Phys.org news
Phys.org / Elephant declines could trigger wider ecosystem losses in African savannas, 15-year test shows
For decades, ecologists have theorized that the extinction of one important species could set off a chain reaction of losses throughout an ecosystem. Now, new research offers some of the clearest real-world evidence that ...
Phys.org / Rare male red pipefish carrying eggs on its trunk spotted in Sydney
The red pipefish (Notiocampus ruber) is a rare relative of seahorses and seadragons found only in Australia.
Phys.org / Chromosome model links one steady motor to shape shift needed for cell division
It's tricky to make an exact copy of yourself. Or at least it is for cells undergoing mitosis, where cells replicate everything inside of them, including their neatly packaged DNA, then split in half. Rice University professor ...
Phys.org / Wildfire dark brown carbon has strong global warming effects, study finds
A new international study published in Nature Geoscience reveals that dark brown carbon from wildfires exerts a powerful warming effect on the global climate—potentially matching or even exceeding that of black carbon in ...
Phys.org / 'Bio-stickers' speed up plastic breakdown in marine environments
Plastic waste poses an urgent problem for the planet's ecosystems, especially in waterways. Millions of tons of plastic waste enter Earth's oceans every year, and plastic has been found in every part of the ocean, including ...
Phys.org / A climate fix with a hidden catch: Cutting methane reshapes ozone layer's comeback in unexpected ways
Reducing methane emissions will slow climate change but could also slow the recovery of the stratospheric ozone layer, new research from the University of Reading shows.
Phys.org / Megafire kills Joshua trees, but not fungi
When the Dome Fire tore through the Mojave Desert in 2020, it reduced 1 million Eastern Joshua trees to blackened skeletons. Scientists expected the underground ecosystem to be equally devastated. Instead, they found it thriving.
Phys.org / 'Atom Camera' maps laser light at nanoscale using a single ultracold atom
A research group led by Assistant Professor Takafumi Tomita and Professor Kenji Ohmori at the Institute for Molecular Science, National Institutes of Natural Sciences, has developed a new microscopy technique called the Atom ...
Phys.org / Humans reshape predator-prey rules across food webs, creating a challenging new world for wildlife
The relationship between predators and prey in the wild is underscored by an evolutionary arms race spanning millions of years, but new research has found modern human activity is reshaping the rules.
Phys.org / Forever chemical reaches fish before they even hatch, new study reveals
There is a forever chemical lurking in the world's oceans that could be fundamentally altering the biology of marine life before it even hatches. PFOS, a notorious member of the PFAS family of chemicals, is known for its ...
Phys.org / The solar wind's secret hammerheads and what they tell us about heat in space
The proton sharks showed up on a Friday. In a routine data calibration meeting for NASA's Parker Solar Probe in 2020, a small group of scientists were scrolling through visualizations of their data showing solar winds. Suddenly, ...
Phys.org / Green stones buried with Panama's ancient chiefs confirmed as Colombian emeralds
More than 1,000 years ago, Panama elites were buried together with translucent green stones long suspected to be emeralds. However, scientific analysis confirming the suspicion has never been conducted. Now, scientists have ...
