Mondo News

Scientists claim that fat can be burned naturally in new weight loss discovery

Posted on July 5, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Weight loss can be a challenging journey, but there may be a breakthrough discovery that could make it easier. Scientists have found a way to burn calories without changing your diet or exercising, thanks to a fat-burning mechanism in your body known as “beige fat.”

While diet and exercise are still crucial, researchers from the University of San Francisco have identified a way to convert regular white fat cells into beige fat cells.

In most mammals, including humans, there are three types of fat cells: white, brown, and beige. White fat cells store calories, brown fat cells burn energy for heat, and beige fat cells can do both.

This conversion from white to beige fat cells allows the body to naturally burn fat more efficiently.

Although the study was conducted with mice, it could pave the way for new weight-loss drugs and shed light on why previous trials have not been successful.

Scientists believed that stem cells were required to create beige fat, but the research shows that by inhibiting the production of a protein called KLF-15, white fat cells can be converted to beige fat cells. This finding offers promising insights into potential weight-loss treatments.

Feldman and his team discovered that KLF-15 controls the levels of the Adrb1 receptor, which plays a role in maintaining energy balance. Targeting this receptor with drugs could be a more effective approach for weight loss compared to current treatments.

By understanding the mechanisms behind beige fat cells, researchers hope to develop safer and more long-lasting weight-loss solutions for the future.

read more:

At room temperature, metal-free organic molecules demonstrate strong phosphorescence

Posted on July 5, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

A metal-free organic 3-bromo-2-thienyl diketone exhibits fast and efficient room-temperature phosphorescence with high color purity under a variety of conditions, according to a new study led by chemists at Osaka University.

Artist's impression of fast phosphorescence. A beam of blue light enters the molecule, producing a thick yellow pillar, illustrating the acceleration of phosphorescence due to the mixing of singlet states. Image courtesy of YAP Co Ltd.

“Phosphorescence is a valuable optical feature used in applications such as OLEDs and cancer diagnostics,” said chemist Yosuke Tani of Osaka University and his colleagues.

“Until now, achieving highly efficient phosphorescence without using rare metals such as iridium or platinum has been a major challenge.”

“Phosphorescence, which occurs when a molecule goes from a high-energy state to a low-energy state, often competes with non-radiative processes where the molecule loses energy as heat,” the researchers added.

“This competition can slow down phosphorescence and make it less efficient.”

“Previous studies have shown that incorporating certain structural elements into organic molecules could make them phosphoresce faster, but these efforts have not matched the speed and efficiency of rare-metal-based materials.”

“Our breakthrough with thienyl diketones represents a major advance in this field.”

Dr. Tani and his co-authors were able to observe efficient narrowband room-temperature phosphorescence from 3-bromo-2-thienyl diketone in solution, amorphous polymer matrices, and crystalline solids.

“We discovered these molecules by chance and initially didn't understand why they performed so well,” Dr. Tani said.

“But as the research progressed, the pieces started to come together and we began to understand more.”

“Our work has led to a clearer understanding of the mechanisms behind the molecule's performance than any other organic phosphorescent material to date.”

“Still, we believe there is much more to explore and are excited about the potential applications.”

“This work provides new design guidelines for developing rare-metal-free organic phosphorescent materials, which have the potential to surpass and replace these materials in a variety of applications,” the authors conclude.

“The results of this research are expected to lead to major advances in areas such as OLEDs, lighting and medical diagnostics.”

This discovery paper In the journal Chemical Sciences.

_____

Yosuke Tani othersFast and efficient narrowband room-temperature phosphorescence from metal-free 1,2-diketones: rational design and mechanism. Chemical SciencesPublished online June 3, 2024; doi: 10.1039/D4SC02841D

Source: www.sci.news

Our view of artificial intelligence reflects our opinions on human intelligence

Posted on July 5, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

TThe notion that highly intelligent robots are extraterrestrial intruders “coming to steal our jobs” reveals significant flaws in our understanding of work, value, and intelligence itself. Work is not about competition and robots are not separate entities competing against us. Just like any other technology, robots are an extension of humanity, emerging from our society much like hair and nails grow from living organisms. Robots are an integral part of our species, blurring the lines between man and machine.

When we treat fruit-picking robots as the “other,” viewing them as adversaries in a zero-sum game, we overlook the real issue at hand: the dehumanization of workers who previously harvested fruit. These individuals were deemed dispensable by farm owners and society when they were deemed unfit for their jobs. This indicates that these human workers were already being treated as non-human entities, akin to machines. With the existing disconnect between individuals, seeing machines as alien entities only exacerbates the problem.

Many concerns regarding artificial intelligence stem from outdated traditions that highlight dominance and hierarchy. However, the narrative of evolution emphasizes cooperation, enabling simpler organisms to come together and create more complex and enduring structures. This collaborative approach has driven the development of eukaryotic cells, multicellular organisms, and human societies. Mutualism has been crucial in enabling progress and scalability.

As an AI researcher, my focus lies not on the “artificial” aspect of AI – computers – but on intelligence itself. Regardless of its form, intelligence thrives on scale. A significant milestone in 2021 was the development of the “Language Model for Dialogic Applications” or “LaMDA,” demonstrating the importance of scale in intelligence. State-of-the-art AI models have since grown exponentially in complexity and efficacy. This trend towards larger models mirrors the evolutionary growth in human brain size and social cooperation.

Human intelligence is a collective endeavor, drawing upon the collaboration of individuals, plants, animals, microbes, and technologies. Ignoring the contributions of these diverse entities and technologies reduces us to mere brains devoid of physicality. Our intellect continues to evolve and expand, becoming increasingly distributed and interconnected. Embracing this broader definition of “human” can aid us in navigating global challenges and fostering collective intelligence.

The concerns surrounding AI dominance are rooted in historical narratives of hierarchy and control. AI models exhibit intelligence comparable to human brains without the need for status-driven competition. These models rely on a symbiotic relationship with humans and the broader ecosystem, signaling a shift towards collaborative intelligence rather than hierarchical dominance.

The narrative surrounding robots as potential threats reflects deep-seated fears of domination and competition. However, the true threat to societal order stems from human inequality rather than robotic interference. Recognizing our interdependence with all beings – humans, animals, plants, and machines – can pave the way for a more harmonious and cooperative future.

Recent Update: Professor confirms abandoned bird nest is still present

Posted on July 4, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Nest: Still abandoned

Be prepared. A neglected bird's nest still remains in the mouth of a large ancient stone sculpture of a human face, hanging high on the wall at the northern end of the outdoor garden known as the “Michelangelo's Corridor” at the National Roman Museum in Rome, reports a professor at University College London (UCL). The professor discovered the nest during a visit to the museum in April this year and reported it to a colleague who is the director of a natural history museum in the Netherlands. The colleague visited the National Roman Museum the next day and asked if he could take the nest back to the museum in Rotterdam to add it to his biological curiosities collection, rather than having the staff remove it and destroy or dispose of it. The request was greeted with enthusiastic gratitude from two staff members at the Roman Museum, but a third staff member who happened to come across the scene with a ladder when the first two climbed the ladder to remove the previously unnoticed nest from the sculpture's mouth, and warned that no twig or pebble should ever leave his museum.

Photos of the nest in question can be seen in the May 8th feedback.

In early June, the UCL professor quietly revisited the National Museum of Rome and shortly thereafter sent out a “it's still there” report to Feedback.

Feedback: We are more than happy to receive reports from future visitors to Michelangelo's Cloister observing whether the empty nest (one might call it an “amuse-bouche”) is still nestled in the statue's mouth.

Not Your Way

Reader Ashok Khushalani contributes to Feedback's collection of inspiring and admirable organizational slogans that have been replaced, supplanted, or clearly abandoned, though not always obvious to the general public (May 18). Classic examples include IBM's “THINK” and Google's “Don't be evil.”

Khushalani laments the disappearance of Burger King's slogan, “Make it your way,” from everyday life, and he suggests that its absence has meaning.

If you know of a hot slogan that was highly promoted and is now in storage, please don’t say it with any ill intent and keep it to yourself.

Instead, please send it along with the documentation as feedback to “Mourning dead slogans”.

A weak theory

North Americans' fascination with rod-shaped objects and the human habit of proposing and then rejecting theories are two factors that have led to theDoes size matter? Penis dissatisfaction and gun ownership in America” “.

Reader Matthew Hall sent a copy to Feedback.

“To our knowledge, this is the first study to formally examine the association between penis size and individual gun ownership in the United States,” Terence D. Hill and colleagues from Texas and Florida wrote. “Our findings do not support the psychosexual theory of gun ownership.”

The same team will be joined by two other researchers in 2021.Sexual Dysfunction and Gun Ownership in the United States: When hard data meets unfounded theory”.

They poured cold water on the often heated public debate, saying: “Our key finding is that [sexual dysfunction] They are no more likely to own a gun than men without SD.”

BustaOr so they apparently said in their previous paper, but that didn't stop them from continuing to write about it. Busta”Ultimately, these arguments are counterproductive to society because they distract us from tangible realities like penis dissatisfaction and gun ownership.”

Smell

The June 12 article about a famous pathologist's inability to smell led reader John Adams to reflect on his own journey as a medical professional.

“As for Sir Bernard Spilsbury's anosmia, I was told as a medical student that this was common because pathologists are exposed to large amounts of formaldehyde fumes which destroy the olfactory nerves. One of the reasons I avoided this specialty is because I want my patients to have answers.”

Feedback suggests that a similar (but milder) preference for conversation leads people to choose dentistry.

Telltale Title

Ideally, the title of a scientific report clearly summarizes its entire content. To encourage this habit, Feedback has compiled a collection called “The Title Tells You Everything You Need to Know.”

Let's look at two examples.The man's fractured sternum was likely caused by the weight of the snake during the fall.” appears British Medical Journal 1997.Experimental replication reveals knife made from frozen human feces doesn't work” was decorated Journal of Archaeological Sciences: Reports 2019.

If you find similarly impressive examples, please submit them as feedback to “Telltale titles,” along with details of the citation.

Marc Abrahams is the founder of the Ig Nobel Prize ceremony and co-founder of the journal Annals of Improbable Research. He previously worked on unusual uses of computers. His website is Impossible

Do you have a story for feedback?

You can submit articles for Feedback by emailing feedback@newscientist.com. Please include your home address. This week's and past Feedback can be found on our website.

Is the climate resilient enough to handle the escalating energy needs of the AI arms race?

Posted on July 4, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

The rise of artificial intelligence has propelled the stock prices of major tech companies to new heights, but this growth has come at the expense of the industry’s environmental efforts.

Google recently admitted that AI technology poses a challenge to its sustainability objectives. The company disclosed that its data centers, crucial for its AI infrastructure, have caused a 48% increase in greenhouse gas emissions since 2019. Google cited “significant uncertainties” in achieving its goal of net-zero emissions by 2030, particularly due to the complex and unpredictable environmental impacts of AI.

As the tech industry races ahead with AI advancements, the question arises: can technology mitigate the environmental impact of AI, or will the pursuit of cutting-edge innovation overshadow these concerns?

Why is AI a threat to tech companies’ environmental goals?

Data centers play a critical role in developing and operating AI models like Google’s Gemini and OpenAI’s GPT-4. These centers house complex computing equipment that require substantial electricity, leading to CO2 emissions both from energy sources and the manufacturing processes involved. According to the International Energy Agency, data centers are projected to double their electricity consumption by 2026, equivalent to Japan’s energy demand. Additionally, studies suggest that AI’s water consumption could reach significant levels by 2027, potentially straining resources equivalent to England’s annual consumption.

What do experts say about the environmental impact?

Government-sponsored reports in the UK have highlighted the importance of energy sources in determining the environmental cost of technology. Some experts caution that the reliance on fossil-fuel-powered energy sources for training AI models remains a significant challenge. While tech companies are increasing their use of renewable energy to meet sustainability goals, concerns persist that the lack of clean energy may push other users towards fossil fuels.

Alex de Vries, founder of Digiconomist, notes the dual challenge of rising energy consumption in AI and the struggle to secure sustainable energy sources.

Will there be enough renewable energy?

Global efforts to triple renewable energy resources by the end of the decade face challenges due to surging energy demands from AI data centers. The International Energy Agency warns that current plans may only double renewable energy capacity by 2030, potentially impacting climate goals.

Technology companies may need to invest heavily in new renewable energy projects to meet the escalating electricity needs driven by AI.

How quickly can new renewable energy projects be built?

While renewable energy projects like wind and solar farms can be developed relatively quickly, bureaucratic hurdles and grid connectivity issues can delay the process for years. The pace of building offshore wind and hydroelectric schemes faces similar challenges, posing concerns about whether renewable energy can keep up with the expansion of AI.

The reliance on existing low-carbon sources by tech companies may divert clean energy away from other users, potentially increasing fossil fuel consumption to meet growing demands.

Will AI’s power demands keep growing?

The escalating energy needs of AI systems could lead to higher energy costs, prompting cost-saving measures in the industry. However, the competitive landscape and the push for cutting-edge AI technologies may result in excessive electricity consumption despite rising costs.

