Phys.org news
Phys.org / Rice gene switch helps plants rebound from cold and use nitrogen more efficiently
Global climate change has increased the frequency of regional cold spells, causing substantial yield losses and even crop failure. Meanwhile, excessive nitrogen fertilizer use in agriculture has increased non-point-source ...
Phys.org / Mating reveals cholesterol's hidden role in male fruit fly lifespan
Scientists have discovered that the optimal diet for male fruit flies may depend strongly on whether they are reproducing, challenging long-standing assumptions about nutrition and aging. Led by researchers from the University ...
Phys.org / Trace additive unlocks faster bioplastic biodegradation without losing transparency or strength
Compostable plastics could be part of a solution to the world's plastic waste problem. But currently these materials need industrial composting facilities to break down. In a step toward making a home-compostable plastic, ...
Phys.org / Heat waves increase wildfire risk—a new study explains how much, and it's not a small number
When heat waves hit the Western United States, the risk of wildfires quickly rises. The prolonged heat dries out vegetation, but that's only part of the cause—heat waves also play other roles in spreading wildfires.
Phys.org / Missing DNA replication step revealed in first image of pre-initiation complex
Cells have evolved careful checks to ensure DNA is copied only once, but how they switch on replication at the right moment has been the focus of a 30-year research question. New work from the Crick has recorded the missing ...
Phys.org / Describing past relationship as a story may help women process breakups
Breaking up with a loved one is often a painful life experience, one that is difficult to recover from. Researchers from SWPS University, however, suggest that a simple step can help. Writing down the story of a past relationship ...
Phys.org / People are marrying holograms and making friends with chatbots. But can AI bring true happiness?
Can technology really replace human relationships? As philosophy scholars who focus on human happiness and on artificial intelligence (AI), we tackle this question in a recent paper.
Phys.org / Long-dismissed moss gene suppresses twins and triplets, reshaping ideas of plant evolution
A moss gene previously thought to have been inactive actually plays a key role in its evolutionary success, researchers from the University of Bristol have discovered. The new paper published in Current Biology investigated ...
Phys.org / Beyond bread and beer, alluring yeast species could yield new mosquito traps to combat malaria
An orange-colored yeast species isolated from a Baltimore sidewalk several years ago could be the basis of eco-friendly mosquito traps that reduce malaria transmission, according to a new study from researchers at the Johns ...
Phys.org / AI-driven optical tweezers sort hundreds of particles per hour without humans
By teaching an AI to use optical tweezers, researchers from the University of Gothenburg and Chalmers University of Technology have sped up the analysis of life's smallest components. The AI platform captures particles, takes ...
Phys.org / Real-time microscopy reveals how semiconductor nanowires grow, and how bismuth seeds can speed their formation
Scientists from the National Graphene Institute at the University of Manchester and Sun Yat-sen University have captured the growth of semiconducting tellurium nanostructures in liquid in real time, revealing how tiny seed ...
Phys.org / Cockroach genomes are packed with DNA transferred by their endosymbiont bacterial partners
Genes aren't just transferred from parents to their offspring. Nature has found other ways to pass on genetic information, even between different species. And a new study, published in the journal Proceedings of the National ...
