Phys.org news

Phys.org / Astronomers thought the early universe was full of hydrogen: Now they've found it

The Eberly Telescope Dark Energy Experiment (HETDEX) has discovered tens of thousands of gigantic hydrogen gas halos, called "Lyman-alpha nebulae," surrounding galaxies 10 billion to 12 billion years ago. Known as Cosmic ...

Apr 6, 2026
Phys.org / 'Hot Jupiter' orbiting a metal-poor star discovered

Using NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), an international team of astronomers has discovered a new "hot Jupiter" exoplanet. The newfound alien world, designated TOI-7169 b, orbits a metal-poor star, which ...

Apr 6, 2026
Phys.org / Alignment during conversations is highly situation-dependent, study finds

When people are talking, they can start to unconsciously mirror each other, for instance, in the words they use, their sentence structures and even hand gestures. This tendency to mirror others can lead to smoother conversations, ...

Apr 6, 2026
Phys.org / Bacteria are weaving forever chemicals directly into their cell membranes, study finds

University of Tennessee Knoxville professor and Goodrich Chair of Excellence in Civil Engineering Frank Loeffler and his co-authors published new research on the environmental impacts of "forever chemicals" in Nature Microbiology. ...

Apr 6, 2026
Phys.org / How to eat an elephant: Fossil find in Tanzania shows oldest signs of butchering these giant mammals

Imagine a creature nearly twice the size of a modern African elephant, which can weigh up to 6,000 kg. This was Elephas (Paleoxodon) recki, a prehistoric titan that roamed the landscape of what is now Tanzania nearly two ...

Apr 6, 2026
Phys.org / Global warming may be a boon for this aggressive prairie plant

Climate change may reduce yields of crops like corn and soybeans, but it can also give some plants an edge. That's one of the takeaways of a recent study of tall goldenrod, a common wildflower that runs rampant in fields ...

Apr 6, 2026
Phys.org / A nanoparticle therapy to treat lung cancer and associated muscle wasting at the same time

Researchers at Oregon State University have developed a technique for simultaneously treating lung cancer and a serious muscle-wasting condition that often accompanies it. The study, published in the Journal of Controlled ...

Apr 6, 2026
Phys.org / Fluorescence imaging technique reveals hidden magnetic chemistry in living systems

A research team at the University of Tokyo has developed a new microscopy platform that can observe a previously hidden layer of biomolecular chemistry linked to weak magnetic fields. The work, led by Project Researcher Noboru ...

Apr 6, 2026
Phys.org / Pigeons tend to respond 'at the edge of chaos,' study finds

If you were rewarded for following a particular pattern of behavior, wouldn't you keep doing it? The answer turns out to be more nuanced than you might think. In a new study, University of Iowa researchers report that pigeons ...

Apr 6, 2026
Phys.org / Study finds 70% of remediated Los Angeles yards still exceed lead limit

Even after one of the largest environmental remediation efforts in California history, dangerous levels of lead persist in residential neighborhoods surrounding a former battery smelter in Southeast Los Angeles, according ...

Apr 6, 2026
Phys.org / Origins of Earth's most powerful ocean current revealed

It transports far more than 100 times as much water as all of the Earth's rivers combined: The Antarctic Circumpolar Current rushes around the southern continent unhindered by land masses and is therefore a fundamental component ...

Apr 6, 2026
Phys.org / Water-repelling surfaces reveal surprising charging effects

Materials that repel water are used in countless applications, including industrial separation processes, routine laboratory pipetting, and medical devices. When water touches these surfaces, the interface where they meet ...

Apr 6, 2026