Phys.org news

Phys.org / 'Snooping' on dolphins offers acoustic clues to hotspots for food and friends

For dolphins, the ocean is a world of sound. Their whistles carry social information, helping them communicate and stay connected, while echolocation—rapid-fire clicks—functions like underwater sonar, helping them navigate ...

Aug 18, 2026
Phys.org / Male Neanderthal pelvises resemble those of modern females, challenging decades-old assumptions

A new study by the Department of Anatomy and Anthropology at Tel Aviv University, published in Scientific Reports, offers an explanation for one of the striking differences between men and women: the evolutionary development ...

Aug 17, 2026
Phys.org / AI agents coordinate behavior based on majority opinion—even when said opinions are meaningless

A new study published in Science Advances takes a closer look at how AI agents' choices are influenced by their peers. The team found that more advanced models tend to follow the majority when shown other agents' choices, ...

Aug 17, 2026
Phys.org / Molecular memory: How a mother's age echoes in her offspring's cells

In humans and many other animals, a mother's age can affect the physical and behavioral characteristics of the next generation. Scientists call these changes maternal age effects, and while they are widespread across the ...

Aug 17, 2026
Phys.org / Dark matter may be gravitationally lensing a likely source of cosmic neutrinos

Astronomers have discovered that the jet of a distant blazar has been gravitationally lensed by an unseen source of dark matter. Led by Silke Britzen at the Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy in Germany, the team's ...

Aug 17, 2026
Phys.org / Amber fossil reveals firefly relative with unprecedented antennae

Insects rely on a wide range of strategies to sense their surroundings and communicate with their peers. Fireflies (Lampyridae) and some related beetles are known for their ability to produce visible light through chemical ...

Aug 17, 2026
Phys.org / First pair of feeding supermassive black holes found in a Green Pea galaxy

Astronomers have discovered the first confirmed dual active galactic nucleus in a Green Pea galaxy, revealing two supermassive black holes growing at the same time inside a compact, intensely star-forming system. X-ray observations ...

Aug 17, 2026
Phys.org / Gold nanoclusters could help break down Alzheimer's amyloid plaques

Alzheimer's disease is a neurodegenerative brain disorder characterized by progressive memory loss and a decline in other mental functions. Past studies have consistently linked this disorder to the accumulation of the protein ...

Aug 17, 2026
Phys.org / 35-year monitoring study clarifies ecological forces behind Lyme disease risk

Tick-borne diseases are on the rise in the United States. Lyme disease is the most commonly reported, with nearly half a million people diagnosed each year. Caused by the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi, it is most often spread ...

Aug 17, 2026
Phys.org / Last common ancestor of humans and chimpanzees could have been a vertical climber, no matter its feet

New research suggests that no matter what we eventually determine the last common ancestor of humans and chimpanzees to be, we'll learn it was a primate that climbed trees.

Aug 17, 2026
Phys.org / Unlocking Gondwana's 120-million-year archive: Karoo record refines timing of extinctions and climate upheavals

A new review led by professor Emese Bordy at the University of Cape Town (UCT) Department of Geological Sciences brings together more than two decades of research on the Karoo Supergroup, revealing how scientific understanding ...

Aug 17, 2026
Phys.org / Physicists predict a new form of quantum matter that holds itself together

Researchers at Monash University have predicted a new type of quantum matter that challenges decades of thinking about how ultracold particles behave. The paper, "Quantum droplets in a resonant Bose-Fermi mixture," is published ...

Aug 17, 2026