The pursuit of state-of-the-art AI systems has fueled a “winner takes all” mentality among tech giants, compelling heavy investments in the development of advanced AI. The pressure to remain at the forefront of AI innovation, including the race towards achieving AGI, threatens to escalate energy consumption and costs.

Despite advancements in AI efficiency, the industry’s drive for innovation may offset potential energy savings, akin to the economic concept known as “Jevons’ Paradox.”

Won’t AI companies learn to use less electricity?

While AI breakthroughs continue to enhance efficiency, the industry’s relentless pursuit of cutting-edge models may counteract potential energy savings. The growth in AI capabilities does not necessarily translate to reduced energy consumption, leading to a paradox similar to historical instances of technological advancements increasing use rather than conserving resources.

Making Time for Video Games: Insider Secrets

Posted on July 4, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

I I don’t often miss my teenage years, but I do miss the time I had to play video games. I used to get into games late into the night, but now that I’m a busy adult, I barely have the time to do that. Outside of covering games for work, I feel like I barely have time to play. So instead of the huge, engrossing role-playing games I once craved, I prefer games I can complete in a few nights. I’m pretty much used to this. The days of 100-hour epics and live service online games are long gone. They’ll come back eventually, when my kids are older.

But more than two years have passed since the release of Elden Ring, a game in my favorite genre by my favorite director, and I suddenly found myself tired of having barely played it. I’d been playing it bit by bit on my PS5, but I’d never been able to get past Rimgrave’s (admittedly vast) starting area. I kept hoping that my partner would take the kids for the weekend, or that I’d have a week off during term time so I could revert to my teenage habits and play hours alone. But… 2 yearsIf I want to play this game, or any big game, I have to make sure I fit it into my real life, which includes work, two small kids, and all the other responsibilities.

Is that even possible? There’s one thing that definitely helps: Steam Deck. Since having kids, I’ve become a lot more reliant on portable consoles. Spending hours uninterrupted in front of the TV without being seen is nearly impossible, and I don’t want to traumatize my kids by blasting them the violent and grotesque scenes of Elden Ring. I’ve been able to play both Zelda games on my Switch because I can take them anywhere and play them occasionally. Plus, these games are huge. So a few weeks ago I bought Elden Ring again, installed it on my Steam Deck, rebooted it, and resolved to defeat the infamous opening boss, Godric the Grafted, and see what’s beyond Stormveil Castle.

At home, I spent all my free time on Steam Deck, to the point of ignoring my family. Kids watching 30 minutes of TV before dinner? Elden Ring. Partner watching Euros? Elden Ring with eyes fixed on the score. Microwaving lunch? Time for Elden Ring. I tried small, achievable adventures like running around looking for unexplored ruins and getting surprised by a dragon in the middle of a lake. I made it through Stormvale Castle and back only to be totally beaten by Godric. I got used to giving up mid-battle, retreating, and looking for something else to do. Progression felt painfully slow, and I hated every time I had to stop playing in the middle of something. At the end of the first week, I checked my playtime. It was 6 hours.

“I left Godric at the castle and warped away to a safer location to just… have some fun.” Photo: Bandai Namco Europe

Six hours?! Is that all the free time I have available in a week? I was seriously depressed. It’s unnatural to play a game like this bit by bit, and when I add up all the stolen time, I’m left with a shockingly small amount of time. At this rate, it’ll take me six months to beat this game, and that’s without playing (or doing) anything else.

My problem was that I was only interested in finishing the game, rather than enjoying it. Six hours is better than zero. I couldn’t play the game the way I used to, so I had to think differently. Instead of reading guides to figure out the best way to progress through the game and trying to progress as quickly and efficiently as possible, I left Godric in the castle, warped to a safer area, and just… tried to have fun. I found a hidden boss and easily defeated it. I opened a treasure chest that teleported me to a terrifying underground mine full of insect-like wizards, then escaped and ended up in a ghostly city. I really liked the Wolverine-esque metal claws I found, but not because they were the best weapon, but because they were fun to use.

After a week of running around like this, I was relieved of the frustration I had felt before. Elden Ring is a terrible game if you try to complete it as quickly as possible in an extremely limited time frame, as most games are. It’s a great game if you focus on the adventure of the moment. I spent about 40 minutes in a smoldering little church trying to kill a red phantom warrior with a giant cleaver that could kill me in two hits, just to see if I could do it. When I managed two parries and killed her after a flurry of desperate sword strikes, I was beside myself. If I had insisted on getting through the game, I would have missed that moment entirely.

I beat Godric last night. With those funny claws that I love so much. I stopped watching the clock for how long I was playing. I stopped worrying about getting the most out of the least amount of effort. And now I’m really having fun. If you’re wondering how to play a huge game when you only have an hour, my advice is to use that hour. It’s the time you have. And an hour of enjoying a game is better than an hour spent wishing you could play longer.

What to Play

Demon’s Souls. Photo: Sony

If you’re ready to tackle a FromSoftware/Hayao Miyazaki game for the first time and want something more manageable than Elden Ring, I’d recommend the PS5 remake. Demon’s SoulsOriginally released in 2009, this rebuild fixes many of the control and camera flaws, offering a horror-infused dark fantasy vision and great, stress-free combat. It’s hard, but well worth it, and it takes less time than other Souls games.

Available on: PS5
Estimated play time: 30+ hours

What to Read

Positech Democracy 4. Photo: Positech Games

We did the cursed thing and ran a game simulating the first five years of each British party in power. Democracy 4Each party acted based on the policies set out in their manifestos, but it didn’t work at all.
Elden Ring creator Hidetaka Miyazaki mentioned the possibility of an Elden Ring movie or TV show in an interview last week. George R.R. MartinCo-wrote the game’s story. The blog suggests Something may already be in the works: “You may have heard rumours about a feature film or a TV series… but I have nothing to say. Not a word, no, nothing. I don’t know anything and you haven’t heard a word from me.”
There are several remakes of older works assassin’s creed Games in development, Ubisoft says This may also include the pirate-flavored Black Flag, but this is still the best in my opinion.
Capcom Remake announced of Dead Risinga satirical cult hit about killing zombies using items found in shopping malls, is due for release in September.

Skip Newsletter Promotions

What to click on

Question Block

Is the consolidation of video game journalism a good thing for gamers? Photo: Josep Martinsson/FIFA/Getty Images

Reader Matt asks:

“What would be the consequences if IGN bought the video game news site Gamer Network? If Eurogamer shuts down, we’d riot.“

This may seem like an insider question, but it’s an important one for readers of gaming news and reviews — which of you, the Pushing Buttons reader, is a reader of that. In late May, the very large gaming website IGN (I’ll be honest, I worked at IGN from 2010 to 2013) announced that Bought out UK gaming websites include VG247, Eurogamer and GamesIndustry.biz (and, more specifically, I worked for all of these sites from 2006-2010 or so). There are currently just two companies that own pretty much all of the specialist gaming media in the UK: Future Publishing has GamesRadar, PC Gamer and a selection of their magazines, and IGN has everything else.

IGN has previously acquired gaming sites. 1up and GameSpyand they ended up closing down, which doesn’t inspire confidence. But you have to ask: why buy a bunch of beloved brands that are still making a profit from what I’ve heard, and close them down? In 2024, any company in online media needs all the traffic it can get; buying a competitor only to close it down would be a terrible investment in a shrinking advertising economy. That’s why IGN is cautiously hopeful that it will be a good owner of these sites and that it won’t lose a huge chunk of UK games media with this acquisition.

Why is this important? Gaming is one of the few entertainment verticals where specialized media still thrives. Music media is in decline; just look at the fate of NME and Pitchfork. TV and film journalism is mostly newspapers like this one now. But when it comes to games, mainstream media is far behind reporters and critics at IGN,

Video captured of Blue whale mother nursing her calf for the first time

Posted on July 4, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

The first ever video footage of a blue whale nursing a calf was captured by a snorkeler in East Timor, Southeast Asia, and has been released.

“It’s certainly not a newborn calf.” Karen Edivain “But they’re clearly still drinking milk,” said the researcher, from the Australian National University in Darwin.

Edibane says capturing the footage is an incredible feat that has never been achieved before. The action was captured on camera by a snorkeler on an ecotourism voyage swimming with the pygmy whales off the coast of the capital, Dili, in 2022, and has only now been made public.

Blue Whale (Mushibaga) is the largest known animal to have ever lived on Earth, sometimes reaching lengths of over 30 meters and weighing nearly 200 tons.Southern wolfThe sharks found off the coast of Timor-Leste are slightly smaller, reaching a maximum length of 24 metres.

Blue whale calves do not attach to their mothers when feeding, but rather release oily milk into the water, which the calf swallows.

Edivain said the large calf seen feeding in the video is probably in its second year of living with its mother — blue whales are weaned at three years.

Other significant blue whale behaviours have been sighted and filmed in the area as part of the decade-long study. Citizen Science Projects Project leader Edivine said a database of 2,700 pygmy blue whales had been compiled since 2014 and that Timor-Leste may be a base for one of the world’s largest migrations of pygmy blue whales.

Newborn calves, courtship behaviour, pre-mating behaviour and feeding behaviour have all been observed.

“We haven’t seen a penis yet, but we’ve seen very affectionate adults having a lot of fun playing with each other,” Edivain said.

Caprivec The head of marine life conservation for the Western Australian Water Environment Regulatory Authority said that until recently no one knew how many blue whales were migrating off the coast of Timor-Leste.

Beck says he was incredibly lucky to capture the footage. Blue whales are often found far offshore, in hard-to-reach locations. “It’s incredibly rare to even be in the water with a blue whale, and even rarer to be in the water at the right time and place to film a calf nursing.”

topic:

Exploring the impact of TikTok on the 2024 general election in UK politics

Posted on July 4, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

If a week is a long time in politics, five years between elections feels like an eternity in the UK. The political landscape has changed dramatically since the Conservative Party’s landslide victory in 2019, but so has the social media landscape.

In 2019, TikTok was “the video-sharing app that became phenomenally popular among teenagers,” according to a commentator at The Guardian.

Fast forward to 2023 and an Ofcom investigation has found that: 10% of people aged 16 and over The number of people saying they get their news from TikTok is higher than BBC Radio 1 and on par with the Guardian, a significant increase from 1% in 2020 after the last election.

While some say the so-called battle over TikTok has been exaggerated, the platform’s creators are well aware that there is an audience among TikTok users, young and old, who enjoys political content.

To understand how the 2024 election unfolded on TikTok, we monitored the platform for one hour per day for a week using four separate accounts, searching for the widely used tag “#ukpolitics” as well as campaign-specific hashtags and terms.

Before we begin, a few disclaimers: No one outside TikTok knows how TikTok’s algorithm works, nor do we know whether and how the algorithm can be manipulated to promote certain content.

The platform is also notoriously difficult to measure: there’s no “most popular” section, so the sample is just a snapshot of what people saw on the site for one hour each day for one week over the duration of the campaign.

Straight TikTok: “Traditional” News for a New Audience

If you think of TikTok as all dance crazes, lip-sync challenges, and make-up artist tutorials, you’d be right – but you’ll also find some familiar faces, including BBC and ITV news anchors, LBC radio presenters, and broadcast journalists.

…

Conspiracy theorist

We found very few accounts spreading conspiracy theories, at least in the sample we collected, but they do exist.

While we do not intend to help conspiracy theorists by spreading their videos more widely on this platform, topics we saw included false claims that Labour would introduce Sharia law if it came to power.

Again, it is not known why such content was served, but AI Forensics warns that such content could be amplified by a “secret recipe” hidden in the platforms’ algorithms.

“Engagement can be both good and bad, so polarized discussions around extreme views and hate speech can drive up engagement metrics,” Romano said.

At least three accounts initially identified as containing conspiracy theories were removed during the investigation, though it is unclear whether this was of the accounts’ own volition or if they were removed by TikTok.

The most effective method to cool cities: White and reflective roofs.

Posted on July 4, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

White roofs in London would help keep the city cool during the hottest days.

NagyxMe/Imago/Alamy

In cities like London, painting roofs white or adding reflective coatings is the best way to cool them down during the heatwaves, and these “cool roofs” could work better than solar panels, green roofs or adding more trees to the ground.

Oskar Bruss Researchers at University College London ran a climate simulation to look at how temperatures in London would have changed on the hottest two days of the summer of 2018 if the city had implemented widespread cooling measures, from cooled roofs to air conditioners to cooling solar panels. The highest temperature was 35.6℃ (96.1°F).

The researchers found that the cool roofs outperformed all other countermeasures, reducing the city's average outdoor temperature by 1.2°C over the two days, and by as much as 2°C in some places. By comparison, adding more trees reduced temperatures by just 0.3°C, and solar panels reduced temperatures by 0.5°C.

The study found that while widespread air conditioning may keep indoor temperatures lower, it could increase outdoor temperatures by up to 1°C in parts of central London. “In London, cool roofs were the most effective at reducing outdoor temperatures at pedestrian level,” Bruce says.

While the study only used two days of data for its simulations, Bruce said: Similar published studies.

Applying reflective coatings or brightening roof surfaces across cities would be a relatively simple, low-cost climate adaptation measure, Bruce says. “In fact, I think it's probably the easiest thing to implement,” he says. “I see very little reason not to do this more widely.”

