Can gravitational fields break and reconnect? Einstein's equations suggest they can
More than a century after Einstein first devised the equations that describe gravity, physicists are still finding new ways of interpreting them. Luca Comisso, an associate resear…
Against all expectations, researchers control the magnetic core of a single atom
Researchers at Delft University of Technology (the Netherlands) have succeeded in controlling the magnetism in the nucleus of a single atom with radio waves. This came as a surpri…
Nature-inspired additive could help protect living cells during freezing and thawing
In Australia, around 2,000 people are on the waiting list to receive an organ transplant, but thanks to new research being undertaken at the University of New England (UNE), this …
A 60-year search is over: Chemists isolate long-elusive molecules with boron-oxygen triple bonds
In a new publication in the journal Nature Chemistry, chemists in professor Holger Braunschweig's team at the University of Würzburg, supported by computational work from the team…
Sound-levitated particles reveal how static charge builds up
When two objects touch and then separate, they can swap tiny amounts of electric charge, even if they are made from exactly the same material. This 'triboelectric effect' is the s…
Machine learning simulations reveal how plastic transforms into hard carbon
In a new study published in Chemical Science, researchers from the University of Oxford's Department of Chemistry have used machine learning simulations to trace how a common poly…
Decoding the loopy physics of hula hooping with high-tech earthquake sensors
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 ho…
Identical vesicles, different behaviors: Model reveals how spontaneous asymmetry gives rise to lifelike behavior
In nonreciprocal active matter, agents act differently on each other, seemingly in violation of Newton's third law. This principle can result in various active matter traits, such…
A 'simple recipe' takes some of the guesswork out of mass spectrometry imaging
A small sample of human tissue can hold a remarkable amount of information. Researchers can use it to search for molecular clues associated with cancer, investigate the chemical l…
Counteranion captures reactants to boost light-driven chemistry in dilute solutions
Researchers at Kyushu University have developed a photocatalytic system that can selectively capture reacting molecules and hold them close to the active sites that absorb energy …
Scientists uncover new way to control magnetism and topology using light in atomically thin materials
Envision a material whose magnetic properties and electronic topology can be toggled by exposure to light, paving the way for future electronic devices that do not rely on traditi…
Potential antimalarial compound discovered in institute's microbe collection
Scientists hunting for a new malaria treatment may have found a solution within a historical natural compound collection housed at The Herbert Wertheim UF Scripps Institute for Bi…
Light-controlled brake makes random molecular motion 300,000 times slower
Molecules are never still. Driven by thermal energy, they are constantly moving through space, while their individual parts also rotate relative to one another. Scientists at IOCB…
Tiny droplets use pressure to unlock new routes to degradable plastics
Using a new technique, a research group led by Osaka Metropolitan University (OMU) has substantially increased the range of plastics that can be degraded naturally. The study is p…
Reusable palladium catalyst enables more direct chemical synthesis
Making complex molecules often means joining smaller chemical building blocks together, a process facilitated by catalysts, compounds that make such reactions possible or speed th…
SPINE: A machine-learning program is on the trail of ghost particles
Neutrinos are among the most abundant particles in the universe, but they are also among the most elusive. Nearly massless, they are produced by nuclear reactions in the sun, expl…
Quantum gates set speed record at 6.8 nanoseconds with over 99.98% accuracy
Researchers from Jülich, Aachen and Cologne have performed a quantum operation on a qubit in just 6.8 nanoseconds—with more than 99.98% accuracy. Such operations typically take se…
Embedded enzymes help plastics break down faster in the deep sea
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 breakth…
Microscopic springs transform fragile silicon into a flexible terahertz metamaterial
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 fle…
Quantum sensor loop design could improve magnetic measurements for medicine and communications
Adelaide University quantum engineers have found a new way to improve some of the world's most sensitive sensors of electromagnetic fields, a breakthrough that could help advance …
Metal-free magnetic sensor can be safely implanted for wireless monitoring
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 …
Technician cracks 1,600-year-old mystery to replicate color-changing effect of Roman glass masterpiece
The Lycurgus Cup, a world-renowned 4th-century A.D. artifact housed in the British Museum, is constructed of "dichroic" glass that shifts from jade green in reflected light to rub…
Anyone Can Dock: Molecular docking platform brings protein-binding predictions to smartphones, tablets and computers
A new platform, developed by researchers at the Center for Computational Sciences, University of Tsukuba, in collaboration with Mahidol University, makes molecular docking easier …
'Porous anchor' that strongly bonds dissimilar materials formed simply by coating and drying
The National Institute for Materials Science has developed a technology to strongly bond dissimilar materials by using a porous layer, formed by a solution-coating and drying proc…