Phys.org news

Phys.org / A holoparasitic plant replaces its own genes with host DNA to survive

All living organisms are known to inherit genes, DNA sequences that contain instructions for producing specific proteins and performing biological functions, from their parents. In some cases, however, genes can also shift ...

Jul 2, 2026
Phys.org / Quantum semiconductor design could expand search for dark matter

Dark matter accounts for 85% of the matter in the universe, but scientists still do not know what it is made of. A study, published in Physical Review Letters, by Rice University researchers proposes a detector design that ...

Jul 2, 2026
Phys.org / Dynamic black holes may obey Hawking-style thermodynamics with an alternative entropy measure

Of the known things in the universe, black holes are among the most extreme. They pack huge amounts of mass densely into a small area, producing gravity that is so strong that even light cannot escape. To describe their properties, ...

Jul 2, 2026
Phys.org / Swimming crab trapped in plastic bottle survives two months at sea

How did a large crab end up trapped inside a plastic bottle with an opening smaller than its body? Hiroshima University researchers investigated this unusual marine mystery, revealing a lesser-known impact of marine plastic ...

Jul 2, 2026
Phys.org / Airborne AI spots underwater munitions in shallow seas with high precision

A new airborne imaging approach can reliably detect unexploded weapons that lie in shallow coastal waters and remain an ongoing hazard to public safety, marine ecosystems and infrastructure worldwide. By combining advanced ...

Jul 2, 2026
Phys.org / Zero-waste plastic and color recycling: The end of colored plastic downgrading could be near

In the world of market competition, having the best and brightest package could send company sales into the millions. On the other hand, the amount of colored plastic waste increases, adding to the growing challenge of recycling ...

Jul 2, 2026
Phys.org / Scientists uncover why Antarctica became engulfed by ice millions of years before the Arctic

Scientists have uncovered why Antarctica became engulfed by ice millions of years before the Arctic. The international research, published in Science, helps solve one of climate science's longest-standing puzzles: how a vast ...

Jul 2, 2026
Phys.org / Ecological factors, not social behavior, explain brain size in cephalopods

Octopuses, squid and cuttlefish may have evolved large brains because of the challenges posed by their environments rather than the demands of social life, according to a new study published in iScience today.

Jul 2, 2026
Phys.org / More Canadian than the beaver? Scientists discover a western toad found only in Canada

The beaver and moose may be enduring symbols of Canadian wildlife, but neither is uniquely Canadian from a genetic perspective. But a team of researchers from the University of Ottawa has now discovered something rare: a ...

Jul 2, 2026
Phys.org / Nanozymes map nanoparticle routes inside live cells without genetic engineering

Nanoparticles are widely used in medicine to deliver drugs, genes or imaging agents to specific parts of the body. Once a nanoparticle reaches a cell, however, many things can happen—it can reach its target, be degraded, ...

Jul 2, 2026
Phys.org / Simulation reveals how glaciers transported rocks across the Alps 24,000 years ago

Many of the boulders scattered across the Swiss landscape did not originate where they now stand. Instead, they were carried by ice nearly 24,000 years ago. For the first time, researchers at the University of Lausanne (UNIL) ...

Jul 2, 2026
Phys.org / Quantum gravity tests may mistake ordinary spacetime for superposition

Everything around us, from atoms and molecules to planets and galaxies, is governed by two extraordinarily successful theories of physics: quantum mechanics and gravity. Quantum mechanics explains the behavior of the microscopic ...

Jul 2, 2026