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. Hula hooping may be literal child's play, but as it turns out, the physics behind the gym-class staple is so complicated that scientists have spent decades trying to understand how the hula hoop defies gravity. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-decoding-loopy-physics-hula-hooping.html General Physics Tue, 27 Oct 2026 19:40:05 EDT news712329901 It's Halloween night. Someone has dared you to turn off the lights and stand in front of the mirror. The rules are simple: Stare into your reflection and say her name three times. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-brain-ghosts-science-bloody-mary.html Social Sciences Tue, 27 Oct 2026 19:00:04 EDT news712316846 Since the production of graphene in 2004, two-dimensional materials have been sparking scientific and technological interest. As they are only a few atomic layers thick, or even just a single atomic layer, they can exhibit special electronic, magnetic or chemical properties—which make them particularly interesting for applications such as electronics, catalysis and energy storage. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-nanostructures-classic-layered.html Nanophysics Tue, 27 Oct 2026 16:30:02 EDT news712334221 A study analyzing the effects of climate change on vascular plants in the United States finds that the fate of individual plant species tends to be a regional phenomenon. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-species-climate-regional-strategies.html Plants & Animals Tue, 27 Oct 2026 15:50:01 EDT news712332481 The rapid increase in the availability of genomic data has transformed plant breeding by enabling the prediction of complex traits directly from DNA markers. Genomic prediction provides a means to accelerate selection decisions, reduce phenotyping costs and shorten breeding cycles. Despite its promise, the practical implementation of genomic prediction remains challenging because prediction accuracy varies across datasets, populations and traits. Researchers must often evaluate multiple statistical and machine-learning approaches to identify the most suitable model, requiring substantial expertise and computational effort. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-genobridge-trait-genomic-analysis-pipeline.html Molecular & Computational biology Tue, 27 Oct 2026 15:20:01 EDT news712312961 Researchers at the Nano Life Science Institute (WPI-NanoLSI) at Kanazawa University have discovered that tiny structural defects can trigger the breakdown of microtubules, the microscopic structures that help cells maintain their shape, transport materials and divide. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-scientists-hidden-weaknesses-microtubules-stabilized.html Bio & Medicine Tue, 27 Oct 2026 15:00:15 EDT news712330478 Scientists have developed a way for certain types of compostable plastic to break down much faster in marine environments, from shallow coastal waters to the deep sea. The breakthrough comes from tiny enzymes embedded in the plastic that help degrade it from within. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-embedded-enzymes-plastics-faster-deep.html Biochemistry Tue, 27 Oct 2026 14:30:06 EDT news712326788 Researchers at the Osaka Research Institute of Industrial Science and Technology (ORIST), in collaboration with the University of Osaka and Tohoku University, have developed a flexible and stretchable silicon material whose response to terahertz waves can be mechanically tuned. By etching microscopic spiral springs into silicon, the team made the fragile material bendable and stretchable. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-microscopic-fragile-silicon-flexible-terahertz.html Optics & Photonics Tue, 27 Oct 2026 14:20:06 EDT news712316161 To prevent the spread of dangerous diseases by mosquitoes, scientists have long studied their reproductive mechanisms to control their population sizes. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-male-mosquitoes-female-wingbeats.html Plants & Animals Tue, 27 Oct 2026 14:00:09 EDT news712223881 Researchers in the U.S. and China have created a biocompatible, metal-free magnet that can be safely implanted and generate signals from deep inside the body. Led by Wubin Bai at the University of North Carolina, the team revealed how magnetism can emerge from the rearrangement of atoms in heated carbon nitride, which strengthens the coupling between unpaired electrons. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-metal-free-magnetic-sensor-safely.html Analytical Chemistry Tue, 27 Oct 2026 13:20:03 EDT news712314189 Levels of carbon dioxide (CO₂) and other major greenhouse gases in the atmosphere reached unprecedented highs in 2025, locking in more long-term warming for the planet, according to a new report from the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). https://phys.org/news/2026-10-greenhouse-gases-highs.html Environment Tue, 27 Oct 2026 12:40:04 EDT news712315081 Global efforts to preserve habitat and the planet's most endangered species urgently need to be stepped up, according to a new report from Map of Life, the flagship initiative of the Yale Center for Biodiversity and Global Change. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-life-safeguard-global-biodiversity.html Plants & Animals Tue, 27 Oct 2026 12:20:14 EDT news712307127 Bat populations across the United States face numerous threats, and one of the biggest may be the number of collisions with wind turbines. According to the most comprehensive study of the problem to date, published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, more than 18 million bats may have died at wind energy facilities between 1981 and 2024. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-scientists-reveal-staggering-deaths-turbines.html Plants & Animals Tue, 27 Oct 2026 11:29:50 EDT news712319317 Around 121 million years ago, somewhere in modern northeastern China, an early bird took to the skies. If you drew its silhouette, you'd notice something was missing. Unlike any bird alive today, it had no tail feathers. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-million-year-fossils-longipteryx-tail.html Paleontology & Fossils Tue, 27 Oct 2026 11:20:16 EDT news712312880 Brand collaborations have been growing in popularity as a powerful marketing tool for businesses looking to generate hype and expand their customer base, but brand managers often rely on costly and time-consuming surveys and screenings to identify potential matchups. A recent study by a Penn State researcher and collaborators proposes a new method: an artificial intelligence (AI)-powered framework that can uncover promising brand collaborations by leveraging the social media chatter of consumers. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-crowdsourced-collaborations-ai-social-media.html Social Sciences Tue, 27 Oct 2026 10:00:10 EDT news712301427 Quantum networks, systems that connect devices using quantum mechanical effects, could potentially allow users to share information more securely and efficiently. Building these networks typically entails linking stationary qubits, units of quantum information encoded in trapped ions or other physical systems, using photons (particles of light) transmitted through optical fibers. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-bridge-wavelength-gap-quantum-communications.html Optics & Photonics Tue, 27 Oct 2026 08:40:01 EDT news711967827 For the first time, a team of physicists in the U.S. has clearly demonstrated a "helicon current drive" in a nuclear fusion experiment. Led by Jeff Lestz at General Atomics, San Diego, the team took advantage of the latest advances in tokamak technology to show that radio waves steered to travel around the donut-shaped device can be absorbed by its confined plasma, driving an electric current inside it. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-radio-fusion-plasma-current-reactors.html Plasma Physics Tue, 27 Oct 2026 07:20:01 EDT news712244375 Skip-level meetings (SLMs) seem common in some work environments but unheard of and norm-breaking in others. They entail both benefits and risks for employees, bypassed and skip-level managers, and organizations. Their effects also depend on context, as my qualitative exploratory study, published in IEEE Engineering Management Review, suggested. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-bypassed.html Economics & Business Mon, 26 Oct 2026 22:40:01 EDT news712244737 In response to a recent article on vegan diets for cats, Phys.org received numerous messages from concerned readers. People raised a lot of concerns, mainly arguing that cats are obligate carnivores and that vegan diets could be very harmful to their health. Now, we have collected all these comments, questions and concerns and asked the researcher behind the original paper to address them. Andrew Knight, Veterinary Professor of Animal Welfare and Associate Professor at Murdoch University School of Veterinary Medicine, offers his response below. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-cats-vegan-diets-professor-andrew.html Veterinary medicine Mon, 26 Oct 2026 16:45:42 EDT news712251872 Carbon is inexpensive, conductive, and widely used in technologies such as fuel cells and water electrolyzers. But under strongly oxidizing conditions, carbon electrodes gradually corrode. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-molecules-carbon-electrode-corrosion.html Materials Science Mon, 26 Oct 2026 16:10:01 EDT news712248303 Science often advances in small steps, with researchers gradually building on previous discoveries. But every now and then, a breakthrough comes along that challenges conventional thinking and changes the direction of a field. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-scientists-disruptive-age-breakthroughs.html Education Mon, 26 Oct 2026 15:30:06 EDT news712244383 New Monash University research has revealed how countries could strengthen their conservation networks by looking beyond the boundaries of national parks and protected areas—and focusing on how these areas connect. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-isnt-landscapes-key.html Ecology Mon, 26 Oct 2026 14:40:19 EDT news712243262 Death has never entirely stopped the living from trying to continue a conversation with their loved ones. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-victorian-spiritualism-capitalized-desire-transcend.html Social Sciences Mon, 26 Oct 2026 14:40:15 EDT news712227689 As the climate changes, protecting wildlife increasingly depends on both the conditions within protected areas and the connections between them. A new study published in Conservation Letters identifies where climatic stability and opportunities for movement coincide in Europe, and where gaps could undermine conservation. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-climate-exposes-gaps-europe-area.html Environment Mon, 26 Oct 2026 14:00:02 EDT news712226527 New in JNeurosci, Pyry Heikkinen and colleagues, from the University of Helsinki, explored how emotional meaning influences the way the human brain prioritizes information during naturally spoken conversations in a cocktail party setting. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-emotional-content-people-conversations.html Social Sciences Mon, 26 Oct 2026 13:00:17 EDT news711979441 From its visible surface, the sun radiates heat at a relatively cool temperature of 5,800 Kelvin. Yet within the thin outer layer of the sun's atmosphere known as the corona, electrons can reach temperatures of millions of degrees, for reasons astronomers have yet to fully explain. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-laser-blasted-plasma-instabilities-sun.html Astronomy Mon, 26 Oct 2026 13:00:10 EDT news712234865 As climate change reshapes habitats both on land and at sea, you might go to the beach one day, only to find yourself in a place that looks nothing like you remember, around sea creatures you don't recognize. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-japan-largest-marine-dna-fish.html Plants & Animals Mon, 26 Oct 2026 12:00:12 EDT news711978380 For the first time, researchers in Japan have directly mapped several components of the stress field surrounding an atomic-scale flaw in the crystal structure of diamond. Led by Tokuyuki Teraji at Japan's National Institute for Materials Science, the team achieved its result using nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers in diamond, whose spin states respond differently to stress depending on how they are oriented relative to the stress field. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-diamond-defects-year-theory-crystal.html Condensed Matter Mon, 26 Oct 2026 10:30:01 EDT news712229116 A new study reveals a dust-reddened quasar from a time when the universe was less than a billion years old. Located at a redshift of 6.5488, the object J1440+0019 contains a rapidly accreting supermassive black hole with a mass of about 1.1 billion suns. The paper was posted to the arXiv preprint server on Oct. 9. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-jwst-alma-reveal-dusty-rapidly.html Astronomy Mon, 26 Oct 2026 09:20:36 EDT news711982981 People can sometimes make decisions that benefit them but are less advantageous for someone else. In these scenarios, they might convince themselves that their choice causes little harm to others or that an alternative would not make much of a difference. The same can happen in reverse, as people who act generously may overstate how much good the outcomes of their choices did for others. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-selfishness-generosity-distort-impact-selfish.html Social Sciences Mon, 26 Oct 2026 07:40:01 EDT news711900938