A brief review highlights topological aspects of black hole thermodynamics and universal topological classifications of black holes.

Microplastic pollution in rivers is difficult to quantify because particles span a wide size range and are measured using incompatible methods. Recently, researchers from Japan developed a unified approach to describe microplastic number and mass distributions using power-law size spectra. By combining multiple sampling techniques, they showed that total microplastic mass can be accurately estimated even from limited size data, enabling more consistent pollution assessment and more efficient environmental monitoring in freshwater systems.