Phys.org news
Phys.org / New measurements explain how silicon and diamond achieve extreme reversible stretching
A research team led by Yang Lu from the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the Faculty of Engineering, The University of Hong Kong (HKU), has uncovered the microscopic physical nature of ultralarge elasticity in covalent ...
Phys.org / 'Wall-to-wall' map of NYC trees could help cool cities worldwide
Researchers have created an interactive map identifying 1.8 million individual trees in New York City, using a new approach that could optimize the placement of trees for cooling in cities around the world.
Phys.org / Clubbing may boost well-being for women in midlife
An online survey published in the journal Psychology of Music asked 136 women ages 40 and older about their experiences at electronic dance music (EDM) events. Nine in 10 respondents (91%) said clubbing contributes positively ...
Phys.org / Designing supramolecular therapies to cross the blood-brain barrier
A new Northwestern Medicine study has uncovered key molecular design principles that could help supramolecular therapeutics cross the blood-brain barrier, a major challenge for this novel approach to treating neurological ...
Phys.org / Messy life-producing cellular process caught in action for first time
All living things have a fleet of tiny copy machines that turn instructions from DNA into RNA molecules responsible for helping build proteins that keep organisms alive. One of those nanoscale machines, called eukaryotic ...
Phys.org / Tobacco companies helped flood the federal comment process that stalled menthol cigarette ban
When the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) proposed banning menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars in 2022, nearly 250,000 public comments flooded in—a record response that led the Biden administration to delay a final ...
Phys.org / How sex sheds evolutionary baggage
Why is there sex—or, more precisely, sexual reproduction? If you're an evolutionary biologist, the answer isn't obvious. Sexual reproduction is biologically costly, requiring not only competition for mates but also the creation ...
Phys.org / Area affected by wildfires in Europe could almost triple due to climate change
Increasingly hot, dry and windy conditions could substantially extend the area affected by wildfires across Europe, according to a new study led by the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) with contributions ...
Phys.org / 100-million-year-old molecular 'bypasses' may have helped grasses dominate landscapes and agriculture
100 million years ago, long before human intervention, ancestors of grasses, including wheat, rice and maize, developed "bypasses" in chemical pathways used to create two critical compounds: lignin and starch. These more ...
Phys.org / Extreme rain shifts toward larger, less frequent storms across eastern US
Extreme precipitation events are among the most damaging natural disasters and a major concern in our changing climate. In the U.S., since 1980, the most destructive events alone have caused more than 2,800 deaths and $700 ...
Phys.org / Illuminating the limits of the international unit of light, the candela
The candela, the international unit of light in use for almost a century, forms the basis of photometry. According to a new study, measurements derived from it systematically misjudge the brightness of colored light sources ...
Phys.org / Warming waters draw summer 'feeding frenzies' by whales off Greenland
The effects of global warming depend on species: The losers are legion, but a lucky few are winners. Now, researchers have shown that baleen whales are taking advantage of a newly opened-up fish bonanza in the Greenland Sea, ...