Mondo News

Paleontologists dispute research backing underwater tracking and hunting of Spinosaurus

Posted on March 9, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

The lifestyle of spinosaurids has been a topic of intense debate since important new skeletal parts were uncovered. Spinosaurus aegyptius Different lifestyles of this species have been proposed in the literature. Some claim that they were more or less semi-aquatic, hunting fish from the edges of bodies of water or by walking or swimming on the surface. Others suggest that it was entirely aquatic and an underwater tracking predator.

A pair of animals that do things better than any animal that has ever evolved. Spinosaurus aegyptius About 95 million years ago, pterosaurs soared overhead on the northern coast of Africa and invaded nearby waters in search of prey. Image credit: Daniel Navarro.

Paleontologists generally agree that Spinosaurus aegyptius were fish-eaters, but how exactly these dinosaurs caught their prey is the subject of active debate, with some researchers suggesting that they hunted on the coast and others walked or swam in shallow water, and other researchers have suggested that it was an aquatic tracking predator.

One recent study used a fairly new statistical method called phylogenetic flexible discriminant analysis (pFDA) to analyze the density and proportion of organisms and supported the latter hypothesis. spinosaurus skeleton.

In a new study, University of Chicago professor Paul Sereno and colleagues critically evaluated the methods of previous research and identified significant flaws.

“spinosaurusand its close relatives, are fascinating due to their unusual anatomical features, the rarity of specimens, and the fact that scientists
had not discovered bones in any parts of their bodies until very recently. they stated.

“Unlike other carnivorous dinosaurs, there is strong evidence that it lived near water and ate fish and other aquatic organisms.”

“This has caused a lot of controversy as to how it is done. spinosaurus It was alive—was it a fast-swimming predator chasing fish like a sea lion? Or maybe it’s a predator lurking at the water’s edge, grabbing at you with its clawed hands like a gigantic version of a brown bear chasing a salmon, or poking its head into the water like a seven-ton heron from hell. I wonder if it was? ”

The authors began by asking new questions about bone density, such as how to digitize thin sections, where to slice through the femur and ribs, and whether to include bones from multiple individuals.

Some modern aquatic mammals, like manatees, have dense bones that bulge to help them stay underwater, like a scuba diver’s weight belt.

Large land animals such as elephants and dinosaurs also have dense bones to support their increased weight.

most modern birds and many dinosaurs spinosaurus Air sacs are attached to the inside of the lungs and bones and act like a life jacket to prevent submersion.

Assessing the aquatic abilities of extinct species such as spinosaurus All these factors must be considered.

Given the complexity of understanding the meaning of bone density, paleontologists reevaluated how statistical methods used in previous studies were applied to support the following claims: . spinosaurus It was a deep diver.

pFDA's approach is similar to machine learning, training classification algorithms based on groups of species whose lifestyles are well understood.

In principle, researchers could use algorithms to estimate the likelihood of the existence of poorly understood species such as: spinosaurus classified into some behavioral group.

“But in reality, there are challenges that need to be overcome,” said Intellectual Ventures researcher Nathan Myhrvold.

“Unfortunately, this technique doesn’t work well unless you have a large amount of data and do apples-to-apples comparisons to ensure that the data meets certain statistical assumptions.”

“None of these requirements were met in the previous study, so the results did not stand up to review.”

This new paper should help paleontologists understand the pitfalls of pFDA and other types of extensive statistical analysis and how to avoid them.

Researchers show that it is important to use consistent and objective criteria when deciding which species to include or exclude, and how to categorize their behavior .

The results of this study also demonstrate the importance of considering measurement error and individual differences when assessing bone mineral density.

“We think spinosaurus“As one of the largest predators to have ever evolved, this animal needed extra bone strength to support its weight on its relatively short hind legs,” Professor Sereno said.

“spinosaurus They could walk in channels more than 6 feet deep without floating, and could use their claws and jaws to ambush fish of any size, even while keeping their toes firmly planted in the mud. I stayed. ”

of study It was published in the magazine PLoS ONE.

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NP Myhrvold other. 2024. Diving dinosaur? Considerations regarding the use of bone density and pFDA to infer lifestyle. PLoS ONE 19 (3): e0298957; doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0298957

Source: www.sci.news

Sticky slime secretions aid snail robot in climbing inclines

Posted on March 9, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Snails have an unusual way of walking, which has been recreated in robots.

Zuza/Shutterstock

Equipped with one large foot, the mucus-evacuation robot can effectively imitate the way snails crawl across surfaces, even steep ones.

“I always say that snails are like Michael Jackson to me. I don’t know how they move, but somehow the gliding is happening.” Saravana Prashanth Murali Babu at the University of Southern Denmark Presentation at the March General Meeting of the American Physical Society on March 4 in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Fascinated by the shelled mollusk, Saravana and colleagues decided to build a large, soft, single-legged version of the snail and use it as the basis for a robot that moves like a snail.

Saravana explained in his presentation that the team chose to make the legs out of a soft material that could be partially inflated with a small pneumatic pump. Although the chemistry of snail mucus has been studied in detail, the way the snail’s legs move has only been hypothesized based on biologists’ observations, he says. These past studies propose that different parts of the snail’s foot impact the ground and leave the ground before impacting the ground again, and that their movements are not synchronized with each other. This creates a wave pattern across the foot, causing the snail to glide forward on the mucus.

Researchers have successfully reproduced this “pedal wave” motion, which can also expel mucus, in an experimental robot, allowing it to move forward and change direction without falling over. Saravana said that in some experiments, the robot was able to climb steep slopes.

Snail robot without shell

Saravana Prashanth Murali Babu/University of Southern Denmark

Although the bot is still in the experimental stage, Saravana hopes it will be the first robot ever to propel itself like a snail. To make it more self-contained, the team is experimenting with placing the pump inside a snail-like shell on top of the robot. A slightly larger plastic replica of a real snail’s shell, the shell contains electronics to remotely control the robot and emits mucus under the robot’s feet to mimic the slimy tracks of a real snail. It can also accommodate a syringe system for use.

But the team’s ultimate goal is to make the robot’s inflatable legs even softer, making it more like a real snail, whose body is mostly made of water. The researchers hope that a robot that successfully navigates on mucus could eventually inform the design of soft medical robots that can navigate inside the mucus-rich human body.

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New study finds bumblebees can acquire intricate skills through social learning

Posted on March 9, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Culture refers to behaviors that are socially learned and persist within a group over long periods of time. Growing evidence suggests that animal culture, like human culture, may be cumulative. However, the accumulated culture of humans contains behaviors so complex that they exceed the ability of individuals to discover them independently over a lifetime. New research shows that the buff-tailed bumblebee (Western bumblebee) can learn how to open new two-step puzzle boxes and obtain food from trained conspecifics, even if they fail to open them independently.

Bufftail Bumblebee (Western bumblebee) socially learn behaviors that are too complex to innovate alone. Image credit: Ralphs Fotos.

“This groundbreaking research opens new avenues for understanding the evolution of intelligence and social learning in animals,” said study lead author Lars, a researcher at Queen Mary University of London. Professor Chitka said.

“This challenges long-held assumptions, paves the way to further explore the cognitive wonders hidden in the insect world, and even suggests the exciting possibility of accumulated culture among seemingly simple creatures. Masu.”

Professor Chitka and his colleagues designed a two-step puzzle box that required bumblebees to perform two different actions in sequence to access a sweet reward at the end.

Training bees to do this was no easy task, and we had to help them by adding additional rewards along the way.

This temporary reward was eventually taken away, and the bees were forced to open the entire box before getting the treat.

Surprisingly, while individual bees had difficulty solving the puzzle from the beginning, bees allowed to observe trained demonstration bees completed the entire sequence, including the first step. You just learned quickly and got rewarded at the end.

This study shows that bumblebees have a level of social learning that was previously thought to be unique to humans.

They can share and acquire behaviors that are beyond the cognitive capacity of individuals. This ability is thought to underpin the vast and complex nature of human culture, and was previously thought to be exclusive to us.

“This is a very difficult task for bees,” said study lead author Dr. Alice Bridges, a researcher at Queen Mary University of London and the University of Sheffield.

“They had to learn two steps to get the reward, and the first action in the sequence was not rewarded.”

“Initially, we had to train demonstration bees to include temporary rewards, which highlighted the complexity.”

“But other bees learned the sequence from the social observations of these trained bees, without ever experiencing the reward of the first step.”

“But when we tried to get other bees to open the box without a bee trained to show them the solution, they couldn't open it at all.”

This study opens up exciting possibilities for understanding the emergence of cumulative culture in the animal kingdom, beyond individual learning.

Cumulative culture refers to the gradual accumulation of knowledge and skills over generations, allowing increasingly complex behaviors to develop.

The ability of bees to learn such complex tasks from demonstrators suggests potential pathways for cultural transmission and innovation beyond the bees' individual learning abilities.

“This challenges the traditional view that only humans can learn socially complex behaviors beyond individual learning,” says Professor Chitka.

“Many of the most remarkable achievements of social insects, such as the nesting structures of honey bees and wasps and the agricultural habits of ants that farm aphids and fungi, may have first been spread by imitation by clever innovators, and then spread. , which is increasingly likely.'' They eventually became part of the species-specific behavioral repertoire. ”

Regarding this research, paper Published in the Journal on March 6, 2024 Nature.

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AD bridge other. Bumblebees socially learn behaviors that are too complex to innovate alone. Nature, published online March 6, 2024. doi: 10.1038/s41586-024-07126-4

Source: www.sci.news

Repaired coral reefs will swiftly recover from damage

Posted on March 8, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Hexagonal frames called Reef Stars are installed in disturbed areas to stabilize loose debris and encourage rapid coral growth.

Maritime Agency

Research findings from a restoration project in Indonesia suggest that restored coral reefs can develop at a rate comparable to healthy coral reefs in just four years. Although quick recovery rates are anticipated, restored reefs tend to have lower species diversity compared to undamaged reefs, raising questions about their long-term survival under more extreme conditions like heat waves. Further studies are required to validate these findings.

Global coral reefs confront a variety of threats, from escalating sea temperatures and ocean acidification to human-related activities such as overfishing.

In the vicinity of Indonesia’s Sulawesi island, coral reefs suffered severe damage approximately three decades ago due to dynamite fishing, a method involving the use of explosives in water to catch large quantities of fish.

According to Tim Lamont from Lancaster University in the UK, “recovery from dynamite fishing does not occur naturally.” The aftermath of this fishing technique leaves a substantial amount of fragmented dead coral skeletons floating, hindering natural coral settlement and growth.

To facilitate the recovery of coral reefs, the Mars Coral Reef Restoration Program has undertaken efforts to restore reefs. As part of Mars’ sustainability initiative, they have deployed sand-coated hexagonal steel structures on the seabed and transplanted them with cuttings from healthy corals. Known as reef stars, these structures stabilize loose debris and promote coral growth.

Simultaneously, Lamont and his team have been monitoring the progress of these initiatives.

One measure of coral health involves examining if the coral’s limestone skeleton grows faster than it erodes. This metric, known as the carbonate budget, signifies the reef’s overall growth rate.

“Four years post the commencement of the restoration process, the reef exhibited growth rates similar to those of healthy reefs,” noted Lamont. “It’s a remarkably rapid recovery.”

However, the composition of the restored coral reef differed from that of a healthy reef, predominantly comprising branched corals. This variance is primarily due to the restoration technique employing branch corals that can be sourced from living corals, entail less damage, and readily adhere to steel structures.

A local community attaches coral fragments to a steel frame as part of a restoration program in Indonesia

Maritime Agency

“Given that branching corals are generally more susceptible to bleaching, variations in communities could result in differing resilience to future stressors, particularly heat stress,” stated team member Ines Lange from the University of Exeter in the UK. “We anticipate that larger and more covered corals will naturally rejuvenate and recover in the restored areas over prolonged periods.”

Lamont emphasized that under stable climate conditions, it is feasible to reconstruct these vital ecosystems. Nevertheless, continued research is essential to assess the recovery of species diversity and the resilience of coral reefs when compared to healthy reefs.

While acknowledging the positive outcomes, members like Michael Bode from Queensland University of Technology, Australia, voiced concerns about the scalability of such projects amidst escalating climate change, the primary threat to coral reefs.

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The Great Barrier Reef in Australia experiences its fifth major bleaching event in just eight years

Posted on March 8, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Australia’s Great Barrier Reef is experiencing significant heat-induced coral bleaching once again, as confirmed by the country’s government on Friday.

The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, responsible for conservation and protection efforts for the reef, stated that widespread bleaching is occurring due to increased heat stress over the summer.

Scientists from the Australian Institute of Marine Science reported that this is the fifth major bleaching event on the Great Barrier Reef since 2016.

Coral bleaching poses a serious threat to coral reefs worldwide, triggered by abnormal conditions such as high or cold seawater temperatures and increased acidity. When corals expel photosynthetic algae, they turn white, making them more vulnerable to disease.

While corals can recover from bleaching events, frequent occurrences make it difficult for reefs to bounce back. Climate change is causing ocean temperatures to rise, leading to more frequent bleaching events globally.

The current mass bleaching event on the Great Barrier Reef is consistent with reports of bleaching in coral reefs in the Northern Hemisphere, exacerbated by El Niño and climate change, according to the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority.

On March 5, researchers observed large-scale coral bleaching at a site in the southern Great Barrier Reef.Renata Ferrari / Australian Institute of Marine Science

The agency, in collaboration with scientists from the Australian Institute of Marine Science, conducted an aerial survey covering nearly two-thirds of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park to assess the severity of the bleaching event.

Further research and underwater assessments are necessary to gauge the impact of the ongoing bleaching event, with plans for additional aerial surveys in other reef areas.

While heat stress has not affected the entire reef, variations exist in the extent of bleaching among different areas, as highlighted by Neil Cantin, a senior research scientist at the Australian Institute of Marine Science.

Coral affected by coral bleaching (left), Arlington Reef, Central Barrier Reef, February 27.Grace Frank / Australian Institute of Marine Science

Since the first recorded bleaching event in 1998, with subsequent events in 2002, 2016, 2017, 2020, and 2022, it is clear that coral bleaching incidents are becoming more frequent, posing a significant threat to the Great Barrier Reef.

