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Science News and Member Spotlight

Scientific news reports, society updates, and weekly membership spotlight features from NSPS.

All Scientific News Reports Weekly Membership Spotlight Announcements

Scientific News Report

𝐀 𝟗𝟓-𝐘𝐞𝐚𝐫-𝐎𝐥𝐝 𝐐𝐮𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐮𝐦 𝐏𝐫𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐇𝐚𝐬 𝐅𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐁𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐂𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐚𝐧 𝐔𝐥𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐨𝐥𝐝 𝐆𝐚𝐬

September 30, 2026 • V. Dansuleiman

Nearly a century after physicist Hans Bethe predicted an unusual form of quantum binding, researchers have created and directly studied the phenomenon in an ultracold atomic gas. The quantum structures, known as Bethe strings, consist of several particles that bind together through their interactions while confined to essentially one dimension. Unlike ordinary molecules, the particles are not held together by conventional chemical bonds. Instead, their collective behaviour emerges from the special rules governing interacting quantum particles restricted to move along a line. Researchers at the University of Innsbruck, working with theoretical physicists from the University of Amsterdam and the Technical University of Munich, created these bound states using ultracold cesium atoms.

Scientific News Report

𝗘𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆 𝗕𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗵𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗳 𝗡𝗶𝗴𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗮𝗻 𝗘𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗗𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗯𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗨𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗻 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗗𝗘𝗔–𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗼𝗻 𝗘𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗽𝘆

September 30, 2026 • Mr. E.O. Adamu

A recent study published in the Journal of the Nigerian Society of Physical Sciences examined how operational efficiency varies among Nigeria’s eleven legacy electricity distribution companies between 2018 and 2025. The researchers applied three Data Envelopment Analysis models: constant returns to scale, input-oriented variable returns to scale, and output-oriented variable returns to scale, using customers under estimated billing as an input burden and metered customers, revenue collected, and energy billed as desirable outputs. The resulting efficiency scores were combined using year-specific Shannon entropy weights to generate a composite Shannon Efficiency Score for each distribution company. Operational efficiency varied substantially across the DisCos and over time, with IKEDC and EKEDC generally showing stronger performance, while the different DEA models captured complementary aspects of technical, scale, and output-oriented efficiency. The study shows that integrating DEA with Shannon entropy can provide a reproducible framework for comparing electricity distribution performance and supporting operational benchmarking in Nigeria.

Scientific News Report

𝐒𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐬 𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐚 𝐖𝐚𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐑𝐞𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐦 𝐆𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐬 𝐖𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐞 𝐈𝐭 𝐈𝐬 𝐒𝐭𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐌𝐨𝐥𝐭𝐞𝐧

September 30, 2026 • V. Dansuleiman

Scientists have developed a way to change the atomic-scale chemistry of a special class of glass while the material is still molten, opening a new route to glasses whose magnetic, optical and chemical properties can be deliberately engineered during manufacturing. The researchers worked with glasses derived from metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), materials built from metal centres connected by organic molecules. By introducing an organic molecule called 1,10-phenanthroline, the team achieved two effects at once: it lowered the temperature required to melt the material and simultaneously rearranged the chemical bonds surrounding its metal atoms. That combination could be particularly valuable for materials that normally begin decomposing before they can melt cleanly.

Scientific News Report

𝐂𝐚𝐧 𝐌𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐬 𝐇𝐞𝐥𝐩 𝐃𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐝𝐞 𝐀𝐥𝐳𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐫’𝐬 𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞? 𝐀 𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝐌𝐨𝐝𝐞𝐥 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐬 𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐌𝐞𝐭𝐚𝐥𝐬 𝐌𝐚𝐲 𝐃𝐫𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐪𝐮𝐞 𝐅𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧

September 29, 2026 • V. Dansuleiman

Mathematics is being used to investigate one of the most complex biological processes associated with Alzheimer’s disease: how proteins clump together to form harmful deposits in the brain. Researchers led by Shantia Yarahmadian, an associate professor at Mississippi State University, have developed a mathematical framework that examines how common metal ions such as copper and zinc may influence the aggregation of amyloid-beta proteins. The model also allows researchers to simulate how potential therapeutic strategies could interfere with this process. Importantly, the mathematical predictions were compared with experimental observations obtained using atomic force microscopy, and the model was able to reproduce patterns seen in laboratory experiments.

