A recent analysis of archival data from NASA’s Galileo spacecraft’s Near Infrared Mapping Spectrometer (NIMS) has uncovered the first evidence of ammonia-containing compounds on Jupiter’s icy moon Europa. This groundbreaking discovery provides vital clues about Europa’s subsurface ocean and recent geological activity.
This composite image highlights red pixels indicating sites on Europa where ammonia compounds were detected; purple indicates areas without detection. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech.
“The detection of ammonia (NH3) is significant for understanding not only the geology of icy bodies in our solar system but also their potential habitability and astrobiological relevance,” stated Dr. Al Emran, a researcher at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
“On Europa, the identification of ammonia or ammoniated species is crucial for revealing ocean chemistry, assessing habitability, and reconstructing the moon’s early atmosphere.”
Ammonia functions as an antifreeze agent, reducing the freezing point of liquid water by up to 100 K, which may help preserve underground oceans in icy celestial bodies.
Though it’s unclear if Europa’s underground ocean is directly linked to the surface, detecting ammonia compounds could imply such a connection, given that these materials are unstable under cosmic radiation.
In a new study published in Planetary Science Journal, Dr. Emran reported detecting a distinct ammonia absorption feature at 2.20 microns in Europa’s near-infrared spectrum.
This signal was confirmed through observations from Galileo’s NIMS instrument, which examined Europa during a flyby in the 1990s.
Ammonia hydrate and ammonium chloride are likely responsible for the detected spectral features.
The instability of ammonia under strong cosmic radiation highlights the importance of its presence on Europa’s surface.
The discovery of ammonia-containing materials suggests they may have originated from Europa’s subsurface ocean or shallow subsurface during the moon’s geologically recent past, possibly through cryovolcanism or similar processes.
This analysis also hints at significant implications for Europa’s internal structure.
The presence of ammoniated compounds aligns with a subsurface ocean characterized by a thinner, chemically reduced ice shell with a higher pH.
Ammonia’s antifreeze properties are essential, as they lower the freezing point of water ice, allowing for the maintenance of a liquid ocean beneath Europa’s icy shell.
“Faint signals of ammonia have been detected near fractures in the moon’s frozen surface, where liquid water, rich in dissolved ammonia compounds, is expected to ascend,” Emran noted.
“These compounds might have traversed the surface due to recent geologically active cryovolcanic events.”
Ammonia’s presence, which significantly lowers the freezing point of water, acts as a natural antifreeze.
Similar ammonia-bearing species have been identified on other icy objects in the outer solar system, including Pluto, Charon, certain moons of Uranus, and Saturn’s moon Enceladus. However, earlier attempts to confirm ammonia’s presence on Europa produced inconclusive results.
“The identification of ammonia-containing compounds in this research marks the first evidence of nitrogen-based species on Europa, a finding of considerable astrobiological importance due to nitrogen’s fundamental role in life’s molecular structure,” Emran concluded.
_____
A. Emran. 2026. NH3 detection at Europa’s 2.2 μm absorption band. Planetary Science Journal 6,255; doi: 10.3847/PSJ/ae1291
El Niño’s Impact on European Agriculture: Crop Failures and Price Hikes
Public Domain
El Niño, a climate phenomenon affecting the Pacific Ocean region, significantly influenced the economy and climate of Europe, resulting in widespread famine from 1500 to 1800.
During El Niño, the warming of ocean waters in the central and eastern Pacific disrupts trade winds, which leads to altered global rainfall patterns. The cooling phase, known as La Niña, and the oscillation between these two phases is referred to as the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO).
This climatic variation poses severe risks in tropical and subtropical areas, notably in Australia, where it can lead to droughts and wildfires, and in the Americas, where it causes increased rainfall.
However, until recently, the focus on El Niño’s effects on Europe was minimal. Emil Esmaili from Columbia University and his research team studied records from 160 famines in early modern Europe, correlating them with El Niño and La Niña data derived from tree rings.
The findings revealed that over 40% of famines in Central Europe during this era were directly linked to El Niño events.
El Niño typically increases rainfall in the region, which can lead to excess soil moisture, resulting in crop failures. Though it did not directly trigger famine in other European areas, it raised the likelihood of famine occurrences by 24% across all nine regions studied.
To better understand this correlation, Esmaili’s team assessed grain and fish prices, discovering that El Niño significantly drove up food prices throughout Europe for several years.
Researchers, including David Yubilaba from the University of Sydney, indicate that ENSO events can still lead to food insecurity and malnutrition in low-income households in regions such as South Asia, Southeast Asia, Oceania, and parts of Africa.
While El Niño continues to influence the climate in Europe, its impact on food security is expected to be less severe today. “Modern agricultural practices are now more resilient, weather forecasting has greatly improved, and markets have become more consolidated,” says Ubilaba.
In a newly published paper in this month’s iScience, researchers from the University of Tübingen and their collaborators present an interdisciplinary study of ancient stone and bone projectile points associated with Homo sapiens from the Lower Paleolithic era (40,000 to 35,000 years ago). This comprehensive research uses a blend of experimental ballistics, detailed measurements, and use-wear analysis, revealing that some of these prehistoric artifacts correspond not just to hand-thrown spears and javelin darts but also potentially to bow-propelled arrows.
Evidence suggests early humans may have used bows, arrows, and spear throwers in the Upper Paleolithic period. Image credit: sjs.org / CC BY-SA 3.0.
For decades, it was commonly believed that weapon technology evolved linearly, transitioning from hand-held spears to spear-throwing and eventually to bows and arrows.
However, lead researcher Keiko Kitagawa and her team at the University of Tübingen challenge this notion, arguing for a more complex evolution of weapon technology.
“Direct evidence of hunting weapons is rarely identified in the archaeological record,” they noted.
“Prehistoric hunting weapons encompassed a range from hand-held thrusting spears ideal for close-range hunting, to javelins and bow-headed arrows suitable for medium to long-range engagements.”
“The earliest known instances of such tools include wooden spears and throwing sticks, dating back 337,000 to 300,000 years in Europe.”
“Spear-throwing hooks first appeared during the Upper Solutrean period (around 24,500 to 21,000 years ago), gaining prominence in the Magdalenian culture of southwestern France (approximately 21,000 years ago), with nearly 100 specimens documented.”
Bows and arrows, however, have only surfaced from well-preserved sites like Mannheim-Vogelstang and Stermol in Germany, dated to about 12,000 years, and Lilla Roschulz-Mosse in Sweden, approximately 8,500 years, indicating they are significantly younger than other projectile technology.
Comparison of archaeological specimens from the Aurignac site with experimental examples from Vogelherd, Istritz, and Manot. Image credit: Kitagawa et al., doi: 10.1016/j.isci.2025.114270.
The authors propose that early modern humans may have concurrently experimented with various projectile technologies, adapting to diverse ecosystems and prey types.
The analysis reveals that the damage patterns on these ancient projectile points corresponded with what is expected from arrows shot from bows, as well as from spears and darts.
“We emphasize Upper Paleolithic bony projectiles, including split bases and megabases made from antler and bone, predominantly discovered in Aurignacian environments in Europe and the Levant, between 40,000 and 33,000 years ago,” the researchers explained.
“Our goal is to determine if the wear patterns and morphometry can identify the types of weapons associated with Aurignacian bone projectile tips.”
This discovery aligns with previous archaeological findings indicating that bows and arrows were utilized in Africa as far back as 54,000 years ago, predating earlier estimates and some of Europe’s archaeological record.
Importantly, the researchers do not assert that Homo sapiens invented the bow simultaneously across all regions, nor do they claim the bow was the only weapon used.
Instead, their findings suggest a rich technological diversity during the initial phases of human migration into new territories.
“Our study highlights the intricate nature of reconstructing launch technologies, which are often made from perishable materials,” the researchers stated.
“While it is impossible to account for all variables affecting the properties of the armature and resulting wear, we aspire to implement future experimental programs aimed at deepening our understanding of the projectiles that form a crucial component of hunter-gatherer economies.”
_____
Keiko Kitagawa et al. suggest that Homo sapiens may have utilized bows and arrows for hunting as early as the Upper Paleolithic period in Eurasia. iScience published online on December 18, 2025. doi: 10.1016/j.isci.2025.114270
Tesla has introduced a more affordable version of its Model 3 in Europe, aiming to boost sales amid concerns over Elon Musk’s partnership with Donald Trump and a decline in electric car demand.
Musk, the CEO of the electric vehicle manufacturer, believes that this lower-priced variant, which was rolled out in the US last October, will stimulate demand by appealing to a broader audience.
The new Model 3 Standard is priced at €37,970 (£33,166), NOK 330,056 (£24,473), and SEK 449,990 (£35,859) in Germany. This release comes after Tesla’s successful launch of the affordable Model Y SUV in both Europe and the United States.
While the more affordable Model 3 and Model Y versions forgo some luxury finishes and features found in pricier models, they still provide over 300 miles (480 km) of range.
Tesla’s sales have decreased in Europe as it contends with growing competition from Chinese rival BYD, which became the first company in the area to outpace the U.S. electric car maker earlier this spring.
Additionally, buyer backlash against Musk’s support for Trump’s political endeavors has adversely affected sales across the EU.
Musk, who implemented significant layoffs while leading the Office of Government Efficiency, stepped down in May following disagreements with President Trump regarding the “big, beautiful” tax and spending legislation.
Furthermore, Musk has distanced potential clients through various controversial political actions, including a Nazi salute at Trump’s victory rally, endorsing Germany’s far-right AfD party, and accusing Keir Starmer and other prominent British politicians of concealing scandals related to gang raids.
Critics warn that a new tax on electric vehicles introduced in last month’s Budget could dampen demand in the UK. According to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), UK electric vehicle sales rose by only 3.6% in November, marking the slowest growth in two years.