Beyond cooling, he says there are other reasons to install technologies: trees and green roofs can boost biodiversity and resident well-being, for example, and solar panels can provide clean electricity.

2023 Report A report by the Greater London Authority suggests that cool roofs could become a policy focus for the city government as summer temperatures rise due to climate change. “As temperatures in London are expected to rise and heatwaves become more frequent, reflective roofs are likely to become a key element of climate adaptation strategies,” the report said.

topic:

AI Technology can accurately recreate visual perceptions using mind-reading capabilities

Posted on July 4, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Top row: Original image. Second row: AI-reconstructed image based on macaque brain recordings. Bottom row: Image reconstructed by the AI system without the attention mechanism.

Thirza Dado et al.

Artificial intelligence systems can currently create highly accurate reconstructions of what a person sees, based on recordings of brain activity, and these reconstructed images improve significantly as the AI learns which parts of the brain to pay attention to.

“As far as I know, these are the most accurate and closest reconstructions.” Umut Güçül Radboud University, Netherlands.

Güçül's team is one of several around the world using AI systems to understand what animals and humans see through brain recordings and scans. In a previous study, his team used a functional MRI (fMRI) scanner to record the brain activity of three people while they were shown a series of pictures.

In a separate study, the team used an implanted electrode array to directly record the brain activity of a single macaque monkey as it viewed AI-generated images — an implant done by a different team and for a different purpose, Güçül's colleagues say. Sarza Dado“We didn't put implants in macaques to restructure their perception,” she says. “That's not a good argument against doing surgery on animals.”

The research team has now reanalyzed the data from these earlier studies using an improved AI system that can learn which parts of the brain to pay most attention to.

“Essentially, the AI is learning where to pay attention when interpreting brain signals,” Gyuklüh says, “which of course in some way reflects what the brain signals pick up on in the environment.”

By directly recording brain activity, some of the reconstructed images were very close to the images seen by the macaques, as generated by the StyleGAN-XL image-generation AI. But accurately reconstructing AI-generated images is easier than real images, because aspects of the process used to generate the images can be incorporated into the AI training to reconstruct those images, Dado said.

The fMRI scans also showed a noticeable improvement when using the attention guidance system, but the reconstructed images were less accurate than those for the macaques. This is partly because real photographs were used, but Dado also says that it is much harder to reconstruct images from fMRI scans. “It's non-invasive, but it's very noisy.”

The team's ultimate goal is to develop better brain implants to restore vision by stimulating the higher-level parts of the visual system that represent objects, rather than simply presenting patterns of light.

“For example, we can directly stimulate the area that corresponds to a dog's brain,” Güçül says, “and in that way create a richer visual experience that is closer to that of a sighted person.”

topic:

Long-Awaited Video Game ‘Kien’ Finally Released After 22 Years

Posted on July 4, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

IIn 2002, a group of five Italians garnered local attention for their ambitious project. They aimed to develop games for Nintendo’s Game Boy Advance, becoming the first company in the country to do so. Armed with just a few hundred euros and basic computers, these executives dove headfirst into the world of game development without prior experience or a team of programmers. Their motivation stemmed from a shared passion for gaming, a distaste for traditional employment structures, and unwavering optimism.

Over the ensuing two years, the team poured their hearts and souls into the project. Countless late nights and minimal time off characterized their relentless pursuit to bring their vision to life. Despite facing numerous challenges, they remained steadfast in creating a groundbreaking game with intricate features. The game, named Kien, remained in obscurity for years, eventually surfacing this year. However, most original team members had already moved on to other endeavors by then, with only game designer Fabio Belsanti persevering and seeing the project through.

Kien holds a unique distinction as the longest-delayed video game release, spanning 22 years. Surpassing the notoriety of Duke Nukem Forever, Kien’s delayed launch finally allows gamers to experience the action-platformer on a Game Boy Advance cartridge.

The game commences with players selecting between two protagonists: the Warrior and the Priestess. The Warrior wields a sword against hordes of enemies, presenting a formidable challenge. Kien’s gameplay keeps players engaged with challenging encounters and respawning adversaries, drawing comparisons to the difficulty level of Dark Souls. This nostalgic experience harkens back to the unconventional games of yesteryears that captivated youthful imaginations.

Take your chance… Priestess of Kien. Photo: Incube8 Games

While Kien’s journey to release was fraught with challenges, it was not initially intended to span decades. Following completed development and failed publisher negotiations, the game languished in obscurity. Belsanti’s dedication to uncovering lost 15th-century literature and merging it with Japanese gaming influences and classic action titles like Turrican shaped Kien’s unique narrative. Despite setbacks, Belsanti remained resolute, eventually finding a publisher in Incube 8 to revive Kien for a new audience.

In a digital landscape dominated by modern graphics and technical prowess, Kien’s revival on original hardware stands as a testament to its enduring charm. Its availability on retro cartridges accompanied by multi-page manuals rekindles a sense of nostalgia and reverence for gaming’s roots.

Looking ahead, AgeOfGames seeks to create a spiritual successor to Kien, staying true to their ethos of delivering compelling gameplay experiences over flashy visuals. Belsanti’s enduring passion for storytelling through gaming underscores the timeless appeal of simpler yet immersive game design.

Embracing a new era of retro gaming resurgence, Kien’s resurgence symbolizes a return to simpler times in digital entertainment. Its rediscovery by a new generation echoes the enduring power of captivating storytelling and imaginative gameplay experiences.

Experience Kien’s revival on original hardware through Incube 8, a pioneering company championing classic console gaming. Witness the magic of Kien’s long-awaited release and embark on a nostalgic journey back to the golden age of gaming.

The Southwest may have recorded its hottest June ever

Posted on July 4, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

LAS VEGAS — Some parts of Arizona, Nevada, and Texas have just had their hottest June on record, with scorching temperatures breaking several long-established records.

This record-breaking heat foreshadows another extremely hot summer for the U.S. and globally, raising concerns for the upcoming weeks and months as July and August are typically the hottest months of the year in the Northern Hemisphere.

In Phoenix, the average temperature was 97 degrees Fahrenheit, marking it as the hottest June in the city’s over 100-year history. As reported by the National Weather Service.

Last month, the temperature was nearly two degrees higher than the previous record set in June 2021. Phoenix’s Sky Harbor Airport noted 14 days with temperatures surpassing 110 degrees in June, according to the weather service.

The scorching heat has already claimed 13 lives due to heatstroke in Maricopa County so far this year, which encompasses Phoenix and many surrounding areas, with 162 more deaths under investigation. According to the county public health department.

Last year, a record 645 people died from heatstroke in Maricopa County amidst unusually hot weather for the region. Phoenix reported temperatures of 110 degrees Fahrenheit or higher for 31 consecutive days last summer, surpassing the previous record of 18 days set in 1974.

July has already begun with challenges, as 110 million people across 21 states are under heat warnings or advisories heading into the Independence Day holiday.

The heatwaves were felt across the Southwest last month.

In neighboring Las Vegas, Nevada, the city recorded its highest-ever temperature in June.

“June 2024 was historically the hottest in Las Vegas,” stated the National Weather Service’s field office. According to a post on X from last Sunday. The previous record was set 8 years ago in 2016.

Triple-digit temperatures were recorded nearly every day last month, with an average temperature of 94.6 degrees in June, seven degrees above usual and 1.8 degrees higher than the previous record, as per the National Weather Service.

The heat persisted, with an average high temperature of 106.2 degrees Fahrenheit and an average low of 83 degrees Fahrenheit, providing little relief during the night.

Climate change is anticipated to bring more frequent heatwaves. Studies indicate that as the planet warms, heatwaves will become more common, prolonged, and intense.

The National Weather Service noted that it’s not just the new milestone that stands out. “What’s even more striking is how much it surpassed the previous record,” the statement said, highlighting the 1.2-degree difference between the average June high temperature and the previous record.

West Texas also saw scorching temperatures in June, with El Paso experiencing its hottest June on record, breaking a record from 30 years ago. According to the National Weather Service.

The average temperature in El Paso reached 89.4 degrees, surpassing the previous record set in 1994 by 0.4 degrees.

Extreme heat warnings and advisories are in place for various states along the West Coast and parts of the South, including Washington, Oregon, California, Arizona, Nevada, Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, Kentucky, Georgia, and Florida.

Source: www.nbcnews.com

The Denisovans thrived on the Tibetan Plateau for over 16,000 years

Posted on July 4, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Archaeologists have discovered a new human rib specimen in the White Cliff Cave, one of two sites known to have been inhabited by Denisovans. Dating from 48,000 to 32,000 years ago, the specimen also belongs to the Denisovan lineage and indicates that the caves were present into the Late Pleistocene.

Portrait of a young Denisovan woman based on a skeletal profile reconstructed from an ancient DNA methylation map. Image courtesy of Maayan Harel.

The Denisovans are an extinct human group first identified from a genome sequence determined from a finger bone fragment found in the Denisova Cave in the Altai Mountains of southern Siberia.

Subsequent genomic analyses revealed that the Denisovans diverged from Neanderthals 400,000 years ago, and that at least two distinct Denisovan populations interbred with the ancestors of modern Asians.

In 2019, a 160,000-year-old jawbone discovered in Baishiyi Cave, a limestone cave on the northeastern edge of the Tibetan Plateau, was identified as being of Denisovan origin.

In 2020, archaeologists found Denisovan mtDNA in deposits from the cave, suggesting they were present around 100,000 years ago, 60,000 years ago, and possibly 45,000 years ago.

The new Denisovan rib, discovered in the Baishigai Karst Cave, dates to approximately 48,000 to 32,000 years ago.

“The combined fossil and molecular evidence indicates that the Amaka Basin, where the Baishiqai Cave is located, was a relatively stable environment for the Denisovans, despite its high altitude,” said Dr Frid Welker, an archaeologist at the University of Copenhagen.

“The question now is, when and why did the Denisovans on the Tibetan Plateau become extinct?”

In their study, Dr Welcker and his colleagues examined more than 2,500 bones discovered in the White Cliff Cave.

“We know that the Denisovans hunted, butchered and ate a wide range of animal species,” said Dr Geoff Smith, a zooarchaeologist at the University of Reading.

“Our study reveals new information about Denisovan behavior and adaptation to high-altitude environments and a changing climate.”

“We are only just beginning to understand the behavior of this incredible human species.”

The bone remains found in the Baixa Karst caves were broken into many fragments, making them difficult to identify.

The researchers used a new scientific technique that uses differences in bone collagen between animals to determine which species the bone remains belong to.

“Zooarchaeology by mass spectrometry (ZooMS) allows us to extract valuable information from bone fragments that are often overlooked, providing deeper insights into human activities,” said Dr Huan Xia, a researcher from Lanzhou University.

Scientists have determined that most of the bones belong to blue sheep called bharals, as well as wild yaks, horses, the extinct woolly rhinoceros and spotted hyenas.

Bones from small mammals, such as marmots, and birds were also identified.

“Current evidence suggests that it was the Denisovans, and not other human groups, who lived in caves and made effective use of all available animal resources during their occupation,” said Dr Jiang Wang, also from Lanzhou University.

“Detailed surface analysis of the bone fragments shows that the Denisovans removed the meat and marrow from the bones, but also suggests that humans used them as raw material for making tools.”

This study paper In the journal Nature.

_____

H. Shea othersMiddle and Late Pleistocene Denisovan life in the Baishi Cliff karst caves. NaturePublished online July 3, 2024; doi: 10.1038/s41586-024-07612-9

Source: www.sci.news

The oldest known termite mound, active 34,000 years ago, astounds scientists.

Posted on July 4, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Scientists in South Africa were surprised to find that a termite mound standing in the country’s arid regions is over 30,000 years old, making it the oldest active termite mound known.

Located near the Buffels River in Namaqualand, several mounds have been dated back to 34,000 years ago by researchers from Stellenbosch University.

“I was aware of its age, but not to this extent,” said Michel Francis, a senior lecturer at the university’s soil science department who led the study. The findings were published in May.

These mounds existed during a time when sabre-toothed cats and mammoths roamed the Earth, and large parts of Europe and Asia were covered in ice. They even predate the oldest cave paintings in Europe.

While fossilized termite mounds millions of years old have been found, the oldest human-inhabited mound prior to this discovery was in Brazil and approximately 4,000 years old, visible from space.

Francis described the Namaqualand mounds as termite “apartment complexes”, showing evidence of a continuous termite colony living there.

Although termite mounds are a common sight in Namaqualand, their age was not questioned until samples were sent to Hungarian experts for radiocarbon dating.

The largest mounds, known as “heuweltjies” locally, can reach around 100 feet in diameter, with termite nests found up to 10 feet underground.

Researchers had to excavate parts of the mound for samples, but the termites went into “emergency mode” and started filling in the holes. The team reconstructed the mound to protect the termites from predators like aardvarks.

The project not only provided insight into ancient structures but also revealed information about the prehistoric climate, indicating Namaqualand was wetter when the mounds formed.

Southern harvester termites play a crucial role in capturing and storing carbon by collecting twigs and dead wood, contributing to offsetting climate change. This process also benefits the soil, supporting the growth of wildflowers on top of termite mounds in low rainfall areas.