Scientific News Report

𝐀𝐈 𝐆𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐌𝐈𝐓’𝐬 𝐓𝐢𝐧𝐲 𝐅𝐥𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐑𝐨𝐛𝐨𝐭 𝐈𝐧𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐭-𝐋𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐒𝐩𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐀𝐠𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲

September 28, 2026 • V. Dansuleiman

MIT engineers have given a tiny flying robot a major boost in agility using artificial intelligence, allowing the insect-sized machine to fly about 450% faster than earlier versions and perform rapid aerial manoeuvres once considered difficult for microrobots. The lightweight robot can execute sharp turns, aggressive accelerations and repeated flips, including 10 consecutive somersaults in just 11 seconds. Researchers achieved the improvement by combining advanced flight modelling with deep learning, creating a controller capable of making fast decisions without requiring the enormous computational resources normally associated with complex robotic manoeuvres.

Scientific News Report

𝐄𝐱𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐐𝐮𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐮𝐦 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐥𝐞𝐬 𝐉𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐎𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐝 𝐚 𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝐑𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐔𝐧𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐚𝐥 𝐐𝐮𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐮𝐦 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠

September 28, 2026 • V. Dansuleiman

Researchers have experimentally demonstrated that exotic quantum objects known as non-Abelian anyons can perform the full set of operations needed for universal quantum computing. Using 54 qubits on Quantinuum’s H2 trapped-ion processor, scientists created these unusual collective quantum states and manipulated them through two operations known as braiding and fusion. The combination allowed the researchers to demonstrate a universal set of quantum operations, meaning, in principle, the system can perform any quantum computation. The result is particularly significant because non-Abelian anyons may also offer a route toward fault-tolerant quantum computing that avoids some of the most resource-intensive methods currently proposed for quantum error correction.

Scientific News Report

𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗽𝗵𝗶𝗰 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗹𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗼𝗶𝗿 𝗤𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗗𝗲𝗲𝗽-𝗢𝗳𝗳𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗡𝗶𝗴𝗲𝗿 𝗗𝗲𝗹𝘁𝗮: 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗦𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲-𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗽𝗵𝗶𝗰 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗣𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗵𝘆𝘀𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗘𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗲 ‘𝗕𝗫’ 𝗙𝗶𝗲𝗹𝗱

September 25, 2026 • Mr. E.O. Adamu

A recent study published in the Journal of the Nigerian Society of Physical Sciences examined how sequence-stratigraphic position influences reservoir quality in the deep-offshore “BX” Field of the Niger Delta. The researchers integrated 3-D seismic data with well logs from four wells to identify sequence boundaries, maximum flooding surfaces, and Lowstand, Transgressive, and Highstand System Tracts. Across the interpreted hydrocarbon-bearing intervals, effective porosity ranged from 21.4% to 29.0%, permeability from 3.00 to 21.49 D, net-to-gross ratio from 0.67 to 0.96, and hydrocarbon saturation from 57.96% to 77.07%. Reservoir quality was generally most favourable in Lowstand and selected Highstand intervals, while Transgressive intervals were more shale-prone and less efficient. The study shows that integrating stratigraphic architecture with petrophysical analysis can improve reservoir-heterogeneity prediction, modelling, appraisal, and development planning in deep-water Niger Delta systems.