Mike Hawes, CEO of SMMT, stated: “[This] sustained increase in demand for EVs should be regarded as a wake-up call that we cannot take this for granted. Instead of penalizing drivers, we must seize every chance to motivate them to transition to electric vehicles.”
The Chancellor’s forthcoming pay-per-mile road tax for EVs will impose a charge of 3p per mile starting in April 2028, resulting in an average annual cost of about £250 for drivers.
The Black Death, a devastating outbreak of bubonic plague that decimated up to 60 percent of medieval Europe’s population, may have been triggered by volcanic eruptions around 1345.
The bacterium responsible for the plague is Yersinia pestis, transmitted by fleas that infest rodents and infect humans through bites. The origin of the 14th-century epidemic in Europe remains unclear, though historical accounts indicate that grain shipments from the Black Sea to Italy could have played a role.
“The Black Death was pivotal in the Middle Ages, and we sought to understand why such immense quantities of grain were transported to Italy, particularly in 1347,” states Martin Bauch of the Leibniz Institute for the History and Culture of Eastern Europe, Germany.
To explore this, Bork and his colleagues, including Wolf Bungen from the University of Cambridge, examined climate data stemming from tree rings, ice cores, and historical accounts.
Reports from Japan, China, Germany, France, and Italy revealed a decline in sunlight and an increase in cloud cover from 1345 to 1349, likely due to a sulfur-rich volcanic eruption or multiple eruptions in an unidentified tropical region, according to Bauch and Büngen.
Data from Greenland and Antarctica’s ice cores and thousands of tree-ring samples across eight native European areas indicate significant climate shifts may have occurred during this period.
Moreover, researchers uncovered records showing that Italian officials, faced with famine due to harsh weather and poor harvests, took preemptive measures in 1347 to import grain from the Mongols of the Golden Horde near the Sea of Azov.
“They operated with exceptional professionalism and efficiency to mitigate soaring prices and impending starvation through grain imports before hunger led to mortality,” Bauch explained. “As these societies had effective famine-response strategies, the plague bacterium likely traveled alongside the grain.”
During that era, the causes of the plague were shrouded in mystery, with many attributing the outbreak to “astral alignments and toxic vapors emitted by earthquakes.”
Though the plague might have eventually invaded Europe, Bauch suggests the population decline would have been less severe without this proactive approach. “My point isn’t against preparedness but rather to highlight that successful measures in one area can inadvertently create challenges in others.”
Aparna Lal, a researcher at the Australian National University in Canberra, asserts that a “perfect storm of conditions” likely facilitated the Black Death’s arrival in Europe. “Rising food prices, well-documented hunger issues, and colder, wetter climates could have impaired immune defenses due to nutritional deficiencies and behavioral changes, including increased indoor congregation,” she says.
However, she notes that further research is necessary to clarify cause-and-effect dynamics. “The immediate disturbances caused by the eruptions seem to have significantly influenced local weather patterns, but, as mentioned previously, additional evidence is essential to confirm their role in the Black Death’s entry into Europe,” Lal emphasizes.
Science of the Renaissance: Italy
From the works of Brunelleschi and Botticelli to the genius of polymaths like Leonardo da Vinci and Galileo Galilei, delve into the remarkable scientific minds and breakthroughs of the Renaissance that established Italy’s prime position in scientific advancement.
Domestic cats (Felis catus) and African wildcats (Felis silvestris lybica) have successfully adapted to human environments worldwide. The precise origin of the domestic cat—whether it emerged in the Levant, Egypt, or another part of the African wildcat’s range—remains uncertain. A research team from the University of Rome Tor Vergata, led by Tor Vergata, has sequenced the genomes of 87 ancient and modern cats. Their research challenges the traditional belief that domestic cats were brought to Europe during the Neolithic period, suggesting instead that their arrival occurred several thousand years later.
Ancient cat genomes from European and Anatolian sites indicate that domestic cats were introduced to Europe from North Africa around 2,000 years ago, many years after the Neolithic period began in Europe. The Sardinian African wildcat has a separate lineage originating from northwest Africa. Image credit: De Martino et al., doi: 10.1126/science.adt2642.
The history of domestic cats is extensive and complex, yet it contains many uncertainties.
Genetic analyses reveal that all modern domestic cats can trace their ancestry back to the African wildcat inhabiting North Africa and the Near East.
Yet, limited archaeological evidence and the challenges of differentiating between wild and domestic cats through skeletal remains pose significant obstacles in comprehending the origins and diffusion of early domestic cats.
“The timing and specifics surrounding cat domestication and dispersal are still unclear due to the small sample size of ancient and modern genomes studied,” stated Dr. Marco De Martino from the University of Rome Tor Vergata and fellow researchers.
“There are ongoing questions regarding the historical natural habitats of African and European wildcats and the possibility of their interbreeding.”
“Recent investigations have shown that ancient gene flow can complicate the understanding of cat dispersal, especially when relying on mtDNA data.”
“The origins of African wildcat populations on Mediterranean islands like Sardinia and Corsica are equally obscure.”
“Current research suggests these populations constitute a distinct lineage rather than stemming from domestic cats.”
To explore these issues, the team examined the genomes of 70 ancient cats retrieved from archaeological sites in Europe and Anatolia, in addition to 17 modern wildcat species from Italy (including Sardinia), Bulgaria, and North Africa (Morocco and Tunisia).
In contrast to earlier studies, they concluded that domestic cats most likely emerged from North African wildcats rather than the Levant, and that true domestic cats appeared in Europe and southwest Asia several thousand years post-Neolithic.
The early cats of Europe and Turkey predominantly consisted of European wildcats, indicating ancient interbreeding instead of early domestication.
Once introduced, North African domestic cats proliferated across Europe, following routes used by Roman military forces, and reached Britain by the first century AD.
This study also reveals that the Sardinian wildcat is more closely related to North African wildcats than to either ancient or modern domestic cats, suggesting that humans transported wildcats to islands where they do not naturally exist, and that the Sardinian wildcat did not descend from early domestic cat populations.
“By identifying at least two distinct waves of introduction to Europe, we redefine the timeline of cat dispersal,” the researchers noted.
“The first wave likely introduced wildcats from northwest Africa to Sardinia, forming the island’s current wildcat population.”
“A separate, as yet unidentified population in North Africa triggered a second dispersal no later than 2,000 years ago, establishing the modern domestic cat gene pool in Europe.”
The team’s findings are highlighted in this week’s edition of Science.
_____
M. De Martino et al. 2025. Approximately 2,000 years ago, domestic cats migrated from North Africa to Europe. Science 390 (6776); doi: 10.1126/science.adt2642
Greetings! Welcome to TechScape. I’m Blake Montgomery, your host. I bring you insights from an American grocer preparing for Thanksgiving pie.
In the realm of technology, the European Union is easing restrictions on artificial intelligence, while the United States has made more progress. The AI bubble remains intact, bolstered by Nvidia’s staggering quarterly profits, although worries continue. Additionally, Meta has managed to avoid disbanding for reasons analogous to those of Google.
Rollback of Regulations
The billions invested in AI far exceed Europe’s commitment to digital privacy and rigorous tech regulation. The EU’s AI legislation and General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) have both faced delays and weakenings. Former Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi had previously alerted that Europe was trailing behind the United States and China regarding innovation in critical technologies like AI. This sentiment was echoed by other stakeholders, including the EU’s Economic Commissioner.
My colleague Jennifer Rankin reported on Brussels’ pursuit for growth:
This initiative is part of the commission’s “digital omnibus” aimed at simplifying technical regulations, encompassing the GDPR, the AI Act, the ePrivacy Directive, and the Data Act.
Proposed modifications to the GDPR would facilitate tech firms in utilizing personal data for training AI models without needing consent. Furthermore, it aims to mitigate “cookie banner fatigue” by restricting how often users must consent to online tracking.
The committee also confirmed plans to postpone the implementation of key components of the AI Act, scheduled to be enforced in August 2024 and not yet fully applicable to enterprises.
Read more: European Commission faces ‘major setbacks’ in digital protection
Meanwhile, the United States is intensifying efforts to uphold its position in the AI sector by attempting to lift restrictions on the industry’s future expansion. Legislators have included provisions in the annual National Defense Authorization Act directing the federal government to obstruct state-level AI regulations. AI in the U.S. is less regulated compared to Europe or China, but this may soon change. Proposals within the NDAA could also prevent DJI, the leading Chinese drone manufacturer, from launching new products in America.
Last week, Donald Trump introduced a similar executive order, and earlier this year, Congressional Republicans suggested a 10-year halt on state regulations governing AI, which was overwhelmingly opposed with a 99-1 vote in the Senate. Future amendments may face similar resistance. Over 200 state legislative representatives and senators attended on Monday, and published a letter opposing the measure (pdf).
Under the proposed regulation, the Justice Department would take legal action against states trying to restrict AI, particularly targeting California and Colorado. If passed, the U.S. would advance further in regulating emerging technologies, refraining from imposing nationwide constraints on the companies that develop them while punishing state laws attempting to do so. Critics contend such actions could allow the risks associated with AI to proliferate unchecked and infringe on national sovereignty. Proponents from Silicon Valley argue that reducing legal impediments accelerates growth and profits, benefiting both the industry and the nation.
President Trump’s assertion of needing to simplify AI regulation in the U.S. has drawn skepticism. “It can’t go through 50 states. You need one standard. Fifty is chaos. Just one state can trigger a domino effect,” he stated during last week’s US-Saudi Investment Forum. “There will be some Waystars, but they resist this. They want to end AI.”
Which Technologies to Invest In
A Week in AI
Bubble Burst? Not Yet, Claims Nvidia
Comment from Nvidia’s CEO Jensen Huang: Photo: Anne Wang/Reuters
Nvidia released its quarterly results last week, showcasing strong performance, reflecting several consecutive years of impressive profits. The headline in August read: “NVIDIA Sets New Sales Record Amid Concerns of AI Bubble and Trump’s Trade War.” Fresh updates announced: “‘We excel at every AI stage’: NVIDIA CEO assuages Wall Street’s anxieties about an AI bubble amid market downturns.”
