Physicists find strongest evidence yet for glueballs made of pure force

Physicists find strongest evidence yet for a glueball after 50-year hunt The BES III collaboration at Beijing's BEPCII collider reports that X(2370) is dominated by a glueball, an exotic particle made entirely of gluons. The result, presented at ICHEP in Brazil, would be the first particle composed purely of force carriers. 1

Proton collisions hint that gluons, not quarks, carry baryon number STAR detector measurements at Brookhaven's RHIC suggest a Y-shaped gluon structure, not the three valence quarks, may store a proton's baryon number. If confirmed, the finding challenges the naive quark model of matter. 2

Webb sees then loses a possible Saturn-mass planet around Alpha Centauri A A faint mid-infrared point source seen once by Webb's MIRI in 2024 and absent in two later looks could still be a real Saturn-mass planet, according to orbital simulations in two ApJ Letters papers. The candidate, S1, would orbit roughly twice the Earth-Sun distance from Alpha Centauri A. 3

Single-dose malaria drug could simplify treatment worldwide, researchers say University of Dundee-discovered cabamiquine, given with pyronaridine, was effective and well tolerated in early trials in adults and teenagers. Researchers say a single-dose regimen could simplify prevention and treatment as malaria drug resistance rises. 4

Scientists reprogram how light travels in just 74 femtoseconds Caltech and Tel Aviv University researchers used a resonant silicon metasurface to redirect and reshape a light beam within 74 quadrillionths of a second. The Nature Nanotechnology result could enable optical systems that respond far faster than rotating mirrors or liquid crystals. 5

A single psilocybin dose relieves chronic pain and depression in mice A single dose calmed hyperactive anterior cingulate cortex circuits in mice, reversing chronic pain sensitivity and depression-like behavior within a day. The Nature Neuroscience findings suggest one treatment could target shared roots of pain and mood disorders. 6

Hunger neurons help semaglutide maintain weight loss, Yale study finds In mice, sustained semaglutide activated AgRP hunger neurons, and disabling them made the drug less effective at maintaining weight loss. The PNAS study challenges the assumption that GLP-1 drugs work only by suppressing appetite. 7

Rare kaon decay hints at new particle or force beyond existing physics Physicists observed four instances of an ultra-rare kaon decay when the Standard Model predicted fewer than one, hinting at possible new physics. The anomaly could be measurement noise, a new particle, or a new force. 8

Earth's chemistry wobbled before its five biggest mass extinctions A Nature Communications analysis of 539 million years of isotope data finds Earth's climate passed through sharp transitions marked by high biosphere vulnerability before the Big Five mass extinctions. The metric could serve as an early-warning signal for biodiversity crises. 9

Rescue spacecraft LINK closes in on decaying Swift observatory After two reaction-wheel failures, a flight software update stabilized Katalyst's LINK, which is now trailing NASA's Swift and aiming to boost its orbit before it burns up later this year. Amateur video captured the pair in low Earth orbit. 10