Scientific News Report

𝗠𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗪𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲 𝗗𝗶𝘀𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗮𝗹 𝗦𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝗦𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗨𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗨𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝘁𝘆: 𝗔𝗻 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗮𝗹-𝗩𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲𝗱 𝗡𝗲𝘂𝘁𝗿𝗼𝘀𝗼𝗽𝗵𝗶𝗰 𝗖𝗥𝗜𝗧𝗜𝗖–𝗠𝗔𝗥𝗖𝗢𝗦 𝗗𝗲𝗰𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗦𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝗙𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸

September 25, 2026 • Mr. E.O. Adamu

A recent study published in the Journal of the Nigerian Society of Physical Sciences developed an interval-valued neutrosophic CRITIC–MARCOS framework for selecting medical-waste disposal sites under uncertain expert evaluations. The method combines interval-valued neutrosophic sets to represent truth, indeterminacy, and falsity, CRITIC to derive data-driven criterion weights, and MARCOS to rank alternatives relative to ideal and anti-ideal solutions. Using a secondary-data case with four candidate sites and 19 social, economic, environmental, infrastructural, and geological criteria, the framework ranked Pendik (S1) first. The ranking remained unchanged across several sensitivity analyses, including expert-weight changes, equal criterion weights, individual weight perturbations, and Monte Carlo tests. Comparisons with IVN-TOPSIS, IVN-MAIRCA, IVN-EDAS, and IVN-VIKOR also placed S1 first, although the remaining rankings differed across methods.

Weekly Membership Spotlight

🌟 𝐒𝐏𝐎𝐓𝐋𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓 𝐌𝐄𝐌𝐁𝐄𝐑 𝐎𝐅 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐖𝐄𝐄𝐊: 𝐃𝐑. 𝐉𝐔𝐃𝐄 𝐎𝐏𝐀𝐑𝐀

September 25, 2026 • Goodness Nkankeya

The Nigerian Society of Physical Sciences is pleased to celebrate 𝐃𝐫. 𝐉𝐮𝐝𝐞 𝐎𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐚 as our Spotlight Member of the Week. When you hear the word Statistics, do you think of averages, percentages, graphs and tables of numbers? What if those same numbers could be used to compare competing models, optimize transportation systems, analyze disease outcomes, forecast economic behaviour and improve healthcare decisions?

Scientific News Report

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗪𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿 𝗜𝗻𝗱𝗲𝘅 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗦𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗺 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗡𝗶𝗹 𝗖𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗻 𝗚𝗿𝗮𝗽𝗵 𝗼𝗳 𝗮 𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗥𝗶𝗻𝗴

September 24, 2026 • Mr. E.O. Adamu

A recent study published in the Journal of the Nigerian Society of Physical Sciences investigated the Wiener index and spectrum of nil clean graphs associated with finite commutative rings. In these graphs, ring elements form the vertices, while two distinct vertices are connected when their sum is a nil clean element. The researchers represented connected nil clean graphs as generalized compositions of complete and totally disconnected graphs and used this structure to derive a formula for their Wiener index. The framework was applied to Zn and finite products of rings of this form, including an example where the nil clean graph of Z12 has a Wiener index of 88. The study also introduced a Wiener matrix whose total trace recovers the Wiener index and described the spectra of nil clean graphs for several classes of finite rings.

Scientific News Report

𝗙𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘇𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻-𝗗𝗿𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗢𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿 𝗙𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝗳𝗼𝗿 ∆δ 𝗚𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱–𝗛𝗼𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗿 𝗔𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗹𝗹 𝗣𝗼𝗹𝘆𝗻𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗙𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗭𝗲𝗿𝗼𝘀 𝘃𝗶𝗮 𝗚𝗿𝗮𝗽𝗵𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗥𝗲𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻

September 24, 2026 • Mr. E.O. Adamu

A recent study published in the Journal of the Nigerian Society of Physical Sciences developed a factorization-based operator framework for two-variable discrete Gould–Hopper–Appell polynomials within ∆δ-calculus. Using degree-dependent operator sequences, the researchers derived recurrence relations, lowering and raising operators, normalized integro-type operators, and corresponding difference, integro-difference, and partial-difference equations. Exact triangular Volterra integral representations were also established. The framework was specialised to Gould–Hopper–Bernoulli, Gould–Hopper–Euler, and Gould–Hopper–Genocchi polynomial families. Numerical investigations of complex zeros, polynomial surfaces, generating-function reconstruction, and convergence as δ approaches zero further demonstrated how the discrete polynomial families transition toward their continuous counterparts

