Phys.org news

Phys.org / What a dry meteorite tells us about water on Mars

Detecting water where none remains today: Neutron and X-ray tomography make it possible. In an international study conducted with the participation of the Paul Scherrer Institute PSI, researchers have brought to light macroscopic ...

Aug 13, 2026
Phys.org / How to fine-tune molecular structures within vaccines to improve immune responses

A vaccine's molecular structure plays a key role in determining how the immune system responds and prepares to protect the body from future exposure to a specific pathogen. To develop a vaccine that offers long-term protection ...

Aug 13, 2026
Phys.org / Beyond the algorithm, online negativity takes on a life of its own as users try to stand out

It doesn't take a scientist to figure out that social media can trend toward the negative. But it might take one to figure out why. In a new paper in PNAS, professor of psychology Joshua Conrad Jackson and colleagues show ...

Aug 13, 2026
Phys.org / One in four cocoa farm audits contain data manipulated to meet sustainability targets, researchers find

ETH researchers have used a sustainability program for cocoa cultivation in Côte d'Ivoire to demonstrate that, in one in four cases, data was manipulated to meet the program's requirements. If the auditor were aware of the ...

Aug 13, 2026
Phys.org / Fungal age remains elusive as underground networks continually grow, split and recycle

Some of Earth's oldest living organisms may be right beneath our feet: not ancient trees or coral reefs but fungi. Yet despite their ubiquity and importance, scientists still don't know how long most fungi can live—or even ...

Aug 13, 2026
Phys.org / Soft-bodied sea slug reconfigures anatomy to simplify feeding control

Made entirely of muscle, with no rigid skeleton, muscular hydrostats like octopus arms, elephant trunks and human tongues can move in ways traditional mechanical systems cannot. Between crawling across the seafloor, picking ...

Aug 13, 2026
Phys.org / Satellite data reveal tropical forests respond differently to climate across continents

Satellite images can be used to estimate how much carbon forests store as aboveground biomass (AGB) and how biomass varies in different forests. In a study published in the journal Nature, a team of researchers affiliated ...

Aug 13, 2026
Phys.org / A magnetic path to lower-power computing

From smartphones to data centers, modern electronics rely on billions of tiny switches that consume electricity every time they turn on or off. As global demand for computing continues to grow, so does the energy required ...

Aug 13, 2026
Phys.org / Indigenous land restitution empowers communities, but environmental gains require extra support

Charting a better future will require redressing the problems of the past. That's one reason many countries have begun to return dispossessed land to Indigenous peoples. The goal of Indigenous land restitution is to empower ...

Aug 13, 2026
Phys.org / Understanding nature's 'dimmer switch': Study sheds new light on how algae regulate photosynthesis with pH

A new joint study from Constructor University and Princeton University in the Journal of the American Chemical Society focuses on PC645, a protein complex that contributes to cryptophyte algae's ability to photosynthesize ...

Aug 13, 2026
Phys.org / Teaching AI the biology of antibodies speeds drug discovery

Designing an effective antibody drug is like searching for the right key in a warehouse of locks. Scientists may begin with millions—or even billions—of antibody candidates, but only a tiny fraction will recognize and bind ...

Aug 13, 2026
Phys.org / Uniaxial strain reveals new way to tune electron flow in altermagnet material

Altermagnetism is a new, third type of magnetism of great interest for spin-transport applications like computer memory. If properly harnessed, it could combine the benefits of the two existing types of magnetism, ferromagnetism ...

Aug 13, 2026