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. Rhinos that flourished across much of North America 12 million years ago gathered in huge herds, according to a new study by the University of Cincinnati. https://phys.org/news/2025-04-evidence-prehistoric-rhinos-huge-herds.html Ecology Tue, 08 Apr 2025 14:37:03 EDT news663341821 An international team of scientists has made a discovery that could reshape our understanding of how global biodiversity evolved. By reconstructing the evolution of species over the past 45 million years, researchers found that the geographic origins of many plants, insects and mammals are more closely linked than previously thought. https://phys.org/news/2024-09-evolutionary-biodiversity.html Evolution Wed, 25 Sep 2024 10:28:03 EDT news646478881 River floods are environmental hazards that can have devastating effects on human life, agriculture, and infrastructure. Hydrologic models are used to map flood hazards to better understand risk, dictate insurance costs, and inform land-use planning. However, new research being presented Wednesday at the Geological Society of America's GSA Connects 2024 meeting suggests that these models may be missing a key variable that could underestimate risk. https://phys.org/news/2024-09-channel-conveyance-current.html Earth Sciences Tue, 24 Sep 2024 15:08:03 EDT news646409282 Field trips are a vital component of experiential learning in the earth science community, offering hands-on opportunities for students, professionals, and community members to engage with key scientific concepts. These trips can foster a deeper understanding of complex ideas, cater to various learning styles, and promote a sense of community. https://phys.org/news/2024-09-earth-science-traditional-field.html Education Mon, 23 Sep 2024 09:58:01 EDT news646304277 In the karstic caves of Puerto Rico, cave art paints the rock walls. Previous research has assigned ages to this art based on the ages of nearby archaeological artifacts within the caves, but these ages are relative and may not reflect the true timing of the art creation. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-dating-cave-art-reveals-history.html Archaeology Tue, 17 Oct 2023 16:35:20 EDT news616779316 Earthworms, the hardworking invertebrates that grace the upper layers of soil, have long been considered helpful in our home gardens. Earthworms are prolific munchers, grinding up organic material and sediment grains that make up soils. Although they are very different animals, worms, like many poultry, have gizzards. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-earthworm-effect-unraveling-soil-weathering.html Earth Sciences Tue, 17 Oct 2023 15:20:03 EDT news616774802 Scientists from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) have been monitoring groundwater quality in wells across the country for more than three decades, looking for harmful chemicals or residual substances that may cause harm to ecosystems or humans. In all, they have measured up to 500 chemical constituents, including major ions, metals, pesticides, volatile organic compounds, fertilizers, and radionuclides. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-groundwater-saltierwhat-infrastructure-ecosystems-human.html Earth Sciences Tue, 17 Oct 2023 10:37:50 EDT news616757754 You've heard of the salmon run: upon reaching sexual maturity, wild Atlantic salmon, which are born in freshwater rivers but spend most of their adult life in the ocean, swim upstream all the way back to their birthplace to spawn. This remarkable migration—a journey thousands of miles long, against the current—is filled with obstacles, from dams to hop over to hungry bears to dodge. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-function-salmon-cooling-stations.html Plants & Animals Mon, 16 Oct 2023 16:08:03 EDT news616691281 One of the most exciting findings from NASA's Dawn mission is that Ceres, the largest object in the asteroid belt that lies between Mars and Jupiter, hosts complex organics. The discovery of aliphatic molecules, which consist of carbon and hydrogen chains, in conjunction with evidence that Ceres has abundant water ice and may have been an ocean world, means this dwarf planet might have once harbored the main ingredients associated with life as we know it. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-hypervelocity-impact-probe-dwarf-planet.html Astrobiology Mon, 16 Oct 2023 12:07:46 EDT news616676863 The discovery of a spectacular fossil site in Argentina is helping shed new light on life at the end of the Cretaceous, the time period just before the non-avian dinosaurs went extinct. