https://phys.org/ en-us Latest news from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) have created a new and unusual state of matter—known as a supersolid—by engineering how light and matter interact inside a nanoscale device. The work, published in Nature Nanotechnology, demonstrates that this exotic quantum phase can exist at room temperature, overcoming a long-standing limitation in the field. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-scientists-state-room-temperature-nanostructures.html Nanophysics Tue, 17 Mar 2026 19:20:03 EDT news692977022 A team of researchers at RPI, in collaboration with the University of South Florida, University of North Carolina, and The Neural Stem Cell Institute, have made a discovery that opens the door to new treatments for Alzheimer's disease and other brain disorders. The research, published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, reveals a critical mechanism in how a brain signaling pathway communicates at the molecular level, and suggests that enhancing that communication could protect the brain from damage related to neurological diseases. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-02-brain-pathway-resilience-disease.html Neuroscience Mon, 09 Feb 2026 16:17:33 EST news689876221 For more than a century, scientists have wondered why physical structures like blood vessels, neurons, tree branches, and other biological networks look the way they do. The prevailing theory held that nature simply builds these systems as efficiently as possible, minimizing the amount of material needed. But in the past, when researchers tested these networks against traditional mathematical optimization theories, the predictions consistently fell short. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-scientists-theory-code-natural-networks.html General Physics Wed, 07 Jan 2026 11:52:24 EST news687009121 More than a billion years ago, in a shallow basin across what is now northern Ontario, a subtropical lake much like modern-day Death Valley evaporated under the sun's gentle heat, leaving behind crystals of halite—rock salt. https://phys.org/news/2025-12-scientists-ancient-salt-crystals-secrets.html Astrobiology Tue, 23 Dec 2025 08:44:34 EST news685701841 A team led by researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) has made a breakthrough in semiconductor development that could reshape the way we produce computer chips, optoelectronics and quantum computing devices. https://techxplore.com/news/2025-11-quality-problems-substrate-defects-enable.html Engineering Tue, 11 Nov 2025 16:07:03 EST news682099621 RPI professor and freshwater ecology expert Kevin Rose, Ph.D., in collaboration with other researchers from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI), the Lake George Association (LGA), and Paul Smith's College, conducted the first ever long-term study on the environmental effects of the aquatic herbicide florpyrauxifen-benzyl (FPB), also known as ProcellaCOR. https://phys.org/news/2025-10-kind-york-lakes-healthy-herbicide.html Ecology Tue, 21 Oct 2025 12:00:03 EDT news680266801 When you're running up stairs or out on a jog, your muscles eventually start to feel heavy and weak. That's fatigue setting in, a sign that the muscles' energy reserves are becoming depleted. But a team of researchers led by Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) biology professor Doug Swank, Ph.D., have discovered something surprising: certain muscle fibers have a built-in backup system that fights back against fatigue, potentially helping us keep going when we'd otherwise have to stop. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-10-built-backup-muscles-counteract-fatigue.html Sports medicine & Kinesiology Mon, 20 Oct 2025 12:22:03 EDT news680181721 Researchers with the schools of science and engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) are exploring new ways to manipulate matter with light to unlock a new generation of computer chips, photovoltaic cells and other advanced materials. https://phys.org/news/2025-08-material-properties-reveals-atomic-nanocrystals.html Nanophysics Tue, 12 Aug 2025 15:19:04 EDT news674230741 As schools increasingly move to ban smartphones in classrooms, new research from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) suggests that there may be a more effective way to boost focus and academic engagement. https://phys.org/news/2025-08-incentives-valuable-alternative-school-cell.html Education Thu, 07 Aug 2025 12:59:06 EDT news673790342 Deep below the surface of the ocean, unseen waves roil and churn the water. These internal waves, traveling between water layers of different temperatures and densities, draw cold, nutrient-rich water up from the depths and play a major role in oceanic circulation. Understanding and modeling their behavior is critical for developing more accurate simulations of an increasingly unpredictable climate. https://phys.org/news/2025-07-mathematical-internal-ocean-climate.html Earth Sciences Fri, 25 Jul 2025 08:21:39 EDT news672650495 When a 100-year flood hits a city, traffic doesn't suddenly stop or disappear—it adapts. https://phys.org/news/2025-07-universal-law-city-traffic-extreme.html Environment Wed, 23 Jul 2025 13:34:51 EDT news672496485 A discovery with major implications for cancer treatment has been made by a team of researchers from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI), the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC), University of Binghamton, and SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-07-cancer-hedgehog-protein-hidden-weakness.html Oncology & Cancer Thu, 17 Jul 2025 08:42:16 EDT news671960530 New research from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) could help shape the future of artificial intelligence by making AI systems less resource-intensive, higher performing, and designed to emulate the human brain. The research was published in Patterns, titled "Dimensionality and dynamics for next-generation neural networks." https://techxplore.com/news/2025-06-rethinking-ai-effective-human-approach.html Computer Sciences Fri, 13 Jun 2025 08:36:04 EDT news669022561 Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) are tackling one of the most complex challenges in the world of quantum information—how to create reliable, scalable networks that can connect quantum systems over distances. https://phys.org/news/2025-05-strategy-quantum-networks-stable-replenishing.html Quantum Physics Fri, 02 May 2025 11:32:03 EDT news665404321 Lung cancer is one of the most challenging diseases, making early diagnosis crucial for effective treatment. Fortunately, advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) are transforming lung cancer screening, improving both accuracy and efficiency. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-03-multimodal-multitask-foundation-lung-cancer.html Oncology & Cancer Tue, 25 Mar 2025 11:24:12 EDT news662120651 A team of researchers has revealed the structure of a modified and evolved version of Photosystem I (PS I), a key protein complex used by plants and cyanobacteria to convert sunlight into chemical energy. This discovery sheds light on the evolution and adaptation of photosynthetic organisms and could potentially lead to new, highly efficient systems for producing renewable solar fuels. https://phys.org/news/2024-12-discovery-key-protein-complex-evolution.html Evolution Thu, 05 Dec 2024 13:59:04 EST news652629541 A research study describes a systematic high-throughput design approach for virtual screening and creation of novel polypeptide-based molecules that form regular secondary structures that can be used in biology or materials science research. The study is published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society. https://phys.org/news/2024-10-polypeptide-based-molecules-pave-polymer.html Biochemistry Wed, 30 Oct 2024 17:02:03 EDT news649526521 Imagine tires that charge a vehicle as it drives, streetlights powered by the rumble of traffic, or skyscrapers that generate electricity as the buildings naturally sway and shudder. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-10-chalcogenide-perovskite-generates-electricity-stressed.html Engineering Wed, 16 Oct 2024 09:12:04 EDT news648288721 Optimizing an investment portfolio to maximize returns while minimizing risk is the ultimate goal for investors and their advisers. However, there is no set path and challenges always arise. One such limitation is the high-dimensional, small-sample problem (HDSS). HDSS refers to a portfolio with a large number of assets but little historical data, leading to unreliable portfolio optimization and resulting in weak investment performance. https://phys.org/news/2024-09-portfolio-optimization-limitations-approach.html Economics & Business Tue, 24 Sep 2024 15:29:03 EDT news646410541 Among the many challenges that the COVID-19 pandemic presented, disruptions in health care were among the most impactful. The pandemic was large-scale, lasted over two years, and resulted in millions of hospitalizations and 1.2 million deaths in the United States alone. Meanwhile, routine medical services were affected by the pandemic; patients avoided health care visits for fear of contracting the virus; stay-at-home policies left patients without routine care; and there was a limited supply of services. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2024-07-insights-covid-health-crisis.html Health Thu, 18 Jul 2024 16:27:04 EDT news640538822 Although there is a large body of research on pests evolving tolerances for the pesticides meant to destroy them, there have been considerably fewer studies on how non-target animals in these ecosystems may do the same. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-frogs-quickly-tolerance-pesticides.html Plants & Animals Tue, 16 Jul 2024 15:39:26 EDT news640363164 Circadian clocks, which drive circadian rhythms, are entwined with many essential systems in living things including plants, fungi, insects, and even humans. Because of this, disruptions to our circadian clocks are linked to higher disease rates in humans, including certain cancers and autoimmune diseases. https://phys.org/news/2024-06-disordered-clock-protein-circadian-rhythms.html Molecular & Computational biology Tue, 04 Jun 2024 12:41:04 EDT news636723662 Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have fabricated a device no wider than a human hair that will help physicists investigate the fundamental nature of matter and light. Their findings, published in the journal Nature Nanotechnology, could also support the development of more efficient lasers, which are used in fields ranging from medicine to manufacturing. https://phys.org/news/2024-05-topological-quantum-simulator-device-strong.html Nanophysics Fri, 24 May 2024 05:00:01 EDT news635696900 We all know that communication encompasses so much more than words. Facial expressions, intonations, hand gestures, and more contribute to our expressiveness. However, in social media, these intricacies are lost. https://phys.org/news/2024-05-analysis-millions-users-echo-chambers.html Social Sciences Thu, 09 May 2024 13:43:46 EDT news634481022 In 2020, the United States Supreme Court ruled in "Bostock vs. Clayton County" that transgender people are legally protected from employment discrimination. This came at a time of increased visibility, but also of legal and social challenges to the rights of transgender individuals. Meanwhile, there has been very little study of labor market discrimination against them. https://phys.org/news/2024-04-labor-transgender-people-sexual-minorities.html Social Sciences Tue, 30 Apr 2024 14:26:03 EDT news633705961 When we think of evolution, we think of a process that happens over hundreds or thousands of years. In research published in Ecology and Evolution a team led by Rick Relyea, Ph.D., professor of biological sciences and David M. Darrin Senior Endowed Chair at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, found a species of frog that has evolved over the course of merely 25 years. The adaptation was spurred on by something many assume is innocuous: salt. https://phys.org/news/2024-04-wood-frogs-evolved-rapidly-response.html Evolution Wed, 24 Apr 2024 14:39:03 EDT news633188341 Customer's online reviews of products and services are highly influential and have an immediate impact on brand value and customer buying behaviors. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-positive-online-minefield-firms.html Social Sciences Tue, 26 Mar 2024 13:11:04 EDT news630677455 Heparin, the world's most widely used blood thinner, is used during procedures ranging from kidney dialysis to open heart surgery. Currently, heparin is derived from pig intestines, but scientists at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) have discovered how to make it in the lab. They have also developed a path to a biomanufacturing process that could potentially revolutionize how the world gets its supply of this crucial medicine. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2024-03-scientists-discovery-animals-vital-anticoagulant.html Medical research Mon, 18 Mar 2024 15:00:01 EDT news629973341 We are all aware of the dangers of pollution to our air, water, and Earth. In a letter recently published in Nature Human Behavior, scientists are advocating for the recognition and mitigation of another type of environmental pollution that poses equivalent personal and societal dangers: information overload. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-overload-personal-societal-danger.html Social Sciences Thu, 14 Mar 2024 16:37:14 EDT news629653031 With misinformation and disinformation proliferating online, many may wish for a simple, reliable, automated "fake news" detection system to easily identify falsehoods from truths. Often with the help of machine learning, many scientists have developed such tools, but experts advise caution when deploying them. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-03-automated-fake-news-simple-solution.html Machine learning & AI Thu, 14 Mar 2024 15:58:03 EDT news629650681