My colleague Johana Bhuiyan reported on the findings:
The company has outperformed Wall Street expectations across several metrics consecutively, demonstrating that the substantial economic AI boom shows no signs of slowing down. Nvidia posted diluted earnings per share of $1.30 on total revenue of $57.01 billion, exceeding investor anticipations of $1.26 per share with revenues of $54.9 billion. Year-over-year sales surged 62%. Data center sales reached $51.2 billion, outpacing the expected $49 billion. The company also predicts sales for the fourth quarter to be around $65 billion, while analysts anticipated $61 billion.
CEO Jensen Huang remarked, “There’s considerable talk regarding an AI bubble. From our perspective, it appears quite different. For clarity, Nvidia’s trajectory is distinct from other accelerators. We thrive at every phase of AI, from pre-training to post-training to inference.”
Stock prices globally surged due to Nvidia’s impact, and markets celebrated. The chip manufacturer’s success is robust; however, apprehensions about an impending decline linger. Despite a strong financial report, Nvidia’s stock dipped the following day. My colleague Callum Jones covered market fluctuations as follows:
Major U.S. stock indexes saw declines less than 24 hours after Nvidia’s impressive results initially propelled gains.
Wall Street experienced a surge when Nvidia, the largest publicly traded company, assured investors of a strong demand for its advanced data center chips. However, this relief diminished, with technology stocks central to the AI boom facing pressure.
In New York, the benchmark S&P 500 index closed down 1.6%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 0.8%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index ended 2.2% lower.
“Watching semiconductor companies selling to power AI doesn’t alleviate concerns that some of these hyperscalers may be overspending on AI infrastructure,” stated Robert Pavlik, senior portfolio manager at Dakota Wealth. “Your enterprise might benefit from it, but other firms are still heavily investing.”
Metastore in Burlingame, California Photo: Bloomberg/Getty Images
Recently, Meta lost a significant antitrust case filed by the U.S. government. The reasoning for the victory aligns with the rationale expressed by judges in another tech giant monopoly case, the United States v. Google. Both judges indicated that the technology sector had dramatically evolved since the inception of the case.
In recent years, notable competition has emerged in the tech sector, particularly in search and social media, challenging both Google and Meta. For Google, rival competitors include ChatGPT and broader generative AI. The tech titan has admitted that it faces an existential competition with smaller adversary OpenAI. In 2022, Google executives referred to ChatGPT as a “code red” for the search business. However, this David may not be equipped to overpower Goliath. Sam Altman noted that advancements in Google’s AI could present “temporary economic headwinds” and create a “challenging environment” for the company.
Meta’s competing force is TikTok. Mark Zuckerberg has used similar terms as Pichai, describing the rapid rise of apps as a “very urgent” threat to his social media platform. Shortly thereafter, Meta launched Reels, a short-form video feed on Instagram.
Judge James Boasberg pointed to the surge of popular Chinese social media platforms as evidence of increased competition in the social networking space. “The landscape that existed just five years ago when the Federal Trade Commission filed this antitrust case has changed dramatically.” He criticized the FTC for not considering YouTube as a relevant competitor. “Even excluding YouTube, the entry of TikTok alone could nullify the FTC’s lawsuit,” he opined.
Judge Boasberg determined that new competition would not compel Meta to divest Instagram, acquired in 2012 for only $1 billion, or WhatsApp, purchased in 2014 for $19 billion.
Read more: Meta prevails in significant U.S. antitrust case, removing the necessity to divest WhatsApp and Instagram
In September, the U.S. judge overseeing the U.S. v. Google case issued an opinion akin to Boasberg’s, with the exception being Google’s loss. The government had charged tech giants with unlawfully monopolizing the online search domain. According to the University of Pennsylvania, Google commands roughly 90% of the global search market. Wharton Business School. Google.com is the leading website globally. The judge concurred with the government’s stance but disagreed that the solution required Google to sell Chrome.
Google will not be compelled to divest Chrome, the world’s leading web browser, likely valued more than Instagram and WhatsApp combined. The judge acknowledged that generative AI has transformed the market forever, introducing types of competition that Google hasn’t encountered in decades. Companies such as OpenAI are positioned more favorably compared to any earlier challengers against Google.
Read more: How Google evaded a major breakup – and why OpenAI is grateful for it
The Broader TechScape
Quick Guide
Contact Us About This Story
Show
The best public interest journalism relies on first-hand reporting from those in the know.
If you have something to share regarding this matter, please contact us confidentially using the methods below.
Secure Messaging in the Guardian App
The Guardian app has a tool to submit story tips. Messages are end-to-end encrypted and hidden within the daily activities performed by all Guardian mobile apps. This prevents observers from knowing that you are communicating with us, much less what you are saying.
If you don’t already have the Guardian app, please download it (iOS/Android), then access ‘Secure Messaging’ from the menu.
SecureDrop, Instant Messenger, Email, Phone, Mail
If you can securely access the Tor network without being observed or monitored, you can send messages and documents to the Guardian through our SecureDrop platform.
Finally, our guide at theguardian.com/tips lists various ways to contact us safely and explains the associated pros and cons.
Paleontologists from the Institute of Paleontology of the Polish Academy of Sciences and the Autonomous University of Barcelona have identified a new species within the genus Turtle, known as Manuria. This discovery is based on fossilized remains found in the Czech Republic.
Life restoration of Manulia morula. Image credit: Rudolf Hima.
Manulia morula thrived in the wetlands of what is now the Czech Republic during the early Miocene epoch, roughly 20 to 17 million years ago.
This species is recognized as the oldest member of Manuria, which currently exists solely in Southeast Asia and comprises four extinct species along with two living ones: Manulia Emmis and the impressed turtle (Manulia Impreza).
“Tortoise paleontologist Dr. Milan Kraust from the Institute of Paleontology of the Polish Academy of Sciences remarked, ‘Turtles of the family Testudinidae are a clade highly specialized for terrestrial environments, predominantly inhabiting semi-arid conditions.’
“Members of the Testudinidae family, with carapace lengths ranging from 35 to 75 cm (14 to 30 inches), are categorized as medium to large-sized turtles, while those exceeding 75 cm are classified as giant-sized turtles.”
“Extant species of the Testudinidae can be divided into three main groups: gophers and Manuria (which appears as a basal genus or continuous branch), geokerona clade, and test duna clade, with the latter two forming the subfamily Testudininae.”
The fossil remains of Manulia morula include parts of the carapace and plastron, along with numerous unidentified shell fragments, which were uncovered at the Arnikov I fossil site in the Most Basin of Bohemia.
The length of the turtle’s shell is estimated to have been around 50 cm (20 inches).
“The Anikov I area has long been recognized as a region where wetlands featuring flooded rivers and shallow lakes have been documented,” the paleontologists stated.
“The wetland habitat near the coast was also inferred from the abundance of juvenile crocodiles and potentially the presence of Coristodere.”
“However, based on research findings regarding this genus, Manuria suggests a humid forest of evergreen broad-leaved trees situated near water, characterized by a rainy season and a distinct drier, cooler season, reminiscent of the current Kaeng Krachan National Park in Thailand.”
The discovery of Manulia morula broadens the paleobiogeographical distribution of this genus, Manuria, extending its range from Asia into the heart of Europe.
“According to our findings, the genus Manuria originated in Europe just prior to the Miocene climate optimum, subsequently spreading to Asia, where it continues to thrive today,” the researchers elaborated.
These findings were published on October 3, 2025, in the Swiss Journal of Paleontology.
_____
M. Kraust et al. 2025. Manulia morula sp. Nov.: An ancient large turtle from a Miocene swamp in Anikov, Czech Republic. Swiss Journal of Paleontology 144, 63; doi: 10.1186/s13358-025-00400-6
Small, isolated groups of the Common hippopotamus (Hippopotamus amphibius) were present in the upper reaches of the Rhine River in southwestern Germany during the Middle Ages. New research indicates their presence during the Weichselian period, which spanned from approximately 47,000 to 31,000 years ago.
Radiocarbon dating indicates that the common hippopotamus was present in the middle Weichselian (Hippopotamus amphibius) in the upper reaches of the Rhine River, Germany. Image credit: Gemini AI.
Hippos likely made their way into Europe from Africa through multiple waves, involving various species within the Hippopotamus genus, including the common hippo, which currently inhabits only sub-Saharan Africa.
At their peak distribution in Europe, hippos were found from the British Isles in the northwest to the Iberian and Italian peninsulas in the south.
Their fossil record generally suggests they thrived in temperate climates, characterized by denser vegetation and abundant freshwater bodies.
Nevertheless, their origins and relation to today’s African hippos, as well as the precise timing of their extinction in central Europe, remain ambiguous.
“Previously, it was thought that the common hippopotamus extirpated from central Europe around 115,000 years ago with the conclusion of the last interglacial period,” stated co-senior author Professor Wilfried Rosendahl, general director of the Ries-Engelhorn Mannheim Museum.
“Our findings reveal that hippos inhabited the Upper Rhine Valley in southwestern Germany from about 47,000 to 31,000 years ago.”
For this study, Professor Rosendahl and his team analyzed 19 hippo specimens collected from a fossil site located in the rift valley upstream of the Rhine River.
“The Upper Rhine Rift Valley serves as a significant continental climate archive,” noted study co-author Dr. Ronnie Friedrich, a researcher at the Kurt Engelhorn Zentrum Archaeological Institute.
“Animal bones preserved for millennia in gravel and sand deposits provide invaluable data for scientific inquiry.”
“It’s astonishing how well-preserved the bones are,” he added.
