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. Unethical behavior inside organizations is often less sudden than companies assume. New research from ESMT Berlin shows how employees can collectively drift into misconduct as groups gradually reshape what they perceive as ethical or acceptable. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-companies-drift-unethical-behavior.html Economics & Business Thu, 08 Oct 2026 16:40:16 EDT news710688604 From spiders spinning their webs to the manufacturing of textiles, the formation of fibers from liquids plays an important role in both nature and industry. Yet accurately predicting the properties of such fibers remains a challenge. The fiber is often much thinner than the nozzle from which a polymer or solution is extruded. Factors such as temperature, flow conditions and chemical reactions ultimately determine a fiber's thickness and strength. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-gravity-reveal-liquids-thin-fibers.html Soft Matter Thu, 08 Oct 2026 15:52:45 EDT news710693535 In the future, microorganisms could help return hard-to-recycle plastics to the recycling loop. Nick Wierckx, a molecular biologist at Jülich, explains the opportunities offered by biological recycling processes and the challenges of a truly circular economy. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-qa-biological-plastic-recycling-raw.html Biotechnology Fri, 19 Jun 2026 12:00:02 EDT news701086621 Carbon nanotubes are one technology that many observers believe hasn't quite lived up to the extreme hype that surrounded them when they first appeared on the scene in the late 1990s. At that time, much was made of their extraordinary electrical, thermal, and mechanical properties, with predictions that they would revolutionize materials science, electronics, and daily life. But could we be closer to realizing some of that promise? https://phys.org/news/2026-04-carbon-nanotubes-gap-copper.html Nanomaterials Fri, 24 Apr 2026 13:20:07 EDT news696252968 Germany's largest companies are deeply entangled with rival businesses in China and the US, and unable to escape either superpower, according to new research published by the University of Sussex and King's College London. The findings are published in the journal Review of International Political Economy. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-german-firms-china.html Economics & Business Mon, 30 Mar 2026 22:40:01 EDT news694084334 Consider the following scenario. You're facing pressure to meet quarterly targets, but the numbers aren't quite where they need to be. With a deadline looming, you "round up" a figure just slightly to make the results look better. https://phys.org/news/2025-12-good-people-leaders.html Social Sciences Tue, 16 Dec 2025 11:38:20 EST news685107482 Carbon fibers are essential in aviation, wind energy, and lightweight construction. However, since they are based on petroleum, their production has been very harmful to the environment. A research consortium led by the Technical University of Munich (TUM) has now succeeded in developing a production process for carbon fibers from renewable raw materials. https://phys.org/news/2025-07-method-microalgae-eco-friendly-carbon.html Biotechnology Tue, 29 Jul 2025 09:07:22 EDT news672998838 Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are characterized by high porosity and structural versatility. They have enormous potential, for example, for applications in electronics. However, their low electrical conductivity has so far greatly restricted their adoption. https://phys.org/news/2025-06-metal-frameworks-metallic-pave-paths.html Nanophysics Tue, 24 Jun 2025 15:49:04 EDT news669998942 A team from the Technical University of Berlin, HZB, IMTEK (University of Freiburg) and Siemens Energy has developed a highly efficient alkaline membrane electrolyzer that approaches the performance of established proton-exchange membrane(PEM) electrolyzers. What makes this achievement remarkable is the use of inexpensive nickel compounds for the anode catalyst, replacing costly and rare iridium. https://phys.org/news/2024-10-inexpensive-nickel-compounds-rare-iridium.html Analytical Chemistry Mon, 28 Oct 2024 12:02:03 EDT news649335721 By fusing together a pair of contorted molecular structures, Cornell researchers have created a porous crystal that can uptake lithium-ion electrolytes and transport them smoothly via one-dimensional nanochannels—a design that could lead to safer solid-state lithium-ion batteries. https://phys.org/news/2024-10-fused-molecules-blocks-safer-lithium.html Nanomaterials Thu, 03 Oct 2024 15:31:48 EDT news647188304 When the notion of "ecotourism" was introduced in the late 1970s, it was intended to be ecologically responsible, promote conservation, benefit local populations and help travelers foster a "reconnection with biocultural diversity." It's now more of a marketing term, used to give mass adventure-tourism packages a more "responsible" sheen. Visitors might get a nature walk, but interactions with local residents are limited to souvenir sellers at best, and international consortiums arrange everything and keep the profits for themselves. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-bluewashing-ecotourism-indigenous-communities.html Social Sciences Fri, 10 Nov 2023 11:31:04 EST news618838261 In a several-round-long crowdfunding initiative, the employees of Siemens AG not only had the opportunity to present their own ideas on an in-house online platform; in the role of investors, they were also able to choose which projects to implement. In other words, they had a chance to do things normally reserved for managers: make decisions and allocate budgets. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-internal-crowdfunding-fosters-engages-employees.html Social Sciences Wed, 25 Oct 2023 16:27:01 EDT news617470018 A cloud-based artificial intelligence (AI) system designed to detect blockages in sewers has shown an almost 90% accuracy rate in a recent trial. Early identification of sewer blockages is essential to reduce pollution incidents affecting our rivers. https://phys.org/news/2023-09-cloud-based-ai-river-pollution.html Environment Tue, 12 Sep 2023 14:46:53 EDT news613748810 Researchers at the University of Twente have developed a theoretical method for designing fluidic networks that has direct applications for scientists and engineers. https://phys.org/news/2023-07-minimal-energy-loss-smart-fluidic.html General Physics Fri, 21 Jul 2023 09:54:03 EDT news609152041 Lunar regolith (aka. moondust) is a major hazard for missions heading to the moon. It's everywhere on the surface—5 to 10 meters (~16.5 to 33 feet) in depth in some places—not to mention jagged and sticky. During the Apollo missions, astronauts learned how this dust adhered to everything, including their spacesuits. Worse, it would get tracked back into their lunar modules (LMs), where it stuck to surfaces and played havoc with electronics and mechanical equipment, and even led to long-term respiratory problems. https://phys.org/news/2023-06-astronauts-tracking-lunar-gateway-problem.html Space Exploration Wed, 14 Jun 2023 14:27:05 EDT news605971622 As Earth's population grows, the demands of modern lifestyles place mounting strain on the global environment. Proposed solutions to preserve and promote planetary sustainability can sometimes prove more harmful than helpful. However, technologies that harness natural processes could be more successful. https://phys.org/news/2023-03-harnessing-nature-planetary-sustainability.html Ecology Fri, 31 Mar 2023 14:30:51 EDT news599491847 As artificial intelligence-powered chatbots edge into the education sector, UniSA experts are encouraging teachers to take an active role in testing and using these cutting-edge tools to maintain a competitive edge in their profession. https://phys.org/news/2023-02-chatgpt-ai-tech-revolutionizing.html Education Thu, 02 Feb 2023 10:49:02 EST news594557341 It was a simple idea—maybe even too simple to work. https://phys.org/news/2022-12-basics-yields-printable-transparent-plastic.html Polymers Fri, 02 Dec 2022 09:17:33 EST news589195048 Researchers at Texas A&M University and ExxonMobil are developing a method to reprocess petroleum coke—a byproduct of refining crude oil—into a sustainable, high-value alternative. Using a chemical process called electrochemical exfoliation, they have converted petroleum coke into graphene, a nanomaterial with applications in electronics, medicine and energy storage. https://phys.org/news/2022-06-electric-petroleum-coke-sustainable-graphene.html Nanomaterials Thu, 16 Jun 2022 10:08:28 EDT news574592905 By watering bean plants (Phaseolus vulgaris) with a solution that contains conjugated oligomers, researchers at the Laboratory of Organic Electronics, Linköping University, have shown that the roots of the plant become electrically conducting and can store energy. https://phys.org/news/2021-11-energy-electronic-roots.html Materials Science Mon, 08 Nov 2021 09:10:48 EST news555585037 As warnings have intensified about the massive damage that climate change will have on the world in the coming decades, big business has started to make commitments to reduce carbon emissions. https://phys.org/news/2021-11-greenwashing-genuine-big-business-climate.html Environment Tue, 02 Nov 2021 04:30:02 EDT news555045299 An international research team has found an eye system in trilobites of the suborder Phacopina from the