Phys.org news

Phys.org / An African bat overlooked for two centuries is confirmed in Europe

An African bat whose presence in Sicily had remained an unresolved zoological mystery for almost two centuries has now been documented on Pantelleria Island. A study published in Global Ecology and Conservation reports the ...

17 hours ago
Phys.org / AI and 8 million digitized plant specimens reveal how the climate is changing nature in large parts of the world

AI optimists will be encouraged by a recent report on the state of the world's plants and fungi by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

18 hours ago
Phys.org / Robotic ocean glider reveals giant phytoplankton chains in the Mediterranean Sea

Scientists at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego and the Mediterranean Institute of Oceanography in Marseille, France, have discovered something surprising in the Mediterranean Sea: giant chains of phytoplankton.

20 hours ago
Phys.org / End-to-end design creates two low-cost materials to capture methane

Developing new materials to tackle pressing global issues is a gap-filled process that can leave potential climate solutions lost in unread academic papers and forgotten dissertations.

18 hours ago
Phys.org / Novel plastic turns into a gas when heated—then reforms once cooled

In a study published in Macromolecules, researchers introduce a novel polymer that could simplify how materials are applied, removed and recycled by eliminating several complex processing steps used today.

19 hours ago
Phys.org / Yellowstone's past droughts may signal less geyser activity and more wildfires

A study led by a Montana State University research professor reveals how climate and hydrothermal activity have shaped the vegetation, wildfire and aquatic ecosystem histories of the Yellowstone Plateau over the past 15,000 ...

19 hours ago
Phys.org / How only a few tree species drive Amazon forest recovery

When a destroyed section of the Amazon rainforest begins to recover, nature deploys only a few tree species that can withstand poor soil conditions and blazing sun and grow rapidly, a Brazilian study has shown.

20 hours ago
Phys.org / Fifteen years of data link plastic pollution to seabird population losses

Every year, about 50 million metric tons of plastic is dumped into the environment. This waste entangles, chokes and poisons wildlife worldwide, including sable shearwaters living on the remote Australian island of Lord Howe. ...

19 hours ago
Phys.org / Cells remodel actin normally without coronins, challenging textbook view

Coronins are found throughout the animal kingdom, from single-celled amoebae to humans, and are involved in many vital processes, including immunity, development and cell survival. For decades, textbooks and hundreds of scientific ...

18 hours ago
Phys.org / Fiber-optic cable reveals hidden crevasses that could destabilize glaciers

In recent years, the Alps have experienced devastating glacier collapses: In September 2023, a section of the Marmolada glacier in the Dolomites collapsed, resulting in the deaths of seven mountaineers. Just over a year and ...

20 hours ago
Phys.org / Five new wasp species discovered in Cyprus, including one named after Aphrodite

Scientists have described five new species of parasitoid wasps from Cyprus, more than doubling the number of chalcid wasps known to be found nowhere else on the island. The wasps, all belonging to the family Pteromalidae, ...

19 hours ago
Phys.org / Loud snoring—simulation reveals the physical mechanism that keeps so many of us awake at night

Anyone who has had to share a room—or worse, a bed—with a loud snorer knows the effect unchecked snoring can have on sleep, sanity and emotional stability. An entire industry of products, technologies and treatments claims ...

21 hours ago