Phys.org news

Phys.org / How ice-age sea-level falls may have turned seafloor volcanoes into ocean fertilizer

Ice-age sea-level declines may have turned seafloor volcanoes into natural iron fertilizer for plankton, potentially enhancing ocean carbon storage, Boston College researchers report in the journal Nature Geoscience.

Jun 10, 2026
Phys.org / X-rays reveal how platinum oxidizes in real time inside hydrogen devices

Electrolysers produce hydrogen. Fuel cells, in turn, generate electricity from hydrogen. Both technologies are considered key building blocks of the energy transition, offering well-established solutions for storing, transporting ...

Jun 10, 2026
Phys.org / What happens when cartoon villains have an accent? Research reveals impact on kids

When kids watch cartoons, they're absorbing much more than a plot. Thanks to the use of foreign accents in shows, they're also learning a shorthand for moral character, new research from the University of Toronto Mississauga ...

Jun 10, 2026
Phys.org / Radar data can help protect birds from wind turbines

Wind turbines generate climate-friendly electricity, but they can pose a danger to migratory birds. A study led by the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL) published in Nature Sustainability ...

Jun 10, 2026
Phys.org / How bacteria organize themselves to 'hitchhike' across large distances

While scientists have studied how bacteria move toward food using a chemical radar known as chemotaxis, they have only watched single species swim in isolated environments over distances of only a few centimeters.

Jun 10, 2026
Phys.org / Deep sea an untapped 'evolutionary engine' as dataset yields 500 million unique genes

The deep sea is a unique "evolutionary engine," with one of the richest and most unexplored sources of genetic diversity on Earth, according to a major new study that assessed its potential to transform biotechnology and ...

Jun 10, 2026
Phys.org / 'Cold insurance' for crops: Researchers unlock 'on-demand' climate resilience

Rapidly intensifying global climate instability is causing increasingly erratic temperature fluctuations. When sudden cold snaps strike during a crop's critical flowering window, they trigger irreversible pollen abortion, ...

Jun 10, 2026
Phys.org / How biodiversity loss could raise borrowing costs and deepen debt risks worldwide

Financial markets are blind to the economic costs of biodiversity loss, leaving several countries at risk of defaulting on debt, according to new research published in Nature. While environmental degradation is recognized ...

Jun 10, 2026
Phys.org / How Argonaute, a key protein for RNA therapeutics, becomes activated

RNA therapeutics have emerged as one of the most promising new classes of medicines. Eight small interfering RNA (siRNA) drugs have already been approved worldwide for the treatment of genetic diseases, yet scientists have ...

Jun 10, 2026
Phys.org / AI model 'hears' Bryde's whale calls in seismic data from South China Sea

Researchers have repurposed an AI model designed for visual identification tasks to detect Bryde's whale calls contained within seismic data collected in the South China Sea. The detection system precisely identified calls ...

Jun 10, 2026
Phys.org / Acoustic environment may explain why some bird songs outlast others

From melodic morning choruses to territorial songs that echo through forests and grasslands, birds rely on vocalizations to communicate, attract mates and defend valuable habitat. For songbirds, these vocal displays are not ...

Jun 10, 2026
Phys.org / Algorithm visualizes how cells 'talk' to one another across tissue and time

People communicate with each other, sometimes face to face, sometimes with a text message or phone call. Cells also communicate with each other, sometimes by touching and sometimes by sending signals across space and time. ...

Jun 10, 2026