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. Malaysian scientists have discovered a new species of parasitic fungus in Borneo's jungles that preys on "zombie fungi" known to infect insects before subjecting them to a gruesome death. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-scientists-hyperparasite-malaysia-borneo-jungle.html Ecology Fri, 19 Jun 2026 03:59:28 EDT news701060265 From the revived corpse of Frankenstein's monster to the disembodied hand, "Thing," in the Addams Family, reanimated tissue is one of the most enduring images in science fiction. It turns out, that image has some basis in nature, according to the recent discovery of a mysterious creature that lives on the seafloor that scientists are calling a "real-life zombie." https://phys.org/news/2026-05-severed-piece-sea-cucumber-die.html Cell & Microbiology Wed, 27 May 2026 14:00:14 EDT news699090181 The number of wildland fires burning in the Arctic is on the rise, according to NASA researchers. Moreover, these blazes are burning larger, hotter, and longer than they did in previous decades. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-ice-arctic-regime.html Earth Sciences Wed, 14 Jan 2026 09:12:40 EST news687604322 In the aftermath of the giant asteroid that crashed into the Yucatan Peninsula about 66 million years ago, approximately 75% of all species on Earth were wiped out, including the dinosaurs. Among those thought to have perished at this K-Pg (Cretaceous-Paleogene) boundary were the ammonites. These were coiled-shelled mollusks with long tentacles related to modern octopuses and squids, and they are known today for their distinctive spiral-shaped fossils. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-ammonites-survived-asteroid-impact-dinosaurs.html Paleontology & Fossils Wed, 07 Jan 2026 09:02:36 EST news686998939 In 1181 AD, a bright "guest star" was observed to linger in the sky for around six months. Nearly 850 years later, the likely remnants of this event were rediscovered and tentatively linked to the 1181 supernova and dubbed supernova remnant (SNR) Pa 30. Yet, this supernova remnant was unique in appearance and researchers have struggled to understand why. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-rare-firework-morphology-supernova-remnant.html Astronomy Tue, 06 Jan 2026 11:18:38 EST news686920657 When it comes to treating disease, one promising avenue is addressing the presence of senescent cells. These cells—also known as "zombie cells"—stop dividing but don't die off as cells typically do. They turn up in numerous diseases, including cancer and Alzheimer's disease, and in the process of aging. While potential treatments aim to remove or repair the cells, one hurdle has been finding a way to identify them among healthy cells in living tissue. https://phys.org/news/2025-10-tool-hidden-zombie-cells.html Cell & Microbiology Mon, 27 Oct 2025 12:46:04 EDT news680787961 The cordyceps species in "The Last of Us," Ophiocordyceps unilateralis, is real and does exactly what the show purports —just not in humans, according to medical experts. https://phys.org/news/2025-07-fungi-species-hijack-brains-insects.html Plants & Animals Fri, 11 Jul 2025 09:17:38 EDT news671444207 University of Cincinnati Cancer Center researchers looked billions of years into the past to learn more about the potential future of precision medicine. https://phys.org/news/2025-07-evolutionary-essential-prps-enzyme-complex.html Evolution Tue, 08 Jul 2025 05:00:04 EDT news671122382 New drugs that target "zombie" tuberculosis (TB) cells are now a step closer, thanks to a new study led by the University of Surrey, published in Scientific Reports. https://phys.org/news/2025-07-tuberculosis-zombie-cell-weakness-genetically.html Cell & Microbiology Thu, 03 Jul 2025 11:59:04 EDT news670762741 When Entomophaga grylli infects locusts or grasshoppers, they climb to the tops of plants before their death. The zombie-ant fungus Ophiocordyceps unilateralis infects ants and controls their behaviors to benefit fungal transmission. This type of parasite-manipulated host behavior is called an extended phenotype. https://phys.org/news/2025-07-fungus-caterpillars-favor-fruiting.html