Phys.org news
Phys.org / Gold-MXene catalyst converts nitrate to ammonia using sunlight and 1.5 volts
Plants need nitrogen fertilizers, which are usually ammonia-based. Ammonia is therefore one of the most important chemical products. However, its production is currently extremely energy-intensive. An international team from ...
Phys.org / Early Cambrian fossil uncovers key buoyancy structure at the dawn of cephalopod evolution
Extant and ancient cephalopods—including octopuses, squids, extinct ammonites, cuttlefish and nautiluses—have all had to solve the problem of buoyancy, whether they have hard external shells or not.
Phys.org / Global warming threatens rice harvests more than crop models predict, study warns
A new study on how rising temperatures will affect rice production in Science Advances compares 214 observations from field-warming experiments with seven crop models, revealing modeled estimates for yield reductions from ...
Phys.org / Two antibody gene systems may help explain vesper bats' unusual viral tolerance
It is a mystery that has puzzled scientists for years. How can the world's only winged mammals carry viruses that cause severe disease while rarely becoming seriously ill themselves?
Phys.org / Rare-earth ions could enable telecom-ready control of interacting qubits
Quantum technologies are devices and systems that exploit the laws of quantum mechanics and could perform tasks that are difficult or impossible to tackle using their classical counterparts. These technologies process and ...
Phys.org / Five-year study finds rewilded elephants develop successful coping mechanisms, with individual differences
Ex-captive elephants released into the wild adapt well to wild environments, according to a study published July 29, 2026, in the journal PLOS One by Tenisha Roos and Tamara Eggeling of the Elephant Reintegration Trust of ...
Phys.org / Ice Age artists carved thumbnail-size bird figurines from mammoth ivory 40,000 years ago
Excavations at Hohle Fels Cave in the UNESCO World Heritage area of the Swabian Jura in southwestern Germany have again yielded two spectacular 40,000-year-old depictions of birds carved from mammoth ivory. The two figurines ...
Phys.org / Problematic internet users are crabbier, more stressed and more tempted than the rest of us
People described as "problematic" internet users report higher stress, worse mood and greater neglect of other activities than those who surf the web sparingly, according to a study published in PLOS One by Silke M. Müller ...
Phys.org / An entire world of fungi nearly a third of a mile underground could affect carbon storage estimates
Hundreds of feet below Earth's surface, rocks and water teem with fungi and support complex ecosystems of tiny organisms, according to a University of Michigan study that finds fungi are far more abundant deep underground ...
Phys.org / Flexible DNA directs proteins into atomically ordered crystals, overturning crystallization assumptions
For decades, scientists have largely relied on painstaking trial and error to coax proteins into crystalline forms. Crystallization enables scientists to determine the molecular structures of proteins, which can provide a ...
Phys.org / Beyond wrinkles: New rule explains why growing shapes suddenly crumple
Scientists have discovered a previously unknown law of geometry that explains why some growing surfaces, whether in nature or in engineered materials, suddenly stop being able to stay smooth and instead form dimples and folds. ...
Phys.org / A mechanically tunable molecular switch for circularly polarized light emission
Over the past few decades, scientists have become increasingly interested in developing materials that do not simply withstand mechanical forces but instead respond to them in useful, detectable ways. For example, it is now ...
