Phys.org news

Phys.org / AI may not make us stupid, but relying on it could weaken the skills built through practice

The worry of becoming stupid isn't new; it dates back to the time of the Greek philosopher Socrates, who insisted that writing would destroy memory and weaken the mind. Then came calculators, GPS and computers, all of which ...

Jul 20, 2026
Phys.org / Bee brains reveal how colonies divide work without central planning

What determines which tasks bees perform in their colony? Biologists from Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf (HHU) and the universities in Cologne and Frankfurt/Main have investigated the role neural activity plays in this ...

Jul 20, 2026
Phys.org / Children and monkeys share common understanding of geometry

With their ability to use tools, remember faces and even learn how to communicate with humans through sign language, nonhuman primates are considered to be among the smartest creatures on Earth. However, some concepts—geometry, ...

Jul 20, 2026
Phys.org / New web tool maps fossil locations across ancient continents in seconds

Calculating a fossil's position throughout geological history is a complex process. In paleontology and other disciplines, determining a location in the past is a challenge that requires refined computational tools to process ...

Jul 20, 2026
Phys.org / Archaeological dig reveals full extent of Roman villa with intricate mosaic and bath house

Archaeologists have uncovered a rare and intricate polychrome mosaic within the remains of a Roman villa beneath Devon farmland. Made up of thousands of red, white and dark blue-gray cubes, the 12 m2 (129 square feet) mosaic ...

Jul 20, 2026
Phys.org / One idea, two cosmic mysteries—linking Little Red Dots and globular clusters

A new study led by astronomers at The University of Texas at Austin proposes a theory that could solve two astronomical riddles at once: the nature of Little Red Dots and the origin of globular clusters. Rather than representing ...

Jul 20, 2026
Phys.org / Scientists map how the flu virus rewires the human cell from the inside

Researchers at EMBL Hamburg and collaborators at the Leibniz Research Institute for Molecular Pharmacology (FMP) have mapped how the influenza A virus rewires infected human cells in unprecedented detail. To do this, the ...

Jul 20, 2026
Phys.org / Underwater drones discover coral reefs off Benin, long presumed dead, teeming with life

A coral reef, missing and presumed dead, has been found alive and well off the coast of Benin. Surveys in the 1960s, focused on identifying promising fishing areas, flagged a possible deep-water coral reef but assumed it ...

Jul 20, 2026
Phys.org / Japan's first mosasaur premaxilla fossil hints at a new species

A research team from Okayama University of Science, Tokyo City University, the Natural History Museum, Kishiwada City (Osaka Prefecture), and other institutions has identified four previously unrecognized fossil bones from ...

Jul 20, 2026
Phys.org / How the most widespread parasite on Earth reads its genome

A parasite carried by billions of people worldwide often causes harmful infections during pregnancy and in immunocompromised individuals and is a leading infectious cause of blindness in South America. Once it enters the ...

Jul 20, 2026
Phys.org / New cell imaging method measures protein folding in living organelles

Protein aggregates are associated with the development of diseases like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. These are found more often in certain areas of cells known as membraneless organelles. Do these organelles promote this ...

Jul 20, 2026
Phys.org / Rare sighting reveals Arctic bobtail squid and egg masses in subzero Greenland fjord

Marine biologists have observed the Arctic bobtail squid in its natural habitat in the North Atlantic Ocean for the first time, including the rare discovery of a mature female with eggs. Dr Paige Maroni, from The University ...

Jul 20, 2026