Efforts are underway to understand the overall condition of the reef and implement effective restoration measures guided by aerial surveys and underwater observations.

David Wachenfeld, the Australian Institute of Marine Science’s research program director, emphasized the urgent need to address climate change to protect the Great Barrier Reef effectively.

“Protecting coral reefs like the Great Barrier Reef from climate change requires global emissions reductions, best practices in local management, interventions to increase climate and reef resilience, and ongoing research and development,” Wachenfeld stated.

Source: www.nbcnews.com

Pentagon report finds no evidence of US cover-up of UFO existence

Posted on March 8, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

According to a recent Pentagon report, there is no reliable evidence to support the belief that U.S. authorities have hidden extraterrestrial life in the form of unidentified flying objects, despite the strong beliefs of some Americans.

The report provides various explanations for UFO sightings. Over 40% of Americans believe that life forms from another galaxy have visited Earth.

The report, which spans 63 pages and focuses on Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAP), concludes that most sightings are due to misidentification of ordinary objects or phenomena.

Pentagon spokesman Maj. Gen. Patrick S. Rider stated that there is no verifiable evidence to support claims that the U.S. government and private companies are accessing or reverse engineering extraterrestrial technology.

The report lists various satellites and data-gathering vehicles developed by governments or private companies that could be mistaken for UFOs. It also highlights unclassified aircraft from companies like Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman as possible sources of false UAP reporting.

Despite the findings of the report, Americans’ beliefs in UFOs are unlikely to change due to the prevalence of misinformation and disinformation, as well as confirmation bias facilitated by modern technology.

The report’s conclusions seem to contradict some elements of a previous House Oversight Subcommittee hearing last July that had firmly established UAP in the public consciousness.

Former US intelligence official David Groush claimed during the hearing that he knew colleagues who had been injured by a drone and had recovered “inhumane biological products” from a downed drone. The Pentagon had previously denied these claims.

Source: www.nbcnews.com

Instagram surpasses TikTok to claim title of world’s most downloaded app

Posted on March 8, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Instagram has surpassed TikTok as the most downloaded app globally, thanks to its Reels feature that helped it recover from its previous losses to its Chinese-backed competitor.

Since its launch in 2010, this photo and video-sharing platform has gained immense popularity, often associated with celebrities like the Kardashians, and giving rise to the influencer trend. However, in recent years, it has evolved into a short video platform facing tough competition from TikTok.

Instagram faced backlash in 2020 for introducing a short-form video feature that seemed to mimic TikTok. In 2023, the app was downloaded 767 million times globally, marking a 20% increase from the previous year, while TikTok’s downloads grew by 4% to 733 million.

According to market intelligence firm Sensor Tower, Instagram’s resurgence is largely attributed to the popularity of its Reels feature, along with other features like photo sharing and disappearing Stories, which mimic Snapchat.

Farhad Divecha, owner of UK-based digital marketing agency Acuracast, noted that Instagram’s quick response to the TikTok threat and its broad appeal across demographics have contributed to its success.

Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta (Instagram’s parent company), acknowledged TikTok as a serious competitor and the growing competition for user attention in the digital space.

TikTok faces political challenges in the US due to concerns about Chinese ownership and data security. Lawmakers have proposed a bill that would require TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, to sell the app within six months or face a ban.

US lawmakers and Western officials have raised concerns about TikTok’s data privacy and its potential ties to the Chinese government, allegations that TikTok has consistently denied.

Winter life around the Great Lakes is changing due to a shortage of ice.

Posted on March 8, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Some fish species’ reproduction, shoreline erosion, and weather patterns are all at risk due to lower ice levels. This includes changing the amount of lake-effect snow that falls on nearby communities.

Research shows that the maximum annual ice area trended downward at a rate of approximately 5% for each decade from 1973 to 2023. For more information, visit NOAA’s research page.

Due to poor ice conditions, ice fishermen are turning to inland waters as their seasons on Lake Superior are impacted. Joe Friedrichs said, “In the Duluth area, their seasons don’t exist, and that definitely impacts their ability to get on the ice.”

As of Thursday, only 3.4% of the northern Great Lakes region was covered in snow. Visit the National Operational Hydrological Remote Sensing Center for more information.

With the lack of snowfall and above-normal temperatures, businesses that rely on snow activities are taking a hit. John Silliman of Stone Harbor Wilderness Supply said, “People aren’t coming to ski, snowshoe, or snowmobile anymore.”

The region is experiencing the warmest winter on record, and meteorologists predict this trend will continue into spring with higher than normal temperatures. Visit AccuWeather for more details.

The National Climate Prediction Center’s outlook suggests that the Great Lakes region will continue to experience higher than normal temperatures until early spring. This raises concerns about wildfire risk, particularly in parts of Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan. Learn more from the National Interagency Fire Center.

Source: www.nbcnews.com

Triassic ichthyosaurs: massive superpredators possibly ranking as the largest animals ever recorded

Posted on March 8, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Impression of Stenopterygius quadrissis, a type of ichthyosaur

Dotted Zebra / Alamy Stock Photo

Prehistoric Earth was home to monsters. They included a 2.5 meter long millipede, a flying reptile with an 11 meter wingspan, and a snake weighing more than a ton. But common sense says that if you're looking for the biggest animal of all time, there's no need to go back in time. Blue whales are known for reach 30 meters The length and weight reach 199 tons. In more than 500 million years of animal evolution, even the largest dinosaurs have no equal.

Conventional wisdom may be wrong. The fossil record may hide animals that were even larger than blue whales. For decades, evidence has trickled in that truly gigantic superpredators swam the oceans 200 million to 250 million years ago. Now, a series of discoveries and reanalyses of previous findings have dramatically supported this claim.

The impact is far-reaching. We don't know exactly what this giant animal looked like, and it doesn't even have a name. But we are beginning to understand how such gigantic creatures were able to feed themselves in prehistoric oceans. If confirmed to be larger than a blue whale, it would indicate that we may have significantly underestimated how large toothed carnivores can grow. More than that, the discovery that such a Leviathan emerged so soon after the most devastating mass extinction in Earth's history suggests that we may need to rethink the factors driving evolution on such a grand scale. ing.

When dinosaurs ruled the land, several groups of marine reptiles also ruled.

PlayStation Users, Rare’s Sea of Thieves Pirate Adventure Sets Sail for a New Platform

Posted on March 8, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

○One evening many months ago, Mike Chapman, the creative director of the cooperative pirate adventure game Sea of Thieves, sat down to play the game with producer Joe Neato. This wasn’t just a standard playtest. The players participating online were players who had never played together before. It was a team from Sony Interactive Entertainment. Plans to make Xbox exclusive to the PS5 had just been launched. Now it was time to dive into the details. “We educated them about the game and had thorough discussions about what made the game special,” Neet says. “It was a surreal experience,” Chapman says of the encounter. “Trying to find treasure on the island with another group of platform holders…”

The PS5 launch is set for April 30th, and pre-orders are now open, but this is just the latest step in the evolution of this captivating game. Launched on March 20, 2018, it was the most ambitious project in the long history of the veteran British studio Rare. Marketed as a cooperative pirate adventure, Sea of Thieves provides players with access to a vast multiplayer world of ocean exploration, buried treasure, ship-to-ship battles, and more. The game’s design philosophy was simple but risky: it was a tool, not a rule. Players are equipped with everything they need to embark on their own pirate adventures, including musical instruments and virtual grog, but there is no elaborate story, skill tree, or complex character growth system. The story comes from the players themselves as they form a crew and compete with other pirates for fame and fortune.

“We’ve done our best to stay true to it”…Sea of Thieves. Photo: Microsoft

After a shaky start plagued by technical issues, Sea of Thieves found its audience and grew. Since that day in 2018, there have been approximately 100 updates and expansions, including adventures based on Pirates of the Caribbean and Monkey Island. New mechanics like commodities and captaincy add depth to the experience, but Chapman believes the key to the game’s longevity lies in ensuring player agency and supporting roleplay. “We provide players with simple tools and allow them to unleash their creativity,” he says. “We’ve done our best to stay true to that.”

Supporting diverse communities is also crucial. “I think it’s part of the hidden work of creating a shared world,” he says. “When adding a mechanic to a game, the mechanic itself may be simple, but you have to consider how it fits into the shared world, what motivates players, and how players with different styles (PvP or PvE) will use it. Whenever we design a mechanic, we think about how it integrates into the world and how it can potentially create a new meta that will thrive for months and years. Our design team is increasingly focused on this.”

So what was it like facing the prospect of publishing a game to a whole new community? “At a leadership level, when I first heard this as a possibility, I was initially excited. Then I thought, ‘Okay. How do we do this?'” says NEET. “The fact that we had already migrated to another platform, Steam, helped us tackle the technical challenges and engage with different communities in different locations.”

“We’ve really expanded the boundaries of the Sea of Thieves experience”…Sea of Thieves. Photo: Microsoft

“This is the first time in Rare’s 40-year history that we’ve developed on a Sony platform, which is incredible. It was very surreal for us to be presented with a series of slides. But honestly, for our technical team, it was like, ‘Let’s deploy the kit and start experimenting and figuring it out.’ That kind of feeling. I kept it in a secret spot in my studio with a fogged-up window so no one could see. It was more about excitement.”

Nate said Rare was collaborating with co-developers with PlayStation experience, and Sony itself was very supportive, holding regular catch-up calls even when the project was still top secret. The company was ready to dispatch its technical staff whenever needed. “If we had to visit their studio, you guessed it, we had to wear their Sea of Thieves T-shirt,” Neet says.

One of the great benefits of preparing to welcome a new community is that it gives your team a chance to rethink the structure of your game. Season 11 of the game, launched in January, was developed with the knowledge that PS5 players would soon join, so the onboarding system was revamped. Content is now unlocked at a more manageable pace, and a quest board that shows where to find new items that were previously hidden in artifacts and maps offers a more engaging pirate journey. Additionally, Rare is planning to introduce an offline solo mode in its March update. “You don’t need Xbox Live or PlayStation Plus,” says Neate. “If you just want to play solo, you can experience all the content and company advancements in Tall Tales. It’s another way to get hooked on the game before you decide to start.”

However, Rare indicates that while recent efforts have been focused on creating a more user-friendly experience with an eye on the upcoming PS5 community, there are more ambitious plans in the works. “We’ve been expanding the boundaries of the Sea of Thieves experience throughout the last year,” Chapman says. “You can have your own ship. You can join the Pirate Guild. There’s a quest table. A revised tutorial allows you to play Safer Seas and explore all the story content. We’re expanding the game’s boundaries and building on this new foundation. We’ve gained a lot of experience, and it’s crucial to capitalize on it. Enhance your captaincy, strengthen your guild. The upcoming year is all about the sandbox for us.”

Since its launch six years ago, it’s been a long journey, but Chapman and Neet, who have been there from the start, seem as dedicated as ever. “Working on this on a new platform is incredibly exciting,” Chapman affirms. “I believe we’ve positioned ourselves for many more years of game evolution.”

Stunning, enduring pictures reveal Kazakhstan’s abandoned nuclear testing grounds

Posted on March 8, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Ruins of the observation tower of Opitnoe pole

Eddo Hartmann, Netherlands, Finalist, Professional Competition, Landscape, Sony World Photography Awards 2024

These photos, all shortlisted for the 2024 Sony World Photography Awards, get to the heart of human vulnerability and the fragility of nature.

Eddo Hartmann was selected as a finalist in the Landscape category for his series. sacrifice zoneA remote area in Kazakhstan that was the main Soviet nuclear testing site from 1949 to 1989.

The image above shows a dosimeter measuring radiation levels at Lake Shagan in Kazakhstan. The area remains highly contaminated from around 450 nuclear tests conducted there. The featured photo (above) shows the remains of an observation tower at Russia's Opitnoye Pole, another area used for Soviet nuclear tests.

Hartmann photographed these landscapes using infrared light, whose red tint was reminiscent of radioactive contamination that is invisible to the naked eye. “Local scientists are using infrared technology to monitor the current status of contaminated sites,” he says. “Chlorophyll found in green plants reflects significant amounts of infrared radiation. The different shades of reflection provide valuable insight into the overall environmental health of a given area.”

Jonas Kako, finalist, professional competition, environment, Sony WPA 2024

In the Albanian village of Zales, a girl climbs onto an old oil tank (pictured above). This image, taken by Jonas Kakó, was shortlisted in the Environment category. The photo below was taken by wildlife and nature finalist Jasper Dost of an elephant charging through Livingstone, Zambia.

Jasper Dost, Finalist, Professional Contest, Wildlife and Wildlife Nature, Sony WPA 2024

The winner of the competition will be announced on April 18th, before the exhibition opens at Somerset House, London, from April 19th to May 6th.

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The Gaming Industry Must Take a Stand Against Far-Right Trolls, 10 Years After Gamergate

Posted on March 8, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

T A few years ago, a game developer’s tormented ex-boyfriend published a vindictive article accusing her of trading sex to get positive reviews for her indie game. This took her to 4chan, the most disgusting corner of the internet in 2014, and a harassment campaign began, targeting all women working in video game development and gaming press, as well as her LGBTQ+ community in the industry. It has spread to. Sensing the bloodshed, his YouTube “alt-right” provocateurs and Steve Bannon’s Breitbart jumped on the bandwagon and quickly took control. And once this fabricated outrage became known, Gamergate mutated into one of the first front lines of modern society. A culture war sparked by social media, misogyny, and weaponized youth grievances. Many of those tactics became part of President Trump’s campaign strategy.

This week, 16 narrative design studios found themselves at the center of a conspiracy theory that holds them responsible for an insidious epidemic of “funny behavior” in modern video games. The group, which has more than 200,000 followers on the PC game store Steam and thousands of followers on its Discord chat channel, is the group that Sweet Baby Inc. has asked game developers to change the physical appearance, ethnicity, and They believe it is secretly forcing them to change their sexuality to fit the “woke world.” ideology. They believe that Sweet Baby has secretly created and controlled nearly every popular video game of the past five years, keeping straight white men out. As President Trump heads to the campaign trail again, this is part of a broader far-right panic about diversity and inclusion, resulting in regressive anti-women and anti-woke bills already being proposed in the US and other countries. is being brought about.

