- PhysOrg
- 23/5/17 23:09
Coral reefs are intricate ecosystems with complex relationships between species, where each organism—from a tiny bacterium to a giant clam—plays a vital role in maintaining the health of the reef.
167 articles from WEDNESDAY 17.5.2023
Coral reefs are intricate ecosystems with complex relationships between species, where each organism—from a tiny bacterium to a giant clam—plays a vital role in maintaining the health of the reef.
New experiments using one-dimensional gases of ultra-cold atoms reveal a universality in how quantum systems composed of many particles change over time following a large influx of energy that throws the system out of equilibrium. A team of physicists at Penn State showed that these gases immediately respond, "evolving" with features that are common to all "many-body" quantum systems thrown out of...
Food allergies pose a significant health risk, resulting in numerous hospitalizations every year, as even trace amounts of allergens can trigger severe reactions. Cross-contamination of food products can happen easily in the production process, so it's important to have reliable methods of testing for allergens.
What makes some materials carry current with no resistance? Scientists are trying to unravel the complex characteristics. Harnessing this property, known as superconductivity, could lead to perfectly efficient power lines, ultrafast computers, and a range of energy-saving advances. Understanding these materials when they aren't superconducting is a key part of the quest to unlock that potential.
Removing trash from the ocean may not be as harmless as it seems. That’s the conclusion of new research, which finds that marine dumps known as “garbage patches” are home to countless delicate creatures that could perish when people scoop debris from the sea. The oceans are home to five major garbage patches. They form far from land where strong currents swirl together,...
In recent decades, scientists have produced countless studies on the effects of one environmental factor or another—climate change, deforestation or pollution, for example—on wildlife and habitats around the world. But few have examined the interplay and overlap among multiple factors at the same time in the same location.
Pharmaceutically active compounds (PhACs) have attracted massive attention due to their large quantity of consumption, continuous discharge, and ecological risk to aquatic organisms in the receiving aquatic environments.
Pale Male, a red-tailed hawk who brought a touch of the wild to swanky Manhattan as he nested above Fifth Avenue for three decades, has died.
"Will you be paying with cash or card?"
A new study conducted by a team of scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry (MPIC) reveals that the adverse health effects of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) are attributable to the conversion of peroxides into more reactive species such as the hydroxyl radical (OH) rather than the direct chemical production of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) as previously thought.
E171, a food additive, has been used until recently as a whitening and opacifying agent in many products such as pastries, sweets, sauces and ice cream. It is composed of micro- and nanoparticles of titanium dioxide, or TiO2.
Invasive species management has become increasingly reliant on aerial treatments; however, a new research article, published in the journal Pest Management Science, highlights a critical knowledge gap in understanding the interplay of factors affecting flight time and operational costs.
On May 14, 1973, watched by 25,000 rapt spectators, the last Saturn V patiently sat on Launch Pad 39A at Florida’s Kennedy Space Center (KSC). Atop the rocket was Skylab, the biggest, heaviest single object ever to be put into space and the nation’s first long-term, off-planet homestead. At 12:30 P.M. EDT, the Saturn’s fiveContinue reading "Remembering Skylab’s launch, 50 years on" The...
Many amateur astronomers start observing with the Messier catalog, a list of “fuzzy” deep-sky targets that present wonderful sights through a telescope. Although Messier objects may be bright and well known, there’s so much more in the sky to enjoy. The following list of beautiful globular clusters, galaxies, and other celestial entities of the springContinue reading "20 best deep-sky...
With the advent of artificial intelligence (AI), several aspects of our lives have become more efficient and easier to navigate. One of the latest AI-based technologies is a user-friendly chatbot—ChatGPT, which is growing in popularity owing to its many applications, including in the field of education.
A novel origami-based heat shield developed with ESA support is planned to be tested with an actual atmospheric reentry from space. Named Pridwen, after the legendary shield of King Arthur, this reusable design will spring out before a spacecraft reenters the atmosphere.
When Christopher Columbus arrived at the present-day US Virgin Islands on his second voyage across the Atlantic in 1493, the islands were already inhabited—but how and when the islands of St. Croix, St. John, and St. Thomas were originally populated remains uncertain.
We have crossed six of the nine boundaries within which human life on Earth will still be possible for future generations. That is not good news. Can the tide still be turned?
