Science News

Latest science news, discoveries and scientific developments.

Sapphire-grown semiconductor film sets bandgap record
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Sapphire-grown semiconductor film sets bandgap record

Semiconductors with wider bandgaps could pave the way for smaller, more efficient electronics that can handle far higher voltages, but the wider this gap becomes, the harder it is to control how well a material conducts electricity. Now, a team led by Darrell Schlom at Cornell University has shown that adding silicon to thin films of aluminum gallium oxide can keep this control intact at bandgaps wider than any semiconductor before it. Their research has been published in Nature.

πŸ“… 2026-10-22 11:00:04    β€’    Phys.org
Coffee calories have jumped nearly 40%. Sugar isn't the biggest culprit
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Coffee calories have jumped nearly 40%. Sugar isn't the biggest culprit

Your morning coffee may be packing more calories than you realize, and sugar isn't the biggest reason. A study of 30,000 Americans found that non-dairy creamer has overtaken sugar and milk as the leading source of added coffee calories, helping drive a nearly 40% increase between 2003 and 2018.

πŸ“… 2026-10-22 10:52:18    β€’    ScienceDaily
Global race to update computers as AI discovers most disruptive hack yet
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Global race to update computers as AI discovers most disruptive hack yet

Newly accessible vulnerabilities in a common computer language are in urgent need of fixingROB ENGELAAR/EPA/Shutterstock Cybersecurity experts around the globe are racing to update systems and prevent the most disruptive AI-enabled hack yet discovered. A flaw uncovered in widely used code has made 70 per cent of websites worldwide vulnerable to data theft and defacement. Government websites in France, Denmark, Finland and the Netherlands were taken offline as a precaution when the news emerged. Read more Will physics be the next field to be turned upside down by AI? PHP is a computer language commonly used to power interactive websites, such as the content management system WordPress, which ...

πŸ“… 2026-10-22 10:17:37    β€’    New Scientist
Scientists discover a surprising secret behind the human brain’s wrinkles
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Scientists discover a surprising secret behind the human brain’s wrinkles

Scientists have discovered why common marmosets have unusually small, smooth brains despite starting development much like other primates. The secret lies in subtle changes to brain-building cells that slow neuron production, revealing new clues about how the large, folded human brain evolved.

πŸ“… 2026-10-22 10:10:23    β€’    ScienceDaily
Climate change is literally altering the shape of our planet
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Climate change is literally altering the shape of our planet

Climate change is making Earth progressively rounder, new research finds. The findings are a signal of human-caused climate change, however, and tracking the shape of the Earth can help reveal just how much impact people are having on its ice caps. Our planet is not a perfect sphere. Because of its rotation, it is a bit flatter at the poles and bulges in the middle. But the new study reveals that Earth is getting rounder at an accelerated rate, largely due to shifts caused by the melting polar ice caps. This finding applies only to the solid parts of the planet; the ocean continues to bulge outward at the equator. The study, published Sept. 9 in the journal JGR Solid Earth, used direct measu...

πŸ“… 2026-10-22 10:00:00    β€’    Live Science
Algae-powered soft robot arm uses light to grasp and lift small objects
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Algae-powered soft robot arm uses light to grasp and lift small objects

Tiny underwater algae sway gently in the current. All of a sudden, a light shines on them and they form robotlike arms that start to pick up small rocks and put them in floating baskets. Sounds like science fiction, but researchers from Delft University of Technology (the Netherlands) have created a small soft robot arm covered with minuscule algae that can grasp and lift objects. And it's powered by light. This next step in biotechnology has been published in Nature Communications.

πŸ“… 2026-10-22 09:39:19    β€’    Phys.org
Surprising new pattern of groundwater loss may signal a turning point for the Colorado River Basin
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Surprising new pattern of groundwater loss may signal a turning point for the Colorado River Basin

Western states that were thought to be resistant to prolonged drought may be more vulnerable than scientists previously believed, a new analysis of groundwater reserves in the Colorado River Basin finds.Researchers revealed the four states that together make up the Upper Basin β€” Colorado, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming β€” lost almost twice as much groundwater as the Lower Basin did during an intense drought in the southwestern U.S. between 2020 and 2022. The finding was unexpected and might signal a turning point for the region, because the Upper Basin has long been seen as more resilient to dry spells than the Lower Basin, said Esther Oyedele, a doctoral student in geosciences at Virginia Tech...