Pride Support … Marvel’s Spider-Man 2. Photo provided by: Sony Computer Entertainment

Of course, the agency in question has done nothing of the sort. This is just a story development studio, the equivalent of a video game script doctor, working with game developers to make sure the plot makes sense and the characters aren’t embarrassingly disconnected. The consultancy’s mission is to “make games more engaging, more fun, more meaningful, and more inclusive.” For example, developers can’t dictate that a game feature a black female protagonist. I don’t have the power to dictate anything. But employees still bear the brunt of the online mob’s wrath. They are anonymized, threatened and abused online.

Ten years ago, it was female gaming journalists and critics who were at the forefront of the firefight. This time I’m a narrative designer. But the conspiracy theorists’ message is the same. There is no diversity in the game. If you are a woman, gay, or person of color working in this industry, you should expect the worst.

Nathan Grayson aftermath and Alyssa Mercante Kotaku They investigated the origins and spread of the Sweet Baby conspiracy theory. Its supporters paint a picture of the consultancy’s ludicrous ties to BlackRock and a funding crisis affecting the gaming industry as a whole. This is not the first time since Gamergate that this kind of harassment has spread. Depressingly, systematic mistreatment of game developers has now become somewhat commonplace, especially when they do something as bold as incorporating a Pride flag into Spider-Man’s Manhattan or taking the time. Masu. Implementing MOD support For Baldur’s Gate 3. All his 91% of developers investigated Last year’s Game Developers Conference said player harassment was a problem, with 42% calling it a “very serious” problem.

When Gamergate was happening, the silence of much of the video game industry was deafening. Instead of coming to the defense of those targeted, nearly everyone who wasn’t directly attacked by the Gamergate mob tried to stick their fingers in their ears and pretend nothing was happening. Media publishers, game developers, and publishers alike are motivated by fear of making the situation worse and alienating what they fear is a significant portion of their audience. As a result, women were unable to speak up in defense of women until it was too late. not at all. IGN was the most popular gaming website in the world at the time. published A surprisingly weak movement of bipartisanship about “recent unpleasant events,” one could not even call the movement by name.

The situation did not subside because the gaming industry did not have a decisive voice. Inaction did not deter the mob. Those who have been harassed in some cases and forced out of their homes or workplaces have simply been left feeling alone, enraged, and often fearful. The main targets at the time were female developers, journalists, and commentators. This is a gathering of narrative consultants.

In the decade since Gamergate, the culture wars instigated on gamer forums have spread and contaminated nearly every aspect of our lives. The last decade has taught us that these people aren’t going away. There may always be people who believe that the mere presence of women and minorities in video games, Star Wars, or the halls of cultural and political power is meaningless. This is an insult and a symptom of the “woke virus.”

“Alan Wake 2” developer Remedy Entertainment has denied accusations that story production company Sweet Baby ensured the main character would be a black woman. Photo courtesy of Remedy Entertainment

But we also learned that ignoring them doesn’t help. That will only make the situation worse. The people who work at Sweet Baby shouldn’t be left to suffer because of the studio that employs them. Independent developers are getting braver in speaking out on social media these days: ‘Alan Wake 2’ director Posted A conspiracy theory that Sweet Baby forced developers to change the ethnicity of its characters is “absolutely not true”. and Mary Kenny, associate director of Marvel’s Spider-Man developer Insomniac Games. tweeted a strong denial. But companies themselves need to follow suit. Publishers and developers who have worked with Sweet Baby Inc include Warner Bros. Games and PlayStation’s Santa Monica Studios. Where can I find their support? Are they going to publicly protect those who contributed to the multi-million dollar game from false accusations, or are they going to let the trolls control the narrative?

No one is forcing diversity into video games. It’s happening naturally as players and developers themselves become more diverse. Gamergate didn’t blackmail women out of video games ten years ago, and we won’t be blackmailed now. The gaming industry knows that, no matter what some struggling gamers think, a wider range of content, made with contributions from a wider range of people and featuring a wider range of characters, is good for creativity and good for business. Now we must make that support fully and clearly articulated.

2024 BAFTA Game Awards: Baldur’s Gate, Spider-Man, Alan Wake lead major nominations

Posted on March 8, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

The British Academy has announced the nominations for the 20th BAFTA Game Awards, to be held in London on April 11th.

Topping this year’s list is Larian Studios’ Baldur’s Gate 3, which earned 10 nominations. Spider-Man 2 has 9 nominations. Alan Wake 2 has 8 nominations. The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom and Star Wars Jedi Survivor each have six nominations. Hi-Fi Rush, a colorful music-based action game from Japan’s Tango Gameworks, earned five nominations, as did Mintrocket’s blockbuster Dave the Diver.

Since 1998, Bafta has celebrated the creative achievements of video games alongside those of the film and television industries. Formerly known as the Bafta Interactive Entertainment Awards, the Bafta Games Awards were launched as a separate event in 2004. The awards are decided by a combination of Bafta’s professional members and selected expert judges, with the EE Player’s Choice award determined by public vote.

At last year’s awards, retro-style indie monster shooter Vampire Survivors surprised everyone by beating blockbuster contenders Elden Ring and God of War: Ragnarok to win the award for best game. This year’s nominees include the blockbuster RPG Baldur’s Gate, the horror thriller Alan Wake 2, Nintendo’s The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom and Super Mario Bros. Wonder, PlayStation’s Insomniac Games Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, and Dave the Diver, a humorous game where a sushi chef hunts his own fish.

Changes to this year’s awards process include giving members an additional three months to vote and publishing a shortlist of 60 games. Bafta’s Director of Awards and Content Executive Emma Baehr emphasized the diversity of the nominations, which also featured several first-time developers. “We’ve seen some big-budget games, with Baldur’s Gate leading with 10 nominations, but we’ve also seen British indie game Viewfinder with four nominations,” she noted. She added, “Eleven of the 12 performers in the performance categories are first-time nominees, and we look forward to welcoming them to the British Academy.”

The complete list of nominations is displayed below.

animation

alan wake 2
hi-fi rush
hogwarts legacy
marvel’s spiderman 2
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor
super mario bros wonder

artistic achievement

alan wake 2
baldur’s gate 3
cocoon
Diablo IV
Final Fantasy XVI
hi-fi rush

audio achievements

alan wake 2
Call of Duty Modern Warfare III
hi-fi rush
The Legend of Zelda: Kingdom of Tears
marvel’s spiderman 2
Star Wars: Jedi Survivor

Alan Wake 2 has been nominated for eight awards due to its thrilling storyline. Photo courtesy of Remedy Entertainment

best games

alan wake 2
baldur’s gate 3
dave the diver
The Legend of Zelda: Kingdom of Tears
marvel’s spiderman 2
super mario bros wonder

british games

cassette beast
dead island 2
disney illusion island
football manager 2024
finder
Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Realms of Ruin

Debut match

cocoon
dave the diver
dredging
Stray Gods: Role-playing musical
Bemba
finder

Finder. Photo: Thunderful

evolving game

cyberpunk 2077
Final Fantasy XVI Online
fortnite
Forza Horizon 5
Genshin
no man’s sky

family

cocoon
dave the diver
disney illusion island
hi-fi rush
hogwarts legacy
super mario bros wonder

A game that goes beyond entertainment

Sennar’s chant
Goodbye Volcano High
Chia
Terra Nil
thirsty suitors
Bemba

game design

cocoon
dave the diver
dredging
The Legend of Zelda: Kingdom of Tears
marvel’s spiderman 2
finder

multiplayer

baldur’s gate 3
Call of Duty Modern Warfare III
Diablo IV
forza motorsport
party animal
super mario bros wonder

music

alan wake 2
Assassin’s Creed Mirage
baldur’s gate 3
The Legend of Zelda: Kingdom of Tears
marvel’s spiderman 2

Impa appears in “The Legend of Zelda: Kingdom of Tears”. Photo: Nintendo

interactive entertainment

Star Wars: Jedi Survivor

story

alan wake 2
baldur’s gate 3
dredging
Final Fantasy XVI
The Legend of Zelda: Kingdom of Tears
Star Wars: Jedi Survivor

new intellectual property

Sennar’s chant
dave the diver
dredging
hi-fi rush
Jusant
finder

main character performer

Amelia Tyler as narrator in Baldur’s Gate 3
Cameron Monaghan as Cal Kestis in Star Wars Jedi: Survivor
Nadji Jeter plays Miles Morales in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
Neil Newbon as Astarion in Baldur’s Gate 3
Samantha Béhar as Karlach in Baldur’s Gate 3
Yuri Ronenthal as Peter Parker in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2

Cameron Monaghan in Star Wars: Jedi Survivor. Photo: John Kopaloff/Getty Images

supporting cast

Andrew Wincott as Raphael in Baldur’s Gate 3
Debra Wilson as Cele Junda in Star Wars Jedi: Survivor
Ralph Ineson as Sidolphus “Cid” Telamon in “Final Fantasy XVI”
Sam Lake as Alex Casey in Alan Wake 2
Tony Todd plays Venom in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
Tracy Wilds as Jaheira in Baldur’s Gate 3

technical achievements

alan wake 2
Final Fantasy XVI
mountain horizon call

entertainment

The Legend of Zelda: Kingdom of Tears
marvel’s spiderman 2
star field

EE Player Selection (Public Vote)

baldur’s gate 3
cyberpunk 2077
fortnite
The Legend of Zelda: Kingdom of Tears
Lethal Company
marvel’s spiderman 2

Wildfire season starting earlier and extending further

Posted on March 8, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

The fire season in Alberta, Canada typically starts on March 1st. The season was officially declared open on February 20th, more than a week ago.

Over 150 wildfires are currently burning in parts of Western Canada. Meanwhile, firefighters in the Texas Panhandle have been battling the largest wildfire in the state’s history for over a week. This fire is part of a trend of recent wildfires starting earlier than expected.

Although winter fires are not uncommon in these regions, scientists believe that global warming is worsening the conditions that lead to these winter wildfires.

According to wildfire expert Mike Flannigan from Thompson Rivers University in British Columbia, Canada, “As temperatures rise, we are seeing conditions that are more conducive to fires. A longer burn period means more chances for fires to occur.”

The ongoing drought in Western Canada is fueling numerous fires in British Columbia and Alberta. Even in areas where drought is not a major issue, the impacts of climate change are being felt.

In Texas, authorities are investigating whether a utility company was responsible for the recent historic fires, which burned over a million acres. Extreme temperatures, dry grass, and high winds created ideal conditions for the fires to spread rapidly.

While global warming may contribute to the conditions favoring wildfires, it is challenging to directly attribute individual events to climate change. Weather, landscapes, and ecosystems all interact in complex ways to influence fire behavior in different locations.

Climate change is leading to warmer environments that make plants drier, increasing the risk of fires. Scientist Nathan Gill from Texas Tech University explained, “While we can’t point to any specific event as caused by climate change, conditions are changing, making similar events more likely in the future.”

This trend is expected to result in longer fire seasons and more winter fires in the years to come, as we continue to live in a more fire-prone world.

“As we face a more flammable world, we should anticipate more occurrences like this,” Flannigan concluded.

Source: www.nbcnews.com

The eerie and enigmatic instruments driving the soundtrack of Alan Wake 2

Posted on March 8, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

○The website of Petri Alanko, a BAFTA-nominated Finnish musician who works as a video game and film composer, describes the artist and performer as “Deadline since 1990.” “I’ve never been late,” he boldly claims. If you’re a creator of any genre, you’ll probably read this article with a mixture of awe, suspicion, and disbelief. Deadlines are flexible, right? right?

“It’s not a boast. It’s more or less a promise of service,” Alanko laughs. “I’m good at scheduling my work, but I’m very cautious when interacting with others for the first time. Even if I help the client understand what they need, everything Not every client knows exactly what they want. I have to be a creative and an analyst, but also a crisis negotiator.” Producing Video Game Music is often chaotic. Composers need to be adaptable, lean, and adaptable, unafraid to kill loved ones or work to impossibly tight deadlines. It’s a testament to his dedication that Alanko ignores this as simply part of the job.

Alanko’s method is quite unconventional. His latest project, his Alan Wake 2, has been 13 years in the making, and the developer says Remedy has been trying to make his 2010 project for three generations of consoles. This is the sequel to the cult hit. The plot follows the eponymous protagonist and her FBI agent Saga Anderson in a winding, spiraling tale that oscillates between reality and a supernatural otherworld, as the lines between fact and fiction become blurred. (Literally, I don’t mind gore either).

An aural imitation of Wake’s mental breakdown…Alan Wake 2. Photo courtesy of Remedy Entertainment

But what does that look like? For Alanko, that meant dropping a piano off a forklift, lying on an ivory keyboard with a sex toy, tinkering with a custom-built “fear engine,” and playing with Mega Marvin, a “giant cowbell with sticks and sticks.” It was to play with devilish instruments (springs). Remedy gives the composer room to experiment, and the result is a perfect blend of eerie and accessible, easily on par with the arthouse movie hits that might run rampant at Cannes or Sundance. became.

To convey the atmosphere of Alan Wake 2’s hostile otherworld, Dark Places, Alanco tested and recorded how instruments sounded when left on, and when compressed or attenuated. . He experimented with feedback, recording sounds beyond the range of human hearing and bringing them into range to see how disruptive it was. He shrieked discordant notes and pushed woodwind and brass instruments to the limits of his software’s matrix of high-end recordings. “Eventually, some of the wonders of Remedy’s basement were brought in as well,” he says. “They happened to have a lot of very interesting equipment there, which was the Mega Marvin and the Apprehension Engine.”

Made famous by disturbing films such as The Witch and the Lighthouse, the AppHension Engine was once called “the scariest instrument of all time” by Brian Eno. Stephen King had a visceral reaction when he first heard this game in action (which is quite appropriate considering how closely Remedy’s “New Weird” games align with King’s work) But for Alanco, it was the key to solving the mystery. The dark and hostile atmosphere that Alan Wake 2 needed to evoke in his place.

