Science News

Lighting a gas grill, getting an ultrasound, using an ultrasonic toothbrush--these actions involve the use of materials that can translate an electric voltage into a change in shape and vice versa.

Point defects (e.g. missing, extra or swapped atoms) in crystalline materials often determine the actual electronic and optical response of a given material. For example, controlled substitutions in semiconductors like s...

When a train approaches or an ambulance with its siren blaring nears us, we hear the sound with an increased frequency, gradually decreasing slightly. As it passes, the frequency changes abruptly to a lower one, then dec...

Unusually high temperatures combined with the abatement of the El Niño could lead to more major hurricanes this year.

Mild dehydration can impair sustained attention in middle-aged and older adults, though it doesn't affect other cognitive functions. The study involved 78 adults, ages 47 to 70, and assessed their hydration levels and co...

Double-sided microlens arrays (DSMLAs) play a crucial role in improving the performance of optical devices, supporting applications from advanced imaging systems to laser beam homogenization. However, traditional manufac...

Researchers found that mental disorders can spread within school social networks. By analyzing data from over 700,000 Finnish ninth-graders, they discovered that having classmates with mental disorders increased the risk...

Researchers discovered significant sex-specific differences in brain development between autistic boys and girls aged 2-13. The study found that autistic girls have a thicker cortex at age 3 and faster cortical thinning ...

This year could bring up to 25 named tropical storms, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says, due to hot Atlantic Ocean surface temperatures and a shift to La Niña conditions

Male mice injected with a molecule that affects sperm movement were temporarily unable to impregnate a female, showing promise for a new type of birth control drug for people

Researchers developed an AI model of the fruit fly brain to understand how vision guides behavior. By genetically silencing specific visual neurons and observing changes in behavior, they trained the AI to predict neural...

A new study finds that children not deemed "school ready" at age 4 are significantly more likely to be unemployed or out of education by 16. This early disadvantage also predicts lower GCSE achievement. Researchers used ...

The Instagram-worthy alignment of the setting sun and the streets of Manhattan is about to begin again. The annual spectacle is caused by New York City's gridiron layout.

Alaska's melting permafrost is dumping toxic metals into the state's rivers, turning them bright orange and making the water highly acidic. The contaminated rivers are so vibrant they can be seen from space, and the prob...

A dose of caffeine helped ants locate a sweet reward 30 per cent faster, suggesting the drug boosts learning in the insects

The new source of lithium, which could meet up to 40% of U.S. demand, was discovered in fracking wastewater.

The Euclid space telescope has released five mesmerizing new photos of our universe, kicking off a six-year campaign to unveil the secrets of dark matter, dark energy and other cosmological mysteries.

Both literally and figuratively, light pervades the world. It banishes darkness, conveys telecommunications signals between continents and makes visible the invisible, from faraway galaxies to the smallest bacterium. Lig...

Nonlinear light microscopy has revolutionized our ability to observe and understand complex biological processes. However, light can also damage living matter. Yet, the mechanism behind the irreversible perturbation of c...

A nearby planet named Gliese 12 b has an estimated surface temperature of 42°C (108°F), making it a promising candidate for liquid water and maybe life

UNSW quantum engineers have developed a new amplifier that could help other scientists search for elusive dark matter particles.

As part of the Center for Quantum Leaps, a signature initiative of the Arts & Sciences strategic plan, physicist Kater Murch and his research group use nano-fabrication techniques to construct superconducting quantum cir...