Long-lived mineral grains can be invaluable for reconstructing impact events, but the stories are complex

Reconstructing impact events on Earth and other planetary bodies, including the moon, is crucial for understanding how the solar system evolved and how planets develop.

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Atomic defects leave telltale optical fingerprints in quantum material

The tiny atomic defects so important for future quantum technologies can be difficult to spot. Fortunately, they leave behind some clues. The defects can alter how a material responds to light, producing a distinctive optical fingerprint that scientists can measure. The challenge is figuring out which fingerprints belong to which defects.

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2 Wash. deputies die after being shot while responding to domestic violence call

Spokane County Sheriff’s Office deputies Mason Acheson, a SWAT sniper, and Parker Perry, a K-9 deputy, died after being shot near Spangle; they both leave behind their wives and young children

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High-pressure setup unlocks detailed measurements of organized structures in turbulent flows

Turbulent flows are ubiquitous: they are found in clouds, in the ocean and even on other planets. Yet despite their chaotic nature, they also form large-scale structures that can be calculated and predicted. For example, while long streaks of clouds may appear orderly from the outside, their interiors are characterized by intense turbulence.

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Calif. DOJ calls for training, policy changes after fatal 2023 Amtrak OIS

Six recommendations for Mount Shasta PD address tactical planning, TASER use, de-escalation, dispatch communication and bystander safety

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Two nearby rocky worlds could offer alien astronomers views of planets appearing to reverse course

Aliens have long been a staple of science fiction. Yet the possibility of intelligent life beyond Earth is more than a matter of imagination—it is also a subject of serious scientific inquiry. Professor Woong-bae Zee of Sejong University’s School of Liberal Studies has recently published an astronomy paper that places the word “alien” front and center.

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Quantum interference keeps two atoms bound despite enough energy to break apart

How can something remain intact when it should naturally break apart? This question has been addressed by researchers at RPTU. Their work has led to the experimental observation of an unusual quantum state in which two atoms remain bound together even though they possess enough energy to separate. The results have been published in the journal Nature Physics.

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The fastest levitated spinning magnet ever made might help physicists search for dark matter

Tiny levitated magnets are able to avoid contact friction, making them useful for detecting extremely weak forces and magnetic fields and acting as ultralow-noise quantum sensors and precision measurement tools. Combining levitation with extreme cold further reduces unwanted motion that can make faint signals hard to detect.

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Wis. trooper detained by ICE at airport, released under supervision

The 21-year-old trooper has a work permit valid through 2030; DHS says his family, originally from South Africa, overstayed their visas

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Undercover Calif. officers serving narcotics warrant mistaken for ICE, drawing crowd of nearly 100

The crowd vandalized multiple police vehicles, including slashing tires, while Fontana PD officers identified themselves and said operation had nothing to do with immigration enforcement

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Chirality of ‘trions’ illuminates new paths for quantum optics

Scientists from Tokyo Metropolitan University have discovered that charged states made of two electrons and a positively charged hole (or vice versa) on atomically thin rolls of carbon atoms have a structure-derived “handedness” in how they interact with light. While electron-hole pairs, or “excitons,” were known to keep the chirality of the underlying nanotube, the team showed that adding a charge to create “trions” does not change this property.

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Fla. officer suffers traumatic brain injury after being struck by fleeing suspect’s car

Bradenton Police Department officers were responding to a report of a man with a gun at a Wawa were two were hit by a car as the 35-year-old driver fled

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Optical experiment demonstrates the strong Mpemba effect in a single qubit

Typically, after a physical system is disturbed, it can gradually return toward a state of thermal equilibrium by exchanging heat with its surroundings. Thermal equilibrium is a state in which there is no net transfer of heat between the system and its surroundings.

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JWST tracks more than 100 magnified stellar events in the Dragon galaxy

Using the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), a team of astronomers identified 104 magnified stellar events in a galaxy known as the Dragon, located around 6.5 billion light-years away. This discovery more than doubles the previous record of 44 such detections in the same galaxy. Because these kinds of events reveal some of the most luminous stars and likely the presence of dark matter, this study offers a rare look at the galaxy’s stellar population along with a possible hint at the nature of dark matter.

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How space weather powers auroras in the sky and threatens power grids on the ground

An aurora is one of nature’s most spectacular light shows: It looks like green or red curtains rippling across the night sky. When viewed from the ground, this colorful display might seem far away and disconnected from anything happening on Earth’s surface.

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