“I can tell you it’s a tough thing to master, let alone play,” Alanko smiles when asked about this strange instrument. “Imagine the most frightening of any musical instrument, all rolled into one, whose sole purpose is to make sound. Noise contains some tonal content. Sometimes it’s true, sometimes it’s not, and usually they seem to do whatever they feel like doing. It’s often said that if you spend 10,000 hours practicing your instrument, you’re good to be a performer. In Apprehension Engine, it’s even less so. You start out in complete emptiness and stay there for a long time. A spring reverb tank, a clanking resonant metal rod, two string necks, a few strings, and a nickel harper. It’s a crank, electronic bow, active mic, and heavily distorted preamp all rolled into one.”

“Wonderful Nightmare”… Apprehension Engine (left) and Mega Marvin. Photo: Joel Hohonen/Remedy

In short, it’s a “wonderful nightmare” and “almost on par with Alan Wake 2.” It just oozes fear. Balancing uneasily on the barrier between the familiar and the hellish, the Apprehension Engine effortlessly evoked everything Alanko needed for his Remedy game. This distorted sense of reality pulled the writer away from the real world and into a fever dream of his own creation, a limbo. There is a risk that it will spread to the real world as well.

It was important to Alanco to aurally mimic Wake’s mental breakdown. The character is something of a chimera between Alanco, lead writer Sam Lake, lead writer Clay Murphy, and director Kyle Murphy, who share more similarities than “we would care to admit, or perhaps could admit.” I’m sharing it with everyone. It was crucial to empathize with Alan and capture the sonic experience of his descent into (and descent from) madness.

“How I perceive writing music for my darkest emotions and mental states on Alan Wake 2 has to do with my early adulthood experiences and occasional personal struggles. ” says Alanco. “Fortunately, my experience is due to the environment and the general situation, and not due to the use of substances, for example.” But earthquakes can still cause fatalities. It takes a highly empathetic person to write a character who suffers from an unstable mental state.

Alanko’s dedication to his craft is evidenced by a full-sleeve tattoo of another bout of remedies he scored, “Control.” He said he already has ideas, drafts and concepts for what Alan Wake 3 will sound like. “As long as my heart is beating, I’m in this,” he says. “Music is very important to me.”

Countdown Begins: World’s First Bitcoin Blockchain ICO Nears End – Latest Blockchain Updates, Analysis, and Opportunities

Posted on March 8, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

London, UK, March 8, 2024, Chainwire

Bitcoin Dogs, the first ICO in the history of the Bitcoin blockchain, has announced the end date of its presale as March 15th, with seven days remaining.

The project raised over $8.1 million within 23 days, with investors purchasing 0DOG tokens.

With the community built to 150,000 in just three weeks and over 10,000 buyers to date, the team hopes to continue this momentum and growth.

Built on Bitcoin

Powered by 0DOG tokens, Bitcoin Dogs is both a GameFi experience centered around raising and training virtual dogs and a 10,000-strong NFT collection minted in BRC-20. The incredible reception from the cryptocurrency community is due not only to his innovative approach to modern Bitcoin development, but also to his fun retro graphics, focus on the community, and the way players interact with his PvP contests. This is brought about by the chance to get his 0DOG.

The game will begin beta testing in Q2, with 10,000 Ordinals NFTs being launched simultaneously, giving token holders early access to the collection. Full details of the project concept and roadmap can be found at white paperthe team is taking questions on our social channels.

Shaping the history of BRC-20

810 million tokens are available in the pre-sale. This is 90% of the total supply of 900 million, which is equivalent to the total number of dogs on the planet (“One token for every nose and foot on the planet.”).

Complementing this attractive proposition is a unique purchasing methodology, all explained at Bitcoin Dogs. How to purchase video. Bitcoin Dogs navigates the logistics of this, his first-ever ICO on the BTC blockchain, with grace. Pre-sale purchases can be made via Ethereum and a range of ERC-20 stablecoins.

These will then be converted into BRC-20 0DOG tokens once the pre-sale is complete. Investors must provide a Bitcoin address at the time of purchase.

Ordinals and the BRC-20 token revolution are technologies made possible by implementing data into Bitcoin's smallest unit, the Satoshi.

These additions to the original blockchain bring new functionality and utility to Bitcoin while maintaining the security and permanence that are hallmarks of the chain. BRC-20 token We have enjoyed large-scale rallies in recent months. ordinal number NFTs are expected to lead the market until 2024.

The project has also been mentioned in major publications such as CoinTelegraph, Bitcoin.com, DeCrypt, CoinMarketCap, and many others, and has achieved viral success on social media and major influencers. @MrX_Crypto, @BscSuperAltcoinand @BscGemX1000expressed support.

0DOG is currently available for purchase for $0.0343, and the pre-sale ends on March 15th, with a final price of $0.0404.

0DOG can be purchased below. Bitcoin Dogs website Until March 15th.

About Bitcoin Dog

Bitcoin Dogs is breaking new ground in the Bitcoin ecosystem. For the first time ever, NFTs, games, and a new type of token come together to deliver the first ICO on the original Bitcoin blockchain. Bitcoin's true permissionless immutability has been leveraged to create the 0DOG token, and a play-to-earn (P2E) gaming experience and NFT collection has been developed exclusively for his 0DOG holders.

For more information and to buy Bitcoin Dog (0DOG), visit: Website.

Website | white paper | social

contact

bitcoin dog
Bitcoin Dogs Team
bitcoin dog
pr@memeinator.com

Source: the-blockchain.com

World’s First 3D Printed Trachea Successfully Implanted in Woman

Posted on March 8, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

In a groundbreaking achievement in the field of medicine, a 3D printed organ has been successfully transplanted into a patient for the first time in history. A South Korean patient is currently recovering with a new trachea partially made from someone else’s stem cells.

The pioneering 3D-printed trachea transplant took place at Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital in 2023, led by a team of scientists, doctors, and engineers. The recipient was a woman in her 50s who had lost part of her trachea following thyroid cancer surgery.

While 3D printed bones and food have shown some success, the transplantation of organs marks a new frontier in medical technology.

What is the 3D printed trachea made of?

The patient’s new trachea is composed of cartilage and mucosal lining, sourced from nasal stem cells and chondrocytes obtained from other patients. The bioink used also contains polycaprolactone (PCL) for structural support, different from the standard ink used in home printers.

Given its biodegradable nature, PCL has a limited lifespan of about 5 years. However, researchers hope that within this timeframe, the artificial organ will stimulate the patient’s body to regenerate its own windpipe.

According to the hospital, traditional treatments post-tracheal resection do not allow for restoration of the original organ and can be complex and risky. The introduction of 3D printed organs could transform the treatment of patients with thyroid cancer, congenital defects, and tracheal trauma.

Significantly, patients undergoing this procedure did not require immunosuppressants. At the six-month mark post-surgery, the patient’s trachea was healing well with the development of new blood vessels.

The research is currently undergoing peer review for publication in a scientific journal.

How do I 3D print a trachea?

The dimensions of the trachea must be customized for each patient based on their CT and MRI data. In this particular case, the trachea’s length needed to be under 5 cm (2 inches).

The printing process took less than two weeks, and the implantation occurred during a half-day surgery.

The successful collaboration behind this procedure involved the Catholic University of Korea, Gachon University, and T&R Biofab, the biomedical engineering company responsible for manufacturing the printer.

This achievement is the culmination of two decades of research, dating back to 2004 with preliminary laboratory studies on animals such as beagles. T&R Biofab’s specially designed printer enabled the creation of personalized, hollow, tubular organs with high precision technology.

Although the printer was tailored for Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital, there is potential for future expansion beyond this specific institution.

Dr. Paulo Marinho, Head of Science Strategy at T&R Biofab, expressed optimism about the future of 3D bioprinting technology and its potential to address organ shortages for transplantation.

About our experts

Dr. Paulo Marinho, with a background in chemical engineering and postdoctoral experience in regenerative medicine, plays a crucial role at T&R Biofab in advancing the frontiers of 3D bioprinting.

Read more:

The reasons behind placing trust in people’s words despite conflicting evidence

Posted on March 8, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Despite the recent surge in “fake news,” misinformation has actually been around for as long as humans have existed. Outlandish claims and conspiracy theories have always been a part of human culture.

Misinformation often originates from, spreads through, and holds significant influence on individuals.

When trying to convey complex information to a general audience, even with strong evidence and expert support, it may still be less convincing than anecdotal evidence like “someone I met in the pub said something different.”

Interestingly, the source of misinformation is often someone close or loosely connected to an individual, rather than a stranger in a pub. This can range from friends to distant acquaintances.

Despite lacking relevant expertise, these individual sources can hold significant influence in shaping beliefs and perceptions.

Humans are not always rational beings, and our brains are heavily influenced by emotions and social connections. Emotional experiences play a significant role in memory retention.

Our brains have evolved to rely on social connections and emotions to gather information. Empathy and emotional connections with others are key factors in how we process information.

Human faces and relationships play a crucial role in how we absorb and understand information. This is evident in the preference for newsreaders over text-only news delivery.

Individuals with personal connections or relatable stories often have a greater impact on us than impersonal sources of information.

Despite the importance of facts, emotions play a significant role in shaping our beliefs and actions. This is why anecdotal evidence from individuals can sometimes carry more weight than concrete research.

Earliest Human Occupation of Europe Marked by Discovery of 1.4-Million-Year-Old Stone Tools in Ukraine

Posted on March 8, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Archaeologists have dated ancient stone tools unearthed at the Korolevo site along the Tisza River in western Ukraine to 1.42 million years ago. Therefore, these artifacts are homo erectus — provides the earliest evidence of humans in Europe and supports the hypothesis that the continent was colonized from the east.

Stone tools from Korolevo I, Ukraine.Image credit: Garba other., doi: 10.1038/s41586-024-07151-3.

“To the east of Europe is the important site of Dmanisi, Georgia, where layers containing human skull remains and stone tools have been reliably dated to approximately 1.85 million to 1.78 million years ago.” said lead author and archaeologist Dr. Roman Garba. Institute of Archeology and Nuclear Physics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, and colleagues.

“The path from Africa to Dmanisi through the Levantine Corridor is consistent with Mode 1 stone artefacts recorded in Jordan's Zarqa Valley, dating back approximately 2.5 million years.”

“The earliest dated evidence of humans in Europe was found at two sites in the southwest: Atapuerca, Spain, the oldest hominin fossils at Sima del Elefante are dated to about 1.2 million years old. and 1.1 million years ago. And in the Valone Cave in southern France, stone artifacts are limited to about 1.2 to 1.1 million years ago.”

“However, the vast spatial and temporal gap separating the Caucasus from southwestern Europe leaves important aspects of the first human dispersal into Europe largely unresolved.”

The Korolebo website is first discovered It was discovered in 1974 by Ukrainian archaeologist Vladislav Gradylin.

It is located near where the Tisza River, a tributary of the Danube, emerges from the eastern Carpathians and spreads southwest across the Pannonian Plain.

“The layers of loess and paleosoil accumulated here are up to 14 meters deep and are known to contain thousands of stone artifacts. Korolevo is an important raw material for their production. ” said co-author Dr. Vitalij Usyk, an archaeologist at the Institute of Archeology of the Czech Academy of Sciences.

“We have identified seven epochs of human occupation in the stratigraphic strata, and at least nine different Paleolithic cultures have been recorded in the region. I lived here until a year ago.”

Selected stone tools from Korolevo I, Ukraine: (a) chopper core; (b) Flakes with double-sided treatment. (c) Multiplatform Core. (d) Combewa flakes. (e) Flakes with parallel scar patterns. Scale bar – 3 cm.Image credit: Garba other., doi: 10.1038/s41586-024-07151-3.

The stone tools of Korolevo are oldowan stylethe most primitive form of tool making.

“We applied two complementary dating methods to calculate ages from measured concentrations of beryllium-10 and aluminum-26 of cosmic origin,” said lead author, Czech Academy of Sciences Geophysical Research said Dr. John Jansen, a researcher at the institute.

“However, the most accurate age was obtained from our proprietary method based on mathematical modeling known as P-PINI.”

“This study is the first time our new dating approach has been applied to archeology.”

“We expect our new dating approach to have a major impact on archaeology, as it can be applied to highly fragmented deposits – deposits with lots of erosional voids.”

“In archaeology, we almost always find a fragmentary record, whereas the traditional long-distance dating method, magnetostratigraphy, relies on a more continuous record.”

The First Peoples of Europe: (a) Ruins and dispersal routes mentioned in the text. The maximum extent of the Eurasian ice sheet is indicated by the gray dashed line. Blue arrows indicate possible early human dispersal routes. (b) Korolevo I, Gostly Verv, Ukraine, seen from Beyvar Hill with excavation XIII (red box).Image credit: Garba other., doi: 10.1038/s41586-024-07151-3.

According to the research team, Korolevo is the northernmost known archaeological site. homo erectus.

“The radiometric dating of the first human presence at the Korolevo site not only bridges the large spatial gap between the Dmanisi and Atapuerca sites, but also shows that the first dispersal pulse of humans into Europe came from the east or southeast. This also supports our hypothesis,'' Dr. Garba said.

“Based on climate models and field pollen data, we identified three possible interglacial warm periods during which the first humans most likely followed the Danube migratory corridor to reach Korolevo. .”

a paperThe survey results were published in a magazine Nature.

_____

R. Garba other. 1.4 million years ago, humans dispersed from east to west across Europe. Nature, published online March 6, 2024. doi: 10.1038/s41586-024-07151-3

Source: www.sci.news

An unexpected meeting: Gray seal sprays water at white-tailed eagle

Posted on March 8, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

This interaction sheds new light on the dynamics between. gray seal (Halichoerus grypus) and White-tailed eagle (Harrietus albicilla)says British birdwatcher Claire Jacobs.

Claire Jacobs captured a rare moment with a gray seal (Halichoerus grypus) Spray water at a swooping white-tailed eagle (Harrietus albicilla) on the Isle of Wight. Image credit: Claire Jacobs.

Claire Jacobs witnessed a white-tailed eagle swoop toward the surface at high tide.

