@phdthesis{21651,
  abstract     = {Blockchains enable distributed consensus in permissionless settings, where participants
are unknown, dynamically changing, and do not trust each other. While Bitcoin,
based on Proof-of-Work (PoW), was the first protocol in this model, significant
research has focused on permissionless protocols using alternative physical resources,
specifically Proof-of-Space (PoSpace) and Verifiable Delay Functions (VDFs). This
thesis investigates the theoretical limits and design space of longest-chain protocols in
the fully permissionless and dynamically available settings using these three resources.
First, we address the feasibility of blockchains relying solely on storage as a resource.
We prove a fundamental impossibility result: there exists no secure longest-chain
protocol based exclusively on Proof-of-Space in the fully permissionless or dynamically
available settings. Further, we quantify the adversarial capabilities required to execute
a double-spend attack. Our result formally justifies the necessity of coupling PoSpace
with time-dependent primitives (such as VDFs) or to move to less permissive settings
(quasi-permissionless or permissioned) to ensure security.
Second, we generalize Nakamoto-like heaviest chain consensus to protocols utilizing
combinations of multiple physical resources. We analyze chain selection rules governed
by a weight function Γ(S, V,W), which assigns weight to blocks based on recorded
Space (S), VDF speed (V ), and Work (W). We provide a complete classification
of secure weight functions, proving that a weight function is secure against private
double-spend attacks if and only if it is homogeneous in the timed resources (V,W)
and sub-homogeneous in S. This framework unifies existing protocols like Bitcoin and
Chia under a single theoretical model and provides a powerful tool for designing new
longest-chain blockchains from a mix of physical resources.},
  author       = {Baig, Mirza Ahad},
  isbn         = {978-3-99078-078-7},
  issn         = {2663-337X},
  publisher    = {Institute of Science and Technology Austria},
  title        = {{On secure chain selection rules from physical resources in a permissionless setting}},
  doi          = {10.15479/AT-ISTA-21651},
  year         = {2026},
}

@article{21436,
  abstract     = {The cobalt-intercalated transition metal dichalcogenide CoxTaS2 hosts a rich landscape of magnetic phases that depend sensitively on x. While the stoichiometric compound with x = 1/3 exhibits a single magnetic transition, samples with x≤0.325 display two transitions with an anomalous Hall effect (AHE) emerging in the lower temperature phase. Here, we resolve the spin structure in each phase by employing a suite of magneto-optical probes that include the discovery of anomalous magneto-birefringence: a spontaneous time-reversal sensitive rotation of the principal optic axes. A symmetry-based analysis identifies the AHE-active phase as an anisotropic (2+1)Q state, in which magnetic modulation at one wavevector (Q) differs in symmetry from that at the remaining two. The (2+1)Q state naturally exhibits scalar spin chirality as a mechanism for the AHE and expands the classification of multi-Q magnetic phases.},
  author       = {Kruppe, Jonathon and Rodriguez, Josue and Xu, Catherine and Analytis, James and Orenstein, Joseph and Sunko, Veronika},
  issn         = {2397-4648},
  journal      = {npj Quantum Materials},
  publisher    = {Springer Nature},
  title        = {{Anisotropic multi-Q order in CoxTaS2}},
  doi          = {10.1038/s41535-026-00856-w},
  year         = {2026},
}

@article{21714,
  abstract     = {Be stars are rapidly rotating main-sequence stars that play a crucial role in understanding stellar evolution and binary interactions. In this Letter, we propose a new formation scenario for black hole (BH) + Be star binaries (hereafter BHBe binaries), where the Be star is produced through the wind Roche lobe overflow (WRLOF) mechanism. Our analysis is based on numerical simulations of the WRLOF process in massive binaries, building on recent theoretical work. We demonstrate that the WRLOF model can efficiently form BHBe binaries under reasonable assumptions on stellar wind velocities. Using rapid binary population synthesis, we estimate the population of such systems in the Milky Way, predicting ∼1800−3200 currently existing BHBe binaries originating from the WRLOF channel. These systems are characterized by high eccentricities and exceptionally wide orbits, with typical orbital periods exceeding 1000 days and a peak distribution around ∼10,000 days. Due to their long orbital separations, these BHBe binaries are promising targets for future detection via astrometric and interferometric observations.},
  author       = {Li, Zhenwei and Jia, Shi and Wei, Dandan and Ge, Hongwei and Chen, Hailiang and Zhang, Yangyang and Chen, Xuefei and Han, Zhanwen},
  issn         = {2041-8213},
  journal      = {The Astrophysical Journal Letters},
  number       = {2},
  publisher    = {IOP Publishing},
  title        = {{Formation of Be stars via wind accretion: Case study on Black Hole + Be star binaries}},
  doi          = {10.3847/2041-8213/ae3008},
  volume       = {996},
  year         = {2026},
}

