Phys.org news

Phys.org / Honeybee metamorphosis map uncovers 842 active DNA switches that drive worker bee development

Researchers have identified "DNA switches" that become active as honeybee larvae grow into worker bees, offering new insight into the development of these important pollinators and the ecosystems they support.

9 hours ago
Phys.org / Contact lenses can repair themselves with just one hour of UV light exposure

Contact lenses are a great vision correction option for many, but if one of them gets damaged, there is little to do other than throw it away. A team reporting in ACS Applied Polymer Materials has a solution: special polymer ...

8 hours ago
Phys.org / Hidden seismicity patterns before large earthquakes uncovered

When and where the next large earthquake will strike remains one of the most difficult questions in geoscience. Researchers from the GFZ Helmholtz Center for Geosciences led by Dr. Sadegh Karimpouli and Prof. Dr. Patricia ...

10 hours ago
Phys.org / Solid-state material turns visible light into high-energy UV at sunlight intensity, expanding solar energy potential

Two cups of warm water don't make one cup of boiling water. But in the quantum world, multiple low-energy photons can combine to produce a single, higher-energy photon.

14 hours ago
Phys.org / Local species trends may flag global extinction risk, global study finds

New research from the University of St. Andrews has shown that higher extinction risk is associated with a higher frequency of decreasing local prevalence of species, in an analysis of one of the most comprehensive long-term ...

14 hours ago
Phys.org / Scientists design a clay that can prevent fruits and vegetables from rotting too quickly

Avocados from Chile, bananas from Costa Rica, tomatoes from southern Spain, mangoes from Brazil. A large share of the fruit and vegetables we eat have traveled across the globe before they reach store shelves here at home. ...

23 hours ago
Phys.org / Mosquito-borne viruses avoid killing hosts by limiting protein output, study reveals

The increase in mosquito-borne virus infections is a growing public health concern. Diseases traditionally confined to tropical or subtropical regions, like dengue or West Nile virus, are expanding their geographic scope. ...

Jun 22, 2026
Phys.org / Corrected Pantheon+ analysis of supernovae challenges accelerating universe claim

Research led by the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai, along with Professor Subir Sarkar from the University of Oxford, questions the widely accepted argument that the expansion rate of the universe is accelerating ...

Jun 22, 2026
Phys.org / Newly described Australian ballista spider builds a spring-loaded snare to catch a single ant species

An international team of researchers has discovered a remarkable new spider species in the rainforest of North Queensland that spins an ingenious and powerful spring-actuated snare to catch a single species of ant—one ant ...

Jun 22, 2026
Phys.org / Broken time-reversal symmetry phase in kagome metals may establish conditions for superconductivity

Physicists have long suspected that a peculiar quantum state lurks inside a class of materials known as kagome metals, but proving its existence has been elusive. Now, a team led by Yeongkwan Kim at the Korea Advanced Institute ...

Jun 22, 2026
Phys.org / How languages recycle parts of words to avoid confusion

Many languages recycle words, giving them different meanings. For example, in English, "run" can mean to move quickly but also to manage something, like "run a company." In Spanish, "lengua" is both the word for tongue and ...

Jun 22, 2026
Phys.org / Titan and Pluto exhibit the same mysterious spectral feature—and researchers can't figure out its origin

Researchers are constantly sifting through new spectral data gathered by powerful telescopes, like the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). Most of the time, when they identify spectral features—specific absorption or emission ...

Jun 22, 2026