Phys.org news

Phys.org / Increased soil salinity alters global inorganic carbon storage, finds study

A new global study shows that increasing soil salinity is systematically reshaping the storage and distribution of soil inorganic carbon (SIC), a key but often-overlooked part of terrestrial ecosystems. The findings, published ...

Jan 22, 2026 in Earth
Phys.org / Expanding existing mines poses overlooked long-term environmental and social risks

Mining companies worldwide are expanding mineral extraction at existing mines, as the rate of opening new sites slows, to meet global demand driven mainly by the need for clean energy infrastructure.

Jan 22, 2026 in Earth
Phys.org / DNA nanodevices reveal acidic nanolayer on lysosome surfaces in live cells

Lysosomes are membrane-bound organelles whose acidic lumen (pH 4.5–5.0) is required for degradation. This luminal acidity is known to regulate cytosolic-side functions such as membrane fusion/fission, movement, and membrane-contact ...

Jan 22, 2026 in Nanotechnology
Phys.org / Tuning color through molecular stacking: A new strategy for smarter pressure sensors

Piezofluorochromism, the phenomenon of materials reversibly changing their fluorescent color when pressure is applied, is used to create the pressure sensors used in automotive and medical industries. By monitoring color ...

Jan 22, 2026 in Chemistry
Phys.org / Neanderthals took reusable toolkits with them on high-altitude treks through the Alps

When Neanderthals in Italy were crossing the Alps, it's likely they took refuge in high-altitude bear caves. A new study of stone tools in Caverna Generosa, a cave sitting 1,450 meters up in the mountains, found that these ...

Jan 21, 2026 in Other Sciences
Phys.org / Unified framework sorts spacetime fluctuations for quantum-gravity experiments

A team of researchers led by the University of Warwick has developed the first unified framework for detecting "spacetime fluctuations"—tiny, random distortions in the fabric of spacetime that appear in many attempts to ...

Jan 21, 2026 in Physics
Phys.org / Bionic LiDAR system achieves beyond-retinal resolution through adaptive focusing

In a recent study, researchers from China have developed a chip-scale LiDAR system that mimics the human eye's foveation by dynamically concentrating high-resolution sensing on regions of interest (ROIs) while maintaining ...

Jan 21, 2026 in Physics
Phys.org / Too much entanglement? Quantum networks can suffer from 'selfish routing,' study shows

Quantum technologies, systems that process, transfer or store information leveraging quantum mechanical effects, could tackle some real-world problems faster and more effectively than their classical counterparts. In recent ...

Jan 21, 2026 in Physics
Phys.org / World's oldest rock art holds clues to early human migration to Australia

A hand stencil on the wall of a cave in Indonesia has become the oldest known rock art in the world, exceeding the archaeologists' previous discovery in the same region by 15,000 years or more.

Jan 21, 2026 in Other Sciences
Phys.org / How European city life is continually rewriting insect DNA

Cities are known to shape the evolution of wildlife within them, but according to a study of European cities published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, this is not a one-off event. Rather ...

Jan 21, 2026 in Biology
Phys.org / Astronomers discover a companion cluster to Czernik 38

Astronomers from the National Research Institute of Astronomy and Geophysics (NRIAG) in Cairo, Egypt, have investigated a young open cluster known as Czernik 38. As a result, they found a new open cluster, which turns out ...

Jan 21, 2026 in Astronomy & Space
Phys.org / Largest canine gut microbiome catalog reveals hundreds of new bacterial strains

Researchers at the Waltham Petcare Science Institute in the UK recently revealed a complete taxonomic and functional catalog of the canine gut microbiome after analyzing samples from 107 healthy dogs across the U.S. and Europe. ...

Jan 21, 2026 in Biology