physics

Big Tech companies are reportedly assessing physical security risks tied to the escalating conflict with Iran, with the Strait of Hormuz identified as the center of the crisis. The situation is having an immediate impact on global markets and raising concerns about energy supplies, adding infrastructure and personnel risks to the industry's war-related worries.

Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has warned that India's semiconductor ambitions will face cyberattacks, fake news campaigns and even physical attacks as the country expands its chip manufacturing push. Citing past incidents during Apple's rollout in India, including cut power lines and deliberate food poisoning of workers, he said sabotage attempts should be expected and that the government is prepared to counter them.

The rapid expansion of data centers across the United States is drawing attention for how it is transforming physical landscapes, with large facilities appearing in rural and suburban areas to meet growing demand for cloud computing and artificial intelligence. Commenters are weighing the economic benefits against concerns over energy use, water consumption and effects on local communities.

At least a dozen Chinese banks plan to wind down their retail leveraged precious-metals trading services, according to a widely shared report. The move restricts retail investors' access to leveraged gold and silver products at a time when demand for physical precious metals in China is described as surging.

A new Brookings Institution study examines the enormous physical footprint of the AI boom, from specialized chips and electricity demand to purpose-built data centers, noting that two-thirds of a data center's cost can go into hardware and construction. The report assesses how large the buildout has become and what financial and economic risks it may pose if AI investment slows or falls short of expectations.

Roughly 85% of the matter in the universe has never been directly detected, as it does not interact with standard instruments. UCLA astrophysicist Alvine Kamaha and the LUX-ZEPLIN collaboration are working nearly a mile (1.6 km) underground in South Dakota, tracking rare particle interactions in an effort to identify dark matter and shed light on one of physics' biggest open questions.

A new report examines how major technology companies are confronting physical security risks tied to the ongoing conflict involving Iran. The analysis also assesses Iran's broader political, economic, and military resilience, and outlines the limits of US military power in the Middle East as the war continues.

The Pentagon is asking for $30.3 million over five years to develop an AI-powered lie detection system that can analyze body language remotely, without physical contact. The program, called Polygraph Next, is included in the Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency's 2027 budget request. Commenters are raising concerns about the privacy implications and scientific reliability of automated deception detection, noting that traditional polygraph accuracy is already contested.

French AI startup Mistral AI has opened a new hub in Munich dedicated to physics-based and industrial AI applications. The German facility is expected to support research into AI for manufacturing, engineering and scientific use cases, strengthening Mistral's European footprint. The move signals the company's push beyond general-purpose chatbots into applied industrial technology, at a time when European AI firms are seeking to compete with US and Chinese rivals.

SiMa.ai, a chip developer focused on physical AI, has reached a valuation of $1.45 billion. The company builds semiconductor technology designed to bring AI processing to physical systems such as machines and edge devices. The valuation places it among the more prominent independent AI chip startups, in a sector drawing intense investor interest as companies race to supply hardware for artificial intelligence beyond data centers.

Ukraine has announced a large-scale programme to build an 'army of robots', described by officials as a 'Manhattan Project for physical AI'. The initiative aims to develop autonomous ground and aerial systems at scale for battlefield use, drawing comparisons to the World War Two atomic research effort. The announcement has drawn international attention given Ukraine's ongoing war with Russia and the growing role of drones and robotics in modern combat.

Ukraine's cybersecurity leadership, represented by Koretskyy, has described measures the country is taking to protect its internet infrastructure against ongoing Russian cyberattacks. The remarks detail defensive preparations as Ukraine continues to face digital threats alongside the physical war, highlighting how critical networks and services are being shielded from disruption.

Researchers report observing how an aggressive brain cancer physically remodels brain tissue as it grows, offering a live view of tumor progression. The findings shed light on how deadly brain tumors invade and distort surrounding structures, which could inform future treatment approaches. The work is drawing attention for its striking visualization of the disease's effects on the brain.

New reporting highlights that people who survived cancer in childhood face a significantly elevated risk of serious mental health difficulties in adulthood, including depression, anxiety and other psychiatric conditions. The findings point to long-term psychological effects of early cancer diagnosis and treatment, and renew calls for survivors to receive sustained mental health monitoring and support, not just physical follow-up care, well into their adult lives.

Researchers at Children's National Hospital report that children with chronic kidney disease show declines in cardiopulmonary fitness early in the course of the disease. The findings suggest reduced exercise capacity may develop well before advanced kidney damage, prompting calls for early monitoring and tailored physical activity programmes for affected children.

Consultancy Bain & Company says artificial intelligence is reshaping retail in ways that will push underperforming stores out of the market. The firm argues retailers that fail to adopt AI-driven operations, pricing and customer insights risk losing ground to more efficient competitors, accelerating store closures across the sector.

New research presented via EurekAlert describes how artificial intelligence paired with physics-based methods is advancing imaging techniques, including work that makes the invisible visible and automates the colorization of anime footage. The announcement highlights computational imaging as a growing field where machine learning and physical modeling intersect, with potential applications in science and animation production.

A Harvard study reports that students learning physics with an AI tutor outperformed peers in a traditional classroom setting. The findings suggest personalized, interactive AI instruction can deliver greater learning gains than standard lectures, reigniting debate over how AI should fit into education and what it means for the future of teaching.

Researchers led by Dr. Jona Kayser at MPZPM report that physical processes in dense cell populations play a decisive role in determining the optimal timing of treatment cycles. The finding addresses treatment resistance, described as one of the key challenges in cancer and antibiotic therapy, and suggests treatment scheduling could be improved by accounting for how densely packed cells interact physically rather than relying on biological factors alone.

A new study reports that people with internet addiction show signs of exhausted physiological stress systems, suggesting chronic online overuse may wear down the body's stress-response mechanisms. The findings add to growing concern among researchers about how heavy, compulsive internet use affects physical health, not just mental wellbeing or daily functioning.

A Harvard study reports that students learning physics with an AI tutor outperformed peers taught through traditional in-class instruction. The findings suggest personalised, interactive AI guidance can deliver stronger learning gains than standard lessons, at least in physics. Educators are debating what the result means for the future of teaching and whether the model could be replicated across other subjects and institutions.

New research highlights that people living with severe mental illness die more than 10 years earlier than the general population. Researchers point to contributing factors behind the gap, which is widely attributed in the field to physical health conditions going undertreated, higher rates of smoking and cardiovascular disease, medication side effects, and poorer access to healthcare. The finding has renewed calls to close the life-expectancy gap for this group.