Accurate assessment of the land surface damage (such as small-scale fracturing and inelastic deformation) from two major earthquakes in 2023 can help scientists assess future earthquake hazards and therefore minimize risk to people and infrastructure. However, attaining precise extensive measurements in earthquake zones remains challenging.

Researchers have found that a two-dimensional carbon material is tougher than graphene and resists cracking—even the strongest crack under pressure, a problem materials scientists have long been grappling with. For instance, carbon-derived materials like graphene are among the strongest on Earth, but once established, cracks propagate rapidly through them, making them prone to sudden fracture.

Scientists are racing to develop new materials for quantum technologies in computing and sensing for ultraprecise measurements. For these future technologies to transition from the laboratory to real-world applications, a much deeper understanding is needed of the behavior near surfaces, especially those at interfaces between materials.

When atoms collide, their exact structure—for example, the number of electrons they have or even the quantum spin of their nuclei—has a lot to say about how they bounce off each other. This is especially true for atoms cooled to near-zero Kelvin, where quantum mechanical effects give rise to unexpected phenomena. Collisions of these cold atoms can sometimes be caused by incoming laser light, resulting in the colliding atom-pair forming a short-lived molecular state before disassociating and releasing an enormous amount of energy.

Researchers have developed a freely available droplet microfluidic component library, which promises to transform the way microfluidic devices are created. This innovation, based on low-cost rapid prototyping and electrode integration, makes it possible to fabricate microfluidic devices for under $12 each, with a full design-build-test cycle completed within a single day. The components are biocompatible, high-throughput, and capable of performing multistep workflows, such as droplet generation, sensing, sorting, and anchoring, all critical for automating microfluidic design and testing.

Creating and sustaining fusion reactions—essentially recreating star-like conditions on Earth—is extremely difficult, and Nathan Howard, Ph.D., a principal research scientist at the MIT Plasma Science and Fusion Center (PSFC), thinks it's one of the most fascinating scientific challenges of our time.

For years, scientific divers at a research station in the Mediterranean Sea had a problem: at some point in every field season, local fish would follow them and steal food intended as experimental rewards. Intriguingly, these wild fish appeared to recognize the specific diver who had previously carried food, choosing to follow only them while ignoring other divers.

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Kansas became the latest state to ban gender care for minors Tuesday after the Republican-controlled Legislature overrode the Democratic governor's veto of the measure.Kansas is the 27th state to ban or restrict such care.

Elon Musk on Tuesday agreed with a post from one X user, Gunther Eagleman, that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy doesn't want the war in Ukraine to end; he wants money and power.