“In many human remains, we’ve successfully obtained samples suitable for analysis, but such conditions are not to be expected after such extended periods.”
By analyzing ancient DNA, researchers discovered that Ice Age hippos in Europe share a close relationship with modern African hippos, being part of the same species.
Radiocarbon dating confirmed their existence during the mid-Weichselian temperate climatic phase.
Furthermore, extensive genome-wide analyses indicated very low genetic diversity, suggesting a small, isolated population in the upper Rhine region.
These results, in conjunction with additional fossil evidence, imply that the heat-loving hippos coexisted with cold-adapted species such as mammoths and woolly rhinos.
“This finding indicates that hippos did not vanish from central Europe at the end of the last interglacial period, as was previously thought,” stated study lead author Dr. Patrick Arnold, a researcher at the University of Potsdam.
“Thus, there’s a necessity to reevaluate other continental European hippo fossils typically considered to belong to the last interglacial period.”
“This study provides significant new insights that compellingly demonstrate that the Ice Age was not uniform everywhere but rather that regional specificities contributed to a complex picture,” remarked Professor Rosendahl.
“It would be intriguing and valuable to further examine other heat-loving animal species that have so far been linked to the last interglacial.”
This result was published in the journal on October 8, 2025, in Current Biology.
_____
Patrick Arnold et al. Ancient DNA and dating evidence show hippos dispersed into central Europe during the last ice age. Current Biology published online October 8, 2025. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2025.09.035
Tesla’s sales in Europe dropped by 40% in July, as Elon Musk’s electric vehicle manufacturer confronts stiffer competition from the Chinese company BYD.
In July, Tesla sold 8,837 cars across the EU and the UK, according to data from the European Association of Automobile Manufacturers (ACEA). This is down from 14,769 during the same month last year.
BYD’s car registrations surged to 13,503 last month, up from 4,151 a year earlier. Currently, BYD holds a market share of 1.2%, as reported by ACEA, while Tesla’s share stands at 0.8%.
Chinese automotive brands are actively expanding in Europe, often offering more affordable models. A report by market research firm Jato Dynamics noted that BYD surpassed Tesla in Europe earlier this spring.
In the UK, the government announced on Thursday that Ford would be the first manufacturer to receive subsidies of up to £3,750 for two of its models. An additional 26 models qualify for a £1,500 grant under the new electric vehicle subsidy initiative.
The grant is only applicable to vehicles priced at £37,000 or less, and discounts will be automatically applied at the point of sale.
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander commented: “We’re making it easier and more affordable for families to transition to electric vehicles, with discounts of up to £3,750 on EVs.”
“Our efforts aim to foster competition in the UK EV market and drive economic growth, job creation, and skill development as part of our plan for change.”
Separately, the Automakers and Traders Association revealed that UK car production increased by 5.6% over the past two months in July.
However, SMMT CEO Mike Hawes described the current market conditions as challenging, citing “weak consumer trust, unstable trade flows, and significant investments in new technologies abroad.”
ACEA has also indicated that in the first seven months of 2025, 1.011 million new battery electric vehicles have been registered, which represents 15.6% of the EU market share.
Hybrid electric vehicle registrations have proven even more popular, with 2.255 million units recorded across the EU so far this year. This increase is largely attributed to growth in the four largest markets: France (30.5%), Spain (30.2%), Germany (10.7%), and Italy (9.4%).
ACEA Executive Director Sigrid de Vries emphasized the need to enhance the European uptake by “continuing to expand public charging infrastructure, lowering charging costs, and ensuring a well-structured incentive program for purchases.”
Volunteers engage in efforts to combat wildfires near Stamata, Greece in 2024
Nick Paleologos/Bloomberg via Getty Images
In light of current climate trends, Europe may grapple with summer heatwaves and severe droughts that could leave large parts of the continent enduring weeks of extreme temperatures, water shortages, and soaring energy costs.
Recent research aims to delineate the “worst-case scenario” regarding heat and drought potential during summer months in Central and Western Europe.
Laura Suarez-Gutierrez from Switzerland’s ETH Zurich and her team initiated their research with seven simulations based on climate models representing heatwaves. They systematically introduced minor variations to the initial atmospheric conditions of the models and assessed different potential outcomes, utilizing a method called ensemble boosting, resulting in more severe heat waves in each simulation.
“Each iteration generates numerous events with slight adjustments in the initial model state,” noted Vicki Thompson from the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute, which did not participate in the research. “The most severe scenarios they present suggest that such outcomes could occur right now.”
While many simulations failed to produce heatwaves, some resulted in significantly harsher heatwaves and droughts compared to historical records.
In the most extreme scenario, temperatures may soar to 45°C (113°F) for over a month in certain regions, accompanied by severe droughts. Events of this nature far exceed the heat and drought phenomena experienced in 2003 or 2018.
Additionally alarming is that this modeling implies that the most intense heat waves tend to follow each other closely, potentially leaving Europe in a cycle of extreme summers that heavily burden both humans and ecosystems. This increases the likelihood of wildfires, drought, energy and food shortages, and ecosystem collapse, experts warn.
“Our findings illuminate the potential effects of unprecedented combinations of heat, fire weather, and soil drought,” the researchers remarked.
This cycle of persistent heat waves and prolonged drought may be partly attributed to soil drying out due to extreme heat, explains Pascal Iu from the Institute for Climate and Environmental Sciences in France. One heatwave can deplete soil moisture and exacerbate extreme heat, stating, “Drier soil conditions can foster atmospheric systems that persist for extended periods.”
While Yiou collaborated with Suarez-Gutierrez, he was not part of the study. He emphasized that these worst-case scenarios are feasible outcomes given current climatic conditions. “They are not suggesting these events will definitely occur, rather they are indicating that such scenarios are possible,” he mentions. He drew a parallel with the 2021 heatwave in western North America, which shattered temperature records and became the deadliest weather event in Canadian history, made possible by very atypical atmospheric conditions that caused extraordinary heat levels.
“The goal is to establish optimal conditions for extreme events,” said Jana Sillmann at the International Climate Research Centre in Norway. This aids decision-makers in refining their emergency response plans, preparing for potential occurrences of record-breaking heatwaves in a single summer.
Firefighter drops water on wildfires near Athens, Greece
Costa Subarutas/Anadoll via Getty Images
The severe heat waves experienced in June and July have resulted in 2,300 fatalities across London and 11 other European cities, nearly tripling the death toll attributed to climate change. While assessing the effects of climate change on heat-related deaths typically takes months, scientists have now devised a rapid method for analysis.
In late June, a series of high-pressure “thermal domes” led to extreme temperatures in Western and Central Europe, reaching around 35°C to 40°C in London. Paris recorded temperatures as high as 46°C, while parts of Spain and Portugal also faced similar conditions. The intense heat caused nuclear reactors to shut down in Switzerland, France, and Italy. In response to worker fatalities caused by the heat, outdoor work was prohibited during peak temperatures.
Researchers at the World Weather Attribution Network utilized weather data to assess how severe the heatwave would have been without climate change, comparing that with observed conditions. They integrated a study from the London Faculty of Hygiene, which illustrated the relationship between daily temperatures and increased death rates in European cities, along with their own findings. This framework was then applied to actual temperatures, calculating the potential fatalities due to climate change during this heat wave.
By estimating the period from June 23 to July 2, the researchers concluded that 2,300 individuals perished due to the heat in cities like Barcelona, Budapest, Frankfurt, Lisbon, London, Madrid, Milan, Paris, Rome, Sassari, and Zagreb. Analysis indicated that even under cooler climate conditions, there would have been approximately 700 deaths. However, climate change raised temperatures by as much as four degrees, contributing to an additional estimated 1,500 fatalities. Heat remains one of the deadliest forms of extreme weather, often exacerbating existing health conditions and going unrecognized on death certificates.
This marks the first study to swiftly quantify climate-related fatalities following a heat wave. Specifically, in London, climate change was responsible for 171 out of 235 heat-related deaths. “For me, [the impact of] climate change feels more tangible,” remarked team member Freedérique Otto from Imperial College London. “It is essential for policymakers to take action.”
“Currently, we’re nearing dangerously high temperatures affecting more people,” stated team member Ben Clark of Imperial College London. Notably, 88% of the fatalities were individuals over 65, the most vulnerable demographic.
Experts suggest that this study might underestimate the death toll, as it relies on data from cooler climates. Christie Ebi from Washington University in Seattle expressed concern over future extreme temperatures, stating, “I am uncertain about what will happen when we reach these extreme levels.”
In response to the rising temperatures, the government has issued more heat wave warnings; however, emergency response plans and infrastructure improvements are still necessary. In Milan, for instance, 499 deaths were reported, exacerbated by high air pollution levels that can worsen with rising temperatures. With 90% of fatalities linked to climate change, Madrid struggles with a lack of green spaces to mitigate urban heat effects.
Additionally, many buildings in London suffer from inadequate ventilation. Currently, measures such as providing drinking water at subway stations and halting non-essential vehicle usage during heat waves are being implemented. Otto emphasizes the importance of public awareness around heat risks, stating, “If you believe you are invincible, you’re not.”
Extreme weather and bark beetles have devastated many trees in the Harz Mountains, Germany
Rob Cousins/Alamy
The abrupt and significant drop in carbon absorption by European forests has ignited concern among scientists, who fear that a marked decline could hinder efforts to combat global warming.
For many years, European forests, which span around 40% of the continent’s land area, have played a dual role as sources of timber and as carbon sinks. However, increasing extreme weather events are pushing these forests beyond their limits, swiftly altering the landscape.
“Many [European Union] countries will struggle to meet their [land-use climate] targets due to this sink reduction,” states Glen Peters from the Cicero International Climate Research Centre in Norway.