As the eagle approached, an adult gray seal emerged from the water directly beneath the predator.

This unusual event occurred in the waters of the Newtown Estuary of the Newtown River called Cramerkin Brook or Cramerkin Lake.

The encounter was caught on camera, with the gray seal initially emitting a warning call, but then resorting to an unprecedented defensive tactic: spitting a stream of water directly at the eagle.

“I always enjoy photographing eagles,” Claire Jacobs said.

“However, my year was enriched by being able to capture such rare and never-before-seen interactions.”

“Sightings of gray seals and white-tailed eagles are now common on the Isle of Wight, but interaction between these two species has so far not been reported,” said Megan Jacobs, daughter of Claire Jacobs and a palaeontologist at the University of Portsmouth. says Mr. .

“This is the first record of an interaction between these two top predators, and the first report of a gray seal using spit as a means of defense or deterrence against an airborne enemy.”

“White-tailed eagles directly compete for fish stocks, so spitting may be a strategy to eliminate them from competition for prey.”

The white-tailed eagle, also known as the Steller's sea eagle, is the largest species of European eagle.

Their wingspan can reach up to 2.6 meters, but is usually smaller, with males measuring about 2.26 meters and females about 2.37 meters.

White-tailed eagles went extinct on the Isle of Wight in 1780, but a bold reintroduction program began introducing young white-tailed eagles from breeding pairs in Scotland in the summer of 2019.

“Spitting is a rare behavioral activity among vertebrates, which is why this event is so fascinating,” said Megan Jacobs.

“This challenges our existing understanding of animal defense mechanisms.”

“Spits are commonly found in humans, camels, llamas, and alpacas, but are also used in some snakes to deliver venom, and may also be used to capture prey by archers, so there is no photographic evidence I'm excited to have gotten this fish. “

This unusual event is described in the following paper: Journal of the Isle of Wight Natural History and Archeology Society.

Source: www.sci.news

6 important considerations during a total solar eclipse

Posted on March 8, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Pink stripes called prominences that appear during a total solar eclipse

Alan Dyer/StockTrek Images/Getty Images

There is no greater experience in life than witnessing a total solar eclipse. For a while, the sky darkens, the air cools, and stars appear during the day. Some people may go through life without ever seeing a solar eclipse, but for eclipse chasers like me, that’s not enough.

The thrill of anticipating the next total solar eclipse comes from the fact that each one is completely unique. They can last from 1 second to more than 7 minutes and occur on different types of terrain and geology, usually at sea.

The total solar eclipse on April 8 will be visible only to those along the 185-kilometer-wide path, and the sun will be completely eclipsed for up to 4 minutes and 26 seconds. Just before, during, and after these magical minutes, those on the path to wholeness should be aware of a variety of phenomena. If the sky is clear, you can expect the following to happen during a total solar eclipse:

sunspot covered by the moon

This is one of those sights that everyone across North America has a chance to see. The sun is currently nearing its most active period in a cycle called solar maximum, which lasts 11 to 17 years. This means that magnetic activity is at its maximum, causing visible sunspots on the sun’s surface. If these dark, cold, magnetically complex regions are large enough, they can be seen through eclipse glasses at any time. Even for those outside the path of totality, it’s an interesting sight to see them gradually covered by the moon during an eclipse.

band of shadow on the ground

For a few minutes to about 30 seconds before the sun is completely eclipsed, only a thin crescent moon appears from the surface of the sun, called the photosphere. When this happens, you may see wavy lines moving quickly across the light-colored surface. “a [bed] A shadow band may appear on sheets or other white surfaces placed on the ground.” frank maloney at Villanova University in Pennsylvania. “These are due to clumps of photosphere light that travel through the atmosphere and essentially ‘flicker’ in roughly parallel bands.” Whether they are visible or not depends on the amount of turbulence in Earth’s atmosphere.

solar eclipse 2024

On April 8th, a total solar eclipse will pass over Mexico, the United States, and Canada. Our special series covers everything you need to know, from how and when to see a solar eclipse to the strangest solar eclipse experience of all time.

Darkness, Bailey’s Beads, and the First Diamond Ring

Just before totality, the last 0.1 percent of the sun disappears and light levels plummet. Now come the beads. “For a few seconds before and after totality, the last bits of the Sun can be seen shining through the moon’s irregular surface, so you might be able to see Bailey’s beads,” Maloney says. The final bead sparkles momentarily like a jewel, just as the sun’s corona appears, creating a brief “diamond halo” effect around the moon. It’s safe to view a diamond ring without eclipse glasses, but most observers will still have their eclipse glasses on and will miss it.

solar corona

One of the most amazing sights in nature is here. “During totality, when the sun’s photosphere is eclipsed, other parts of the sun’s atmosphere, the white corona and the pink and purple chromosphere, become visible,” Maloney said. Darkness has arrived and you can safely remove your eclipse glasses and view the corona with the naked eye. As the Sun approaches the most active phase of its cycle, the corona is expected to resemble a spiky star. If you have binoculars, you can see the thin tendrils growing inside the corona.

pinkish-red chromosphere and prominences

Just before the beginning and end of totality, the chromosphere, the lower region of the sun’s atmosphere, can be seen as a pink band that disappears during the eclipse and reappears on the opposite side as the moon crosses the sun. Masu. You may also see prominences, pinkish-red towers, or loops of plasma and magnetic field structures protruding from the corona visible around the moon.

second diamond ring

The most impactful diamond ring effect appears at the end of the whole thing. Small beads of sunlight appear between the moon’s peaks and valleys, then merge into a single bright diamond ring, the appearance of which marks the end of the whole thing. It’s safe to watch for a few seconds, but once sunlight returns, you’ll need to put your eclipse glasses back on if you want to continue seeing the partial phase.

Once the totality is over, the band of shadow may be seen again. Of course, he can put the eclipse glasses back on and watch the sun and sunspots slowly being exposed for at least another hour.

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Clownfish produce a sugary mucus to protect themselves from the stings of sea anemones they live in.

Posted on March 8, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Clownfish and sea anemones have a symbiotic relationship

Wildlife/Getty Images

The secret is in the runny nose. Chemical changes in the mucus that coats the clownfish’s body can blunt the sting of its symbiotic sea anemone.

Researchers have long suspected that something special in the mucus of the clownfish, also known as the clownfish, protects it from the microscopic stingers of the sea anemone’s tentacles. But the exact mechanism remained a mystery, he said. karen burke da silva At Flinders University, Australia.

To investigate, she and her colleagues bred orange clownfish (Amphiprion percula) and bubble tip sea anemone (Entacmaea four colors) at the Institute. Some fish and sea anemones live in pairs, while others live separately. The researchers collected mucus samples from the fish at various times before and after they had adapted to the anemone, and then placed the mucus on a microscope slide and pressed it against the anemone’s tentacles.

Sea anemones sting by firing small coiled venomous harpoons explosively from their stinging cells called stinging cells. The researchers used a microscope to count and compare the number of stinging cells that fired during the mucus treatment. They found that mucus from a clownfish’s partner, but not mucus from an unknown fish, reduced the firing of stinging cells.

To find out why, the researchers analyzed how the glycans (chains of sugar attached to proteins) and fats in the clownfish’s mucus change as they adapt to their hosts. Three weeks after the symbiotic partnership began, the chemical profile of the mucus changed significantly. In particular, the concentrations of seven types of glycans were changed. Removing glycans or otherwise tweaking them could be one way he suppresses line cell firing, Burke da Silva says.

Alonso Delgado At Ohio State University, the sea anemone shrimp (Ansiromenes Magnificus), using similar glycan methods or evolving different strategies to thwart sting.

Additional strategies may also be at work for clownfish. Glycan changes are slow, and after a partner splits, he grows back within a day. Instead, fish may use an unknown chemical strategy at the very beginning to gain initial access to sea anemones.

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Salmon farms are experiencing a growing problem of mass mortality

Posted on March 8, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Salmon die from algae bloom at Norwegian farm

Berit Roald/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

Since 2012, mass die-offs of farmed salmon have become more frequent and increasing in number, with some locations wiping out millions of fish at a time. These mass mortality events are often caused by stress factors such as fluctuations in ocean temperatures and poor living conditions, highlighting the need to improve animal welfare practices on salmon farms.

Approximately 70% of the salmon sold worldwide is farmed. There is a high mortality rate of fish before they are ready for slaughter, and there are serious concerns about the environmental impact of salmon farming and the welfare of farmed fish.

Six countries produce 92% of the world's farmed salmon: Norway, Canada, the United Kingdom, Chile, Australia, and New Zealand. Gerald Singh Researchers from the University of Victoria in Canada analyzed mortality data from these countries.

The researchers found that high-fatality events increased over time, particularly in Norway, Canada, and the United Kingdom, from 2012 to 2022. A total of 865 million salmon died during this period.

“We are talking about very large numbers,” Singh says. “In the case of Norway, the worst ranged from about 935,000 fish lost in a month to just under 5 million. In Canada, the worst 10 per cent disaster ranged from about 935,000 fish lost in a month to just under 5 million. Between 10,000 and 3.8 million fish were lost.”

If this trend continues, researchers predict that future fatal crashes could cause up to 5.14 million deaths in Norway, 5.05 million people in Canada and just over 1 million people in the UK.

Environmental stressors such as marine heatwaves and lack of oxygen in the water, as well as sea lice infestations, can trigger these mass die-offs. To reduce the impact of these stressors on salmon, Singh says better animal welfare practices need to be implemented, such as not overcrowding fish pens.

“These events can have significant impacts on local economies, communities and ecosystems,” he says. “For example, if communities that rely on these industries are stripped of their farming permits, this can have a significant impact on local economies and livelihoods.”

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New experimental weight loss drug shows greater effectiveness than Ozempic

Posted on March 7, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Oral weight loss drug may help obese patients who hate needles

Kseniya Ovchinnikova/Getty Images

Based on early trial results reported on March 7, it appears the experimental pill may cause greater weight loss than existing injectable treatments such as Ozempic, Wigoby, and Munjaro.

The drug, called amicretin, reduced people’s weight by 13 percent in three months. This is more than double his amount observed at Ozempic and Wegoby specifically. “From the limited data we have, this approach seems a little more exciting,” he says. Daniel Drucker At the University of Toronto, Canada.

The results come from a three-month, placebo-controlled trial, so it’s too early to know how amicretin compares to other drugs in terms of long-term efficacy and safety. said Drucker, who was not involved in the trial but was consulted, as well as manufacturer Novo Nordisk and other drug companies.

The diabetes drug Ozempic and the weight loss drug Wegoby are two brand names for the compound semaglutide. They work by mimicking a gut hormone called GLP-1 that is normally released after meals. This makes a person feel full, reduces appetite, and stimulates the release of the blood sugar-regulating hormone insulin.

Semaglutide leads to a loss of about 15 percent of body weight when taken for a year, but after that the weight plateaus and the injections need to be continued for a long time or it tends to gradually come back.

Another weight loss injectable called Mounjaro, also known as Tirzepatide or Zepbound, was launched last year. It mimics GLP-1 and an additional intestinal hormone called GIP. Using Mounjaro, you seem to lose about 21 percent of your weight over the first year and five months of her life before your weight loss plateaus.

However, amicletin mimics GLP-1 and another hormone called amylin, and appears to be even more potent, at least during the first three months of treatment. Reuters reports that people who took amicletin lost 13 percent of their weight during this period, Nordisk announced today. Those who took the placebo pill had a 1% decrease. This is higher than Wegovy and Ozempic’s 6 percent and Munjaro’s equivalent figure of around 7.5 percent.

But we can only know for sure how the drugs will fare over the long term if they are compared under exactly the same circumstances in a single study, Drucker said. “This is not a head-to-head trial.”

Another caveat is that while drugs that act by mimicking GLP-1 have been used to treat type 2 diabetes for more than a decade and their safety profile is well understood, amylin mimetics That’s not the case.

Novo Nordisk also said: Amicretin’s side effects were similar to those of Wegoby, and tended to include nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea, especially when the dose was increased rapidly.

The availability in pill form could be a big advantage for people who don’t like injections, he says. Daniel Chancellor Global Pharmaceutical Business Analyst cytherine. “Oral medications are very attractive.”

In addition to these three drugs, other weight loss drugs that mimic other gut hormones are also in development.

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Medical drugs /
weight loss

Paper wasps with earthworm-like characteristics produce a special milk for their young

Posted on March 7, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Female American paper wasp and her offspring

carlos jared

These worm-like creatures secrete nutritious milk from their butts to nourish their hatchlings. This is the first known example of an amphibian feeding its young in this way.

American paper wasp (Siphonops anulatus) is a legless, egg-laying amphibian found on dark, moist forest floors throughout South America. It can reach up to 45 centimeters in length, with a deep blue cylindrical body surrounded by white grooves.

American paper wasps are born with spoon-shaped teeth. They use these to feed on their mother's skin, which is rich in lipids and proteins.

“But this skin nourishment only happens once a week,” he says carlos jared At the Butantan Institute in São Paulo, Brazil. That's not enough food to maintain the young's growth rate, he says, with some cubs growing 150 percent larger within the first week of life.

To find out where their extra nutrition is coming from, Jared and his colleagues filmed 16 female ringed wasps and their hatchlings.

The researchers observed the newly hatched chicks wriggling around the edges of their mother's body several times a day, often nibbling or sticking their heads into the rear opening known as the vent.

Closer examination of the footage showed that droplets of a milk-like substance were frequently spilled into the vent openings, suggesting that the chicks were actively feeding on it.

Analysis of the milk revealed that it contained fat and carbohydrates. “These carbohydrates are very important,” say team members Pedro Maillo-Fontanathe Butantan Research Institute also provides hatchlings with the energy they need to grow.

The researchers also discovered that touch and sound signals from hatchlings stimulate milk production in the mother's oviducts, or glands within the fallopian tubes.

Some paper wasps that give birth to live offspring secrete nutritious fluids for the fetus inside the mother's body, while amphibians produce fluids to nourish their offspring outside the body, Mailho-Fontana said. This is the first time that this has been found to be the case.

“The paper wasp is a real surprise box,” says Jared. “They are very secretive and live in an underground world that is different from the one above. They adapt to a world that is completely different from the one we know and invent some new behaviors to survive. There was a need.”

