Phys.org news
Phys.org / Forest soil on doormats rebalances urban homes' indoor microbiome, study suggests
Introducing forest soil on an entryway doormat shifted the indoor microbiome of Finnish homes closer to bacterial profiles found outdoors, with less contribution from human-associated bacteria, a new study shows. In the future, ...
Phys.org / Great hammerheads maintain peak hunting across wide temperature swings, biologging data suggest
Most predators slow down when ocean temperatures shift. Great hammerhead sharks don't—not significantly anyway. These ocean predators are masters of the "thermal hustle," maintaining peak hunting performance across a surprisingly ...
Phys.org / Chiral metasurfaces guide twisted light into free space
Light can carry angular momentum in two distinct ways. One comes from polarization, which describes how the electric field rotates. The other comes from the shape of the wavefront itself, which can twist like a corkscrew ...
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 ...
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.
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 ...
Phys.org / Getting a glimpse of viral dances in the dark in the Sargasso Sea
In a new study of viral abundance over a short time frame in the Sargasso Sea, researchers found that almost all viruses with cyclical changes in abundance were most active at night—somewhat surprising when the team expected ...
Phys.org / What builds cohesion in diverse societies? Brain scans point to shared national identity cues
The brain? It has a flexible social perception. In interactions with people from different ethnic groups, it tends to respond more inclusively when a shared national identity is made salient. A study, by the University of ...
Phys.org / Targeting the tiniest divide: Research reveals potential vulnerability in bacterial reproduction
A Université de Montréal study has found a previously unknown mechanism in bacterial reproduction that could be attacked by future antibiotics. Bacteria reproduce by dividing into two: they form a wall, or septum, between ...
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 ...
Phys.org / College students struggle to identify problematic gray zones in academic practice, study finds
Students across education levels have a blind spot for identifying situations that might bring their academic integrity into questionable territory, a study finds. When navigating questions on citation, collaboration, and ...
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 ...