@article{21718,
  abstract     = {In this paper, we consider the big algebra recently introduced by Hausel for the GLn-action on the coordinate ring of the matrix space Mat(n,r). In particular, we obtain explicit formulas for the big algebra generators in terms of differential operators with polynomial coefficients. We show that big algebras in type A are commutative and relate them to the Bethe subalgebra in the Yangian Y(gln). We apply these results to big algebras of symmetric powers of the standard representation of GLn.
.},
  author       = {Ngo, Nhok T},
  issn         = {1815-0659},
  journal      = {Symmetry, Integrability and Geometry: Methods and Applications},
  publisher    = {National Academy of Science of Ukraine},
  title        = {{Big algebra in type A for the coordinate ring of the matrix space}},
  doi          = {10.3842/SIGMA.2026.024},
  volume       = {22},
  year         = {2026},
}

@article{21721,
  abstract     = {Swimming bacteria move through a fluid by actuating their moving body parts. They are force-free and can be described as hydrodynamic force dipoles: pushers or pullers. This modelling description is broadly used in biological physics and active matter research, and it has successfully predicted, for example, the superfluid behaviour of suspensions of pushers or the bend instability and emergence of turbulent flows in active nematics. However, this description accounts only for the translational motion of the swimming body and neglects the effects of hydrodynamic torque dipoles, which are relevant to bacteria with rotary motor-driven flagella, such as swimming Escherichia coli. Here we show that the torque dipole of confined swimming E. coli can power the persistent rotation of symmetric discs. The torque dipole leads to a traction force on the discs, an additive mechanism that is both contactless and independent of the orientation of the bacteria. Our results indicate that the torque dipole of swimming E. coli is notable in confined geometries, which is relevant to bacterial transport through porous materials, biofilms and the development of chiral fluids.},
  author       = {Grober, Daniel B and Dhar, Tanumoy and Saintillan, David and Palacci, Jérémie A},
  issn         = {1745-2481},
  journal      = {Nature Physics},
  publisher    = {Springer Nature},
  title        = {{The hydrodynamic torque dipole from rotary bacterial flagella powers symmetric discs}},
  doi          = {10.1038/s41567-026-03189-4},
  year         = {2026},
}

@article{21730,
  abstract     = {Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) is a crucial member of the reactive oxygen species (ROS) family, playing roles in cellular signalling and immune responses in human health. Moreover, it is a potential biomarker of diabetes when present in aberrant concentrations. Therefore, monitoring trace levels of H2O2 has become a research hotspot for analytical and sensor chemists. In this context, we report a rhodamine-based fluorescent probe (RN), which shows excellent fluorescent enhancement at 555 nm upon the addition of H2O2 along with a low limit of detection (LOD) of 0.67 ppm and fast response (∼2 min). The probe is highly selective for H2O2, showing no fluorescence enhancement with other ROS. RN is synthesised in a one-pot chemical reaction using rhodamine 6G (R6G) and 4,7,10-trioxa-1,13-tridecanediamine (TTDA). H2O2 detection in pre-treated milk samples proves its real-world viability. We found that RN shows low cytotoxicity, which allowed us to successfully explore its potential to monitor H2O2 generation in a diabetic L929 skin cell line and diabetic mice liver tissue. This result demonstrates promising features for assessing early diabetic progression through fluorescence imaging.},
  author       = {Mondal, Moumita and Ghorai, Pravat and Samadder, Asmita and Freunberger, Stefan Alexander and Banerjee, Priyabrata},
  issn         = {2050-7518},
  journal      = {Journal of Materials Chemistry B},
  publisher    = {Royal Society of Chemistry},
  title        = {{H2O2 responsive rhodamine-based probe for monitoring early-stage diabetes diagnosis}},
  doi          = {10.1039/d5tb02687c},
  year         = {2026},
}