Pope Francis encouraged further research on termite mounds for the valuable lessons they offer on climate change, ecosystem maintenance, and agricultural practices.

“Studying the termites’ activities within the mounds could provide valuable insights, considering the tedious job they are believed to have carried out,” she added.

Source: www.nbcnews.com

9 simple tips from a dermatologist to enhance your skincare regimen

Posted on July 4, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Dr Bab Shergill is a consultant dermatologist specializing in skin cancer treatment and is a Fellow of the British Association of Dermatology. Here are his top nine skincare tips:

Less is more

Most people only need a basic cleanser, moisturizer, and possibly sunscreen if they are going outside.

Some skin types require additional care

There are around 3,000 different skin-related conditions, such as eczema and psoriasis. If your skin is scaly, dry, and red, you may need a specific routine with moisturizers to hydrate the skin and short-term use of steroids to soothe inflammation.

Moisturizers do not hydrate the skin

undefined

This is a common misconception: moisturizers work by creating a protective barrier and allowing moisture to move from deeper layers of the skin to the surface.

Need to know…
For most people, a basic cleanser, moisturizer, and sunscreen are sufficient.
Expensive products do not always mean better; look for key ingredients if you have specific needs.
To maintain healthy skin, eat well and limit alcohol consumption.

Expensive creams aren’t always better

There’s a psychological aspect to choosing expensive skincare products; sometimes we value them more because of their high price. However, if you have specific needs, it may be worth paying more for products with beneficial ingredients.

If you have brown spots known as “liver spots,” products containing vitamin B3 can be helpful.

Anti-aging creams are effective

Studies have shown that vitamin A-based compounds like retinol can reduce fine lines, boost collagen production, fade blemishes, and improve skin tone. Be cautious of using too much as it can cause irritation.

There is no difference between men’s and women’s skincare products

Aside from packaging and scent, there is no significant difference between products for men and women.

No need for separate day and night creams

If using a cream with retinol, consider applying it at night to avoid increased sun sensitivity.

read more A Scientist’s Guide to Life:

Avoid excessive alcohol consumption

Dehydration affects both your body and skin, so stay hydrated and eat a balanced diet. Foods rich in vitamins C and E can help combat damage from free radicals as antioxidants.

Consider your clothing choices

Wearing a wide-brimmed hat during sunny hours can protect your skin, especially for men with thinning hair on their scalp.

This article was first published on August 4, 2020

read more:

Webb finds hourglass-shaped molecular cloud surrounding protostar

Posted on July 4, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Astronomers MIRI (mid-infrared measuring instrument) camera The NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope probe has captured striking new photos of molecular cloud L1527.

L1527, shown in this image from Webb's MIRI instrument, is a molecular cloud enveloping the IRAS 04368+2557 protostar. The more diffuse blue light and filamentary structures in the image come from organic compounds called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), while the red in the center of the image is a thick layer of energetic gas and dust that surrounds the protostar. The white intermediate regions are a mix of PAHs, ionized gases, and other molecules. Image courtesy of NASA / ESA / CSA / STScI.

L1527, also known as LDN 1527, is located about 447 light-years from Earth in the constellation Taurus.

The young protostar, called IRAS 04368+2557, is embedded in a molecular cloud that is part of a star-forming region in the constellation Taurus.

IRAS 04368+2557 is a relatively young star, only 100,000 years old.

Given its age and brightness in the far-infrared, the star is likely a class 0 protostar, the earliest stage of star formation.

IRAS 04368+2557 has an edge-on disc with two misaligned parts.

The inner and outer parts of the disk have slightly different orbital planes and are connected at 40 to 60 AU (astronomical units) from the protostar, but the disk is point-symmetric with respect to the location of the protostar.

Webb's previous observations of L1527 showed that NIRCam (Near Infrared Camera)Astronomers were able to peer into the region, where the molecular cloud and protostar appeared in opaque, vibrant colors.

Both NIRCam and MIRI show the effects of outflows that shoot out in opposite directions along the protostar's rotation axis as the protostar consumes gas and dust from the surrounding cloud.

These outflows take the form of bow shock waves relative to the surrounding molecular cloud and appear as filament-like structures throughout the molecular cloud.

They also energize, or excite, the material around them, causing the areas above and below them to glow, imprinting bright hourglass structures in the molecular cloud.

“But unlike NIRCam, which primarily images light reflected from dust, MIRI will be able to probe how these outflows affect the thickest dust and gas in the region,” astronomer Webb said in a statement.

“The blue region that takes up most of the hourglass represents carbonaceous molecules called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.”

“The IRAS 04368+2557 protostar itself is shown in red, along with the dense mixture of dust and gas that surrounds it.”

“Meanwhile, MIRI revealed white regions just above and below the protostar, which are not as clearly visible in the NIRCam view.”

“This region is a mixture of hydrocarbons, ionized neon, and thick dust, indicating that the protostar is consuming material from the disk in a promiscuous manner, pushing this material over great distances.”

“As IRAS 04368+2557 continues to age and emits energetic jets, it will consume, destroy or push aside much of this molecular cloud, and much of the structure seen here will begin to disappear.”

“Eventually, when the accumulation of mass stops, this impressive spectacle will come to an end and the star itself will become more clearly visible to optical telescopes.”

“Combining both near-infrared and mid-infrared analyses will shed light on the overall behavior of this system, including how the central protostar is influencing the surrounding region.”

“Other stars in Taurus, the star-forming region in which L1527 resides, may form in exactly this way, which could lead to the disruption of other molecular clouds, either preventing the formation of new stars or promoting their development.”

Source: www.sci.news

Stegosaurus: Uncovering a new species

Posted on July 4, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Chinese paleontologists have discovered fossil fragments of a new genus and species of stegosaur dinosaur. Bayinosaurus baojiensis.

Reconstructing your life Gigantespinosaurus (Lower foreground), a newly discovered sister species of Stegosaurus Bayinosaurus baojiensisand other dinosaurs discovered in the ShaxiMiao Formation. Image by A. Belov / CC BY-SA 3.0.

Bayinosaurus baojiensis It roamed the Earth during the Middle Jurassic period, about 165 million years ago.

This dinosaur species is StegosaursA group of herbivorous armoured dinosaurs that lived in the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods.

Stegosaurus reached a maximum length of about 9 metres (30 feet). It had a small head with peg-like teeth, vertical bone plates and spines on its back and tail, and hoof-like toes on all four limbs.

“Stegosaurus is a minor but iconic lineage of ornithischian dinosaurs, but its early evolution remains poorly understood due to a poor fossil record,” said Dr Li Ning from China University of Geosciences and his colleagues.

“These dinosaurs are characterized by having two parasagittal rows of enlarged dermal armor plates and/or spines that extend from the neck to the tip of the tail, and have been found on every continent except Antarctica and Australia.”

“The earliest stegosaurs date to the Middle Jurassic and were distributed worldwide by the Late Jurassic, after which diversity declined during the Early Cretaceous.”

“Middle Jurassic stegosaurs are rarely recorded, with only five species. Loricatosaurus From the UK, Isabelisaura From Argentina, Adorati Krit From Morocco and Huayangosaurus and Bashanosaurus From China.”

Partial skeleton of Bayinosaurus baojiensis The fossil, consisting of a partial skull, one cervical vertebra, seven dorsal vertebrae, and one caudal vertebra, Wangjiashan Formation.

“The study area is located in the northwestern part of the Baojishan Basin, Pingchuan District, Baiyin City, Gansu Province, China,” the paleontologists said.

“The Baojishan Basin is located at the eastern end of the Qilian Mountains.”

According to the team's systematic analysis, Bayinosaurus baojiensis is an early diverging stegosaur, Isabelisaura, Alcovasaurus, Junjunosaurus and Gigantespinosaurus.

“Bayinosaurus baojiensis “This dinosaur possesses several protoplasmic features and represents a morphological transition between early ostracods and the early-diverging stegosaurs,” the researchers say.

“The increased diversity of Middle Jurassic stegosaurs and their early divergence position suggest that stegosaurs likely diverged from their sister taxon, the ankylosaurs, in the early Middle Jurassic (or possibly much earlier).”

of study Published in the journal Scientific Reports.

_____

L. Nin others2024. A new species of stegosaur (Dinosauria: Ornithischia) discovered from the Middle Jurassic of Gansu Province, China. Scientific Reports 14, 15241; doi: 10.1038/s41598-024-66280-x

Source: www.sci.news

Swimming prohibited at around 100 beaches nationwide.

Posted on July 4, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Beach closures and swimming warnings have been issued in at least 10 states ahead of the Fourth of July holiday due to high bacteria levels.

Some closures are linked to human waste bacteria, while others are due to high concentrations of cyanobacteria, a type of blue-green algae, in freshwater.

Florida, Illinois, Michigan, New Jersey, and New York reported dangerous fecal levels on certain beaches last week. Illinois recommended caution Michigan identified 16 beaches Two beaches closed and advisories issued at five beaches..

Vermont alerted six locations advising against swimming due to cyanobacteria overgrowth.

Environment America reports that many U.S. beaches are closed annually due to unsafe bacteria levels. More than half of inspected beaches experienced fecal contamination above EPA standards in 2022.

Swimming in waters with high bacteria levels can lead to illnesses, especially in vulnerable populations.

Research indicates that cyanobacterial algae blooms are increasing due to climate change, posing risks to human health. Cyanobacteria produce microcystin toxin, harmful when ingested in large amounts.

Two Iowa beaches tested high for microcystin, while five others had elevated E. coli levels.

In Massachusetts, 34 beaches closed due to high E. coli or Enterococcus levels, signaling fecal contamination.

Massachusetts Surgeon General Goldstein attributes these spikes in bacteria levels to heavy rains transporting waste to water bodies.

Goldstein estimates 5% of Massachusetts’ beaches are closed, urging people to check health department sites for swimming advisories.

Florida’s Monroe and Hillsboro Beaches are seeing deteriorating water quality from high enterococcus bacteria levels.

San Diego closed three beaches and issued warnings at two due to dangerous bacteria levels.

Bacteria levels fluctuate, so beachgoers should stay updated on safety warnings and practice environmental cleanliness to reduce waste contamination.

Goldstein recommends cleaning up pet waste and trash to prevent bacteria from entering water bodies after heavy rains.

“Environmental bacteria can flow into water bodies after rainy periods,” he said.

Source: www.nbcnews.com

Multiple nations implement baffling export restrictions on quantum computers

Posted on July 4, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Exports of quantum computers are restricted in many countries

Saigh Anys/Shutterstock

As a result of secret international negotiations, governments around the world have imposed identical export controls on quantum computers while refusing to disclose the scientific rationale behind the controls. Although quantum computers could theoretically threaten national security by breaking encryption technology, even the most advanced quantum computers currently publicly available are too small and error-prone to achieve this, making the bans seem pointless.

The UK: Quantum computers with more than 34 quantum bits (qubits) and error rates below a certain threshold. The intention seems to be to limit machines with certain capabilities, but the UK government has not stated this explicitly. New Scientist A Freedom of Information request seeking the basis for these figures was denied on national security grounds.

France has also imposed similar export controls. Quantum Bits The numbers and error rates are also improving, as are Spain and the Netherlands. Having the same limits across European countries might suggest EU regulation, but this is not the case. A spokesperson for the European Commission said: New Scientist EU member states are free to adopt national, rather than bloc-wide, measures when it comes to export controls. “The recent quantum computer restrictions by Spain and France are an example of such national measures,” they said. They declined to explain why the figures for the EU's various export bans are completely consistent if these decisions were taken independently.

A spokesman for the French Embassy in London said: New Scientist The limits were set at a level “likely to indicate a cyber risk,” they said. They noted that the regulations are the same in France, the UK, the Netherlands and Spain because of “multilateral negotiations that took place over several years under the Wassenaar Arrangement.”

“The limits chosen are based on scientific analysis of the performance of quantum computers,” the spokesperson said. New ScientistBut when asked for clarification about who carried out the analysis and whether its findings would be made public, a spokesman declined to comment further.

of Wassenaar Agreement The system, which is followed by 42 participating countries including EU member states, the UK, the US, Canada, Russia, Australia, New Zealand and Switzerland, controls the export of items with potential military applications, known as dual-use technologies. The export ban on quantum computers also includes similar language regarding 34 qubits..

New Scientist We wrote to dozens of Wassenaar member states asking whether there was quantum-computer-level research that posed a risk to export, whether it had been made public, and who had conducted it. Only a few countries responded.

“We closely monitor other countries as they introduce national restrictions on certain technologies,” a spokesperson for the Swiss Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs, Education and Research said, “but in specific cases it is already possible to block the export of such technologies using existing mechanisms.”

“We are closely following the Wassenaar discussions on the exact technical control parameters for quantum.” Milan Godin, Belgian Advisor to the EU Working Party on Dual-Use Goods, Belgium. China does not appear to have implemented its own export controls yet, but Godin said quantum computers are a dual-use technology. It has the potential to crack commercial or government codes, and its speed could ultimately enable militaries to plan faster and better, including for nuclear missile attacks.