Scientific News Report

𝗔𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗔𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝗦𝘆𝗻𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗶𝘇𝗲𝗱 𝗗𝗶𝗯𝘂𝘁𝘆𝗹𝘁𝗶𝗻(𝗜𝗩) 𝗛𝘆𝗱𝗿𝗼𝘅𝘆𝗯𝗲𝗻𝘇𝗼𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗗𝗲𝗿𝗶𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲𝘀 𝗔𝗴𝗮𝗶𝗻𝘀𝘁 𝗔𝟱𝟰𝟵, 𝗠𝗖𝗙-𝟳, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗛𝗲𝗟𝗮 𝗛𝘂𝗺𝗮𝗻 𝗖𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗿 𝗖𝗲𝗹𝗹𝘀

September 24, 2026 • Mr. E.O. Adamu

A recent study published in the Journal of the Nigerian Society of Physical Sciences investigated three synthesized dibutyltin(IV) hydroxybenzoate derivatives for antiproliferative activity against A549 lung, MCF-7 breast, and HeLa cervical cancer cells. Compound 3a showed the strongest activity against A549 and HeLa cells, with IC50 values of 3.16 and 6.11 µg/mL, while compound 3b was most active against MCF-7 cells with an IC50 of 3.36 µg/mL. Compound 3c showed the highest overall selectivity toward the cancer cell lines relative to normal Vero cells. Considering both activity and selectivity, compound 3b was identified as the most promising candidate for further investigation. The authors recommend additional mechanistic, toxicity, pharmacological, and in vivo studies before therapeutic application can be considered.

Scientific News Report

𝐀𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐂𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐊𝐧𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐞𝐭 𝐒𝐭𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐀𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐈𝐭𝐬 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫

September 24, 2026 • V. Dansuleiman

Astronomers have confirmed what may be the clearest glimpse yet of a giant planet being built almost from scratch. The newly confirmed world, Elias 2-24 b, is less than one million years old and is still embedded within the disk of gas and dust surrounding its young host star. With roughly the mass of Jupiter, the planet appears to be actively gathering material while orbiting inside a prominent gap in the disk. Its extraordinary youth presents an important challenge to existing theories of giant-planet formation: according to current models, a planet this massive, especially one forming so far from its star, should have required considerably more time to grow.

Scientific News Report

𝐀 𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐮𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐌𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐝 𝐁𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐏𝐡𝐲𝐬𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐬 𝐂𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐨 𝐏𝐫𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐥 𝐐𝐮𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐮𝐦 𝐌𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐥𝐬

September 24, 2026 • V. Dansuleiman

Physicists have developed a powerful computational approach that can predict the behaviour of a classic quantum phenomenon in real materials far more accurately than traditional simplified models. Researchers from Caltech and Yale University tested the method using seven different magnetic atoms embedded individually inside copper. For most of these impurities, the calculations improved the accuracy of conventional predictions by as much as two orders of magnitude.

Scientific News Report

𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗽 𝗙𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝗜𝗻𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗚𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘇𝗲𝗱 𝗟𝗼𝗴𝗮𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗺𝗶𝗰 𝗚𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗮–𝗟𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗻 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝘃𝗶𝗮 𝗥𝗶𝗲𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗻–𝗟𝗶𝗼𝘂𝘃𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗲 𝗢𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀

September 23, 2026 • Mr. E.O. Adamu

A recent study published in African Scientific Reports introduced a new class of generalized logarithmic Godunova–Levin interval-valued mappings and developed weighted Hermite–Hadamard and Jensen-type inequalities using Riemann–Liouville fractional integral operators. The framework extends classical inequality theory by combining fractional calculus with interval-valued analysis and generalized convexity. The researchers also showed that several familiar real-valued and previously established inequalities can be recovered as special cases through appropriate parameter and fractional-order choices. Illustrative examples and numerical tables were used to verify the theoretical results across different fractional parameter settings. Overall, the study provides a unified mathematical framework that broadens existing results in fractional integral inequalities and may support further developments in optimisation, fractional calculus, and interval-valued analysis.