@phdthesis{20991,
  abstract     = {Rapid local adaptation to new environments is critical for species persistence, especially in introduced populations. The evolutionary success of these populations is fundamentally dictated by the organization of genetic variation—the genomic architecture—in the face of severe demographic constraints, such as the founder effects and genetic bottlenecks that frequently accompany colonization. A central question in evolutionary biology is whether rapid adaptation relies on major-effect loci, such as chromosomal inversions, or on many small-effect loci dispersed across the genome. Furthermore, the genomic architecture strongly influences the extent to which evolutionary outcomes are predictable. Using introduced populations of the marine snail, Littorina saxatilis, as a model, this thesis investigates how genetic variation and genomic structure drive adaptation following introduction. We employed a population genomics approach on experimentally and accidentally introduced populations to dissect the specific genomic features that underpin divergence in newly colonized environments.

In Chapter 2, we tested the predictability of local adaptation through an uncommon 30-year transplant experiment in nature. By distinguishing allele and chromosomal inversion frequency changes from neutral expectations, we found that evolutionary change was highly predictable at the macro-scale (phenotypes and chromosomal inversions), but less robust at the level of individual collinear loci. This result demonstrates that evolution can be predictable when a population possesses sufficient standing genetic variation (SGV), with chromosomal inversions acting as key integrated units that facilitate a rapid response to selection. Building on this, Chapter 3 applied whole-genome sequencing to three accidentally introduced populations (Venice, San Francisco, and Redwood City) to investigate their likely source and genomic patterns of divergence. We identified genomic regions of remarkable divergence potentially associated with local adaptation, and likely fuelled by SGV, while explicitly acknowledging the difficulty in disentangling selection signals from the genome-wide effects of demographic processes. Furthermore, we found that the divergence patterns relied extensively on the collinear genome in these introduced populations, and less clearly on the chromosomal inversions. This observation contrasts with local adaptation observed in the experimental system that relied on both collinear loci and highly selected chromosomal inversions, highlighting how demographic history and genomic architecture influence the detectable signature of local adaptation.

A major limitation to conducting large-scale comparative evolutionary studies is the lack of data standardization, which prevents the integration of community knowledge and high-resolution environmental and genetic data. Chapter 4 addresses this by developing a community database for the Littorina system. This platform implements standardized protocols for the integration of diverse phenotypic and environmental data from multiple Littorina species. Likewise, the platform also centralizes the availability of associated genomic data through links to external repositories. This database represents a crucial tool to test complex, large-scale evolutionary hypotheses.

Collectively, this thesis strongly reinforces the fundamental importance of SGV as the raw material for successful local adaptation, a conclusion supported by evidence in both experimental and accidental introductions. Furthermore, this work highlights the critical role of the genomic architecture—specifically chromosomal inversions—in driving the predictability and effectiveness of adaptive responses. Our findings underscore how the interplay between SGV and genomic architecture dictates the trajectory and detectability of evolution in colonizing populations, while simultaneously providing a necessary tool to advance comparative evolutionary genomics in emerging model organisms.},
  author       = {Garcia Castillo, Diego Fernando},
  isbn         = {978-3-99078-077-0},
  issn         = {2663-337X},
  pages        = {199},
  publisher    = {Institute of Science and Technology Austria},
  title        = {{The genomic architecture of local adaptation in introduced populations}},
  doi          = {10.15479/AT-ISTA-20991},
  year         = {2026},
}