Earlier this year, Finnish officials revealed that their forest ecosystem had shifted from functioning as a net carbon sink to becoming a net carbon source. This development follows Germany’s declaration that its forests became the first in the country’s history to record a net increase in carbon emissions. Additionally, the Czech Republic has reported its forests as net carbon sources since 2018.
While these instances are particularly severe, carbon absorption rates are dwindling rapidly in many other nations. For instance, in France, the carbon uptake by forests has nearly halved in just 14 years, with a study released last month documenting a decrease from a peak of 37.8 million tonnes of carbon dioxide annually in 2008 to 74.1 million tonnes in 2022. Concurrently, Norway’s carbon absorption has plummeted from 32 million tonnes in 2010 to 18 million tonnes in 2022.
“The trend had remained relatively stable from 2013 to 2015,” comments Korosuo at the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre in Belgium. “This is a widespread issue, not confined to just one or two countries. Similar patterns are observable across nearly all forested nations.”
Many forests in Europe are privately owned and commercially managed. Some of the decrease in carbon sinks has been linked to increased logging, particularly following the sanctions on Russian timber imports due to the invasion of Ukraine in 2022. For example, Finland has seen strong demand for wood, leading to heightened harvesting levels, notes Raisa from the Natural Resources Institute of Finland.
However, scientists also attribute the rapid decline in carbon storage to the escalating impacts of climate change.
Europe has faced several droughts in recent years, with 2018 and 2022 marking the harshest conditions. Wouter Peters at Wageningen University in the Netherlands highlights that his research indicates the 2022 drought caused a significant reduction in carbon intake by European forests during summer months. “We’re observing immediate effects; the trees are under stress,” he comments.
Researchers had expected that as global temperatures rise, European forests would diminish in health, yet the extent of the recent decline is still astonishing. Wouter Peters explains, “The impact seems to be more severe than anticipated.”
This downturn could be a result of successive droughts occurring within a few years, exacerbated by other extreme weather events such as storms that disturb forests. “We see not just one drought in 2018, but additional ones in 2021 and 2022,” Wouter Peters notes. “Our models have not effectively accounted for this concentration of drought events over such a short time frame.”
Moreover, rising temperatures are leading to more frequent and widespread infestations of bark beetles across Europe, which are severely damaging spruce forests. The Czech Republic, in particular, has faced seven major bark beetle outbreaks from 2018 to 2021.
A declining carbon sink poses a threat to the EU’s climate objectives, which depend on forests to absorb the bulk of emissions generated by other sectors. The EU is even aiming to enhance this carbon sink to support its climate ambitions, targeting a removal of 310 million tonnes of CO2 equivalents annually by 2030, a significant increase from the approximately 230 million tonnes currently removed.
However, a recent analysis published in April warns that European carbon sinks are projected to decrease by around 29% below the 2030 target, with researchers cautioning that the capability of European forests to absorb carbon will “gradually deteriorate.”
Preventative measures can help mitigate this decline, such as reducing harvesting rates and prohibiting clear-cutting in plantations, which can maintain carbon stocks. Additionally, increasing species diversity and retaining some deadwood can enhance forest health and resilience against pests and droughts.
Nonetheless, Wouter Peters argues that policymakers are overestimating the carbon absorption potential of forests in warmer climates. “There has likely been an over-reliance on forests, particularly in the context of greenhouse gas emissions,” he contends. He emphasizes that other sectors must rapidly reduce emissions to meet European climate goals. “This implies that we need intensified efforts in other areas.”
Carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere are rising at unprecedented rates, despite an overall stagnation in greenhouse gas emissions. Scientists attribute this acceleration to slower carbon absorption rates in forests, wetlands, and peatlands globally, compounded by deforestation and increased emissions from wildfires and droughts that weaken global land sinks.
This issue is most pronounced in mid-latitude regions. Alongside Europe, significant declines in carbon sink capacity have also been recorded in boreal forests of Alaska and Canada. Tropical forests are facing challenges from both deforestation and diminished carbon storage capacity, primarily due to wildfires.
This poses a serious challenge to global efforts to achieve net-zero emissions. “In a broad global context, the entire concept of net zero hinges on the functionality of forests and oceans. If these systems cease to effectively sequester carbon, it will lead to increased atmospheric carbon levels and accelerated global warming.”
The Trump administration’s proposal to drastically reduce support for research institutions and halt federal funding for universities like Harvard and Columbia has prompted European leaders to offer financial assistance to US-based researchers, viewing it as a “huge miscalculation.”
French President Emmanuel Macron remarked on Monday, “A few years ago, it was unimaginable that one of the world’s great democracies would dismiss a research program simply because the term ‘diversity’ was included.”
He made these comments at the University of Sorbonne in Paris during an event named Europe for Science, which was organized by the French government and the European Union.
Macron indicated that countries heavily reliant on free scientific inquiry would be making an “unthinkable mistake” in their policies.
Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, announced a €500 million ($566 million) investment at a conference aimed at making Europe an attractive destination for researchers over the next two years.
While this sum pales in comparison to the significant cuts besieging American universities, Von der Leyen highlighted a $100 billion international research initiative, Horizon Europe, dedicated to scientific advancements like genome sequencing and mRNA vaccines.
Although she did not mention the U.S. directly, she characterized the global climate as one where “basic, free, and open research is under scrutiny.”
She exclaimed, “What a huge miscalculation!”
In Europe, there is a growing consensus that Trump’s approach has forsaken traditional American values of freedom, liberty of expression, and democracy, especially through his ties with autocrats and the undermining of science and higher education. This shift has not only affected the markets but also sparked a sense of opportunity across the continent. Attracting top scientific talent to vibrant and independent universities is viewed as part of a broader initiative to establish Europe as a formidable global player.
In the long term, the European Commission, the EU’s enforcement body, plans to enshrine scientific freedom into a law known as the European Studies Area Act and to double grants for researchers who confront adversity.
“Our primary goal is to ensure that European science remains open and free. It’s our hallmark,” von der Leyen emphasized.
The conference, attended by government officials and prominent researchers from across Europe, was predominantly driven by the Trump administration’s assault on science and threats to educational institutions. Increasingly, the U.S. is being perceived as a strategic adversary, and welcoming American researchers is seen as a long-term strategy to counter this threat.
This was Macron’s call to scientists: “If you cherish freedom, assist us in safeguarding it.”
Recently, France unveiled a program aimed at attracting U.S.-based researchers, pledging to cover up to 50% of the funding required to entice international scholars, particularly in fields under attack from the Trump administration, such as climate science and sustainable energy. However, specific funding was only confirmed on Monday, with Macron committing $113 million to the initiative.
The alarm in Europe grew as the Trump administration enacted job cuts and froze funding for major U.S. research institutions. Disappointment intensified when the U.S. government targeted diversity programs and attempted to dictate which fields of study and research were permissible, as noted by Harvard President Alan M. Gerber.
Harvard has initiated legal action against the Trump administration over a $2.2 billion funding freeze. Last week, Trump suggested revoking Harvard’s tax-exempt status.
The U.S. government has also terminated staff at leading scientific research centers, including the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the National Science Foundation, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the National Institutes of Health, the largest biomedical research funder worldwide.
Concurrently, some federal agencies have scrubbed specific terminology deemed objectionable by the Trump administration from their websites and applications. Terms like “climate science,” “diversity,” and “gender” have been labeled as taboo.
Collectively, these actions have fostered a climate of unease within academic and research institutions, raising concerns not only regarding their ongoing work but also the long-term sustainability of research in the U.S.
French Education Minister Elizabeth Bourne articulated this sentiment during a meeting on Monday: “In the United States, academic freedom faces challenges as it once was a haven for researchers. The boundary between truth and falsehood is blurring, compromising the distinction between fact and belief.”
French universities are on the frontline, aiming to capitalize on the potential brain drain from the U.S. AIX Marseille University has interviewed roughly 300 candidates for this purpose as part of a program initiated in March, responding to the cuts imposed by the Trump administration. Many other institutions have since adopted similar measures.
“In alignment with our self-interest and values, we must now become a refuge for knowledge wherever it faces pressure,” stated Lewis Vassy, President of the University of Science PO in Paris.
A proposal by former French President François Hollande aims to establish a legal status for “scientific refugees” who face threats to their research endeavors in their home countries.
However, some university presidents and professors have criticized this initiative, arguing that while France seeks to attract American researchers, it is simultaneously cutting higher education and research budgets to tackle the nation’s growing budget deficit.
On Monday, the European Union kicked off its initiative to draw scientists and researchers to Europe through grants and new policy proposals following the freezing of government funding related to diversity, equity, and inclusion by the Trump administration.
“A few years back, it would have seemed unimaginable that one of the world’s major democracies would terminate a research initiative simply because it included the word ‘diversity,'” stated French President Emmanuel Macron at the “Choose Science” event in Paris.
“No one would have believed it possible for a significant democracy to hinder a researcher’s chances of obtaining a visa,” Macron remarked. “Yet, here we are.”
Ursula von der Leyen, head of the European Commission, joined Macron at Sorbonne University, announcing a new “super grant” program aimed at offering “long-term perspectives and a prime viewpoint” in various disciplines.
She specified plans to allocate 500 million euros ($566 million) between 2025 and 2027 to “make Europe a beacon for researchers,” with funds directed to the European Research Council, which boasts a budget exceeding 16 billion euros ($18 billion) from 2021 to 2027.
Von der Leyen emphasized that the 27 EU nations aim to “institutionalize the freedom of scientific inquiry” with new legislation. “As global threats increase, Europe will not compromise on this principle,” she asserted.
Macron announced that the French government will shortly present new initiatives to bolster investments in science and research.
Recently, hundreds of university researchers in the U.S. faced funding cuts from the National Science Foundation due to an executive order from President Trump, impacting programs focused on diversity, equity, inclusion, and misinformation.
To date, over 380 grant projects have been eliminated, including efforts to combat internet censorship in China and Iran, as well as initiatives working with Indigenous communities to study environmental changes in Alaska’s Arctic.
