Phys.org news
Phys.org / Swapping molecular building blocks one by one reveals how receptors tell adrenaline from dopamine
Different receptors respond to different neurotransmitters or hormones, such as adrenaline involved in the fight-or-flight response, or dopamine linked to reward and motivation. Both the receptors themselves and the substances ...
Phys.org / Gravitational waves from colliding black holes may allow detection of dark matter
Dark matter is thought to make up most of the matter in the universe, but the only way it interacts with its surroundings is through gravity. If two colliding black holes spiral through a dense region of dark matter and merge, ...
Phys.org / Work songs can improve team coordination, study finds
Work songs, musical pieces designed to be performed or sung while working, have been widely documented across various cultures and in different historical periods. For instance, people in different nations have been known ...
Phys.org / Engineered exosomes reverse sleep deprivation brain damage in mice
Sleep is a vital physiological process that allows humans and other animals to restore both the mind and body, while also consolidating memories, clearing out toxins and regulating their metabolism. Several past studies showed ...
Phys.org / Bright blazar reveals 433-day optical quasi-periodic oscillation across nine years
By analyzing the data from the Whole Earth Blazar Telescope (WEBT), an international team of astronomers has discovered optical quasi-periodic oscillation (QPO) in a bright quasar known as 3C 454.3. It is so far one of the ...
Phys.org / Meet the whistling mice that use inflatable air sacs to sing
Mice do more than just squeak when they want to make a noise. They can also sing. And the way they do it is different from most mammals that produce sounds by vibrating their vocal cords. When Alston's singing mouse (Scotinomys ...
Phys.org / Human childbirth is not uniquely difficult among mammals
Human childbirth is commonly viewed as uniquely difficult and dangerous. The reason: The combination of bipedalism and large brains creates a tight fit between the baby and the birth canal. Research at the University of Vienna ...
Phys.org / Wine's leftovers could help wean chicken farms off antibiotics
Every year, millions of gallons of wine are pressed, leaving behind a mountain of pulpy residue—grape skins, seeds, stems and peels—that wineries struggle to dispose of. Now, researchers say this overlooked byproduct could ...
Phys.org / Despotic primate societies rarely play as adults, analysis of 37 species reveals
Although about half of primate species play as adults with other adults, a team of international researchers has just unlocked a key factor in the reason why some don't. The answer lies in the type of society in which the ...
Phys.org / TIME instrument unlocks faint signals from early galaxies across vast stretches of sky
Cornell astronomers are deploying a new instrument that grants them, for the first time, a better view of the universe's earliest galaxies, which can't be observed individually with traditional ground- or space-based telescopes.
Phys.org / The fog is alive: Droplets host bacteria that clear toxins from our air
What if fog isn't just misty air, but a living ecosystem? This question hung over cloud researcher Thi Thuong Thuong Cao. As a Ph.D. student at Arizona State University, her curiosity led her from knocking on the doors of ...
Dialog / Novel technique measures polymer degradation during cathodic overprotection
Oil and natural gas are vital constituents of our energy ecosystem that need to be transported across long distances. Although steel pipelines are the infrastructure used for this purpose, thereby serving as the lifeline ...