Phys.org news

Phys.org / Remote fieldwork and museum collections reveal hidden pit viper diversity in High Asia

The high mountain ranges of Asia remain among the least biologically explored regions of the continent. Now, an international team of researchers has shown that one of their most elusive venomous snakes, long treated as a ...

May 25, 2026
Phys.org / Visualizing how flutter kick vertical vortices generate propulsion and suppress body sway in swimmers

Researchers at University of Tsukuba used advanced techniques to visualize the water flow generated by flutter kicking during front-crawl swimming. They analyzed how this kicking motion generates propulsive force and contributes ...

May 25, 2026
Phys.org / Mathematicians solve decades-old mystery about the hidden order in high-dimensional randomness

Three mathematicians have laid out proof that solves a long-standing problem in mathematics. Even the mathematician—an Abel prize winner—that first posed the problem didn't believe it would ever be solved. The solution provides ...

May 24, 2026
Phys.org / Heavily reddened quasars caught going through a 'blow-out' phase

At the center of most large galaxies sits a supermassive black hole (SMBH). When these black holes are actively consuming material, they become incredibly luminous quasars. But some quasars appear wrapped in thick clouds ...

May 24, 2026
Phys.org / This tiny blue octopus from the Galápagos could curl up in your hand and shows how much deep ocean remains unexplored

The Galápagos Islands off the coast of Ecuador are home to more than a thousand plant and animal species found nowhere else on Earth—things like marine iguanas and giant tortoises. In a new paper in the journal Zootaxa, scientists ...

May 24, 2026
Phys.org / 'Patchwork families' existed more than 5,000 years ago, Neolithic DNA reveals

Children from previous relationships growing up as siblings in a new family, couples adopting or fostering children: So-called patchwork families are a widespread way of life today. It is considered modern, but is in fact ...

May 24, 2026
Phys.org / New 'AI scientists' are improving—but reveal their fundamental limits

Many of the most exciting discoveries in science involve highly specialized knowledge and making connections between far-flung facts. Scientists must combine deep analysis with broad reasoning strategies.

May 24, 2026
Phys.org / Gold-coated optical fiber rapidly gathers microscopic targets for faster, more sensitive detection

Osaka Metropolitan University researchers have developed a light-driven technique that quickly amasses thousands of bacteria into a single spot, boosting detection speed and sensitivity. Their approach paves the way for earlier ...

May 24, 2026
Phys.org / When order gives way to chaos—the turbulent birth of magnetic nanovortices

Magnetic switching processes are considered a prime example of controllable physics at the nanometer scale: in certain thin-film systems, a short electrical current pulse is sufficient to reverse the magnetization in a targeted ...

May 24, 2026
Phys.org / Honeybees reveal Weber's law in flight when choosing paths

Honeybees are among the widely studied insects, due to their sophisticated, hierarchical social organization and their essential ecological role. Bees can move swiftly in natural environments, passing through narrow openings ...

May 23, 2026
Phys.org / Extreme 8.5-minute orbit reveals white dwarf being torn apart by its binary companion

A team of U.S. astronomers has observed a binary pair of white dwarfs where one star is actively devouring material from the other. Led by Emma Chickles at MIT, the researchers revealed one of the clearest views yet of how ...

May 23, 2026
Phys.org / Emergence of new cavefish species challenges evolutionary dead-end idea

A new Yale study identifies a distinct species of eyeless cavefish, a discovery that challenges long-held conventional wisdom that caves and other subterranean ecosystems are evolutionary dead ends.

May 23, 2026