Scientific News Report

𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗰𝗵𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗰 𝗢𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗶𝘇𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗠𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗹𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗘𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗴𝘆-𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗦𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗹𝘆 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗶𝗻𝘀: 𝗠𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗴𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗖𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗦𝗵𝗼𝗰𝗸𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗡𝗶𝗴𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗮𝗻 𝗠𝗦𝗠𝗘𝘀 𝗨𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗦𝗰𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰 𝗠𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴

September 23, 2026 • Mr. E.O. Adamu

A recent study published in African Scientific Reports developed a stochastic optimisation framework to examine how Nigerian micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises can respond to volatile energy costs. Using 29 months of official petrol-price data from January 2024 to May 2026, the researchers found that a Merton jump-diffusion model best described the observed price movements, while mean reversion was not detected. When incorporated into a two-stage optimisation model, solar and battery investment reduced the representative enterprise’s expected annual energy cost by 42.8% and the conditional value-at-risk of operating cost by 86.1%. The study also found that limited historical data made machine-learning price-drift models prone to poor generalisation, whereas a deep recourse surrogate reproduced expected cost and risk estimates closely while running about 100 times faster

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𝗣𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝗕𝗮𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗯 𝗦𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗹 𝗔𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗖𝗮𝗿𝗯𝗼𝗻/𝗛𝗲𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗘𝗻𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗱 𝗔𝗱𝘀𝗼𝗿𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗴𝗼 𝗥𝗲𝗱 𝗗𝘆𝗲 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗔𝗾𝘂𝗲𝗼𝘂𝘀 𝗠𝗲𝗱𝗶𝘂𝗺

September 23, 2026 • Mr. E.O. Adamu

A recent study published in Recent Advances in Natural Sciences investigated the use of baobab shell activated carbon, synthetic hematite, and a hematite–baobab shell activated carbon composite for removing Congo red dye from water. The researchers examined the effects of dye concentration, adsorbent dosage, pH, and contact time on adsorption performance. Langmuir monolayer adsorption capacities were 322.58 mg/g for baobab shell activated carbon, 158.73 mg/g for hematite, and 172.41 mg/g for the composite. Adsorption was strongest under acidic conditions, with maximum removal around pH 2. The adsorption kinetics were best described by the pseudo-second-order model, suggesting the involvement of chemisorption. The findings show that baobab shell biomass can be converted into an effective adsorbent and can also improve the Congo red adsorption capacity of hematite when incorporated into a composite.

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𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝐋𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭-𝐄𝐦𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐍𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐥𝐞𝐬 𝐂𝐚𝐧 𝐓𝐞𝐥𝐥 𝐍𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐲 𝐈𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐌𝐨𝐥𝐞𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐞𝐬 𝐀𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭

September 23, 2026 • V. Dansuleiman

What if a tiny glowing nanoparticle could spot the wrong molecule hiding inside a drug batch? Researchers have developed highly sensitive light emitting nanoparticles that can detect trace chemicals and even distinguish between molecules with nearly identical structures, opening possibilities for safer pharmaceutical manufacturing and more sensitive pollution monitoring.

Scientific News Report

𝗘𝘅𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗨𝗹𝗮𝗺–𝗛𝘆𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝗡𝗼𝗻𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗙𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗗𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗘𝗾𝘂𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝘃𝗶𝗮 𝗘𝗻𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗱 (𝗴, α, β, 𝗸)-𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀

September 22, 2026 • Mr. E.O. Adamu

A recent study published in the Journal of the Nigerian Society of Physical Sciences investigated the existence, uniqueness, and Ulam–Hyers stability of nonlinear fractional differential equations involving the Caputo fractional derivative. The study introduces enriched (g, α, β, k)-functional contractions, combining an auxiliary bounded linear operator with functional contraction controls and an enrichment parameter within a unified fixed-point framework. Under appropriate continuity and Lipschitz conditions, the researchers established sufficient conditions for a unique solution and convergence of the associated Picard iteration. They also derived an explicit, computable upper bound for Ulam–Hyers stability, providing a quantitative measure of how close an approximate solution remains to the exact solution. The framework was illustrated using fractional relaxation–oscillation and fractional logistic population models, linking fixed-point theory with stability analysis for systems exhibiting memory effects.