Several of the affected grants aimed to diversify the demographics of individuals pursuing studies in science, technology, and engineering, prompting protests from scientists, researchers, and doctors in the streets.
While not explicitly naming the Trump administration, von der Leyen characterized the undermining of free and open research as a “huge miscalculation.”
“Science knows no borders, gender, ethnicity, or political affiliation,” she declared. “We believe that diversity is a vital human asset and the lifeblood of science. It is among the most valuable global resources and must be safeguarded.”
With von der Leyen seizing this opportunity, she is promoting European scientific avenues and leveraging the shift in U.S. policies. Trade relations have altered since Trump took office in January, including a tariff war that began last month.
The former German defense minister and trained medical doctor has committed to addressing obstacles faced by scientists and researchers, particularly regarding excessive bureaucracy and business access.
Macron stated that scientific research should not be dictated by a limited number of individuals.
Macron concluded, asserting that Europe “must become a sanctuary” for scientists and researchers, sending a clear message: “If you value freedom, come here to support our research, help us improve, and invest in our future.”
In a cave in northern Spain, researchers found fossilized face fragments of ancient human ancestors.
The ruins, known as “Pink,” are estimated to be between 1.1 million and 1.4 million years old. However, they pose a mystery as the face fragments do not match any known species from the same area and cannot be definitively identified.
Maria Martinon Torres, a paleontologist at the Spanish National Centre for the Evolution of Humans and a co-author of the study, stated in a press call, “We have documented a previously unknown population in Europe. These fossils represent the earliest human fossils ever discovered in Western Europe.”
The initial fragment was unearthed in 2022, with new details featured in Wednesday’s issue of Nature Journal Nature.
Research findings tentatively suggest that Pink may be linked to human ancestors, potentially Homo Erectus. The fossil was named partly after the band Pink Floyd and Rosa Huguet, the study’s lead author and archaeological site coordinator.
Dr. Rosa Huguet.Maria D. Gillen/Ifes Kerkha
This discovery is significant as it provides a more accurate timeline for the arrival of human ancestors in Western Europe. It also helps bridge the evolutionary gap between the oldest human fossil finds in Europe, dating back about 1.8 million years to the site in dmanisi, Georgia, where Homo Aristroux was discovered, going back approximately 900,000 years.
Rodrigo Lacruz, a professor of molecular pathology at New York University, stated that this finding could aid in understanding early human evolution and migration narratives in Europe.
The research team confirmed that Pink’s fossils are adult but could not determine their gender. The discovery was made about 60 feet deep within the Sierra de Atapueca archaeological site, known for its rich historical record of rock formations.
Within the same sediment layer as Pink, evidence suggests that these early ancestors were involved in hunting and butchering animals for meat.
Archaeological excavation work at the Sima Del Elefante Cave site.Maria D. Gillen/Ifes Kerkha
There is evidence suggesting that human ancestors entered Europe in multiple waves, with many of these groups later diminishing. Fossil records show discontinuity across Atapuerca sites and Western Europe, indicating a prolonged period without human presence.
Chris Stringer, a professor and research leader in human evolution at the Museum of Natural History in London, suggested that a climate event may have caused a significant decline or complete depopulation of humans in Western Europe.
The Simadel Elephante cave, where Pink was discovered, has previously yielded intriguing fossils. In 2007, researchers found a small jawbone believed to be around 1.2 million years old, possibly closely related to Pink.
Maria Martinón-Torres expressed surprise and excitement at the discovery of new fossils even deeper within the cave.
The abundant collection of fossils in the region is likely due to its geographical features, providing a natural corridor and resources that attracted early humans.
Archaeological excavation work in the area is ongoing, with researchers hopeful for more surprises.
“We will continue to excavate,” Martinón Torres stated. “There may be more surprises to come.”
Researchers examined records from three ice cores to determine levels of lead pollution in the Arctic from 500 BC to 600 AD. The presence of lead isotopes allowed the authors to identify mining and smelting operations across Europe as possible sources of contamination during this period. Advanced computer modeling of atmospheric movement was then used to map atmospheric lead pollution levels across Europe. Combined with studies linking lead exposure to cognitive decline, scientists also saw a 2.5 to 3 point drop in intelligence quotient across the Roman Empire.
A 4th century AD bronze and silver coin found in Lod, central Israel. Image credit: Israel Antiquities Authority.
“This is the first study to take pollution records from ice cores and calculate them backwards to get pollution concentrations in the air and assess the impact on humans,” said Desert Research Institute researcher Dr. Joe McConnell. said.
“The idea that we could do this 2,000 years ago is very novel and exciting.”
Dr Andrew Wilson, a historian at the University of Oxford, said: 'Our research uncovers precise links between records of lead pollution and historical events such as population declines associated with periodic epidemics and pandemics. , which changed our understanding of the Roman period.”
Ancient lead pollution was primarily caused by silver mining, where the lead-rich mineral galena was melted down to extract the silver.
This process produced thousands of ounces of lead for every ounce of silver, much of which was released into the atmosphere.
In adults, high levels of lead exposure have been linked to infertility, anemia, memory loss, cardiovascular disease, cancer, and decreased immune responses, among others.
In children, even low levels of exposure are associated with lower IQ, poorer concentration, and poorer academic performance.
Meanwhile, the US CDC I will consider There is no risk-free lead exposure level, as a blood lead level of 3.5 μg/dl is the point for medical intervention in children.
Dr Nathan Chellman, a researcher at the Desert Research Institute I decided to focus on that.”
“A two to three point drop in IQ doesn't seem like a big deal, but when you apply this to basically the entire European population, it becomes quite significant.”
The researchers found that atmospheric lead pollution began in the Iron Age and peaked during the height of the Roman Republic in the late 2nd century BC.
It then declined sharply in the 1st century BC during the crisis of the Roman Republic, but increased around 15 BC with the rise of the Roman Empire.
Lead contamination remained at high levels from 165 AD until the Antonine Plague of the 180s, which seriously affected the Roman Empire.
It was not until the High Middle Ages, at the beginning of the second millennium AD, that lead pollution in the Arctic exceeded the persistently high levels of the Roman Empire.
Research shows that during the height of the Roman Empire, which spanned nearly 200 years, more than 500,000 tons of lead were released into the atmosphere.
“Ice core records show that lead pollution in the Arctic was up to 40 times higher at its historic peak in the early 1970s, but the insights gained from this study show that lead pollution in the Arctic was up to 40 times higher at its historic peak in the early 1970s, but It shows how it has impacted health,” Dr. McConnell said.
of study Published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
_____
Joseph R. McConnell others. 2025. Roman mining and smelting led to atmospheric lead pollution across Europe, increased blood lead levels, and decreased cognitive function. PNAS 122 (3): e2419630121;doi: 10.1073/pnas.2419630121
aIn recent years, affordable new electric family cars have become scarce in Europe, particularly those manufactured in the EU. Campaign group Transport and Environment reports that no electric models produced domestically and priced below €25,000 (£20,740) will be available for sale across the EU in 2022-23.
However, the landscape has shifted in recent months with the introduction of new cars like the Fiat Grande Panda, Citroën ë-C3, Hyundai Instar, Dacia Spring, and Renault 5. This sudden influx has provided buyers with more options.
This change is not coincidental. As stricter EU carbon emissions targets take effect on January 1, car manufacturers are facing the need to sell more electric vehicles to avoid fines. The industry is pushing for relaxed rules, while environmentalists are advocating for a firm stance from the EU.
Globally, automakers are grappling with weak demand for both battery-powered and internal combustion engine models. This profit decline occurs at a challenging time as the industry seeks funding for the costly shift to electric vehicles (EVs).
While 2024 saw record-breaking electric vehicle sales worldwide, driven by China’s growing industry, European markets are experiencing a slowdown. Analyst Matthias Schmidt predicts a 1.4% sales decrease in the 18 largest Western and Northern European markets over the past year.
The decline can be attributed to the cessation of generous subsidies for new EVs in Germany, the largest EV market in Europe. The end of a €5,000 incentive per car has posed challenges, impacting EV sales not only in Germany but also in other countries like France.
Some automakers are faring better than others in meeting emissions targets. While Ford struggles with Cologne-made electric car sales, BMW, Stellantis, Tesla, Polestar, and Volvo are ahead of their targets, allowing them to sell “credits” to competitors.
The sales dip has put political leaders on alert, as automakers blame regulations for potential factory closures. Volkswagen announced plans to close up to three factories in Germany, while Ford is cutting jobs in Europe. This has led industry associations to lobby for relaxed emissions standards to protect jobs.
In the UK, manufacturers have successfully argued against fines, leading to calls for a unified approach. The European Automobile Manufacturers Association is urging the European Commission to provide clarity on emissions standards to safeguard jobs.
fiat grande panda. Stellantis has repeatedly halted assembly operations at its headquarters factory in Mirafiori, Italy. Photo: LaPresse/Alamy
European policymakers may consider easing emissions regulations, with discussions set to begin in January. Efforts to relax rules are being led by some EU governments.
However, concerns persist about the long-term impact of deregulation. Analysts and activists warn that relaxing targets could jeopardize European industry, allowing Chinese EV startups to gain ground in the market.
FThe fake images, created using generative artificial intelligence techniques, aim to stoke fears of a migrant “invasion” among leaders like Emmanuel Macron and far-right parties in Western Europe. This political weaponization is a growing concern.
Experts point to this year’s European Parliament elections as the starting point for the far right in Europe to deploy AI-based electoral campaigns, which have since continued to expand.
Recently, anti-immigrant content on Facebook came under scrutiny by Mark Zuckerberg’s independent oversight board as it launched an investigation. German accounts featuring AI-generated images with anti-immigration rhetoric will be examined by the supervisory board.
