understanding
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Chemistry
Understanding explosion precursors: Investigating high-pressure defragmentation by laser ignition experiments
Highly explosive LLM-105 before and after laser-initiated burns inside diamond anvil cells. The sample mass is ~1 microgram. The product is opaque at low pressure and transparent at higher pressure (lower right panel). Note the increase and decrease in pressure, respectively. Credits: Burning and Fire (2025). doi:10.1016/j.combustflame.2025.114067 Suddenly there is a fierce flash of light and heat, followed by a…
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Other Sciences
Understanding who is most likely to fall into fake news is the first step towards a strategy to combat misinformation
Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain A global study of over 66,000 participants revealed that which groups of people are most susceptible to misinformation are the most affected. Study participants evaluated news headlines and tried to determine whether they were real or fake. On average, people struggled to distinguish between reality and fake, if so. Generation Z (born 1997-2012) More conservative than…
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Earth
A clearer understanding of the risk of permafrost thawing in Alaska
Cost estimates of infrastructure damage up to mid- or late-century caused by predicted warming and thawing permafrost forecasts compared to annual average climate and weather disaster price tags. Credit: Communications Earth & Environment (2025). doi:10.1038/s43247-025-02191-7 In the Arctic, permafrost plays an important role in building infrastructure. However, when the area gets warmer and the permafrost is thawed, the infrastructure is…
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Biology
Dendritic spines: the key to understanding how memory is linked in time
The overlapping dendritic segments encode memories of two contexts that were explored in time. Credit: Nature Neuroscience (2025). doi:10.1038/s41593-025-01876-8 If you’ve ever noticed how memories of the same day are connected while events apart are feeling separate weeks, a new study will reveal why. This finding comes from a mouse study, and researchers observed memory formation using advanced imaging techniques,…
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Chemistry
From Corals to Labs: Understanding Bifluorene Synthase for Bioactive Compound Production
Comparison of the crystal structure and structure of PCTS1. Credit: Science Advances (2025). doi: 10.1126/sciadv.adv0805 Bifloran, also known as cellulatan, is characterized by a distinct 6,6-ball framework and prenyl side chains, and presents a wide range of biological activities, including anti-inflammatory, antimalarial and antitumor effects. These compounds are commonly found in marine corals, sponges and plants. Despite the identification of…
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Space & Cosmos
The amazing signature of the WASP-121B dynamic atmosphere will challenge the understanding of “roasting marshmallows”.
Hot Jupiter Credit Artist Impression: International Gemini ObservaTory/NOIRLAB/NSF/Aura/J. Da Silva/Spaceengine/M. Zamani Almost one -third of the known outside planet is a huge gas company similar to Jupiter and Saturn. However, while our solar system has developed as a gas giant far from our sun, some planetary systems are so -called “hot or very hot, very close to the stars.” It…
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Space & Cosmos
Switchbacks: solar jets could hold the key to understanding complete reversals of magnetic fields
Simulation domains and magnetic topology. Top left: 3D volume of the domain of the simulation containing the root block of the grid. Bottom left: 2D cross section at constant angle ϕ = 0° of the velocity collar at t = 5500 s. This snapshot highlights the spatial distribution of velocity. Grid block boundaries are indicated by gray lines. Each block…
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Environment
Understanding the relationship between food waste, climate change, and population aging
Researchers investigated how household food waste is related to a variety of demographic and economic factors and found that age plays a complex role. Credit: Dr. Yosuke Shigetomi, Ritsumeikan University Producing food and delivering it to people’s tables requires the consumption of large amounts of energy and resources. Unfortunately, around one-third of the food produced around the world goes to…
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Space & Cosmos
X-rays advance understanding of Earth’s core-mantle boundary and super-Earth magma oceans
Schematic diagram of the experimental setup available at the MEC end station. Four epiX 10k detectors cover the Q range from 15 to 106 nm-1 with an X-ray beam energy of 17 keV. The complete signal can be reconstructed by stitching together the diffuse scattering recorded by each detector. Credit: Nature Communications (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-51796-7 Researchers at the Department of…
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Earth
Geologists discover mysterious subduction zone beneath the Pacific Ocean, reshaping understanding of Earth’s interior
A map depicting the area where the ancient ocean floor was discovered. Credit: Jingchuan Wang, University of Maryland. Scientists at the University of Maryland have discovered evidence of an ancient ocean floor that sank deep into the Earth during the age of dinosaurs, casting doubt on existing theories about the Earth’s internal structure. This previously unstudied section of the ocean…
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