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High-density brain probe reveals distinctive electrical patterns of cell types during behavior

Trying to document how single brain cells participate in networks that govern behavior is a daunting task. Brain probes called Neuropixels, which feature high-density silicon arrays, have enabled scientists to collect electrophysiological data of this nature from a variety of animals. These include fish, reptiles, rodents and primates, as well as humans.

Neuropixels, which come in several versions, record from hundreds to thousands of neurons simultaneously. Neurons are nerve cells that receive, process and transmit information.

While the data collected has led to insights on the neural basis of perception and decision-making, those probes cannot sample fine-scale brain structures. They also are limited in resolving (separately distinguishing) the electrical fields around individual brain cells.

Accelerated Gulf of Maine warming may pose a serious threat to American lobsters

The Gulf of Maine is warming faster than 99% of the world’s oceans, raising concerns for its $2 billion-a-year American lobster fishery. Scientists at William & Mary’s Batten School & VIMS have been studying the impacts of ocean acidification and warming on lobster reproduction, and the results of their most recent research suggest the rising temperatures pose the greatest risk.

Utilizing a purpose-built experimental facility designed by Professor Emily Rivest and housed in the Batten School of Coastal & Marine Sciences & VIMS’ Seawater Research Laboratory, the researchers exposed egg-bearing lobsters from the Gulf of Maine to water temperature and pH conditions that mimic those predicted for 2060.

Published in the journal Marine Ecology Progress Series, the results revealed that the embryos can handle ocean acidification surprisingly well, but increased temperatures led to distinct stress responses that ultimately resulted in smaller larvae.

Ultra-thin sodium films offer low-cost alternative to gold and silver in optical technologies

From solar panels to next-generation medical devices, many emerging technologies rely on materials that can manipulate light with extreme precision. These materials—called plasmonic materials—are typically made from expensive metals like gold or silver. But what if a cheaper, more abundant metal could do the job just as well or better?

That’s the question a team of researchers set out to explore. The challenge? While is abundant and lightweight, it’s also notoriously unstable and difficult to work with in the presence of air or moisture—two unavoidable parts of real-world conditions. Until now, this has kept it off the table for practical optical applications.

Researchers from Yale University, Oakland University, and Cornell University have teamed up to change that. By developing a new technique for structuring sodium into ultra-thin, precisely patterned films, they found a way to stabilize the and make it perform exceptionally well in light-based applications.

Researchers demonstrate substrate design principles for scalable superconducting quantum materials

Silicides—alloys of silicon and metals long used in microelectronics—are now being explored again for quantum hardware. But their use faces a critical challenge: achieving phase purity, since some silicide phases are superconducting while others are not.

The study, published in Applied Physics Letters by NYU Tandon School of Engineering and Brookhaven National Laboratory, shows how substrate choice influences phase formation and interfacial stability in superconducting vanadium silicide films, providing design guidelines for improving material quality.

The team, led by NYU Tandon professor Davood Shahrjerdi, focused on vanadium silicide, a material that becomes superconducting (able to conduct electricity without resistance) when cooled below its transition temperature of 10 Kelvin, or about −263°C. Its relatively high superconducting makes it attractive for quantum devices that operate above conventional millikelvin temperatures.

Novel method for controlling Faraday rotation in conductive polymers

Researchers at the University of Tsukuba have developed a novel method for controlling the optical rotation of conductive polymer polythiophene in a magnetic field at low voltage. This method combines the “Faraday rotation” phenomenon, in which a polarizing plane rotates in response to a magnetic field, with the electrochemical oxidation and reduction of conductive polymers.

The study is published in the journal Molecular Crystals and Liquid Crystals.

Conductive polymers possess various properties in addition to conductivity, with applications in light-emitting devices, electromagnetic wave shielding, and anticorrosion materials.

The Nearest Alien Civilization Could Be 33,000 Light-Years Away

New research suggests that technological civilizations in the Milky Way are extremely rare, with the closest potentially 33,000 light-years away. According to new research presented at the EPSC–DPS2025 Joint Meeting in Helsinki, the nearest technological civilization in the Milky Way might be as

Astronomers Stunned by Black Hole Growing Beyond Known Limits

A black hole in a distant quasar is growing faster than the usual limit, according to Chandra observations. This may explain how the first supermassive black holes emerged. Astronomers have identified a black hole growing at one of the fastest rates ever observed. The finding, made with NASA’s Ch

“Something Extraordinary Was Happening” — Scientists Solve Quantum Metal Mystery

Japanese researchers have revealed how weak magnetic fields can instantly control the direction of electrical flow in quantum metals. Quantum metals are materials in which quantum effects, usually confined to the atomic scale, become strong enough to influence their large-scale electrical behavio

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