/ en-us Â鶹ÒùÔº internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Â鶹ÒùÔºics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. Human noroviruses, GII.4 strains in particular, are the chief drivers of acute viral gastroenteritis around the world, a condition for which there are no vaccines or antivirals. Understanding how these viruses enter cells in the gut, a first step toward developing an infection, can lead to effective therapeutics. /news/2025-10-human-gii4-noroviruses-infecting-cells.html Cell & Microbiology Molecular & Computational biology Fri, 03 Oct 2025 12:10:20 EDT news678712216 It's no secret that we need new ways to treat and detect disease, including cancer. Specifically, we need better biomarkers that can be used for diagnosis and better ways to selectively get medicine where we want it to go in the body. /news/2025-10-circular-rna-preferentially-packaged-cells.html Cell & Microbiology Molecular & Computational biology Thu, 02 Oct 2025 12:04:05 EDT news678625441 Can we reveal objects that are hidden in environments completely opaque to the human eye? With conventional imaging techniques, the answer is no: a dense cloud or layer of material blocks light so completely that a simple photograph contains no information about what lies behind it. /news/2025-10-treasures-physics-fingerprint-matrix-method.html Optics & Photonics Thu, 02 Oct 2025 10:13:04 EDT news678618781 Over the past few years, engineers and material scientists have been trying to devise new optical systems in which light particles (i.e., photons) can move freely and in useful ways, irrespective of defects and imperfections. Topological phases, unique states of matter that are not defined by local properties, but by non-local and global features, can enable the robust movement of photons despite material defects. /news/2025-09-floquet-chern-insulators-based-nonlinear.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Thu, 02 Oct 2025 06:30:02 EDT news678368479 Fungi are vital to natural ecosystems by breaking down dead organic material and cycling it back into the environment as nutrients. But new research from the University of Utah finds one species, Marquandomyces marquandii, a ubiquitous soil mold, shows promise as a potential building block for new biomedical materials. /news/2025-10-soil-fungus-durable-hydrogels-potential.html Biochemistry Polymers Wed, 01 Oct 2025 17:24:04 EDT news678558241 A team of researchers from the University of Minnesota Twin Cities College of Science and Engineering and the University of Houston's Cullen College of Engineering has discovered and measured the fraction of an electron that makes catalytic manufacturing possible. /news/2025-10-energy-fraction-electron-catalysis.html Analytical Chemistry Materials Science Wed, 01 Oct 2025 14:56:23 EDT news678549372 You probably learned in high school chemistry class that core electrons don't participate in chemical bonding. /news/2025-09-core-electron-bonding-require-extreme.html Analytical Chemistry Materials Science Tue, 30 Sep 2025 14:52:36 EDT news678462753 The metamorphosis of butterflies from larvae to pupae to adulthood is a natural wonder. By investigating the developmental processes that occur within the pupa, transforming it into a butterfly, scientists have discovered a new twist in a process that forms an intricate nanostructure responsible for the vibrant green colors of their wings. /news/2025-09-braided-nanostructures-reveal-3d-tapestry.html Bio & Medicine Nanomaterials Tue, 30 Sep 2025 09:53:03 EDT news678444781 In a recent study, Dr. Harel Shochat from the University of Haifa and his colleagues analyzed the biological and geographical origins of ivory artifacts from the southern Levant dating to the Late Bronze Age to the Iron Age II (ca. 1600–600 BC). The work is published in the Journal of Archaeological Science. /news/2025-09-levantine-ivory-ethiopia-egypt.html Archaeology Tue, 30 Sep 2025 06:40:01 EDT news678355713 High-density lipoproteins (HDL), also known as "good cholesterol," remove excess cholesterol from the body's tissues and transport it to the liver. This process is known to prevent atherosclerosis, the build-up of plaque in the walls of arteries. Atherosclerosis is associated with deadly symptoms, including heart attacks, strokes, aneurysms, and blood clots. Despite the importance of HDLs, scientists still have a limited understanding of how they are made. /news/2025-09-good-cholesterol-imaging-method-production.html Bio & Medicine Mon, 29 Sep 2025 15:20:06 EDT news678377638 In a world-first, researchers from the Femtosecond Spectroscopy Unit at