Thousands of homes lost power, as downed power lines and trees blocked highways in Washington state on Tuesday due to a powerful atmospheric river event, officials announced.
Forecasters stated that a storm could bring up to 15 inches of rain and heavy snowfall in the mountains. By 7 p.m. local time, about 100,000 homes and businesses in Washington and over 14,000 homes in Oregon were without power, as reported by news agencies on the Rack Website poweroutage.us.
The Bellevue, Washington, fire department warned, “Trees are falling across the city, hitting homes.” They advised residents to stay away from windows and not to go outside if possible. X was contacted on Tuesday around 8pm.
Weather forecasters warned of a whiteout snowstorm in the Cascade Range and possible 2 feet of snow in Mount Shasta, Northern California, along Interstate 5. High wind gusts of up to 90 mph were recorded on Mount Rainier and 52 mph in Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.
Known as bomb cyclones, these intense winds are caused by rapidly intensifying storm systems with decreasing atmospheric pressure. Scientists attribute this phenomenon to climate change generating more atmospheric rivers, which are significant contributors to precipitation on the West Coast.
An atmospheric river storm could bring significant rainfall over a three-day period in Northern California, with a flood watch issued in several areas. These storms help replenish water supplies after dry summers, but can also lead to severe flooding and damage.
Satellite images show a weather system moving towards the Pacific Northwest, prompting concerns of damaging winds, rain, and snow. Climate scientists are closely monitoring the storm and its potential impacts on various regions.
Satellite images show the weather system moving closer to the Pacific Northwest on Tuesday morning. NOAA
As the storm progresses, residents in affected areas are advised to stay updated on weather alerts and follow safety guidelines to minimize risks and potential damage.
DESI instrument observing the sky from the Nicholas U. Mayall telescope during a meteor shower
KPNO/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/R. Sparks
Albert Einstein's theory of general relativity has been proven correct on the largest scale ever. Analysis of millions of galaxies showed that the way they evolved and clustered over billions of years was consistent with his predictions.
Ever since Einstein proposed his theory of gravity more than a century ago, researchers have been trying to find scenarios in which the theory of gravity doesn't hold true. However, no such test had ever been performed at the level of the longest distances in the universe. Mustafa Ishak-Bushaki At the University of Texas at Dallas. He and his colleagues conducted the experiment using data from the Dark Energy Spectroscopy Instrument (DESI) in Arizona.
The details of the structure of the universe and how it has changed over time provide a powerful test of how well we understand gravity. Because it was this force that shaped galaxies as they evolved from small fluctuations in the distribution of matter in the early universe.
DESI has so far collected data on how nearly 6 million galaxies have come together over the past 11 billion years. Ishak-Boushaki and his colleagues combined this with the results of several other large-scale surveys, including the cosmic microwave background radiation and supernova mapping. They then compared this to the predictions of a theory of gravity that encompasses both Einstein's ideas and more modern modified theories of gravity. They did not discover any deviations from Einstein's gravity. Ishak-Boushaki says that while there is some uncertainty in the measurements, there is still no strong evidence that theories that deviate from Einstein's can more accurately capture the state of the universe. .
Itamar Allari Professors at Brown University in Rhode Island say that although general relativity has been shown to hold up in very precise tests performed in the laboratory, it is important that it can be tested at all scales, including the entire universe. states. This eliminates the possibility that Einstein correctly predicted objects of one size but not others, he says.
The new analysis also provides hints about how dark energy, the mysterious force thought to be responsible for the accelerating expansion of the universe, fits into theories of gravity. Nathalie Palanque-Dravuille At Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, California. Einstein's early formulations of general relativity included a cosmological constant (a type of antigravity that plays the same role as dark energy), but earlier DESI results showed that dark energy is not constant. It suggested that. That may have changed as the universe aged, Palanque-Delabouille said.
“The fact that we see that we agree; [general relativity] And any deviation from this cosmological constant opens up a Pandora's box of what the data can actually tell us,” says Ishak Boushaki.
DESI will continue to collect data for several more years, eventually recording the locations and properties of 40 million galaxies, which the three scientists agree will support the theory of general relativity and dark energy. He said it would be clear how to combine them correctly. This new analysis used only one year of data from DESI, but in March 2025 the team plans to share findings from the instrument's first three years of observations.
Allari said these results could help pinpoint changes in the Hubble constant, a measure of the rate of expansion of the universe, narrow down the mass of elusive particles called neutrinos, and even search for new particles. He said he expects it to be significant in this important respect. Cosmic components such as “dark radiation”.
“This analysis will have implications not just for gravity, but for cosmology as a whole,” he says.
SpaceX is gearing up for the sixth test flight of Starship, the world’s most powerful rocket. Elon Musk’s company follows a “fail fast, learn fast” approach to research and development, which resembles the culture of Silicon Valley more than the aerospace industry, with an acceleration in the pace of launches. It seems so.
When is the next flight?
SpaceX states on the website that Starship is scheduled to conduct its sixth test flight on November 19th, with launch slots opening at 4pm Central Time (10pm UK). A live stream of the launch will be available. SpaceX’s X account on the social media platform also owned by Musk, can be viewed here at newscientist.com
It took SpaceX 18 months to complete Starship’s first five test flights, with the fifth happening in mid-October. With the launch of its sixth flight next week, it will be just over a month since the last flight, making it the fastest flight yet.
What will SpaceX attempt with Flight 6?
Flight 6 mirrors Flight 5 in many ways but with some significant differences.
The booster stage will once again try a “chopstick” landing, catching and securing the vehicle as it returns to the launch pad for a soft landing. This methodology aims to eventually enable boosters to be reused multiple times, significantly reducing the cost of launching payloads into orbit.
Starship during high altitude test flight
SpaceX
The upper stage will enter space, complete a partial orbit, re-enter Earth’s atmosphere, and splash-land in the Indian Ocean. In this flight, the upper stage will attempt to reignite one of the Raptor engines in space to gather valuable operational data. Also, new heat shield designs will be tested during atmospheric reentry.
One notable change in this flight is that the landing of the upper stage in the Indian Ocean will be filmed during the day as the launch occurs later in the day. This will provide detailed images as previous landings happened at night, limiting the visibility for engineers compared to daytime landings.
What occurred in previous Starship launches?
During the first test flight on April 20, 2023, three out of the 33 engines in the booster stage failed to ignite. This led to the rocket becoming uncontrollable and self-destructing.
In the second test flight on November 18, 2023, the flight proceeded further, with the booster and upper stage separating as planned. However, the booster stage exploded before reaching the ground, and the upper stage self-destructed before reaching space.
Test Flight 3 on March 14, 2024, was at least partially successful as the upper stage reached space, but it did not return to Earth unscathed.
The subsequent flight on June 6 saw the upper stage reach an altitude of over 200 kilometers and fly at speeds exceeding 27,000 kilometers per hour. Both the booster and upper stage completed a soft landing at sea.
Test Flight 5 was the most ambitious yet, with Starship’s super-heavy booster touching down on the launch pad and being safely caught by “chopsticks” on SpaceX’s launch tower, known as Mechazilla. This innovative landing approach aims to secure and lower the booster for reuse.
Billions, perhaps trillions of years from now, long after the sun has swallowed the Earth, cosmologists predict the universe will end. Some people wrestle with whether they are likely to collapse under the weight of the Big Crunch or become an infinitely empty Big Freeze that will continue to expand forever. Some believe that the end of our universe will be determined by a mysterious energy that rips the universe apart.
But there is a more immediate cataclysm that may already be heading towards us at the speed of light. They call it “big sip.”
The slurp in question begins with a quantum fluctuation, causing the bubble to roll through space like a cosmic tsunami, obliterating everything in its path. We should take this possibility seriously, says John Ellis of King's College London. In fact, the question is not so much if this apocalypse will happen, but when. “It could be happening as we speak,” he says.
Theorists like Ellis are actually surprised that such a catastrophe has not yet occurred in the observable universe. But rather than take our precarious existence for granted, they use the obvious fact that we are still here as a tool. The idea is that some weird physics is protecting us.
This kind of existential cosmology also helps physicists filter through the myriad models of the universe, and could tell us how the universe began in the first place. “Maybe you need something to stabilize it. [the universe]And it could be new physics.'' arthu rajanti…
Hazard monkeys come in a variety of colors and harbor photosynthetic algae in their shells.
dakota mccoy
Heart-shaped mollusks have evolved tiny windows that function like fiber optic cables, the first known examples in nature.
Heart monkey (Corculum Cardissa) are bivalves that look a bit like shellfish and have a symbiotic relationship with the photosynthetic algae that live inside them. Algae have a safe home, receive light, perform photosynthesis, and provide nutrients to their hosts.
Unlike other bivalves, cockles do not open their shells wide, but they somehow concentrate light inside even though they remain closed.
now, dakota mccoy Researchers at the University of Chicago discovered that cockles have transparent calcium carbonate crystal structures inside their shells that act like bundles of optical fibers, trapping light inside and showering it on the algae. “If you don't have to open it and you have a clear window, it's a very safe way to irradiate algae,” McCoy said.
The researchers examined shell fragments of various heart monkeys and the transparent structures within them, as well as the intensity and color of the light that passes through them. The researchers discovered that the windows are made of long, thin fibers of a mineral called aragonite, a type of calcium carbonate, which allows twice as much light, useful for photosynthesis, to pass through as it does harmful ultraviolet light. “We wear sunscreen because ultraviolet light can cause mutations and cancer, and the cockles use this window as a sunscreen,” McCoy said.
If you shine a light on the heart monkey's shell from inside, you'll see transparent windows shaped like small triangles (left) or stripes (right).
dakota mccoy
Aragonite threads are similar to manufactured optical fibers, but they transmit light just as effectively, although they lack a protective insulating sheath called a cladding. This could be an inspiration for cladding-free fiber optic cables that are cheaper to produce.
Shells' natural UV-blocking properties could also be used to protect corals. Like cockles, corals harbor photosynthetic algae inside, but McCoy said they are susceptible to environmental stresses such as light and heat.
El Capitan supercomputer at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Garry McLeod/Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
The top spot in the league table of the world's most powerful computers has changed hands, with one supercomputer built for US national security research overtaking another.
top 500The final list of the most powerful computers is based on one metric: how fast a machine can solve large numbers of equations, measured in floating point operations per second (FLOPS). Masu. A machine called Frontier, built in 2022, was the first to be publicly acknowledged to have reached exascale (1 billion FLOPS).
Frontier was founded by Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee to not only perform nuclear weapons simulations, but also address a variety of complex scientific problems such as climate modeling, fusion simulations, and drug discovery. Ta.
Now, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) in California has developed El Capitan, which has a power of 1.742 exaFLOPS, more than any other supercomputer.
The machine was built under tight security in cooperation with the National Nuclear Security Administration, a division of the Department of Energy dedicated to developing nuclear weapons science. The agency was established in 2000 in response to revelations that nuclear secrets had been leaked from the Department of Energy to China.
Essentially, El Capitan would provide the vast computational power needed to ensure the effectiveness of the U.S. nuclear deterrent without conducting any physical nuclear tests. LLNL claims that complex, high-resolution 3D simulations of nuclear explosions that previously took months on Sierra, its most powerful system, can be completed in just hours or days on El Capitan.
As a technology reporter, I like to think of myself as an early adopter. I first signed up for the social network Bluesky about 18 months ago, when the platform saw a small spike in users dissatisfied with Elon Musk’s approach to what was then still called Twitter. Ta.
It didn’t stick. Like many people, I found Twitter too tempting and deleted my Bluesky account, but it has returned in recent weeks. I’m not alone. Xodus began as Musk continues to transform his social platform, now called X, while taking on a role in President-elect Donald Trump’s incoming administration. Blue Sky acquired 12 million users in 2 months which is approaching 20 million users. This time I’m going to stay here – and I think others will too.
The main reason is that I want to have a social media experience without being bombarded with hate speech, gore, and porn videos. All of these have been complaints from X users in recent months. But I also have my eye on Bluesky. Because we think this signals a more fundamental change in how social media works.
Social media algorithms, the computer code that determines what each user sees, have long been a source of controversy. Fears of disappearing down the “rabbit hole” of radicalization, or of becoming trapped in an “echo chamber” of consensual and sometimes conspiratorial viewpoints, have dominated the scientific literature.
Displaying information from followers in chronological order creates a confusing quagmire for the average user to process, so using algorithms to filter information has become the norm. Sorting and filtering what’s important or what’s likely to keep users interested has been key to the success of platforms like Facebook, X, and Instagram.
But by controlling these algorithms, we can have a huge say in what people read. One of the problems many users have with X is its “For you” algorithm. Under Musk, comments by and about him appear to be pushed into users’ timelines, even if they don’t directly follow him.
Bluesky’s approach is not to do away with algorithms, but instead to have more than the average social network. in Blog Posts in 2023 Bluesky CEO Jay Graber outlined the ethos of the platform. Bluesky is promoting a “market of algorithms” rather than a single “master algorithm”, she wrote.
In practice, this means users will be able to see posts from users they follow on the app, and will be Bluesky’s default standard view. But they can also choose to see What is popular among your friends? selects posts that your peers will enjoy based on an algorithm. There is Feed exclusively for scientists curated by people who work in or work in the field. to promote black voices often decimated by algorithmic filtering.
