Browse Physics

A theoretical approach explores the role of shape in the ability of cells to sense environmental changes.

Measurements of microbubbles in blood vessels under ultrasonic exposure show complex behavior that might relate to potential tissue damage.

New techniques measure mechanical properties of proteins without damaging them.

Spatial variations can drive evolution in certain ecological habitats.

Accounting for vertical forces leads to a greater understanding of how cells physically interact with soft substrates.

The answer to why the wings of certain butterflies diffract light in a reverse rainbow spectrum is found in the structure of the wing scales.

The effects of ionizing radiation in an aqueous environment are often calculated in clusters of water molecules, but how well does this approximate the response of a bulk liquid?

A better understanding of human pitch perception has been achieved with an electronic analog of the cochlea.

A simple model explores some of the factors that constrain the shape of rodlike bacteria as they grow.

Time-lapse images of DNA molecules in a bacterial cell reveal the forces that can inhibit diffusion.

If the mechanism that allows birds to navigate is chemical in nature, the tools of quantum information might be in the driver’s seat.

New ways to describe the spread of “persistent” diseases, which can lie dormant in the population for years, are emerging from statistical physics.

DNA replication slows if the number of defects in a genome is above a threshold value.

Relatively small tension in a DNA strand can have large effects on its ability to control the expression of genes.

The shapes of “binding proteins” contribute to the ease with which they can diffuse along DNA until they reach a specific sequence.

Physicists present the mechanism of a DNA-based molecular motor that is fueled by a catalytic reaction and walks in one direction along a reusable track.

Given that vaccine supplies are often limited, a quantitative understanding of how the number and frequency of vaccinations can affect the growth rate of disease would be useful. Physicists show that even a small number of randomly vaccinated individuals can exponentially increase the extinction rate of a disease.

Molecular dynamics simulations show that thermal gradients – of order 1010 K over a meter - can polarize liquid water. The finding could have interesting implications for developing hyperthermal treatments that target cancer cells.