Phys.org news

Phys.org / Open-access software tool helps researchers spot fake journals

Research papers in peer-reviewed academic journals are at the heart of academic integrity. New ideas and discoveries are vetted and checked by experts in the field as the boundaries of scientific knowledge are pushed forward. ...

Feb 3, 2026 in Other Sciences
Phys.org / JWST discovers a new extremely metal-poor dwarf galaxy

Using the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), astronomers have discovered a new dwarf galaxy, which received designation CAPERS-39810. Further investigation of CAPERS-39810 revealed that it is an extremely metal-poor galaxy. ...

Feb 3, 2026 in Astronomy & Space
Phys.org / New model predicts the melting of free-floating ice in calm water

A pair of US researchers have developed a new model to tackle a deceptively simple problem: how a small block of ice melts while floating in calm water. Using an advanced experimental setup, Daisuke Noto and Hugo Ulloa at ...

Feb 3, 2026 in Earth
Phys.org / Weight-loss drugs are creating an environmental disaster—a new water-based method aims to change that

The world is in the middle of a peptide drug revolution. These short chains of amino acids—the building blocks of proteins—sit at the heart of some of the most successful medicines ever created, from weight-loss injections ...

Feb 3, 2026 in Chemistry
Phys.org / Tiny radio transmitters reveal a hidden survival tactic in birds

In Sturt National Park, near Tibooburra in central Australia where temperatures can range from freezing to nearly 50°C, there lives a small bird with a white back, forked tail and—as we've just discovered—a very clever ...

Feb 3, 2026 in Biology
Phys.org / Superconductivity exposes altermagnetism by breaking symmetries, study suggests

How are superconductivity and magnetism connected? A puzzling relation between magnetism and superconductivity in a quantum material has lingered for decades—now, a study from TU Wien offers a surprising new explanation.

Feb 3, 2026 in Physics
Phys.org / Two huge hot blobs of rock influence Earth's magnetic field, study reveals

Exploring Earth's deep interior is a far bigger challenge than exploring the solar system. While we have traveled 25 billion km into space, the deepest we have ever gone below our feet is just over 12 km. Consequently, little ...

Feb 3, 2026 in Astronomy & Space
Phys.org / Stacked graphene sandwich reveals switchable memory without traditional ferroelectrics

A research team led by Professor Youngwook Kim from the Department of Physics and Chemistry, DGIST, in collaboration with the research team of Professor Gil Young Cho at KAIST, have discovered a new memory principle that ...

Feb 3, 2026 in Nanotechnology
Phys.org / Probiotics for plants: Microorganisms boost growth and nitrogen uptake

Researchers at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) have identified a bacterial genus that promotes root growth and nitrogen uptake in plants. The findings open new possibilities for developing customized "plant probiotics" ...

Feb 3, 2026 in Biology
Phys.org / High-tech scans of an enigmatic 400-million-year-old lungfish reveal new details

New pieces have been added to the puzzle of the evolution of some of the oldest fish that lived on Earth more than 400 million years ago. In two separate studies, experts in Australia and China have found new clues about ...

Feb 3, 2026 in Biology
Phys.org / Shrinking shellfish? Study uncovers acidic water risks in Indian River lagoon

Florida's Indian River Lagoon (IRL), one of the state's most ecologically productive estuaries, is facing a growing but invisible threat that could reshape its marine ecosystems. Over the past decade, the lagoon has suffered ...

Feb 3, 2026 in Biology
Phys.org / Ultra-thin metasurface chip turns invisible infrared light into steerable visible beams

The invention of tiny devices capable of precisely controlling the direction and behavior of light is essential to the development of advanced technologies. Researchers at the Advanced Science Research Center at the CUNY ...

Feb 3, 2026 in Physics