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𝗡𝗲𝗴𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗶𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗦𝗲𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝗦𝗽𝗮𝗰𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲 𝗧𝗼𝗽𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝘆

September 22, 2026 • Mr. E.O. Adamu

A recent study published in the Journal of the Nigerian Society of Physical Sciences investigated whether spacetime topology can be reconstructed by removing sets regarded as mathematically negligible when strong causality fails. Using ideal topological spaces, the study shows that a strictly coarser Alexandrov topology generally cannot be restored to the manifold topology simply by deleting measure-zero, nowhere-dense, countable, or similar codense sets. The authors characterise successful repair regions as causally saturated sets formed from unions of chronological diamonds and introduce a repair cost measuring the infimum of spacetime volume that must be discarded. This cost is bounded below by the volume of the chronology-violating region. An explicit Lorentzian cylinder further shows that the repair cost can be zero without being attained, meaning arbitrarily small discarded regions may suffice even though no zero-volume region does.

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𝗧𝗿𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗜𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗜𝘁𝘀 𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗹𝗼𝗶𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: 𝗔 𝗧𝗵𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁 𝗠𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗹 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗠𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗹 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗲𝘅𝘁 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝘁𝗼𝗰𝗼𝗹 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗔𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗰 𝗔𝗜

September 22, 2026 • Mr. E.O. Adamu

A recent study published in the Journal of the Nigerian Society of Physical Sciences developed an architecture-level threat model for the Model Context Protocol, focusing on how server-originated information can influence actions performed with client-held authority. The researchers define this condition as trust inversion and analyse it across local stdio, remote Streamable HTTP, and multi-server deployments. Using STRIDE classification and a likelihood–impact matrix, the study identifies risks including descriptor and capability drift, cross-tool trust propagation, and sampling-mediated server influence. It also distinguishes protocol behaviour from ecosystem, implementation, and deployment weaknesses. Recommended protections include transport authentication, least privilege, trust-zone separation, schema validation, sandboxing, and audit logging. The proposed checklist is intended as a threat-modelling aid, with further prototype implementation, red-team testing, and deployment-specific evaluation needed to establish mitigation effectiveness.

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𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐚 𝐋𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞 𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐂𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐌𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐱 𝐒𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐬 𝐌𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞

September 22, 2026 • V. Dansuleiman

Perfect uniformity may not always produce the most stable system. Researchers at Northwestern University have developed a mathematical framework showing that carefully balanced differences among the components of complex networks can actually make those networks more resilient. The finding applies across a wide range of systems, including power grids, ecosystems, neural networks, flocks and architected materials. In some cases, even randomly introduced variation performed better than complete uniformity. The research challenges a long-standing intuition that interconnected systems work best when all their parts behave as similarly as possible.

Scientific News Report

𝗔 𝗚𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗽 𝗼𝗳 𝗖𝗹𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗙𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗛𝘆𝗯𝗿𝗶𝗱 𝗖𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗣𝗼𝗹𝘆𝗻𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗞𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗹𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗡𝗼𝗻𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰 𝗗𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗘𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻

September 21, 2026 • Mr. E.O. Adamu

A recent study published in African Scientific Reports proposed a group of hybrid classical polynomial kernel families for nonparametric density estimation using convex combinations of Beta polynomial kernels. The framework introduces a flexible mixing parameter that generates smooth and adaptable kernel shapes while maintaining near-optimal efficiency relative to the Epanechnikov kernel. Monte Carlo simulations across symmetric, skewed, heavy-tailed, and multimodal distributions showed that estimation error consistently decreased as sample size increased, with stable convergence across kernel orders. Sensitivity analysis further demonstrated robustness to changes in mixture proportions, tail heaviness, and modal separation, while sample size emerged as the strongest determinant of accuracy. Applications to Old Faithful eruption-duration and scar-length datasets also showed that the proposed kernels could effectively capture different distributional structures while maintaining stable performance.