the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST) have directly observed the evolution of the elusive dark excitons in atomically thin materials, laying the foundation for new breakthroughs in both classical and quantum information technologies. /news/2025-09-dark-valleytronics-excitons-atomically-thin.html Condensed Matter Quantum Â鶹ÒùÔºics Thu, 25 Sep 2025 09:21:31 EDT news678010886 Until Homo floresiensis was discovered, scientists assumed that the evolution of the human lineage was defined by bigger and bigger brains. Via a process called encephalization, human brains evolved to be relatively more massive than would be expected based on corresponding body size. /news/2025-09-hobbits-flores-evolved-small-growth.html Evolution Paleontology & Fossils Wed, 24 Sep 2025 14:32:04 EDT news677943121 Rice University researchers used a focused electron beam to pattern device functions with submicron precision directly into an ultrathin crystal. The approach produced traces narrower than the width of a DNA helix that glow with bright blue light and conduct electricity, showing it could be used to manufacture compact on-chip wiring and built-in light sources. /news/2025-09-scientists-electrons-pattern-sources-wiring.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Wed, 24 Sep 2025 13:33:40 EDT news677939615 Despite being one of the most familiar substances on Earth, water holds many secrets that scientists are still working to understand. When confined to extremely small spaces—such as within certain proteins, minerals, or artificial nanomaterials—water behaves in ways that are drastically different from its bulk liquid form. /news/2025-09-deep-unique-behavior-confined.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Mon, 22 Sep 2025 08:45:04 EDT news677749502 Recent research has found a new way to make graphene that adds structural defects to improve the performance of the material that could have benefits across a range of applications—from sensors and batteries, to electronics. /news/2025-09-method-graphene-defects.html Nanomaterials Sat, 20 Sep 2025 02:40:46 EDT news677554837 A research team led by geophysicists at UC San Diego's Scripps Institution of Oceanography provides an explanation for features that characterize the surface of the solar system's hottest planet. /news/2025-09-terraced-hills-collapsed-souffls-scientists.html Planetary Sciences Wed, 17 Sep 2025 11:33:04 EDT news677327581 A new study by the University of Science and Technology of China's (USTC) Archaeo-metallurgy Laboratory reveals a compelling connection between ancient bronze mirror craftsmanship and the economic recovery during the "Reign of Wen and Jing" in the early Western Han Dynasty. Published in the Journal of Archaeological Science, the research offers rare insight into the political and economic dynamics of early Imperial China. /news/2025-09-ancient-bronze-mirrors-linked-economic.html Archaeology Wed, 17 Sep 2025 10:33:30 EDT news677324006 A new study has successfully demonstrated the confinement of terahertz (THz) light to nanoscale dimensions using a new type of layered material. This could lead to improvements in optoelectronic devices such as infrared emitters used in remote controls and night vision and terahertz optics desired for physical security and environmental sensing. /news/2025-09-layered-material-successfully-confines-terahertz.html Condensed Matter Optics & Photonics Mon, 15 Sep 2025 17:19:04 EDT news677175541 A team led by Prof. Yan Lu, HZB, and Prof. Arne Thomas, Technical University of Berlin, has developed a material that enhances the capacity and stability of lithium-sulfur batteries. The material is based on polymers that form a framework with open pores (known as radical-cationic covalent organic frameworks or COFs). Catalytically accelerated reactions take place in these pores, firmly trapping polysulfides, which would shorten the battery life. /news/2025-09-porous-radical-framework-lithium-sulfur.html Polymers Materials Science Mon, 15 Sep 2025 16:10:02 EDT news677171089 Scientists have identified the origins of the blue color in one of Jackson Pollock's paintings with a little help from chemistry, confirming for the first time that the abstract expressionist used a vibrant, synthetic pigment known as manganese blue. /news/2025-09-scientists-mystery-jackson-pollock.html Materials Science Mon, 15 Sep 2025 15:10:32 EDT news677167823 It's not easy eating green. Most plants are heavily defended with chemicals to deter plant eaters. For these herbivores, getting enough to eat, while minimizing exposure to toxins, is a persistent challenge that shapes their foraging