potential across quantum and telecom applications

In new research published in Nature Materials, a team of researchers led by Columbia University chemist Xiaoyang Zhu, in collaboration with fellow Columbians Xavier Roy, Milan Delor, Dmitri Basov, and James McIver, has observed ...

May 11, 2026
Phys.org / New AI tool predicts how cells choose their future—helping uncover hidden drivers of development

What are the first steps that chart the path for a cell to become a blood cell, neuron cell, or pigment cell? Scientists have developed increasingly powerful tools to track those changes, but one challenge has persisted: ...

May 11, 2026
Phys.org / How carbon dioxide cools the upper atmosphere—and warms Earth below

Even as temperatures rise on Earth's surface and in the lower atmosphere, the planet's upper atmosphere has cooled dramatically. This paradoxical pattern is a well-known sign of humanity's climate impacts—but until now, the ...

May 11, 2026
Phys.org / Snow and glacier ecosystems across remote Antarctic island reveal hidden microbial diversity

Research led by a University of Bristol Ph.D. student has revealed a host of thriving microscopic algae communities in snow and glaciers across one of the most remote locations on Earth. The study, which appears in ISME Communications ...

May 11, 2026
Phys.org / Climate patterns may shape where violent conflict risks are amplified

A new Rice University study is shedding light on a long-debated question: Can climate variability influence the risk of armed conflict? The answer, researchers say, is yes—but in more nuanced and region-specific ways than ...

May 11, 2026
Phys.org / Machine learning proves that graphene is hydrophobic

For more than a decade, a fundamental mystery has surrounded graphene—the one-atom-thick "wonder material" known for its exceptional strength, conductivity, and transparency. Despite its seemingly simple structure, one basic ...

May 11, 2026
Phys.org / Light reshapes metal-organic framework to harvest airborne water

Chemists at the University of Iowa have created a three-dimensional lattice that captures water from the air and stores it. In a new study appearing in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, researchers describe a ...

May 11, 2026
Phys.org / Inland seas may face widespread heat waves by midcentury as warming accelerates

Under the lead of the Leibniz Institute for Baltic Sea Research Warnemünde (IOW), climate simulations were used to investigate how 19 inland seas, including the Baltic Sea, are responding to climate change. The researchers ...

May 11, 2026
Phys.org / How the Atlantic herring adapted to the brackish water of the Baltic Sea

When the Atlantic herring colonized the Baltic Sea thousands of years ago, it needed to adapt to the low salinity. Genes with a vital role in the functioning of sperm, eggs and embryos were crucial to this adaptation. A new ...

May 11, 2026
Phys.org / Earth's first continents may trace back to subduction 3.5 billion years ago

An international team of researchers' analysis of minerals from the Pilbara region of Western Australia has given new insight into how ancient continents on Earth formed as far back as 3.5 billion years ago. Professor Tony ...

May 11, 2026