@article{21537,
  abstract     = {Nanophotonics has revolutionized the control of light-matter interactions in various fields of fundamental science and technology. In this work, we propose Implosion Fabrication (ImpFab) as a versatile nanophotonics fabrication platform providing the highest spatial resolution, material versatility, and full volumetric control. ImpFab uniquely combines top-down lithography with bottom-up nanoparticle assembly within a hydrogel scaffold, enabling precise control over optical material properties, such as refractive index, by adjusting printing parameters. We showcase the potential of ImpFab by fabricating three-dimensional photonic crystals and quasicrystals, as well as demonstrating optical structures with spatially modulated unit cell material properties. Our results highlight the potential of ImpFab in producing nanostructures with tailored optical functionalities, which are crucial for applications in sensing, imaging, and information processing, and opening new avenues in developing non-Hermitian photonic systems with spatially controlled gain and loss.},
  author       = {Salamin, Yannick and Yang, Gaojie and Mills, Brian and Grossi Fonseca, André and Roques-Carmes, Charles and Yang, Quansan and Beroz, Justin and Kooi, Steven E. and de Miguel Comella, Marc and Mak, Kiran and Vaidya, Sachin and Oran, Daniel and Swain, Corban and Sun, Yi and Maayani, Shai and Sloan, Jamison and Amin Elfadil Elawad, Amel and Lopez, Josue J. and Boyden, Edward S. and Soljačić, Marin},
  issn         = {2047-7538},
  journal      = {Light: Science & Applications},
  publisher    = {Springer Nature},
  title        = {{Three-dimensional nanophotonics with spatially modulated optical properties}},
  doi          = {10.1038/s41377-025-02166-5},
  volume       = {15},
  year         = {2026},
}

@article{21555,
  abstract     = {Spin-polarized electron beam sources enable studies of spin-dependent electric and magnetic effects at the nanoscale. We propose a method of creating spin-polarized electrons on an integrated photonics chip by laser-driven nanophotonic fields. A two-stage interaction separated by a free-space drift length is proposed, where the first stage and drift length introduces spin-dependent characteristics into the probability distribution of the electron wave function. The second stage uses an adjusted optical near field to rotate the spin states utilizing the spin-dependent wave-packet distribution to produce electrons with high ensemble average spin expectation values. This platform provides an integrated and compact method to generate spin-polarized electrons, implementable with millimeter scale chips and tabletop lasers.},
  author       = {Woodahl, Clarisse and Murillo, Melanie and Roques-Carmes, Charles and Karnieli, Aviv and Miller, David A. B. and Solgaard, Olav},
  issn         = {1079-7114},
  journal      = {Physical Review Letters},
  number       = {6},
  publisher    = {American Physical Society},
  title        = {{On-chip laser-driven free-electron spin polarizer}},
  doi          = {10.1103/3c1m-d3hh},
  volume       = {136},
  year         = {2026},
}

@article{21583,
  abstract     = {Non-Hermiticity naturally arises in physical systems that exchange energy with their environment. The presence of non-Hermiticity leads to many topological physics phenomena and device applications. In the non-Hermitian energy band theory, the foundation of these physics and applications, both energies and wave vectors take complex values. The energy bands thus become a Riemann surface, and such an energy-band Riemann surface underlies all important signatures of non-Hermitian topology. Despite a long history and recent theoretical interests, the energy-band Riemann surface has not been experimentally studied. Here, we provide a photonic observation of the energy-band Riemann surface of a non-Hermitian system. This is achieved by a tunable imaginary gauge transformation in photonic synthetic frequency dimensions. From measured topologies of the Riemann surface, we reveal the complex-energy winding, the open-boundary-condition spectrum, the generalized Brillouin zone, and the branch points. Our findings demonstrate a unified framework in the studies of diverse effects in non-Hermitian topological physics through an experimental observation of energy-band Riemann surfaces.},
  author       = {Cheng, Dali and Wang, Heming and Zhong, Janet and Lustig, Eran and Roques-Carmes, Charles and Fan, Shanhui},
  issn         = {2375-2548},
  journal      = {Science Advances},
  number       = {12},
  publisher    = {American Association for the Advancement of Science},
  title        = {{Experimental observation of energy-band Riemann surface}},
  doi          = {10.1126/sciadv.aec8239},
  volume       = {12},
  year         = {2026},
}