Ecology Tue, 01 Jul 2025 09:17:03 EDT news670580221 Chinese Academy of Sciences researchers report that fossilized entomopathogenic fungi from mid-Cretaceous amber reveal some of the oldest direct evidence of parasitic relationships between fungi and insects, suggesting that Ophiocordyceps fungi originated approximately 133 million years ago and underwent early host shifts that shaped their evolution. https://phys.org/news/2025-06-fossil-fungi-amber-reveal-ancient.html Evolution Fri, 27 Jun 2025 10:30:01 EDT news670237993 Termites—infamous for their ability to destroy wood—are rarely welcomed into rainforests that have been painstakingly replanted. But a new paper suggests that termite transplants may be necessary to help regenerating forests to thrive. https://phys.org/news/2025-05-replanted-rainforests-benefit-termite-transplants.html Plants & Animals Tue, 06 May 2025 18:00:01 EDT news665742979 For communities living in the shadow of a volcano, early warning systems are a lifeline—but mistrust in these warnings can have deadly consequences. To avoid false alarms, it is vital that scientists seek more reliable ways to monitor volcanoes. https://phys.org/news/2025-05-eruption-approaches-earthquake-ontake-volcano.html Earth Sciences Thu, 01 May 2025 12:20:04 EDT news665320801 Scientists from China, the UK and the U.S. have collaborated to analyze the inner workings of Bolivia's "zombie" volcano, Uturuncu. By combining seismology, physics models and analysis of rock composition, researchers identify the causes of Uturuncu's unrest, alleviating fears of an imminent eruption. The findings have been published in the journal PNAS. https://phys.org/news/2025-04-anatomy-zombie-volcano-unrest-uturuncu.html Earth Sciences Mon, 28 Apr 2025 15:00:08 EDT news665047981 The Last of Us is back on April 13 and this season is more realistic than ever. https://phys.org/news/2025-04-season-chance-realism-scientists-discuss.html Ecology Mon, 07 Apr 2025 05:00:01 EDT news662989223 Scientists in Scotland have developed a new method to understand the heat and intensity of fires that burned out millions of years ago, which could unlock our understanding of wildfires during past and present periods of climate change. https://phys.org/news/2025-02-scientists-scotland-method-wildfires.html Earth Sciences Mon, 10 Feb 2025 12:30:25 EST news658413014 This week, astronomers reported the discovery of a super-Earth potentially capable of sustaining life, occupying an eccentric orbit around its star that oscillates in and out of the habitable zone. The first mouse engineered with embryonic stem cells from two dads has lived into adulthood. And researchers reconciled morphological and genomic evidence of the geographic origins of domestic sheep over millennia, shedding light on human migration. https://phys.org/news/2025-01-saturday-citations-spider-zombies-morphology.html Other Sat, 01 Feb 2025 07:30:01 EST news657540809 Dr. Harry Evans, Emeritus Fellow at CAB International, led scientists—including from the Natural History Museum of Denmark and Royal Botanical Gardens Kew—in a study to investigate the identity of a fungus found on a spider during filming of the BBC Winterwatch series in Northern Ireland. The work is published in the journal Fungal Systematics and Evolution. https://phys.org/news/2025-01-newly-fungal-species-zombies-cave.html Ecology Wed, 29 Jan 2025 13:06:30 EST news657378388 In 1181, a new star shone near the Cassiopeia constellation for six months before disappearing. This event, recorded as a "guest star" by Chinese and Japanese observers almost a millennium ago, has puzzled astronomers for centuries. It is one of a few supernovae to be documented before the invention of telescopes. In addition, it remained an "orphan" the longest, meaning that none of the celestial objects visible today could be assigned to it. https://phys.org/news/2024-10-astronomers-dandelion-supernova-zombie-star.html Astronomy Thu, 24 Oct 2024 12:27:03 EDT news648991621 The apparent weirdness of the quantum world is often exemplified by the paradox of Schrödinger's imaginary cat that exists in a limbo state of being both alive and dead until looked