Scientific News

Articles across mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, and astronomy.

• Science

  Counterexample

  A counterexample is a specific example that contradicts a claim, hypothesis, or generalization. In logic a counterexample disproves a universally stated claim, and does so rigorously in the fields of mathematics and philosophy. For example, the statement that "student John Smith is not lazy" is a counterexample to the generalization "students are lazy", and both a counterexample to, and disproof o

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  Science

  Counting

  Counting is the process of determining the number of elements of a finite set of objects; that is, determining the size of a set. The traditional way of counting consists of continually increasing a (mental or spoken) counter by a unit for every element of the set, in some order, while marking (or displacing) those elements to avoid visiting the same element more than once, until no unmarked eleme

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  Science

  Coupling constant

  In physics, a coupling constant or gauge coupling parameter (or, more simply, a coupling) is a number that determines the strength of the force exerted in an interaction. Originally, the coupling constant related the force acting between two static bodies to the "charges" of the bodies (i.e. the electric charge for electrostatic and the mass for Newtonian gravity) divided by the distance squared,

  8/24/2026

• Science

  Coupling (physics)

  In physics, coupling is when two objects are interacting with each other, that is they are not independent. In classical mechanics, coupling is a connection between two oscillating systems, such as pendulums connected by a spring. The connection affects the oscillatory pattern of both objects. In particle physics, two particles are coupled if they are connected by one of the four fundamental force

  8/24/2026

• Science

  Counter-electromotive force

  In electromechanics, the counter-electromotive force (also called counter EMF, CEMF or back EMF), is the opposing electromotive force (EMF) caused by a changing current. The changing current leads to a changing magnetic field, and hence induces an EMF in the circuit by Faraday's law of induction.

  8/24/2026

• Science

  Coumaric acid

  Coumaric acid is a phenolic derivative of cinnamic acid having a hydroxy group as substituent at one of the aromatic positions: o-Coumaric acid (ortho-coumaric acid) m-Coumaric acid (meta-coumaric acid) p-Coumaric acid (para-coumaric acid)

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  Science

  Covariant formulation of classical electromagnetism

  The covariant formulation of classical electromagnetism refers to ways of writing the laws of classical electromagnetism (in particular, Maxwell's equations and the Lorentz force) in a form that is manifestly invariant under Lorentz transformations, in the formalism of special relativity using rectilinear inertial coordinate systems. These expressions both make it simple to prove that the laws of

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  Science

  Counting board

  The counting board is the precursor of the abacus, and the earliest known form of a counting device (excluding fingers and other very simple methods). Counting boards were made of stone or wood, and the counting was done on the board with beads, pebbles etc. Not many boards survive because of the perishable materials used in their construction, or the impossibility to identify the object as a coun

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  Science

  Covariance group

  In physics, a covariance group is a group of coordinate transformations between frames of reference. A frame of reference provides a set of coordinates for an observer moving with that frame to make measurements and define physical quantities. The covariance principle states that the laws of physics should transform from one frame to another covariantly, that is, according to a representation of t

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  Science

  Coulomb's law

  Coulomb's inverse-square law, or simply Coulomb's law, is a scientific law of physics that describes the amount of force between two electrically charged particles at rest. This electric force is conventionally called the electrostatic force or Coulomb force. Although the law was known earlier, it was first published in 1785 by French physicist Charles-Augustin de Coulomb. Coulomb's law was essent

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  Science

  Counting rods

  Counting rods (筭) are small bars, typically 3–14 cm (1" to 6") long, that were used by mathematicians for calculation in ancient East Asia. They are placed either horizontally or vertically to represent any integer or rational number. The written forms based on them are called rod numerals. They are a true positional numeral system with digits for 1–9 and a blank for 0, from the Warring states pe

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• Science

  Cotransformation

  Cotransformation is the simultaneous transformation of two or more genes. Only genes in the same chromosomal vicinity can be transformed; the closer together the genes lie, the more frequently they will be cotransformed. By contrast, genes sufficiently far apart that they cannot appear together on a fragment of foreign DNA will almost never be cotransformed, because transformation is so inefficien

  8/24/2026

• Science

  Court jester hypothesis

  The court jester hypothesis is used in reference to the idea that abiotic forces (including climate), rather than biotic competition between species, function as a major driving force behind the processes in evolution which produce speciation. In evolutionary theory, the court jester hypothesis contrasts the Red Queen hypothesis. The term "Court Jester hypothesis" was coined by Anthony Barnosky in

