Phys.org news

Phys.org / Who is calling? Bats outsmart deception by solving sensory conflicts

Would you answer someone's cry for help if that someone was sitting unharmed in front of you? Most probably would not, and bats have similar reservations, according to a new study published in Current Biology in which researchers ...

Mar 25, 2025 in Biology
Phys.org / Dynamic density functional theory offers new approach to understanding protein–membrane interactions

Proteins interacting with cell membranes play a vital role in countless biological processes, from how cells communicate to how they respond to external signals like hormones or medications. Understanding these interactions ...

Mar 25, 2025 in Chemistry
Phys.org / C. diff uses toxic compound to fuel growth advantage, researchers discover

The pathogen C. diff—the most common cause of health care-associated infectious diarrhea—can use a compound that kills the human gut's resident microbes to survive and grow, giving it a competitive advantage in the infected ...

Mar 25, 2025 in Biology
Phys.org / Scientists uncover how enzymes evolved to function at low temperatures

Life has evolved over billions of years, adapting to the changing environment. Similarly, enzymes—proteins that speed up biochemical reactions (catalysis) in cells—have adapted to the habitats of their host organisms. ...

Mar 25, 2025 in Biology
Phys.org / TiO₂ nanoparticles offer simultaneous arsenic and uranium remediation from groundwater

A research team led by Prof. Luan Fubo from the Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, has uncovered a novel mechanism involving a ternary surface complex on titanium dioxide (TiO₂) ...

Mar 25, 2025 in Nanotechnology
Phys.org / Superoxide's role in enzyme-driven drug synthesis uncovered

Enzymes, the core catalysts in life, drive critical biological processes ranging from metabolic regulation to energy conversion. Evolved over billions of years, these versatile molecular machines not only serve as foundational ...

Mar 25, 2025 in Chemistry
Phys.org / Study finds universality in moving cells—a discovery that could impact health and robotics

A study focusing on analyzing cell models found universality in their movement—an important discovery that could impact both health and robotics.

Mar 25, 2025 in Biology
Phys.org / Ocean eddies are the food trucks of the sea: Study reveals lipidome composition of mesoscale eddies

Mesoscale eddies, oceanic gyres about 100 kilometers in diameter, are ubiquitous features of the global ocean and play a vital role in marine ecosystems. Eddies, which form in biologically productive coastal upwelling regions, ...

Mar 25, 2025 in Earth
Phys.org / Cloud band movement influences wet spells during Indian monsoon, study finds

The monsoon rains have long remained the lifeblood of India, providing the lion's share of the water used for drinking and irrigation. The yearly arrival of the rains, which quenches the thirst of the harsh summers, is caused ...

Mar 25, 2025 in Earth
Phys.org / Organic molecules of unprecedented size discovered on Mars

Scientists analyzing pulverized rock onboard NASA's Curiosity rover have found the largest organic compounds on the red planet to date. The finding, published Monday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, ...

Mar 24, 2025 in Astronomy & Space
Phys.org / Might the proton decay in other places or at other times?

Does the proton decay? While this was a famous prediction of Grand Unified Theories (GUTS) developed in the 1970s and 1980s, experimentalists have ruled it out—or rather, put lower limits on its mean lifetime of about 1034 ...

Mar 24, 2025 in Physics
Phys.org / Astronomers discover new giant molecular cloud in the Milky Way

Using the Green Bank Telescope (GBT), astronomers have detected a new giant molecular cloud in the Milky Way galaxy. The newfound cloud has a size of nearly 200 light years and its mass is estimated to be some 160,000 solar ...

Mar 24, 2025 in Astronomy & Space