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-south-american-site-reveals-extraordinary.html Paleontology & Fossils Fri, 13 Oct 2023 14:09:03 EDT news616424941 On 8 June 2020, the Mangum Fire ignited 16 miles north of the North Rim of Grand Canyon National Park. By the time it was mostly contained, about a month later, the fire had burned over 70,000 acres of land. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-inferring-wildfire-intensity-quartz-luminescence.html Earth Sciences Thu, 12 Oct 2023 15:17:03 EDT news616342621 An eruption of Old Faithful Geyser in Yellowstone National Park is a sight to behold. Indeed, millions of tourists flock to the park each year to see it. Hot water and steam are ejected in the air to a height of 100–180 feet approximately every 90 minutes. Many adjectives come to mind to describe it: powerful, mesmerizing, unique, otherworldly . . . homey? Not so much. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-extreme-habitats-microbial-life-faithful.html Ecology Thu, 12 Oct 2023 10:58:33 EDT news616327109 Like a tornado siren for life-threatening storms in America's heartland, a new computer model that combines artificial intelligence (AI) and NASA satellite data could sound the alarm for dangerous space weather. https://phys.org/news/2023-03-nasa-enabled-ai-solar-storms.html Astronomy Fri, 31 Mar 2023 09:50:49 EDT news599475042 Sea-level rise and big storms are hammering coastal communities, causing increased flooding and land loss, saltwater intrusion, wetland loss/change, and impacts to local infrastructure. https://phys.org/news/2022-10-sea-groundwaterand-coastal-septic.html Earth Sciences Tue, 11 Oct 2022 14:54:33 EDT news584718868 Today, increasing levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere are warming up the planet. Climate change can disrupt the balance of ecosystems and contribute to endangerment and extinction of some species. New research suggests that a period of intense volcanism in the Central Andes may be the missing link in the story of past climate changes that led to the extinctions of ancient marine mammals. Mark Clementz and Barbara Carrapa will present their findings at the GSA Connects meeting in Denver. https://phys.org/news/2022-10-south-american-volcanoes-triggered-whale.html Earth Sciences Tue, 11 Oct 2022 12:32:29 EDT news584710347 Portland, Ore., USA: Coastal regions and small ocean islands face significant risks from rising sea levels due to climate change, because waters can flood and inundate low-lying land surfaces. "Climate change has become a more critical issue recently, especially for island countries and island provinces like the Bahamas. They are not only facing a water shortage problem because of the limitations of the islands, but also they are facing a coastal inundation problem due to sea level rise caused by climate change," said Yipeng Zhang, a postdoctoral associate at the University of Texas at El Paso. https://phys.org/news/2021-10-lake-formation-expansion-due-sea-level.html Earth Sciences Tue, 12 Oct 2021 12:31:20 EDT news553260678 The landscape at Lava Beds National Monument in northern California is typically home to sage and junipers, with unique lava caves twisting underneath the surface. But in the summers of 2020 and 2021, wildfires tore through the region, burning thousands of acres and leaving the surface charred. https://phys.org/news/2021-10-wildfires-affect-cave-diversity-surfaces.html Earth Sciences Tue, 12 Oct 2021 11:52:45 EDT news553258362 The source of marble for a statue of Apollo on the Greek island of Delos has been a mystery to art historians and archaeologists for decades. The stone's chemistry pointed geochemists to the southern end of the nearby island of Naxos, but no one thought there were ancient marble quarries there. A geoarchaeologist believes he found the source. https://phys.org/news/2021-10-tucked-away-marble-quarries-source-archaic.html Archaeology Tue, 12 Oct 2021 11:52:02 EDT news553258319 Between 1997 and 2017, central Italy was struck by several seismic sequences that cumulatively claimed more than 600 victims, besides producing widespread destruction in historical towns and damage to vital infrastructures. Based on the integration of geological and seismological datasets, this new study published in the Geological Society of America Bulletin provides a 4-D, high-resolution image of a crustal volume hosting an active linkage zone between two major seismogenic faults. https://phys.org/news/2020-12-seismic-hazard-campotosto-italy.html