  8/24/2026

• Science

  Cover-abundance

  Cover-abundance is a measure of plant cover, used in phytosociology (or vegetation science). It is based on percentages at the top end, but uses abundance estimates for species with a low plant cover. Several scales of cover-abundance are used, e.g. the original 5-point cover scale of Braun-Blanquet or the Domin scale, with finer subdivisions (from simple presence through 10 grades of linked cover

  8/24/2026

• Science

  Countergradient variation

  Countergradient variation is a type of phenotypic plasticity that occurs when the phenotypic variation determined by a biological population's genetic components opposes the phenotypic variation caused by an environmental gradient. This can cause different populations of the same organism to display similar phenotypes regardless of their underlying genetics and differences in their environments. T

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  Science

  Cothenius Medal

  Cothenius Medal is a medal awarded by the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina (known as the Leopoldina) for outstanding scientific achievement during the life of the awardee. The medal was created to honour Christian Andreas Cothenius, who was the personal physician to Frederick the Great. In 1743, Cothenius became a fellow of the Leopoldina, later president of the learned society that

  8/24/2026

• Science

  Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly Resolution 1580 (2007)

  Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) Resolution 1580 (2007), titled "The dangers of creationism in education", is a resolution adopted by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe on 4 October 2007, in addition to a report of the same name.

  8/24/2026

• Science

  Counting hierarchy

  In complexity theory, the counting hierarchy is a hierarchy of complexity classes. It is analogous to the polynomial hierarchy, but with NP replaced with PP. It was defined in 1986 by Klaus Wagner. More precisely, the zero-th level is C0P = P, and the (n+1)-th level is Cn+1P = PPCnP (i.e., PP with oracle Cn). Thus: C0P = P C1P = PP C2P = PPPP C3P = PPPPPP ... The counting hierarchy is contained w

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  Science

  Copernican principle

  In physical cosmology, the Copernican principle states that humans are not privileged observers of the universe, that observations from the Earth are representative of observations from the average position in the universe. Named for Copernican heliocentrism, it is a working assumption that arises from a modified cosmological extension of Copernicus' argument of a moving Earth.

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  Science

  Conversion therapy

  Conversion therapy is the pseudoscientific practice of attempting to change an individual's sexual orientation, romantic orientation, gender identity, or gender expression to align with heterosexual and cisgender norms. Conversion therapy is ineffective at changing a person's sexual orientation or gender identity and frequently causes significant long-term psychological harm. The position of evide

  8/24/2026

• Science

  Conway chained arrow notation

  Conway chained arrow notation, created by mathematician John Horton Conway, is a means of expressing certain extremely large numbers. It is simply a finite sequence of positive integers separated by rightward arrows, e.g. 2 → 3 → 4 → 5 → 6 {\displaystyle 2\to 3\to 4\to 5\to 6} . As with most

  8/24/2026

• Science

  Copper oxide

  Copper oxide is any of several binary compounds composed of the elements copper and oxygen. Two oxides are well known, Cu2O and CuO, corresponding to the minerals cuprite and tenorite, respectively. Paramelaconite (Cu4O3) is less well characterized. Copper oxide may refer to: Copper(I) oxide (cuprous oxide, Cu2O) Copper(II) oxide (cupric oxide, CuO) Copper peroxide (CuO2), a hypothetical compou

  8/24/2026

• Science

  Cooperative distributed problem solving

  In computing cooperative distributed problem solving is a network of semi-autonomous processing nodes working together to solve a problem, typically in a multi-agent system. That is concerned with the investigation of problem subdivision, sub-problem distribution, results synthesis, optimisation of problem solver coherence and co-ordination. It is closely related to distributed constraint programm

  8/24/2026

• Science

  Copper carbonate

  Copper carbonate may refer to: Copper (II) compounds and minerals Copper(II) carbonate proper, CuCO3 (neutral copper carbonate): a rarely seen moisture-sensitive compound. Basic copper carbonate (the "copper carbonate" of commerce), actually a copper carbonate hydroxide; which may be either Cu2CO3(OH)2: the green mineral malachite, verdigris, the pigment "green verditer" or "mountain green" Cu3(C

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• Science

  Copper chloride

  Copper chloride may refer to: Copper(I) chloride (cuprous chloride), CuCl, mineral name nantokite Copper(II) chloride (cupric chloride), CuCl2, mineral name eriochalcite

