Phys.org news

Phys.org / Pacific cloud brightening could weaken El Nino, but models reveal risks for Europe and Asia

A brewing "super" El Nino cycle is poised to unleash heat waves, floods and drought worldwide, with the effects amplified by long-term human-caused climate change.

6 hours ago
Phys.org / A new genetic tool helps researchers uncover the logic of gene regulation

The human genome contains more than 20,000 genes. However, at any given time and in a given cell, only a fraction are active. Researchers from EMBL Heidelberg's Krebs Group have developed an innovative experimental approach ...

23 hours ago
Phys.org / Laying odds on the potential for Martian water near future landing zones

We know Mars has water ice in its polar regions, but astronauts (and their solar-powered equipment!) would much rather experience life closer to Mars' equator. As NASA looks toward landing humans on the red planet, the Planetary ...

23 hours ago
Phys.org / Moonquakes could reveal ice buried beneath lunar south polar craters

Finding water on the moon may only be a matter of detecting the right vibrations.

22 hours ago
Phys.org / Newly discovered mechanism protects DNA during cell division

Every time a cell divides, it must accurately copy and distribute its DNA between two new cells. However, in some cases, chromosomes do not fully separate, leaving behind thin strands of DNA known as DNA bridges that connect ...

23 hours ago
Phys.org / Homing in on the X-ray sky with eROSITA's second data release

The German eROSITA consortium (eROSITA-DE), which includes the University of Bonn and is led by the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics (MPE), has released its second major public data set, the "eROSITA Data ...

Jul 31, 2026
Phys.org / Lichen-like life 600 million years ago may push back origins of fungal-algal partnerships

Two organisms inhabiting a common environment can sometimes mutually influence each other, either benefiting or, in some cases, damaging one another. This mutually beneficial or ambivalent biological relationship is known ...

Jul 31, 2026
Phys.org / Diego Rivera claimed his mural Creation was half wax, but chemical forensics says otherwise

Adorning the walls of San Ildefonso College in Mexico City is artist Diego Rivera's masterpiece, rendered in fresco and gold leaf, The Creation, or La Creacioń. It depicts a man standing with his arms outstretched beneath ...

Jul 31, 2026
Phys.org / Ancient Rome's food shortages were shaped more by logistics than climate

Ancient Rome's greatest threat to food security wasn't the weather but the challenge of getting grain to the capital, according to a new study. By comparing hundreds of years of historical records with reconstructions of ...

Jul 31, 2026
Phys.org / New photonic platform offers a four-lane highway for light

Topological photonics can force propagating light to travel in a single direction—allowing researchers to route optical signals around corners and past defects without any of it scattering backward. So far, however, this ...

Jul 31, 2026
Phys.org / Less-explored form of quantum code could be more powerful—and more stable—than its alternative in error correction

In mathematics and getting dressed, some processes are commutative, while others are noncommutative. Commutative means the order doesn't matter (3 + 2 is the same as 2 + 3, and it doesn't matter which sock goes on first). ...

Jul 31, 2026
Phys.org / Two independent studies push semiconductor qubits towards practical scales

Semiconductor spin qubits are one of the most promising building blocks for future quantum computers, but turning them into a working, large-scale quantum computer has so far proven difficult. For now, two big questions remain ...

Jul 31, 2026