upon by an observer. But in the real world we never encounter such zombie felines. https://phys.org/news/2024-09-rays-atomic-reveal-clues-rival.html Quantum Physics Mon, 09 Sep 2024 12:30:21 EDT news645103817 What can we learn from a fungus that eats most of the flies in your home from the inside, turns them into zombies and then lures other flies to necrophilic intercourse? Possibly quite a lot, according to researchers at the University of Copenhagen. https://phys.org/news/2024-09-knowledge-fungus-flies-home-zombies.html Plants & Animals Tue, 03 Sep 2024 13:11:03 EDT news644587859 Galaxies avoid an early death because they have a "heart and lungs" which effectively regulate their "breathing" and prevent them from growing out of control, a new study suggests. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-reveals-galaxies-early-death.html Astronomy Thu, 11 Jul 2024 19:00:01 EDT news639932761 Marine microbes control the flux of matter and energy essential for life in the oceans. Among them, the bacterial group SAR11 accounts for about a third of all the bacteria found in surface ocean waters. https://phys.org/news/2024-05-zombie-cells-sea-viruses-common.html Ecology Fri, 17 May 2024 10:37:56 EDT news635161072 Dead stars known as white dwarfs, have a mass like the sun while being similar in size to Earth. They are common in our galaxy, as 97% of stars will eventually become white dwarfs. As stars reach the end of their lives, their cores collapse into the dense ball of a white dwarf, making our galaxy seem like an ethereal graveyard. https://phys.org/news/2024-05-hungry-white-dwarfs-puzzle-stellar.html Astronomy Fri, 03 May 2024 15:16:12 EDT news633968167 Despite their ancient ages, some stars orbiting the Milky Way's central supermassive black hole appear deceptively youthful. But unlike humans, who might appear rejuvenated from a fresh round of collagen injections, these stars look young for a much darker reason. https://phys.org/news/2024-04-fates-stars-milky-central-black.html Astronomy Thu, 04 Apr 2024 15:30:01 EDT news631438501 In the year 1181 a rare supernova explosion appeared in the night sky, staying visible for 185 consecutive days. Historical records show that the supernova looked like a temporary "star" in the constellation Cassiopeia shining as bright as Saturn. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-stunning-echo-year-explosion.html Astronomy Wed, 27 Mar 2024 12:18:37 EDT news630760715 Gamers who chose to be good Samaritans while playing through a zombie apocalypse were more likely to be prosocial post-game, according to new QUT research. https://phys.org/news/2024-02-video-game-rewards-reveals-gamer.html Social Sciences Mon, 26 Feb 2024 12:19:10 EST news628172347 Researchers have uncovered the intricate molecular mechanism used by parasitic phytoplasma bacteria, known for inducing "zombie-like" effects in plants. This detailed revelation opens new horizons for groundbreaking applications in biotechnology and even in biomedicine. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-infamy-ingenuitybacterial-hijack-mechanisms-advanced.html Cell & Microbiology Tue, 05 Dec 2023 11:06:06 EST news620996762 With age, cells can experience senescence, a state where they stop growing but continue releasing inflammatory and tissue-degrading molecules. When a person is young, the immune system responds and eliminates senescent cells, often referred to as zombie cells. However, zombie cells linger and contribute to various age-related health problems and diseases. Mayo Clinic researchers, in two studies, shed light on the biology of aging cells. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-health-zombie-cells-aging.html Cell & Microbiology Mon, 04 Dec 2023 10:53:47 EST news620909622 Electrons move through a conducting material like commuters at the height of Manhattan rush hour. The charged particles may jostle and bump against each other, but for the most part, they're unconcerned with other electrons as they hurtle forward, each with their own energy. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-physicists-electrons-3d-crystal.html Condensed Matter Wed, 08 Nov 2023 12:40:07 EST news618669604