Phys.org news

Phys.org / Does misinformation on Facebook and Instagram change what you believe?

For years, social media companies have faced pressure from users and government watchdogs to stop misinformation from distorting elections, deepening political divisions and undermining Americans' trust in institutions. But ...

14 hours ago
Phys.org / Uncovering the structure of the poxvirus 'portal complex'

Poxviruses have a long history in human disease as well as medicine: The first-ever vaccine was developed to protect against smallpox, which has since been eradicated. Despite this, scientists still don't fully understand ...

6 hours ago
Phys.org / Your shampoo routine could be driving household water waste, new study says

Everyday shower habits, such as applying shampoo or pausing the water while washing, are driving up water waste, argues a new study from the University of Surrey.

15 hours ago
Phys.org / Likelihood of wildfires in Southern Europe has doubled since the 80s, study shows

Summer days featuring conditions that promote wildfire ignition, intensity and spread have more than doubled across large parts of the Iberian Peninsula, France, Italy and Greece since 1981, according to a study in Scientific ...

6 hours ago
Phys.org / Scientists solve mystery of how muscle cells grow and stay healthy

In a study published in Nature Communications biophysicists unravel the mystery of how muscles form at the molecular level and maintain their function. The findings may help design treatments for muscle diseases such as dilated ...

7 hours ago
Phys.org / Quantum spin effects may enhance one-way electrical transport in chiral magnets

Quantum fluctuations influence direction-dependent electrical transport in chiral magnets, researchers from Science Tokyo report. In chiral magnetic systems, electric current flows differently depending on its direction, ...

7 hours ago
Phys.org / Flash droughts can pull 'alarming' amounts of moisture from the landscape and intensify wildfires

When catastrophic wildfires capture global headlines, such as the unprecedented blazes sweeping through southern Europe this summer or the devastating 2019–20 "Black Summer" in Australia, they are almost always preceded by ...

7 hours ago
Phys.org / Redistributing sunlight boosts algae biomass productivity sixfold

Algae are increasingly being explored as sustainable "living factories" that can convert sunlight and carbon dioxide into renewable fuels, plastics, pharmaceuticals and other valuable products.

7 hours ago
Phys.org / Ancient turtle hunting could inform modern conservation throughout southern Caribbean

Despite the promise of rebounding green sea turtle numbers, many sea turtle populations continue to flounder under the pressures of changing climates, overfishing and urbanization.

17 hours ago
Phys.org / ATPγS recycling opens cheaper pathways to increased drug stability

Pharmaceutical drugs often rely on chemical compounds found in the body. Take phosphate, a common compound cells use as a chemical switch. In a process called phosphorylation, cells can add a phosphate to a molecule and turn ...

7 hours ago
Phys.org / Research finds exposure to 'untrustworthy' social media is rare, the fine print is less reassuring

How much of what you see on social media comes from sources that repeatedly post falsehoods? And if that content quietly vanished from your feed, would you believe anything different months later?

16 hours ago
Phys.org / Meet the astronomer digging into the Milky Way's 'fossils'

Amina Helmi's passion for the Milky Way is clear as soon as one steps into her small office at the University of Groningen, in the north of the Netherlands.

20 hours ago