By reflecting every now and then on what they want to achieve in their job, teachers can boost their students' motivation. As well as their own.
When a child behaves in an unwanted manner, changing their behavior often becomes a focus. Research, however, suggests that influencing the behavior of adults who interact with the child would be more effective.
With ChatGPT and other artificial intelligence systems making waves, some people are turning to AI for financial planning, according to one West Virginia University researcher.
What does artificial intelligence offer that goes beyond traditional statistical models, such as regression analysis, to investigate the behavior of households, in particular the factors that cause the separation of couples and dissolution of the conjugal bond?
A marine research team led by Professor Yan Qingyun has proposed a method to assess the net carbon sink of marine macroalgae (Gracilaria) cultivation. Then, they calculated the net carbon sink of Gracilaria cultivation in China based on the yield of annual cultivated Gracilaria in the last ten years.
Remote sensing imagery is widely used in disaster response due to its easy accessibility and timeliness and can clearly reflect changes in features caused by earthquakes using pre- and post-earthquake image comparisons.
While previous research has focused primarily on anti-Black racism in predominantly white spaces, a study led by DeMarcus Jenkins, assistant professor of education (educational leadership) in the Penn State College of Education, examined the educational experiences of Black students in a predominantly Latino high school. The students' sense of unbelonging and feeling that their experiences are...
The heart of NASA's Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope was recently delivered to Ball Aerospace in Boulder, Colorado, for integration into the WFI (Wide Field Instrument). Called the FPS (Focal Plane System), it serves as the core of Roman's camera. When the mission launches by May 2027, astronomers will use this system to gather exquisite images to help unravel the secrets of dark energy and dark...
In a study published in Environmental Science and Technology, Skoltech researchers have proposed a novel metric and established an open-access database enabling the direct comparison of complex natural organic matter samples analyzed using different mass spectrometry equipment.
Back in 2020 astronomers observed a red nova, which while enormously powerful, is on the low side of energetic events in the universe. Now an astronomer has studied the event in close detail and has come to the conclusion that we have just witnessed a star destroying its own planet.
Proteins are large, complex molecules that play many critical roles in the body and are produced following the instructions encoded in DNA. By reading their DNA letters, cells produce an intermediate RNA molecule that will give rise to the corresponding protein. Most diseases occur with altered protein levels, which are either a cause or consequence of the condition itself. RNA plays a pivotal...
In a bid to control the Canada goose population in the city, the Vancouver Park Board has approved a plan for "lethal removal."
Summer in India has always been hot. Increasingly, it's testing the limits of human survival. As temperatures have climbed across the world's most populous nation in recent weeks, more than a dozen people died at an event in central India and thousands crowded hospitals with heatstroke symptoms. Hundreds of schools were closed and the mercury is still rising: Temperatures will hover around 45C...
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis followed through with his not-too-veiled hint that he would veto a measure that could have delayed the state's plan to capture and release gray wolves along the Western Slope by the end of the year.
North Carolina might need to move a snail. A tiny mollusk known as the magnificent ramshorn has long made its home in the state's freshwater coastal ponds. But sea level rise and storm surges are making those ponds saltier, and the snail can't tolerate salt. The coastal plain that was once the species' habitat has no snails left—the only surviving members are bred in captivity.
People's willingness to believe in climate change varies greatly, as does their willingness to engage in pro-environmental behavior, such as energy conservation. We tried to understand the psychological factors behind these differences in our recent study.
You've heard of food deserts, areas where healthy and nutritious food is all but impossible to find. But now experts are concerned about another public health problem: play deserts.
Education systems need major reform in the light of lessons learned from COVID, according to a leading education academic.
The Dark Ages were not entirely dark. Advances in agriculture and building technology increased Medieval wealth and led to a wave of cathedral construction in Europe. However, it was a time of profound inequality. Elites captured virtually all economic gains. In Britain, as Canterbury Cathedral soared upward, peasants had no net increase in wealth between 1100 and 1300. Life expectancy hovered...
New research led by the University of Oxford has found that climate change is causing the hottest days in North-West Europe to warm at double the rate of average summer days. The difference in trends is most pronounced for England, Wales, and Northern France. Worryingly, while current climate models accurately predict the rate of warming for average days, they underestimate the rate at which the...