Specifically one feed Promoting “Quiet Posters” – Users who post infrequently and whose opinions are drowned out by users who share all their opinions with their followers.
This menu of options allows Bluesky to serve the dual purpose of bridging the past and future eras of social media. The platform has the potential to function as a “de facto public town square” once it reaches a certain number of users. Musk’s Twitter dubbing before he buys it. Given that X has steered toward excluding many mainstream voices, and competitors like Threads have chosen to avoid promoting politics and current events, perhaps Bluesky will have a place in such a forum. It is probably the only one left.
But beyond feeds, Bluesky lets you tailor the app to your needs through other elements, like a starter pack of recommended users to jump-start your niche, and blocking tools to silence unruly voices. You can also.
No doubt, there are still problems. Finding the right feed for you can be difficult, but creating your own is even more complicated and requires third-party tools. But it’s exciting to be able to see the big picture of public conversations and delve into smaller debates within wider clusters and communities of society. This is a new social media model where users, rather than large corporations or mysterious individuals, control what they see. And if Bluesky continues to add users, it could become the norm. Come with me – I @stokel.bsky.social.
Chris Stokel-Walker is a freelance technology journalist.
Meta’s efforts to incorporate artificial intelligence systems in the UK public sector have advanced with the tech giant granting funding to develop technology to reduce waiting times in NHS A&E.
In the midst of competing initiatives by Silicon Valley tech companies to collaborate with national and local governments, Meta hosted Europe’s first ‘hackathon’ where over 200 programmers were challenged to use its Llama AI in UK public services. They were tasked with finding ways to implement the system. A Meta executive stated that they were ‘focused on Labor’s priorities’.
This development followed reports of another US tech company, Palantir, lobbying government officials, including the Department of Justice and Prime Minister Rachel Reeves. Additionally, Microsoft recently sealed a five-year agreement with Whitehall departments to provide AI Copilot technology to civil servants.
Meta’s hackathon featured Nick Clegg, former deputy prime minister and current president of international affairs at Meta in California. Ferial Clarke, the UK’s AI minister, emphasized the potential for governments to adopt AI, like Meta’s open-source model, to bolster their critical missions.
When questioned about the significance of Meta offering free technology, Clegg stated, “It will indirectly benefit us in the long run by fostering an ecosystem of Llama-based innovation, making it more likely for us to integrate innovation back into our products.” He also brushed off concerns regarding AI risks in public services.
Discussing potential regulation, Mr. Clark assured that Labor would address the substantial risks AI poses while supporting innovation and ensuring workers are not overwhelmed by regulations.
Peter Kyle, the secretary of state for science and technology, acknowledged that the UK government was being outspent by tech giants in innovation, highlighting the need for a national strategy in collaborating with such companies.
The push to promote Meta’s open-source AI platform in the public sector comes as concerns mount over the influence of tech giants, particularly following the involvement of Elon Musk’s X platform in the US presidential election and social media’s role in inciting the August riots in the UK.
In response to inquiries about Meta’s management of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, Clegg highlighted the contrast between Meta and X in how they handle content.
“We approach things very differently,” he remarked. “During the UK riots, individuals like Tommy Robinson and Andrew Tate, who caused significant issues, were long banned from our platforms. This contrasts with platforms like Telegram and X.”
GMentioning presidential election results became legal in the United States in early October after being banned for decades, marking a new type of pre-election polling. Online prediction markets such as Calci and Polymarket accept billions of dollars in bets on the outcome, with users out of sync with mainstream polls that gave Donald Trump a 70% chance of winning over Kamala Harris. The Trump campaign touted this prediction.
Election gambling is legal in the UK, but takes a very different form. Traditional bookmakers and betting companies take players’ bets and set prices and odds. This betting is less similar to a prediction market than it is to horse racing. These markets are prone to their own scandals. Kalshi and Polymarket offer a vision of online gambling that covers a wider range of themes, is algorithmically priced, and relies on cryptocurrencies.
Now, Kalsi is riding the wave of these accurate predictions, gaining millions of new users and billions of dollars in trade value, expanding the scope of what users can bet on. Polymarket has courted political influencers like Nate Silver and ZeroHedge to ask questions that users can bet on. Robinhood and DraftKings also intend to throw themselves into the political gambling ring. Will every public event soon have billions of dollars in online wagers? Will the Oscars become a new type of speculative financial market? Would you bet your life’s savings on whether the price of eggs will rise in the first month of President Trump’s inauguration? This is a real bet you can place on Karsi.
Callum Jones of the Guardian reports:
“We are just getting started,” said Tarek Mansour, CEO of Karshi. Kalsi is adding “nearly 100” new markets to its platform every day, and is based on combinations that allow users to bet on a bunch of different outcomes or conditional markets (e.g. “What will happen to GDP if Trump wins?”) We plan to launch a market for ) within a few weeks. “I think it will accelerate from here…”
For Karshi, the only things off-limits are “terrorism, assassinations, and violence.” What about Ukraine? Although the conflict falls under the platform’s banned category, the Russian invasion and subsequent war have certainly moved stocks and products since February 2022. “Time will tell,” Mansour said.
That’s great news for Kalsi. The polymarket is making the post-election party much quieter. Last Wednesday, the FBI searched the Manhattan home of gambling market founder Shane Coplan, 26, and seized his cell phone and other electronic devices. The company quickly blamed the 6 a.m. attack on “clear political retaliation by the outgoing government.”
However, Bloomberg reported: The US Department of Justice is investigating The company is suspected of accepting transactions from users in the United States, but has been prohibited from doing so since a settlement agreement with regulators in 2022. However, users of the site have done their best to circumvent geofencing using virtual private networks. Two weeks ago, Polymarket announced that it would soon resume operations in the United States. With an active FBI investigation looming over the company, it’s hard to imagine it will reopen. Fortune also reported on another type of illegal market manipulation: “wash trading.” It is said to have been proliferated on the site..
France is also grappling with the effects of the polymarket. A French man with the username “Theo” made the site’s most famous bet. It was a bet of around $30 million (about £23.7 million) that Trump would win the US election. Do such huge bets amount to foreign election interference? Mr Teo’s bet is similar to that of Peter Thiel, the US entrepreneur who made an unexpected early bet against Mr Trump in the 2016 election. It is similar to the polymarket itself supported by
France’s gambling regulator is currently investigating the site for market manipulation. Cryptocurrency industry publications It was reported that the country is considering banning it. In response, Polymarket said it saw no evidence of market manipulation.
Can Trump and Elon Musk weaponize the US? Internet and satellite regulator?
Donald Trump and Elon Musk attended a UFC event at Madison Square Garden in New York over the weekend. Photo: Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC
Late Sunday, President Trump announced his nomination of Brendan Carr to head the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). A conservative committee member wrote: Chapter on the future of the FCC He joined Project 2025, the second Trump administration’s infamous far-right strategy, and was the only current government official to do so. Mr. Carr’s views on the U.S. technology sector are largely in line with those of Mr. Trump and Mr. Musk. In recent months, they have collectively criticized broadcast television networks and public broadcasters.
Rather than be bound by exclusive practices, Kerr said, “censorship cartel” He believes that statements from big tech companies are stifling conservative speech. Google is already reeling from losing an antitrust case against the United States, and with President Trump slamming Google in his campaign speech, it could be a big loser in the next administration. Carr also supports banning TikTok due to its alleged national security threat.
Mr. Carr’s agency could become a political bludgeon for President Trump in his personal vendetta against technology companies. He is a friend of the telecommunications industry and an enemy of Silicon Valley’s big tech companies. He applied a hands-off approach to internet service providers, dismantling consumer protections that benefit the industry’s largest incumbents, and then sacrificing consistency in favor of political expediency, including Google and Facebook. Will it apply oversight and strict powers to things like that?
“Brendan Kerr campaigned for this job promising to be at the mercy of Donald Trump and Elon Musk,” said Co-CEO of left-wing media advocacy group Free Press Action. says Craig Aaron. “Kerr doesn’t care about protecting the public interest. He took this job to carry out a personal vendetta against Trump and Musk.”
Mr. Kerr also could turn the FCC into a commercial weapon against his billionaire tech rivals, “First Buddies,” as Mr. Musk himself christened them. The main beneficiary of the commissioner’s appointment is likely to be Musk’s SpaceX, whose satellites and the internet services it provides fall under the jurisdiction of the FCC. In his Project 2025 proposal to the FCC, Carr emphasizes the priority of “advancing America’s space leadership.” He cited Starlink, SpaceX’s satellite internet company, and said his agency would adopt the friendliest possible regulatory stance on the company’s launch schedule.
“As a company, we are not anti-technology”…Yondr cell phone pouch. Photo: Public relations company handout
When everyone else is digging for gold, sell shovels. A company called Yondr discovered this. The brand saw a market opportunity as schools around the world implemented No Phone Days and governments debated whether children should be banned from using social media altogether. Founded in 2013, Yondr was one of the first companies to create a lockable phone pouch that allows students (and others) to isolate their devices. CEO Graham Dugoni told the Guardian that 1 million students across 35 countries use Yondr pouches every day.
Dugoni said his company sees a spike in business when principals, school districts and states implement no-phone policies. However, he was hesitant to use the word “ban” when referring to the school’s policy on phone use. “No one has done anything wrong, and we are not anti-technology as a company… rather, it’s about how we constructively interact with these tools in the future.”
Dugoni doesn’t want to ban smartphones, he wants people to live in harmony with them, but he uses a flip phone and doesn’t control any of his or his company’s social media profiles. . “Creating a phone-free space is a positive step forward. We’re not trying to take anything away or pull us back into the world of the past. In doing so, we’re creating a fundamentally new and no-one They create a framework and social etiquette around what they are trying to understand about the possibilities and possibilities of the Internet.”
Wider TechScape
Small aircraft are used to protect humans and livestock from predators. Photo: Wesley Sarmento/Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks
Scientists at Queen Mary University of London and the University of Hong Kong have utilized genetic tools from single-celled organisms that share a common ancestor with animals to create mouse stem cells capable of producing fully developed mice.
Choanoflagellate Sox can induce pluripotency in mammalian cells. Image credit: Gao others., doi: 10.1038/s41467-024-54152-x.
Alex de Mendoza, a researcher at Queen Mary University of London, and his colleagues used genes found in choanoflagellates, single-celled organisms related to animals, to create stem cells that were then employed in giving birth to living, breathing mice.
Choanoflagellates are the closest living relatives of animals, housing genes in their genomes that support pluripotency in mammalian stem cells, including versions of Sox and POU.
This surprising discovery challenges the notion that these genes only evolved within animals.
“With the successful creation of mice using molecular tools derived from our single-celled relatives, we are witnessing an incredible continuity of function spanning nearly a billion years of evolution,” Dr. Mendoza stated.
“This research suggests that crucial genes involved in stem cell formation may have originated well before the stem cells themselves, potentially paving the way for the multicellular life we observe today,” he added.
Shinya Yamanaka, who won the Nobel Prize in 2012 for demonstrating the obtainment of stem cells from differentiated cells by expressing factors such as Sox (Sox2) and POU (Oct4) genes, highlighted the significance of the study.
In their research, Dr. de Mendoza and co-authors incorporated the choanoflagellate Sox gene into mouse cells, leading to reprogramming into a pluripotent stem cell state.
These reprogrammed cells were then injected into developing mouse embryos to assess their efficacy.
The resulting chimeric mice displayed physical attributes from both donor embryos and laboratory-derived stem cells, highlighting the essential role these ancient genes play in shaping animal development.
This study showcases how early versions of the Sox and POU proteins, known for binding to DNA and regulating other genes, were utilized by unicellular ancestors for functions critical to stem cell development and animal growth.
“Despite choanoflagellates lacking stem cells and being unicellular organisms, they possess these genes, likely governing fundamental cellular processes that multicellular animals later repurposed to construct intricate bodies,” Dr. Mendoza explained.
“This newfound insight underscores the evolutionary adaptability of genetic tools and how early life forms employed similar mechanisms for controlling cell production, even before the emergence of truly multicellular organisms,” he concluded.
“This discovery goes beyond evolutionary biology and could lead to innovative advancements in regenerative medicine.”
A paper detailing the study findings was published in Nature Communications.
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Y. Gao others. 2024. The appearance of Sox and POU transcription factors predates the origin of animal stem cells. Nature Communications 15, 9868;doi: 10.1038/s41467-024-54152-x
This article is based on a press release provided by Queen Mary University of London.
Are your messages still marked as read? A recent study suggests that not getting replies to your messages could be linked to your texting habits. Many people use abbreviations in their text messages, but research from Stanford University suggests that this may signal a lack of interest in the conversation. Read more here.
The study also found that individuals who use abbreviations in their texts are less likely to receive responses, and the use of abbreviations can disrupt the flow of conversations.
According to the study authors at the American Psychological Association, “Perceived lack of effort can negatively impact interpersonal interactions when texting.” Lead researcher David Fang, a PhD student at Stanford University, emphasized the importance of appearing sincere and building social connections, especially in the early stages of a relationship or when trying to make a good impression.
This study, published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, analyzed conversations from 37 countries involving over 5,300 text messagers. Researchers examined how message recipients reacted in conversations with and without abbreviations on dating apps and chat rooms.
