https://phys.org/ en-us Latest news from The Conversation It may seem like we are on the verge of discovering alien life. In 2025, a press release stated that we have the "strongest hints yet" of extraterrestrial life on the exoplanet K2-18b. And when talking about a collected sample from a rock named "Cheyava Falls" on Mars, NASA Administrator Sean Duffy said this was the "closest we have ever come" to discovering life on the red planet. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-aliens-cheyava-falls-mars-exoplanet.html Astrobiology Fri, 05 Jun 2026 11:40:01 EDT news699870782 White storks (Ciconia ciconia) are a majestic bird with a two-meter wingspan and an enormous circular nest. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-white-storks-nonnative-species-rewilding.html Plants & Animals Fri, 05 Jun 2026 11:20:04 EDT news699870662 With World Oceans Day coming up on June 8, policymakers and researchers will be thinking about the state of the ocean and efforts to protect marine environments. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-ocean-strong-relationships.html Environment Fri, 05 Jun 2026 10:40:04 EDT news699870542 If you've had therapy, particularly if you got it through a public health care system like the NHS in the UK or Medicare in Australia, there's a good chance it was cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). Even with private health insurance, if you want therapy, the one you are most likely to be recommended is CBT. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-weve-therapy-pill-patients-paying.html Fri, 05 Jun 2026 10:40:02 EDT news699873210 For decades, the United States made steady progress in reducing surface ozone pollution, the main ingredient in smog. But that progress—made as vehicles, industries, and power sources became cleaner—is increasingly being overshadowed by a different and growing source of ozone pollution: wildfires. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-wildfires-reversing-america-ozone-pollution.html Environment Fri, 05 Jun 2026 10:20:04 EDT news699870482 People who don't like to workout will sometimes joke that they're "allergic" to exercise. But what many don't realize is that an allergy to exercise is a real thing—and it can be dangerous if not caught in time. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-allergic-symptoms.html Fri, 05 Jun 2026 09:40:01 EDT news699870842 "Digital authoritarianism" refers to governments using technology for surveillance and censorship to repress dissent. China remains the master practitioner. There, sweeping surveillance and censorship at home is combined with cyber-espionage and disinformation, censorship and influence campaigns abroad. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-exporting-spyware-surveilling-activists-democracies.html Political science Fri, 05 Jun 2026 08:00:05 EDT news699859022 When it comes to Ebola outbreaks, it's not often we have two pieces of good news in one week. First, we heard there's new funding of up to US$62 million to fast-track the development of vaccine candidates against the type of virus circulating in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and neighboring Uganda. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-ebola-vaccines-infectious-disease-expert.html Fri, 05 Jun 2026 08:00:03 EDT news699859801 Imagine you have used a generative artificial intelligence (AI) tool such as ChatGPT to tidy up notes you took while in a meeting. Your colleague comments on how clear they are. You don't disclose it was the AI that made the notes clear and not you. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-people-ai-communicate-disclosing-morally.html Social Sciences Fri, 05 Jun 2026 07:40:04 EDT news699858782 Did you know your body has an inbuilt sewerage system? It's called the lymphatic system, and is a crucial part of how your body fights infection and disease. Lately, the lymphatic system is causing a stir online, with some social media personalities promoting "lymphatic drainage" for beauty and skin health. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-lymphatic.html Fri, 05 Jun 2026 07:40:03 EDT news699858902 Artificial intelligence (AI) giant Anthropic has expanded access to a highly advanced model deemed too dangerous for public release, including Australia in the select handful of users. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-06-australia-access-anthropic-claude-mythos.html Internet Fri, 05 Jun 2026 07:00:02 EDT news699859202 Governments and car manufacturers sell electric cars as the future of green transport. But a less visible trend is challenging this story: many electric cars are getting bigger. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-06-electric-suv-boom-problem-climate.html Energy & Green Tech Thu, 04 Jun 2026 22:40:03 EDT news699797018 When researchers founded Anthropic in 2021, they said the race to build powerful AI was moving too recklessly. They inserted detailed safety measures into their products and marketed their commitment to safety as the corporate quality that distinguished them from competitors—notably OpenAI, the rival company they had left. In March 2026, that reputation was tested when the Trump administration declared that Anthropic was a supply chain risk. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-oversight-coercion-authoritarian-ai-safety.html Political science Thu, 04 Jun 2026 22:00:03 EDT news699795686 The discovery of insulin in 1921 revolutionized diabetes care. Type 1 diabetes went from being a death sentence to a manageable chronic condition. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-insulin-core-element-diabetes-treatment.html Thu, 04 Jun 2026 22:00:01 EDT news699797011 Climate change is making southern Africa hotter. While much attention has focused on climate impacts such as droughts, floods and food insecurity, another crisis is unfolding quietly inside classrooms. Research has shown that some schools are becoming dangerously hot places for children to develop, learn and play. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-school-hot-world-children-health.html Environment Thu, 04 Jun 2026 18:00:01 EDT news699797147 In today's attention economy, social media platforms, entertainment apps and news feeds all compete for our focus. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-focus-apps-neurodivergent-minds.html Social Sciences Thu, 04 Jun 2026 16:40:06 EDT news699797582 Cerebral palsy is the most common disability that starts in childhood, affecting about 50 million people worldwide. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-exoskeletons-people-cerebral-palsy-reality.html Thu, 04 Jun 2026 16:20:06 EDT news699797523 When an asteroid struck Earth about 66 million years ago, it ended the age of dinosaurs and transformed life across the planet. The effects of that catastrophe are visible in the fossil record on land, but scientists know far less about what happened to fishes in the seas during the first few million years after the extinction. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-fossil-fishes-reveal-chapter-marine.html Paleontology & Fossils Thu, 04 Jun 2026 16:20:03 EDT news699796021 Bison are political animals. A federal decision to revoke grazing leases for bison on public lands on the rolling plains of eastern Montana is the latest manifestation of long-standing contention. The largest land animal in North America, bison are considered a "keystone" species, meaning they have high ecological and cultural importance. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-bison-efforts-grazing-rights-hinge.html Plants & Animals Thu, 04 Jun 2026 16:00:05 EDT news699795962 When I was growing up, teachers would assign research papers that required going to the library, or later, searching for relevant material on the internet. If the paper was going to turn out well, we students needed to patiently comb through piles of material, weaving what we found into a coherent argument that was well-supported with evidence. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-eroding-virtue-ai-people-instant.html Social Sciences Thu, 04 Jun 2026 15:40:07 EDT news699795672 You sit down to start a task you care about. Nothing happens. You open your phone instead. Minutes turn into hours. You feel restless, flat, or oddly exhausted, even though you haven't done much at all. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-dopamine-menus-small-pleasures-unstuck.html Thu, 04 Jun 2026 14:20:07 EDT news699796142 Over the past few decades, researchers have developed effective treatments for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a psychiatric disorder some people develop after experiencing trauma. These treatments often involve talking through the trauma and understanding what happened with a therapist. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-wrong-people-nonwestern-backgrounds-recover.html Thu, 04 Jun 2026 10:20:05 EDT news699784681 When most people imagine scientists discovering new species, they probably still picture an expedition into the unknown. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-hidden-plain-sight-species-theyre.html Ecology Thu, 04 Jun 2026 10:00:04 EDT news699784561 New South Wales parliament is debating a bill this week that seeks to ban abortions performed on the basis of fetal sex. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-common-sexselective-abortion-australia.html Thu, 04 Jun 2026 10:00:03 EDT news699784322 One argument often used to quell concerns about the rising energy and resource demand of data centers is that artificial intelligence (AI) models will need less in the future as they improve and become more efficient. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-06-ai-world-electricity.html Energy & Green Tech Thu, 04 Jun 2026 09:40:10 EDT news699784441 It's been roughly six years since the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis sparked a global conversation about anti-Black police violence and the excessive use of police force against Black and Indigenous communities. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-unfinished-reckoning-police-violence-community.html Political science Thu, 04 Jun 2026 09:40:08 EDT news699784201 ChattyBear, a soft, brown-furred teddy bear, begins every conversation with a jubilant, "Hello, my buddy!" https://techxplore.com/news/2026-06-chatbot-teddies-threeyearolds-ai-toys.html Consumer & Gadgets Wed, 03 Jun 2026 22:00:01 EDT news699706971 Leipzig Zoo in central Germany is a world-leading center of great ape research. Recent studies have seen chimpanzees there using touchscreen controls to navigate virtual forests and locate food rewards—applying similar techniques to what they would use in the wild. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-great-apes-cognition-cooperation-curiosity.html Evolution Wed, 03 Jun 2026 21:00:02 EDT news699726121 In 2006, Carl Koch sued his employer for damages after burn injuries during a workplace accident that left him with chronic pain. The employer accused him of malingering, so the judge admitted a neuroscientist as an expert witness, who testified that he could see Koch's pain on a brain scan. The case was settled for more than ten times the amount the employer initially offered. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-brain-scans-ai-people-chronic.html Wed, 03 Jun 2026 20:40:01 EDT news699723001 A truce of sorts has quelled the return-to-office wars that have raged in the post-pandemic workplace. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-hybrid-golden-compromise-employees-companies.html Economics & Business Wed, 03 Jun 2026 20:00:02 EDT news699700781