Phys.org news

Phys.org / The future lifespan of plants just got extended

For now, the future of life on Earth is in human hands. But after the anthropocentric era, the situation starts to get dicey. The sun's luminosity is increasing over time, about 1% every 110 million years, so the Earth's ...

Dec 31, 2024 in Astronomy & Space
Phys.org / Introducing HORNET, a novel RNA structure visualization method that correlates sequence and 3D topology

National Cancer Institute researchers have developed a method called HORNET for characterizing 3D topological structures of large and flexible RNA molecules. Scientists used atomic force microscopy (AFM) with deep neural ...

Dec 31, 2024 in Biology
Phys.org / Russian shipwreck in Iran reveals centuries-old Caspian Sea cargo

Archaeologists from the International Association for Mediterranean and Oriental Studies, Italy, along with the Underwater Archaeology Faculty in Tehran, have detailed the findings from the excavation of a wooden shipwreck ...

Dec 31, 2024 in Other Sciences
Phys.org / German astronomers discover three new hydrogen-deficient pre-white dwarfs

Using the X-shooter instrument at ESO's Very Large Telescope (VLT), German astronomers have detected three new pre-white dwarfs, which turned out to be strongly hydrogen-deficient. The finding was reported in a research paper ...

Dec 31, 2024 in Astronomy & Space
Phys.org / New method estimates Atlantic freshwater transport across latitudes

Researchers from the Institute of Atmospheric Physics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Xiamen University have developed an indirect method for estimating Atlantic meridional freshwater transport (AMFT) at various latitudes. ...

Dec 31, 2024 in Earth
Phys.org / New method traces molecular gas mass in distant galaxies

Prof. Zhao Yinghe from the Yunnan Observatories of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, along with collaborators, have conducted a study examining the correlation between the [C II] 158 micron emission and the CO(1-0) line. Their ...

Dec 31, 2024 in Astronomy & Space
Phys.org / Microplastics found in multiple human organ tissues correlated with lesions

Research led by Zhejiang Agriculture and Forestry University in China has performed a metadata investigation into the presence of microplastics in humans. They report a concerning relationship between micro and nanoplastic ...

Dec 30, 2024 in Chemistry
Phys.org / The science behind your Christmas sweater: How friction shapes the form of knitted fabrics

A trio of physicists from the University of Rennes, Aoyama Gakuin University, and the University of Lyon have discovered, through experimentation, that it is friction between fibers that allows knitted fabrics to take on ...

Dec 30, 2024 in Physics
Phys.org / New dinosaur, Archaeocursor asiaticus, hints at early Gondwana to Laurasia migration

A newly identified dinosaur from southwestern China is revealing what appears to be the earliest-diverging ornithischian dinosaur in Asia. A multi-institution investigation in China has introduced the world to Archaeocursor ...

Dec 30, 2024 in Biology
Phys.org / Observers investigate a nearby galaxy cluster merger

Using the Very Large Array (VLA), an international team of astronomers have observed a nearby galaxy merger known as CIZA J0107.7+5408. Results of the observational campaign, presented December 20 on the preprint server arXiv, ...

Dec 30, 2024 in Astronomy & Space
Phys.org / Researchers achieve calculation of Jones polynomial based on the Majorana zero modes

A research team has experimentally calculated the Jones polynomial based on the quantum simulation of braided Majorana zero modes. The research team determined the Jones polynomials of different links through simulating the ...

Dec 30, 2024 in Physics
Phys.org / 2D materials with 'twist' show unexpected electronic behavior that defy theoretical predictions

In the search for new materials that can enable more efficient electronics, scientists are exploring so-called 2D materials. These are sheets of just one atom thick, that may have all kinds of interesting electronic properties. ...

Dec 30, 2024 in Nanotechnology