Physicists say unusual results in the XENON1T experiment, which is looking for dark matter with vats of xenon kept underneath the Apennine Mountains in Italy, may have been caused by dark energy, according to findings reported in Physical Review D. The experiment showed a surprising amount of activity caused by an unknown source, leading researchers to explore "a model in which this signal could be attributable to dark energy, rather than the dark matter the experiment was originally devised to detect," said study co-author Luca Visinelli.

A team from Ohio State University has used a process known as chemical looping to convert hydrogen sulfide, a toxic gas linked to sewer pipes and manure, into hydrogen. "Because the gas is so harmful, a number of researchers want to turn hydrogen sulfide into something that is not so harmful, preferably valuable," said study co-author Lang Qin.

Banks that helped facilitate Paycheck Protection Program loans ended up taking on more risk in other areas of lending, notably in the second and third quarters of last year, an academic study claims. "When you take on risk-free loans, it increases the risk they perceive they could take on," said study co-author Sarah Stuber.

REITs tend to generate performance superior to that of US closed-end private equity real estate funds, according to a study that used a "horse race" approach for making comparisons. "[O]n average, you would be better off investing in the public markets, and the outperformance is material," says study co-author Thomas Arnold.