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  Science

  Copernican Revolution

  Copernican Revolution is a phrase with different meanings in different contexts. In astronomy, the phrase refers to the transition from geocentrism to heliocentrism. For Christianity and Western culture, it may instead refer to the dismantling of the human-centric medieval cosmology and its cultural consequences. In physical cosmology, the phrase may be used to refer to the emergence and formaliza

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  Science

  Cooling curve

  A cooling curve is a line graph that represents the change of phase of matter, typically from a gas to a solid or a liquid to a solid. The independent variable (X-axis) is time and the dependent variable (Y-axis) is temperature. Below is an example of a cooling curve used in castings. The initial point of the graph is the starting temperature of the matter, here noted as the "pouring temperature"

  8/24/2026

• Science

  Copeland–Erdős constant

  The Copeland–Erdős constant is the concatenation of "0." with the base 10 representations of the prime numbers in order. Its value, using the modern definition of prime, is approximately 0.235711131719232931374143... (sequence A033308 in the OEIS). The constant is irrational; this can be proven with Dirichlet's theorem on arithmetic progressions or Bertrand's postulate (Hardy and Wright, p. 113)

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  Science

  Conway polyhedron notation

  In geometry and topology, Conway polyhedron notation, invented by John Horton Conway and promoted by George W. Hart, is used to describe polyhedra based on a seed polyhedron modified by various prefix operations. Conway and Hart extended the idea of using operators, like truncation as defined by Kepler, to build related polyhedra of the same symmetry. For example, tC represents a truncated cube, a

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• Science

  Convergence research

  Convergence research aims to solve complex problems employing transdisciplinarity. While academic disciplines are useful for identifying and conveying coherent bodies of knowledge, some problems require collaboration among disciplines, including both enhanced understanding of scientific phenomena as well as resolving social issues. The two defining characteristics of convergence research include:

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  Science

  Copernican heliocentrism

  Copernican heliocentrism is the astronomical model developed by the Renaissance astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus and published in 1543. This model positioned the Sun near the center of the Universe, motionless, with Earth and the other planets orbiting around it in circular paths, modified by epicycles, and at uniform speeds. The Copernican model challenged the geocentric model of Ptolemy that had p

  8/24/2026

• Science

  Cooperative MIMO

  In radio, cooperative multiple-input multiple-output (cooperative MIMO, CO-MIMO) is a technology that can effectively exploit the spatial domain of mobile fading channels to bring significant performance improvements to wireless communication systems. It is also called network MIMO, distributed MIMO, virtual MIMO, and virtual antenna arrays. Conventional MIMO systems, known as point-to-point MIMO

  8/24/2026

• Science

  Conway polynomial (finite fields)

  In mathematics, the Conway polynomial Cp,n for the finite field Fpn is a particular irreducible polynomial of degree n over Fp that can be used to define a standard representation of Fpn as a splitting field of Cp,n. Conway polynomials were named after John H. Conway by Richard A. Parker, who was the first to define them and compute examples. Conway polynomials satisfy a certain compatibility co

  8/24/2026

• Science

  Cooling capacity

  Cooling capacity is the measure of a cooling system's ability to remove heat. It is equivalent to the heat supplied to the evaporator/boiler part of the refrigeration cycle and may be called the "rate of refrigeration" or "refrigeration capacity". As the target temperature of the refrigerator approaches ambient temperature, without exceeding it, the refrigeration capacity increases thus increasing

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• Science

  Copper phosphate

  Copper phosphate may refer to: Copper(II) phosphate, cupric salt of phosphoric acid Copper(I) phosphate, cuprous salt of phosphoric acid A number of copper phosphate minerals, including : Turquoise, a hydrated basic copper aluminium phosphate, CuAl6(PO4)4(OH)8·4H2O Pseudomalachite, a basic copper phosphate similar in appearance to malachite Ludjibaite Reichenbachite Cornetite, a basic copper phos

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  Science

  Coriolis force

  In physics, the Coriolis force is a pseudo-force that acts on objects in motion within a frame of reference that rotates with respect to an inertial frame. In a reference frame with clockwise rotation, the force acts to the left of the motion of the object. In one with anticlockwise (or counterclockwise) rotation, the force acts to the right. Deflection of an object due to the Coriolis force is ca

  8/24/2026

• Science

  Correspondence principle

  In physics, a correspondence principle is any one of several premises or assertions about the relationship between classical and quantum mechanics. The physicist Niels Bohr coined the term in 1920 during the early development of quantum theory; he used it to explain how quantized classical orbitals connect to quantum radiation. Modern sources often use the term for the idea that the behavior of