AI-generated right-wing content is on the rise on social media platforms in Europe. Posts from extremist groups depict disturbing images, like women and children eating insects, perpetuating conspiracy theories about “global elites.”
The consistent use of AI-generated images with no identifying marks by far-right parties and movements across the EU and UK suggests a coordinated effort in spreading their message.
According to Salvatore Romano, head of research at AI Forensics, the AI content being shared publicly is just the beginning, with more concerning material circulating in private and official channels.
William Alcorn, a senior research fellow, notes that the accessibility of AI models appeals to fringe political groups seeking to exploit new technologies for their agendas.
Some of the AI-generated images posted on X by the L’Europe Sans Eux account. Illustration: @LEuropeSansEux
AI technology makes content creation accessible without coding skills, which has normalized far-right views. Mainstream parties remain cautious about using AI in campaigning, while extremists exploit it without ethical concerns.
Germany
Supporters of Germany’s far-right party AfD use AI image generators to promote anti-immigration messages. Meta’s content moderation committee reviewed an image showing anti-immigrant sentiments against a blonde, blue-eyed woman.
AI-powered campaign ads by AfD’s Brandenburg branch contrast an idealized Germany with scenes of veiled women and LGBTQ+ flags. Reality Defender, a deepfake detection firm, highlighted the speed at which such images can be generated.
The impact of intergroup conflict on demographics has long been debated, especially in prehistoric and non-state societies. In their study, scientists from the Complexity Science Hub, the University of Washington, and the Leibniz Center for Archaeology believe that beyond the direct casualties of combat, conflicts can create “landscapes of fear” that can lead many non-combatants near conflict zones to abandon their homes and migrate.
The Battle of Orsha by Hans Krell.
“Around the world, scientists have extensively studied and debated the existence and role of prehistoric conflict,” said Dr Daniel Condor, a researcher at the Complexity Science Hub.
“But it remains difficult to estimate the impact on population numbers and so on.”
“The situation is further complicated by potential indirect effects, such as people leaving their homes or avoiding certain areas out of fear.”
These indirect effects of conflict can have caused significant long-term demographic changes in non-state societies such as Neolithic Europe (c. 7000-3000 BC).
“Our model shows that fear of conflict led to population declines in potentially dangerous areas.”
“As a result, people began concentrating in safer areas, such as on the hills, and overpopulation threatened to increase death rates and decrease birth rates.”
“The results of the simulation study are in good agreement with empirical evidence from archaeological field investigations, for example the Late Neolithic site of Kapellenberg near Frankfurt, dating to around 3700 BC,” added Dr Detlef Groenenborn, researcher at the Leibniz Archaeological Centre.
“There are many examples of agricultural land being temporarily abandoned as groups retreated to more defensible locations and invested heavily in extensive defensive systems such as walls, palisades and ditches.”
“The concentration of people in particular, often well-defended locations, may have led to growing wealth inequalities and political structures that legitimised these differences,” said Dr Peter Turchin, a researcher at the Complexity Science Hub.
“Thus, the indirect effects of conflict may also have played an important role in the emergence of larger political units and the rise of early states.”
To simulate the demographic dynamics of Neolithic Europe, the authors developed a new computational model.
To test their model, the researchers used a database of archaeological sites and analysed a number of radiocarbon dates from different locations and time periods, under the assumption that this reflects the scale of human activity and therefore population numbers.
“This allows us to explore the typical amplitudes and time scales of population growth and decline across Europe. Our goal was to reflect these patterns in our simulations,” Dr Conder said.
“Direct collaboration with archaeologists is crucial to ensure we have as complete a picture as possible.”
“This study is a great example of the potential of such interdisciplinary collaboration.”
of study Published in Royal Society Journal Interface.
_____
Daniel Condor others2024. Landscapes of Fear: Indirect Impacts of Conflict May Cause Large-Scale Population Declines in Non-State Societies. JR Association Interface 21(217):20240210;doi:10.1098/rsif.2024.0210
This article is based on an original release by Complexity Science Hub.
a New Researchpublished in the journal Geoscience Reviewhelps resolve one of the longest-running debates in paleoanthropology: when did early humans arrive in Europe?
Ancient humans. Image courtesy of Ninara / CC BY 2.0.
“chronology Homo “Migration out of Africa has expanded substantially over the past 40 years,” said paleoanthropologist Luis Hibbert of the University of Barcelona and his colleagues.
“In 1982, Homo The Asian volcano has been paleomagnetically dated to 900,000 years ago in Java and 700,000 years ago in Italy, Europe.
“Forty years later, the early Homo Outside of Africa, the South Caucasus dates back 1.8 million years, China 1.7-2.1 million years ago, and Java 1.5-1.3 million years ago.
“In Europe, several sites are found to have layers of paleomagnetic polarity reversal several metres deep, indicating that they are more than 770,000 years old.”
In the study, the authors used magnetostratigraphic dating, a method that uses the state of the Earth's magnetic field at the time the sediments were deposited, to date five paleontological localities in the Orce region of Spain.
“The technique is a relative dating method based on the study of the planet's magnetic pole reversals due to the dynamics of the Earth's interior,” they explained.
“These changes have no particular periodicity, but they are recorded in minerals and it is possible to establish periods from various magnetic events.”
“What's unique about these sites is that they are layered and sit within a very long sedimentary layer, over 80 metres long,” Dr Zibert said.
“Typically these sites are found in caves or within very short geological sequences, so it's not possible to develop long paleomagnetic sequences where you can find the different magnetic reversals.”
Global distribution of humans before 1 million years ago (orange) with major dated sites showing potential dispersal routes. The diagram shows Oldowan sites over 2 million years ago in Africa and over 1 million years ago in Eurasia (black dots). White dots indicate the earliest Acheulean sites in Africa (over 1.5 million years ago) and Eurasia (1 million to 800,000 years ago). The oldest Oldowan and Acheulean tools have been found in East Africa, over 2.5 million years ago and over 1.7 million years ago, respectively. In Asia, the oldest Oldowan and Acheulean tools have been found in the Caucasus (7) at 1.8 million years ago and in the Levantine Corridor (9) at 1.2 million years ago, respectively. In Europe, the oldest Oldowan and associated humans have been found in Spain (1, 2) and are debated to be between 1.6 and 900,000 years ago. Images/Photos Courtesy of: Gibert others., doi: 10.1016/j.earscirev.2024.104855.
The oldest remains at the Orce site, which have no evidence of human activity, date to 1.6 million and 1.35 million years ago, according to the study.
The top three sites containing evidence of early humans are dated 1.32 million years ago (Venta Misena), 1.28 million years ago (Barranco Leon 5), and 1.23 million years ago (Fuente Nueva 3).
These chronologies suggest that the Strait of Gibraltar acted as a filter bridge for African species such as hominins. Theropithecus Oswaldand the early Pleistocene hippopotamus.
“This new dating adds to other evidence and supports European colonization through the Strait of Gibraltar rather than the alternative route back to the Mediterranean via Asia,” the scientists said.
“We also support the hypothesis that they arrived from Gibraltar, as no older evidence has been found elsewhere along the alternative route.”
“Our results show a dating gap between the earliest occupation of Asia, 1.8 million years ago, and the earliest occupation of Europe, 1.3 million years ago. This means that African humans arrived in southwestern Europe more than 500,000 years after they first left Africa around 2 million years ago.”
“These differences in human expansion can be explained by the fact that Europe is isolated from Asia and Africa by difficult-to-surmount biogeographical barriers both to the east (the Bosphorus, the Dardanelles and the Sea of Marmara) and to the west (the Strait of Gibraltar),” Dr. Zibert said.
“When humans arrived in Europe, they had the technology necessary to cross the maritime barrier, just as happened a million years ago on the Indonesian island of Flores.”
“In this sense, the Gibraltar route currently requires crossing a sea channel of up to 14 kilometres, although in the past this distance could have been shorter at certain times due to the tectonically active nature of the region and sea-level changes favourable for migration.”
“We found that African animals were migrating through Gibraltar both 6.2 million years ago and 5.5 million years ago, when the Strait of Gibraltar was very narrow.”
_____
Lewis Guibert othersMagnetic strata dating of Europe's oldest human remains. Geoscience ReviewPublished online July 2, 2024; doi: 10.1016/j.earscirev.2024.104855
The culture that built Stonehenge suffered a mysterious population decline
Wirestock/Alamy
The European Neolithic culture that produced megaliths like Stonehenge experienced a major decline about 5,400 years ago, and the best evidence now is that this was due to plague.
Sequencing of ancient DNA from 108 people living in northern Europe at the time revealed that the plague bacillus Plague Yersinia pestis The condition was present in 18 of those who died.
“We think the plague killed them.” Frederick Siersholm At the University of Copenhagen, Denmark.
Ancient DNA studies over the past decade have revealed that local populations never fully recovered from the Neolithic decline, but were largely replaced by other peoples who migrated from the Eurasian steppes: in Britain, for example, by about 4,000 years ago, less than 10% of the population descended from the people who built Stonehenge.
Studies of ancient people have also uncovered some instances of the presence of the plague bacterium, suggesting an explanation that the plague may have wiped out the population of Europe, allowing steppe peoples to migrate with little resistance.
But not everyone agreed, arguing that occasional sporadic outbreaks were to be expected and not evidence of a major pandemic. Ben Krauss Keora The findings were published in 2021 at Kiel University in Germany. Plague Yersinia pestis He and his colleagues write that their DNA shows that the virus cannot survive in fleas, making it unlikely to cause a pandemic: Bubonic plague, which killed people in the Black Death during the Middle Ages, is often transmitted by the bite of an infected flea.
So Sirsholm and his colleagues set out to find more evidence of the plague pandemic. The 108 people whose DNA his team sequenced were buried in nine graves in Sweden and Denmark. Most of them died between 5,200 and 4,900 years ago, and they spanned several generations of four families.
