Phys.org news
Phys.org / Twitter data reveals partisan divide in understanding why pollen season's getting worse
Two things are clear from a University of Michigan analysis of nearly 200,000 Twitter posts between 2012 and 2022. One, people are really good at identifying peak pollen season: The largest volume of tweets about pollen often ...
Phys.org / Electrons that lag behind nuclei in 2D materials could pave way for novel electronics
One of the great successes of 20th-century physics was the quantum mechanical description of solids. This allowed scientists to understand for the first time how and why certain materials conduct electric current and how ...
Phys.org / Cracking sleep's evolutionary code: Neuron protection traced back to jellyfish and sea anemones
A new study from Bar-Ilan University shows that one of sleep's core functions originated hundreds of millions of years ago in jellyfish and sea anemones, among the earliest creatures with nervous systems. By tracing this ...
Phys.org / 'Platypus' objects in the early universe look like stars but behave like galaxies
Scientists at the University of Missouri have identified a small group of unusual objects in the early universe. Using NASA's James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), Haojing Yan and his team at Mizzou's College of Arts and Science ...
Phys.org / Mass spec innovation uses 'bin' sorting to detect overlooked molecules
Weight says a lot. In the kitchen, it could mean cooking with too little or too much of an ingredient. For scientists, a molecule's weight can help determine its makeup. This, in turn, can shed light on whether a potential ...
Phys.org / Dentin inside wolffish teeth is a rare material: When compressed along its length—it also shrinks in width
The Atlantic wolffish is known for its powerful bite, capable of crushing hard-shelled prey with ease. Now, researchers have discovered that the fish's teeth don't just withstand these extreme forces, they respond in a way ...
Phys.org / Programmable microparticles morph and self-propel under electrical fields
Researchers at CU Boulder have created tiny, microorganism-inspired particles that can change their shape and self-propel, much like living things, in response to electrical fields.
Phys.org / Direct 3D printing of nanolasers can boost optical computing and quantum security
In future high-tech industries, such as high-speed optical computing for massive AI, quantum cryptographic communication, and ultra-high-resolution augmented reality (AR) displays, nanolasers—which process information using ...
Phys.org / Nanoparticles with AI-crafted sensors open paths to at-home cancer screening
Detecting cancer in the earliest stages could dramatically reduce cancer deaths because cancers are usually easier to treat when caught early. To help achieve that goal, MIT and Microsoft researchers are using artificial ...
Phys.org / New tools turn grain crops into living biosensors
A collaborative team of researchers from the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center, the University of Florida, Gainesville and University of Iowa have developed tools that allow grasses—including major grain crops like corn—to ...
Phys.org / Shelled amoeba crawls like an octopus, shifting tactics on the go
An international team of researchers led by Hokkaido University has characterized the unique mechanics that enable Arcella, a shelled, single-celled amoeba, to move skillfully across different surfaces.
Phys.org / The (metabolic) 'cost of life': New method quantifies hidden energy costs of maintaining metabolic pathways
There are "costs of life" that mechanical physics cannot calculate. A clear example is the energy required to keep specific biochemical processes active—such as those that make up photosynthesis, although the examples are ...