πŸ“… 2026-10-22 09:18:11    β€’    Live Science
Taiwan issues warnings as Typhoon Champi nears
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Taiwan issues warnings as Typhoon Champi nears

A powerful typhoon headed toward Taiwan on Thursday, triggering the cancellation of dozens of flights and prompting warnings for locals to prepare for heavy rain, strong winds and giant waves.

πŸ“… 2026-10-22 08:38:06    β€’    Phys.org
Baby manta rays hunker down close to coasts before facing the open ocean's dangers
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Baby manta rays hunker down close to coasts before facing the open ocean's dangers

Giant manta rays can grow up to nine meters (30 feet) long with a disk size of seven meters (23 feet) across and weigh up to 2,000 kg (4,400 pounds). This size leaves them with very few natural enemies once they reach adulthood at around eight to 10 years old. But giant manta ray babies, called pups, cannot rely on their size to protect them from predators that live in the open ocean, including several species of shark and orcas.

πŸ“… 2026-10-22 04:00:01    β€’    Phys.org
Natural compound could fight rheumatoid arthritis at its source
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Natural compound could fight rheumatoid arthritis at its source

A natural compound extracted from a medicinal plant has shown surprising promise against rheumatoid arthritis. In rats, it reduced joint swelling, protected cartilage, and calmed the immune responses responsible for chronic inflammation. Scientists discovered that the compound works by targeting a specific protein and restoring balance to fatty acid metabolism, revealing a previously underexplored way to fight the disease.

πŸ“… 2026-10-22 03:37:25    β€’    ScienceDaily
A simple 15-minute treatment could help patients avoid carpal tunnel surgery
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A simple 15-minute treatment could help patients avoid carpal tunnel surgery

A simple, steroid-free procedure could offer lasting relief for people struggling with carpal tunnel syndrome, potentially helping them avoid surgery. In a clinical trial involving 63 patients, researchers found that ultrasound-guided hydrodissection, which uses fluid to free a compressed nerve in the wrist, provided longer-lasting improvements in pain, numbness, and hand function than traditional steroid injections.

πŸ“… 2026-10-22 03:03:08    β€’    ScienceDaily
Illegal fishing is thriving in African watersβ€”a satellite system could help change that
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Illegal fishing is thriving in African watersβ€”a satellite system could help change that

A patrol boat off the coast of Gabon intercepted three trawlers in July 2026, inside the Grand Sud Reserve. This is one of West and Central Africa's largest marine reserves, where industrial trawling is banned. None of the trawlers held a valid license. The patrol found them because analysts at the nonprofit Global Fishing Watch had studied satellite data and worked out where to look.

πŸ“… 2026-10-22 02:40:07    β€’    Phys.org
People are taking an unapproved weight-loss drug. AI found something surprising
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People are taking an unapproved weight-loss drug. AI found something surprising

Researchers analyzing nearly 150,000 Reddit posts uncovered unexpected symptom reports linked by users to unapproved versions of retatrutide, including increased appetite, sleep disturbances, and elevated heart rates. The findings differ from clinical trial results and highlight how AI could help identify potential drug safety signals that warrant further investigation.

πŸ“… 2026-10-22 02:37:01    β€’    ScienceDaily
Horror films exploit how human vision works to deliver movies' best scares
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Horror films exploit how human vision works to deliver movies' best scares

Imagine you're in the movie theater watching 2018's "Hereditary." During one of the film's most unsettling sequences, the main character, Peter, wakes up in bed disoriented. As he sits up, you hear a couple of gasps from others in the audience. The camera stays locked on Peter as he moves through his house and enters the dim living room.

πŸ“… 2026-10-22 02:00:01    β€’    Phys.org