@article{21764,
  abstract     = {Colloidal fluids can exhibit complex phase behavior and determining phase diagrams via experiments or computer simulations can be laborious. We demonstrate that the dispersion relation ω(k), obtained from dynamical density functional theory for the uniform density system, is a highly versatile tool for predicting where in the phase diagram complex crystals form. The sign of ω(k) determines whether density modes with wave number k grow or decay over time. We demonstrate the predictive power by investigating the complex phase behavior of particles interacting via core-shoulder pair potentials. With complementary Monte Carlo simulations, we show that regions of the phase diagram where ωðkÞ has one or several unstable (growing) wave numbers are also where crystalline phases occur. Going further, by tuning these
unstable wave numbers via the interaction-potential and state-point parameters, we design systems with quasicrystals in the phase diagram. We identify a system with a certain shoulder range exhibiting at least ten different phases. Our general approach accelerates considerably the mapping of complex phase diagrams, crucial for the design of new materials.},
  author       = {Wassermair, Michael and Kahl, Gerhard and Roth, Roland and Archer, Andrew J.},
  issn         = {1079-7114},
  journal      = {Physical Review Letters},
  number       = {14},
  publisher    = {American Physical Society},
  title        = {{Navigating complex phase diagrams in soft matter systems}},
  doi          = {10.1103/nbvt-fgjy},
  volume       = {136},
  year         = {2026},
}

@article{21765,
  abstract     = {Dielectric particles of the same material exchange electrical charge during collisions or sliding contacts, yet the underlying charge-exchange mechanism is still not understood. The fact that particles can become highly charged as a result of this effect has significant consequences for many settings, both in nature and industry, such as thunderstorms, volcanic eruptions, particle aggregation during meteorite and planet formation, and the clogging of industrial granular systems. Toward understanding these systems, great efforts have been made to develop precise in situ measurements for particle charge, e.g., to determine ensemble charge distributions or measure exchange during individual contacts. Here, we present experimental results concerning the particle size scaling of the stationary-state charge distributions of oxide particles in the sub-millimeter range. We measure the charge distributions for large ensembles of monodisperse ZrO2:SiO2 composite spheres, ranging from 172 to 545µ⁢m in diameter. These distributions are non-Gaussian and collapse to a single master curve when plotted as functions of the surface charge density Σ=𝑞/4⁢𝜋⁢𝑅2. X-ray fluorescence and atomic force microscopy measurements show that the differences in the measured charge distributions are not due to variations in chemical composition or surface roughness, but rather to size alone. Our findings provide constraints on microscopic models for charge exchange, namely that they should lead to steady-state distributions that are non-Gaussian and scale in a specific way with particle size.},
  author       = {Lara, Macarena and Flores, Marcos and Castillo, Gustavo and Tassara, Santiago and Waitukaitis, Scott R and Mujica, Nicolás},
  issn         = {2475-9953},
  journal      = {Physical Review Materials},
  number       = {4},
  publisher    = {American Physical Society},
  title        = {{Particle size scaling of non-Gaussian granular charge distributions}},
  doi          = {10.1103/qw6t-xqdw},
  volume       = {10},
  year         = {2026},
}

@article{21743,
  abstract     = {We present symplectic structures on the shape space of unparameterized space curves that generalize the classical Marsden–Weinstein structure. Our method integrates the Liouville 1-form of the Marsden–Weinstein structure with Riemannian structures that have been introduced in mathematical shape analysis. We also derive Hamiltonian vector fields for several classical Hamiltonian functions with respect to these new symplectic structures.},
  author       = {Bauer, Martin and Ishida, Sadashige and Michor, Peter W.},
  issn         = {1432-1467},
  journal      = {Journal of Nonlinear Science},
  number       = {2},
  publisher    = {Springer Nature},
  title        = {{Symplectic structures on the space of space curves}},
  doi          = {10.1007/s00332-026-10266-8},
  volume       = {36},
  year         = {2026},
}

