Phys.org news
Phys.org / Ancient land plant reveals the evolution of a 400‑million‑year‑old UV‑B protection system
Sunlight provides the energy necessary for photosynthesis and growth, but it also exposes plants to harmful ultraviolet-B (UV-B) radiation. Plants must therefore strike a delicate balance between growth and protection. By ...
Phys.org / Space station dust maps slash climate uncertainty over iron-rich particles
New research from a team of scientists led by Cornell is transforming how researchers understand one of the atmosphere's most abundant and least understood constituents: mineral dust.
Phys.org / Young and unemployed? Remote work, not AI, may be the problem, study finds
The rise of remote work since the pandemic has made businesses more reluctant to hire young, inexperienced workers and is the key driver of higher unemployment rates for recent college graduates, a study released Monday has ...
Phys.org / Living brain gene activity revealed noninvasively through programmable blood test
Cell function is determined by how DNA is expressed into proteins. That process includes two main steps—transcription, when messenger RNA (mRNA) makes copies of active genes; and translation, when mRNA guides protein assembly.
Phys.org / Better math discriminates exotic from classical materials
The planar Hall effect is a tabletop diagnostic tool for special quantum properties useful in basic research and technological applications. Or so it was thought, because careful calculation by Kobe University researchers ...
Phys.org / Microbes turn biodiesel byproduct into three nylon building blocks, opening greener route
Nylon is a representative plastic material used throughout our daily lives, from clothing to automobiles. However, most of its raw materials have been produced through petrochemical processes, resulting in large carbon emissions. ...
Dialog / Bridged or not? Scientists uncover a key step in hydrogenase assembly
How does nature build one of the most sophisticated catalytic metal centers found in biology? An international team of researchers has now resolved a long-standing debate surrounding the assembly of the active site of [FeFe]-hydrogenases—enzymes ...
Phys.org / Cold-grown plankton shells sharpen Arctic climate reconstructions
Researchers at iC3 have found a way to improve records of past high latitude ocean change using tiny plankton shells called foraminifera. By growing these foraminifera under controlled cold-water conditions, the team has ...
Phys.org / Low-cost workflow creates 100,000 uniform cell capsules with standard lab tools
Cells are typically studied outside the body under controlled laboratory conditions. However, conventional flat cell culture methods do not fully reproduce the complex three-dimensional environments that cells experience ...
Phys.org / Precise polymer 'knots' uncover hidden slack for designing ultra-tough and responsive smart materials
From household plastic packaging to the flexible frameworks that support wearable electronics, polymer materials form the invisible backbone of modern life. At a microscopic level, polymers consist of long, ribbon-like molecular ...
Phys.org / How drought rewires roots, cutting iron uptake across major food crops
New research by scientists at the University of Calgary has found that plants, ranging from canola to rice to tomatoes, actively shut down their own ability to take up iron when they experience drought. It's a finding that ...
Phys.org / Fifty-year protein mystery breaks open as acid-driven water loss comes into view
Proteins systematically lose their protective hydration shell when their environment becomes more acidic. Until recently, this was just a theory. State-of-the-art imaging techniques have helped researchers at Martin Luther ...