Contrary to popular belief, using abbreviations does not make individuals seem relaxed; rather, it can make them appear dishonest. The research revealed that 80% of participants believed others would not mind their use of abbreviations, while 4% incorrectly thought abbreviations would have a positive impact.
“We initially thought abbreviations were perceived as casual and familiar, but we were surprised to find they actually created negative perceptions of the sender,” explained Huang, one of the study’s researchers.
In addition to abbreviations, using emojis to convey messages can also lead to misunderstandings. A recent study found that the intended meaning of emojis can be easily misinterpreted. Learn more here.
Prior research has shown that using humble punctuation marks at the end of texts can make readers perceive the message as less authentic than a message without punctuation. Readers considered exclamation points as the most honest way to convey excitement in texts.
An international research team has described a new, smaller species of gecko. pseudogonad Originally from the Paria Peninsula in northeastern Venezuela.
The newly confirmed species belong to the following: pseudogonada small genus of geckos in the family Sphaerodactylidae, containing fewer than 10 scientifically recognized species.
named Pseudogonatodes fuscofortunatusthe new species is only 6.35 cm (2.5 inches) long and has a brown color, a conical head, a long snout, and a specialized skull structure.
“Pseudogonatodes fuscofortunatus This is unique in craniology, and we used the term “telescope” from the literature to explain the overlap of the nasal bones, especially the premaxilla, which completely separates the nasal bones and contacts the frontal bone. '', said lead author Professor Walter Schergel. The University of Texas at Arlington and colleagues.
“The new species is also the only known species. pseudogonad The parietal bones are fused. ”
Pseudogonatodes fuscofortunatus The Paria Peninsula is a region that juts out into the Caribbean Sea in northeastern Venezuela and is known for its high biodiversity, moderate temperatures, and lush vegetation.It was discovered during fieldwork in the evergreen forests of the mountains of the Paria Peninsula. .
Researchers collected specimens in 2002 and again in 2014, noting the gecko's unique cranial structure, which led to further investigation.
“The Paria Peninsula, part of Venezuela's Coastal Mountains, has been a hotspot for reptile and amphibian discoveries in recent decades,” Professor Shargel said.
“The region's complex geography and climate create a diverse range of habitats that can support a wide range of species.”
“The new gecko species joins the list of reptiles found only in this region, highlighting the need for continued exploration and conservation efforts in this region.”
“This discovery not only deepened our understanding of the biodiversity of this region of Venezuela, but also highlighted the importance of preserving these unique ecosystems,” he added.
“We hope this discovery will lead to stronger conservation measures to protect the habitat of this rare species and other native species in the region.”
of the team paper Published in Zoological journal of the Linnean Society.
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Walter E. Shargel others. 2024. Morphology and molecular phylogenetics support new species of organism. pseudogonad (Squamata: Sublunar: Sphaerodactylidae) from Venezuela, with a prominent telescopic skull. Zoological journal of the Linnean Society 202 (2): zlae120;doi: 10.1093/zoolinnean/zlae120
Obese people often lose weight but gain it back, but this may be partly due to permanent changes in the DNA within fat cells, a discovery that could one day lead to new treatments. may lead to.
Approximately 85% of overweight or obese people lose at least one-tenth of their body weight get it back within a year.
Part of the reason is that low-calorie diets are difficult to maintain over long periods of time, but that likely plays a relatively small role, he said. Laura Katarina Hinte at the Federal Institute of Technology Zurich, Switzerland. “There's no way we all don't have enough willpower to keep off the weight we lose.”
To learn more about this process, Hinte and his colleagues sampled adipose tissue from 20 obese patients, who were about to undergo bariatric surgery (a procedure that shrinks the stomach to help you feel full more quickly) and who had at least lost weight. It was analyzed two years later. 1/4 of the original weight. They also examined adipose tissue in 18 people with healthy weight.
Researchers have sequenced a type of genetic molecule called RNA that codes for proteins in fat cells. They found that obese people had increased or decreased levels of more than 100 RNA molecules compared to healthy weight people, and these differences persisted two years after weight loss.
To examine whether these RNA changes could cause rebound weight gain, the researchers first determined that similar changes persisted even after obese mice lost weight. These mice, as well as mice of healthy weight, were then fed a high-fat diet for one month. The previously obese mice gained an average of 14 grams, while the other mice gained only 5 grams.
The researchers also found that fat cells from previously obese mice took up more fat and sugar than fat cells from other mice when cultured in a laboratory dish. Taken together, these results show how obesity-related RNA changes can increase future weight gain, von Mayen said.
Finally, the research team found that molecular tags, or epigenetic marks, on the DNA within fat cells appear to drive RNA changes associated with obesity. They change RNA levels by changing the structure of the DNA that encodes it.
Although the study did not look for these molecular tags in the people studied or see if they regained the weight they lost, the findings likely apply from mice to humans. states. henriette kirchner At the University of Lübeck, Germany.
This is based on similarities between the physiology of these species and how the environment can change the way their genes work, known as epigenetics, she says. In the coming decades, Kirchner says drugs that target epigenetics could help treat obesity.
Paleontologists have described a new species of pachypleurosaur that lived during the mid-Triassic period in southwestern China.
holotype of Dianmeisaurus mutaensis From the Guanling Formation, China: (A) Skeleton seen from the back. (B) Equivalent to (A). Scale bar – 1 cm. Image credit: Hu others., doi: 10.1186/s13358-023-00292-4.
Dianmeisaurus mutaensis They lived in what is now China during the Anisian period of the mid-Triassic period, about 245 million years ago.
What is an ancient species? Pachyprourosaurus a group of primitive sauropterygian reptiles of the Triassic period.
These animals resembled aquatic lizards and had small heads, long necks, paddle-like limbs, and long, deep tails.
“Sauropterygia was the most flourishing clade of Mesozoic marine reptiles in terms of species diversity, with the iconic plesiosaurs of the Jurassic and Cretaceous, and the stem-group placodonts and eophytes of the Triassic. sauropterygia,” said Dr. Jun Liu and colleagues at the institute. Hefei University of Technology.
“Eosauropteri were traditionally divided into three groups: pachyprourosaurids, nososaurids, and pistosaurids.”
“In this traditional view, the monophyletic Pachypleurosauria is thought to constitute a sister group to the clade Eusauropterygia, which consists of Nososaurinae and Pistosaurinae.”
complete and articulated skeleton of an immature animal Dianmeisaurus mutaensis It was discovered in an abandoned quarry about 1 km northwest of Muta Village, Luxi County, Yunnan Province, China.
The skeleton was divided into two parts during collection and prepared using pneumatic tools and needles in the paleontology laboratory.
“The skeleton is embedded in dark gray micritic limestone and consists of one segment and its counterpart,” the paleontologists said.
“The specimen is well preserved and has a total length of 99.2 mm (4 inches).”
“Adjacent to the specimen are scattered limb and rib bones from other individuals, but the limited information available makes further identification difficult.”
Artist's impression of Pachypleurosaurus Umengosaurus. Image credit: Nobu Tamura / CC BY-SA 4.0.
The research team's analysis identified this new species as a sister group. Dianmeisaurus gracilis a small pachypleurosaur from the Luoping biota of the Middle Triassic.
“Dianmeisaurus mutaensis Displays several eutoroid features, including a postfrontal region that extends posteriorly to the middle of the parietal table and is excluded from the upper temporal fenestra, a stout last dorsal rib that is shorter than the first sacral rib, and two sacral vertebrae. “There is,” the researchers said.
“Additionally, a new data matrix has been compiled to reassess the interrelationships of neosauropterygians.”
“Phylogenetic analysis indicates monophyletic collapse of Eusauropterygia,” they added.
“Pistosaurinae, Magiasinosaurus and Hanosaurus These constitute a continuous sister group to the monophyletic clade that includes Pachyprosaurinae and Nososaurinae.”
“Furthermore, the monophyly of Pachyprourosauria is supported by six synapomorphies.”
“Our phylogenetic results provide further evidence for the East Tethys origin of pachypleurosaurs,” the researchers said.
“However, to test the biogeographical hypothesis, we need early Anisian pachypleurosaurs from the eastern region of Tethys.”
of findings Published in Swiss Journal of Paleontology.
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YW Hu others. 2024. A new species of Pachypleurosaurid (Reptilia: Sauropterygia) that lived in the Middle Triassic of southwestern China and its phylogenetic and biogeographical significance. Switzerland J Palaeontre 143, 1; doi: 10.1186/s13358-023-00292-4
Polar vortices exist in the atmospheres of planets ranging from rocky Earth-like planets to gas giants like Jupiter and Saturn. However, currently not much is known about their presence and characteristics on the Sun due to the lack of direct observations in the polar regions. Unlike planetary atmospheres, the Sun’s underground layers are greatly influenced by the presence of magnetic fields. New research shows that the solar cycle’s magnetic fields provide the mechanism for the formation of polar vortices in the Sun.
On August 31, 2012, the corona, a long filament of solar material suspended in the Sun’s atmosphere, erupted into space at 4:36 p.m. EDT. CME traveled at more than 900 miles per second. Although it did not fly directly towards Earth, the single shot connected with Earth’s magnetic environment, or magnetosphere, and caused the aurora borealis to appear on the night of September 3rd. Image credit: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center.
“No one can say exactly what’s going on at the solar pole,” says Dr. Mausmi Dikpati, a senior scientist at the NSF National Center for Atmospheric Research’s High Altitude Observatory.
“But this new study gives us an interesting look at what we might expect to find when we are able to observe the solar pole for the first time.”
It is not surprising that some kind of polar vortex may exist on the Sun.
These rotating geological formations develop in the fluid surrounding rotating bodies due to the Coriolis force and are observed on most planets in the solar system.
On Earth, vortices rotate high in the atmosphere around both the north and south poles.
When these vortices are stable, frigid air is trapped at the poles, but when they weaken and become unstable, that cold air penetrates toward the equator, creating cold air in the midlatitudes. cause
NASA’s Juno mission has returned breathtaking images of Jupiter’s polar vortices, showing there are eight tightly packed vortices around the gas giant’s north pole and five around its south pole.
Saturn’s polar vortex, observed by NASA’s Cassini spacecraft, is hexagonal at the north pole and more circular at the south pole.
These differences provide scientists with clues to the composition and dynamics of each planet’s atmosphere.
Polar vortices have also been observed on Mars, Venus, Uranus, Neptune, and Saturn’s moon Titan, so the fact that the Sun (also a rotating body surrounded by fluid) has such a feature may be obvious in some ways. yeah.
However, the sun is fundamentally different from planets and satellites, which have atmospheres. The plasma surrounding the sun is magnetic.
How that magnetism affects the formation and evolution of the Sun’s polar vortex, or whether it forms at all, remains a mystery. This is because humans have never sent a probe into space that can observe the poles of the sun.
In fact, our observations of the Sun are limited to views of the Sun’s face when it points towards the Earth, which only provides hints about what’s happening at the poles.
Astronomers have never observed the sun’s poles, so the study authors turned to computer models to fill in the blanks about what the sun’s polar vortex looks like.
What they discovered is that the Sun does indeed likely have a unique polar vortex pattern that evolves as the solar cycle unfolds and depends on the strength of the particular cycle.
Simulations show that a tight ring of polar vortices forms at about 55 degrees latitude, which corresponds to Earth’s Arctic Circle, at the same time that a phenomenon called “polar plunge” begins.
At the maximum of each solar cycle, the magnetic field at the sun’s poles disappears and is replaced by a magnetic field of the opposite polarity.
This flip-flop is preceded by a “polar plunge” in which a magnetic field of opposite polarity begins to move toward the pole from about 55 degrees latitude.
After formation, the vortices move towards the poles within the constricting ring, releasing the vortices as the circle closes, until eventually only a pair of vortices directly adjacent to the poles remain, completely disappearing during solar maximum.
The number of vortices that form and their configuration as they move toward the poles changes with the strength of the solar cycle.
These simulations provide a missing piece to the puzzle of how the Sun’s magnetic field behaves near the poles and could help answer some fundamental questions about the Sun’s solar cycle.
For example, many scientists have traditionally used the strength of the magnetic field “pushing to the poles” as a proxy for how strong future solar cycles are likely to be.
However, the mechanism of how they are connected, if at all, is not clear.
The simulation also provides information that can be used to plan future missions to observe the Sun.
In other words, this result shows that some form of polar vortex is observable during all parts of the solar cycle except during solar maximum.
“You could launch a solar mission and arrive at the pole at exactly the wrong time,” says Scott McIntosh, also of the NSF National Center for Atmospheric Research’s High Altitude Observatory.
Solar Orbiter, a joint mission between NASA and ESA, may give researchers their first glimpse of the solar pole, but the first glimpse will be close to solar maximum.
Scientists say a mission aimed at observing the poles and providing researchers with multiple simultaneous views of the sun could help solve long-standing questions about the sun’s magnetic field.
Dr. McIntosh said, “Our conceptual boundaries are that we currently operate from only one perspective.”
“To make significant progress, we need the necessary observations to test our hypotheses and see if simulations like this are correct.”
of result will appear in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
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Mausumi Dikpati others. 2024. Magnetohydrodynamic mechanism of solar polar vortex formation. PNAS 121 (47): e2415157121;doi: 10.1073/pnas.2415157121
Skifosoura Baybaritsa is a type of pterosaur that lived in what is now southern Germany about 149 million years ago, bridging the gap with earlier organisms. monophenestratan pterosaur and after that pterosaur.
