Phys.org news
Phys.org / Seismic activity in California varies with the seasons
Earthquakes occur when the tectonic plates of the Earth's crust shift, jolting past each other in a release of built-up tension. However, other natural forces can also influence seismic activity: Hydrological dynamics, like ...
Phys.org / Making quantum vibrations nonlinear to enable phonon-phonon interactions
Phonons are the quantum units of mechanical vibration. They describe how motion propagates through a solid at the smallest possible scales, in much the same way that electrons describe electric currents. Because phonons can ...
Phys.org / Advanced dating method reveals age of Pacific coral architecture
Application of an advanced dating technique establishes the first precise construction timeline for houses built out of coral in French Polynesia. The findings reveal previously hidden patterns of architectural development ...
Phys.org / Hearing research traces evolution of key inner ear protein
In the intricate machinery of the inner ear, hearing begins with a protein that moves a few billionths of a meter up to 100,000 times per second. That protein, called TMC1, sits at the tips of sensory hair cells deep in the ...
Phys.org / XRISM clocks hot wind of galaxy M82 at 2 million mph
For the first time, astronomers have directly measured the speed of superheated gas billowing from a cauldron of stellar activity at the heart of M82, a nearby galaxy undergoing an extraordinary burst of star formation. The ...
Phys.org / How the body senses cold has been a mystery—until now
When you reach into a bucket of ice, open your front door on a snowy day, or feel the tingle of menthol toothpaste, a protein in your nerve cells called TRPM8 springs into action, opening like a tiny gate to send a "cold" ...
Phys.org / If the Laschamps geomagnetic excursion happened today, aviation radiation exposure would be radically altered
Earth's magnetic field acts as a vital shield against radiation arriving from space, but it is not constant. A new international study has examined how a reduction of the magnetic field similar to the Laschamps excursion ...
Phys.org / Organocatalytic strategy provides a metal-free route to antiviral candidates
A research team led by Prof. Sun Jianwei has achieved an advancement in organic synthesis and medicinal chemistry by developing an air-stable chiral phosphine-catalyzed enantioselective approach to synthesize enantioenriched ...
Phys.org / Topological solitons power a chip-scale frequency comb source
Caltech scientists have developed a new way to produce optical frequency combs—important tools in devices that keep time and measure distances very precisely—at the chip scale, an advance that should make it easier to incorporate ...
Phys.org / Motivations behind violent extremism uncovered in new global study
New research from the University of St Andrews has revealed that human readiness for intergroup violence is not a single or unified mindset. Published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the new study, ...
Phys.org / It's go time: historic Moon mission set for lift-off
More than half a century after the groundbreaking Apollo program's last crewed flight to the moon, three men and one woman are preparing for a lunar journey set to turn a new page in American space exploration.
Phys.org / Now you see it, now you don't: Material can transition between quantum states
A team of scientists led by the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory has identified a rare, switchable quantum property in a new type of nickel sulfide material. The discovery could have applications ...