A spokesperson for Germany's Federal Office for Economics and Export Control confirmed that the export restrictions on quantum computers are the result of negotiations under the Wassenaar Agreement, but Germany does not appear to have implemented any restrictions. “The negotiations are confidential and unfortunately we cannot provide any details or information about the considerations of the restrictions,” the spokesperson said.

Christopher MonroeThe co-founder of quantum computing company IonQ said industry participants have been aware of similar bans and are discussing their criteria, but he doesn't know where they come from.

“I don't know who decided the logic behind these numbers,” he says, but it may have something to do with the threshold for simulating a quantum computer with a regular computer. This gets exponentially harder as the number of qubits increases, so Monroe thinks the rationale behind the ban may be to limit quantum computers that are too advanced to simulate, even though such devices have no practical use.

“It would be a mistake to think that just because we can't simulate the behavior of a quantum computer doesn't mean it's useful, and severely restricting research into advances in this grey area would certainly stifle innovation,” he says.

topic:

safety/
Quantum Computing

Over 100 Shark Species at Risk of Drastic Population Declines by 2100

Posted on July 4, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Ocean warming threatens to reduce golden tiger shark populations

Shutterstock/Podlonaya Elena

The world's egg-laying shark populations could be hit hard by the end of the century as increasing ocean warming and acidification destroys embryos, potentially affecting more than 100 shark species.

This discovery was made possible by the discovery of the giant sandbar shark (Termitesis found in the Mediterranean Sea and the Northeast Atlantic Ocean. About 40 percent of sharks reproduce by laying tough, skinned egg capsules that contain the embryos. These shark embryos are highly sensitive to changes in ocean conditions, such as temperature and pH levels. The ocean absorbs excess carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, causing it to warm up and become more acidic.

Noémie Coulon Researchers at the French National Museum of Natural History exposed catshark eggs to a variety of ocean conditions, including monthly temperature changes, in a lab tank. Coulomb and his colleagues chose the catshark because it is one of the most abundant shark species in Europe.

In the first test, A “middle-of-the-road” climate scenario A 2.7°C increase in temperature above pre-industrial levels by 2100, with a corresponding decrease in pH of 0.2, is projected. A second scenario (in which the world continues to rely heavily on fossil fuels) projects a 4.4°C increase in temperature and a 0.4 decrease in pH by the end of the century. The third is a historical baseline, which recreates water temperature and pH in shark habitats from 1995 to 2014.

A tiny spotted catshark embryo inside an egg

Noémie Coulon

The researchers then simulated conditions as the embryos developed over the next four months, and found dramatic differences in the embryos' hatching success rates depending on the experimental conditions: In the baseline and moderate scenarios, about 82% of the eggs hatched. But in the warmest scenario, only five of the 45 embryos survived, a loss of almost 90%.

“We were really shocked by the death rate,” Coulon said. “It will probably cause a population collapse.”

“Even a relatively short period of warmth, such as a particularly warm August, was enough to cause the hatching to fail. Based on these results, Coulon predicts other egg-laying sharks, including endangered or vulnerable species like the nurse hound, will be similarly devastated.”

But their extinction is not doomed, says Coulon: “If we make an effort to limit global warming to around 2°C, this species may be able to survive.”

topic:

The advantages of anti-aging drugs surpass the disadvantages

Posted on July 3, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

The field of anti-aging medicine has exploded in recent years as discoveries about the basic biology of aging are translated into experimental treatments. The latest fountains of youth to bubble out of the lab come in the form of vaccines against age-related diseases such as cancer, heart disease, and dementia. The first of these could be available by the end of the decade. Multipurpose anti-aging vaccines are also in development (see “New Anti-Aging Vaccine Shows Hope for Preventing Diseases, Including Alzheimer's”).

The benefits of such a vaccine are clear: It would be welcome to limit the impact of age-related conditions on people who live into old age and the loved ones who often end up caring for them, and it could also help address the increasingly severe social and economic costs of these diseases.

But like all anti-ageing measures, there are potential downsides. Significantly extending the lifespan of millions of people could lead to a population explosion on an already resource-strained planet. If vaccines simply delay the onset of age-related symptoms, they postpone the costs to people and society. And, as Nobel laureate Venki Ramakrishnan said earlier this year, a long-lived society is prone to a stagnant one.

These are common fears, and the standard answer is that the goal is to extend healthspan: that is, for people to live longer, free from old-age diseases, before suddenly succumbing to death.

At least, that's the idea. The results won't be known until the treatment is deployed on a large scale, at which point it'll be too late to put the genie back in the bottle. But that's not an option anyway. If vaccines or other anti-aging treatments are effective and affordable, they'll be used.

Moreover, no one would argue that innovations like antibiotics, vaccines, and advanced diagnostics were bad ideas, even though they have ushered in an era of age-related diseases. Similarly, life-saving medical advances should not be feared because of unintended consequences; any downsides are a price worth paying if they can make life longer and less painful.

topic:

Denisovans from the ancient past hunted snow leopards in Tibet.

Posted on July 3, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

The snow leopard was one of the animals hunted by the Denisovans

Klaus Honal / Alamy

The ancient humans known as the Denisovans hunted a wide variety of animals on the Tibetan Plateau, including blue sheep, yaks, and snow leopards. This diverse diet allowed them to thrive at high altitudes tens of thousands of years before the arrival of modern humans.

“The Denisovans were very behaviorally flexible,” Fried Welcker “They're really able to adapt to their local environment and the species that live there,” say researchers from the University of Copenhagen in Denmark.

The Denisovans are one of the most mysterious groups of humans that ever lived on Earth. They were first described in 2010 based on DNA extracted from a finger bone fragment found in the Denisova Cave in the Altai Mountains of Russia. This was the first time a group of humans had been identified based solely on DNA.

Denisovans were likely once widespread in South Asia because many people in South and Southeast Asia today carry Denisovan DNA. The Denisovans were highly adaptive, inhabiting various regions from Siberia to Southeast Asia. However, very little is known about their physical characteristics due to the scarcity of remains.

In 2019, Welcker and other researchers described a 160,000-year-old jawbone found in the Baishiya karst caves of Xiahe, on the northeastern Tibetan Plateau. Proteins extracted from one of the teeth were identified as Denisovan.

The following year, another group Denisovan DNA in cave sedimentsThe DNA could have been dated to 100,000, 60,000 or even 45,000 years ago, suggesting the Denisovans lived there for more than 100,000 years.

The Tibetan Plateau is 4,000 meters above sea level. The air is thin, cold, and dry – a tough place to live. To understand how the Denisovans managed to survive for so long, Welcker and his colleagues studied animal bones from the Baishiqiao cave. By observing the bones' shapes and extracting characteristic proteins, they were able to identify 2,005 of the 2,567 bones or bone fragments found.

The most numerous were blue sheep (Pseudo Nayaur) Among them were sheep and goats, Welcker said. Other medium-sized herbivores included wild yaks, Tibetan gazelles, and red deer. There were also small animals with grooved teeth, such as flying squirrels and porcupines. Plus larger carnivores, such as spotted hyenas, wolves, and snow leopards, as well as birds, such as golden eagles.

Most of the bones appear to have been brought there by Denisovans – 19 percent bear clear evidence, such as cuts made by stone tools – while less than 1 percent bear tooth marks or other signs indicating they were brought there by rodents or carnivores.

View of the white cliff caves on the Tibetan Plateau

Zhang Dongzhu Group (Lanzhou University)

“This is the second site where we can be absolutely certain that Denisovans were present and that the associated assemblages concretely represent their behavior.” Samantha Brown At the University of Tübingen, Germany.

Stone tools but no human remains have been found at other sites on the Tibetan plateau, so it's unclear who lived there. Further afield, a single molar found in 2022 at Tam Ngu Hao 2 limestone cave in Laos may point to a mysterious human presence. Tentatively identified as Denisovan.

Brown says it's not possible to draw many inferences about Denisovan capabilities from so few remains, “but we expect that Denisovans were once found as far north as Siberia, and possibly as far south.” [the islands of] Southeast Asia. As more of their remains are discovered, we may really begin to understand that the Denisovans were highly adaptive.”

One of the bones found in the White Cliff Cave, a rib fragment, turned out to belong to another Denisovan. It was found in sediments dating back 48,000 to 32,000 years ago, making it the youngest Denisovan specimen known to date. Stone tools found at Nuwia Devou on the plateau This provides evidence that modern humans were living there by 40,000 years ago, suggesting that Denisovans and modern humans coexisted in the region.

topic:

A revolutionary anti-aging vaccine offers hope in preventing diseases like Alzheimer’s

Posted on July 3, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

I’ll be 60 in just over 5 years, which is a big deal. I already have an age-related disease (high blood pressure), and the odds are good that I haven’t been diagnosed with at least one more by then. After that, the symptoms of age will pile up and bring me to my inevitable end. Many of you will no doubt be in a similar situation. We are living longer than ever before, but those extra years don’t necessarily come with good health.

But judging by recent trends, my sons may be even luckier. Instead of facing a long list of common diseases in their 70s and 80s, they may be able to immunize themselves against them. They may be able to celebrate middle age with vaccinations that immunize them against Alzheimer’s, cancer, and hypertension. What’s more, they may even have access to an anti-aging panacea that vaccinates against all of these and more, allowing them to enter old age in better health than most of us today could hope to achieve.

Suddenly, an ancient medical technique looks set to become a game changer in the fight against diseases associated with age. Vaccines, the most commonly used injections for infectious diseases like COVID-19 and measles, are now showing promise for treating non-infectious diseases, particularly those associated with age. The field is advancing rapidly, and there are signs that, in the right winds, I and others my age might be able to benefit from these vaccinations. It’s so…

Oldest known narrative art is a pig painting dating back 50,000 years

Posted on July 3, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Traces of cave paintings depicting pigs and human-like figures from Leang Karampuang, Sulawesi, Indonesia

Griffith University

An Indonesian cave painting depicting a pig with a human-like figure dates back at least 51,200 years and is known to be the oldest known example of figurative art in the world.

“I like to define us as a storytelling species, and this is the earliest evidence of that.” Maxime Oberle Griffith University, Gold Coast, Australia.

The pig artwork was discovered on the ceiling of a limestone cave in Leang Karampuang, Sulawesi, in 2017.

In 2019, Obert and his colleagues dated a hunting scene discovered in a nearby cave called Leang Bru Shipon 4 to at least 43,900 years ago.

Now, researchers have used new, more precise techniques to date both works of art, finding that the paintings at Reang Bulu Siphon 4 are actually more than 4,000 years older than previously thought, and the artwork at Reang Karampuan is even older.

According to Obert, the artwork at both sites predates the oldest known rock art in Europe by at least 10,000 years.

Modern people, Homo sapiens“We know they were in the area at that time, because they reached Australia by 60,000 to 65,000 years ago,” Obert said. “We think these art works were done by modern humans.”

The same cave contains depictions of creatures with both human and animal attributes, indicating spiritual beliefs.

“These rock art are not just little symbols,” team members say. Renaud Joanne Boyau “They were actually depicting scenes from the hunt and life, and were already using art to tell stories, inhabit a spirit world and try to make sense of their environment. This tells us a lot about human evolution,” said researchers from Southern Cross University in Lismore, Australia. Homo sapiens.”

Previous methods for dating artworks relied on chemical extraction of samples, which required crushing and destroying large portions of the rock.

The new technique involves taking a 5-millimeter-diameter core from the rock’s crust. A laser is used to remove material from the surface of this core, less than half the thickness of a human hair, which is then examined to measure the isotopic decay of the minerals. Once this is done, the core can be inserted into the rock art, much less disruptive than traditional methods.

Karampuang Hills, Reang Karampuang Cave site

Google Arts & Culture

Joannes Boyau says the new technique could lead to a major revision of the history of rock art around the world.

Kira Westaway Researchers from Macquarie University in Sydney, Australia, say improved dating methods have allowed them to more accurately assess when the Sulawesi art was actually created.

“This is really significant given that the first period was already considered groundbreaking,” she says. “This has huge implications for understanding the capabilities of these early artists who passed through Indonesia and the types of skills and tools they already had when they entered Australia.”

Homo sapiens They probably weren’t the only species with complex symbolic practices. Martin Pore “It is highly likely that other hominins had at least some capabilities in this regard, as can be inferred from the highly sophisticated material culture of Neanderthals,” say researchers from the University of Western Australia.

“It will be important to study further archaeological evidence from this region in the future to understand and confirm the social, economic and cultural context of these statues during the Late Pleistocene,” Poa said.

topic:

The Gaiasia geniae: Namibia’s Prehistoric Giant Salamander Predator from 280 Million Years Ago

Posted on July 3, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Reconstruction of Gaiasia geniae

Gabriel Rio

280 million years ago, the cold swamps of what is now the Namib Desert were home to giant salamander-like predators that sucked prey into their mouths and captured them with their enormous fangs.

The fossil creature was first discovered in Namibia in 2015. Researchers found a total of four incomplete specimens, which they estimate to have measured 2.5 metres in body length and a skull length of 60 centimetres, making it the largest of its kind yet found.