@unpublished{21737,
  abstract     = {In calculus, l'Hopital's rule provides a simple way to evaluate the limits of quotient functions when both the numerator and denominator vanish. But what happens when we move beyond real functions on a real interval? In this article, we study when the quotient of two complex-valued functions in higher dimension can be defined continuously at the points where both functions vanish. Surprisingly, the answer is far subtler than in the real-valued setting. We provide a complete characterization for the continuity of the quotient function. We also point out why extending this result to smoother quotients remains an intriguing challenge.},
  author       = {Chern, Albert and Ishida, Sadashige},
  booktitle    = {arXiv},
  keywords     = {l’Hopital theorem, complex functions},
  title        = {{L'Hopital rules for complex-valued functions in higher dimensions}},
  doi          = {10.48550/ARXIV.2602.09958},
  year         = {2026},
}

@article{21767,
  abstract     = {The involvement of non-scientific staff in discussions about animal welfare and scientific quality is essential for biomedical research progress. In this study, we developed a survey to collect the self-perception of animal care staff (ACS) and laboratory technicians about their involvement in scientific planning and conduct. Participants were contacted to complete an anonymous online questionnaire. We obtained 850 responses, mainly from Europe: 564 from ACS and 286 from laboratory technicians. Job satisfaction was assessed as positive by ACS and laboratory technicians despite the low frequency of culture of care activities and mental health meetings. Both groups expressed their desire to be trained in research planning and conduct; however, regular training was not reported. In addition, the inability to act on animal welfare concerns owing to experimental reasons was reported by both groups. Over half of the participants felt valued and appreciated by the lead scientists or animal facility manager; however, it is not clear how they are acknowledged, as their names on the authors list or in the manuscript acknowledgments are barely included. Our results indicated that involvement of ACS and laboratory technicians in planning and conducting studies would improve their understanding of how experiments are done, and therefore communication processes, work satisfaction, animal welfare, and scientific quality. Finally, we provided recommendations to improve the engagement of ACS and laboratory technicians in discussions about animal research planning and conduct.},
  author       = {Gonzalez-Uarquin, Fernando and Jirkof, Paulin and Bert, Bettina and Hawkins, Penny and Angelovski, Ljupco and Baumgart, Jan and Baumgart, Nadine and Cevik, Özge S. and Franco, Nuno H. and Horata, Erdal and Kaura, Rohish and Neuhaus, Winfried and Riso, Brigida and Smith, Adrian J. and Sotiropoulos, Athanassia and Vitale, Augusto and Schober, Sophie},
  issn         = {1758-1117},
  journal      = {Laboratory Animals},
  publisher    = {SAGE Publications},
  title        = {{Building bridges: Involvement of animal care staff and laboratory technicians in experimental planning and conduct of animal studies for better job satisfaction and science}},
  doi          = {10.1177/00236772251400976},
  year         = {2026},
}

@article{21274,
  abstract     = {Many white dwarfs are observed in compact double white dwarf binaries, and through the emission of gravitational waves, a large fraction are destined to merge. The merger remnants that do not explode in a Type Ia supernova are expected to initially be rapidly rotating and highly magnetized. In this work, we present our discovery of the variable white dwarf ZTF J200832.79+444939.67, hereafter ZTF J2008+4449, as a likely merger remnant showing signs of circumstellar material without a stellar or substellar companion. The nature of ZTF J2008+4449 as a merger remnant is supported by its physical properties: it is hot (35 500 ± 300 K) and massive (1.12 ± 0.03 M
                    <jats:sub>⊙</jats:sub>
                    ), rapidly rotating with a period of ≈6.6 minutes, and likely possesses exceptionally strong magnetic fields (∼400−600 MG) at its surface. Remarkably, we detect a significant period derivative of (1.80 ± 0.09)×10
                    <jats:sup>−12</jats:sup>
                    s/s, indicating that the white dwarf is spinning down, and a soft X-ray emission that is inconsistent with photospheric emission. As the presence of a mass-transferring stellar or brown dwarf companion is excluded by infrared photometry, the detected spin-down and X-ray emission could be tell-tale signs of a magnetically driven wind or of interaction with circumstellar material, possibly originating from the fallback of gravitationally bound merger ejecta or from the tidal disruption of a planetary object. We also detect Balmer emission, which requires the presence of ionized hydrogen in the vicinity of the white dwarf, showing Doppler shifts as high as ≈2000 km s
                    <jats:sup>−1</jats:sup>
                    . The unusual variability of the Balmer emission on the spin period of the white dwarf is consistent with the trapping of a half ring of ionized gas in the magnetosphere of the white dwarf.
                  </jats:p>},
  author       = {Cristea, Andrei-Alexandru and Caiazzo, Ilaria and Cunningham, Tim and Raymond, John C. and Vennes, Stephane and Kawka, Adela and Desai, Aayush A and Miller, David R. and Hermes, J. J. and Fuller, Jim and Heyl, Jeremy and van Roestel, Jan and Burdge, Kevin B. and Rodriguez, Antonio C. and Pelisoli, Ingrid and Gänsicke, Boris T. and Szkody, Paula and Kenyon, Scott J. and Vanderbosch, Zach and Drake, Andrew and Ferrario, Lilia and Wickramasinghe, Dayal and Karambelkar, Viraj R. and Justham, Stephen and Pakmor, Ruediger and El-Badry, Kareem and Prince, Thomas and Kulkarni, S. R. and Graham, Matthew J. and Masci, Frank J. and Groom, Steven L. and Purdum, Josiah and Dekany, Richard and Bellm, Eric C.},
  issn         = {1432-0746},
  journal      = {Astronomy & Astrophysics},
  publisher    = {EDP Sciences},
  title        = {{A half ring of ionized circumstellar material trapped in the magnetosphere of a white dwarf merger remnant}},
  doi          = {10.1051/0004-6361/202556432},
  volume       = {706},
  year         = {2026},
}

