Phys.org news

Phys.org / Second ribosome binding site helps explain how tetracyclines work

For decades, doctors have widely used tetracyclines for conditions ranging from acne to tick-borne illnesses. Using high-resolution imaging technology, researchers in the laboratory of Christopher Bunick, MD, Ph.D., associate ...

May 22, 2026
Phys.org / South China Sea coral reefs reveal carbon stores rivaling mangroves and seagrasses

A collaborative research team has revealed the long-overlooked carbon storage potential of coral reef ecosystems and how reef-dwelling fish, corals, and surface sediments jointly shape reef carbon reservoirs. The paper is ...

May 22, 2026
Phys.org / Rice feeds billions of people—but its role in fueling climate change is growing

Rice feeds more than half the world. From terraced paddies in Southeast Asia to irrigated fields in China and India, it underpins daily meals for billions of people.

May 22, 2026
Phys.org / Ocean acidification is ruining reef fishes' social lives, study finds

A new study from Adelaide University has found that when ocean acidification makes reef habitat less complex, the fish living there gather in smaller shoals that offer less social protection.

May 22, 2026
Phys.org / Gibraltar monkeys eat soil in junk food detox, study finds

A colony of macaques that gorge on snacks offered by tourists in the British territory of Gibraltar swallow soil to recover from their junk food binges, a study has found.

May 22, 2026
Phys.org / Heat vulnerability follows more than temperature, and this global map exposes the overlooked fault lines

A Nature Sustainability paper titled "A multidimensional assessment of Systemic Cooling Poverty in the Global South," provides the first large-scale, multidimensional measurement of Systemic Cooling Poverty (SCP)—defined ...

May 22, 2026
Phys.org / Agentic AI could help electron microscopes plan, adapt and analyze experiments

Scientific discovery is often portrayed as the result of long hours alone in a lab, but true science is inherently collaborative. The most robust experimental processes are developed through partnerships across multiple areas ...

May 22, 2026
Phys.org / Bodies in fashion: Diversity is up, but the ideal stays the same

Fashion and media have become visibly more diverse over the past quarter-century. Yet beneath that surface change, a new study suggests that the industry's central female body ideal has barely shifted.

May 22, 2026
Phys.org / If you need to anesthetize a butterfly, here's the best way to do it

Anesthesia makes life-saving procedures as painless and stress-free as possible for the animals we love and care for. But not a lot is known about the effects of anesthesia on animals that we don't typically consider pets—like ...

May 22, 2026
Phys.org / Asexual lizards, virgin births and clones—the all‑female species of the animal kingdom

It may sound too bizarre to be true, but the Amazon molly (Poecilia formosa), a fish that inhabits rivers, lakes, and swamps in Mexico and Texas, exists over much of its range in populations that are 100% female. In 1932, ...

May 22, 2026
Phys.org / Coral refuges in Western Australia resist 2025 bleaching through record marine heat

The team of scientists from James Cook University, University of Western Australia and Edith Cowan University surveyed coral reefs in the West Australian Houtman Abrolhos group of islands (HAI), publishing their findings ...

May 22, 2026
Phys.org / Midwest flamingos and 'hurricane toads': Wildlife's strange storm stories

Hurricanes can be a devastating force—leveling trees, erasing beaches and damaging homes. But what do they do to wildlife? The answer ranges from the good to the bad to the ugly. Hurricanes sometimes help native species, ...

May 22, 2026