Phys.org news

Phys.org / Dating a North American rock art tradition that lasted 175 generations

The Pecos River murals are a stunning collection of monumental, multicolored rock paintings in limestone rock shelters across southwest Texas and northern Mexico. They depict human-like figures that reach up to eight meters ...

Nov 28, 2025 in Other Sciences
Phys.org / Deforestation has turned Africa's forests from carbon sinks to carbon sources, new study finds

New research warns that Africa's forests, once vital allies in the fight against climate change, have turned from a carbon sink into a carbon source.

Nov 28, 2025 in Earth
Phys.org / Tiny reconfigurable robots can help manage carbon dioxide levels in confined spaces

Vehicles and buildings designed to enable survival in extreme environments, such as spacecraft, submarines and sealed shelters, heavily rely on systems for the management of carbon dioxide (CO2). These are technologies that ...

Nov 28, 2025 in Nanotechnology
Phys.org / Radio wave bursts linked to onset of intense auroral storms

A University of Southampton study has revealed an intriguing new clue in the mystery of what triggers periods of very intense, brightly colored activity during displays of both the southern and northern lights.

Nov 28, 2025 in Astronomy & Space
Phys.org / How phototherapy could reverse antibiotic resistance

Lars Stevens-Cullinane works in a dark room. But he's not processing negatives and printing photographs on light-sensitive paper; he's testing whether brief flashes of light can make drug-resistant bacteria sensitive to antibiotics.

Nov 28, 2025 in Chemistry
Phys.org / Dark matter-dark energy interaction shapes cosmic halo spin and alignment, simulations show

A cosmological simulation study by researchers from the Shanghai Astronomical Observatory of the Chinese Academy of Sciences has systematically revealed, for the first time, how the interaction between dark matter and dark ...

Nov 28, 2025 in Astronomy & Space
Phys.org / First 'Bible map' published 500 years ago still influences how we think about borders, study suggests

The first Bible to feature a map of the Holy Land was published 500 years ago in 1525. The map was initially printed the wrong way round—showing the Mediterranean to the East—but its inclusion set a precedent which continues ...

Nov 28, 2025 in Other Sciences
Phys.org / Studies show how the giant statues on Rapa Nui were made and moved—and what caused the island's deforestation

Rapa Nui, also known as Easter Island, is often portrayed in popular culture as an enigma. The rationale is clear: The tiny, remote island in the Pacific features nearly 1,000 enormous statues—the moai. The magnitude and ...

Nov 28, 2025 in Other Sciences
Phys.org / Physicists generate hybrid spin-sound waves, expanding options for 6G implementation

Acoustic frequency filters, which convert electrical signals into miniaturized sound waves, separate the different frequency bands for mobile communications, Wi-Fi, and GPS in smartphones. Physicists at RPTU have now shown ...

Nov 28, 2025 in Physics
Phys.org / Nanostructured coatings physically puncture bacteria to prevent biofilm formation

Bacteria that multiply on surfaces are a major headache in health care when they gain a foothold on, for example, implants or in catheters. Researchers at Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden have found a new weapon ...

Nov 28, 2025 in Nanotechnology
Phys.org / Finding information in the randomness of living matter

When describing collective properties of macroscopic physical systems, microscopic fluctuations are typically averaged out, leaving a description of the typical behavior of the systems. While this simplification has its advantages, ...

Nov 28, 2025 in Physics
Phys.org / Stars defy black hole by showing stable orbits around Sagittarius A*

An international research team led by PD Dr. Florian Peissker at the University of Cologne has used the new observation instrument ERIS (Enhanced Resolution Imager and Spectrograph) at the Very Large Telescope (VLT) facility ...

Nov 28, 2025 in Astronomy & Space