Phys.org news
Phys.org / Learning may rely on stronger neural connections, not expanding networks
How does the brain learn? Does it acquire new knowledge by creating new neural pathways or by strengthening existing connections? A new study from Bar-Ilan University offers evidence in favor of the latter, suggesting that ...
Phys.org / Spectroscopy system detects aerosols using light reflected from traffic signs and tree trunks
Researchers have developed and tested an infrared spectroscopy system that can rapidly detect chemical aerosols from a distance by using light reflected from common surfaces such as traffic signs, tree trunks or painted surfaces. ...
Phys.org / Two Arctic charr populations evolved in less than a century, study finds
Evolution, the process through which animals and other living organisms change their inherited traits over time, typically unfolds slowly over thousands or even millions of years. Some species, however, can adapt at a faster ...
Phys.org / Pacific Ocean pattern helps explain diverging wildfire trends in US and Australia
Two of the world's most fire-prone regions have followed strikingly different wildfire trajectories despite both experiencing a warming climate. Burned forest area has surged across the U.S. Southwest, while eastern Australia ...
Phys.org / Buried Roman workshop reveals large-scale pottery trade beyond local markets
A few years ago, the first ceramic finds came to light during construction work in the Burg district of the municipality of Hannersdorf. Geomagnetic surveys in subsequent years provided evidence of numerous kilns thought ...
Phys.org / Ancient stardust grains were seeds for the earliest solids in the solar system
How did the first solids that made up planets, moons and asteroids form from the "hot soup" that characterized our solar system's earliest years? New research from Caltech analyzing pieces of a meteorite has found that, just ...
Phys.org / Cesium atoms and quantum dots generate indistinguishable photons for modular quantum networks
Large-scale quantum communication networks require both reliable quantum memories and coherent single-photon sources that can exchange quantum information efficiently. A coherent source of single photons with narrow linewidth, ...
Phys.org / Ancient smallpox genomes reveal how European colonization brought the disease to the Americas
Researchers from Trinity College Dublin have recovered and analyzed the first ancient smallpox virus genomes ever identified in the Americas, providing the strongest direct evidence to date that the disease was introduced ...
Phys.org / Natural emulsion manages to stop fungus that threatens up to 80% of cocoa production
An innovative formulation based on natural compounds could become a sustainable alternative for controlling moniliasis, one of the most devastating diseases affecting cocoa in Latin America. A new study shows that emulsions ...
Phys.org / Before North and South America were connected, their mammals found a way to intermingle
Until the Panamanian isthmus formed about 2.8 million years ago, North and South America were isolated continents with unique groups of animals. A riot of marsupials—mammals with brood pouches—and sloths in the south contrasted ...
Phys.org / Tiny fossils crack a Cretaceous cold case: Ocean acidification triggered one of the ocean's most severe extinctions
A 113-million-year-old marine murder mystery may finally be solved. Using chemical clues locked inside microscopic fossils, Northwestern University scientists found evidence that ocean acidification drove one of the largest ...
Phys.org / Volcanic eruptions in Pacific Ring of Fire may have cooled Earth for centuries
For around 12,000 years, the Earth has been in the Holocene epoch, a warmer period following a glacial period. During this epoch, however, there have been around 22 abrupt cold phases, each lasting up to several centuries ...