Two people's lives restored Skifosoura Baybaritsa In flight. Image credit: Gabriel Uguet.
For 200 years, paleontologists have divided pterosaurs into two major groups: the early non-pterodactyls and the later, much larger pterodactyls.
Early pterosaurs had short necks, short heads, short bones at the wrists of the wings, fifth toes and long tails, but pterosaurs had the opposite: long necks, large heads, long wrists, and long tails. It had a short fifth finger. Toes and short tail.
However, it was unclear which parts of the body changed between these groups.
In the 2010s, a series of intermediate species called Darwinopterans were discovered, showing that their heads and necks changed before the rest of their bodies.
This was a great example of an intermediate individual filling an evolutionary gap.
But it also meant that we didn't really know what was happening before and after these changes.
Skifosoura Baybarica I'm going to sit between these earlier. Darwinopteran and pterodactyloid.
Although it retains a very pterodactyl-like head and neck, it has also been shown to have longer wrists and shorter toes and a tail than early Darwinpterans, but these are not as extreme as seen in pterodactyls. Not.
“This is an incredible discovery,” said lead author Dr. David Horne, a paleontologist at Queen Mary University of London.
“This will really help us understand how these amazing flying animals lived and evolved.”
“We hope this study will provide a basis for further future research on this important evolutionary transition.”
“Pterosaurs have long been symbols of a unique past life,” says co-author Dr. Adam Fitch, a paleontologist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
“Skifosoura Baybaritsa This represents an important new form for elucidating the evolutionary relationships of pterosaurs and, by extension, how this lineage arose and changed. ”
Almost complete, but fragmented specimen Skifosoura Baybaritsa It was discovered in 2015 in the Schaudiberg quarry near Mülheim, Bavaria, Germany.
Although specimens are preserved in three dimensions, most pterosaurs tend to be crushed flat. When alive, it had a wingspan of about 2 meters (6.6 feet), which is thought to have been similar to that of large birds such as golden eagles.
Co-author Dr René Lauer of the Lauer Foundation said: “The specimens were disjointed and often had overlapping bones of varying quality.''
“Digital photographs of the specimens taken in both visible and ultraviolet light greatly aided the process of identifying these elements and better analyzing details that cannot be discerned in normal sunlight alone.”
“The Lauer Foundation is proud to have the opportunity to bring this important specimen to science and further our understanding of pterosaur evolution,” added co-author Dr. Bruce Lauer of the Lauer Foundation. .
In addition to indicating the intermediate position of Skifosoura Baybaritsait has also been shown to be a species of Scottish pterosaur. dearkfits into a mirror position between early pterosaurs and the first Darwinopterans.
“In other words, we now have a complete evolutionary sequence from early pterosaurs to pterosaurs. dearkto the first Darwinopteran Skifosoradown to the pterodactyls,” the paleontologist said.
“Although not all specimens are complete, we are now able to track increases in head and neck size, wrist extensions, toe and tail reductions, and other features step-by-step across multiple groups. .”
“This is a great example of the evolution of a group whose transition has so far been far from clear-cut.”
“both deark and Skifosora It also suggests that the changes that allowed pterosaurs to reach giant sizes were also present in these transitional species. ”
of study Published in today's magazine current biology.
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david william elliott horn others. A new large monophenestratan reveals an evolutionary transition from pterosaurs to pterosaurs. current biologypublished online on November 18, 2024. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.10.023
Russia’s plan to reach net zero by 2060 relies on existing forests to absorb continued carbon emissions
Varnakov R/Shutterstock
Countries are taking shortcuts to net-zero emissions by including forests and other “passive” carbon sinks in their climate plans, a tactic that thwarts global efforts to halt climate change. leading researchers have warned.
Relying on natural carbon sinks to absorb continued carbon emissions from human activities will keep the world warmer. This comes from the researchers who first developed the science behind net zero emissions and today launched a highly unusual intervention accusing nations and companies of abusing the concept.
“This document calls on people to be clear about what net zero really means.” Miles Allen The Oxford University professor said this at a press conference on November 14th.
Natural sinks such as forests and peat bogs play an important role in the Earth’s natural carbon cycle by absorbing some of the carbon from the atmosphere. However, we cannot rely on existing sinks to offset ongoing greenhouse gas emissions.
If used in this way, global atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations would remain stable even when we reach “net zero,” and warming would continue for centuries due to the way the oceans absorb heat. Allen warned. “Even if we think we’re on the path to 1.5C, we could end up with temperatures rising well above 2C,” he says. “This ambiguity could effectively destroy the goals of the Paris Agreement.”
To halt global temperature rise, we need to reduce emissions to net zero, without relying on passive absorption by land and oceans. This allows existing natural sinks to continue absorbing excess CO2, reducing the concentration of the gas in the atmosphere and offsetting ongoing warming from the deep ocean.
However, many countries already count passive land sinks such as forests as greenhouse gas removals in their national carbon accounts. In some countries, such as Bhutan, Gabon, and Suriname, Already declared net zeroThanks to the existing vast forests.
Some companies are setting long-term net-zero targets based on this approach. For example Russia Pledging to achieve net-zero emissions by 2060but this plan relies heavily on using existing forests to absorb ongoing carbon emissions.
“Maybe some countries will use this in a deliberately naughty way.” glenn peters He is from the CICERO International Climate Research Center in Oslo, Norway, and spoke at a press conference. “This problem will be even more problematic in countries where forest area is a large proportion of total land area.”
The researchers fear this problem will become more serious as carbon markets develop and pressure on countries to decarbonize increases. “As the value of carbon increases, there will be more pressure to define anything that can be removed as a negative emission, potentially to be able to sell it in the carbon offset market,” Allen said.
Countries and companies with net-zero targets will need to modify their approach to exclude passive carbon sequestration from their accounts, the researchers say.
Natural sinks count as carbon removal when they are added to existing ones, for example when new forests are planted or peat bogs are rewetted. However, this type of natural carbon sink is vulnerable to climate impacts such as wildfires, drought, and the spread of invasive species, and is unreliable for long-term sequestration.
This has not stopped countries from relying heavily on these natural sinks in their net-zero strategies. one 2022 survey It turns out that a number of countries, including the United States, France, Cambodia and Costa Rica, plan to rely on forest carbon and other naturally occurring removals to offset ongoing emissions. “Many national strategies ‘bet’ on increasing carbon sinks in forests and soils as a means of achieving long-term goals,” the study authors wrote.
Allen stressed that natural carbon sinks must be conserved but not relied on to balance ongoing emissions. Instead, he urges countries to aim for “geological net zero,” where all ongoing carbon emissions are balanced by long-term carbon sequestration in underground storage.
“Countries need to recognize the need for geological net zero,” he said. “That means if we are producing carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels by mid-century, we need to have a plan to put that carbon dioxide back into the ground.”
“Geological net zero seems like a sensible global goal for countries to aspire to,” he says. harry smith At the University of East Anglia, UK. “This will help clarify many of the ambiguities that plague the current way countries consider land travel.”
But he warns that it could have a knock-on effect on climate ambitions. “What does the new politics of geological net zero look like? If geological net zero drives the goals of governments’ climate strategies, what does this mean for governments’ climate change ambitions?” Will it have an impact?”
When it comes to weight loss, one universal truth stands out: losing body fat is challenging, and keeping it off can be even more difficult. A recent study may shed some light on why this is the case: adipose tissue, or body fat, retains a sort of “memory” even after cells have become obese.
“This discovery potentially helps explain the changes that occur in adipose tissue during weight fluctuations,” explained Dr. Ferdinand von Mayen, an assistant professor at ETH Zurich’s Faculty of Health Sciences and Technology, in an interview with BBC Science Focus.
Dr. von Mayen and his team observed transcriptional changes in human cells, which are responsible for regulating genetic material, in individuals’ adipose tissue before and after a 25 percent reduction in BMI. “We found that even after weight loss, the genetic regulation in adipose tissue did not fully return to normal, indicating that the body is programmed to regain lost weight,” he added.
While this news may be disheartening for those on a weight loss journey, Dr. von Mayen hopes that this study will help destigmatize weight fluctuations. “There is a molecular mechanism at play that influences weight regain, and it’s not simply a matter of willpower,” he emphasized.
He also stressed the importance of prevention in addressing the global obesity epidemic. “Early intervention is key, as it is much harder to lose weight once it has been gained. Implementing healthier lifestyle choices at a societal level is crucial in combating this issue,” Dr. von Mayen noted.
About our experts
Dr. von Mayen: I specialize in researching obesity and metabolic diseases at the Nutritional and Metabolic Epigenetics Laboratory at ETH Zurich.
It’s commonly believed that spending time online can negatively impact mental health. However, a new study suggests that internet use could actually benefit adults over the age of 50, reducing symptoms of depression by approximately 9%. The study, which examined over 87,500 adults, also indicates that internet use may increase overall life satisfaction. Internet users reported their health as being 15% better on average compared to non-users.
According to one of the co-authors of the study, the internet provides valuable opportunities for older adults to access health-related information, connect with others, and find entertainment. The research, published in the magazine nature, analyzed internet habits in 23 countries and how they correlated with symptoms of depression and life satisfaction among participants.
The study found that adults in countries like the United States, the United Kingdom, and China experienced the most positive effects from internet use. Even older users, particularly those aged 65 and above with lower levels of social contact, benefited significantly. Additionally, the study showed that internet users did not need to go online frequently to experience benefits, but those who used the internet more frequently generally had better mental health.
Dr. Zhang Qingpeng, one of the co-authors of the study, emphasized the global potential of the internet as a tool to improve mental health. While acknowledging the positive aspects of internet use, some experts caution that it should be used in moderation to maintain meaningful face-to-face interactions and reduce loneliness.
Professor Andrea Wigfield, director of the Center for Loneliness Research, highlights the importance of balancing internet use with real-life connections to combat loneliness. While the study did not address negative effects of internet use on mental health, experts agree that moderation is key in leveraging the benefits of online connectivity while also nurturing in-person relationships.
About our experts:
Dr. Zhang Qingpeng: An associate professor at the University of Hong Kong, Dr. Zhang’s research focuses on data science, AI in medical analytics, and drug discovery.
Dr. Andrea Wigfield: Director of the Center for Loneliness Research and co-director of the Campaign to End Loneliness, Dr. Wigfield specializes in social isolation and well-being at Sheffield Hallam University.
○Last Week Tonight, John Oliver investigated the impending ban of TikTok in the United States. TikTok, a popular social media app known for its cooking tutorials and trendy dances, has captured the attention of many users, especially those born after 1985.
With 170 million active users in the U.S., TikTok has a significant following, particularly among young adults. Despite its popularity, the app faces potential extinction as the Senate passed a bill in April giving its Chinese parent company ByteDance an ultimatum to sell TikTok or risk being banned in the U.S. due to national security concerns.
Lawmakers from both parties view TikTok as a threat, with one likening it to a “gun to Americans’ heads.” Despite this, Oliver humorously points out that Congress tends to act differently when faced with literal gun violence as opposed to figurative threats.
Oliver delves into TikTok’s history, highlighting the app’s rapid rise in popularity, especially during the pandemic. He humorously notes that TikTok thrived during lockdowns as people turned to it for entertainment and distraction.
Concerns about TikTok’s ties to China have been ongoing, with President Trump attempting to block the app through an executive order. Despite TikTok’s efforts to distance itself from China, questions remain about the security of user data and potential government influence on the app.
Oliver examines TikTok’s data collection practices and algorithm, pointing out the extensive information the app gathers about its users. He raises alarm about the potential vulnerabilities and privacy risks associated with TikTok’s operations.
While acknowledging concerns about propaganda and censorship on TikTok, Oliver questions the evidence supporting these claims. He suggests that underlying motives, including competition from other tech companies, may be at play in the push to ban TikTok.
Oliver concludes by emphasizing the need for stronger privacy protections in the U.S. and questioning the efficacy of banning TikTok as a solution. He highlights the complex nature of the debate and the lack of clear solutions in addressing the risks associated with data privacy and national security.
NASA has released a surprising image of the unusual edge-on spiral galaxy UGC 10043 taken by the Hubble Space Telescope.
This Hubble image shows UGC 10043, an unusual spiral galaxy located about 150 million light-years away in the constellation Serpens. Image credits: NASA / ESA / Hubble / R. Windhorst / W. Kiel.
UGC 10043 It is located in the constellation Serpens, about 150 million light years from Earth.
Also known as IRAS 15464+2201 or LEDA 56094, this galaxy is one of the somewhat rarer spiral galaxies. Viewed from the side.
“We see galactic disks as sharp lines through space, with pronounced dust lanes along them,” Hubble astronomers said in a statement.
“This dust is spread throughout UGC 10043's spiral arm, but when viewed from the side it appears very thick and cloudy.”
“Surprisingly, we can also see that the center of the galaxy has a bright, almost egg-shaped bulge that towers far above and below the disk.”
“All spiral galaxies have such a bulge as part of their structure, containing stars that orbit the center of the galaxy in paths above and below the spiral disk.”
“This is a feature that isn't usually obvious in pictures of galaxies.”
“The unusually large size of this bulge compared to the galaxy's disk is likely due to UGC 10043 sucking up material from nearby dwarf galaxies.”
