Phys.org news

Phys.org / How Indigenous fire stewardship continues to shape North American forests

Indigenous knowledge and Western science are coming together to develop diverse, resilient and just fire restoration practices that support our forests, which are critically important in navigating a warming future with increased ...

Sep 10, 2025 in Earth
Phys.org / From risk factor to survival advantage: How tuberculosis has shaped meerkat evolution

Meerkats genetically adapt to a species-specific form of tuberculosis according to a long-term study by an international research team led by Ulm University. The scientists also found that climate change in the Kalahari Desert ...

Sep 10, 2025 in Biology
Phys.org / Dragonflies survived asteroids—but wildfires and climate change may push them to extinction

A new study led by University of Colorado Denver has uncovered how climate change and intensifying wildfires are disrupting dragonfly mating traits—threatening to push some species toward local extinction.

Sep 10, 2025 in Biology
Phys.org / Robots could help kids conquer reading anxiety, a new study suggests

For many children, the transition from learning to read to reading to learn is a crucial and sometimes nervewracking milestone. Reading aloud in class is intended to foster fluency and confidence, but for many students, it ...

Sep 10, 2025 in Other Sciences
Phys.org / Research reveals how microplastics threaten Gulf of Mexico marine life

Critical wildlife habitats are exposed to pollution risk in the seas off the southern United States, with implications for human health and food security. "Most of the pollution comes from rivers and not from wastewater treatment ...

Sep 10, 2025 in Earth
Phys.org / Climate change is driving fish stocks from countries' waters to the high seas, study finds

Fish and other marine organisms, though deeply affected by human activities, don't respect human borders. The ranges of many commercially important species in fact straddle the borders of countries' exclusive economic zones ...

Sep 10, 2025 in Biology
Phys.org / Measuring electron pulses for future compact ultra-bright X-ray sources

In a step toward making ultra-bright X-ray sources more widely available, an international collaboration led by the University of Michigan—with experiments at the U.K.'s Central Laser Facility—has mapped key aspects of ...

Sep 10, 2025 in Physics
Phys.org / Triggering RNA activation on demand: Strategy expands options for therapeutics and gene editing

National University of Singapore (NUS) researchers have devised a method to safely and temporarily "switch off" and then "turn on" ribonucleic acid (RNA) inside cells. This is achieved using structurally optimized disulfide-containing ...

Sep 10, 2025 in Chemistry
Phys.org / Enzyme analysis shows how microbes regulate methane balance

Research by microbiologists Martijn Wissink and Cornelia Welte of Radboud University, among others, is helping us understand how microorganisms regulate the methane balance. The scientists have demonstrated how a methane-converting ...

Sep 10, 2025 in Biology
Phys.org / As farm jobs decline worldwide, food industry work holds surprisingly steady

As economies expand, people don't just eat more food—they eat differently. A sweeping new study covering nearly three decades and 189 countries finds that while traditional farm jobs decline as nations grow wealthier, employment ...

Sep 10, 2025 in Other Sciences
Phys.org / When magnets cannot agree: Quantum mechanics deciphers iron catalyst

Catalysts are indispensable for the large-scale production of many chemicals, as they accelerate chemical reactions. Some of them contain metal atoms such as iron as key building blocks. The electrons of each individual iron ...

Sep 10, 2025 in Chemistry
Phys.org / Crowded conditions muddle frogs' mating choices

Female treefrogs prefer a mate with an impressive call, but the crowded environments give unattractive males an edge, according to a new international study led by Assistant Professor Jessie Tanner of the University of Tennessee, ...

Sep 10, 2025 in Biology