Phys.org news
Phys.org / Rice feeds billions of people—but its role in fueling climate change is growing
Rice feeds more than half the world. From terraced paddies in Southeast Asia to irrigated fields in China and India, it underpins daily meals for billions of people.
Phys.org / Agentic AI could help electron microscopes plan, adapt and analyze experiments
Scientific discovery is often portrayed as the result of long hours alone in a lab, but true science is inherently collaborative. The most robust experimental processes are developed through partnerships across multiple areas ...
Phys.org / Bodies in fashion: Diversity is up, but the ideal stays the same
Fashion and media have become visibly more diverse over the past quarter-century. Yet beneath that surface change, a new study suggests that the industry's central female body ideal has barely shifted.
Phys.org / Social mammals live longer—but bigger groups don't add that many extra years
A new study, published in Ecology and Evolution, shows that social living is associated with longer lifespan, but also that the benefits of sociality level off once animals move beyond living in pairs.
Phys.org / Ancient DNA reveals web of marriage and migration in Peru centuries before Inca rule
Long-distance migration along Peru's Pacific coast began at least 800 years ago, centuries before the rise of the Inca Empire and much earlier than previously thought, a new international study reveals.
Phys.org / Heat vulnerability follows more than temperature, and this global map exposes the overlooked fault lines
A Nature Sustainability paper titled "A multidimensional assessment of Systemic Cooling Poverty in the Global South," provides the first large-scale, multidimensional measurement of Systemic Cooling Poverty (SCP)—defined ...
Phys.org / Seagrass found to produce new genetic individuals rather than clone itself, offering hope for 'underwater meadows'
In many underwater ecosystems, seagrass meadows act as a food source, a safe haven, and an ecological lynchpin. But until now, very little was known about how these plants reproduce—critical information for conserving the ...
Phys.org / Coral refuges in Western Australia resist 2025 bleaching through record marine heat
The team of scientists from James Cook University, University of Western Australia and Edith Cowan University surveyed coral reefs in the West Australian Houtman Abrolhos group of islands (HAI), publishing their findings ...
Phys.org / Countdown glitch delays world's biggest rocket as SpaceX targets Friday retry
Elon Musk's SpaceX postponed the highly anticipated launch of its upgraded Starship megarocket, calling off Thursday's test after multiple countdown stops-and-starts.
Phys.org / Asexual lizards, virgin births and clones—the all‑female species of the animal kingdom
It may sound too bizarre to be true, but the Amazon molly (Poecilia formosa), a fish that inhabits rivers, lakes, and swamps in Mexico and Texas, exists over much of its range in populations that are 100% female. In 1932, ...
Phys.org / Sequential antibiotic strategy can weaken dangerous pathogens
A research team from Kiel University has demonstrated which specific cellular mechanisms lead to the targeted weakening of bacterial pathogens, thereby increasing the effectiveness of antibiotic treatment. The research is ...
Phys.org / If you need to anesthetize a butterfly, here's the best way to do it
Anesthesia makes life-saving procedures as painless and stress-free as possible for the animals we love and care for. But not a lot is known about the effects of anesthesia on animals that we don't typically consider pets—like ...