Claudia Marsicano Researchers from the University of Buenos Aires in Argentina have now described the fossils in detail and given them species names. Gaiacia geniae Paleontologist Jennifer Kluck with later strata of the Gaius Formation in Namibia.

nevertheless G. geniae It may have resembled a dangerous, extremely over-scaled salamander, like the giant axolotl, but it wasn't a true amphibian. Rather, the animal belonged to an ancient group of tetrapods that eventually gave rise to amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals.

A specimen of Gaiasia geniae found in the wild

Roger M. H. Smith

Marsicano said the animal probably hunted by lying in wait, much like a crocodile, for prey to pass by.Gaiacia “It was an aquatic animal with a very elongated body that probably swam like an eel, but had very short limbs that would have made it very difficult for it to move around on land,” she says.

The discovery reshapes our understanding of the distribution of early tetrapods, most of whose fossils have been found in the Northern Hemisphere, which had a tropical climate centered on the equator 280 million years ago.

But at the time, Marsicano said, what is now Namibia would have been at a much higher latitude, around 55 degrees south. Gaiacia The fossils were discovered during the Ice Age. [at the time] Severe cold climatic conditions prevailed.”

Despite the cold, Gaiacia This suggests the area was relatively populated, with “a rich vertebrate community thriving,” Marsicano says.

topic:

Tegan Higginbotham Shares 10 Hilarious Internet Finds | Culture

Posted on July 3, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

IAs a producer of a morning radio show, I spend countless hours scouring the internet for comedy treasures. I wish I could say that outside of work I’m completely offline, happily pursuing real-world activities like jogging, baking, and not dreading the news, but that would be a total lie. No, this 21st century woman is addicted! And if there’s anything I’ve learned from putting together this list… it’s that I’m glued to the internet. very someday.

So, in tribute to my decades of drug addiction, here are some classics from the good old days of dial-up. Enjoy those good old modem sounds!

1. Charlie and friends go to the mysterious Candy Mountain

First off, here’s a video that YouTube says is 16 years old. 16! Who am I to hold on to my youth? It’s… Charlie the Unicorn. Remember that? My sister and I used to watch this almost every day in school and yell “avoid atheists” until my dad left the house. It was so much fun.

2. Jurassic Park Theme Song (Melodica Cover)

Another classic. This one takes something I love (great movies) and pokes fun at it by mixing melodica into it. PS: I know you’re probably worried about my sense of humor already. I understand, but bear with me.

3. May the people’s poet rest in peace

I love Rik Mayall. He is one of the British comedians who has shaped my sense of humour a lot. Dawn French, Jennifer Saunders, Rowan Atkinson, Hugh Laurie… you get the point. In this clip, a young Rik Mayall performs his poem “Theatre” in front of an audience. I love watching Rick’s character evolve over time. Watch it here Another rendition of the same performance. May the people’s poet rest in peace.

This is a Dan Brown-style review of Dan Brown’s book “Inferno.” It’s cruel, unnecessarily mean, and just awesome. My favorite lines include “The reviewer said his writing was poorly written, grammatically incorrect, and repetitive,” and “Famous author Dan Brown smiled, the corners of his mouth curling upwards in delight.” If you’ve never read Dan Brown’s books and therefore don’t understand these quotes, I envy you.

5. Liza Minnelli tries to turn off the lamp

Any list of internet comedy gold standard is bound to include a solid but overly long SNL sketch — that’s the rule — so in my case, I chose Kristen Wiig’s surprisingly funny “Liza Minnelli Tries to Turn Off the Lamp.”

Skip Newsletter Promotions

6. Woo Gu

Chris Fleming is an American comedian and actor. He does a lot of stuff online and I love all of it. But Wildly Unlikable Guy is especially great. Reading it has made me feel less bad about some of the conversations I have at parties (which is amazing, because most of the conversations I have at parties make me feel bad).

7. Don’t say no to a panda

I like seeing generally “good” things do bad things: the dog ripping up the whole couch; A little kid running with a knife“Never Say No to a Panda” is a series of commercials for Arab Dairy’s Panda Cheese. The commercials feature a giant, friendly panda who gets nauseated when people (politely) decide not to use his brand of cheese. Here are some of my favourites from the campaign:

8. Shooting Star

I’ll be honest, I watch a lot of AFL memes (particularly the ones on the Carlton Memes Instagram account, especially after they’ve won a game), but last season a player named Tom Hawkins got shoved to the ground and took a bit of a beating with his fall. You know what I mean? Almost instantly this video appeared online, and for some reason I found it funny and have been laughing at it ever since.

9. Rejected lyrics from the theme song of HBO’s Succession

Demi Adejuyigbe is a fantastic comedian and I first discovered him online through his hit show September Video Clips. He’s truly set a new standard for great online content. This clip is much more lo-fi but just as great. I can honestly say that once you watch the video, you won’t be able to stop singing this song. Intention It will ruin Success for you, but I think it will still be worth it.

10. Men and tampons…in a perfect world!

www.theguardian.com

Study finds that hippos can run so fast that they can leap into the air

Posted on July 3, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

If you struggle to picture a two-ton, wingless creature hovering, you’re not alone. However, a recent study shows that hippos (or hippopotamuses, to use the full name) can reach speeds that rival flying.

Although hippos are amphibious, they are some of the largest land animals, often weighing over 2,000 kg (2.2 tonnes). Due to their aquatic lifestyle, little is known about their terrestrial movement.

In a surprising discovery, researchers found that hippos can remain airborne for short periods, representing about 15 percent of their stride cycle, or approximately 0.3 seconds. This suggests that they move differently on land than previously thought.

In this image from the researchers’ footage, all four of the hippo’s legs are off the ground, giving the appearance of floating. – Image credit: Johan Vermeulen

While some animals like horses are known to leap into the air at high speeds, it’s rare for large animals like hippos to do so. This unique movement pattern sets them apart from elephants, which never lift all four legs off the ground simultaneously.

Prior studies were inconclusive about the hippo’s gait pattern, but recent research from the Royal Veterinary College reveals that hippos predominantly trot, regardless of their speed. This uniformity in movement is uncommon among land mammals and sheds light on how hippos navigate their environment.

Studying hippos is challenging due to their dangerous nature, making them elusive subjects for scientific research. Professor John Hutchinson, lead author of a study on hippos, emphasized the difficulty in studying these creatures due to their habitat and behavior.

To overcome these obstacles, researchers analyzed video footage of hippos at Flamingo Land Resort in Yorkshire, observing their movement patterns in detail. Their findings not only contribute to our understanding of terrestrial mammals but also have potential implications for veterinary medicine.

By uncovering how hippos walk and run, this study provides valuable insights into their behavior and capabilities. Hutchinson expressed admiration for the hippos’ surprising agility on land, highlighting the incredible nature of these animals.

Learn more:

Despite price cuts, Tesla experiences second consecutive quarter of sales decline

Posted on July 3, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Despite price cuts and low-interest financing offers, Tesla’s global sales have declined for two consecutive quarters, indicating weakening demand for its products and electric vehicles in general.

The company, based in Austin, Texas, reported sales of 436,956 vehicles from April to June, a 4.8% decrease from the same period last year. While this beat analyst expectations of 436,000 units, the demand for electric vehicles is slowing globally, with Tesla facing more challenges due to its older model lineup and higher prices.

Despite the decline, Tesla remains the top-selling electric car maker in the world, selling over 910,000 cars in the first half of the year. The company also managed to sell more vehicles than it produced in the second quarter, leading to reduced inventory levels.

Tesla’s sales decline comes amidst increased competition from other automakers, both established and emerging, aiming to gain market share in the EV industry. The company is set to report second-quarter earnings on July 23.

While sales were primarily driven by the Model 3 and Model Y, the more expensive models like the X, S, and new Cybertruck saw limited sales. Price cuts introduced by Tesla in April did not prevent the sales decrease, with the company also reducing the price of its “full self-driving” system during the quarter.

Analysts attribute Tesla’s sales challenges to the saturation of early adopters owning EVs and skepticism among mainstream buyers about EV capabilities. The company’s minimal model lineup changes and price cuts leading to decreased used car prices have impacted its sales performance.

Analyst Dan Ives views the second-quarter sales as a positive turnaround for Tesla, suggesting that the company’s cost-cutting measures have improved its profitability. While Tesla expects slower revenue growth this year, the outlook for the company seems optimistic following the recent sales performance.

Research reveals that these specific foods can help individuals in their 70s live longer and healthier lives.

Posted on July 3, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Looking to age gracefully? There’s a plethora of advice out there, but the key seems to lie in maintaining a healthy diet.

A recent study published in Nutrition 2024 revealed that only a small fraction of individuals manage to remain disease-free and in good physical, cognitive, and mental health past the age of 70.

However, there’s hope. The same study indicated that adopting a healthy and balanced diet during midlife can significantly increase your chances of healthy aging.

The study, which spanned over 30 years and analyzed data from over 100,000 individuals, showed that people who maintained a healthy diet from their 40s onwards were much more likely to be in good physical shape at age 70.

According to John Myers, a postdoctoral researcher at the Harvard School of Public Health, “People who followed a healthy diet in midlife, especially one rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and healthy fats, were significantly more likely to experience healthy old age.” This underscores the impact of diet on our health as we age.

To enhance your chances of living a longer and healthier life, experts recommend increasing consumption of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, unsaturated fats, nuts, legumes, and low-fat dairy products. Conversely, it’s wise to limit intake of trans fats, sodium, red meat, and processed meats.

While a healthy diet is typically associated with disease prevention, this study highlights its role in promoting healthy aging. It’s not just about avoiding illness; it’s about maintaining overall vitality as we age.

Researcher Angelie Tessier noted, “Our study suggests dietary recommendations for healthy aging should not only focus on preventing diseases but also on fostering a fulfilling life in later years.”

Participants in the study were mainly above 39 years old without chronic diseases at the onset, and they reported their dietary habits every four years. By 2016, nearly half of the participants had passed away while only a small percentage had reached age 70 or older in good health.

When comparing adherence to healthy eating patterns, the study found that individuals in the top group were significantly more likely to achieve healthy aging than those in the bottom group. The strongest correlation was with the Alternative Healthy Eating Index, which rates your diet based on food consumption frequency.

Even after accounting for factors like physical activity, the link between diet and healthy aging remained robust. Healthy eating habits were associated with better physical health, cognitive function, and mental well-being.

About the Experts

Angelie Tessier, a postdoctoral researcher at the Harvard School of Public Health, has research published in esteemed journals like Nature Communications and PLoS One.

Read more:

Scientists May Have Finally Discovered the Cause of Strange Occurrences at Earth’s Core

Posted on July 3, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

You may be surprised by how little we actually know about the inner workings of the Earth. While we have a good grasp of how the Earth’s surface moves to create mountains and trigger earthquakes, the deeper we delve, the more mysterious it becomes.

One highly debated topic for years has been the movement of the Earth’s inner core. Does it move forward, backward, left, right? The truth is, nobody really knows. However, recent research published in Nature suggests that the core is receding relative to the surface, potentially putting an end to the long-standing debate.

This study confirms a controversial paper from the previous year by researchers at Peking University, as detailed in Nature Chemistry.

The inner core of the Earth is a solid, crystallized sphere of iron, approximately the size of the Moon, situated around 5,000 km beneath us in a liquid metal sea known as the outer core comprised of iron, nickel, and other metals.

“The inner core is a solid entity that floats within the outer core, lacking any anchorage,” explained Professor John Vidal, co-author of the study, a researcher at the University of Southern California (USC), in an interview with BBC Science Focus.

According to a press release from USC, the study presents “unequivocal evidence” that the movement of the inner core slowed around 2010 and is now lagging behind the surface movement. This new motion pattern makes the core appear to move backward compared to the surface, akin to how a slowing car seems to move in reverse to a steady-speed driver.

If the findings are accurate, this marks the initial detection of a slowdown in 40 years and supports the notion that the core’s velocity fluctuates in a 70-year cycle.

The research team utilized seismometers in Canada and Alaska to analyze repeated earthquakes, focusing on 121 events in the South Sandwich Islands between 1991 and 2023, along with data from past nuclear tests conducted by the Soviets.

By examining matching seismic waveforms from various time periods, the team sought to determine if the inner core rotates independently from the rest of the Earth. Discrepancies in wave patterns indicated changes in the core’s rotation, with some signals aligning pre and post-shift, implying a realignment of the core.

Bidart, one of the researchers, expressed initial confusion upon seeing seismic records suggesting a change but became convinced upon discovering more consistent observations. The slowdown in the inner core’s movement, unseen for decades, aligns with their latest findings, offering a plausible resolution to the ongoing debate.

Despite uncertainties regarding surface impacts, Bidale acknowledged a slight potential change in the length of a day, barely perceptible amid the Earth’s bustling activity of oceanic and atmospheric movements.

Future research aims to gather additional waveform data from diverse global locations and pathways. Vidar highlighted a wait-and-see approach, anticipating unusual core movements around 2001 and further exploration to elucidate these occurrences.

About our experts

John Vidale Dr. Schneider currently chairs the Department of Geosciences at the University of Southern California. His research covers earthquakes, Earth structure, volcanoes, and seismic hazards. At USC since 2017, Dr. Schneider previously directed the Southern California Earthquake Center and contributed to earthquake-related committees and working groups.

read more:

Why Cats Scratch Your Furniture and How to Prevent It

Posted on July 3, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Do you ever wonder why your cute cat suddenly becomes a shredding machine when you’re not looking? Cats scratching furniture is a common issue, but it’s a natural behavior for cats, so it’s important to address it in a cat-friendly way.

