Phys.org news
Phys.org / Newly discovered parasite linked to coastal seabird deaths
Along the Gulf Coast, black skimmers have long been a familiar sight—gliding just above the water with their bright orange beaks slicing through the surface to feed.
Phys.org / Moonquakes could reveal ice buried beneath lunar south polar craters
Finding water on the moon may only be a matter of detecting the right vibrations.
Phys.org / Laying odds on the potential for Martian water near future landing zones
We know Mars has water ice in its polar regions, but astronauts (and their solar-powered equipment!) would much rather experience life closer to Mars' equator. As NASA looks toward landing humans on the red planet, the Planetary ...
Phys.org / Math shows why your vote may not count the way you think it does
Mathematicians have shown that completely fair elections are—in a sense—impossible. No electoral system can guarantee both that local votes translate directly into local seats and that total seat distribution matches overall ...
Phys.org / Inverting the seminar to recover what scientific papers leave out
A scientific paper reads as a clean progression from question to result. And yet, research almost never happens that way. Experiments fail, conversations redirect projects, and none of it survives into print. When the founders ...
Phys.org / New technique pinpoints human DNA inherited from 'ghost' ancestors
UC Berkeley researchers have identified regions of DNA that humans inherited from two unknown ancestors as a result of long-ago interbreeding among modern humans and at least four other archaic human relatives.
Phys.org / Physicists link the Riemann Hypothesis to phase transitions in quantum systems
A new study in Nature Communications has established a link between the Riemann Hypothesis and dynamical phase transitions in engineered quantum systems, demonstrating the effect on a quantum processor.
Phys.org / Hiroshima blast debris reveals a previously unknown alloy
The Hiroshima blast on Aug. 6, 1945, was one of the most devastating events in human history. Like all nuclear detonations, it created fleeting moments of extreme heat, pressure, mixing and cooling. These conditions can briefly ...
Phys.org / Physicists create Bose–Einstein condensate from ultracold polar molecules
Bose–Einstein condensates are states of matter that form when particles called bosons are cooled to temperatures that are only a fraction of a degree above absolute zero (i.e., 0 Kelvin [-460°F]). In these states, particles ...
Phys.org / Rainfall across the US is increasingly coming from farther away
Before rain falls, the moisture that forms it may have traveled anywhere from just a few kilometers to hundreds or even thousands of kilometers away. It usually begins as water that evaporated from oceans, lakes, forests ...
Phys.org / Two Arctic charr populations evolved in less than a century, study finds
Evolution, the process through which animals and other living organisms change their inherited traits over time, typically unfolds slowly over thousands or even millions of years. Some species, however, can adapt at a faster ...
Phys.org / Combined rattlesnake proteins prove 10 times more potent than current antivenom in lab tests
University of Maryland researchers discovered a new approach to treating venomous snakebites—using the same toxin-blocking proteins that snakes evolved to protect themselves. The team found that specific combinations of blood ...
