Phys.org

"How thinking about death-mortality salience-drives early Halloween shopping and retail trends."

Views expressed in this science and technology update are those of the reporters and correspondents.  Accessed on 02 September 2024, 1548 UTC.

Content and Source:  phys.org.

Please check link or scroll down to read your selections.  Thanks for joining us today. 

Today

How thinking about death—mortality salience—drives early Halloween shopping and retail trends

Phys.org / 11min

It's becoming as much of a tradition as costumed trick-or-treaters and skeletons crawling across lawns studded with cardboard gravestones: candy corn and jumbo bags of Snickers start popping up on grocery store shelves a few weeks after Independence Day. We all gripe about it, bemoaning the premature send-off of summer and the ephemerality of our very existence.

Queer tabletop roleplaying games provide valuable lessons that even 'Dungeons & Dragons' can learn from

Phys.org / 11min

By studying how some tabletop roleplaying games (TTRPGs) are putting queerness front and center, Northeastern researchers found ways even "D&D," the biggest TTRPG in the world, can be more welcoming and inclusive for players.

Farmer suicides may rise with climate change. Is Australia prepared?

Phys.org / 17min

Droughts, fires, and floods can have devastating consequences for farmers' mental health.

Copper-based catalyst paves the way for sustainable ammonia production

Phys.org / 17min

Ammonia plays a critical role in food production and industrial development, with a global market size of approximately 175 million metric tons and a market value of $67 billion. Likewise, it is a high-energy-density carrier, making it a key player in the emerging hydrogen economy.

Gravitational wave observatories could detect primordial black holes speeding through the solar system

Phys.org / 17min

Cosmologists have long hypothesized that the conditions of the early universe could have caused the formation of black holes not long after the Big Bang. These "primordial black holes" have a much wider mass range than those that formed in the later universe from the death of stars, with some even condensed to the width of a single atom.

How vegetation could impact the climate of exoplanets

Phys.org / 17min

The term "habitable zone" is a broad definition that serves a purpose in our age of exoplanet discovery. But the more we learn about exoplanets, the more we need a more nuanced definition of habitable.

A new test proves how to make the Event Horizon Telescope even better

Phys.org / 23min

Want a clear view of a supermassive black hole's environment? It's an incredible observational challenge. The extreme gravity bends light as it passes through and blurs the details of the event horizon, the region closest to the black hole. Astronomers using the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) just conducted test observations aimed at "deblurring" that view.

Study: Quantum-dot-enabled infrared hyperspectral imaging with single-pixel detection

Phys.org / 35min

Near infrared (NIR) hyperspectral imaging is a highly promising detection technology capable of capturing detailed 3D spectral-spatial information, facilitating the identification and characterization of materials and targets based on their spectral signatures.

Copper iodide nanoclusters offer environment-friendly solution for healthy lighting

Phys.org / 47min

Healthy lighting technology is receiving increasingly widespread attention. Traditional solid-state lighting sources utilize photoluminescence down conversion technology to realize ideal white emission. Specifically, yellow phosphors are excited by blue LEDs, or three-primary-color phosphors are excited by ultraviolet LEDs.

Geoinformatics: Using AI to take better aim against mosquitoes

Phys.org / 1h

The Aedes aegypti mosquito is responsible worldwide for the spread of infectious diseases such as dengue, Zika, chikungunya, and yellow fever. To combat the widely transmitted diseases affecting millions, detailed mosquito distribution maps with data on the spatial and temporal spread of populations are of major importance.

Creating an 'imprint' on a super photon

Phys.org / 1h

Thousands of light particles can merge into a type of "super photon" under certain conditions. Researchers at the University of Bonn have now been able to use "tiny nano molds" to influence the design of this so-called Bose-Einstein condensate. This enables them to shape the speck of light into a simple lattice structure consisting of four points of light arranged in quadratic form.

On the way to optical logic gates: Study demonstrates the basics for purely optical processing of information

Phys.org / 1h

In a collaboration between scientists from Physics and Chemistry at the University of Bayreuth and Physical Chemistry at the University of Melbourne, it has now been possible to realize optically switchable photonic units that enable precise addressing of individual units. This will make it possible to reliably store and read binary information optically.

Amazon rainforest fires produce secondary ultrafine particles that may affect weather and climate

Phys.org / 1h

Particles in wildfire smoke can lower air quality and harm human health. Smoke aerosols can also influence weather and climate by modifying cloud formation and changing how much of the sun's energy is reflected or absorbed by the atmosphere. Compared to larger particles directly emitted from fires, the formation and presence of ultrafine particles (UFPs) have previously been overlooked, as it was

New evidence supports theory that oxygen isotope ratio in seawater slowly increased over last 540 million years

Phys.org / 1h

An international team of ocean, Earth and marine scientists has found evidence supporting a theory that a certain oxygen isotope ratio in seawater has changed slowly over the past 540 million years. In their study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the group analyzed rocks from the Ordovician period.

Experiments demonstrates chiral quantum heating and cooling with an optically controlled ion

Phys.org / 1h

Heat engines, converting heat into useful work, are vital in modern society. With advances in nanotechnology, exploring quantum heat engines (QHEs) is crucial for designing efficient systems and understanding quantum thermodynamics.

Chemists find new pharmaceutically active substances from billions of newly combined molecules

Phys.org / 2h

Nowadays, there's lots of buzz about spectacular new medical treatments, such as personalized cancer therapy with modified immune cells or antibodies. Such treatments, however, are very complex and expensive and so find only limited application. Most medical therapies are still based on small chemical compounds that can be produced in large quantities and thus at low cost.