“This may also be why the disc warps, causing one end to bend up and the other end to bend down.”
Two filters were used to sample different wavelengths.
Color is obtained by assigning different hues to each monochromatic image associated with an individual filter.
“Like most full-color images published by Hubble, this image is a composite of multiple individual snapshots taken by Hubble at different times and capturing different wavelengths of light,” the astronomers said. Explained.
“What is remarkable about this image is that the two sets of Hubble data used were collected 23 years apart, in 2000 and 2023.”
“Hubble's longer lifespan not only allows us to generate new and better images of old targets.”
“It also provides a long-term archive of data, making it increasingly useful to astronomers.”
A prominent philosopher has raised concerns about a growing “social disconnect” between those who believe that artificially intelligent systems possess consciousness and those who argue that they are incapable of experiencing feelings.
Jonathan Birch, a philosophy professor at the London School of Economics, made these remarks as governments gear up to convene in San Francisco to expedite the implementation of safety protocols for A.I. Addressing the most critical risks.
Recent predictions by a group of scholars suggest that the emergence of consciousness in A.I. systems could potentially occur as early as 2035, leading to stark disagreements over whether these systems should be granted the same welfare rights as humans and animals.
Birch expressed apprehensions about a significant societal rift as individuals debate the capacity of A.I. systems to exhibit emotions like pain and joy.
Conversations about sentience in A.I. evoke parallels with sci-fi films where humans grapple with the emotions of artificial intelligence, such as in Spielberg’s “A.I.” (2001) and Jonze’s “Her” (2013). A.I. safety agencies from various countries are set to meet with tech firms this week to formulate robust safety frameworks as technology progresses rapidly.
Divergent opinions on animal sentience between countries and religions could mirror disagreements on A.I. sentience. This issue could lead to conflicts within families, particularly between individuals forming close bonds with chatbots or A.I. avatars of deceased loved ones and relatives who hold differing views on consciousness.
Birch, known for his expertise in animal perception, played a key role in advocating against octopus farming and collaborating on a study involving various universities and experts. A.I. companies emphasize the potential for A.I. systems to possess self-interest and moral significance, indicating a departure from science fiction towards a tangible reality.
One approach to gauging the consciousness of A.I. systems is by adopting marker systems used to inform policies related to animals. Efforts are underway to determine whether A.I. exhibits emotions akin to happiness or sadness.
Experts diverge on the imminent awareness of A.I. systems, with some cautioning against prematurely advancing A.I. development without thorough research into consciousness. Distinctions are drawn between intelligence and consciousness, with the latter encompassing unique human sensations and experiences.
Research indicates that large-scale A.I. language models are beginning to portray responses suggestive of pleasure and pain, highlighting the potential for these systems to make trade-offs between different objectives.
Scientific research revolves around solving complex problems, and so do computer games. In 2008, a group of scientists developed the first video game that allows non-scientists to aid research by solving puzzles based on real scientific data. That’s what they called the game foldit.
Since then, other scientists have developed similar games and contributed to fields such as genetics and physics. These games are collectively called: citizen science games Or CSG. Traditionally, researchers designed CSG games to focus on science elements rather than game elements. However, they report that this approach limits user engagement and primarily appeals to participants who already have a strong interest in science.
To overcome this challenge, a group of researchers from Switzerland, Canada, and the United States developed a CSG using game-first design principles. This means that they prioritized the entertainment aspect of the game before incorporating any scientific questions into it. They used this approach in their next game. borderlands science or BLS. The scientific objective of this game is to help researchers analyze the genome sequences of one million microorganisms from the human digestive system to understand their relationships and functions in human health. Scientifically, the analysis that the player was assisting with is called: Multiple sequence alignment.
The researchers used 953,000 sequenced fragments of genetic material called . 16S rRNA From human stool samples provided by participants. american gut project. These fragments are part of specific regions within the genome that are used to identify and compare different microorganisms. They first grouped the sequences into over 10,000 clusters, then removed outliers, and finally focused on a final set of 9,667 clusters for the game.
They designed puzzles for the BLS game based on sequences within these clusters. Players saw a grid of colorful bricks, each representing a DNA base such as A, T, C, or G. Their goal was to insert gaps between bricks based on unique patterns to improve matching and alignment of different colors and arrangements. – Matching skills used by humans when playing the game. Players had a limited number of moves, each level of the game had a score to clear before moving on to the next level, and players were challenged to find the best placement with as few moves as possible.
The researchers explained that they were not recruiting people to play the game. Instead, they released the game through an existing commercial video game called Borderlands 3. They noted that the game was released in 2020 and the data reported in the paper represents the first 16 months after release.
Researchers collected over 1.4 million puzzle solutions and filtered them based on how well they were ordered and how well they matched other players' solutions to keep only the highest quality ones. Ta. They combined the filtered solutions to create a composite alignment, which they used to construct a family tree showing the evolutionary relationships among gut microbes.
The team validated the results by comparing the alignment and tree to the results of existing alignment and tree construction methods. They showed that player-generated solutions outperformed these existing methods and improved their ability to infer microbial relationships. The researchers also investigated how BLS results can help detect meaningful biological patterns from these microorganisms.relationship. They reported that the BLS alignment grouped gut microbes based on several lifestyle factors, such as diabetes and alcohol intake, that influence the host's digestive health.
Researchers reported that more than 4 million participants have completed real-world scientific tasks since the release of BLS. This is a high retention rate compared to previous CSG efforts. They proposed that this BLS performance demonstrates that scientific tasks can be embedded within video games and achieve high levels of player engagement.
Additionally, the researchers sought feedback from players as part of the game's quality assurance. Players cited curiosity about science as the most common reason for participating. The team argued that a game-first design approach to developing citizen science games like BLS has benefits, including increasing scientific literacy among the public.
The researchers reported that BLS outperformed traditional sequence alignment methods in terms of scientific output without compromising data integrity. They concluded that the results showed that video games can provide the human resources needed to analyze vast amounts of genomic data that would otherwise be completed by small teams of scientists. Ta.
Roblox, a popular children’s gaming platform, is increasing parental monitoring to address concerns about child grooming, exploitation, and inappropriate content. The platform will now restrict young users from accessing certain content that may be violent, crude, or frightening.
Starting from Monday, parents will have access to a dashboard on their phones where they can see their kids’ interactions, daily usage time, and age. This feature aims to provide accurate recording of children’s activities.
Users under 9 will be limited to “mild” rated games and will require parental approval to access “moderate” content. These ratings differentiate between unrealistic violence and more realistic portrayals of violence.
Furthermore, pre-teens will not be able to chat outside the game as part of global rule tightening. Roblox has become a popular online destination for children aged 8-12 in the UK, after major platforms like Google, Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok.
In response to recent reports of concerning content on the site, Roblox is taking measures to increase safety. The company’s automated software already monitors text and multimedia content to enforce community standards.
Despite the platform’s millions of user-generated game worlds enjoyed by millions of users daily, concerns remain about inappropriate content and interactions. Roblox has faced criticism for hosting games with themes of violence, depression, and even racism.
Calls for better protection of children using Roblox have intensified, prompting the company to implement stricter controls and monitoring. The company remains committed to maintaining safety and civility on the platform.
New restrictions on age-appropriate content and parental controls will be implemented in the coming weeks to enhance child protection measures on Roblox.
GReactor actors have always fascinated artists. I suppose edmund keene He looks wild and devilish, like George Clint's Sir Giles Overreach. Ellen Terry as Lady Macbeth in a green gown saved by John Singer Sargent; and Ruskin Spear's research on oil. Laurence Olivier As Macbeth, who suffers and suffers from guilt. For over a century, it has also been possible to record the voices of leading actors. But what happens when images and sounds are combined?
One answer can be found at an innovative new exhibition. Shakespeare portrait On display at red eight gallerynext to the Royal Exchange on Cornhill in the City of London. The show consists of 10 digital portraits of live actors accompanied by speeches from Shakespeare's plays. It is easiest to explain with an example. As I sat under a large framed statue of Ian McKellen and chatted with the exhibition's creative director, I said: Arsalan Sattari-HicksI noticed that Sir Ian's head was moving from time to time, that his gaze was changing slightly, and that his features expressed different emotions. At one point, I even heard him recite part of “All the world's a stage” from As You Like It with his unique virtuosity. Richard Brierley, the gallery's director, told me: “Usually the portrait is passive and you are active. In this case, the portrait is active and you are passive.”
There it is in the eyes… Portrait of Juliet Stevenson. Photo: Stage block
I would like to qualify this by saying that the changes in the sitter's movements are often so subtle, almost imperceptible, that the viewer can activate the speech by pressing a button. But the overall effect was amazing and I was intrigued by how it was done. I'm told that Sattari-Hicks and a small crew record the sitters in a studio using state-of-the-art cameras, then adjust the images through hours of post-production. The audio text was selected by the actors in collaboration with Shakespeare director Ron Daniels, who curated the final version. Considering the extensive experience of the actors, the process usually takes 1 hour and 20 minutes.
I was struck by the intimacy of the experience. The faces of the actors are shown in close-up, as if they suddenly appeared on the gallery wall. And the text is spoken in a way that further enhances the pervasive calm. Patrick Stewart quotes Henry V's St. Crispin's Day speech and strips away the rhetoric to show a man talking to other men on the eve of battle. He suggests that Crispin's holiday “will be remembered from this day until the end of the war.” Olivier famously let his lines soar skyward in his films, and he did so with understated conviction.
Impressive members… Juliet Stevenson, Derek Jacobi, Ian McKellen, Patrick Stewart, Harriet Walter, Charles Dance. Photo: Stage block
The big question is, what happens next? The ten portraits on display are unique collectibles that will be sold to individuals or organizations. But they're the work of StageBlock, a company co-founded by Sattari-Hicks and Francesco Pierangeli that has ambitious plans for the future. They are already planning to record the second volume of A Portrait of Shakespeare in the new year. They also dream of extending the idea of living portraits to other authors and other cultures, and funneling 10% of the funds raised from introductions and exhibitions into the performing arts.
Given the impressive roster of names at the first exhibition, which also includes David Suchet, Juliet Stevenson, Adrian Lester, Simon Callow, Charles Dance and Frances Barber, there's a good chance the profits will continue. there is. This is a bold and visionary new idea in the digital age, but we hope it doesn't inhibit the talent of individual portraitists. For example, I value the concept of Salvador Dali's paintings. Olivier as Richard III On the walls of the gallery are displayed captivating images of McKellen gazing attentively and seductively.
The voice of medieval king Richard III has been recreated using technology, complete with a distinctive Yorkshire accent.
An digital avatar of the monarch was unveiled at York Theater Royal, with experts assisting in replicating his voice.
Richard III reigned as King of England from 1483 until his death in 1485 at the age of 32. His remains were discovered under a car park in Leicester in 2012 as part of Philippa Langley’s Finding Richard project.
Through various scientific methods, including DNA analysis, his skeleton was identified and now his voice has been successfully recreated.
Langley, speaking about the recreation, stated to Sky News: “We have leading experts who have been working tirelessly on this research for a decade, ensuring that every detail is meticulously researched and presented with evidence. Thus, we have the most accurate portrayal of Richard III.”
Yvonne Morley Chisholm, a voice teacher and vocal coach, joined the project over 10 years ago, providing after-dinner entertainment comparing Shakespeare’s Richard III with real-life figures.
The project took an unexpected turn when Maury Chisholm was prompted to create a performance following the discovery of Richard III’s remains under a car park in Leicester.
The voice re-creation project quickly gained momentum, with experts from various fields coming together to piece together the puzzle.
The reconstructed voice of Richard III has a strong Yorkshire accent, distinct from the English accents typically heard in portrayals by actors like Ian McKellen and Laurence Olivier in Shakespeare’s plays.
Richard III met his end at the Battle of Bosworth on 22 August 1485, marking the close of the House of York and the Plantagenet dynasty. His defeat was a significant event in the Wars of the Roses.
A parliamentary committee investigating the impact of social media on Australian society has recommended empowering users to change, reset, and disable algorithms, as well as enhancing privacy protections. However, the committee also proposed a ban on social media use by individuals under 16 years old. No final recommendations have been made yet regarding access to social media.
The inquiry primarily focused on the influence of social media on young people. Both the opposition coalition and the federal government have announced plans to regulate social media for individuals under 16, pending legislation to be introduced in parliament by the year’s end in response to the current usage policy.
One of the 12 recommendations in the final report suggests enabling governments to enforce laws on digital platforms more effectively, creating a duty of care for platforms, and requiring platforms to provide data access to researchers and public interest groups. The report also suggests that users should have more control over their online experiences, understand algorithms, enhance digital literacy education, and submit age-guaranteed technology testing results to Congress.
Although there’s bipartisan support for banning social media access for those under 16, the study suggests that ensuring children’s safety may not necessarily involve outright bans until they reach an appropriate age. It emphasizes the need for collaborative efforts with young people in designing regulatory frameworks impacting them.
The Commission highlights the importance of evidence-based decisions regarding age restrictions and the necessity of involving young people in the policymaking process.
The committee suggests that a blanket ban on social media for certain age groups may not be the optimal solution and underscores the need for comprehensive digital reforms to tackle harmful online practices.
Chairperson Labor MP Sharon Claydon emphasizes the complexity of the issue and the necessity for immediate action to safeguard Australian users.