Scientific News Report

𝗤𝘂𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗹𝗲 𝗥𝗶𝗱𝗴𝗲 𝗕𝗲𝘁𝗮 𝗥𝗲𝗴𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗠𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗹 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗕𝗮𝘆𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗮𝗻 𝗥𝗲𝗴𝘂𝗹𝗮𝗿𝗶𝘇𝗲𝗱 𝗤𝘂𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗹𝗲 𝗕𝗲𝘁𝗮 𝗥𝗲𝗴𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗦𝗼𝗹𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗦𝗸𝗲𝘄𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗠𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗹-𝗦𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗔𝗰𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘆 𝗶𝗻 𝗕𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗱 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗮

September 21, 2026 • Mr. E.O. Adamu

A recent study published in the Journal of the Nigerian Society of Physical Sciences proposed a hybrid Bayesian Regularized Quantile Beta Regression–Quantile Ridge Beta Regression framework for analysing bounded and skewed response data. The method combines Bayesian shrinkage using horseshoe priors with ridge penalization to address skewness, multicollinearity, and estimation instability. It was evaluated through Monte Carlo simulations and a real dataset containing 1,924 hourly observations from a v-groove solar dryer. The results showed that the hybrid model generally matched the classical QRBR under favourable conditions but performed better in many settings involving moderate-to-high skewness and contamination. In the real-data analysis, it produced lower mean squared error and mean absolute error across the evaluated quantiles, with the strongest MSE improvement occurring at the 0.25 quantile.

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𝗞𝗮𝗹𝘂𝘇𝗮–𝗞𝗹𝗲𝗶𝗻 𝗖𝗼𝘀𝗺𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗠𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗹 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗧𝘀𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗶𝘀 𝗛𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗽𝗵𝗶𝗰 𝗗𝗮𝗿𝗸 𝗘𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗴𝘆 𝗶𝗻 𝗳(𝗥, 𝗧) 𝗚𝗿𝗮𝘃𝗶𝘁𝘆

September 21, 2026 • Mr. E.O. Adamu

A recent study published in the Journal of the Nigerian Society of Physical Sciences investigated a five-dimensional Kaluza–Klein cosmological model incorporating Tsallis Holographic Dark Energy within f(R, T) gravity. Exact solutions were derived to examine the evolution of the deceleration parameter, energy density, pressure, and equation-of-state parameter. The model showed continuous accelerated expansion, with a negative deceleration parameter throughout the considered redshift range. Statefinder analysis indicated that the model approaches the ΛCDM fixed point asymptotically in the future. The null, weak, and dominant energy conditions were satisfied, while the strong energy condition was violated. However, the effective squared speed of sound remained negative for the selected parameters, indicating classical perturbative instability. The authors therefore note that further observational and perturbative studies are needed to establish the model’s viability.

Scientific News Report

𝐀 𝟑𝟎-𝐘𝐞𝐚𝐫-𝐎𝐥𝐝 𝐍𝐞𝐭𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤 𝐀𝐥𝐠𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐡𝐦 𝐉𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐆𝐨𝐭 𝐚 𝐌𝐚𝐣𝐨𝐫 𝐔𝐩𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐝𝐞

September 21, 2026 • V. Dansuleiman

A computer scientist has improved a classic algorithm used to estimate shortest paths across large networks, extending a mathematical guarantee that had remained largely unchanged since 1996. The advance focuses on the All-Pairs Shortest Paths (APSP) problem, one of the fundamental challenges in graph algorithms. APSP asks a seemingly simple question: if a network contains many interconnected points, what is the shortest distance between every possible pair? In small networks, this can be calculated exactly. But as networks grow, the computational cost increases rapidly.

