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. Americans are crazy about sports. But whether that passion requires taxpayers to subsidize new facilities every time leagues and franchises ask for them needs rigorous scrutiny. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-cities-shelling-taxpayer-money-sports.html Economics & Business Sat, 03 Oct 2026 20:30:01 EDT news709899021 When everyone in a meeting voices the same opinion, an organization can miss important warning signs and new ideas. A research team from KAIST suggests that when members feel securely accepted within their group, they can express dissenting opinions in greater detail and more persuasively, and other members may be more willing to use those opinions in decision-making. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-group-dissenters-stronger-arguments.html Social Sciences Sat, 03 Oct 2026 17:00:06 EDT news709827267 The Pacific Ocean is warming unusually quickly, and this year's El Niño has already surpassed previous records. Forecasters expect it to strengthen even further before approaching its usual peak around December. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-el-nio-drought-world.html Environment Sat, 03 Oct 2026 17:00:01 EDT news709904740 Cutting greenhouse gas emissions now may limit how much ice Antarctica loses this century and reduce the sea-level rise facing coastal communities, according to findings from a new study. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-today-emissions-choices-limit-antarctic.html Earth Sciences Sat, 03 Oct 2026 16:00:01 EDT news710166079 A "hidden variable" that can determine the success or failure of a chemical reaction has been found in the immediate vicinity of electrodes. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-reactor-plastic-feedstock-synthesis-oxygen.html Materials Science Sat, 03 Oct 2026 15:20:01 EDT news709998766 Violence in the home can range from intimidation to physical abuse. When it occurs there, we refer to it as domestic violence. Every year, more than 1 million people in the Netherlands age 16 and older experience domestic violence. This type of violence is often perpetrated by a current or former partner, in which case it is referred to as intimate partner violence. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-recovery-intimate-partner-violence-reveals.html Social Sciences Sat, 03 Oct 2026 14:00:01 EDT news709902502 When I explain topology to students, I start with a knot in a rope. You can stretch it, twist it or shake it, but the knot stays until you cut the rope. Physicists have found that some materials and devices carry similar "knots" in how waves move through them. These are topological properties, labeled by whole numbers that don't change under small imperfections. That robustness is why topology has become one of the central ideas in modern physics. It promises electronics, photonics and quantum devices that tolerate defects and noise. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-hidden-topology-energy-leaks.html Optics & Photonics Sat, 03 Oct 2026 13:40:01 EDT news710151198 A nearby star system with two suns could potentially support an Earth-sized planet in a region where liquid water could exist, according to a new paper examining the dynamics of the system. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-qa-earth-planet-suns.html Planetary Sciences Sat, 03 Oct 2026 13:00:01 EDT news709951576 In recent experiments involving hydrogels and water droplets, researchers have proposed that exposure to visible light could make water evaporate faster without heating it. However, direct evidence that light acts on water itself has proven elusive. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-visible-evaporation-rigorous.html General Physics Sat, 03 Oct 2026 12:40:01 EDT news710151999 Atmospheric circulation governs weather and climate, but it also carries angular momentum. When winds shift or mass redistributes, the atmosphere can exchange momentum with the solid Earth, slightly altering the planet's rotation rate. This is not a new concept, but what happens under long-term global warming? https://phys.org/news/2026-10-atmosphere-earth-uncovering-subtle-climate.html Earth Sciences Sat, 03 Oct 2026 12:20:01 EDT news710068763 From a drone flying above the waves to a camera just inches from the seafloor, University of Miami researchers are transforming how scientists observe coral reefs and measure changes that were once difficult, costly or time-consuming to document. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-imaging-technologies-clearer-view-coral.html Ecology Sat, 03 Oct 2026 12:00:01 EDT news709898082 Scientists have known for years that squid have cells with bundles of tiny, hairlike protrusions on their heads and arms, similar to those buried deep inside the human ear that allow us to hear. Now, researchers at Case Western Reserve University have discovered that these animals have hundreds more of these cells, called hair cells, lining the entire surface of their bodies. The discovery may provide researchers with an unprecedented window into how humans use—and lose—their hearing. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-newly-hair-cells-squid-clues.html Plants & Animals Sat, 03 Oct 2026 11:00:02 EDT news710093368 Tokay geckos (Gekko gecko), large and mostly nocturnal geckos native to parts of Asia, are among the few nonbird reptiles that make sounds to attract potential mates, defend their territory and signal distress. Male tokay geckos' calls typically begin with quieter rattles, followed by louder two-part sounds that can sound like "ge-ko" or "to-kay." https://phys.org/news/2026-09-short-male-tokay-geckos.html Plants & Animals Sat, 03 Oct 2026 10:00:06 EDT news709902334 In the early days of the universe, our home looked very different from how it does today. Back then, the region in our universe that would eventually become our Milky Way neighborhood was a collection of thousands of smaller galaxies—some pumping out tons of new stars, others filled only with gas or littered with dead stars and black holes. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-milky-begun-thousands-galaxies-simulations.html Astronomy Sat, 03 Oct 2026 09:00:07 EDT news710002132 A new interactive tool launched on Tuesday, Sept. 8, offers policymakers, researchers, journalists and the public a state-by-state look at private equity investments in U.S. health care. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-interactive-tool-tracks-private-equity.html Economics & Business Sat, 03 Oct 2026 08:40:04 EDT news709998321 Antimicrobial resistance is one of the world's top public health threats. Often termed a silent pandemic, antimicrobial-resistant bacteria have caused millions of deaths annually. If left unchecked, the number of deaths attributed to antimicrobial-resistant bacteria is expected to increase to 10 million a year by 2050, according to estimates by the World Health Organization. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-energy-production-virus-defenses-toxin.html Cell & Microbiology Sat, 03 Oct 2026 08:00:18 EDT news709825850 European deportation practices are governed by a complex web of European, national and human rights law, says the author of a paper published in the International Journal of Migration and Border Studies. Based on 100,000 French court cases, the study shows that national courts play a central role in determining whether individuals can be removed. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-french-deportation-conflicting.html Social Sciences Sat, 03 Oct 2026 08:00:13 EDT news709821695 Physicists with the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign's Grainger College of Engineering have identified a new form of superconducting behavior. Experiments on the metal uranium ditelluride reveal that Cooper pairs, the composite electron units responsible for superconductivity, can organize into nonuniform patterns that exist even when the main superconducting phase is absent. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-cooper-pairs-superconducting-critical-temperature.html Superconductivity Sat, 03 Oct 2026 07:00:01 EDT news710216698 Sea levels in California are set to rise by as much as a foot (30 centimeters) in the coming days as an enormous wave washes up the U.S. West Coast. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-sea-california-coastal-surges-west.html Environment Sat, 03 Oct 2026 06:00:10 EDT news710223580 The distance in the march from the American Revolution to the age of artificial intelligence is almost beyond comprehension. But leaders of the Smithsonian Institution are using AI to bridge the divide. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-smithsonian-ai-artifacts-american-revolution.html Archaeology Sat, 03 Oct 2026 05:15:48 EDT news710223310 Investigators in Argentina are trying to solve the mystery of baby whales washing up dead in unusually high numbers along the country's Patagonian coast. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-scientists-baby-whales-dead-argentina.html Ecology Sat, 03 Oct 2026 05:15:21 EDT news710223264 One in three tenants who moved out of a municipal rental apartment in Gothenburg in connection with renovation said the renovation was a main reason for their decision, and many of them moved out even before construction began. A new study from Chalmers University of Technology shows that concerns about disruption, uncertainty and unclear information can be just as important as rent increases. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-tenants-renovation.html Social Sciences Fri, 02 Oct 2026 21:40:01 EDT news710164697 NASA has selected a Planetary Science Institute–led proposal to investigate whether a potentially large underground cave extends beyond the opening of a lunar pit. Such a cave may one day provide a safe haven for astronauts to escape the radiation and extreme temperature swings present at the lunar surface. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-team-nasa-explore-potential-lunar.html Space Exploration Fri, 02 Oct 2026 19:20:06 EDT news710166291 Researchers from the LIMNO laboratory at EPFL have uncovered how different halides modify the surface chemistry of organic semiconductor nanoparticle photocatalysts. By controlling these phenomena, they have significantly improved the solar hydrogen production efficiency of these materials. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-platinum-surface-chemistry-boost-solar.html Analytical Chemistry Fri, 02 Oct 2026 18:20:01 EDT news710166707 America is a nation of local laws—millions of them. From noise ordinances and construction codes to rules about fishing licenses and roadside mango peddling, every town, city and county has its own set of regulations and unique way of doing things. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-america-local-laws-free-searchable.html Political science Fri, 02 Oct 2026 17:40:09 EDT news710167442 Nearly every morning when she was a doctoral student in the College of Arts and Sciences (CAS), Nicole Nakata, Ph.D. '23 (biology), would cross the street from the Oregon Institute of Marine Biology (OIMB) in Charleston, Ore., to the high-tide line of the Pacific Ocean. Her job was to catch microscopic brittle star plankton larvae from the incoming tidal current and bring them back to OIMB's labs to analyze under a microscope. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-marine-biologists-plankton-oregon-coast.html Ecology Fri, 02 Oct 2026 17:20:02 EDT news710164201 Roadsides may not look like wildlife habitat, but a few simple changes to how they are maintained could turn them into much better places for pollinators. A new uOttawa-led study found that reducing mowing and herbicide use along rural roadsides led to a 45% jump in pollinator numbers and a 23% increase in the number of species found there. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-spraying-smarter-pollinators-boost.html Plants & Animals Fri, 02 Oct 2026 17:00:04 EDT news710163902 Superconductors are materials that conduct electricity with no resistance and expel magnetic fields when cooled to ultralow temperatures. And depending on their quantum structure, they can also showcase strange properties like magnetic levitation. But now things are getting a little weirder. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-scientists-superconductor-reversal-symmetry.html Superconductivity Fri, 02 Oct 2026 17:00:01 EDT news710164361 A core assumption in any democracy is that citizens with access to information will make reasoned decisions on political candidates and policy issues. But a new study by UC Berkeley social scientists finds that Americans usually don't consider the full scope of difficult issues, instead basing their opinions on mental shortcuts that sidestep complexity. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-complex-political-issues-americans-shortcuts.html Political science Fri, 02 Oct 2026 16:40:02 EDT news710160246 A study led by scientists at the Holden Arboretum has found evidence that beech leaf disease (BLD) symptom development is genetically controlled, providing the first evidence that some American beech trees may have genetic resistance. This finding supports further investigation and development of breeding populations for BLD resistance. Nearly a third of beech trees near BLD's epicenter in northeastern Ohio, the majority of which were smaller trees, have died since the disease was discovered in 2012. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-american-beech-trees-genetic-resistance.html Plants & Animals Fri, 02 Oct 2026 16:20:06 EDT news710165701