Researchers in Spain and Japan tested a broad range of pedestrians in varying group sizes to see whether there were any patterns to their turning behaviors, and what factors influence them if there are. It turns out that the vast majority of people have a preference for counterclockwise turning. Most factors such as culture or gender made little difference. Only age showed a noticeable but small change in that younger people followed this pattern more strongly. This area of research could impact our understanding of the brain, and fields like design, engineering and architecture. The original research, including the initial experiments and analysis, was conducted by the Department of Physics and Mathematics at the University of Navarra in Spain, with additional comparative experiments later carried out in Japan in collaboration with the University of Tokyo team. 

Ultrahot exoplanet, atmospheric differences: Researchers discovered clear differences in the atmosphere between the morning and evening sides of the ultrahot gas planet WASP-121 b using the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST).

Temperature and chemical variations: The evening side absorbs more infrared light due to higher temperatures caused by strong winds moving heat eastward, while water molecules decrease in the evening terminator due to high temperatures breaking them apart.

Planetary rotation and observation method: WASP-121 b’s synchronous rotation reveals different atmospheric regions during transit, allowing scientists to analyse changes in light absorption over time and longitude.

Researchers innovated artificial photosynthesis technology by optimizing the electrolyzer part of the system. This tweak enables the continuous production of solar fuel, even with fluctuations in sunlight intensity.

A study  in the Journal of Cosmology and Astroparticle Physics (JCAP)  explores how a machine-learning strategy known as transfer learning could dramatically reduce the computational cost of searching for new physics beyond the standard cosmological model — while also revealing an unexpected risk: sometimes AI systems can become too reliant on what they already know.

Managing the 1.7 billion tons of pig manure produced globally each year presents a dual challenge for agriculture: preventing air and water pollution while retaining valuable nutrients for fertilizer. Aerobic composting is a common solution, but the process releases significant amounts of ammonia (NH₃), an air pollutant, and nitrous oxide (N₂O), a potent greenhouse gas. Researchers at the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences have developed an effective and scalable solution by creating an iron-modified biochar (FeBC) that simultaneously cuts these emissions and improves compost quality.

The research team, led by Qingwen Zhang, prepared the additive by infusing biochar derived from corn stover with an iron solution. This simple modification produced a material with a 4.6-fold increase in specific surface area and a richer array of surface functional groups compared to untreated biochar. In a controlled composting experiment with pig manure, the addition of 5% FeBC dramatically reduced cumulative NH₃ emissions by 46.7% and N₂O emissions by 41.7% relative to the unamended control. The iron-fortified biochar also outperformed standard biochar, demonstrating its superior ability to lock nitrogen into the compost.

Over-reliance on chemical fertilizers to feed a growing population has often led to soil degradation and a decline in microbial diversity. Scientists are seeking sustainable alternatives that can maintain crop yields while revitalizing the soil. A new field study from the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences offers a promising solution by demonstrating how biogas slurry—a nutrient-rich liquid byproduct of anaerobic digestion—can significantly enhance soil health and its ability to sequester carbon.

The investigation was conducted over three years at a dryland agriculture research station in China. Researchers compared the effects of applying biogas slurry topdressing (BST) against conventional chemical fertilizer topdressing (CFT) on maize crops. By collecting soil samples at three different depths and three distinct crop growth stages, the team performed a comprehensive analysis of soil chemistry and used 16S rRNA gene sequencing to map the changes in the bacterial communities over time and space.