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Two genes, two harvests: Adapting barley for double cropping
Science News

Two genes, two harvests: Adapting barley for double cropping

Growing two crops in succession on the same land requires a tight schedule. In parts of central and eastern China, farmers sow barley in autumn and harvest it in late spring. It is then followed by a summer crop, such as rice. For this cropping sequence to succeed, the barley must mature in time. An early harvest also helps the crop avoid heat and rain toward the end of the growing season.

📅 2026-11-09 14:40:01    •    Phys.org
The migration that remade Africa
Science News

The migration that remade Africa

It's not easy to extract iron from its ore. But the peoples of the ancient city of Great Zimbabwe—the capital of a thriving kingdom in southern Africa between A.D. 1000 and 1700—were masters.

📅 2026-11-09 14:00:13    •    Phys.org
A hummingbird's brilliant magenta feathers depend on a hidden middle layer
Science News

A hummingbird's brilliant magenta feathers depend on a hidden middle layer

The brilliant magenta feathers on the head and throat of a male Anna's hummingbird present an optical puzzle. Magenta cannot be produced by a single wavelength of light. Instead, the feathers reflect a mixture of red and blue. Scientists understood the strong red reflection, but the weaker blue component was harder to explain.

📅 2026-11-09 13:00:06    •    Phys.org
CT scanning the centuries-old head of Jeremy Bentham
Science News

CT scanning the centuries-old head of Jeremy Bentham

Cutting-edge medical imaging techniques have revealed that Jeremy Bentham, the Georgian philosopher and reformer, suffered from chronic toothache and a jaw riddled with arthritis.

📅 2026-11-09 12:37:06    •    Phys.org
Sell-side analysts fail to adequately adjust stock forecasts after Fed meetings
Science News

Sell-side analysts fail to adequately adjust stock forecasts after Fed meetings

When the U.S. Federal Reserve announces a change in its interest rate, consumers expect shifts in borrowing costs elsewhere and potential price adjustments for things like housing and some consumer goods. New research, however, shows that stock market analysts generally give a collective "meh" around the time of Fed meetings when it comes to forecasting how much stocks will trade for in the future, called a price target.

📅 2026-11-09 12:00:02    •    Phys.org
Common supplement could help fight psoriasis, scientists discover
Science News

Common supplement could help fight psoriasis, scientists discover

Scientists have discovered that pantethine, a readily available vitamin B5 derivative, can calm overactive immune cells and may help fight psoriasis. The supplement prevented psoriasis in mice and showed promising results in a small human trial, revealing an unexpected connection between cholesterol and autoimmune inflammation.

📅 2026-11-09 11:44:20    •    ScienceDaily
Optical experiment demonstrates the strong Mpemba effect in a single qubit
Science News

Optical experiment demonstrates the strong Mpemba effect in a single qubit

Typically, after a physical system is disturbed, it can gradually return toward a state of thermal equilibrium by exchanging heat with its surroundings. Thermal equilibrium is a state in which there is no net transfer of heat between the system and its surroundings.

📅 2026-11-09 11:40:01    •    Phys.org
When your gut bacteria run out of fiber, they may start eating your gut lining
Science News

When your gut bacteria run out of fiber, they may start eating your gut lining

Scientists have discovered that gut bacteria can feed on the protective mucus lining your intestines, producing potentially harmful compounds, but fiber helps keep this activity in check. Overlooked proteins in plant foods also help shift gut bacteria toward producing beneficial substances, revealing a surprising new reason plant-based diets may be good for you.

📅 2026-11-09 11:32:00    •    ScienceDaily
A quantum breakthrough makes light behave like both a solid and a liquid
Science News

A quantum breakthrough makes light behave like both a solid and a liquid

Scientists have observed a bizarre quantum state of matter that combines the structure of a crystal with the frictionless flow of a liquid, all at room temperature. The breakthrough overturns a major practical limitation of exotic quantum experiments and could help bring powerful new light-based computing and sensing technologies closer to reality.

📅 2026-11-09 11:19:39    •    ScienceDaily