Physics
press releases.

Physics27 Mar 2024

Oregon State dog-training program helps increase physical activity among kids with disabilities

CORVALLIS, Ore. — By engaging regularly with their family dog and teaching it a series of tricks and commands, children with developmental disabilities experienced a significant increase in their daily physical activity, a new study from Oregon State University researchers found. Children in the experimental group increased their moderate to vigorous physical activity by 17 minutes per day, while simultaneously reducing their sedentary time by nearly an hour per day. “We often talk about physical activity as just fitness or exercise, but ...

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Physics27 Mar 2024

Unlocking visible femtosecond fiber oscillators: A breakthrough in laser science

The emergence of ultrafast laser pulse generation, marking a significant milestone in laser science, has triggered incredible progress across a wide array of disciplines, encompassing industrial applications, energy technologies, life sciences, and beyond. Among the various laser platforms that have been developed, fiber femtosecond oscillators, esteemed for their compact design, outstanding performance, and cost-effectiveness, have become one of the mainstream technologies for femtosecond pulse generation. However, their operating wavelengths ...

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Physics26 Mar 2024

Drs. Thomas Patterson, David Gius accepted into the prestigious Association of American Physicians

SAN ANTONIO, March 26, 2024 – Thomas Patterson, MD, and David Gius, MD, PhD, two top physician-scientists at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio (UT Health San Antonio), have been accepted into the prestigious Association of American Physicians for the advancement of scientific and practical medicine. Patterson is professor of medicine and chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases and vice chair for clinical research for the Department of Medicine in the Joe R. and Teresa Lozano Long School of Medicine, and Gius is associate cancer director of translational research at the Mays Cancer Center and assistant dean of research and ...

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Physics25 Mar 2024

Pushing back the limits of optical imaging by processing trillions of frames per second

Professor Jinyang Liang’s team is advancing in imaging speed with a new ultrafast camera system. Pushing for a higher speed isn’t just for athletes. Researchers, too, can achieve such feats with their discoveries. This is the case for Jinyang Liang, Professor at the Institut national de la recherche scientifique (INRS), and his team, whose research results have recently been published in Nature Communications. The group based at INRS’ Énergie Matériaux Télécommunications Research Centre has developed a new ultrafast camera system that can capture up to 156.3 trillion ...

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Physics25 Mar 2024

Elusive 3D printed nanoparticles could lead to new shapeshifting materials

In nanomaterials, shape is destiny. That is, the geometry of the particle in the material defines the physical characteristics of the resulting material. “A crystal made of nano-ball bearings will arrange themselves differently than a crystal made of nano-dice and these arrangements will produce very different physical properties,” said Wendy Gu, an assistant professor of mechanical engineering at Stanford University, introducing her latest paper which appears in the journal Nature Communications. “We’ve used a 3D nanoprinting technique to produce one of the most promising ...

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Physics25 Mar 2024

Physician work hours, especially for male doctors, have declined since 1987

Physicians in Canada, especially male physicians, are working fewer hours than they did 3 decades ago, and these long-term trends must be considered in workforce planning, according to new research in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal) https://www.cmaj.ca/lookup/doi/10.1503/cmaj.231166. "Canadian physicians' work hours, crucial for health care access and planning, have seen a long-term decline, especially among male and married physicians, suggesting a shift towards better work–life balance," said Dr. Boris Kralj, Department of Economics, Centre for Health Economics & Policy Analysis, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario. Using ...

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Physics22 Mar 2024

Theoretical physicist Carlo Rovelli to receive 2024 Lewis Thomas Prize

From photons to atheism to Churchill’s extraterrestrial musings, the stunning breadth of Carlo Rovelli’s work has spurred readers to think deeply about the intersection of science and culture, transforming staggering complexity into widely accessible writing along the way. For this artful ability to educate and engage, Rovelli will be presented with the 2024 Lewis Thomas Prize for Writing about Science at The Rockefeller University on April 9. Named after its first recipient, noted physician-scientist and essayist Lewis Thomas, the prize was ...

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Physics20 Mar 2024

Hitting this stretchy, electronic material makes it tougher

NEW ORLEANS, March 20, 2024 — Accidents happen every day, and if you drop your smartwatch, or it gets hit really hard, the device probably won’t work anymore. But now, researchers report on a soft, flexible material with “adaptive durability,” meaning it gets stronger when hit or stretched. The material also conducts electricity, making it ideal for the next generation of wearables or personalized medical sensors. The researchers will present their results today at the spring meeting of the American Chemical Society (ACS). ACS Spring ...

