Phys.org news

Phys.org / Supermassive black holes show selective feeding habits during galaxy mergers

Black holes are notorious for gobbling up everything that comes their way, but astronomers using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) have discovered that even supermassive black holes can be picky eaters, ...

Dec 22, 2025 in Astronomy & Space
Phys.org / Nanoplastics have diet-dependent impacts on digestive system health, study finds

Plastics are not inert: they gradually break into fragments over time, forming micro- and then nanoplastics (i.e., particles

Dec 22, 2025 in Nanotechnology
Phys.org / Vast freshwater reserves found beneath salinity-stressed coastal Bangladesh

Despite its tropical climate and floodplain location, Bangladesh—one of the world's most densely populated nations—seasonally does not have enough freshwater, especially in coastal areas. Shallow groundwater is often ...

Dec 22, 2025 in Earth
Phys.org / Leaves' pores explain longstanding mystery of uneven tree growth in a carbon-enriched world

The basics of photosynthesis are something that every student learns in school: carbon dioxide, water and light in; oxygen and sugar for growth out. In a world where atmospheric carbon dioxide levels are rising, it is plausible ...

Dec 22, 2025 in Earth
Phys.org / East Antarctic Ice Sheet's history tells a relevant story for today and beyond

Though ice sheet melting is widely talked of and debated, there is limited knowledge about what happens after the period of melting. Researchers dig into this "after" period and see how it relates to previous patterns.

Dec 22, 2025 in Earth
Phys.org / Predictive 'mismatch' leads to novel carbon capture method

When experimental results don't match scientists' predictions, it's usually assumed that the predictions were wrong. But new research into materials that pull carbon dioxide directly from the air shows how such mismatches ...

Dec 22, 2025 in Chemistry
Phys.org / What contributed to the success of termites? Their genomes provide the answer

The most comprehensive dataset of termite genomes to date was created by an international team of scientists, led by researchers from the Biology Center of the Czech Academy of Sciences. The team sequenced 45 termite genomes ...

Dec 22, 2025 in Biology
Phys.org / Male bees' food begging behavior traced to a single genetic factor

Is complex social behavior genetically determined? Yes, as a team of biologists from Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf (HHU) together with colleagues from Bochum and Paris discovered while studying bees.

Dec 22, 2025 in Biology
Phys.org / Deepest gas hydrate cold seep ever discovered in the Arctic at 3,640 m depth

A multinational scientific team led by UiT has uncovered the deepest known gas hydrate cold seep on the planet. The discovery was made during the Ocean Census Arctic Deep–EXTREME24 expedition and reveals a previously unknown ...

Dec 22, 2025 in Earth
Phys.org / Smile and the world will trust you: How mimicry shapes first impressions

How does mimicry affect the way we judge other people? Whose behavior do we imitate, and in what situations? It turns out that we are more likely to mimic people who express joy, and we perceive those people as more attractive ...

Dec 22, 2025 in Other Sciences
Phys.org / Cells reveal 'survival of the fittest' through ribosome competition

Ribosomes—the tiny factories that build proteins in our cells—don't all work with the same efficiency. Researchers from Japan have discovered that ribosomes actually compete with one another, and those that perform poorly ...

Dec 22, 2025 in Biology
Phys.org / ALMA observations reveal multiscale fragmentation in massive star formation

Researchers from Yunnan University, the Shanghai Astronomical Observatory (SHAO) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan have unveiled new insights into the fragmentation mechanisms ...

Dec 22, 2025 in Astronomy & Space