Cytophysics: How cells migrate through gaps smaller than their nucleus

Phys.org / 2h

Eukaryotic cells—that is, cells with a nucleus—possess an astounding ability to radically change their shape and their cytoskeleton, allowing them to migrate through tiny pores and constrictions even smaller than their nuclear diameter. Yet how exactly the cell nucleus changes shape as a response to the surrounding structures, and what physical mechanisms are behind this deformation, have remained

Researcher discusses a new type of collective interference effect

Phys.org / 2h

A team led by Robert Keil and Tommaso Faleo from the Department of Experimental Physics has investigated the relationship between entanglement and interference in quantum systems of more than two particles in the laboratory.

Depolymerization method achieves exclusive chemical recycling of PET from cloth waste and plastic waste mixtures

Recycling PET from mixed waste

•

Phys.org / 2h

A research team led by Professor Kotohiro Nomura from Tokyo Metropolitan University has developed a method for the depolymerization of PET (polyethylene terephthalate) using alcohols and an inexpensive, readily available iron trichloride catalyst. This method can be applied to the selective chemical recycling of both textile and plastic waste mixtures.

The risk of global water scarcity is greater when accounting for the origin of rain, study shows

Phys.org / 2h

Securing the world's water supply is one of the greatest challenges of our time. Research at Stockholm University is now presenting an alternative method for quantifying the global risk of water scarcity. Results indicate higher risks to water supply than previously expected if accounting for the environmental conditions and governability where rain is produced.

Two solar probes are helping researchers understand what phenomenon powers the solar wind

Solar wind heating mystery solved

•

Phys.org / 2h

Our sun drives a constant outward flow of plasma, or ionized gas, called the solar wind, which envelops our solar system. Outside of Earth's protective magnetosphere, the fastest solar wind rushes by at speeds of over 310 miles (500 kilometers) per second. But researchers haven't been able to figure out how the wind gets enough energy to achieve that speed—until now.

Predicting avalanches: Fracture characteristics of anticracks in highly porous materials

Phys.org / 2h

Even a single person in the snow can exert enough pressure on it to cause a buried weak layer of snow to collapse and the snow cover to slide away. In this case, experts speak of anticracks. The fundamental fracture properties that can lead to powerful slab avalanches are still largely unknown, but crucial in order to accurately predict when avalanches will occur.

Tropical storm triggers landslides in Philippines, 11 dead

Phys.org / 2h

Floods and landslides killed 11 people after a fierce tropical storm dumped heavy rain on the Philippines for a second day, officials said Monday.

Swaths of China, Japan log record summer temperatures

Phys.org / 2h

Swaths of China logged the hottest August on record last month, the weather service said, as Japanese authorities announced that this summer had been the joint warmest since records began.

Origins of variability in X-ray photons from a symbiotic binary star as revealed by dimensionality reduction

Phys.org / 2h

Symbiotic binary stars are a type of binary star system that consists of a compact star (such as a white dwarf) and a red giant star. In these systems, a compact star accretes materials from a red giant star and produces soft X-ray photons. However, some of them—known as hard X-ray-emitting symbiotic stars—also produce powerful X-ray photons, which may be due to the presence of massive white dwarf

Researchers explore the nature of a newborn stellar cluster

24Phys.org / 2h

Researchers have conducted detailed infrared observations of a recently formed stellar cluster in a giant molecular cloud designated G148.24+00.41. Results of the observational campaign, presented in a research paper published August 23 on the pre-print server arXiv, deliver important insights into the nature of this newborn cluster.

One of the last California condors in Zion National Park dies from lead poisoning

Phys.org / 3h

Zion National Park is home to a California condor, an endangered bird with a wingspan of more than 9 feet, that soars the same skies she shared with her brother before he died.

Scientists study mysterious invader in the Chesapeake Bay's largest underwater grass bed

Phys.org / 3h

Researcher Judy O'Neil dons a wetsuit, a snorkel and goggles, and jumps into one of the Chesapeake Bay's most important ecosystems: the vast underwater grass beds of the Susquehanna Flats.

Calling for further study, California lawmakers table ban on toxic herbicide paraquat

Phys.org / 4h

California lawmakers have approved a bill that could help strengthen regulations around the use of paraquat, a powerful weedkiller associated with Parkinson's disease and other serious health issues.

NASA lines up return date for Boeing Starliner minus humans

Phys.org / 4h

A Butch- and Suni-less Boeing Starliner has been given a date to return to Earth by NASA.

Curbing toxic metals in spinach and rice crops grown for baby food

Phys.org / 4h

Rice and spinach are staples for babies' and young children's diets, but toxic metals and metalloids found in those foods can cause severe health impacts.

Hillside erosion worsening in California due to wildfires and intense rain

Phys.org / 4h

Over the last three decades, California has seen increasing erosion after major wildfires—a phenomenon that not only endangers water resources and ecosystems, but is also likely to worsen with climate change, according to researchers.

FAA lets SpaceX get back to launches, but Polaris Dawn awaits good weather

SpaceX rocket crashes after launch

•

Phys.org / 4h

SpaceX got the OK to fly again from the Federal Aviation Administration and didn't waste any time knocking out launches from both Florida and California early Saturday, but the crewed Polaris Dawn launch remains on hold because of weather.

Yosemite National Park: Crews restore damaged landscape back to conditions not seen in 150 years

Phys.org / 4h

Yosemite National Park is famous for towering waterfalls, giant sequoia trees and massive granite cliffs. But at an out-of-the-way spot near the park's western boundary few visitors ever see, a landmark of a different type is taking shape.