A recent study published in The Forefront of Veterinary Medicine suggests that understanding the reasons behind scratching behaviors can help manage them effectively by changing play patterns or using scratching posts.

“Our findings can help owners redirect scratching towards appropriate materials, creating a harmonious environment for both cats and owners,” said Professor Yasemin Sargiri Demirbas, a veterinary researcher at Ankara University and lead author of the study.

The study surveyed over 1,200 French cat owners to understand their cats’ daily lives, characteristics, and scratching behaviors. The researchers found associations between scratching behavior and factors such as the presence of children, the cat’s personality traits, and activity levels.

Stress is a major factor in unwanted scratching behavior in cats. For example, the presence of children and high activity levels can increase a cat’s stress, leading to more scratching. Introducing scratching posts, pheromones, safe hiding spots, and engaging play can reduce stress and redirect scratching behaviors.

To play without scratching, the experts recommend short play sessions that mimic hunting scenarios to keep the cat’s attention and reduce stress. These strategies can also strengthen the bond between owners and their cats.

While there are still questions to be answered about the link between children and scratching behavior, the researchers hope that future studies will provide more effective strategies for managing this behavior in cats.

About the Experts

Yasemin Sargiri Demirbas, Associate Professor at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ankara University, focuses her research on Journal of Veterinary Behavior and Scientific Reports.

Read more:

Researchers update the well-known Drake equation

Posted on July 3, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Within the range of uncertainties in the relevant astronomical and biological parameters, the Drake equations typically predict that many exoplanets should exist (

Stern and Geriya argue that the lack of evidence for active, communicative civilizations reflects the rare absence of long-lived plate tectonics, continents, or oceans on exoplanets that could host primitive life. Image credit: Sci.News.

In 1961, American astrophysicist and astrobiologist Dr. Frank Drake devised an equation that multiplied several factors to estimate the number of intelligent civilizations in the galaxy that could make their presence known to humanity.

N = R * f_p * no_e * debt_l * debt_I * debt_c * no

N: The number of civilizations in the Milky Way that have detectable electromagnetic radiation (such as radio waves).

R: The number of stars formed per year.

debt_p: The percentage of stars with planetary systems.

yeah_e: The number of planets per solar system that have environments suitable for life.

debt_l: The percentage of planets suitable for life to actually emerge.

debt_I: The percentage of planets that are habitable and on which intelligent life forms emerge.

debt_c: The percentage of civilizations that have developed technology that can detect evidence of their own existence.

L: The average time (in years) for such a civilization to produce such a manifestation.

Assigning values to the seven variables is an educated guessing game that has led to the prediction that such civilizations must have existed widely. But if that's true, why is there no conclusive evidence of their existence?

This contradiction is known as the Fermi Paradox, named after the Italian-American nuclear physicist and Nobel Prize winner Dr. Enrico Fermi, who posed the question privately to his colleagues.

“Life on Earth has been around four billion years old, but complex organisms like animals didn't appear until shortly after modern plate tectonics began, around 600 million years ago,” Prof Stern said.

“Plate tectonics really is what kicks off the evolutionary machine, and I think we understand why.”

In their paper, Professors Stern and Geria propose improving one of the factors, f, of the Drake equation._Ithe percentage of habitable planets on which intelligent life arises. These planets need to have extensive oceans and continents, and we need to take into account that plate tectonics have been in place for over 500 million years.

“In the original formulation, this coefficient was thought to be close to unity, or 100%, meaning that on every planet where life exists, evolution will progress and, given enough time, turn into an intelligent civilization. Our view is that that's not true,” Prof Stern said.

The researchers propose a revision of the Drake equation that defines f._I As a product of two terms:

debt_oc: The percentage of habitable exoplanets with significant continents and oceans.

and f_pt: The percentage of planets that have had long-term plate tectonics.

The team's analysis suggests that the proportion of exoplanets with optimal amounts of water appears to be very small.

The authors estimate the value of f._oc The range is 0.0002 to 0.01.

Similarly, they concluded that plate tectonics lasting more than 500 million years is highly unusual._pt It is less than 0.17.

“Multiplying these factors together gives us a refined estimate of f._I “It's not 100%, it's very small, between 0.003% and 0.2%,” Prof Stern said.

“This explains why planetary conditions suitable for the development of intelligent life are extremely rare in our galaxy, resolving the Fermi Paradox.”

“Biogeochemistry assumes that the solid Earth, and in particular plate tectonics, accelerates the evolution of species,” he added.

“Studies like ours are useful because they encourage us to think broadly about bigger mysteries and provide examples of how we can apply our knowledge of the Earth system to intriguing questions about the universe.”

of paper Published in the April 2024 issue Scientific Reports.

_____

Stern, R.J. & Geriya, T.V. 2024. The importance of continental, oceanic, and plate tectonics in the evolution of complex life: Implications for the discovery of extraterrestrial civilizations. Scientific Reports 14, 8552; doi: 10.1038/s41598-024-54700-x

This article has been edited based on the original release from the University of Texas at Dallas.

Source: www.sci.news

Archaeologists say wealth inequality between households is avoided at the vast Trypillia site

Posted on July 3, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

The Trypilyan culture flourished in western/central Ukraine, Moldova and eastern Romania for over two millennia, from the end of the Neolithic to the Early Bronze Age (5400-2700 BC).

Re-creation of the Maidanetske Giants settlement in Tripoli, Ukraine. Image by Kenny Arne Lang Antonsen / CC BY-SA 4.0.

of Tripilian culture Neolithic European culture, Happened In the 5th millennium BC, it extended from the Seret and Bug rivers in Ukraine south to present-day Romania and Moldova, and east to the Dnieper River.

Also known as the Cucuteni-Trypillarian culture, it was characterized by advanced agriculture, advanced metallurgy, pottery making, sophisticated architecture and social organization.

Tripoli society was matrilineal, with women heading the household and working in agriculture, pottery, weaving and clothing production, while hunting, livestock rearing and tool making were the responsibilities of men.

“Around 4200-3600 BC the so-called huge site of Trypilia was established at the northern limit of the Pontic steppe,” said Dr Robert Hoffmann from the University of Kiel and his colleagues.

“With an area of up to 320 hectares and around 10,000 inhabitants, it is one of the largest prehistoric settlements in Europe.”

“These settlements were established in partly open forest-steppe areas with very fertile loess soils.”

“They were agricultural settlements inhabited all year round, with an economy based on cereal and legume cultivation and intensive, large-scale livestock farming, primarily cattle.”

Distribution of Tripilian sites surveyed by region, with sample size and Gini coefficient. Image courtesy of Hoffman. others., doi: 10.15184/aqy.2024.18.

Archaeologists used variation in the size of 7,000 houses in 38 settlements to explore changing levels of inequality in three geographic regions of the Cucuteni-Trypillarian culture.

“We believe that the new social organization of the mega-institution allows residents to actively participate in the political decision-making process,” Dr. Hoffman explained.

“Such reformist nature at the time may have been the catalyst for the great attraction of these settlements, resulting in many people joining these communities.”

“We took advantage of the variation in house size in 38 settlements in Tripilia and used the Gini coefficient to calculate how the level of inequality changed in the three geographical regions over a 2000-year period,” said Dr Nils Müller-Schösel, an archaeologist at the University of Kiel.

“Our analysis shows that there was little change in the size of houses between 4300 and 3800 BC.”

“We can infer low levels of social inequality at the megalithic site of Trypillia between 4300 and 3800 BC.”

“The Tripilian community must have had effective mechanisms to prevent social inequalities,” said Professor Johannes Müller of Kiel University.

“This could have included mechanisms for balancing interests and redistributing surpluses.”

“The development of differences in house size and political institutions suggests that opportunities for participation in political decision-making processes deteriorated over time and that the original egalitarian principles of the settlement founders were gradually abandoned.”

“The result has been widening social inequalities and widening gaps in prosperity.”

“In our opinion, this was a crucial factor in the subsequent gradual disappearance of the large megasites,” Dr Hoffman said.

“The phenomenon of megasites is part of a series of historical cases that show that increasing social complexity does not necessarily go hand in hand with increasing vertical social differentiation.”

“Rather, the emergence and collapse of these large settlements was based on democratic political decisions made by the individuals and communities who lived there and ultimately decided to leave.”

Team work Published in the April 2024 issue Ancient.

_____

Robert Hoffman others2024. The Tripiglia megasite: a social equalizing concept? Ancient 98(398):380-400; Source: 10.15184/aqy.2024.18

Source: www.sci.news

Google fails to meet major climate goal due to high AI power consumption

Posted on July 3, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Three years ago, Google launched an ambitious plan to address climate change, aiming to achieve “net zero” emissions by 2030. This goal entails not emitting more climate-affecting gases into the atmosphere than it removes.

However, a recent report released by Google indicated that it is far from reaching this objective. Emissions are projected to increase by 13% in 2023 compared to the previous year and have surged by 48% since the base year of 2019.

The company attributes last year’s emission growth to electricity-intensive agriculture. The burning of coal or natural gas for electricity production releases greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide and methane, contributing to global warming and more extreme weather events.

Despite being a leader in climate change initiatives, Google faces challenges in meeting its net-zero target. Experts suggest that the rapid expansion of data centers, which require significant energy and resources, could hinder the transition to clean electricity and exacerbate climate change.

To address these issues, Google’s chief sustainability officer, Kate Brandt, emphasized the need for continued evolution and innovation in the company’s approach. She acknowledged the uncertainties surrounding the environmental impact of AI and the importance of partnering with cleaner companies and investing in sustainable practices.

Ultimately, achieving a net-zero goal by 2030 will require concerted efforts and collaboration across industries to accelerate the transition to clean energy sources and mitigate the effects of climate change.

Google’s commitment to using renewable energy and implementing energy-efficient practices in its data centers and offices is a step in the right direction. However, there is a need for ongoing improvement and collaboration to address the challenges posed by climate change.

Source: www.nbcnews.com

After years of solitude, Boa constrictor delivers 14 baby snakes

Posted on July 3, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Ronaldo, a six-foot-long Brazilian rainbow boa constrictor kept at a British school, was thought to be male until he gave birth to 14 babies last month.

The boa hadn’t been in contact with other snakes for nearly a decade and appears to have undergone a natural process of asexual reproduction called parthenogenesis, which comes from the Greek word for “virgin birth.”

According to the school, this is the third confirmed case of such a birth among captive Brazilian rainbow boas that they know of.

Ronaldo lives at Portsmouth City University. The snakes are being used at an academic and vocational school in the south of England for 16-18 year olds to teach students how to care for animals.

“A colleague called me and asked why we had released a small snake with Ronaldo,” said Pete Quinlan, an animal technician at the university who has cared for the snakes for the past nine years.

Quinlan said his first thought on June 21st was that there must have been a mistake. Although it was his day off, he went to the scene and quickly realised the snake with Ronaldo was a baby rainbow boa constrictor.

“I was totally baffled by it,” he said, noting that he has been studying reptiles for more than 50 years.

Ronaldo’s baby boa constrictor.
Portsmouth City University

“I’ve kept literally thousands of snakes in that time and bred a lot of snakes,” Quinlan added. “I’d never heard of this before.”

In a news release, the university described the event as “A Miracle Birth. However, some snakes and other animals, including crocodiles and honeybees, are known to produce offspring asexually.

Parthenogenesis is the development of an embryo without fertilization. This process is particularly Unusual among vertebrates including snakes.

While sexual reproduction requires a sperm to fertilize an egg, parthenogenesis produces polar bodies as a by-product of the egg-making process, which are then used to fill in the gap. These cells then recombine with the egg, giving the embryo two similar (but not identical) sets of DNA.

Parthenogenesis also occurs when reproductive cells replicate and recombine, a process that creates a clone of the mother, but it occurs primarily in plants and not animals.

Researchers are still investigating why parthenogenesis occurs in animals and how often it occurs.

A baby rainbow boa constrictor born through parthenogenesis by Ronaldo.
Portsmouth City University

Quinlan said some researchers believe snakes practice parthenogenesis, in which females spend most of their lives without mating.

In recent years, there have been several reports of animals reproducing asexually in captivity. Sharks at Brookfield Zoo gave birth to a baby shark through parthenogenesis after not having contact with a male shark for at least four years. 2021 Survey found California condors, a critically endangered bird, reproducing asexually in captivity despite having mates.

A stingray named Charlotte became pregnant parthenogenetically at an aquarium in North Carolina. He died on Sunday. The aquarium said last month that the ray (whose story was the subject of a “Saturday Night Live” sketch) is not pregnant. Diagnosed with a rare disease.

Quinlan said he initially adopted Ronald from the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, an animal welfare charity. A vet told him Ronald was male, and Quinlan never questioned it. Once a snake becomes an adult, it’s harder to determine its sex than when it’s a baby, he said.

Ronaldo is a “very popular snake” at the school, Ms Quinlan said, adding that this should be a “really good experience” for the pupils as they had never looked after a newborn snake before.

