Phys.org news
Phys.org / 'Lying mirror' uses structured surfaces to conceal optical information
Mirrors normally reveal what is placed in front of them, even when their curvature distorts a reflection. Researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) have introduced a different optical concept: a "lying ...
Phys.org / Controlled cracking technique prints quantum dots into tiny pixels for sharper displays
Recent technological advances have enabled the development of increasingly sophisticated, sharper displays for electronic devices. Many modern displays use light-emitting diodes, or LEDs, tiny semiconductor-based components ...
Phys.org / Early snakes explored life underground, on land and at sea
Snakes are highly modified lizards, with more than 4,000 living species today. The origin of snakes has long been one of evolutionary biology's most debated questions. Their sparse fossil record has made it hard to pin down ...
Phys.org / New catalyst with 75% less platinum promises to reduce the cost of hydrogen fuel cells
The high cost of platinum is one of the main barriers to the wider adoption of hydrogen fuel cells. Now, researchers at IMDEA Materials Institute have developed a catalyst that delivers the same performance while using 75% ...
Phys.org / How to spot the Perseid meteor shower, a summer light show that promises to dazzle
The Perseid summer light show is back—and viewing conditions are especially promising for the Northern Hemisphere.
Phys.org / Cosmic filaments help set first limits on dark matter's decay into gravitons
Composing some 85% of the universe's total mass, dark matter betrays its presence only through gravity, unlike ordinary matter. Yet through new research published in Physical Review D, a team led by David Dunsky of New York ...
Phys.org / Oldest known giant rock scallop bead suggests California coastal trade began millennia earlier
Archaeologists have discovered two giant rock scallop beads that push back the clock on the first appearance of these high-status ornaments. The discovery shows that these prized marine beads were traded hundreds of miles ...
Phys.org / Tiny particles defy action-reaction symmetry to stay in motion
From schools of fish and flocks of birds to microscopic synthetic particles, many systems in nature and the laboratory consist of individual units or agents that move by consuming energy. These systems are known as active ...
Phys.org / Rare Mars meteorite preserves 1.27-billion-year-old clues to planet's deep interior
Boston College scientists have determined that a newly discovered meteorite from Mars is 1.27 billion years old and derived from a previously unsampled, pristine source on the Red Planet. The study is published in the journal ...
Phys.org / Charge-based strategy improves controlled delivery of therapeutic peptides from gelatin-based materials
Rice University engineers have developed a new strategy for controlling how therapeutic peptides are released from gelatin-based materials, a step that could make the small but powerful molecules more useful in tissue engineering ...
Phys.org / 'Flying focus' laser overcomes key limitation in plasma-based particle accelerators
In a new Nature Physics study, researchers accelerated electrons to more than twice the energy predicted by the traditional dephasing limit for laser-plasma accelerators operating over the same distance. This was made possible ...
Phys.org / Pulsed radiofrequency magnetic fields may disorient migratory birds, experiments suggest
Every year, millions of migratory birds travel between different geographical regions on Earth to find food, escape cold weather or reach safe environments to raise chicks. To determine which direction to fly, these birds ...
