Phys.org news
Phys.org / Sea anemones reveal antiviral defense that reverses human immune playbook
A new study has uncovered a previously unknown antiviral defense mechanism in sea anemones, revealing that animals may have evolved more than one way to fight viral infections. Researchers discovered that a protein resembling ...
Phys.org / Tiny raptor, tiny range: GPS tracking reveals pygmy falcons use less than 1 km² to raise nestlings
A new study, published in the Journal of Raptor Research, reveals that Africa's smallest diurnal bird of prey, the pygmy falcon (Polihierax semitorquatus), operates within one of the smallest breeding home ranges ever recorded ...
Phys.org / Do animal behavior experiments give a distorted view of cooperation?
When biologists study cooperation in animals, they usually offer just a single task at a time. But what happens when animals can choose among several opportunities to work together? Biologists at Utrecht University discovered ...
Phys.org / Scientists find evidence of vast hidden magma systems inside Mars
Researchers from the University of Oxford have uncovered evidence that Mars once hosted enormous, Earth-like magmatic systems deep beneath its surface—despite the planet lacking the plate tectonics long thought necessary ...
Phys.org / How bacteria use circadian clocks to colonize their world
Research has revealed how bacteria rely on circadian clocks to control the spread of their multicellular colonies. The findings provide important clues as to how we might improve soil health and plant growth. They may also ...
Phys.org / How a 'copper economy' helps fungi and bacteria build stubborn biofilms
Scientists have discovered that two common human pathogens can work together by managing copper in their shared environment—a finding that could open new ways to break down stubborn mixed biofilms.
Phys.org / Wastewater management reverses widespread freshwater deoxygenation in China
Freshwater ecosystems worldwide have been suffering from declining oxygen levels—a trend known as deoxygenation—that threatens biodiversity, fisheries and ecosystem stability. However, a new study published in Nature Geoscience ...
Phys.org / A thermodynamic approach to gravity could explain cosmic acceleration without dark energy
Gravity, the force that attracts objects toward each other, is currently framed by Albert Einstein's theory of general relativity. This framework describes gravity as the curvature of spacetime, the invisible four-dimensional ...
Phys.org / The universe should look the same in all directions at large scales, but DESI data suggest otherwise
Earlier this year, the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) completed observations that mapped 47 million galaxies across 11 billion light-years, allowing astronomers to better evaluate the large-scale structure of ...
Phys.org / Scientists find molecular-level evidence for two structures in liquid water
A study published in Nature Physics provides new molecular-level evidence from simulations that liquid water is not a single uniform substance, but a constantly shifting mixture of two distinct microscopic structures.
Phys.org / Thirsty desert lizards inspire a new water-harvesting system
When the desert horned lizard (Phrynosoma platyrhinos) is thirsty, it cannot just lap up water or scoop it up like a bird because it lives in environments where water is extremely scarce. Typically, it's found in damp soil ...
Phys.org / Quantum waves reveal one-sided motion marking elusive critical states
Sound waves, light waves and other types of waves, generally spread freely through space and over time. In 1958, physicist Philip W. Anderson first described a phenomenon via which irregularities or other sources of disorder ...