Evie Allen, a student at the university who works with Ronaldo said he was “shocked” and “perplexed” when he heard from a friend that the snake had given birth to a baby.

Portsmouth City College learning assistants Evie Allen and Ashley Nicol hold a baby snake and snake skin.
Portsmouth City University

“I honestly thought he was joking,” she said.

The university plans to keep one or two of the baby snakes and care for the rest until they have been fed a few times and are healthy enough to go to their new homes.

Ronaldo’s story has attracted attention around the world.

“We never expected it to take off as badly as it did,” said Paula Hetherington, the university’s director of marketing and communications.

“If you Google Ronaldo the snake right now, he seems to be more popular than Ronaldo the footballer,” Quinlan said.

Source: www.nbcnews.com

Humans definitively responsible for extinction of large animals, study finds

Posted on July 3, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Over the past 50,000 years, terrestrial vertebrate faunas have experienced severe declines in large species (megafauna), with most extinctions occurring during the Late Pleistocene and early to mid-Holocene. Importantly, this extinction event is unique in its strong size bias compared to other Cenozoic extinctions (past 66 million years). For example, of 57 species of large herbivores (weighing over 1,000 kg), only 11 have survived to the present day. Debate regarding the causes has continued for over two centuries.

Svenning othersGlobal extinction patterns, as well as fine-scale spatiotemporal and mechanistic evidence, show little evidence of a significant climate influence. Conversely, there is growing evidence of strong human pressure as the primary driver of these extinctions, with the initial onset linked to pre-global warming.Homo sapiens Hominins before the Late Pleistocene. Image courtesy of Svenning others., doi: 10.1017/ext.2024.4.

“The massive and selective disappearance of large animals over the past 50,000 years is unprecedented in the past 66 million years,” said Professor Jens Christian Svenning from Aarhus University.

“Past climate changes have not led to large-scale selective extinctions, arguing that climate played a major role in the extinction of large animals.”

“Another important pattern supporting the lack of a role for climate is that recent megafauna extinctions have hit climatically stable regions as hard as climatically unstable regions.”

Archaeologists have found traps designed to hunt very large animals, and isotope analysis of protein residues on ancient human bones and spear points reveals that they hunted and ate the largest mammals.

“Early modern humans were able to effectively hunt even the largest animal species and clearly had the capacity to reduce large animal populations,” Prof Svenning said.

“These large animals were and remain especially vulnerable to over-exploitation because they have long gestation periods, give birth to very small litters and take many years to reach sexual maturity.”

The analysis found that human hunting of large animals, such as mammoths, mastodons and giant sloths, was widespread and consistent around the world.

It also shows that the species went extinct at very different times and at different rates around the world.

In some areas it happened quickly, but in others it took more than 10,000 years.

But everywhere, it happened after the arrival of modern humans or, in the case of Africa, after human cultural advancement.

Species became extinct on every continent except Antarctica, and in every type of ecosystem, from tropical forests and savannas to Mediterranean and temperate forests and steppes, to Arctic ecosystems.

“Many extinct species could have thrived in a variety of environments,” Prof Svenning said.

“Therefore, their extinction cannot be explained by climate change that caused the disappearance of certain ecosystem types such as the Mammoth Steppe, which also contained only a few large animal species.”

“Most species live in temperate to tropical climates and would have actually benefited from the warming at the end of the last ice age.”

The researchers say the decline of large animals has serious ecological implications.

Macrofauna play a central role in ecosystems by influencing vegetation structure (e.g. the balance between dense forest and open areas), seed dispersal and nutrient cycling.

Their disappearance has led to major changes in ecosystem structure and function.

“Our findings highlight the need for active conservation and restoration efforts,” Professor Svenning said.

“Reintroducing large mammals can help restore ecological balance and maintain the biodiversity that evolved in ecosystems rich in large animals.”

of study Published in the journal Cambridge Prism: Extinction.

_____

Jens Christian Svenning others2024. Late Quaternary megafauna extinctions: patterns, causes, ecological impacts and implications for ecosystem management in the Anthropocene. Aarhus University. Cambridge Prism: Extinction 2: e5; doi: 10.1017/ext.2024.4

This article has been edited based on the original release from Aarhus University.

Source: www.sci.news

Fruit bats demonstrate episodic memory and mental time travel capabilities, study reveals

Posted on July 2, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Episodic memory and mental time travel have been considered uniquely human traits. This view has begun to change with the development of behavioral criteria to assess what is called episodic memory in animals. Key findings range from evidence of “what, where, when” memory in jays, mice and bees to episodic memory and future-oriented behavior in wild, free-foraging animals. In a new study, scientists investigated episodic memory and future-oriented behavior in wild, free-foraging animals. Egyptian fruit bat (Rusetus aegyptiacus)The team found that fruit bats rely on mental time maps to display future-oriented behaviour when foraging, and that time-mapping ability requires experience and is lacking in inexperienced bats.

Egyptian fruit bat (Rusetus aegyptiacus) track tree phenology and estimate fruit availability since their previous visit. Bats exhibit future-oriented behavior, flying to trees rich in specific proteins, while flying past many familiar sugar-rich trees. Young bats must learn tree phenology through experience. Image courtesy of Harten others., doi:10.1016/j.cub.2024.05.046.

“For many years, the cognitive abilities to recall and plan personal experiences (episodic memory) have been thought to be uniquely human,” Tel Aviv University.

“However, a growing body of research suggests that various animals also have such abilities, although nearly all of these studies have been carried out in laboratory settings, as field studies on this issue are difficult to conduct.”

“To test these capabilities in wildlife, we designed a unique experiment using a wild colony of flying foxes.”

The researchers surmised that bats that depend on fruit trees for survival need to develop the ability to track food availability both spatially (where are the fruit trees?) and temporally (when does each tree bear fruit?).

As you navigate a landscape with numerous fruit and nectar trees, you'll need to mentally keep track of resources in order to revisit them at the right time.

To test this hypothesis, they fitted each bat with a small, high-resolution GPS tracker, allowing them to record their flight routes and the trees they visited over several months.

The vast amount of data collected in this way was thoroughly analyzed, yielding surprising results.

“Our first research question was: do bats form mental maps of time?” says Dr Lee Harten from Tel Aviv University.

“To investigate this issue, we confined bats to their colonies for various periods of time, ranging from one day to a week.”

“We wanted to see if the bats would recognise that time had passed and behave accordingly.”

“We found that after one day in captivity, the bats would return to the trees they had visited the previous night. But after a full week, the older bats, based on their past experience, began to avoid trees that had stopped bearing fruit in the meantime.”

“In other words, they could estimate how much time had passed since they last visited each tree, and thus know which trees only bore fruit for a short time and were no longer worth visiting.”

“Younger, inexperienced bats were unable to do this, suggesting that this is an acquired skill that must be mastered.”

“The first research question was about past experience, but the second question was about the future. Do bats exhibit future-oriented behavior? Can they plan for the future?”

“To address this issue, the researchers observed the route each bat took to reach the first tree in the evening, which could indicate a plan made before leaving the colony.”

“We found that bats usually fly directly to specific trees they know, sometimes up to 20-30 minutes away,” said Dr Chen Xin from Tel Aviv University.

“They're hungry, so they fly faster the further away the trees are, which suggests they're planning where they're going.”

“Furthermore, because they are so focused on their chosen target, they pass by other trees and even good sources of information that they only visited yesterday, demonstrating their ability to postpone gratification.”

“We also found that the first bats to leave the colony chose trees with fruits high in sugar, while those who left later sought out fruits with protein.”

The findings suggest that bats plan their foraging before they leave the colony, knowing exactly where they'll be flying and what nutrients they'll be looking for.

“The gap between human and animal cognition is one of the most fascinating questions in science,” Professor Yobel said.

“Our study demonstrates that flying foxes are able to carry out highly complex decision-making processes involving three questions that demonstrate cognitive capabilities: 'where?' (the location of each tree), 'when?' (when the trees will bear fruit) and 'what?' (what nutrients the trees provide, sugars or proteins).”

“Once again, the gap wasn't clearly carved out, and we find that humans are not as special as some think.”

“Apparently, humans and animals all lie on a spectrum, and almost all human abilities can also be found in animals.”

a paper The findings were published in the journal. Current Biology.

_____

Lee Harten othersTime mapping and future-oriented behavior in free-ranging wild fruit bats. Current BiologyPublished online June 20, 2024; doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.05.046

This article is a version of a Tel Aviv University press release.

Source: www.sci.news

Grape seeds dating back 60 million years found in Colombia

Posted on July 2, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Paleobotanists have described nine new species of the Vitaceae family. Vitaceae It is based on fossil seeds from four tropical palaeoflora sites, dating back 60 to 19 million years. Rithuva Susmani This new species, discovered in Colombia, is the oldest evidence of a Vitaceae plant in the Western Hemisphere.

Rithuva Susmani From the Paleocene of Colombia. Scale bar – 1 mm. Image courtesy of Herrera et al., doi: 10.1038/s41477-024-01717-9.

Soft tissues, like those of fruit, rarely preserve as fossils, so scientists often learn more about ancient fruits through their seeds, which fossilize more easily.

The oldest known grape seed fossils were found in India and date back to 66 million years ago.

“We always think about animals, we think about dinosaurs, because they were the ones most affected, but the extinction also had a big impact on plants,” said Dr. Fabianie Herrera, a paleobotanist at the Field Museum.

“The forest has reset itself and changed its plant composition.”

Dr Herrera and his colleagues hypothesize that the extinction of the dinosaurs may have prompted changes in the forests.

“Large animals like dinosaurs are known to alter the ecosystems around them,” said Dr. Monica Carvalho, a paleobotanist at the University of Michigan Museum of Paleontology.

“We think that if large dinosaurs roamed the forests, they would likely have cut down trees and maintained more open forests than we have today.”

“But with no large dinosaurs around to cut down forests, some tropical forests, including those in South America, became densely wooded, with layers of trees forming an understory and a canopy.”

“These new dense forests provided an opportunity, and the fossil record shows that around this time we start to see an increase in plants that use vines to climb trees, like grapes,” Dr Herrera said.

“The diversification of birds and mammals in the years following the extinction may also have helped spread grape seeds.”

The researchers examined fossilized grape seeds from the 60-million-year-old Bogotá Formation in Colombia, the 41-million-year-old Tonosi Formation in Panama, the 28-million-year-old Máncora Formation in western Peru, and the 19-million-year-old Cucaracha Formation, exposed at the Gaillard Cut in the Panama Canal.

They were able to identify at least nine new species of the Vitaceae family, including: Rithuva SusmaniThis provides the oldest evidence of grapes in the Western Hemisphere.

“This new species is important as it confirms the South American origin of the group that includes the common grape vine. Grapes “It evolved,” says Dr Gregory Staal, a paleobotanist at the National Museum of Natural History.

“These are the oldest grapes ever found in this region, millions of years younger than the oldest found on the other side of the world,” Dr Herrera said.

“This discovery is important because it shows that grapes really started to spread around the world after the dinosaurs went extinct.”

The new species' place in the grapevine family tree indicates that its evolutionary journey has been a checkered one.

“The fossil record shows that grapevines are very resilient plants,” Dr Herrera said.

“They are an endangered group in the Latin American region, but they have been able to adapt and survive in other parts of the world.”

“Given the mass extinctions facing the Earth today, studies like this one are valuable in revealing patterns about how biodiversity crises will unfold.”

“But the other thing I like about these fossils is that these tiny, humble seeds can tell us a lot about forest evolution.”

of study Published in the journal Natural plants.

_____

F. Herrera othersCenozoic Vitaceae seeds reveal a long history of extinction and dispersal in the Neotropics. Natural plantsPublished online July 1, 2024; doi: 10.1038/s41477-024-01717-9

Source: www.sci.news

The ghost cities of Amazon are reshaping civilization’s history

Posted on July 2, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Sasithorn Puapangkasemsuk/Getty Images

When you imagine an environment that has been largely untouched by humans, the Amazon rainforest might come to mind. After all, most of this South American landscape is covered with dense vegetation, suggesting a corner of the world that humans never had control over. Here, there must have been no deforestation, no agricultural revolution, no cities. It seems like a pristine environment.

At least, that's what we thought. But a very different picture is emerging. Archaeologists working with indigenous communities are being shown the remains of crumbling cities, and remote sensing techniques such as lidar are revealing traces of vast ghost cities. With so much evidence of ancient human activity, it is believed that millions of people lived in the pre-Columbian Amazon, some of them in large urban centres complete with road networks, temples and pyramids.

But this study reveals more than that. It also provides evidence that, paradoxically, conventional views of the Amazon are not entirely off the mark. For example, although ancient Amazonians managed the land intensively, they did not deforest. And, although they developed complex societies, they never underwent a major agricultural revolution. This may suggest that pre-Columbian Amazonians broke the mold of human cultural development traditionally thought of as an inexorable progression from hunting and gathering to agriculture to urban complexity. The truth is more surprising. In fact, we are now coming to understand that there was no such mold. Civilizations arose in different ways. What seems like an anomaly in the Amazon is actually a shining example of a process as vibrant and diverse as the rainforest itself.

in spite of…