https://phys.org/ en-us Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. In a new Physical Review Letters study, scientists propose a new method for combining solid-state spin qubits with nanomechanical resonators for scalable and programmable quantum systems. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-scientists-solid-state-qubits-nanomechanical.html Quantum Physics Thu, 18 Jul 2024 10:00:01 EDT news640514711 A multi-institutional team of zoologists and animal behavioral specialists in China and Germany has found an association between the slower metabolism of island-dwelling, warm-blooded animals and an increased risk of anthropogenic extinction. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-slower-metabolism-blooded-animals-islands.html Plants & Animals Evolution Thu, 18 Jul 2024 09:50:02 EDT news640514728 Using the Keck II telescope, astronomers have detected an object that may be a brown dwarf or a low-mass star, exhibiting a very high radial velocity. The object, designated CWISE J124909.08+362116.0 is located some 400 light years away. The finding was reported July 11 on the pre-print server arXiv. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-nearby-hypervelocity-stellarsubstellar.html Astronomy Thu, 18 Jul 2024 08:52:13 EDT news640511529 Using NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), astronomers have detected 32 new bright pulsating DA white dwarfs of the ZZ Ceti subclass. The finding was reported in a research paper published July 9 on the pre-print server arXiv. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-astronomers-dozens-pulsating-white-dwarfs.html Astronomy Wed, 17 Jul 2024 09:56:08 EDT news640428966 A trio of environmental specialists at the National Institute for Environmental Studies, in Japan, has found that Japanese honeybees sometimes resort to slapping ants with their wings to prevent their entry into their nest. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-japanese-honeybees-invading-ants-wings.html Plants & Animals Ecology Wed, 17 Jul 2024 09:55:39 EDT news640428934 Using NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), an international team of astronomers has detected a new exoplanet. The newfound alien world, designated TOI-3261b, is nearly the size of Neptune and its equilibrium temperature exceeds 1,700 K. The finding was reported in a research paper published July 5 on the pre-print server arXiv. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-ultra-hot-neptune-sized-exoplanet.html Planetary Sciences Tue, 16 Jul 2024 10:20:01 EDT news640343552 Zdenek Sekanina, an astronomer with La Canada Flintridge in the U.S., reports what he describes as evidence of a possible breakup of comet Tsuchinshan prior to swinging around the sun. Sekanina specializes in comet behavior, specifically analyzing them to make predictions on whether they will split or fall apart as they near the sun. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-comet-tsuchinshan-prior-sun.html Astronomy Planetary Sciences Tue, 16 Jul 2024 10:09:51 EDT news640343388 A trio of physicists and oceanologists, two with the University of Cologne's Institute of Geophysics and Meteorology and the third with the GEOMAR Helmholtz Center for Ocean Research Kiel, all in Germany, has found via the CESM1 climate model that an extreme El Niño tipping point could be reached in the coming decades under current emissions. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-climate-extreme-el-nio-global.html Earth Sciences Environment Mon, 15 Jul 2024 10:00:01 EDT news640256035 Astronomers report the discovery of a new galaxy in the constellation Corvus. The newfound galaxy, which received designation Corvus A, has a relatively low mass, is gas-rich and isolated. The discovery was presented in a research paper published July 3 on the pre-print server arXiv. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-mass-galaxy.html Astronomy Mon, 15 Jul 2024 09:17:48 EDT news640253865 This week: Physicists conducted a biological study, engineers built a waste-recycling suit for astronauts (and worm riders), and astronomers identified the first known intermediate-mass black hole, and it's right here in our own galactic back yard. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-saturday-citations-goldilocks-black-hole.html Other Sat, 13 Jul 2024 09:30:01 EDT news640007335 Researchers from the Institute for Molecules and Materials at Radboud University, Netherlands, have demonstrated that a complex self-organizing chemical reaction network can perform various computational tasks, such as nonlinear classification and complex dynamics prediction. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-scientists-chemical-reservoir-formose-reaction.html Analytical Chemistry Sat, 13 Jul 2024 09:00:01 EDT news640000778 A pair of biologists, one with West Liberty University, the other with Arizona State University, both in the U.S., has found evidence that challenges theories surrounding bright coloration always functioning as an adapted phenotype. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-crayfish-theories-bright-phenotype.html Evolution Ecology Fri, 12 Jul 2024 09:20:01 EDT news639994310 The Belle II experiment is a large research effort aimed at precisely measuring weak-interaction parameters, studying exotic hadrons (i.e., a class of subatomic particles) and searching for new physical phenomena. This effort primarily relies on the analysis of data collected by the Belle II detector (i.e., a general purpose spectrometer) and delivered by the SuperKEKB, a particle collider, both located at the High Energy Accelerator Research Organization (KEK) in Tsukuba, Japan. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-belle-ii-tau-lepton-ratio.html General Physics Fri, 12 Jul 2024 07:51:47 EDT news639987027 A team of physicists at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel has successfully demonstrated the inverse Mpemba effect at the quantum level using single trapped ions. In their study, published in the journal Physical Review Letters, the group demonstrated the effect by trapping a strontium-88 ion coupled to an external thermal bath. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-physicists-quantum-scale-inverse-mpemba.html Quantum Physics Thu, 11 Jul 2024 10:50:01 EDT news639913040 An international team of astronomers reports the discovery of 34 rare double-lined double white dwarf binary systems using the Intermediate-dispersion Spectrograph and Imaging System (ISIS) on the William Herschel Telescope (WHT). The finding was detailed in a research paper published on the preprint server arXiv. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-astronomers-dozens-lined-white-dwarf.html Astronomy Thu, 11 Jul 2024 08:30:01 EDT news639846462 Wildfires are unplanned and unpredictable threats to Earth; while we may intuitively relate them to extreme heat at lower latitudes, they are known to occur in Arctic regions, such as those recently ravaging Russia. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-canadian-wildfire-dispersal-worsened-coincident.html Earth Sciences Environment Thu, 11 Jul 2024 06:40:01 EDT news639652608 A team of physicists with NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory at the California Institute of Technology has calculated more precisely how much faster time passes on the moon than on the Earth. The paper describing the math they used to make the calculations and their results has been posted to the arXiv preprint server. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-precisely-faster-moon.html Astronomy Planetary Sciences Wed, 10 Jul 2024 10:44:07 EDT news639827038 Electrons inherently carry both spin and orbital angular momentum (i.e., properties that help to understand the rotating motions and behavior of particles). While some physicists and engineers have been trying to leverage the spin angular momentum of electrons to develop new technologies known as spintronics, these particles' orbital momentum has so far been rarely considered. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-generation-orbital-current-magnetization-dynamics.html Condensed Matter Wed, 10 Jul 2024 10:10:02 EDT news639824326 A psychologist at the University of London has found that humans have a surprisingly precise degree of tactile localization beneath their fingernails. In his study, published in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B, Matthew Longo tested how well volunteers could pinpoint the part of their fingernail being stimulated and outlines possible reasons. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-subsurface-fingernails-precise-tactile-localization.html Evolution Other Wed, 10 Jul 2024 09:59:03 EDT news639824339 A team of chemical and biomolecular engineers at Yonsei University, working with a pair of colleagues at Kangwon National University, both in the Republic of Korea, has developed a gelatin-based scaffolding that releases a meaty-flavored compound at high temperatures. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-gelatin-based-scaffolding-meaty-flavor.html Biotechnology Wed, 10 Jul 2024 09:58:34 EDT news639824280 A recent study in Nature Communications by scientists from China and Belgium suggests that Mercury's core-mantle boundary (CMB) includes a diamond layer, potentially up to 18 kilometers thick, deep within the planet's interior. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-diamond-layer-core-mantle-boundary.html Planetary Sciences Wed, 10 Jul 2024 09:00:01 EDT news639804179 Using the High-Altitude Water Cherenkov (HAWC) observatory, an international team of astronomers has observed a very-high energy gamma-ray source designated TeV J2032+4130. Results of the observational campaign, presented July 3 on the preprint server arXiv, provide crucial information regarding the nature of this source. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-nature-high-energy-gamma-ray.html Astronomy Wed, 10 Jul 2024 08:10:02 EDT news639759081 Charge density waves are quantum phenomena occurring in some materials, which involve a static modulation of conduction electrons and the periodic distortion of the lattice. These waves have been observed in numerous condensed matter materials, including high-temperature superconductors and quantum Hall systems. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-visualizing-boundary-modes-density-topological.html Condensed Matter Quantum Physics Wed, 10 Jul 2024 07:30:02 EDT news639672807 Plate tectonics are the driving force behind Earth's continental configurations, with the lithosphere (oceanic and continental crusts and upper mantle) moving due to convection processes occurring in the softer underlying asthenospheric mantle. Many earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and mountain formations are direct consequences of the movements of these globe-spanning plates, particularly at their margins. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-incompletely-rifted-microcontinent-greenland-canada.html Earth Sciences Wed, 10 Jul 2024 06:50:01 EDT news639650434 A team of chemists and materials scientists at Sichuan University, in China, has developed a photoluminescent aerogel with a visible light reflectance of 104%. In their study, published in the journal Science, the group created their aerogel from readily available biomass. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-photoluminescent-aerogel-visible.html Biochemistry Polymers Tue, 09 Jul 2024 10:20:01 EDT news639738327 An international team of geophysicists has found evidence that the Earth experienced plate tectonics earlier than previously thought. In their study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the group analyzed zircons from Jack Hills in Australia. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-ai-analysis-zircons-australia-earlier.html Earth Sciences Tue, 09 Jul 2024 10:10:02 EDT news639738318 Using the CARMENES spectrograph, astronomers have found evidence of water vapor in the atmosphere of a hot Saturn exoplanet designated HD 149026 b, dubbed Smertrios. The finding, reported in a research paper published on the preprint server arXiv, could be key to a better understanding of the structure and formation scenario of this alien world. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-evidence-vapor-atmosphere-smertrios.html Planetary Sciences Tue, 09 Jul 2024 08:30:01 EDT news639673545 A new study in Nature Physics demonstrates a novel method for generating quantum entanglement using a quantum dot, which violates the Bell inequality. This method uses ultra-low power levels and could pave the way for scalable and efficient quantum technologies. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-quantum-dot-photon-emitters-violate.html Optics & Photonics Quantum Physics Tue, 09 Jul 2024 08:00:01 EDT news639672763 As climate change advances, its impacts are not universally equal, with temperature rising differently by latitude and elevation. Climate heterogeneity is the study of this diversity in Earth's climate patterns, and the focus of recent research published in Geophysical Research Letters. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-high-elevation-regions-wildlife-refuges.html Earth Sciences Environment Tue, 09 Jul 2024 06:40:02 EDT news639650409 A team of anthropologists and behavioral specialists from several institutions in the U.S., working with a colleague from the U.K., has found that following the conquest of Great Britain in AD 43 by the Romans, the region experienced intensive economic growth. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-archaeological-evidence-centuries-intensive-economic.html Archaeology Economics & Business Mon, 08 Jul 2024 10:10:02 EDT news639651598