choices. /news/2025-09-dna-metabarcoding-uncovers-woodrats-approach.html Ecology Molecular & Computational biology Mon, 15 Sep 2025 15:00:03 EDT news676799821 Scientists from the Trinity Biomedical Sciences Institute (TBSI) have discovered how nanoplastics—even smaller than microplastics—disrupt energy metabolism in brain cells. Their findings may have implications for better understanding neurodegenerative diseases characterized by declining neurological or brain function, and even shed new light on issues with learning and memory. /news/2025-09-scientists-nanoplastics-disrupt-brain-energy.html Bio & Medicine Mon, 15 Sep 2025 14:00:03 EDT news677159883 Cornell Engineering researchers have demonstrated that, by zapping a synthetic thin film with ultrafast pulses of low-frequency infrared light, they can cause its lattice to atomically expand and contract billions of times per second—strain-driven "breathing" that could potentially be harnessed to quickly switch a material's electronic, magnetic or optical properties on and off. /news/2025-09-ultrafast-infrared-pulses-trigger-rapid.html Condensed Matter Optics & Photonics Mon, 15 Sep 2025 13:50:04 EDT news677161148 A new specimen holder gives scientists more control over ultra-cold temperatures, enabling the study of how materials acquire properties useful in quantum computers. /news/2025-09-microscopes-materials-quantum-liquid-helium.html General Â鶹ÒùÔºics Quantum Â鶹ÒùÔºics Fri, 12 Sep 2025 09:17:00 EDT news676887415 Picture the smartphone in your pocket, the data centers powering artificial intelligence, or the wearable health monitors that track your heartbeat. All of them rely on energy-hungry memory chips to store and process information. As demand for computing resources continues to soar, so does the need for memory devices that are smaller, faster, and far more efficient. /news/2025-09-atom-thin-crystals-power-future.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Fri, 12 Sep 2025 09:14:04 EDT news676887241 The Rosalind Franklin mission's chance of finding evidence of past life on Mars has been boosted by two studies that show that the rover won't have to travel far to find materials potentially laden with organic molecules. Instead, natural processes could bring those materials to the rover, as revealed in two separate presentations at the EPSC–DPS2025 Joint Meeting in Helsinki this week. /news/2025-09-life-brought-europe-mars-rover.html Astrobiology Planetary Sciences Thu, 11 Sep 2025 11:10:06 EDT news676807528 Over the past decades, many research teams worldwide have been trying to detect dark matter, an elusive type of matter that does not emit, reflect or absorb light, using a variety of highly sensitive detectors. Ultimately, these detectors should be able to pick up the very small signals that would indicate the presence of dark matter or its weak interactions with regular matter. /news/2025-09-qrocodile-advances-dark-superconducting-nanowire.html Astronomy Thu, 11 Sep 2025 07:00:01 EDT news676721768 Spintronics is an emerging field that leverages the spin, or the intrinsic angular momentum, of electrons. By harnessing this quantum-relativistic property, researchers aim to develop devices that store and transmit information faster, more efficiently, and at higher data densities, potentially making devices much smaller than what is possible today. These advances could drive next-generation memory, sensors, and even quantum technologies. /news/2025-09-advanced-ray-technique-enables-magnon.html Condensed Matter Wed, 10 Sep 2025 12:39:06 EDT news676726742 A new study from Aarhus University shows that our cells' ability to clean out old protein clumps, known as aggregates, also includes a—up till now unknown—partnership with an engine that breaks down bigger pieces into smaller before "taking it to the trash." An important find for future treatments of diseases like Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, ALS and Huntington's, which are all characterized by the accumulation of protein in the brain. /news/2025-09-newly-cell-machinery-protein-aggregates.html Cell & Microbiology Molecular & Computational biology Tue, 09 Sep 2025 16:20:03 EDT news676653601 Researchers at National Taiwan University designed a graphene oxide biochar TiO2 nanocomposite that combines adsorption capacity with superior photocatalytic activity. With strong material characterization and optoelectronic properties, it offers a novel and sustainable solution for antibiotic removal from livestock wastewater. /news/2025-09-reusable-nanocomposite-adsorption-photocatalysis-advanced.html Nanomaterials Mon, 08 Sep 2025 12:16:03 EDT news676552561