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Physics20 Mar 2024

This could be forever: New design prolongs the lifespan of plasma torches

Thanks for a new design contributed by a research team led by Prof. ZHAO Peng from Hefei Institutes of Physical Science (HFIPS) of Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), the operation time for plasma torch was extended from several days to several years. "We made the world's longest-lasting plasma torch," said Prof. ZHAO. Plasma torches, devices that generate thermal plasma, are pivotal in various industries due to their ability to efficiently produce high-temperature plasma. It can be applied in many fields including low-carbon metallurgy, powder spheroidization, carbon material preparation, and advanced ...

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Physics19 Mar 2024

UT researchers investigate how freshwater diatoms stay in the light

Spring weather brings welcome conditions for flowers and plant life to bloom across the land. The right mixture of temperature, moisture, and light helps keep the green world vibrant. Underwater plant life generally responds to similar environmental encouragements, but a curious discovery in Lake Erie circa 2012 led microbiologists to study an unseasonal display of winter abundance. Blooms of diatoms—microscopic, photosynthetic algae—were alive and well beneath (and within) the lake’s ...

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Physics19 Mar 2024

Social bonding gets people on the same wavelength

When small hierarchical groups bond, neural activity between leaders and followers aligns, promoting quicker and more frequent communication, according to a study published on March 19th in the open-access journal PLOS Biology by Jun Ni from Beijing Normal University, China, and colleagues. Social groups are often organized hierarchically, where status differences and bonds between members shape the group’s dynamic. To better understand how bonding influences communication within hierarchical groups and which brain regions are involved in these processes, the researchers recorded 176 three-person ...

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Physics19 Mar 2024

Four PPPL researchers featured in the Physics of Plasmas Early Career Collection

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) made a strong showing in this year’s Early Career Collection from the scientific journal Physics of Plasmas. The collection represents the top papers from all areas of plasma physics research authored by people who defended their dissertations less than five years before the journal article was submitted. “The first authors of the pieces in the 2023 Early Career Collection have made a notable contribution to the field of plasma and show significant promise. I look forward to ...

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Physics19 Mar 2024

Toxic metal particles can be present in cannabis vapes even before the first use

NEW ORLEANS, March 19, 2024 — Vapes have often been heralded as a “safer” way to consume either nicotine or cannabis, where legal to do so. But the devices present their own suite of risks that are slowly being revealed as they undergo increasing research and regulation. Now, researchers have discovered that nano-sized toxic metal particles may be present in cannabis vaping liquids even before the vaping device is heated, and the effect is worse in unregulated products. The researchers will present their results today at the spring meeting of the American Chemical Society (ACS). ACS Spring 2024 is a hybrid meeting being held virtually and in person March ...

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Physics18 Mar 2024

Breakthrough in melting point prediction: over 100-year-old physics problem solved by Queen Mary Professor

A longstanding problem in physics has finally been cracked by Professor Kostya Trachenko of Queen Mary University of London's School of Physical and Chemical Sciences. His research, published in the Physical Review E, unveils a general theory for predicting melting points, a fundamental property whose understanding has baffled scientists for over a century. For decades, our understanding of the three basic states of matter – solids, liquids, and gases – relied on temperature-pressure phase diagrams. These diagrams depict the conditions under which each state exists, with distinct lines separating them. However, one crucial line, ...

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Physics15 Mar 2024

Eliminating socioeconomic disparities in youth physical activity can save over $15 billion

What would happen if the existing disparities in physical activity levels between youth of lower and higher socioeconomic statuses were eliminated? Previous studies have shown that those between 6-17 years of age in lower socioeconomic groups get on average 10-15% less physical activity than those of higher socioeconomic groups. A new study published in the journal JAMA Health Forum on Mar. 15 shows that eliminating such disparities could end up saving society over $15 billion in direct medical costs and productivity losses. This in turn could end up benefiting all taxpayers, anyone who pays insurance ...

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Physics15 Mar 2024

Parallel physical random bit generation towards rates of order 100 Tb/s

In our digital networked society, random bit generators (RBGs) are vital for services and state-of-the-art technologies such as cryptographically secured communication, blockchain technologies, and quantum key distribution. An ever-increasing demand to improve the security of digital information has shifted the generation of random bits from sole reliance on pseudorandom algorithms to the use of physical entropy sources. Shannon’s theorem establishes that it is required for the ultimate security to achieve bit rate matching that of the true RBGs with that of the communication systems. For this purpose, optical chaos has been widely studied in the past decades as a means for the ...

