Phys.org news
Phys.org / Thwaites Glacier could contribute twice as much sea-level rise as previously projected
A new ice sheet model developed by glaciologists at the University of California, Irvine and NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory projects that the melting of Thwaites Glacier in West Antarctica will contribute up to 30 millimeters ...
Dialog / Could meditation reveal an SU(3) symmetry shared by the observer and the universe?
You sit down to meditate. A conversation returns, then thoughts. You bring your attention back to the breath. Sometimes, after many such returns, the effort eases. Thoughts lose their urgency, while awareness remains clear. ...
Phys.org / 'Atmospheric rivers' helped open a Portugal-sized hole in Antarctica's winter sea ice
Polynyas are patches of open water surrounded by sea ice, where heat and moisture can pass freely between the ocean and atmosphere. In August 2024, a vast polynya opened up in Breid Bay, off the coast of East Antarctica, ...
Phys.org / Webb spots possible early-universe supernova just days after it happened
The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has detected a possible supernova in the early universe just days after the star exploded. Called AT 2026abck, the transient lies in a star-forming galaxy at a redshift of 5.017 and was ...
Phys.org / Mushroom-derived peptides boost saltiness by up to 70%, offering a path to low-sodium foods
Scientists have found a way to make salt taste saltier without increasing its sodium content, a welcome development in the culinary world. Salt is a powerful flavor enhancer, drawing out the subtle flavors of a dish while ...
Phys.org / A new way to replace carbon with nitrogen atoms could lead to better medicines
When drugmakers want to improve on compounds they have already created, they can replace a carbon atom with a nitrogen atom. While effective, the techniques they use to perform this chemical swap, known as skeletal editing, ...
Phys.org / Vera Rubin Observatory spots the largest ultra-fast spinning asteroid yet
The speed of an asteroid's spin can tell astronomers a surprising amount about what it is made of. However, existing approaches to measuring spin based on telescope observations can often produce misleading estimates.
Phys.org / Newly discovered 3D 'chair' shape can fill all space without repeating patterns
Software developer Ioannis Tsiokos has reported the discovery of a three-dimensional shape, which roughly resembles a chair, that can fill space infinitely without repeating a pattern. The shape follows certain mathematical ...
Phys.org / World's largest penguin colony loses its title after decline of more than 250,000 breeding pairs
Zavodovski, a volcanic island in Antarctica, is silently witnessing a shift in the local ecosystem. Known as home to the world's largest penguin colony, this island has long been under the watchful eye of scientists. One ...
Phys.org / Scientists discover 'D-rex', a giant fungus from Chinese forests whose unique lineage dates back 65 million years
Deep in the forests of Yunnan, China, scientists have discovered a "fungal giant" that challenges our understanding of how large fungi can become. The newly described species, Dianjunus rex, produces vertical fruiting bodies ...
Phys.org / Nanoparticle injection reprograms NK immune cells to fight cancer and autoimmune disorders
MIT engineers have developed a new way to program natural killer (NK) immune cells to target cancerous T cells or T cells that have become autoreactive, leading to diseases such as lymphoma and autoimmune hepatitis.
Phys.org / Isle of Wight fossil Europe's first known long-clawed megaraptoran dinosaur
A new species of dinosaur—a long-clawed predator the size of a large tiger—has been discovered by a UCL-led team from a fossil found on the Isle of Wight. The dinosaur, described in a new paper in the journal Royal Society ...
