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. Bees may be relying on your lawn for their next meal, according to a new study from the University of Georgia. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-pollinators-grass.html Plants & Animals Mon, 17 Aug 2026 13:30:01 EDT news706190045 Water-bombing aircraft and farmers' tractors joined forces Sunday to help firefighters tame Belgium's largest modern-day wildfire, which has scorched vast swaths of a hard-to-reach nature reserve near the German border. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-belgium-huge-wildfire-germany.html Environment Sun, 16 Aug 2026 15:20:02 EDT news706112153 On the banks of the Waal, the Dutch branch of the Rhine, swimmers are sunning themselves on a Nijmegen beach that didn't exist before the river level dropped a few months ago. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-historic-drought-dutch-rethink.html Environment Sat, 15 Aug 2026 04:00:01 EDT news705983288 Peatland fires in Indonesia pose a major threat to habitats, wildlife and people. That risk is exacerbated by the country's periodic El Niño warming phases, which bring prolonged drought. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-wildfires-peat-indonesia-tropical-forests.html Environment Wed, 12 Aug 2026 18:00:05 EDT news705756564 The child who plays alone during recess may be perfectly content doing so, according to a new study from the University of Georgia. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-unsocial-kids-happier.html Social Sciences Mon, 10 Aug 2026 12:20:01 EDT news705579901 Far from their origins in the Arabian desert, hundreds of thousands of camels roam outback Australia, where they are used for wild races, an alternative milk source and even to make beer. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-camels-home-outback-australia.html Agriculture Fri, 07 Aug 2026 02:33:05 EDT news705288753 There's something almost comic about the modern British summer ritual: As soon as the mercury climbs, we head to the nearest park, sit cross-legged on scorched grass and hunch over a flimsy foil tray to sear sausages over an open flame. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-wildfires-disposable-bbqs-beaches.html Environment Mon, 03 Aug 2026 11:40:01 EDT news704969041 People might be more inclined to keep their community clean if they believe it benefits them personally, according to new research from the University of Georgia published in Environment and Behavior. The study found that focusing on how volunteering can benefit participants, such as by providing a new way to meet people or stay active, may encourage people to grab a trash bag and get to work. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-people-environment-benefits.html Environment Mon, 03 Aug 2026 11:00:03 EDT news704968682 Peatlands are the unsung heroes of nature. These ancient wetlands form when dead and decaying plants partly decompose in wet, low-oxygen conditions. Over thousands of years, this plant material builds up and turns into a dark, soil-like substance known as peat. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-destroy-peatlands-australia.html Environment Tue, 28 Jul 2026 12:00:21 EDT news704453882 Most of the carbon released during Canada's record-breaking 2023 wildfire season came from burning soil and peat, rather than trees, according to new research from McMaster University. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-soil-peat-drove-emissions-canada.html Earth Sciences Mon, 27 Jul 2026 17:10:03 EDT news704385096 How do wildfires grow into catastrophic events? By tracing the earliest detectable origins of the devastating 2015 equatorial Southeast Asian fires, researchers found that most large fires had multiple origin points and identified the ecological, climatic and human factors associated with where fires begin. These findings provide new insights that could help improve fire prevention and understanding of fire risks under climate change across tropical landscapes. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-multiple-southeast-asia-catastrophic.html Environment Fri, 17 Jul 2026 13:40:05 EDT news703512054 A new synthesis report, titled "Ecological Characterisation of Peatlands and Coastal Lagoons in Europe," has been published to support the assessment, monitoring and restoration of European wetlands under EU environmental legislation. The report was prepared in response to a policy request submitted by the Directorate-General for Environment (DG ENV) to the European Commission's Knowledge Centre for Biodiversity (KCBD) and delivered by the Science Service for Biodiversity (SSBD), which is currently under development by the BioAgora project. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-ecological-characterization-peatlands-coastal-lagoons.html Environment Tue, 14 Jul 2026 21:20:01 EDT news703246775 In the heart of the Congo Basin's Cuvette Centrale, a large depression that hosts the world's largest tropical wetland complex, lie two vast, shallow blackwater lakes, Lake Tumba and Lake Mai Ndombe. Together, they are roughly the size of 420,000 football fields. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-lakes-ancient-carbon-congo-basin.html Earth Sciences Tue, 14 Jul 2026 14:40:08 EDT news703252501 When it comes to managing your personal finances, you may want to stick with your accountant before turning to artificial intelligence, according to a new study from the University of Georgia. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-chatbot-bank-account-analysis.html Economics & Business Wed, 08 Jul 2026 18:40:03 EDT news702748441 Traumatic events from your childhood could have a lingering impact on your adult relationships, according to new research from the University of Georgia. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-childhood-relationships.html Social Sciences Mon, 06 Jul 2026 12:20:04 EDT news702551942 After several quieter years, wildfires have returned to western Greenland. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-people-greenland-told-wildfires.html Environment Sat, 04 Jul 2026 22:50:01 EDT news701955372 Orangutans seek out plants with antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory and wound-healing properties, new research shows. Based on 20 years of observations of orangutans in Indonesian Borneo, scientists assessed how often the animals ate plants with known medicinal benefits. The findings, published in Scientific Reports, suggest orangutans eat combinations of plants in specific sequences—consistent with "self-medication" seen in other species. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-orangutans-medicinal-patterns-medication.html Plants & Animals Thu, 18 Jun 2026 10:40:05 EDT news700993307 In a seismic shift since Kew's inaugural State of the World report 10 years ago, the sixth State of the World's Plants and Fungi report, published June 16, 2026, brings together expertise from more than 400 scientists across 40 countries to explore how new technology is transforming the race to save nature. The report argues technology can be nature's ally, with digital tools exposing critical gaps in scientific knowledge and highlighting where action is most urgently needed to safeguard plants and fungi. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-digital-tools-reveal-hidden-extinctions.html Plants & Animals Mon, 15 Jun 2026 19:00:07 EDT news700748402 The Arctic and northern high latitudes are warming about 2–4 times faster than the global average, allowing ancient permafrost to thaw and release stored carbon. These permafrost soils currently store roughly one-third of the world's organic soil carbon, much of which has remained frozen for thousands of years. As the soils thaw, organic matter from dead plants and animals within them starts to decompose, and greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide, are released. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-northern-permafrost-carbon-source-earlier.html Earth Sciences Mon, 15 Jun 2026 12:59:59 EDT news700747125 Thousands of holes are appearing in the Pennine hills, as part of efforts to improve carbon storage by restoring damaged peatland. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-pennine-hills-full-holes-theyre.html Environment Sun, 24 May 2026 20:30:03 EDT news698324643 Imagine being tasked with counting every blade of grass in a field, noting every single species as you go. This is not far from the challenge many scientists face when analyzing microscopic samples packed with thousands of tiny particles. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-repurposed-medical-device-ancient-climate.html Earth Sciences Fri, 08 May 2026 21:40:01 EDT news697448702 The prices of mineral fertilizers are rising. The Fraunhofer Institute for Interfacial Engineering and Biotechnology IGB is working on alternative production methods: Researchers have developed various processes and demonstrated them on a pilot scale to recover nutrients from locally available waste streams. Fertilizers ready for immediate use can be obtained from digestion residues, manure, and wastewater, as the institute will show at IFAT in Munich in early May. This circular approach strengthens supply security and protects water bodies and the climate. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-fertilizer-local-resources-fossil-fuels.html Biotechnology Wed, 29 Apr 2026 17:20:01 EDT news696685141 Push a metal corer into a peatland and you pull up something remarkable: a dark, dense, sponge-like material made of partly decomposed plants. This peat is rich in carbon. In some places, that peat has been building up for thousands of years. Peatlands are the ecosystems where this happens. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-peatlands-vital-tackling-climate-scientists.html Environment Tue, 28 Apr 2026 13:20:08 EDT news696596582 Researchers including a number from the University of Exeter, have identified the most urgent unanswered questions about peatlands, providing a global roadmap to guide future science and policy for one of the planet's most important and threatened ecosystems. The paper, "Priority research questions in global peatland science," is published in Communications Earth & Environment. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-earth-unanswered-reshape-climate-action.html Earth Sciences Tue, 28 Apr 2026 13:00:03 EDT news696598042 By analyzing peat cores, researchers have shown how populations of nesting seabirds have fluctuated on a sub-Antarctic island over 8,000 years. They found that bird numbers rose and fell alongside shifts in climate, offering new clues about how future climate change could impact seabird populations. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-ancient-seabird-guano-reveals-climate.html Environment Wed, 15 Apr 2026 16:50:01 EDT news695486221 Organic soils cover less than 9% of Norway's land area, and about 65,000 hectares are currently used as agricultural land. Emissions from these areas are presently estimated at more than 2 million tons of CO₂ equivalents per year. This is equivalent to the emissions from 400,000 fossil-fueled cars. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-emissions-cultivated-peat-soils-assumed.html Earth Sciences Wed, 15 Apr 2026 10:40:02 EDT news695464441 New research from the University of St Andrews has shown that an important group of peatlands in the western Amazonia region of Peru developed more recently than many other peatlands in the tropics. Published in the journal Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, the study analyzed more than 150 new and previously published radiocarbon dates from peats from the Pastaza-Marañón Basin in northern Peru. This is the largest known peatland complex in Amazonia, covering an area about the size of Belgium. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-peatland-nurseries-peru-insights.html Earth Sciences Mon, 13 Apr 2026 08:00:02 EDT news695285461 The movement patterns of waterfowl, including ducks, swans and geese, may affect the spread of highly pathogenic avian influenza in bird populations, according to a new study from the University of Georgia. The findings are published in the journal Ecology Letters. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-bird-flu-impacted-waterfowl.html Plants & Animals Tue, 07 Apr 2026 14:00:03 EDT news694780202 The structure of the plant communities that grow on the thawing permafrost in the Arctic is changing, with grasses displacing slower-growing shrubs. Although these grasses bind more carbon dioxide than previous plant communities, they lead to far more methane emissions over the course of the year. Methane is a greenhouse gas that accelerates the global temperature rise much faster than carbon dioxide. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-vegetation-permafrost-emissions-greenhouse-gases.html Earth Sciences Thu, 26 Mar 2026 17:00:06 EDT news693760799 Monitoring the populations of one of nature's slower creatures could become faster, thanks to the University of Georgia. UGA researchers have developed an easier, more cost-effective way to learn more about male marine turtles, a traditionally elusive creature in the world's oceans. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-tracking-male-sea-turtles-easier.html Plants & Animals Wed, 18 Mar 2026 13:40:03 EDT news693056401