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Physics14 Mar 2024

Adapting particle accelerators for industrial work

NEWPORT NEWS, VA – Superconducting radiofrequency (SRF) technology allows particle accelerators to efficiently produce powerful electron beams. Physicists use these beams to study the building blocks of matter at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility. But these research machines also have a promising list of industrial applications. Now, some researchers are figuring out how to get SRF accelerators out of the lab and into industry. One potential industrial use is in water treatment plants. Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are present in many products, including certain non-stick cookware, water-resistant ...

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Physics13 Mar 2024

Single type of light creates multi-types of particles

Laser direct writing (LDW) current researches mostly generate single type of materials for sensing layers or electrodes, while the sensor with different types of materials by LDW method is lacked. Researchers led by Prof. Gao Yang from East China University of Science and Technology (ECUST), China, are interested in expanded the application of LDW method, where can utilize the photo-thermal conversion, to synthesize materials and then engrave them with the desired morphologies and structures. Focusing on the functionality of materials, the researchers use all-LDW method to generate laser induced silver (LIS) as electrodes and laser induced graphene ...

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Physics11 Mar 2024

Giving particle detectors a boost

Device could help facilitate the operation of new particle colliders, such as the Electron-Ion Collider. In particle colliders that reveal the hidden secrets of the tiniest constituents of our universe, minute particles leave behind extremely faint electrical traces when they are generated in enormous collisions. Some detectors in these facilities use superconductivity — a phenomenon in which electricity is carried with zero resistance at low temperatures — to function. For scientists to more accurately observe the behavior of these particles, these weak electrical signals, or currents, need ...

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Physics11 Mar 2024

Synergistic proton and oxygen-ion transport in fluorite oxide-ion conductor

They published their work on new superionic mechanism in fluorite oxide electrolyte for low temperature protonic ceramic fuel cells in Energy Material Advances. "The development of low-temperature and high-performance solid oxide fuel cells is imperative." said corresponding author Dr. Jianbing Huang, Associate Professor of the State Key Laboratory of Multiphase Flow in Power Engineering, Xi'an Jiaotong University. Dr. Huang explained that protonic ceramic fuel cell has several significant advantages as an alternative solid oxide fuel cell ...

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Physics6 Mar 2024

Liquid lens based holographic camera for real 3D scene hologram acquisition using end-to-end physical model-driven network

Holography technology can restore the complete light field information of the recorded object, which has important applications in fields like biological microscopic imaging and optical micromanipulation. One important frontier of holography is the reconstruction of realistic 3D scenes. However, the development and application of holographic technology have been hindered by the huge amount of data of the 3D scenes and the laser coherence, which leads to the slow capturing speed of the real 3D scenes ...

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Physics6 Mar 2024

Visibility restoration for real-world hazy images via improved physical model and gaussian total variation

Under real-world haze conditions, the captured images not only suffer from the haze but also are affected by the noise, which significantly deteriorates the visibility of images. However, most of existing haze removal methods mainly focus on the haze degradation and fail to consider the noise interference. To address the above issue, a research team led by Hailing XIONG and Yun LIU published their new research on 15 Feb 2024 in Frontiers of Computer Science co-published by Higher Education Press and Springer Nature. The team proposed a novel unified variational model consisting of multiple effective constraints that simultaneously ...

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Physics6 Mar 2024

Even low levels of leisure time physical activity help to lower stroke risk

Even people whose physical activity levels fall short of recommended guidelines, but who manage to do some during their leisure time, are likely to have a lower risk of stroke than their sedentary peers, suggests a pooled data analysis of the available evidence, published online in the Journal of Neurology Neurosurgery & Psychiatry. The effects are independent of age and sex, the findings show, prompting the authors to suggest that everyone should be encouraged to do whatever level of physical activity they can manage in their leisure time. There’s no doubt that ...

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Physics5 Mar 2024

New method measures the 3D position of individual atoms

Since more than a decade it has been possible for physicists to accurately measure the location of individual atoms to a precision of smaller than one thousandth of a millimeter using a special type of microscope. However, this method has so far only provided the x and y coordinates. Information on the vertical position of the atom – i.e., the distance between the atom and the microscope objective – is lacking. A new method has now been developed that can determine all three spatial coordinates of an atom with one single image. This method – developed by the University of Bonn and University of Bristol ...

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Physics5 Mar 2024

Team successfully synthesizes atomically precise metal nanoclusters

A research team has successfully synthesized a metal nanocluster and determined its crystal structure. Their study provides experimental evidence for understanding and designing nanoclusters with specific properties at the atomic level. Metal nanoclusters have wide-ranging applications in the biomedical field. Their work is published in the journal Polyoxometalates on February 6, 2024. Scientists have shown interest in ligand-protected atomically precise metal nanoclusters because they have definite atomic structures and exceptional ...

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