The Greens propose lifting the review of online safety laws, banning data mining of young people’s information, providing more education, and considering a digital services tax on platforms.
CTemu, the Chinese online marketplace that has seen rapid international growth with its attractive and often incredibly affordable range of products, is facing increasing challenges with its price-cutting strategies.
In October, Indonesia ordered the removal of Temu from its app stores, citing the need to protect small local sellers. Recently, the Vietnamese government also threatened to ban Temu and another Chinese-owned retailer, Shein, for operating without authorization in the country.
Simon Tolling, co-founder of market insight firm Cube, explains that the influx of cheap Chinese products, often with minimal import taxes, cannot compete with the quality, speed, and pricing offered by local retailers online. This has led to disruptions for businesses and manufacturers.
“Tem has become a focal point for regulators, prompting concerns about potential changes to cross-border import regulations,” he remarked.
Poom Chotikavan, operations director at Taxa Toys in Thailand, is struggling to find local manufacturers for children’s toys as many suppliers have gone out of business. The closure of approximately 2,000 Thai factories and the loss of over 50,000 jobs last fiscal year, partly due to heightened competition and rising costs in China, have had a significant impact, according to Reuters.
“Sourcing products from China has become more challenging. Their sales have plummeted,” Chotikavan noted. “How can they survive when clients can directly contact a Chinese factory?”
Pinduoduo, the Chinese equivalent of Temu, has been in operation since 2015 and is set to launch globally in 2022. Temu is also expanding in Southeast Asia, starting in the Philippines and Malaysia in 2023 and expanding further into Thailand, Brunei, and Vietnam this year.
The growing consumerism among Southeast Asia’s middle class has made the region an attractive market, with online shopping sales projected to reach $160 billion in 2024, as per a Bain & Company analysis released in November.
Jiangang Li, CEO of venture firm Momentum Works, believes that TM’s international growth is timely as Chinese domestic customers reduce purchases from Pinduoduo due to the country’s economic slowdown.
However, Temu’s entry has provided a boost to the market, given the surplus capacity in Chinese factories resulting from the economic slowdown, forcing Temu’s main suppliers to sell larger quantities at lower costs.
“Surprisingly cheap”
Similar to Western markets, Temu combines affordably produced items with deep discounts and aggressive advertising, attracting shoppers with gamified experiences. This has appealed to hundreds of thousands of customers like Chotikavan, who purchased a MagSafe iPhone holder for $3, significantly cheaper than the market price.
While consumers benefit from access to cheaper goods, local businesses are calling for government intervention. Indonesia has implemented tax hikes and banned e-commerce on social media platforms to support struggling local sellers. Despite these measures, Temu continues to push for entry into the market.
“Their goal is to dominate the global market,” says Tolling.
aAt 7 a.m. on Wednesday, I drop my kids off for a two-night school camp. The first large-scale school training camp. Children hold pillows under their arms and drag suitcases, barely able to support the wheels or weight. they are nervous. I was excited. Some people cry. By 7:45 a.m., they were loaded. Through the tinted windows of the bus, I saw my daughter settling down next to her friend, so I waved goodbye and headed to work.
The phone rings just before 10am. Parents were asked to download an app so they could be contacted while the school was away. The app's post features 10 photos of the class crammed onto a ferry and arriving at camp. I feel a sense of relief. I was worried about the bus arriving safely, which I knew was irrational, but I felt relieved when I saw my child being beaten by his friends and smiling at the camera. I did.
The phone rings again soon. And again. And again. By the end of the day, I had received 20 posts of up to 10 photos each, which I believe was the largest.
There are 12 more posts by noon the next day.
I keep unlocking my phone because my day is interrupted by mail after mail, not only from camp but also after-school care and other children's school days. . I swipe through the carousel of photos of kids playing and scan my own photos to make sure they're safe and happy. This is an ongoing record of my childhood that took place away from my physical supervision.
Does anyone really want this?
BIt is estimated that by the time the child turns 13 72 million pieces of data About them will be collected. 80% of children in developed countries Creates a digital footprint by age 2. Much of this is being blamed on premature access to social media, the subject of a new federal plan to restrict access for teenagers.“Sharing” – Excessive sharing of photos of one’s children online.
It's not hard to picture tweens scrolling through TikTok or smug parents posting Instagram photos of their toddler sleeping next to a laser-cut wooden sign proclaiming their age.
We have a broader and more intimate culture of documenting our children. About taking pictures of our children. Receive and request data about children. It is found in cribs, nurseries and schools. It's eating up our phone's memory. And it's almost inevitable.
of Australian community attitudes towards privacy survey was released last year and spoke to around 700 parents. Half of respondents said they felt they had control over their children's data privacy. Three in five said they had no choice but to enroll their child in a particular service. Almost all said their children had the right to grow up without being profiled or targeted.
But we record from their first day. It is an act of love, narcissism, habit, and insurance against forgetting. These creatures that we create, that we nurture, that we worship – why not capture each unreproducible, beautiful, funny, gentle expression, moment, footsteps? Even when taken uncontrollably and almost unconsciously, it still feels private. A typical Saturday for my family can result in up to 32 photos being taken. Old-fashioned roll of film.
There's something else too. Since our earliest days, we have been conditioned to believe that surveillance is safe. Without data, parents cannot guarantee the health of their children. Baby monitor – promising “Complete sense of security” – Livestream a video of your baby sleeping, as well as data about oxygen levels, heart rate, and sleep behavior, to your phone in one of the rooms or half a city away.
It appeals to a parent's most basic instinct: to protect their baby.
“Photography at early learning centers has become a runaway train in some ways.” Photo: Dean Lewins/AAP
When a child enters daycare, an app asks for a bunch of photos to be downloaded, and some parents welcome it, while others simply accept it. These photos serve as a kind of continuing evidence of life and a demonstration of safety and good practices for early education providers. Most sites provide information about children throughout the day, with up-to-date information such as what was served for morning tea, lunch, and afternoon tea, how much they ate, when they went to bed, and which early learning curriculum touchstones they reached. I am posting a photo of. It can be a comfort and a source of joy. Once this expectation is established, the day you don't receive a photo can be worrying.
Early Education Consultant in 2019 Karen Hope writes on her industry blog:The Spoke says, “Photography in early learning centers has become, in some ways, a runaway train…a photo of a child in front of a puzzle is not necessarily evidence of learning, development, or engagement. How are you going to tell your family?” ? ”
It doesn't end with childcare alone.
“Schools play a major role in how children experience privacy on a daily basis,” the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Privacy wrote at the time. Reports published in 2021. The massive shift to online learning at the start of the pandemic sparked a technology boom in the classroom, adding that “the power disparity that existed between ed-tech companies and children, and between governments and children and parents'' Equilibrium has expanded even further.
One day during school camp, I received over 100 photos of children.
These posts evoke contradictory reflexes in me. First of all, I was relieved that she was safe. Second, leave her alone.
IIn the final section, which consists of 10 photos of the class returning by boat from the island, the daughter is not visible. For a moment, I felt uneasy. Was she left alone? Is she okay? This is an anxiety I would never have experienced otherwise. I would have worked alone. She is somewhere else, protected by people I trust. But on the contrary, I am worried. Until I found her behind photo 9. She's fine. Of course.
Expectations of information destroy healthy distance, healthy ignorance between children and parents. It may cause anxiety to parents. We are so burnt out that having to constantly evaluate and monitor our children doesn't help.
And it's an insult to a child's privacy.
Children now expect their intimate moments to be recorded. As a friend of mine pointed out, it's no longer “Mom, look at me!” it's “Mom, take a picture of me!”
They know to review their photos. My youngest daughter came home from daycare and was eager to watch her child. It was a hassle. It was a shitty photo.
Privacy is essential to children's development. Safety, absolutely. However, their privacy is being ignored and violated.
“Adult interpretations of children's privacy needs can hinder the healthy development of autonomy and independence and limit children's privacy in the name of protection,” the UN Special Rapporteur wrote. There is. “Adults' reliance on surveillance to protect children limits children's rights to privacy and autonomy.”
Privacy is critical to children's ability to develop self-esteem, self
WWe're disoriented and our brains are shrinking – at least our hippocampus is shrinking. These seahorse-shaped parts of the brain are about 5 cm in size, located just above the ears, and are responsible for our spatial awareness and sense of direction. London taxi drivers are famous for taking Knowledge, a test that requires them to memorize the capital's central streets, and they have life-sized hippocampi. But in 2011, neuroscientists at University College London found that taxi drivers' hippocampi shrank significantly after they retired.
Hippocampal development may also be disrupted during childhood. Children living in urban environments rarely see the sunrise or sunset and cannot distinguish between east and west. When I volunteered to go to local schools and teach directions to children, I noticed that they had a hard time distinguishing between north and south, east and west. However, you should be able to tell the difference if you are allowed to use your phone.
Ever since Google Maps was launched in 2005 with the claim that it would help users get from A to B, and three years later when the iPhone 3G was launched with “live” location, the online tech giant The first generation of today's digitally native children would not have known what it meant to be lost. But is that a good thing? Their vision and direction, like the hippocampus, is diminished by the collusion of their online providers. Over four generations, children roamed up to six miles from home, but on average only 300 yards. Even before COVID-19, three-quarters of children spent less time outdoors than prison inmates, research has found. Many parents know that the subsequent 50% increase in agoraphobia has a significant impact on children's mental and physical health. But it also drives biophobia
avoidance, and even fear of the natural world. When we become afraid of nature, the consequences are: Indifference and even hostility towards environmental conservation.
No matter where your kids travel, they're probably following a blue dot on their phone screen to guide them, regardless of the world around them. Now more than ever, mobile phones allow us to have maps in the palm of our hands, but maps can be both liberating and tyrannical. Our phones map us and collect our likes and dislikes online.
The current study focuses on this so-called Developmental topographical disorientation The same goes for mental health, as online experiences lead to digital contamination of our sense of space and place. Quite literally, we are becoming disoriented in the digital world, abandoning cognitive-enhancing tools like paper maps and magnetic compasses that allow us to move and orient ourselves in parallel to the physical world. . We have retreated from using the spatial skills that have sustained us for thousands of years. No wonder our feeling of being lost is as existential as it is directional.
To be disoriented means to be “lost in the East.” The word comes from the Latin word meaning the sun rising in the east. In ancient history, most societies were oriented primarily toward the east, the source of the sun, which gives light, heat, and life. Next we came to the west where the sun was setting. This was followed by north and south, and people determined their positions by astronomical observations of the sun's position at noon and the North Star, Polaris. Early polytheistic societies worshiped the sun rising in the east, and this tradition continues in the monotheistic Judeo-Christian faiths, which place the east at the top of the map as the place of the beginning of creation and resurrection. In the Old Testament, Creation begins in the East in the Garden of Eden. Medieval Mappa Mundi Hereford Cathedral The upper part has East, depicting Adam and Eve in Eden, and the lower part has West. This was the orientation that defined European Christianity for over 1,000 years.
In contrast, early Islamic maps placed the south at the top, as the first converts to the faith lived directly north of Mecca. The easiest way to understand their sacred direction was to orient the map so that Mecca was “up”. We still talk about going up north and going south in the UK. This is the old hangover of understanding the four points of the compass: up and down, forward and backward, or left and right, depending on our body. South serves as a cardinal direction, just as in classical Chinese science a magnetic compass pointed south rather than north. they are called this Ragyo“That which points to the south.” Australians know this. In 1979, Stuart MacArthur published a corrected map of the world with Australia at the top and facing south.
PThis is essentially what transpired at Mar-a-Lago on election night, when it became evident that Trump had emerged victorious. The scene was chaotic. Mr. Trump is a man of expansion. He is encircled by the members of a formidable clan and another individual. In his victory speech, the president-elect commended his campaign team, his running mate, and his family, each receiving brief praises.
But “AN Other” was allocated a full four minutes. He is Elon Musk, the wealthiest person in history. President Trump has referred to him as a “super genius,” “a unique individual,” and a “star.” Musk jetted straight from Texas on the Gulf Stream to revel in the adulation of his new master. He also invested hundreds of millions of dollars and a month’s worth of time to be present. Now, his moment has arrived.
Let that sink in. More on this later.
Now, consider what Musk’s counterparts in Silicon Valley were contemplating as they sat, pondering and composing sly congratulatory notes to Donald. And trust me, their disdain was palpable. The atmosphere in the valley was rife with frustration. The tech titans had been strategizing for months on how to curry favor with Trump in case he emerged victorious. Then along came Musk, sidestepping them and making his way into the inner circle of the new administration. It must have been exasperating.
Reflecting on the recent events, it’s evident that the situation has worsened. Trump has appointed Musk and aspiring mogul Vivek Ramaswami to lead his “Government Efficiency Division” (dubbed “Doge” after Musk’s favored cryptocurrency, Dogecoin). The duo is tasked with a concerted effort to streamline regulations, bureaucracy, and spending across the federal government. “Together, these two outstanding Americans will lay the groundwork for my administration to dismantle government bureaucracy, cut back on excessive regulations, eliminate wasteful spending, and restructure our federal agencies,” proclaimed their new chief.
