Phys.org news
Phys.org / The oldest deliberately collected fossil ichthyosaur was discovered in Roman Britain around 1,800 years ago
Around 1,800 years ago, a fossilized spinal bone lay on the windswept beaches of Roman Britain until a curious passerby picked it up and carried it far away, only to drop it in a pit.
Phys.org / Caddisfly silk gene evolves quickly without losing adhesive power
Caddisflies are among nature's master underwater builders, capable of spinning sticky silk that they use to form protective cases and webs in freshwater streams. Scientists like the University of Utah's Russell Stewart have ...
Phys.org / Manganese risk in groundwater affects 200 million people, study shows
Manganese is an essential trace element. However, in excessive concentrations, the metal can cause health problems. Two Eawag researchers have now produced a global risk map for manganese in groundwater. Half of the world's ...
Phys.org / Maize-fed animals may have helped Maya farmers solve corn's protein deficiency
Maize (corn) is a major dietary staple in Maya communities past and present because of its reliability, potential for surplus, and suitability as both food and fodder. It became so important to ancient Mesoamerican communities ...
Phys.org / Scientists discover rare 'super-Jupiter' planet with 180-day long orbit
Scientists from Queen's University Belfast have led an international team in the discovery of a rare new planet, which is larger than Jupiter and orbits a distant star every 180 days. Named NGTS-38 b, it is an exoplanet—a ...
Dialog / Catching hydrogen in the act: Tracking the absorption process over time
If you're looking for hydrogen on the elemental chart, it won't take you long to find it. It is right there at the beginning, the lightest possible material. One electron, one proton, one neutron. Simple, minimalistic, the ...
Phys.org / The language of play: Hyenas use facial expressions and vocalizations to de-escalate
Scientists observed spotted hyenas (Crocuta crocuta) playing in the wild and found that their precise, sophisticated communication is on par with that of many primate species. Hyenas play and romp with one another at all ...
Phys.org / Optimizing RNA design with AI and an Ising machine: Encoding matters
RNA has emerged as one of the most promising molecules in modern medicine, enabling advances from mRNA vaccines and gene therapies to genome editing and synthetic biology. However, designing RNA molecules that reliably fold ...
Phys.org / Scientists find gas emissions from rocks may have contributed to ancient climate swings, mass extinctions
An interdisciplinary team from Florida State University's Department of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Science has uncovered new evidence about processes that may have contributed to ancient mass-extinction events, some of ...
Phys.org / Unraveling a long-standing solar mystery: The extreme thinness of the sun's tachocline layer
Researchers are closer to unraveling a longstanding solar mystery surrounding the extreme thinness of the sun's tachocline layer of strong shearing motion—a region believed to be critical for creating the violent eruptions ...
Phys.org / Beavers thrive in river estuaries along North America's northwest coast
Beavers are widespread in estuaries and tidal wetlands in the Pacific Northwest of the United States, demonstrating that they are not restricted to rivers and streams, Gregory Hood at the Skagit River System Cooperative, ...
Phys.org / California wolves feed heavily on cattle and their presence causes significant stress among livestock
Two new studies examining gray wolves in California paint a complex picture of life on the state's ranching landscapes: Wolves eat cattle more than anything else, and the presence of the predators causes significant stress ...
