Phys.org news

Phys.org / Universal quantum protocol extracts maximum work without knowing a system's state in advance

A new study published in Nature Communications has shown that in the asymptotic limit, extracting the maximum possible work from many copies of a quantum system does not require knowing exactly what state that system is in.

Apr 18, 2026
Phys.org / How poison frogs built a chemical weapons system one evolutionary step at a time

Poison frogs are small and brightly colored amphibians that originate from Central and South America. As suggested by their name, these frogs can release highly toxic chemicals from their skin, which deter and neutralize ...

Apr 18, 2026
Phys.org / Raven personalities shape survival as human pressure grows at the Dead Sea

Along the stark and shimmering coastline of the Dead Sea, where desert cliffs meet one of the world's most extreme environments, a quiet drama is unfolding in the skies above. Fan-tailed ravens, intelligent, adaptable, and ...

Apr 18, 2026
Phys.org / Earth's tectonic elevator hauls ancient buried microbes back to the seafloor to revive and spread

In subduction zones, the sites of the world's largest earthquakes, tectonic activity may generate a "pump" that transports long-buried subseafloor microbes back toward the seafloor, according to research presented at the ...

Apr 18, 2026
Phys.org / Flat optics move toward market with 300-per-second metalens production

A collaborative research group has developed a fully automated roll-to-roll manufacturing platform capable of producing large-area visible metalenses at a rate of 300 units per second, marking a major breakthrough in translating ...

Apr 18, 2026
Phys.org / Prenatal opioid exposure in babies doesn't predict future classroom performance, study finds

Every 25 minutes in the United States, a baby is diagnosed with neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS), a condition that occurs in newborns who have been exposed to opioids in the womb and develop withdrawal after birth, according ...

Apr 18, 2026
Phys.org / PFAS detected in dolphin milk may pass from mothers to calves

Researchers have found that a group of chemicals known as PFAS can be transferred from mother dolphins to their nursing calves, adding to the evidence that these persistent contaminants can be transferred from mothers to ...

Apr 18, 2026
Phys.org / Bright quantum light emission achieved at room temperature in 2D semiconductors

A joint research team led by Professor Park Kyoung-Duck and Associate Director Suh Yung Doug of the Center for Multidimensional Carbon Materials within the Institute for Basic Science (IBS) has succeeded in realizing a high-efficiency ...

Apr 18, 2026
Phys.org / Saturday Citations: Neuroinflammaging treatment stuns; a hidden magma lake; decoding little red dots

This week in science news: Researchers are calling to exploit sewage waste and manure to break U.S. synthetic fertilizer dependence. Wasps have begun disrupting the 10-million-year mutualism of ants and plants. And scientists ...

Apr 18, 2026
Phys.org / Wildfires used to 'go to sleep' at night. Climate change is turning them into prime burning hours

Burning time for North American wildfires is going into overtime. Flames are lasting later into the night and starting earlier in the morning because human-caused climate change is extending the hotter and drier conditions ...

Apr 18, 2026
Phys.org / Taiwan landslide's hidden motion comes into focus as fiber optics track deep slip

Placed within a borehole drilled deep through the layers of a landslide, a fiber optic cable captured tiny, periodic stick-slip events that offer a unique glimpse at the complex movements within the landslide's shear zone.

Apr 18, 2026
Phys.org / A student-led experiment sets new limits in the search for axions

In the era of precision cosmology, research often means big science: large observatories, highly complex instruments, international collaborations and substantial funding. Yet even in such an advanced field, progress is still ...

Apr 17, 2026