Phys.org news

Phys.org / Why snakes can go months between meals: A genetic explanation

Snakes may well be one of nature's greatest predators, capable of eating whole deer or even crocodiles, but just as impressive is that they can go months, or even a whole year, without a single meal. And now an international ...

5 hours ago in Biology
Phys.org / DIVE multi-agent workflow streamlines hydrogen storage materials discovery

Developing new materials can involve a dizzying amount of trial and error for different configurations and elements. Artificial intelligence (AI) has seen a surge of popularity in energy materials research for its potential ...

2 hours ago in Chemistry
Phys.org / Oysters play unexpected role in protecting blue crabs from disease

Oysters famously filter their surrounding water, but it turns out they are removing more than algae and excess nutrients. New research from William & Mary's Batten School of Coastal & Marine Sciences & VIMS shows they can ...

2 hours ago in Biology
Phys.org / From cryogenic to red-hot: Optical temperature sensing from 77 K to 873 K

An international collaboration involving researchers from the University of Innsbruck has developed a novel luminescent material that enables particularly robust and precise optical temperature sensing across an exceptionally ...

3 hours ago in Physics
Phys.org / Lab-grown beef: Novel line of bovine embryonic stem cells shows promise

Researchers in the College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources have developed a novel line of bovine embryonic stem cells, which have significant potential for a variety of new innovations, from lab-grown meat to ...

3 hours ago in Biology
Phys.org / Nanocrystal biohybrids harvest light to reduce N₂ gas to ammonia

Ammonia, a key part of nitrogen fertilizers, is central to sustaining global food production. However, its manufacture is also energy intensive: Ammonia production requires 2% of global energy to meet global demand. Approximately ...

3 hours ago in Nanotechnology
Phys.org / Analysis reveals interhemispheric thermal imbalance as key to Asian-Australian monsoon variability

The Asian-Australian monsoon system (A-AuMS) is the world's most typical cross-equatorial coupled monsoon system. On a seasonal timescale, the summer monsoon in one hemisphere is usually linked to the winter monsoon in the ...

3 hours ago in Earth
Phys.org / 2024 total eclipse subtly shifted animal calling across three Ohio prairies, study finds

No natural phenomenon provides a rarer chance to study the secrets of the animal world than a total solar eclipse. This was recently demonstrated by researchers investigating how a total solar eclipse might affect the soundscape ...

3 hours ago in Biology
Phys.org / Terahertz microscope reveals the motion of superconducting electrons

You can tell a lot about a material based on the type of light shining at it: Optical light illuminates a material's surface, while X-rays reveal its internal structures and infrared captures a material's radiating heat. ...

7 hours ago in Physics
Phys.org / Invisible actors in groundwater mapped for first time, revealing role in freshwater reservoir

Groundwater is considered the largest reservoir of liquid freshwater on Earth and a habitat for complex microbial communities that drive essential biogeochemical cycles. Until now, the role of viruses that infect microorganisms ...

3 hours ago in Biology
Phys.org / Poop as medicine? A Roman vial's chemistry backs up ancient medical texts

When some ancient Romans were feeling a little under the weather, they were treated with human feces. While this practice was mentioned in ancient Greco-Roman medical texts by figures such as Pliny the Elder, there was no ...

7 hours ago in Other Sciences
Phys.org / From single queens to mega-colonies: How ant societies are shaped by the environment

A single queen in the tropics; large colonies in deserts; workers with uniform morphology in temperate regions; ant social structures vary according to environmental conditions. This is shown, for the first time at a global ...

4 hours ago in Biology