Phys.org news

Phys.org / Frequent flares from TRAPPIST-1 could impact habitability of nearby planets

Like a toddler right before naptime, TRAPPIST-1 is a small yet moody star. This little star, which sits in the constellation Aquarius about 40 light-years from Earth, spits out bursts of energy known as "flares" about six ...

8 hours ago in Astronomy & Space
Phys.org / Cracking the code of why and when some choose to 'self-handicap'

Partying the night before a big exam. Preparing last-minute for a work presentation. Running a 5K in a 10-pound Halloween costume. All are examples of what psychologists call "self-handicapping"—creating obstacles to success ...

9 hours ago in Other Sciences
Phys.org / High-energy-density barocaloric material could enable smaller, lighter solid-state cooling devices

A collaborative research team from the Institute of Solid State Physics, the Hefei Institutes of Physical Science of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, has discovered a high-energy-density barocaloric effect in the plastic ...

8 hours ago in Physics
Phys.org / Archaic humans were strategic and picky hunters, new study suggests

Extinct relatives of modern humans, like Neanderthals and Homo erectus, that lived in the Levant around 120,000 years ago, did not engage in mass hunting but preferred selective and strategic hunting of wild cattle. Scientists ...

17 hours ago in Other Sciences
Phys.org / Seeding jet exhaust with ice-nucleating particles could reduce aviation's climate impact

If you look up at the sky on a clear day, chances are you'll notice thin, white clouds—also known as contrails—following behind airplanes.

9 hours ago in Earth
Phys.org / Nanotyrannus was not a juvenile T. rex, new study confirms

For decades, paleontologists argued over the lone skull used to establish the distinct species Nanotyrannus. Was it truly a separate species or simply a juvenile Tyrannosaurus rex? A new paper published in Science has definitively ...

9 hours ago in Biology
Phys.org / Scientists capture first detailed look inside droplet-like structures of compacted DNA

Inside human cells, biology has pulled off the ultimate packing job, figuring out how to fit six feet of DNA into a nucleus about one-tenth as wide as a human hair while making sure the all-important molecules can still function.

9 hours ago in Biology
Phys.org / Catalyst insight may unlock safer, on-demand ozone water disinfection

University of Pittsburgh researchers have made an important step toward providing hospitals and water treatment facilities with a safer, greener alternative to chlorine-based disinfection.

9 hours ago in Chemistry
Phys.org / Increasing plant diversity in agricultural grasslands boosts yields, reducing reliance on fertilizer

Higher plant diversity in agricultural grasslands increases yields with lower inputs of nitrogen fertilizer. That is the headline finding of a landmark, international study led by Trinity College Dublin that paints a promising ...

9 hours ago in Biology
Phys.org / New statistical tools sharpen the search for causal DNA changes in livestock

Researchers at North Carolina State University have developed a new suite of statistical methods that dramatically improves the ability to pinpoint DNA changes responsible for important traits in livestock. The work addresses ...

9 hours ago in Biology
Phys.org / AI chatbots can effectively sway voters—in either direction

A short interaction with a chatbot can meaningfully shift a voter's opinion about a presidential candidate or proposed policy in either direction, new Cornell University research finds.

9 hours ago in Other Sciences
Phys.org / LHC data confirm validity of new model of hadron production—and test foundations of quantum mechanics

A boiling sea of quarks and gluons, including virtual ones—this is how we can imagine the main phase of high-energy proton collisions. It would seem that particles here have significantly more opportunities to evolve than ...

11 hours ago in Physics