Weekly Membership Spotlight

🌟 𝐒𝐏𝐎𝐓𝐋𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓 𝐌𝐄𝐌𝐁𝐄𝐑 𝐎𝐅 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐖𝐄𝐄𝐊: 𝐃𝐑. 𝐎𝐋𝐔𝐖𝐀𝐒𝐄𝐔𝐍 𝐀𝐃𝐄𝐘𝐄𝐘𝐄

September 18, 2026 • Goodness Nkankeya

The Nigerian Society of Physical Sciences is pleased to celebrate 𝐃𝐫. 𝐎𝐥𝐮𝐰𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐮𝐧 𝐀𝐝𝐞𝐲𝐞𝐲𝐞 as our Spotlight Member of the Week. What happens when an equation describing a real system cannot be solved exactly? For mathematicians like Dr. Adeyeye, that is not where the problem ends. It is where another kind of mathematics begins.

Scientific News Report

𝗔𝗻 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝘂𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗰 𝗙𝘂𝘇𝘇𝘆 𝗗𝗼𝗺𝗯𝗶–𝗔𝗿𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗺𝗲𝗱𝗲𝗮𝗻 𝗥𝗔𝗡𝗖𝗢𝗠–𝗔𝗥𝗢𝗠𝗔𝗡 𝗙𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗔𝗜-𝗘𝗻𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲𝗱 𝗧𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺 𝗦𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻

September 17, 2026 • Mr. E.O. Adamu

A recent study published in the Journal of the Nigerian Society of Physical Sciences developed an intuitionistic fuzzy Dombi–Archimedean framework that combines RANCOM for criterion weighting and AROMAN for ranking AI-enabled telemedicine platforms under uncertain expert judgments. The method preserves membership, non-membership, and hesitation information throughout the decision process. Using six hypothetical rural-healthcare platform alternatives, the framework produced criterion weights of 0.36, 0.28, 0.20, 0.12, and 0.04, with the baseline ranking A3 ≻ A2 ≻ A5 ≻ A1 ≻ A6 ≻ A4. Sensitivity analysis showed that the leading alternatives remained generally stable under parameter changes and ±15% criterion-weight perturbations. The authors emphasise that the case study is illustrative and should not be interpreted as a recommendation for any specific commercial telemedicine platform.

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𝐄𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐢𝐧’𝐬 𝐆𝐫𝐚𝐯𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐒𝐮𝐫𝐯𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐧 𝐔𝐧𝐮𝐬𝐮𝐚𝐥 𝐓𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐖𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐚 𝐐𝐮𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐮𝐦 𝐖𝐚𝐯𝐞

September 17, 2026 • V.Dansuleiman

Einstein just passed another remarkable test. A quantum wave allowed to fall under gravity behaved exactly as his equivalence principle predicts, bringing gravity and quantum physics into the same experiment.

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𝗜𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗶𝘇𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝗚𝗮𝗻𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗮 𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗴𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗰𝘂𝗺, 𝗚𝗮𝗻𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗮 𝗰𝗮𝘀𝘂𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗮, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗣𝗼𝗹𝘆𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘂𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗶𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗙𝗮𝗯𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗠𝘆𝗰𝗲𝗹𝗶𝘂𝗺-𝗕𝗮𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗲𝘀

September 16, 2026 • Mr. E.O. Adamu

A recent study published in African Scientific Reports investigated the identification of Ganoderma enigmaticum, Ganoderma casuarinicola, and Polyporus thailandensis and their potential for producing biodegradable mycelium-based composites. G. enigmaticum and P. thailandensis were grown on sawdust and cornhusk substrates, with the resulting materials assessed for physical properties. The study found that both fungal species and substrate type influenced composite performance. G. enigmaticum produced materials with lower moisture content and water absorption than P. thailandensis, while mixed sawdust–cornhusk substrates produced composites with higher density, lower moisture content, and lower water absorption than single-substrate formulations. The findings highlight the potential of mycelium-based composites as sustainable packaging materials and as a useful way of converting agricultural residues into biodegradable products.