@article{21485,
  abstract     = {Insulating oxides are among the most abundant solid materials in the universe1,2,3. Of the many ways in which they influence natural phenomena, perhaps the most consequential is their capacity to transfer electrical charge during contact4,5,6,7,8,9,10—which occurs even between samples of the same oxide—yet the symmetry-breaking parameter that causes this remains unidentified11,12. Here we show that adventitious carbonaceous molecules adsorbed from the environment are the symmetry-breaking factor in same-material oxide contact electrification (CE). We use acoustic levitation to measure charge exchange between a sphere and a plate composed of identical amorphous silicon dioxide (SiO2). Although charging polarity is random for co-prepared samples, we control it with baking or plasma treatment. Observing the charge-exchange relaxation afterwards, we see dynamics over a timescale of hours and connect this directly to the presence of adventitious carbon with time-of-flight mass spectrometry, low-energy ion scattering and infrared spectroscopy. Going further, we confirm that adventitious carbon can even determine charge exchange among different oxides. Our results identify the symmetry-breaking parameter that causes insulating oxides to exchange charge in settings ranging from desert sands4 to volcanic plumes5,6, while simultaneously highlighting an overlooked factor in CE more broadly.},
  author       = {Grosjean, Galien M and Ostermann, Markus and Sauer, Markus and Hahn, Michael and Pichler, Christian M. and Fahrnberger, Florian and Pertl, Felix and Balazs, Daniel and Link, Mason M. and Kim, Seong H. and Schrader, Devin L. and Blanco, Adriana and Gracia, Francisco and Mujica, Nicolás and Waitukaitis, Scott R},
  issn         = {1476-4687},
  journal      = {Nature},
  number       = {8106},
  pages        = {626--631},
  publisher    = {Springer Nature},
  title        = {{Adventitious carbon breaks symmetry in oxide contact electrification}},
  doi          = {10.1038/s41586-025-10088-w},
  volume       = {651},
  year         = {2026},
}

