Phys.org news

Phys.org / DNA-binding protein blocks virulence cascade in a diarrhea pathogen outside hosts, study finds

Some pathogens use temperature as a trigger and activate virulence only after entering the warmer environment of a host. A research team from Ruhr University Bochum, Germany, and the University of Münster, Germany, investigated ...

Apr 2, 2026
Phys.org / AI turns electron microscopy into materials insights in minutes

An electron microscopy image can capture atoms arranged in a crystal lattice or defects threading through a semiconductor material, but turning that image into materials insight can take weeks of careful analysis. Now, an ...

Apr 2, 2026
Phys.org / Microscopic coils and coffee trees lead to new fungal discovery

Yunnan Province in southwestern China is a global biodiversity hotspot, accommodating an incredible variety of plants and animals. It is also the heart of China's coffee industry, with Yunnan accounting for almost all of ...

Apr 2, 2026
Phys.org / Unexplained sky flashes from the 1950s: Independent analysis supports their existence

Historical observations from an observatory in Germany have now independently verified evidence for brief, mysterious flashes of light in the night sky, first picked up by an American astronomical survey in the 1950s. Through ...

Apr 1, 2026
Phys.org / High nickel concentrations in Martian bedrock point to potential biosignatures

In 2024, NASA's Perseverance rover found surprising levels of Nickel in the Martian bedrock of an ancient river channel, called Neretva Vallis, which flowed into the Jezero crater. A new study, published in Nature Communications, ...

Apr 1, 2026
Phys.org / Gravitational waves suggest a 'forbidden zone' for stellar-origin black holes

An international team led by Monash University has uncovered evidence of a rare form of exploding star, helping to shed light on one of the most cataclysmic events in the universe. At the end of their lives, most massive ...

Apr 1, 2026
Phys.org / Conflict-driven farmland abandonment in Syria leads to land uplift, study finds

The Syrian civil war, which began in 2011, caused widespread population displacement and infrastructure damage. However, it has also led to an unintended environmental effect with notable changes in the country's landscape, ...

Apr 1, 2026
Phys.org / AI study reveals England's productivity divide is far more complex than North-South

Researchers at the University of Manchester have used artificial intelligence to uncover a complex picture behind England's long-running productivity puzzle, challenging the idea that the country's economic performance can ...

Apr 1, 2026
Phys.org / Thirty previously unpublished verses by Empedocles discovered on a papyrus from Cairo

A 2,000-year-old papyrus fragment, discovered in the archives of the French Institute of Oriental Archaeology in Cairo, reveals 30 previously unpublished verses by Empedocles, a pre-Socratic philosopher of the fifth century ...

Apr 1, 2026
Phys.org / FAST observes a peculiar rotating radio transient that also switches to pulsar states

Using the Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Radio Telescope (FAST), Chinese astronomers have explored the behavior of a rotating radio transient (RRAT) known as RRAT J1574+4703. The new observations found that this object ...

Apr 1, 2026
Phys.org / Study suggests people are losing 338 spoken words every year and have been for at least 15 years

In a society increasingly shaped by self-checkouts, GPS navigation and touchscreen ordering kiosks, new research shows face-to-face conversation may be quietly fading. A new study published in Perspectives on Psychological ...

Apr 1, 2026
Phys.org / Lakes forming next to Greenland's melting ice sheet are speeding up glacier flow

A growing network of meltwater lakes at the edge of the Greenland ice sheet is accelerating the flow of major glaciers, potentially increasing the pace of global sea-level rise. Warmer air and sea temperatures have led to ...

Apr 1, 2026