Phys.org news

Phys.org / Say what? New study debunks belief that introverts are better listeners

New Minnesota Carlson research debunks the idea that introverts are better listeners than extroverts. In fact, extroverts may have a slight perceived advantage as listeners. The study authors suggest moving past personality-based ...

Mar 31, 2026
Phys.org / Phylogenetically diverse Central China proposed as newest global biodiversity hotspot

Taxonomic endemism and phylogenetic endemism are both important measures of biodiversity. The former describes the number of distinct species found nowhere else, whereas the latter shows the amount of evolutionary branch ...

Mar 31, 2026
Phys.org / By 2100, climate change could make unhealthy air routine for 100 million Americans

New modeling shows almost one in three Americans will routinely breathe air considered unhealthy for sensitive people by the year 2100 due to climate change, a seven-fold increase compared to the turn of the century.

Mar 31, 2026
Phys.org / Towards smarter agriculture: Durable nanofilm electrodes for monitoring leaf health

Nanofilm electrodes capable of detecting stress in plants through bioelectric potentials could pave the way for more resilient agriculture, report researchers from Institute of Science Tokyo. Thanks to the electrode's small ...

Mar 31, 2026
Phys.org / Conductive hydrogel enables electrical and biochemical signal control

Many emerging medical technologies rely on seamless integration between biological systems and electronics. This requires materials that are soft, electrically conductive, and biologically active—properties that have been ...

Mar 31, 2026
Phys.org / Antibacterial soaps and wipes can fuel antimicrobial resistance, scientists warn

An international team of scientists is warning that everyday antibacterial soaps, wipes, sprays, and other "germ-killing" products are quietly contributing to the global rise of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) while providing ...

Mar 31, 2026
Phys.org / Viruses 'eavesdrop' on each other—but it can backfire

University of Exeter scientists studied chemical communication by phages (viruses that infect bacteria). The phages assessed in the study have two choices when they enter a cell: lie dormant or kill the cell and release new ...

Mar 31, 2026
Phys.org / Parasites defy biodiversity rules, thriving far from the equator

For decades, scientists have observed a clear pattern across the natural world: biodiversity tends to be higher near the equator and lower toward the poles. Known as the latitudinal diversity gradient (LDG), this trend holds ...

Mar 31, 2026
Phys.org / Ultra‑robust machine‑learning models run stable molecular simulations at extreme temperatures

Researchers at The University of Manchester have created a physics‑informed machine‑learning model that can run molecular simulations for unprecedented lengths of time, even at temperatures as high as 1,000 Kelvin. The study, ...

Mar 31, 2026
Phys.org / Global human population is pushing Earth past its breaking point

Earth has already exceeded its ability to support the global population sustainably, with new research warning of increasing pressure on food security, climate stability, and human well-being. However, slowing population ...

Mar 30, 2026
Phys.org / Earth formed from material exclusively from the inner solar system, planetary scientists show

Planetary scientists have long debated where the material that formed Earth comes from. Despite its location in the inner solar system, they consider it likely that 6–40% of this material must have come from the outer solar ...

Mar 30, 2026
Phys.org / AI writes a research paper that passes peer review

To date, the main role of AI in scientific research has been to assist with narrow tasks such as discovering chemical structures, analyzing data or predicting protein shapes. But now, the technology has broken new ground ...

Mar 30, 2026