@article{21015,
  abstract     = {Early embryo geometry is one of the most invariant species-specific traits, yet its role in ensuring developmental reproducibility and robustness remains underexplored. Here we show that in zebrafish, the geometry of the fertilized egg—specifically its curvature and volume—serves as a critical initial condition triggering a cascade of events that influence development. The embryo geometry guides patterned asymmetric cell divisions in the blastoderm, generating radial gradients of cell volume and nucleocytoplasmic ratio. These gradients generate mitotic phase waves, with the nucleocytoplasmic ratio determining individual cell cycle periods independently of other cells. We demonstrate that reducing cell autonomy reshapes these waves, emphasizing the instructive role of geometry-derived volume patterns in setting the intrinsic period of the cell cycle oscillator. In addition to organizing cell cycles, early embryo geometry spatially patterns zygotic genome activation at the midblastula transition, a key step in establishing embryonic autonomy. Disrupting the embryo shape alters the zygotic genome activation pattern and causes ectopic germ layer specification, underscoring the developmental significance of geometry. Together, our findings reveal a symmetry-breaking function of early embryo geometry in coordinating cell cycle and transcriptional patterning.},
  author       = {Mishra, Nikhil and Li, Yuting I and Hannezo, Edouard B and Heisenberg, Carl-Philipp J},
  issn         = {1745-2481},
  journal      = {Nature Physics},
  pages        = {139--150},
  publisher    = {Springer Nature},
  title        = {{Geometry-driven asymmetric cell divisions pattern cell cycles and zygotic genome activation in the zebrafish embryo}},
  doi          = {10.1038/s41567-025-03122-1},
  volume       = {22},
  year         = {2026},
}

@article{21382,
  abstract     = {The exceptional energy-harvesting efficiency of lead-halide perovskites arises from unusually long photocarrier diffusion lengths and recombination lifetimes that persist even in defect-rich, solution-grown samples. Paradoxically, perovskites are also known for having very short exciton decay times. Here, we resolve this apparent contradiction by showing that key optoelectronic properties of perovskites can be explained by localized flexoelectric polarization confined to interfaces between domains of spontaneous strain. Using birefringence imaging, electrochemical staining, and zero-bias photocurrent measurements, we visualize the domain structure and directly probe the associated internal fields in nominally cubic single crystals of methylammonium lead bromide. We demonstrate that localized flexoelectric fields spatially separate electrons and holes to opposite sides of domain walls, exponentially suppressing recombination. Domain walls thus act as efficient mesoscopic transport channels for long-lived photocarriers, microscopically linking structural heterogeneity to charge transport and offering mechanistically informed design principles for perovskite solar-energy technologies.},
  author       = {Rak, Dmytro and Lorenc, Dusan and Balazs, Daniel and Zhumekenov, Ayan A. and Bakr, Osman M. and Alpichshev, Zhanybek},
  issn         = {2041-1723},
  journal      = {Nature Communications},
  publisher    = {Springer Nature},
  title        = {{Flexoelectric domain walls enable charge separation and transport in cubic perovskites}},
  doi          = {10.1038/s41467-026-68660-5},
  volume       = {17},
  year         = {2026},
}

@article{21488,
  abstract     = {Human height is a model for the genetic analysis of complex traits, and recent studies suggest the presence of thousands of common genetic variant associations and hundreds of low-frequency/rare variants. Here, we develop a new algorithmic paradigm based on approximate message passing (genomic vector approximate message passing [gVAMP]) for identifying DNA sequence variants associated with complex traits and common diseases in large-scale whole-genome sequencing (WGS) data. We show that gVAMP accurately localizes associations to variants with the correct frequency and position in the DNA, outperforming existing fine-mapping methods in selecting the appropriate genetic variants within WGS data. We then apply gVAMP to jointly model the relationship of tens of millions of WGS variants with human height in hundreds of thousands of UK Biobank individuals. We identify 59 rare variants and gene burden scores alongside many hundreds of DNA regions containing common variant associations and show that understanding the genetic basis of complex traits will require the joint analysis of hundreds of millions of variables measured on millions of people. The polygenic risk scores obtained from gVAMP have high accuracy (including a prediction accuracy of ∼46% for human height) and outperform current methods for downstream tasks such as mixed linear model association testing across 13 UK Biobank traits. In conclusion, gVAMP offers a scalable foundation for a wider range of analyses in WGS data.},
  author       = {Depope, Al and Bajzik, Jakub and Mondelli, Marco and Robinson, Matthew Richard},
  issn         = {2666-979X},
  journal      = {Cell Genomics},
  publisher    = {Elsevier},
  title        = {{Joint modeling of whole-genome sequencing data for human height via approximate message passing}},
  doi          = {10.1016/j.xgen.2026.101162},
  year         = {2026},
}