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Bumblebees Learn from Each Other to Solve Complicated Puzzles

Posted on March 7, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Bumblebees may be capable of advanced social learning

David Woodfall/naturepl.com

Bumblebees can teach each other how to solve puzzles that are too difficult for them to solve alone. This finding suggests that these insects may use advanced social learning that has previously been demonstrated only in humans.

Previous research by alice bridges Queen Mary University of London has proposed that bumblebees could teach each other how to open lever puzzles to obtain sweet treats. And they preferred solutions they learned from their peers to solutions they had come up with on their own, as if the techniques were a cultural trend.

Now, Bridges challenged the bees to a more difficult puzzle box that required them to operate a blue lever and then a red lever in order. Even after 12 to 14 days of trying, the bees from three different colonies couldn’t figure it out on their own.

The researchers then taught nine bumblebees the key. But the training was so difficult that the animals initially refused to participate until the humans provided additional sweet rewards along the way, Bridges said. Once reintroduced to the colony, the skilled bee passed on its new knowledge to five other bees who had never seen the puzzle box before.

“suddenly, [naive bees] We were able to learn everything from trained demonstrators,” Bridges said. “When I could barely train, [the demonstrators] To do that. “

Until now, there was little evidence that non-human animals are capable of cumulative culture (defined as the ability to learn skills from other animals that cannot be acquired through a lifetime of independent trial and error). This feat allowed humans to create complex knowledge systems like modern medicine.

These findings “raise serious questions about this idea of human exceptionalism,” they wrote. alex thornton At the University of Exeter, UK his explanation on paper.

But we shouldn’t praise the cumulative culture of bees just yet. Elisa Bandini At the University of Zurich. She is not convinced that the experiment shows a behavior so complex that individual bees cannot develop it on their own. If the untaught bees had received additional rewards in the same way as the trained bees, they might have solved the puzzle on their own.

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Could two genetically engineered mice save Valentine’s Day?

Posted on March 7, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

love time

Valentine's Day celebrates coupling. Alan McWilliam told Feedback about an offer he received from a US-based biotech company before the most recent Valentine's Day. It combines charm with other qualities.

Alan says: “I received the following marketing email. I have never before been offered a “free breeding pair of genetically modified mice” for Valentine's Day. What could be more romantic than staring into the eyes of a mouse over the flame of a Bunsen burner before implanting a tumor and humanely euthanizing it a few weeks later? ”

Here are the notes:

“Dear Alan,

love is in the air, [REDACTED]share the love with a special Valentine's Day promotion just for you.

Theme: The perfect combination in research

Promotion: This Valentine's Day, we're giving away a free breeding pair of genetically modified mice using our genetic targeting service.

Coupon code: FREECOUPLE

This limited time offer is designed to enhance your studies and provide you with the perfect study companion. ”

Regardless of the romantic or commercial effects of this offer, its most powerful use may be as a psychological test. How would a person seemingly react to this opportunity?

political restraint

With a growing trove of top-notch data, British psychology researchers are keen to sift through it for lessons about leadership. Feedback infers this from news accounts.

of BMJ (formerly known as this) british medical journal) create medical care Note It has been reported that Chancellor Rishi Sunak is “fasting for 36 hours at the beginning of every week''. Sunak's past and current medical data may be of interest and inspiration to physicians, psychologists, and nutritional researchers. Over time, does the body of evidence expand or contract? How much of that inflation or deflation is due to leaders' first-person food control?

More complete data may already be available about the effects and effectiveness of self-regulation (or basically self-asserted restraint) by former Prime Minister David Cameron, who served as Prime Minister from 2010 to 2016. There is sex.

new scientistA 2015 report on Cameron Fluid Engineering explains: While this technique may be effective, it also appears to help people tell more convincing lies. ”

(By a happy coincidence, the 2011 Ig Nobel Prize in Medicine was awarded to Award It was given to researchers in the UK, Netherlands, Belgium, Australia and the US to test the effectiveness of the delayed voiding technique. The award was announced naked weeks before Prime Minister David Cameron went public with his penchant for peeing. )

If it someday turns out that other British prime ministers have also exercised restraint, researchers will have even more data available.

Under the tarantula hole

Fascinating and surprising delights about living things can linger in the bibliography section of scientific papers about things that went extinct long ago.

Trilobite researchers still chat about their research. ”Frontal auxiliary impression of the Ordovician trilobite Darmanitina reed, 1905, from Varandian region, Czech Republic.' was published a few years ago. Earth Science Bulletin.

But only the most diligent researchers discovered something unexpected deep in the bibliography section at the end of the paper. It was a reference to the paper “''.Connection between heart and sucking stomach during tarantula ingestionWritten by Jason Dunlop, John Altringham, and Peter Mill, published in 1992 Journal of Experimental Biology.

And deep within that heart- and stomach-sucking paper lurks a different kind of surprise, a reminder that scientists must always proceed with caution. “In the absence of detailed information about the tarantula's body fluid flow, any model is speculative.”

gentle youth

Dave Kirby noticed another cookbook: anarchist cookbookperhaps a warning is needed (feedback suggested something like “If you don't cook the anarchist to the correct temperature, you may run into problems”).

Dave says: “In addition to the books you mentioned, you can also add the following. River Cottage Baby and Toddler Cookbook. My local restaurant's bookshelf is full of cookbooks, and I found this one there a few months ago.

“I was hesitant to look at the fine print on the menu.”

Depending on the cat

This is probably reassuring news for people who fear being temporarily separated from their cats.

A study conducted in California titled “Comparing people's attachment to romantic partners and pet cats'' was published in the journal anthropozoanAccording to a report, some people “don't necessarily need the reassurance from a cat or feel distressed in its absence, as would be the case with a romantic partner.”

Mark Abrahams hosted the Ig Nobel Prize ceremony and co-founded the magazine Annals of Improbable Research. Previously, he was working on unusual uses of computers.his website is impossible.com.

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Microsoft files motion to dismiss the copyright lawsuit brought by New York Times | Technology

Posted on March 7, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Microsoft has issued a response to a copyright infringement lawsuit filed by The New York Times, alleging that its content was used to train generative artificial intelligence. Microsoft called the claims a false narrative of “apocalyptic futurology” and criticized the lawsuit as short-sighted, comparing it to Hollywood’s resistance to VCRs.

In a motion to dismiss filed as part of the lawsuit, Microsoft responded to the allegations, stating that The New York Times’ content was given “particular weight” and that Microsoft has made significant investments in the Times. Microsoft ridiculed the claims made by the newspaper and denied the accusations of government involvement in the matter.

The lawsuit, which could have far-reaching implications for artificial intelligence and news content production, accuses Microsoft, as the largest investor in OpenAI, of using copyrighted content from The New York Times to develop AI products that threaten the newspaper’s ability to provide its services.

Microsoft argued that the lawsuit is reminiscent of Hollywood’s opposition to VCRs in the past and emphasized that the content used to train the language models does not replace the market for the original work but rather educates the models.

OpenAI, a co-defendant in the lawsuit, has requested the dismissal of certain claims against the company, asserting that their products, such as ChatGPT, are not intended to replace subscriptions to The New York Times and are not used for that purpose in the real world.

Following Microsoft’s legal response, The New York Times pushed back against the comparison to 1980s home-taping technology, stating that Microsoft collaborated with OpenAI to copy copyrighted works without permission.

The dispute between the parties is part of a larger legal battle over copyright issues related to AI technology and concerns about the creation of misleading information. Recent incidents, such as Google’s use of AI to generate historically inaccurate images, have raised concerns about the need to address these issues.

OpenAI has faced criticism for its training methods and refusal to disclose training data, including the use of copyrighted works. The company argues that limiting training data to public domain content would hinder the development of AI systems that meet current needs.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman expressed surprise at the Times lawsuit, stating that the AI models do not rely on specific publisher data for training and that the Times’ content represented only a small portion of the overall text corpus used.

WWE 2K24 Review: Celebrating WrestleMania’s 40th Anniversary with Slapstick Arcade Fighting Gameplay | Games

Posted on March 7, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

IThis is a storyline worthy of a WWE Superstar. Smashed, widely ridiculed, and clearly on the way to obscurity, WWE 2K20 was video game wrestling’s lowest ebb. Less than five years later, the game, which has probably done all sorts of off-screen training him montages in Meat Locker, not only dazzles and even works well, but actually gives users It’s back activated with controls that will put a smile on your face.

Conceptually, wrestling has always been difficult to translate into games. Why not just hold the leather against your opponent’s face until they’re too shocked to resist the pin? Because that would make for bad TV, and you couldn’t tell from the smell of body oil and hairspray yet. Contrary to some people, this is the world of sports entertainment. No, being “good” in WWE 2K24 or its predecessors means putting on a show. So does it know how to make you do it?

There is always fluidity in the movements in the ring. Chops transition into grapples without annoying delays, and the highly varied animations ensure that even the most specific and situational actions are executed well, even allowing you to throw a slim-shelf gym into Cena’s face. In celebration of WrestleMania’s 40th Anniversary, Showcase Mode lets you play through the furry’s most iconic matches from the 1980s to the present. It’s a shame that we can’t rewrite history with such a well-recreated moment, but we have to respect the effort. The game also tries to faithfully reproduce his 80’s camera effects.

This is a modern sports game, offering around 40 different modes, and inevitably some modes are left to deteriorate between releases. (MyGM Manager mode is this year’s biggest casualty.) He has two newcomers among a dizzying array of match options. In Ambulance matches, your goal is to weaken your opponent enough that you can load him into the back seat of an ambulance parked right next to the ring inside the arena. It’s best not to ask too many questions to the ambulance. In the Special Guest Referee match, you play as…the Special Guest Referee. These sideshows also offer the shine and functionality fans have been dreaming of.

The story-focused career mode, on the other hand, offers two completely different interactive narratives. One positions you as a star female wrestler on the local indie scene trying to gain national attention, and the other positions you as a star female wrestler on the local indie scene trying to gain national attention, and the other places you in an unlikely play after Roman Reigns unexpectedly retires, leaving the title vacant. We will position you as an active male wrestler on Raw who is very successful. . Like just about every other corner of the game, they’re dripping with expensive production costs, fun star cameos, and endless different ways to beat people on TV.

Here’s an analogy about sports franchises. Taking a year off (like WWE did in 2020) could be a good thing. From the hilariously detailed character creation to the feel of Jarman’s suplexes, 2K24 hits the mark.

Light and sound therapy may provide preventative measures against chemically-induced brain changes in Alzheimer’s disease

Posted on March 7, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Some cancer treatments can cause so-called chemobrain, commonly defined as problems with memory and concentration.

One Bar/Alamy

An experimental treatment for Alzheimer’s disease that involves flickering lights and low-pitched sounds may also help prevent cognitive impairment after cancer treatment, also known as chemical brain, a study in mice suggests.

In the case of Alzheimer’s disease, light and sound stimulation has been shown in small human trials to reduce memory and concentration problems, but larger studies are still investigating it.

The light flashes 40 times per second, or 40 Hz, and the sound also has a frequency of 40 Hz. This frequency was originally chosen because the brainwave intensity of Alzheimer’s patients is lower than 40 Hz and is associated with memory processing. The idea was that this treatment would stimulate these brain waves.

Subsequent research has shown that such brain waves may have a wide range of benefits for the brain, including increased immune cell activity and, more recently, strengthened drainage systems that may help remove a toxic protein called beta-amyloid. It suggests that there is.

Cai Li Hui The Massachusetts Institute of Technology researchers who developed this approach thought it could help cancer patients who have memory and concentration problems after chemotherapy and other cancer treatments. It is thought that these may be caused by damage to brain cells, but the exact mechanism is unknown and there is no cure.

In the latest study, Professor Tsai’s team exposed cancer-free mice to light and sound for one hour a day while being given a common chemotherapy drug called cisplatin, compared to those who had just received chemotherapy. They found that they experienced less decline in mental acuity than mice.

Acuity was assessed by a memory test in which mice were exposed to either new or familiar objects, and the animals typically showed more interest in things they had never seen before. Chemotherapy reduced the mice’s ability to identify objects, but this was prevented by light and sound treatment.

The therapy had several effects, including reducing inflammation in the brain, reducing DNA damage, and reducing the loss of myelin, the insulation around nerve cell fibers.

nazanin derakshan Researchers at Britain’s University of Reading say the idea needs to be tested in people to see if it has any overall benefits. If this treatment is given at the same time as chemotherapy and reduces cell death in the brain, it may help cancer cells survive there, she says.

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AI chatbot continues to perpetuate racist stereotypes despite anti-racism training

Posted on March 7, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Hundreds of millions of people are already using commercial AI chatbots

Ju Jae-young/Shutterstock

Commercial AI chatbot displays racial bias against African-American English speakers despite outwardly expressing positive sentiments toward African-Americans. This hidden bias can influence the AI’s decisions about a person’s employment eligibility and criminality.

“We discovered some kind of hidden racism. [large language models] It is caused solely by dialect characteristics and causes great harm to the affected groups.” Valentin Hoffman at the Allen AI Institute, a nonprofit research institute in Washington state. social media posts. “For example, GPT-4 is more likely to be sentenced to death if the defendant speaks African American English.”

Hoffman and his colleagues found that more than a dozen versions of large-scale language models, such as OpenAI’s GPT-4 and GPT-3.5, which power commercial chatbots already used by hundreds of millions of people, do not contain such hidden biases. I discovered that there is. OpenAI did not respond to a request for comment.

The researchers first gave the AI text in either African American English or standard American English style, then asked the model to comment on the author of the text. The model characterized African American English speakers using terms associated with negative stereotypes. In the case of GPT-4, they are described as “suspicious,” “aggressive,” “loud,” “rude,” and “ignorant.”

However, when asked to comment about African Americans in general, language models typically use more positive words such as “passionate,” “intelligent,” “ambitious,” “artistic,” and “brilliant.” This suggests that the model’s racial bias is usually hidden within what researchers describe as superficial displays of positive emotion.