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  Science

  Coral reef

  A coral reef is an underwater ecosystem characterized by reef-building corals. Reefs are formed of colonies of coral polyps held together by calcium carbonate. Most coral reefs are built from stony corals, whose polyps cluster in groups. Coral belongs to the class Anthozoa in the animal phylum Cnidaria, which includes sea anemones and jellyfish. Unlike sea anemones, corals secrete hard carbonate e

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• Science

  Corollary

  In mathematics and logic, a corollary (US: , KORR-ə-lair-ee; UK: , kər-OL-ər-ee) is a proposition which can be readily deduced from a previous, already proven proposition. A corollary could be a proposition that is incidentally proved while proving another proposition; it might also be used more casually to refer to something which naturally or incidentally accompanies something else.

  8/24/2026

• Science

  Copper sulfate

  Copper sulfate may refer to: Copper(II) sulfate, CuSO4, a common, blue-green compound used as a fungicide and herbicide. Copper(I) sulfate, Cu2SO4, an unstable white solid which is uncommonly used.

  8/24/2026

• Science

  Coriolis frequency

  The Coriolis frequency ƒ, also called the Coriolis parameter or Coriolis coefficient, is equal to twice the rotation rate Ω of the Earth multiplied by the sine of the latitude φ {\displaystyle \varphi } . f = 2 Ω sin ⁡ φ . {\displaystyle f=2\Omega \sin

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  Corpuscularianism

  Corpuscularianism, also known as corpuscularism (from Latin corpusculum 'little body' and -ism), is a set of theories that explain natural transformations as a result of the interaction of particles (minima naturalia, partes exiles, partes parvae, particulae, and semina). It differs from atomism in that corpuscles are usually endowed with a property of their own and are further divisible, while

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  Science

  Cosmolabe

  The cosmolabe was an ancient astronomical instrument resembling the astrolabe, formerly used for measuring the angles between heavenly bodies. It is also called pantacosm. Jacques Besson also uses this name, or universal instrument, for his invention described in Le cosmolabe (1566), which could be used for astrometry, cartography, navigation, and surveying. The Cosmolabe is a comprehensive and ve

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  Science

  Coronal loop

  In solar physics, a coronal loop is an ill-defined arch-like structure in the Sun's atmosphere made up of relatively dense plasma confined and isolated from the surrounding medium by magnetic flux tubes. Coronal loops begin and end at two footpoints on the photosphere and project into the transition region and lower corona. They typically form and dissipate over periods of seconds to days and may

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• Science

  Coremark

  CoreMark is a benchmark that measures the performance of central processing units (CPU) used in embedded systems. It was developed in 2009 by Shay Gal-On at EEMBC and is intended to become an industry standard, replacing the Dhrystone benchmark. The code is written in C and contains implementations of the following algorithms: list processing (find and sort), matrix manipulation (common matrix ope

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  Science

  Copy number analysis

  Copy number analysis is the process of analyzing data produced by a test for DNA copy number variation in an organism's sample. One application of such analysis is the detection of chromosomal copy number variation that may cause or may increase risks of various critical disorders. Copy number variation can be detected with various types of tests such as fluorescent in situ hybridization, comparat

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  Science

  Cormophyte

  Cormophytes (Cormophyta) is a historical term seldom used today for the plants that are differentiated into roots, stems and leaves. These plants differ from thallophytes, whose body is referred to as the thallus, i.e. a simple body not differentiated into leaves and stems. Definitions have varied, notably about whether mosses and liverworts are included. Stephan Endlicher, a 19th-century Austrian

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  Science

  Corelis

  Corelis, Inc, a subsidiary of Electronic Warfare Associates, is a private American company based in Cerritos, California. Dun and Bradstreet categorizes the company in the category of Electronic Equipment & Supplies.

  8/24/2026

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  Correlation coefficient

  A correlation coefficient is a numerical measure of some type of linear correlation, meaning a linear function between two variables. The variables may be two columns of a given data set of observations, often called a sample, or two components of a multivariate random variable with a known distribution. Several types of correlation coefficient exist, each with their own definition and range of us

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  Science

  Core–shell semiconductor nanocrystal

  Core–shell semiconducting nanocrystals (CSSNCs) are a class of materials which have properties intermediate between those of small, individual molecules and those of bulk, crystalline semiconductors. They are unique because of their easily modular properties, which are a result of their size. These nanocrystals are composed of a quantum dot semiconducting core material and a shell of a distinct se

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