Experts find early ocher mine in Mexican underwater caves Experts and cave divers in Mexico's Yucatan peninsula have found ocher mines that are some of the oldest on the continent, which could explain why ancient skeletons were found in the narrow, twisting labyrinths of now-submerged sinkhole caves.
Scientific 'red flag' reveals new clues about our galaxy Figuring out how much energy permeates the center of the Milky Way—a discovery reported in the July 3 edition of the journal Science Advances—could yield new clues to the fundamental source of our galaxy's power, said L. Matthew Haffner of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.
'Fang'tastic: Biologists report snake-like dental glands in amphibians Utah State University biologist Edmund 'Butch' Brodie, Jr. and colleagues from São Paulo's Butantan Institute report the first known evidence of oral venom glands in amphibians. Their research, supported by the Brazilian National Council for Scientific and Technological Development, appears in the July 3, 2020, issue of iScience.
Toward super-fast motion of vortices in superconductors An international team of scientists from Austria, Germany, and Ukraine has found a new superconducting system in which magnetic flux quanta can move at velocities of 10 to 15 km/s. This opens access to investigations of the rich physics of non-equilibrium collective systems and renders a direct-write Nb-C superconductor as a candidate material for single-photon detectors. The results are published in Nature Communications.
Histone H3-H4 tetramer found to be a copper reductase enzyme A team of researchers at the University of California has found that the histone H3-H4 tetramer is a copper reductase enzyme. In their paper published in the journal Science, the group describes two experiments they carried out that showed that histones are involved in reducing copper inside of cells. Johannes Rudolph and Karolin Luger with the University of Colorado at Boulder have published a Perspective piece in the same journal issue giving an outline of research involving histones and describing the work done by the team in California.
Rare-metal abundance points to a missing companion star for the supernova Cassiopeia A The massive star that exploded to form the supernova known as Cassiopeia A most likely had a companion star that has yet to be spotted, a spectroscopic analysis by RIKEN astrophysicists suggests. This will provide fresh impetus to efforts to locate the companion.
Industrial 'borrow pits' benefit beavers and wolverines, study shows Beavers and wolverines in northern Alberta are using industry-created borrow pits as homes and feeding grounds, according to a new study by University of Alberta ecologists.
Synopsis: Additional Data Confirms Particle Anomaly

Author(s): Katherine Wright

The LHCb Collaboration increases the statistical significance of a result relating to the decay rate of B0mesons that diverges from standard model predictions.

[Physics 13, s88] Published Thu Jul 02, 2020

Feature: Europeans Decide on Particle Strategy

Author(s): Michael Schirber

The CERN Council approved a strategy update that prioritizes a 100-km circular collider, while still developing other options for future particle physics projects.

[Physics 13, 105] Published Thu Jul 02, 2020

Newly discovered form of carbon is more resilient than diamond A computer simulation found a pentagon-shaped carbon molecule that would be as hard as diamond and could tolerate temperatures of almost 4000°C without breaking down
The detector with a billion sensors that may finally snare dark matter Dark matter must exist, but has evaded all attempts to find it. Now comes our boldest plan yet – sensing its minuscule gravitational force as it brushes past us
Soap bubbles can split light into otherworldly branching streams When a laser beam shines through a membrane made of simple household soap, it branches in a strange and unexpected way that could help us understand the cosmos
Synopsis: A Shared Quantum Rhythm

Author(s): Christopher Crockett

Using a light pulse, researchers sync up phases in quantum states of roughly a million rubidium atoms, thus demonstrating quantum synchronization for the first time.  

[Physics 13, s87] Published Wed Jul 01, 2020

Synopsis: Building Novel Carbon Allotropes

Author(s): Rachel Berkowitz

Calculations indicate that a form of carbon synthesized from pentagonal hydrocarbon molecules could have unusual electrical and mechanical properties.

[Physics 13, s84] Published Tue Jun 30, 2020

Feature: The Key Device Needed for a Quantum Internet

Author(s): Erika K. Carlson

As researchers worldwide work toward a potential quantum internet, a major roadblock remains: How to build a device called a quantum repeater.

[Physics 13, 104] Published Tue Jun 30, 2020

Feature: Black Hole Imaging Tests Einstein’s Limits

Author(s): Katherine Wright

Sharper images and movies of black holes will allow researchers to probe important physics theories and concepts, including general relativity, in new ways.

[Physics 13, 103] Published Mon Jun 29, 2020

Feature: When Politics and Particles Collide

Author(s): Sophia Chen

For particle physicist Yangyang Cheng, politics and science are clearly intertwined; it’s political ideals that make open scientific collaboration possible.

[Physics 13, 102] Published Fri Jun 26, 2020

Why neutrinos are the strangest particles in the Standard Model We still don’t know what the mass of a neutrino is, which means there is still lots of exciting work to do, says Chanda Prescod-Weinstein
China's quantum satellite helps send secure messages over 1200km Quantum communication using entangled particles is essentially unhackable, and now it has been extended to the longest distance ever, about 1200 kilometres
Exotic fifth state of matter made on the International Space Station An instrument on board the International Space Station contains one of the coldest places in the universe, and researchers have used it to create a cloud of frozen atoms
Taming nuclear fusion is hard, but there are new reasons for optimism Technological advances, greater investment and growing political interest in addressing climate change mean the dream of harnessing nuclear fusion for energy may finally become a reality
Physicists beat Lorentz reciprocity for microwave transmission New device could boost telecommunications and be adapted for photonics
Japan’s SuperKEKB set for first particle collisions Revamped accelerator will soon be smashing electrons and positrons together
Wood-based 'supermaterial' is stronger and tougher than steel New material is made by compressing treated wood
Three photons bind together to make a ‘molecule’ of light Technique could be used to create quantum-information systems
Nuclear excitation by electron capture seen at long last Breakthrough could lead to new type of energy source
Pistachio trees 'talk' to their neighbours, reveals statistical physics Ising model could account for nut production of pistachio orchards
US National Science Foundation clamps down on misconduct Agency will now require every grantee organization to report cases of sexual harassment