Earth Sciences Wed, 16 Dec 2020 14:40:47 EST news527352045 Boulder, Colo., U.S.: Floating gardens sound so idyllic. Now, a study proves that they are more than just a pretty place. The study, by researchers at Illinois State University, demonstrates that such constructed gardens can have a measurable, positive impact on water quality. https://phys.org/news/2020-10-gardens-pretty.html Environment Mon, 26 Oct 2020 17:16:28 EDT news522951374 When it comes to climate change, relationships are everything. That's a key takeaway of a new UO study that examines the interaction between plants, atmospheric carbon dioxide and rising water levels in the Mississippi River. https://phys.org/news/2020-10-atmospheric-carbon-rivers-adding.html Earth Sciences Fri, 02 Oct 2020 10:28:53 EDT news520853330 For iconic landscapes such as Grand Canyon or the Appalachian Mountains, geological features are an integral part of their appeal. Yet despite the seeming permanence of cliffs, caves, fossils, and other geological highlights, these features are surprisingly vulnerable to damage or destruction. Across the U.S., there is a growing awareness that America's geological resources represent a common heritage that needs to be preserved—and that doing so can yield considerable economic and societal benefits. https://phys.org/news/2019-09-earth-legacy-local-economic-benefits.html Earth Sciences Mon, 23 Sep 2019 10:34:05 EDT news488453637 Parts of Alaska's mountainous Brooks Range were likely transported from Greenland and a stretch of the Canadian Arctic much farther to the east, according to a series of Dartmouth-led studies detailing over 300 million years of Arctic geologic history. https://phys.org/news/2019-05-northern-alaska-rewrite-arctic-history.html Earth Sciences Tue, 28 May 2019 13:34:09 EDT news478269236 Introduced and invasive species can present big problems, particularly when those species are charismatic, finds a recently published paper in the Ecological Society of America's journal Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment. https://phys.org/news/2019-02-charismatic-species-difficult.html Ecology Mon, 04 Feb 2019 12:37:22 EST news468506230 Researchers propose an ammonia-water slurry as the basis for Pluto's newly discovered geologic activity and possible volcanism, and offer a new method to predict planetary vigor. https://phys.org/news/2015-11-ammonia-water-slurry-swirl-pluto-icy.html Space Exploration Mon, 09 Nov 2015 17:10:19 EST news366311397 For millions of years, the Pacific and North American plates have been sliding past—and crashing into—one another. This ongoing conflict creates uplift, the geological phenomenon that formed mountains along the west coast. https://phys.org/news/2015-09-spatially-sea-level-pacific-coast-uplift.html Earth Sciences Thu, 03 Sep 2015 18:04:37 EDT news360522201 For life as we know it to develop on other planets, those planets would need liquid water, or oceans. Geologic evidence suggests that Earth's oceans have existed for nearly the entire history of our world. But would that be true of other planets, particularly super-Earths? New research suggests the answer is yes and that oceans on super-Earths, once established, can last for billions of years. https://phys.org/news/2015-01-super-earths-long-lasting-oceans.html Astronomy Mon, 05 Jan 2015 13:10:03 EST news339663633 A new analysis of geologic history may help solve the riddle of the "Cambrian explosion," the rapid diversification of animal life in the fossil record 530 million years ago that has puzzled scientists since the time of Charles Darwin. https://phys.org/news/2014-10-massive-geographic-triggered-explosion-animal.html Earth Sciences Fri, 31 Oct 2014 19:33:15 EDT news334002788 (Phys.org) —The way continents are formed can be far more complicated than previously understood, according to researchers at the University of Aberdeen. https://phys.org/news/2014-10-continental-formation-complicated-previously-understood.html Earth Sciences Fri, 24 Oct 2014 07:33:50 EDT news333354821 Stegosaurs might be portrayed as lumbering plant eaters, but they were lethal fighters when necessary, according to paleontologists who have uncovered new evidence of a casualty of stegosaurian combat. The evidence is a fatal stab wound in the pubis bone of a predatory allosaur. The wound – in the conical shape of a stegosaur tail spike – would have required great dexterity to inflict and shows clear signs of having cut short the allosaur's life. https://phys.org/news/2014-10-kung-fu-stegosaur.html Archaeology Tue, 21 Oct 2014 12:19:01 EDT news333112720