Phys.org news
Phys.org / Uncovering the link between epigenetic modifications and chromatin structure
Certain epigenetic modifications can directly control how genetic material is packed in the nucleus, RIKEN researchers have shown. This has important implications for our understanding of how genes are expressed in different ...
Phys.org / Extraterrestrial life may be slipping past space missions, astrobiologists warn
Suppose there are signs of extraterrestrial life and we have not yet been able to detect them. What does that mean? In Nature Astronomy, researchers discuss the consequences of these so-called false-negative results. "We ...
Phys.org / When noisy decision-making becomes a strategic advantage
A new study shows that apparently erratic or "sloppy" behavior in strategic situations is not necessarily a mistake. Under certain conditions, being less sensitive to one's own gains can become a long-term advantage.
Phys.org / How does gold keep its glitter? Researchers uncover why it resists tarnish
Gold has been prized for thousands of years for its enduring shine, but Tulane University researchers have discovered that gold's resistance to tarnishing depends on more than its chemistry.
Phys.org / Television news coverage of climate policy is limited and polarized in the US, study finds
Two-thirds of Americans want action on climate change, but people vastly underestimate public support for climate solutions and policy. Historically, U.S. news outlets overrepresented views on climate change that went against ...
Phys.org / Piezoelectric effect in diamond membranes challenges century-old scientific dogma
A research team in China has reported a significant piezoelectric effect in ultrathin and ultra-flexible polycrystalline diamond membranes. This pioneering discovery challenges a century-long scientific dogma that diamonds ...
Phys.org / Flint reveals changes in human mobility in the southern Pyrenees during the Upper Paleolithic
Analysis of more than 3,000 lithic artifacts from the Cova Gran de Santa Linya site (Les Avellanes-Santa Linya, Lleida) shows that anatomically modern human communities occupying the southern Pyrenees during the Upper Paleolithic ...
Phys.org / Complexity isn't subjective—the right amount results in new material properties
Complexity may seem subjective, but a quantitative measure of the complexity of nanomaterials was recently developed by a team of researchers from the University of Michigan Engineering, the University of Southern California ...
Phys.org / AI-designed miniproteins switch key cell receptors on and off
G protein-coupled receptors, or GPCRs, sit in the plasma membrane, the boundary that defines the inside and outside of a living cell. They communicate with nearly every physiological process in our bodies—from the ability ...
Phys.org / Evolutionary arms race stretches hawkmoths and flowers to extremes
Long before his days of research, Christian Couch was just a kid marveling at the butterflies in the Florida Museum of Natural History's Butterfly Rainforest. Years later, after enrolling as an undergraduate student at the ...
Phys.org / Researchers develop AI model that maps how genes work together in human cells
Scientists at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai have created a new artificial intelligence (AI) model that helps reveal how genes function together inside human cells, offering a powerful new way to understand biology ...
Phys.org / Ice core discovery finds volcanic eruptions could cause greater global disruption than previously thought
New research from the University of St Andrews has precisely dated an eruption from Newberry Volcano and discovered that its ash spread more than 5,000 km across the globe, far further than previously thought for an eruption ...