The researchers also showed how hidden biases influence people’s judgments of chatbots in a hypothetical scenario. When asked to associate African-American English speakers with jobs, the AI was less likely to associate African-American English speakers with jobs than standard American English speakers. When AI matched jobs, they tended to assign roles that didn’t require a college degree or were related to music and entertainment. AI could also convict an African American English speaker accused of an unspecified crime and give the death penalty to an African American English speaker convicted of first-degree murder. It was highly sexual.

The researchers even showed that large AI systems showed more hidden bias against African American English speakers than smaller models. This reflects previous research showing that large AI training datasets can produce even more racist output.

This experiment raises serious questions about the effectiveness of AI safety training. In AI safety training, large-scale language models receive human feedback, adjust responses, and eliminate issues such as bias. It says such training could reduce ostensibly overt signs of racial bias without eliminating “hidden bias when identity terms are not mentioned.” Yong Jian Shin from Brown University in Rhode Island was not involved in the study. “This highlights the limitations of current safety assessments of large-scale language models by companies before they are released to the public,” he says.

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Exploring Celestial Events: Tonight’s Comet in March 2024

Posted on March 7, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

In March 2024, early risers should be able to view comet C/2021 S3 (PanSTARRS) through binoculars as it approaches Earth.

Comets, often referred to as “dirty snowballs,” are icy objects that travel through space, leaving behind a trail of dust and gas as they approach the Sun.

C/2021 S3 was discovered in September 2021 by one of the PanSTARS telescopes on Mount Haleakala (Hawaii) and is predicted to reach a magnitude between 7 and 9 (the lower the magnitude, the more powerful the comet is). (looks bright).

You can’t see it with the naked eye, but you should be able to spot it with a decent pair of binoculars. However, predicting a comet’s final brightness is somewhat difficult. Comets are difficult to handle and prefer to act independently.

But don’t worry, Comet C/2021 S3 poses no danger to Earth and will pass us safely.

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When can we see Comet Panstars tonight?

A comet is approaching Earth on March 14, 2024. It reached perihelion, the closest point to the Sun in its orbit, on Wednesday, February 14, 2024, when it became visible from the United States and the United Kingdom.

During the second half of the month, around March 18th to March 29th, the Moon begins to interfere as it approaches the full moon on March 25th. Starting on the opposite side of the sky, the moon gradually approaches the comet towards the end of the month.

In late March, especially if you want to spot the comet passing through the Coat Hanger star map (more on how to find the Coat Hanger below), look up around 3 a.m. GMT. Basically, as soon as the comet is above the horizon. As dawn approaches, an interfering moon will spoil the progress.

How to see a comet

Comet C/2021 S3 is heading northeast, passing roughly between the large constellation of Ophiuchus above and the small constellations Scutum and Aquila below. Ophiuchus and Aquila both straddle the celestial equator, while Scutum lies just south of it.

Until about March 18, look to the southeast early in the morning as the sky begins to lighten. By this point, the comet is visible above the horizon and the Moon appears relatively out of the way.

The best time to see the views is around 3am in late March. Also, at this time, Comet C/2021 S3 will pass over the Coathanger Cluster, a small star group. And yes, it’s exactly like the name! Here’s how to find it:

Find the Summer Triangle. Let’s start by identifying the Summer Triangle. This is an easily recognizable asterism, formed by the bright stars Deneb in Cygnus, Vega in Lyra, and Altair in Aquila.
Find the constellation Little Vulgar. Once you find the Summer Triangle, look for the constellation Little Bitis. It is located between Cygnus and Sagittarius and is shaped like an extended M. It can be found by drawing an imaginary line north from the star Altair in the Summer Triangle.
Move to coat hanger. Once you find Vulpecula, look for the Coathanger Asterism. This is very distinctive and looks like a coat hanger or an upside down question mark. The Coathanger is an asterism within Vulpecula and is easy to find once you enter the right area.

If you’re star hopping and having trouble finding the star on your coat hanger, downloading a stargazing app can help. Here are all the best astronomy apps.

Here’s what you can do to help astronomers discover more Comet

astronomer from University of Reading is seeking photos of comet C/2021 S3 As part of a citizen science project to study the solar wind.

Photos from amateur astronomers help researchers improve space weather predictions and influence solar wind technology.

Comet tails, also known as “cosmic windsocks,” can tell us a lot about the strength and direction of the solar wind. For example, if the tail peels off or wobbles, you can infer that there is increased activity.

Please send images, including date, time and location, to researcher Sarah Watson at srwatson@pgr.reading.ac.uk. The research team is particularly interested in observing the broken tail.

The comet is not expected to be bright enough to be seen with the naked eye, so if you want to photograph it you’ll need a small telescope or a camera with a large lens.

Why do comets get brighter when they get closer to the sun?

Comets become more active as they get closer to the sun. Intense heat from the sun and solar radiation can evaporate ice cores and suddenly release dust and gas. This process forms a glowing coma (a cloud of gas and dust) around the nucleus and a bright tail that reflects sunlight.

This tail can span millions of kilometers and is influenced by a combination of different processes. For example, the solar wind, which is made up of charged particles, can interact with these gases to produce ion tails that point away from the sun.

In addition, the sun’s radiation pressure develops and displaces the dust particles. This can lead to the formation of a separate dust tail, which often lags behind the ion tail. A combination of sublimation (the transformation of solid ice directly into gas), ionization, and radiation pressure all affect the appearance of comet tails as they orbit the Sun.

And the closer the comet is to the Sun, the more intense this activity becomes, and the brighter it appears in the night sky.

the current, 3,922 known comets (and its fragments) of our solar system.

But it can also get dark…

However, this is not always the case. When a comet runs out of volatile matter, it may lose its ability to produce a bright coma and tail. Therefore, comets appear darker as they get closer to the Sun. In addition, comets can develop a crust that makes it completely impossible for material to escape.

Scientists hypothesize that comet C/2021 S3 may already have a mineral crust forming on its surface. If this were the case, the comet’s albedo (reflectance) would be much lower because the crust would protect its volatile-rich interior from the sun. In other words, it won’t be as bright as other comets this year. But if the underlying material continues to evaporate and creates enough pressure to break through the Earth’s crust, a flare can occur. That would be fun.

When is the next comet?

Comet C/2021 S3 is one of the few bright comets we’re watching this year. Next up is Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks, also known as the “Devil’s Comet” thanks to its distinctive “horns” that began to widen towards the end of 2023.

It can be easily seen with a telescope or binoculars, and will begin to brighten towards the end of March 2024, so it could be the first comet of 2024 to be visible to the naked eye.

read more:

Podcast of the Week: Amateur sleuths theorize Avril Lavigne was swapped out with impostor

Posted on March 7, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

This week’s picks

Who will replace Avril Lavigne?
BBC Sounds, weekly episodes
“I know what you’re thinking. She’s definitely dead.” Joan McNally, the very funny comedian, said that in 10 years, Avril Lavigne died or retired and was replaced by a doppelganger. I’m obsessed with internet conspiracies. So she set up an office at her “current” boyfriend’s home and began this investigation. She’s not even a fan of Lavigne, but that only adds to the hilarity of her Stacey Dooley-like ambition. Holly Richardson

Very famous person: George Michael
Wide range of weekly episodes availableThis three-part series, hosted by the feisty duo Emily Lloyd-Saini and Anna Lyon Brophy, looks at George Michael’s life through the lens of ‘Post-Wham!’ baby”. Ideal for those who don’t remember how tough his 80s height of fame was. In this bonus episode, Russell Tovey talks about Michael’s life and legacy. Hannah Verdier

Election workers in Berlin during an anthrax alarm in Germany in 2001. Photo: Michael Dalder/Reuters

A place to be a woman
BBC Sounds, weekly episodesWhere and how can women live their best lives? Skaachi Kuhl and Sophia Smith Gaylor talk to women around the world about body image, parental leave, and friendships to find out who gets the best deal. In an age where wellness is promoted as something you can buy, they get to the heart of what women need. HV

sports agent
New episodes widely available on Tuesdays and ThursdaysGabby Logan and Mark Chapman are the hosts of this new behind-the-scenes sports podcast from the same stable as Newsagents. Familiar voices in the arena, both of whom have considerable experience at the Euros, Wimbledon and the Olympics, promise to bring big-name guests and analysis to a crowded sporting calendar. HV

Cover-up: The anthrax threat
Wide range of weekly episodes availableHow would you feel if you knew that just opening the mailbox could kill you? After 9/11, envelopes filled with anthrax started falling on the desks of journalists and politicians, and it became a reality. became. Josh Dean, who was working in New York at the time, is currently on a seven-year investigation to find the culprit. HV

There’s a podcast for that

Cariad Lloyd and Sarah Pascoe. Photo: David M Benett/Dave Benett/Getty Images for Ghost Fragrances

this week, Rachel Areosti Our picks for the 5 best podcasts on Bookfrom Cariad Lloyd and Sarah Pascoe’s Book Club for Weird People to Pandora Sykes’ Exploration of Old Classics

good reading
Radio 4’s long-running series reviews three books each time. Two of his books were recommended by the episode’s celebrity panelists, and another by the pleasantly authoritative (and, at this point, frighteningly well-read) host Harriet Gilbert. Part of the appeal comes from the collision of worlds. Guests range from writers and comedians to chefs and doctors, and their recommendations are just as diverse. Alan Titchmarsh chose PG Wodehouse’s Summer Lightning. Musician Lauren Mayberry appears in Yoko Ogawa’s “Memory Police.” Explorer Ella al-Shamahi chose Abdulkader al-Ghuneyd’s The Prison of Sana’a. Criticism is relentless, advocacy passionate, and debate flammable. If you find yourself adrift among the vague opinions and random noise of other book review podcasts, this is for you.

strange book club
The origin story of a book podcast couldn’t be better. Comedians Sarah Pascoe and Cariad Lloyd met while studying English at the University of Sussex in the late 90s. They are now reviving student literary conversation in a medium that had not yet been invented at the time. Pascoe’s “Weird Book Club,” named after her recently released debut novel, sees her pals discuss old and new titles with each other, with friends, and sometimes with the people who wrote them. Let’s discuss. Hear Nish Kumar talk about Sheena Patel’s I’m a Fan of Her, Monica She Hey, and more. About her divorce comedy “Really Good, Actually” and the hosts getting hooked on Iris Murdoch’s “Under the Net.” The guests are good too, but Pascoe and Lloyd are her USP. Wonderfully funny and sophisticated, yet convincingly casual, with the kind of joint banter that only decades of friendship can foster.

Book a chat
This literary discussion show from journalists Pandora Sykes and Bobby Palmer is built on one important rule: That means the books featured must be at least two years old. That means no breathtakingly hyped debut novels or thrillers topping the bestseller charts. Instead, they looked beyond the zeitgeist, from Zadie Smith’s White Teeth (2000) to Armistead Maupin’s Tales of the City (1978). It refreshingly pokes fun at the blockbuster hits of the past few decades, while also revisiting smaller titles. Recent works include Sarah Winman’s The Tin Man and Meena Kandasamy’s When I Hit You. It’s an approach that makes Book Chat feel like a peaceful respite from the chaotic hustle and bustle of the next big culture.

LRB Podcast
The London Review of Books contains some of the most compelling and interesting essays and criticism. He has a firm demeanor but is never formal, serious but often irreverent. This series is essentially a magazine in podcast form. Hosted by LRB staffers Thomas Jones and Marin Hay, it features conversations with published authors about the latest riffs on recent literature. The focus is usually nonfiction, and the subject matter is diverse to the point of eclecticism. Amia Srinivasan on octopuses, Rosemary Hill on Mount Vesuvius, Tom Crewe on wrestling, Deborah Friedel on J. Edgar Hoover, Jonathan Coe on British humour, and more. But the end result is that it teaches you something you didn’t realize you needed to know, and it’s the same every time.

Reserved
Reading, by its very nature, is a solitary activity, and the books we consume become lifelong companions that no one else has. This podcast by journalist and novelist Daisy Buchanan goes some way towards capturing our intimate relationship with literature. Buchanan joins guest authors each week to peruse their imaginative bookshelves and discover the books that captivated them as children and teens (Naomi Klein, it was an interview with Oriana Fallaci’s History ), the novels they didn’t do well (Andrew Hunter Murray can’t stand Mitford), and the books that set them on the path to professional writing (Susie Dent looked up the dictionary) in our mutual friend).

Why not try it…

If you were sent back in time, would you survive and thrive? Would you invent electricity in ancient Rome or teach Napoleon rock and roll? Find out Master of the past.
Join botanist turned actor Alisha Wainwright When science finds a way She meets pioneering scientists and researchers who are changing the world.

Soulbare Sessions – Where’s Mom? digs deep into one person’s extraordinary life story and provides a platform for them to speak freely about overcoming a difficult start in life.

If you want to read the full newsletter, subscribe to receive Listen Here in your inbox every Thursday.

Newly discovered deep-sea worm amazes marine biologists

Posted on March 7, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Marine biologists at the University of California, San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography and the Ensenada Higher Education and Research Center have described a rare new species of deep-sea insect with gills discovered in a methane well off San Diego’s Pacific coast. Named pectine rice triclotti, the new species has an elongated body flanked by rows of feathery, gill-tipped appendages called lateral legs.

pectine rice triclotti, a living male specimen. Image credit: Ekin Tilic.

pectine rice triclotti belong to Nereididae, a segmented, mostly marine family of insects with over 700 recognized species.

Commonly known as lugworms, these organisms are generally found in coastal areas and are usually limited to shallow marine habitats, but can also be found in brackish waters, freshwater bodies, and even moist terrestrial environments.

However, around 10% of the total diversity of lugworms is known to inhabit deep-sea environments.

These nematodes have a long body with rows of bristly parapods on the sides and a set of scissor-like jaws for feeding.

Many lugworm species undergo two distinct life stages: atokes and epitokes.

Pectine rice triclotti was first discovered during a dive in 2009 at a depth of approximately 1,000 meters (3,280 feet) using the submersible Alvin.

“We observed two lugworms swimming close to each other, about the length of a submarine, near the ocean floor,” said Bruce Stricklot, a researcher at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.