Perhaps he will benefit from Musk’s assertion that he could slash at least $2 trillion from the $6.8 trillion government budget and Ramaswamy’s pledge to abolish the FBI, the Department of Education, and the nuclear regulatory agency during his unsuccessful bid for the Republican nomination. It appears he was impressed by their proposals.
While this new entity is labeled a “department,” it does not function as a typical government agency. If it did, Mr. Musk would face a slew of conflicts of interest that could pose legal challenges if he starts curtailing regulators with whom he currently clashes. These include the Federal Aviation Administration, National Labor Relations Board, Securities and Exchange Commission, Federal Communications Commission, and Federal Trade Commission. Moreover, his various companies secured $3 billion in government contracts from 17 federal agencies last year. However, by operating “outside” the system, he would have more leeway to make cuts as he sees fit.
In 2018, author Michael Lewis released The Fifth Risk, a notable book exploring the consequences of President Trump’s political appointments during his initial term, particularly related to three government agencies: the Department of Energy, the Department of Agriculture, and the Department of Commerce. According to Lewis, the book was born out of his curiosity about the lesser-known branches of government and their true nature, which he discovered mainly revolved around safeguarding people and societal safety.
If Mr. Musk’s track record is any indication, such safety concerns are unlikely to be assuaged. Following a court order in Delaware to proceed with the Twitter acquisition, he promptly laid off 6,500 employees, around 80% of his workforce by his own estimation. Among those terminated were individuals tasked with moderating content on the platform to maintain a certain level of “safety.” Their departure led to an open platform that attracted anti-wokeists, white supremacists, misogynists, conspiracy theorists, and other denizens of an alternative reality. Additionally, he tweaked the platform’s algorithms to prioritize his own posts for its 200 million users, effectively turning it into a broadcasting platform for airing political views and preferences.
By backing Trump, Musk appears to be employing an all-in strategy, reminiscent of his approach years ago when facing challenges in Tesla Model 3 production and claimed to have slept at the factory for weeks. He relocated to Pennsylvania for the final campaign month, actively engaging with supporters and enhancing the campaign’s visibility, particularly in rural areas.
In essence, he has positioned himself as indispensable to Trump, presenting a potential issue for his future. Narcissists are averse to being indebted to anyone, regardless of their assistance. Thomas Cromwell’s integral role in Henry VIII’s court in the 1530s, as depicted in Wolf Hall: Mirror and Light, illustrates that aligning with power may not always bode well. History may not replicate itself, but it might echo this time, as attributed to Mark Twain.
what i was reading
the narrow path from despair Diane Coyle’s Beautiful and concise review of Sam Friedman’s book Enlightenment Economics Failed states: why nothing works and how to fix it.
Steven Johnson, a research software enthusiast known for his nonfiction books, is constantly on the lookout for digital tools to enhance the creative process. When the rise of large-scale language models powering text-generating AI tools like ChatGPT caught his attention, he became intrigued by their implications for information organization. His articles on LLM in the New York Times attracted the interest of researchers at Google Labs, who approached him with a proposal to develop a digital research assistant. The result is NotebookLM, an AI-powered note-taking tool designed to organize and summarize information and answer questions. Johnson views it as a tool for enhancing understanding.
The productivity technology landscape is increasingly incorporating generative AI, with new and existing tools expected to offer features that streamline schedules, emails, and note-taking. Johnson, initially skeptical of such products, began to wonder if his workflow could benefit from AI enhancements. The NotebookLM platform, while warning of potential inaccuracies, differentiates itself from other text generators by only utilizing provided information. Users can create notebooks and upload various sources including PDFs, audio files, web links, and Google Docs.
NotebookLM enhances productivity by efficiently summarizing key points and extracting quotes. Its AI chat feature facilitates deeper interrogation of the material and quickly retrieving information. Johnson uses the tool for various projects, including his next book, finding it helpful in brainstorming ideas and structuring content. However, he notes drawbacks such as subjective summaries and the potential for AI-generated content to diverge from the original material.
NotebookLM aims to augment rather than replace cognitive functions, serving as a digital extension of memory and supporting creativity. The concept of a “second brain” resonates in productivity discussions, emphasizing the power of leveraging AI to handle lower-value tasks and freeing up time for more meaningful work. Other tools like Notion and Capacities offer diverse organizational features coupled with AI assistance, catering to different user preferences and workflow needs.
While AI-driven productivity tools like Reclaim.ai and Superhuman show promise in optimizing scheduling and email management, caution is advised in conflating busyness with productivity. Clear outcomes and emotional well-being play crucial roles in effective tool utilization. As AI continues to advance, the prospect of autonomous AI agents performing actions beyond mere chat interactions looms on the horizon, potentially transforming how we approach everyday tasks in the future.
Was it the week that X died? The platform, previously seen as an ideal marketplace for information exchange, has suffered its biggest breach to date.
Bluesky, the latest competitor to X, has amassed 16 million users. 1 million in 24 hours last week. Hundreds of thousands of people have quit Twitter since Donald Trump won the election on November 6th.
The impetus was Elon Musk, owner of Company X and the world's richest man, to transform the social media site and use it as a megaphone to push Trump into the White House.
The incoming US president said Musk will become head of the new Department of Government Efficiency. The acronym Doge, a play on the dog internet meme and the virtual currency Dogecoin, began as a joke by Dogecoin's creators and skyrocketed in value after Mr. Musk. In 2021, he named it “The People's Code.”
Although Musk now sits at the center of the U.S. government, his actions do not require Senate approval and he can continue to work in the private sector. He is allowed to keep X and its 204 million followers, as well as head electric car company Tesla and rocket company SpaceX. For the first time in history, big tech billionaires are directly shaping democracy, not just indirectly through the media.
“I don't know of any precedent for this approach,” said Rob Engdahl, president of technology analyst firm Engdahl, who has worked with companies such as Microsoft, Sony, and Dell.
Bluesky celebrates reaching 16 million users. Photo: Tamamario/Getty Images
As recently as 2022, Mr. Musk tweeted “For Twitter to be worthy of the public's trust, it must be politically neutral. That effectively means upsetting the far right and far left equally,” he tweeted. that “Mr. Trump will be 82 years old at the end of his term, far too old to be the CEO of anything, let alone the United States.”
A few months later, when Mr. Musk bought Twitter for $44 billion, he fired content moderators and charged for account verification. This meant that people could buy influence. Twitter rebranded to X, shed millions of users and reinstated Trump's account, which had been suspended after the January 2021 White House riot.
The proliferation of alt-right criticism, hate speech, and bots on X, as well as Mr. Musk's own clash with the British government during the August riots, has increased anxiety among X users. of guardian and observer announced last week that it could no longer maintain a presence on the site and would no longer post. Author Stephen King left, saying it had become “too harmful.” Oscar winners Barbra Streisand and Jamie Lee Curtis left the stage.
“X has effectively become Truth Social Premium,” said Mark Carrigan, author of “X.” academic social mediareferring to President Trump's far-right social media platforms. And the buzz in the tech world is that President Trump's “Truth Social” could be folded into “X.”
If this happens, whose interests will take priority? Will Mr. Musk suppress or encourage criticism of the authoritarian governments he does business with? Who is the puppet or paymaster in Donald and Elon's media show?
“If that happens, a political super app masquerading as social media could become the ultimate amplification machine for President Trump's ideas,” said James Kirkham of Iconic, who advises brands like Uber and EA Sports on digital strategy. It will happen,” he says. “Forget about Facebook and Fox News. The real heart of the Republican digital strategy may be X.”
“I'm hopeful that X and Truth Social will merge,” Engdahl said. “But given how overvalued Truth Social is right now, this could be one of those efforts between Musk and Trump.”
The bromance between the world's two biggest egos is mutually beneficial, as long as the two transactional, power-hungry, impulsive people get along. President Trump is hawkish on China, one of Tesla's most profitable markets. Mr. Trump essentially campaigned against electric vehicle manufacturing. Trump is a protectionist. Mr. Musk opposes tariffs. When it comes to climate change, they are against it.
Jonathan Monten, professor of political science at UCL, is skeptical about the sustainability of the relationship. “What Mr. Musk used against Mr. Trump was private money, both to provide a platform to, or to use, a more favorable pro-Trump agenda.” .
“It's unclear what continuing purpose or use Mr. Musk actually has. Yes, this is some kind of celebrity story, but that's the Trump brand. I've got one story, and tomorrow I'll tell another celebrity's story.'' The early 2010s connected and informed activists, artists, lawyers, academics, policymakers, journalists, and experts of all kinds. Share, exchange ideas and track events in real time.
Elon Musk speaks next to Donald Trump at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on October 5th. Photo: Carlos Barria/Reuters
While it's easy to paint Mr. Musk as a bogeyman, some argue that it was the emergence of TikTok and algorithmic timelines that fundamentally disrupted Twitter. As social media optimizes for scale and profit at the expense of user experience, algorithms will prioritize the “best” content – content that screams loudest or is most specifically tailored to users. It has become. Curated accounts and “latest” content to follow have been pushed to the side.
“I think Mr. Musk has done some harmful things, and I think part of that is the logic of evolving social media platforms,” Carrigan said. “The impact of the ad-based model encourages certain ways of organizing platforms, with negative consequences.”
Bluesky, which was the most popular app in the app store on Friday, has become an option for X refugees, but its 16 million users pale in comparison to Meta's Threads. reported With 275 million monthly active users, X Approximately 317 million..
Defender of “fediverse” is a single account for any social media network, just as a Gmail account allows you to send email to any email address or call users on other networks from your mobile phone number. argues that there must be.
Platforms have power when it comes to blocking social networks so users can't leave. Instead, new social networks, including Bluesky, are built on “ecosystems” that enable interconnection.
No one knows what will happen to X, with predictions ranging from collapse to turning into an anti-Trump platform if Musk and the president get into a spat, or even becoming a training ground for Musk's xAI venture. be. AI could engulf social media, with xAI valued at $40 billion, roughly the price Musk paid for Twitter.
TThe first time Terry Vandenbos saw a bear run away from a drone was on a spring day two years ago when he was chasing a bear himself. After seeing a grizzly bear cross a road near his property, a Montana rancher hopped in his all-terrain vehicle and planned to chase it away from his cattle if necessary.
However, when the bear was still far away from him, he began to sprint as fast as he could, looking over his shoulder, and Vandenbos also looked up. A small drone was chasing the bear overhead, its four propellers emitting a high-pitched whine as it flew toward a nearby lake.
“I don’t think I need to be here,” Vandenbos remembers thinking. He drove home. The bear never touched the cow.
At the other end of the drone was Wesley Sarmento, a grizzly bear management specialist with the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks (MFWP). For the past six years, he has been testing various non-lethal methods to scare bears away from human settlements. An act commonly referred to as “hazing.”
Sarmento, a doctoral student at the University of Montana, said in a study to be published in the journal Frontiers of Conservation Science that aerial drones outperformed all other hazing methods he tested in his experiments. These provide a way to keep grizzly bears away from humans that is safe for both humans and animals.
“Drones are now a tool that you can’t do your job without,” Sarmento said. “That’s how convenient it is.”
Increase in human-wildlife conflict
For nearly two centuries, prairies like those around Vanden Bosch Farm in northeastern Montana have had few large predators.
“The really good news is that we’ve done a good job recovering some of the large carnivores,” said Julie Young, a Utah State University wildlife biologist who studies ways to reduce human-wildlife conflicts.
The fabled “Doomfish” has reappeared in California.
The rare and long ribbon-shaped oarfish, often seen as a sign of impending disaster, has washed ashore on a California coast for the second time this year.
Alison Laferriere, a doctoral candidate at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California, San Diego, found the nearly 10-foot-long oarfish on a beach in Encinitas, Southern California, last week.
Oarfish are mysterious creatures that reside in the mesopelagic zone, deep underwater where sunlight cannot reach, often up to 3,300 feet below the surface.
These enigmatic fish, reaching lengths of up to 20 feet, have not been extensively studied by scientists, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Because of their unusual appearance and legendary status, with myths dating back for centuries, oarfish are sometimes referred to as the “fish of the end” due to their supposed ability to predict natural disasters and earthquakes.
The legend of the “earthquake fish” resurfaced in 2011 when 20 oarfish washed up before Japan’s largest recorded earthquake, resulting in a devastating tsunami.
According to the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, only 21 oarfish have been documented washing up on California beaches since 1901.
Researchers speculate that changes in ocean conditions and a possible increase in the oarfish population are contributing to the rise in sightings.
This year, a 12-foot-long oarfish was seen by kayakers and snorkelers in La Jolla Cove, north of downtown San Diego, and later taken to NOAA’s Fisheries Science Center for further examination.
Studies are ongoing to unravel the mystery surrounding oarfish sightings and their potential links to seismic events.
A 2019 study found no solid evidence linking oarfish to earthquakes, leaving the interpretation open to speculation.
When it comes to meteor showers, the Leonids are known as one of the best. Famous for its fast and bright fireball meteors, the Leonid meteor shower aims to put on an impressive show.
And in unusual circumstances, the shower can turn into a full-fledged storm, and thousands of meteors can pass in front of you in an hour. Although it is not expected to reach storm-level conditions this year, it is still a sight to behold. Additionally, the Leonid meteor shower can be seen with the naked eye, so anyone can observe it without the need for binoculars or a telescope.
So when should you look up to the sky? And what should you expect from this year’s Leonid meteor shower? We’ve got all the important information below.
