Phys.org news
Phys.org / Mystery foot belongs to ancient human relative: Scientists
Newly discovered fossils prove that a mysterious foot found in Ethiopia belongs to a little-known, recently named ancient human relative who lived alongside the species of the famous Lucy, scientists said Wednesday.
Phys.org / Thousands of genomes reveal the wild wolf genes in most dogs' DNA
Dogs were the first of any species that people domesticated, and they have been a constant part of human life for millennia. Domesticated species are the plants and animals that have evolved to live alongside humans, providing ...
Phys.org / Unprecedented levels of forever chemicals found in dolphins and whales
New research has revealed that marine mammals who live far below the ocean's surface are not immune from the burden of toxic forever chemicals, with whales and dolphins showing unprecedented levels of PFAS contamination.
Phys.org / Instagram users overestimate their social media addiction, study suggests
Instagram users may overestimate the extent to which they are addicted to the platform, according to research conducted on 1,204 U.S. adults published in Scientific Reports. The findings suggest that for most social media ...
Phys.org / RNA in action: Filming ribozyme self-assembly
RNA is a central biological macromolecule, now widely harnessed in medicine and nanotechnology. Like proteins, RNA function often depends on its precise three-dimensional structure. A recent study published in Nature Communications ...
Phys.org / Satellites spot surprising tsunami patterns: Massive Kamchatka quake challenges old models
A satellite deployed to measure ocean surface heights was up to the challenge when a massive earthquake off the Kamchatka Peninsula triggered a Pacific-wide tsunami in late July.
Phys.org / Drones: An ally in the sky to help save elephants
They say an elephant never forgets—and it turns out they can learn to adapt to drones. Once seen as a source of alarm, drones are now proving to be surprisingly elephant-friendly and a valuable research tool. Previously, ...
Phys.org / DNA transcription is a tightly choreographed event: How RNA polymerase II regulates the dance
Life's instructions are written in DNA, but it is the enzyme RNA polymerase II (Pol II) that reads the script, transcribing RNA in eukaryotic cells and eventually giving rise to proteins. Scientists know that Pol II must ...
Phys.org / Modern life explains why people in Chile are taller and have larger heads than their ancestors
Modern Chileans are significantly taller and have larger heads than their ancestors. That's the central finding of new research looking at how intracranial volume (ICV) has changed across thousands of years in northern Chile. ...
Phys.org / The collapse of Maya civilization: Drought doesn't explain everything
Between 750 and 900 CE, the population of the Maya lowlands in Central America experienced a major demographic and political decline which, according to the scientific literature, coincided with repeated episodes of intense ...
Phys.org / Diamond defects, now in pairs, reveal hidden fluctuations in the quantum world
In spaces smaller than a wavelength of light, electric currents jump from point to point and magnetic fields corkscrew through atomic lattices in ways that defy intuition. Scientists have only ever dreamed of observing these ...
Phys.org / Shop-bought cable helps power two quantum networks
For decades, physicists have dreamed of a quantum internet: a planetary web of ultrasecure communications and super-powered computation built not from electrical signals, but from the ghostly connections between particles ...