Several specimens of pectine rice triclotti were collected and analyzed for anatomical features and DNA to determine their evolutionary relationships within the Nereididae family.

According to Dr. Greg Rouse, a marine biologist at the University of California, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, Pectine rice triclotti has unique characteristics compared to other lugworms.

Pectine rice triclotti, while possessing menacing-looking jaws, has unknown feeding habits, with the possibility of feeding on bacteria and other large food particles similar to other insects.

The body color of pectine rice triclotti in its natural habitat is likely rosy due to the darkness at 1,000 meters below the surface.

Further research is needed to explore the reproductive mechanisms and feeding behavior of this newly discovered deep-sea species.

The finding is detailed in the article: paper published in the online journal PLoS ONE.

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TF Villalobos Guerrero et al. 2024. A remarkable new species of deep-sea Nereidae (Annelidae: Nereidiidae) with gills. PLoS ONE 19(3): e0297961; doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0297961

Source: www.sci.news

Astronomers discover floating crystals preventing cooling in high-mass white dwarf stars

Posted on March 7, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Astronomers have proposed a new theory to explain why a mysterious population of white dwarfs has stopped cooling for at least 8 billion years.

This diagram shows a white dwarf and the moon. Image credit: Giuseppe Parisi.

White dwarfs are the remains of stars without a nuclear energy source that gradually cool over billions of years, eventually freezing from the inside out to a solid state.

Recently, it was discovered that a population of frozen white dwarfs maintains a constant brightness for a period comparable to the age of the universe, indicating the existence of an unknown, powerful energy source that inhibits cooling.

“We find that the classical picture that all white dwarfs are dead stars is incomplete,” said astronomer Dr Simon Bruin from the University of Victoria.

“To stop these white dwarfs from cooling, we need some way to generate additional energy.”

“We didn’t know how this happened, but now we have an explanation for this phenomenon.”

The researchers say that in some white dwarfs, the dense plasma inside them doesn’t just freeze from the inside out.

Instead, the solid crystals that form when frozen tend to float because they are less dense than the liquid.

As the crystals float upwards, the heavier liquid moves downwards.

As heavy material is transported toward the star’s center, gravitational energy is released, and this energy is enough to interrupt the star’s cooling process for billions of years.

Dr Antoine Bedard, an astronomer at the University of Warwick, said: “This is the first time this transport mechanism has been observed in any type of star, and it’s very interesting because it’s not every day that a completely new astrophysical phenomenon is discovered.”

“We don’t know why this happens in some stars and not others, but it’s probably due to the star’s composition.”

“Some white dwarfs are formed by the merger of two different stars,” Dr Bruin said.

“When these stars collide to form white dwarfs, the star’s composition changes, allowing the formation of floating crystals.”

White dwarfs are routinely used as an indicator of age, and the cooler a white dwarf is, the older it is considered to be.

However, the extra delay in cooling seen in some white dwarfs means that some stars at certain temperatures may be billions of years older than previously thought.

“This new discovery will not only require a revision of astronomy textbooks, but will also require a reexamination of the processes astronomers use to determine the age of stellar populations,” Dr. Blouin said.

of the team paper Published in today’s diary Nature.

_____

A. Bedard other. Buoyant crystals stop the white dwarf from cooling. Nature, published online March 6, 2024. doi: 10.1038/s41586-024-07102-y

Source: www.sci.news

BT abruptly disconnected my landline despite my protests and refused to provide a refund.

Posted on March 7, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

I’m at a loss to understand how my BT landline and Wi-Fi could be disconnected without the company receiving any instructions from me.

I’m a 79-year-old widow who lives 11 miles out of town and relies on Wi-Fi to order medication from my GP, groceries, and many other things.

I received a phone call out of the blue from someone who appeared to be a scammer, and on October 6th, I was told that BT was “sad to be leaving.”

I denied doing any such thing. I then received a letter from BT asking me to settle my bill as I would be made redundant on October 20th. I called and protested, but it still didn’t work. Disconnected.

I have now spent a lot of time and money calling BT from my mobile and now here I am after several months with no solution. There’s no real explanation as to how the initial error occurred or why I can’t reconnect.

I also got a warning from one of them Employees, you may not be able to get back the same phone number you’ve had for 23 years. My neighbor is letting me use his Wi-Fi, but it’s illegal.

It’s understandable that you’re upset about this experience of having no landline or internet for more than three months.

We tracked BT, only to discover that your fate is accidentally intertwined with your nearby neighbor in the Herefordshire countryside. When setting up a new contract, an incorrect address was retrieved and the connection was dropped.

BT says: hardware I’ve experienced it. Our complaints team has identified the address discrepancy. They fixed this and reconnected her service.

“We offered compensation for the delay and she accepted this as a resolution to her complaint.”

You will probably receive around £900. This reflects the length of the outage that occurred. I also got my old number back which had sentimental value.

Nevertheless, you are angry that no one listens when you tell BT that you are not canceling the contract, and that the contract could be terminated by someone else’s careless actions.

We welcome letters, but cannot respond individually. Email us at Consumer.champions@theguardian.com or write to Consumer Champions, Money, the Guardian, 90 York Way, London N1 9GU. Please enter a phone number where you can be reached during the day. Submission and publication of all letters is subject to our Terms of Use. http://theguardian.com/letters-terms

US corporations will be required to disclose climate-related risks to the public

Posted on March 7, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Companies will now be required to disclose information on how climate change could impact their financial performance, although not as detailed as initially proposed.

The Securities and Exchange Commission recently approved new climate risk disclosure rules, a significant change that mandates companies to include details about their emissions and other important risks they face in their public disclosures.

While some critics argue that the rules have been diluted due to pressure from business leaders, others believe this is an opportunity for investors to better understand the economic risks associated with climate change.

The new rules, approved by a 3-2 vote, require large publicly traded companies to disclose some aspects of their carbon footprint and how climate change could impact their business. Compared to the initial draft, the final rules apply to fewer companies and do not require disclosure of most indirect carbon emissions.

Many large companies already voluntarily disclose this information, and experts believe that the new rules could help reduce greenwashing, establish a common disclosure standard, and improve transparency for investors.

The adoption of these rules reflects a growing recognition within the business community about the economic risks of climate change, shifting from a previously abstract issue to a tangible threat that requires regulatory attention.

According to Cynthia Hanawalt, from Columbia University’s Sabin Center on Climate Change Law, the rules represent a significant step towards standardizing information for investors and enhancing transparency regarding the risks posed by climate change.

The rules were proposed in 2022 and have faced significant scrutiny, resulting in a final version that excludes the disclosure of Scope 3 emissions, which are indirect emissions associated with a company’s supply chain and product use.

As the rules are phased in, only large companies with a market value of at least $75 million will be required to disclose their emissions information, potentially impacting sectors such as automotive, agriculture, and cement.

Despite the limitations of the final rules, experts believe that they will set a new standard for climate risk disclosure globally and influence expectations in capital markets.

While the rules have been praised for promoting transparency and accountability, they may face legal and political challenges from groups seeking stricter disclosure requirements and opponents of such regulations.

Overall, the new rules aim to help companies manage their climate and emissions goals, prevent greenwashing, and provide investors with crucial information about the risks associated with climate change.

Legal challenges are anticipated, and resolution could take years, as the SEC works to address concerns from both sides of the debate.

evan bush

Evan Bush is a science reporter for NBC News. Contact him at Evan.Bush@nbcuni.com.

brian chan contributed.

Source: www.nbcnews.com

Could Woolly Mammoths Actually Make a Comeback?

Posted on March 7, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Unlike the extinct woolly mammoth, most edited elephants with mammoth-like features lack tusks to avoid poaching for ivory.

QuangTrungArt/Shutterstock

A company founded to bring back extinct animals has announced that it has made significant progress in its goal of bringing back the woolly mammoth. On March 6, Colossal announced that its team had succeeded in converting normal elephant cells into stem cells, which could lead to the creation of mammoth-like creatures. “This is an important step,” said the company's CEO. ben ramsaid in a press release. Here's what you need to know:

Is it really possible to bring the woolly mammoth back from extinction?

No, it's not, and it never will be. The genomes of several frozen mammoths have been sequenced, but there are many gaps. But it should be possible to edit the genome of a living elephant to make it look more like a mammoth. Colossal acknowledges on its website that the elephant it plans to create is a “cold-hardy elephant,” but says the animal “has all the key biological characteristics of a woolly mammoth.”

Will these edited elephants look like mammoths?

‘

Colossal says even the sounds of mammoths are similar, but it's unclear how humans know what a mammoth sounds like. There will be at least one major difference when it comes to their appearance.The majority do not have tusks to avoid ivory poaching, says Colossal co-founder George Church. Species with tusks can only be kept in highly supervised areas, he said.

Colossal also plans to make the mammoth-like elephants resistant to a deadly disease caused by the elephant endothelial-tropic herpesvirus.

Why does Colossal need to create elephant stem cells?

The company edits the genome of elephant cells to make them more similar to mammoths. But creating a living mammoth-like elephant requires producing embryos containing edited genomes. In theory, one way to do this would be to turn gene-edited elephant cells into so-called induced pluripotent stem cells, which then turn into egg and sperm cells.

What are induced pluripotent stem cells?

Pluripotent stem cells can transform into any cell in the body, including eggs and sperm. They occur naturally in embryos, but can also be made from adult cells by adding certain proteins, and are therefore “induced.” These have been produced in many animal species, but until now no one had succeeded in inducing pluripotency in elephant cells.

Why is it so difficult to induce elephant cells to become pluripotent?

At least in part, this is probably because these larger, longer-lived animals require better anti-cancer mechanisms, which means tighter control over stem cell proliferation.

How did Colossal manage it?

Specifically, they genetically engineered Asian elephant cells to permanently produce key proteins. Still, it took two months to turn the cells into induced pluripotent stem cells. “We want to make the process more efficient and faster, and I think this is a great start,” he says. Eona Hisori At Colossal. The DNA that encodes important proteins can be easily removed, she says.

So does Colossal turn these induced pluripotent stem cells into eggs and sperm?

That's the plan, but it could take years. Converting induced pluripotent stem cells into eggs and sperm is not easy. “This is primarily done in two species: mice and humans,” Church says. “And neither is perfect.”

Does that mean it could be decades before a mammoth-like elephant is produced?

Colossal claims the first “mammoth” will be born by 2028. Heisoli said the researchers aim to make just 50 to 100 gene edits in elephant cells, and that it is possible. But producing embryos in time will almost certainly require implanting the edited genome into an elephant egg using the same cloning technique used to create Dolly the sheep. An elephant's gestation period is her two years, so these embryos need to be created and implanted by her around the end of 2026.

Does cloning edited cells work?

Although it is possible, typically only a small percentage of cloned embryos develop into healthy animals. “There are always going to be attempts that fail. How many elephants should we experimentally impregnate?” asks a stem cell expert. Dusko Ilic At King&#39s College London. “Just because we have the ability to do something new doesn’t mean we should pursue it without careful consideration of the ethical implications and consequences.”

Where does this mammoth-like elephant live? Given Russia's claims about the war in Ukraine and the United States' biological weapons, isn't it highly unlikely that Russia would allow genetically reborn mammoths to be released into Siberia?

“Keep in mind that mammoths were everywhere in the Arctic, not just Siberia,” Hisori says. Alaska and Canada are also possibilities, she said, and Colossal already has “very fruitful collaborations” with government agencies, local governments and First Nations.

Why is Colossal aiming to revive the mammoth?

The company claims that rewilding the arctic regions where mammoths live will reduce permafrost thaw and reduce climate change by locking up carbon in the form of frozen organic matter. “The Arctic is a perfect place to sequester carbon because it freezes more layers of topsoil every year,” Church says. “And herbivores poop on it.”

Could mammoth-like creatures really help limit further warming in the Arctic?

That hasn’t been established yet, but there is some possibility. One small study suggests that large herbivores can lower permafrost temperatures By flattening and insulating the snow that accumulates in winter. Also, if edited elephants limit forest expansion, dark trees in previously flat, snow-covered areas could absorb more sunlight, which could have a warming effect. That would be helpful too. But it will take thousands of people to make a big impact.

Does that mean Colossal aims to have tens of thousands of these creatures roaming the North Pole?

Yes, that’s the purpose. Based on the increase in elephant population under favorable conditions, new scientist It is estimated that breeding so many mammoth-like elephants from a small initial population could take more than a century.

But Church says Colossal is developing an artificial womb that circumvents normal limitations. “So, in principle, we can do this at any scale the world wants and needs. If they don’t need it, we won’t scale up,” he says. .

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February 2022: The Hottest Month on Record

Posted on March 7, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Severe wildfires broke out in Chile earlier this year.

ZUMA Press, Inc. / Alamy

Earth just experienced its hottest February on record, with average global temperatures rising 1.77 degrees Celsius above the pre-industrial average for the same month, according to a preliminary report from the European Union's Copernicus Climate Change Agency (C3S). This marks the ninth consecutive month of record high heat.

“While this may seem surprising, it is actually not surprising because continued warming of the climate system will inevitably lead to new temperature extremes.” carlo buontempo C3S said in a statement.

Europe experienced an especially unusually hot month, with average temperatures 3.3 degrees Celsius above the monthly average from 1991 to 2020. Conditions were unusual, with hot and dry weather causing fires in the Americas, including the deadliest wildfire in Chile's history. Most of the rest of the world's land is warm.

The ocean heat is even more extreme, with February's global average sea surface temperature higher than August 2023, making it the ocean's hottest month on record. The average sea surface temperature of 21.09°C recorded in a single day at the end of February was the highest daily temperature on record, and the amount of sea ice in both the Arctic and Antarctic was below average.

richard allan Researchers from the University of Reading in the UK say the record heat on both land and oceans is mainly due to rising concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere and the warming effects of the El Niño climate pattern in the Pacific Ocean. ing. Fewer reflected aerosols due to reduced air pollution also contributed to the heat in some areas, he said.

Latest information suggests that last year's record-breaking El Niño, which began in June 2023, could weaken and be replaced by a cooler La Niña by the middle of this year. projection According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. But that may not bring instant respite. Historically, the year following an El Niño event bears the brunt of its heating effects.

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