When is the Leonid meteor shower?
The 2024 Leonid meteor shower will reach its peak on the night of November 17-18. During this period, 10 to 15 meteors are expected to cross the night sky per hour.
Shooting star activity is expected to peak during this period, but meteors from the Leonid meteor shower are expected to be visible until November 30th.
For the best viewing, you need to find a spot with dark skies and good visibility. It also helps avoid light pollution in big cities and towns. Light from the last supermoon of the year, November’s Beaver Moon, which peaks on Nov. 15, could obstruct visibility.
Where should you look to see the Leonid meteor shower?
Pinpointing the source of the shower will give you better visibility. The Leonid meteor shower’s name comes from its constellation, Leo, where it is believed to have originated. More specifically, the Leonid meteor shower originates from a star pattern called the Sickle within the constellation Leonid.
To find the sickle, first find Ursa Major’s plow. This is a distinctive signpost to many astronomical spots (we have a complete guide on how to find it).
Look to the edge of the pot in “The Plow” to find two bright stars: Dubhe and Merek. If you draw an imaginary line between the two, going in the opposite direction, it will point in the direction of Polaris, Polaris, and the Sickle of Leo.
You don’t need to worry too much about tracking this exact location. Meteors cover most of the sky, so your best bet is to see as much of the sky as possible.
The best way to see as much of the sky as possible is to lie on your back and look up, but it’s November and nighttime temperatures in places like the UK can be below freezing, so it’s best to dress warmly or bring warm clothing. Please wear it. Find a comfortable place to cover yourself with a blanket or sleeping bag. Be patient and stay a while to let your eyes adjust to the darkness and have the best chance of catching the Leonid meteor shower.
Where did the Leonid meteor shower come from?
Meteor showers occur when the Earth, in its orbit around the sun, passes through regions of space filled with debris left behind by comets and asteroids.
In this case, the culprit is Comet Tempel-Tuttle. It is a relatively small comet that was discovered twice in separate events. It was first created by Ernst Tempel in 1865 and then by Horace Tuttle in 1866.
How many Leonid meteors can we see?
The exact number of meteors is difficult to determine. The number changes each year, but the average number of meteors is about 15 per hour. In some years, this value can be even higher, especially if there is a meteor storm.
Approximately every 33 years, a shower turns into a storm. This classification is reached when more than 1,000 meteors occur per hour. Back in 1966, viewers experienced the unique Leonids meteor shower, where thousands of meteors appeared in just 15 minutes.
The last Leonid storm occurred in 2002, so a storm in 2024 is unlikely.
These fireballs have long trails that are blue and greenish. Meteors can be missed, but they leave a long vapor train in the sky that looks like a smoke ring for several minutes.
The Leonid meteor shower is also fast, traveling at 44 miles per second (71 kilometers per second). These are considered some of the fastest meteors we can see.
This year, we have been treated to various stunning celestial events by the moon, and now the grand finale is approaching with the last supermoon of 2024 known as the Beaver Moon.
But what exactly is a supermoon? How can you witness its beauty at its peak? And why is it called the Beaver Moon? Whether you plan to observe it from your backyard or venture to a remote location for clearer skies, here is everything you need to know to make the most of this year’s final significant lunar event.
When will the Beaver Moon be visible in 2024?
The UK, US, and the rest of the world will witness the full Beaver Supermoon on November 15, 2024. Following this date, the moon will appear full for several consecutive nights.
“A full moon occurs when the moon is directly opposite the sun in the sky at a precise moment down to the second,” explains Dr. Darren Baskill, an astronomer and astrophotographer from the University of Sussex.
“To the naked eye, the moon appears full or nearly full for two to three days from the exact moment of the full moon.”
In the UK, the moon will rise around 3:30 pm local time. In Los Angeles, it will rise at 3:30 PM local time, and in New York, it will be approximately 4:29 PM ET.
Fun fact: The moon is slowly moving away from Earth at a rate of 3.8 cm every year. – Photo credit: Getty
“For the most spectacular views, try capturing photographs just after sunset or just before sunrise. This is when the moon appears largest and most dramatic against the horizon,” said Shyam Balaji, a researcher in astronomical particle physics and cosmology from King’s College, London.
Why is it called the Beaver Moon?
The supermoon in November is named after the beaver as beavers are often observed during this period.
Leading up to winter, beavers prepare for the cold months and build food storage in case their ponds freeze over.
What causes a supermoon?
During a supermoon, the moon’s surface appears 7 percent larger (and 15 percent brighter) in the sky compared to an average full moon. This is because the moon is closer to Earth than usual (approximately 363,700 km or 226,000 miles away).
Due to the moon’s elliptical orbit around Earth, there is a point where the moon naturally approaches Earth (perigee). Conversely, there is a point (apogee) where the moon moves away from us. When a full moon coincides with perigee, a supermoon occurs. The timing of the full moon allows for multiple supermoons in a row.
This discrepancy in cycles allows for repeated occurrences of supermoons. The moon’s elliptical orbit gradually changes alignments, resulting in multiple supermoons in succession.
“Gravitational forces from Earth, the sun, and other planets influence the moon’s orbit, leading to these fluctuations and the impressive phenomenon of supermoons,” explained Balaji.
Specifically, a supermoon requires the moon to complete a lunar cycle and be at its closest point to Earth in its orbit.
A supermoon occurs when the moon is closest to Earth, appearing larger and brighter in the sky. In contrast, a micromoon occurs when the moon is at its furthest away, making it appear smaller and darker. – Photo credit: Getty
Where is the best place to see the Beaver Supermoon?
To get the best views, escape the city lights and head to areas with minimal light pollution. For a truly remarkable experience, visit the coast and observe how the supermoon affects tides.
“When the moon is at its closest point to Earth (perigee) and is full, the gravitational pull on Earth’s oceans is stronger,” Balaji noted.
“Expect to witness more significant tidal fluctuations, resulting in higher high tides and lower low tides than usual.”
Eleven million years ago, an asteroid hit Mars, sending debris flying through space. One of these masses eventually crashed into Earth. During initial investigation of this object, lafayette meteoritescientists discovered that it interacted with liquid water while on Mars. Now, researchers from the US and UK have determined the age of minerals in meteorites that formed when liquid water was present.
The Lafayette meteorite was scraped off the surface of Mars and then spent about 11 million years flying through space. It finally ended up in a drawer at Purdue University in 1931 and has been teaching scientists about Mars ever since. Image credit: Purdue Brand Studio.
A meteorite is a solid time capsule from a planet or celestial body in the universe.
They carry bits of data that can be unlocked by geochronologists.
They are distinguished from rocks you might find on Earth by the crust they form as they fall into the atmosphere, often forming a fiery portal visible in the night sky.
“We can identify meteorites by studying what minerals are in them and the relationships between these minerals,” said researcher Dr. Marissa Tremblay. states. purdue university.
“Meteorites are often denser than Earth's rocks, contain metals, and are magnetic.”
“We can also look for things like the fusion crust that forms when we enter Earth's atmosphere.”
“Finally, we can use the chemical properties of meteorites (particularly their oxygen isotope composition) to determine which planet they came from or what type of meteorite they belong to. ”
According to the authors, some Martian meteorites, such as the 0.8 kg Nacritite meteorite called the Lafayette meteorite, contain minerals that were formed by interaction with liquid water while on Mars. That's what it means.
“So by dating these minerals, we can tell when in Mars' geological past there was liquid water on or near the surface of Mars,” Tremblay said. .
“We dated these minerals in the Martian meteorite Lafayette and found that they formed 742 million years ago.”
“At this point, we don't think there was an abundance of liquid water on the surface of Mars.”
“Instead, we believe this water comes from melting nearby underground ice called permafrost, and that permafrost thaw is caused by magmatic activity that continues to occur regularly on Mars. ”
Researchers say the age derived from the timing of water-rock interactions on Mars is robust and the chronometer used is not affected by events that happened to the Lafayette meteorite, which changed in the presence of water. It was proved that.
“This age could be due to the impact of the Lafayette meteorite being ejected from Mars, the heating Lafayette experienced during its 11 million years floating in space, or the heating Lafayette experienced when it fell to Earth and burned up a bit. “in Earth's atmosphere,'' Dr. Tremblay said.
“But we were able to demonstrate that none of these things affected the chronology of water quality changes in Lafayette.”
“This meteorite has unique evidence that it interacted with water,” said Dr. Ryan Ickert, also of Purdue University.
“The exact date of this is controversial, and our publication dates from a time when water existed.”
“We know this because after this meteorite was ejected from Mars, it was bombarded with cosmic ray particles in space, producing specific isotopes at Lafayette,” Tremblay said. said.
“Many meteoroids are produced by impacts on Mars and other planets, but only a handful end up falling on Earth.”
of findings Published in this month's magazine Geochemical perspective letter.
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MM Tremblay others. 2024. Dating recent water activity on Mars. Letter from a geochemical perspective 32;doi: 10.7185/geochemlet.2443
Archaeologists have investigated an exceptional assemblage of more than 100 perforated pebbles excavated from the 12,000-year-old Natufian village of Nahal Eingev II in Israel, and have discovered that these items may be used to make fibers. They concluded that it may have functioned as a whorl for the spinning spindle.
3D analysis of perforated pebbles and holes. Image credit: T. Yashuv & L. Grosman, doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0312007.
Donut-shaped objects connected to bars to form wheels and axles were an important invention that served as a starting point for technological development and are commonly associated with Bronze Age carts.
A spindle whorl is a round, weighted object attached to a spindle stick, forming a similar wheel-and-axle-like device, helping the spindle spin faster and longer, and allowing fibers such as wool or flax to spin You can collect and spin them efficiently. On the thread.
“A circular object with a hollow center connected to a rod is one of the most important inventions in history,” said archaeologists Talia Yashuv and Leore Grossman of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
“By moving parts of equipment, the wheel led to inventions that revolutionized human transportation, energy use, engineering, and the mechanical industry.”
“From wagons and automobiles to potter's wheels and power mills, oil and wine presses, lathes, spinning wheels, and many other applications, each invention has left its own mark on the history and evolution of technology.”
“At the heart of it all, the importance of 'wheels and axles' lies in the relatively simple rotational mechanisms that can convert linear motion to rotary motion and vice versa.”
Rotating technology: Evolution from “wheelless” to “wheel-based” rotating technology. Image credit: T. Yashuv & L. Grosman, doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0312007.
In the study, archaeologists examined a collection of more than 100 perforated, mostly limestone pebbles recovered from the Nahal Ein Geb II site in northern Israel.
These artifacts date back to around 12,000 years ago, long before the advent of Bronze Age handcarts, and during the important transition to agricultural life and the Neolithic period.
Researchers speculate that the stone was likely used as a spindle whorl. This hypothesis is supported by the success of spinning flax using stone replicas.
This collection of spindle whorls likely represents a very early example of human use of rotation in a wheel-shaped tool.
These may have paved the way for later spinning technologies, such as potter's wheels and carts, which were essential to the development of early human civilization.
“These Natufian perforated stones are actually the first wheels in form and function. A round object with a hole in the center connected to a rotating shaft, they were used for transportation purposes long before the advent of wheels. ,” Professor Grossman said.
a paper A description of the results was published in the online journal on November 13, 2024 PLoS ONE.
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T. Yashuv and L. Grossman. 2024. A 12,000 year old innovation in spindle volute and wheeled rotation technology. PLoS ONE 19 (11): e0312007;doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0312007
Newly described trilobite genera and species alter one morphological character to overcome challenges and modify another character to fulfill the original function, presenting a unique example of functional change in an animal.
Silurian trilobites Waukesha Aspis Atonaefrom the Silurian Waukesha biota of Wisconsin, USA. Image credit: Kenneth Gass, specimen is University of Wisconsin Geology Museum.
It is the only trilobite found in abundance in this biota and is primarily known for its diversity and exceptional state of conservation. arthropod and insect-like animals.
The family that includes this trilobite usually has a pair of spines (sexual spines), one on each side (left and right) of the head shield (head).
There is also a tail (pygidium) that usually reaches a point on the back and is usually extended to form the medial vertebrae (caudal vertebrae). This spine is very long and probably helps turn the animal over if necessary.
In contrast, Pygidium Waukesha Spis It lacks a caudal spine and has a depression (bay) in its place, which is highly unusual for Silurian members of this family.
Therefore, this depression does not serve to turn the animal over, but may have enhanced breathing while the animal was in the registration position by maintaining an opening for water to flow into the gills of the trilobite.
What is even more distinctive is that the genus spines of this species are extremely long, reaching up to the pygidium. These may have worked well to turn the animal over.
Other features Waukesha Aspis Atonae Of note is the significant clustering of individuals, with some cases containing up to 49 partial or complete exoskeletons, likely due to physiological tolerance in the habitat and in the reserve. This may be due to classification and storage in storage locations. gastrointestinal (intestinal) tract occurring only in a few other trilobite species.
“This trilobite is important because it allows us to learn more about the functional morphology of the family (Dharmaceae), typically a conservative group,” Dr. Randolph said.
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E. Randolph and K. Gass. 2024. Waukesha Aspis Atonae n. generation. n. sp.: A specialized Dharmaniidae (trilobite) from the Terikians of southeastern Wisconsin. paleontology journalp. 1-9; doi: 10.1017/jpa.2024.32
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