Devonian (390 million years ago) that is unique in the animal kingdom: each of the about 200 lenses of a hyper-facet eye spans a group of six normal compound-eye-facets, forming a compound eye itself. In addition to the hyper-facetted eyes, the researchers, led by zoologist Dr. Brigitte Schoenemann at the University of Cologne's Institute for Didactics of Biology, identified a structure that they believe to be a local neural network which directly processed the information from this special eye, and an optic nerve that carried information from the eye to the brain. The article, "A 390 million-year-old hyper-compound eye in Devonian phacopid trilobites," has been published in Scientific Reports. https://phys.org/news/2021-09-primordial-hyper-eye.html Evolution Thu, 30 Sep 2021 10:41:39 EDT news552217296 Australian universities invest heavily in the employability of their graduates. The Australian government supports this goal with annual funding to increase to A$20 billion by 2024. This includes $900 million in grants through the National Priorities and Industry Linkage Fund. A key focus is on expanding work-integrated learning. https://phys.org/news/2021-08-work-integrated-billions-university-funding-worth.html Economics & Business Mon, 30 Aug 2021 08:10:01 EDT news549529525 In late 2019, Indonesia sought to revolutionize the country's education system—long criticized for its focus on rote learning—through a series of ongoing policies dubbed the "Merdeka Belajar" movement, or "Freedom to Learn." https://phys.org/news/2021-07-indonesia-students-attention-digital-reclaim.html Education Tue, 27 Jul 2021 07:13:03 EDT news546588778 United Airlines is giving customers who want to reduce the environmental impact of their travel a way to buy sustainable jet fuel that releases fewer emissions than traditional jet fuel. https://phys.org/news/2021-04-passengers-donate-money-sustainable-jet.html Environment Wed, 14 Apr 2021 10:43:13 EDT news537615787 Metal-organic frameworks, or MOFs, are composed of metal ions periodically surrounded by organic bridging molecules, and these hybrid crystalline frameworks feature a cage-like hollow structure. This unique structure motif offers great potential for a range of applications in energy storage, chemical transformations, optoelectronics, chemiresistive sensing, and (photo)electrocatalysis, among others. Debuted in the early 2000s, MOFs are a fascinating nanomaterial. Though numerous applications exploit MOFs, little has been known as to how oxygen may work in the synthesis of MOFs. https://phys.org/news/2020-10-oxygen-favor-metal-organic-frameworks.html Nanomaterials Thu, 22 Oct 2020 09:12:03 EDT news522576721 Carbon nanotube fibers made at Rice University are now stronger than Kevlar and are inching up on the conductivity of copper. https://phys.org/news/2020-08-team-case-high-performance-carbon-nanotube.html Nanomaterials Mon, 17 Aug 2020 14:31:05 EDT news516893450 Thomas Brück saw the sea whip Antillogorgia elisabethae for the first time 17 years ago while diving on a research trip to the Bahamas. He still remembers this encounter vividly, which took place 18 meters below the water's surface: "Their polyp-covered, violet branchlets moved gently in the current. A fascinating living organism!" As it also contains various biologically active compounds, the biochemist since then has studied the natural product biosynthesis of this soft coral. https://phys.org/news/2020-08-bacteria-coral-antibiotic.html Biochemistry Mon, 17 Aug 2020 13:08:04 EDT news516888476 The fields of condensed matter physics and materials science are intimately linked because new physics is often discovered in materials with special arrangements of atoms. Crystals, which have repeating units of atoms in space, can have special patterns which result in exotic physical properties. Particularly exciting are materials which host multiple types of exotic properties because they give scientists the opportunity to study how those properties interact with and influence each other. The combinations can give rise to unexpected phenomena and fuel years of basic and technological research. https://phys.org/news/2020-07-dirac-frustrated-magnetism.html General Physics Fri, 31 Jul 2020 14:00:02 EDT news515415653 Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a heart condition that causes an irregular and abnormally fast heart rate, potentially leading to blood clots, stroke, heart failure and other heart-related complications. While the causes of AF are unknown, it affects around one million people in the UK with cases predicted to rise at a great cost to the NHS. https://phys.org/news/2020-03-quantum-technology-heart-condition.html Quantum Physics Tue, 31 Mar 2020 11:00:01 EDT news504858103