Over the course of just a few generations, the plague appears to have spread three separate times, the last of which may have been caused by a genetically modified strain that was far more deadly.
“This virus is present in many people,” Searsholm said, “and it's all the same version. That's exactly what you expect when something spreads quickly.”
Plague DNA was found primarily in teeth, indicating that the bacteria entered the bloodstream and caused severe illness and possibly death, he said. In some cases, close relatives were infected, suggesting person-to-person transmission.
The research team suggests that this may be a result of: Plague Yersinia pestis It is a type of disease called pneumonic plague, which infects the lungs and spreads through droplets. Human lice can cause bubonic plagueNot only fleas but also the plague bacteria can be spread this way.
“Of course, it's worth noting that all of these people were properly buried,” says Searsholm, meaning society had not collapsed at this point. “If there really was an epidemic, we're only just seeing the beginning.”
The megalithic tomb appears to have been abandoned for several centuries after about 4900 years ago, but the 10 sequenced individuals were buried much later, mostly between 4100 and 3000 years ago. These individuals were from the steppe region and are unrelated to the people who built the tomb.
“It's a 100 percent complete turnover,” says Searsholm, “5,000 years ago, these Neolithic people disappeared, and now we have evidence that plague was rampant and widespread at exactly the same time.”
While the researchers don't claim their findings are conclusive, Searsholm says they do support the argument that plague caused the Neolithic decline.
“It's pretty clear that this virus can infect humans and can, for example, kill an entire family.”
Klaus Kiora acknowledges that the discovery shows that the plague was widespread in this particular place and time: “Previous explanations need to be somewhat revised and we can't just talk about isolated cases,” he says.
But there's no evidence of high prevalence in other areas, he says, and he thinks normal burials indicate there were no deadly epidemics. Yersinia The infection was like a long-term chronic disease.”
Sirsholm and his team plan to search for more evidence across Europe in the coming days, but the only way to know for sure how deadly the engineered strain was would be to resurrect it, which he says is far too risky to attempt.
“I think this paper will convince many of our colleagues who have been skeptical of our previous work,” he said. Nicholas Raskovin In 2018, a team of researchers from the Pasteur Institute in Paris discovered the plague bacillus in two Neolithic individuals and proposed that the decline of the Neolithic period was due to the plague.
Apple is delaying the launch of three new artificial intelligence features in Europe due to European Union competition rules. The features will be available in the US this fall, but not in Europe until 2025.
The delay is a result of regulatory uncertainty caused by the EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA). Apple stated that phone mirroring, SharePlay screen sharing enhancements, and Apple Intelligence will not roll out to EU users this year.
Apple argues that complying with the EU regulations would compromise the security of its products, a claim that EU authorities have challenged in the past.
Apple stated in an email that they are concerned about the DMA’s interoperability requirements potentially compromising user privacy and data security.
The European Commission welcomes Apple in the EU as long as it complies with EU law, as stated in a Bloomberg article.
At its annual developers conference earlier this month, Apple announced Apple Intelligence, a suite of AI features that integrates ChatGPT with Siri for web searching and content generation.
The upcoming Apple mobile operating system will enable the assistant feature to search through emails, texts, and photos to find specific information as instructed by the user.
Apple assures that the new AI features, available on select Apple devices, will prioritize user privacy and safety. The company is working with the European Commission to address concerns and provide these features to EU customers securely.
CEO Tim Cook has reaffirmed that Apple’s AI features will respect personal privacy and context, aligning with the company’s commitment to user security.
Two teeth from the newly identified ancient ape Buronius manfredschmidi, viewed from multiple angles
Böhme et al., 2024, PLOS ONE, CC-BY 4.0
A small, herbivorous ape may have lived in Western Europe 11.6 million years ago. Smaller and lighter than any great ape known to date, the newly discovered 10-kilogram (22-pound) primate was probably a skilled climber that ate leaves, researchers say. Madeline Boehme At the University of Tübingen, Germany.
“This is a fairly small primate,” she says, “but it's different from all the known fossils and certainly different from all the modern great apes we've known so far.”
About 15 million years ago, during the Miocene, hominoids (great apes) became rare in Africa and more abundant in Europe. Hominoids sometimes shared habitats with other primates, including apes and pliopithecoids, extinct relatives of Old World monkeys, but hominoids do not appear to have coexisted with each other in Europe.
In 2019, Boehme and his colleagues reported the discovery of 37 bones at the Hammerschmiede site in Bavaria that appear to belong to an early, bipedal ape dating back 11.6 million years ago, which they named “hominoid.” Danubius Guggenmosi.
During the excavation, Boehme was surprised to find two small ape-like teeth and a kneecap in the same sedimentary layer. Danubius fossil.
“We kept saying, 'What is this?'” she says of these tiny fossils, “and we concluded that this is clearly something new.”
The fossils are too old for DNA analysis, Boehme said, so the researchers took detailed measurements of the juvenile's 7-millimeter-long molar and 16-millimeter-wide kneecap, as well as a fragment of a premolar that they believe to belong to a young adult. They also calculated the thickness of the enamel and took microscopic CT scans of the teeth.
The gorilla-like thin enamel suggests they probably ate soft foods like leaves, Boehme said, and the shape, thickness and ligament attachment sites of the kneecap are similar to those of arboreal primates, suggesting the apes were good climbers.
Researchers look at new ape Bronius ManfredschmidyThe fossil, named after the medieval name of the nearby Hammerschmiede site, was discovered by dentist Manfred Schmidt, who has been collecting fossils at the site since the 1970s.
Lack of competition for resources Bronius and Danubius Apes can coexist, says Boehme – Danubius They are thought to have eaten tough foods such as nuts and meat, and the team can't rule out the possibility that great apes, which could have been up to three times as heavy, may have preyed on smaller species, she added.
But these three fossils alone may not be enough to reach such a “big” conclusion, the researchers say. Sergio Almesia It is on display at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. “Small fossil elements may date to infancy. Danubius “The teeth definitely look like baby teeth. [baby teeth]. “
He also thinks the kneecap may represent the same species as the tooth: “It has been suggested that it belongs to a juvenile individual, but its size overlaps with the lower range of adult orangutans.” [which are much larger apes]” says Almesija.
Clement Zanolly A researcher from the University of Bordeaux in France also has doubts: “I'm not sure whether the teeth, especially the molars, belong to a hominoid or to another primate superfamily, a pliopithecoid.”
Boehme and his colleagues say their comparison rules out the possibility that the tooth is a milk tooth or a pliopithecoid tooth.
In any case, the fact that the two primate species shared the same habitat and possibly even interacted with each other is a “fantastic discovery,” Zanolli said, “and it reinforces the idea that Europe at that time was a luxurious and comfortable place for primates to evolve.”
Europe is the continent experiencing the most rapid increase in temperature, with its temperatures rising at approximately twice the global average, as reported by two top climate watchdogs on Monday. This raises concerns about human health, glacier melting, and the impact on economic activity.
The World Meteorological Organization of the United Nations and the European Union’s climate change agency Copernicus jointly reported that the African continent has the potential to transition to renewable resources like wind, solar, and hydropower in response to the effects of climate change. There is an opportunity to develop specific strategies to accelerate action on climate change.
Last year, the European Climate Report stated that the continent generated 43% of its electricity from renewable sources, up from 36% the previous year. In Europe, more energy was produced from renewables than fossil fuels for the second consecutive year.
According to the report, the latest five-year average temperature shows Europe to be currently 2.3 degrees Celsius (4.1 degrees Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels, compared to the global temperature being 1.3 degrees Celsius warmer. This is just below the target set in the 2015 Paris climate agreement to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.
Firefighters and volunteers extinguish a burning field during a forest fire in Salonida, Greece, July 17, 2023. Nick Paleologos/Bloomberg from Getty Images File
“Europe has continued to face rising temperatures and extreme weather events this year, including heat stress from record temperatures, wildfires, heatwaves, glacier ice loss, and inadequate snowfall,” said Elisabeth Hamdoush, Deputy Division Chief of the EU Executive Director Copernicus.
This report complements the World Meteorological Organization’s flagship State of the World Climate Report, which has been published annually for 30 years and this year issued a “Red Alert” warning that the world is not taking sufficient action to combat the effects of global warming.
In March, Copernicus reported achieving a record for 10 consecutive months of record-breaking temperatures. According to a European report, the average sea surface temperature across oceans in Europe is expected to reach its highest annual level in 2023.
This year’s European report focuses on the impact of high temperatures on human health, noting a rise in heat-related deaths across the continent. Over 150 lives were directly lost due to storms, floods, and wildfires last year.
Economic losses related to weather and climate in 2023 are estimated to exceed 13.4 billion euros (around $14.3 billion).
Carlo Buontempo, Director of Copernicus, stated, “In 2023, hundreds of thousands of people will be affected by extreme weather events causing significant damage at a continental level, with an estimated cost of at least tens of billions of euros.” “It’s been done,” he said.
The report highlights that extreme weather conditions have led to heatwaves, wildfires, droughts, and floods. High temperatures are causing the reduction of glaciers on continents, including the Alps, where about 10% of glaciers have been lost over the past two years. Glacier ice has been declining.
Nevertheless, the authors of the report pointed out some exceptions, such as Scandinavia and Iceland, where temperatures were below average despite above-average mercury concentrations across much of the continent.
In response to pressure from European regulators, Apple backtracked in its dispute with Epic Games on Friday, allowing Epic to bring Fortnite and its game store to iPhones and iPads in Europe.
Apple had initially taken measures earlier in the week to prevent Epic from launching a store and reintroducing popular games. However, after Epic objected and violated Apple’s in-app payment rules, Apple announced that it would remove the game from the App Store in 2017.
Apple’s decision to allow Epic back in is in line with the Digital Markets Act (DMA), which prohibits Apple and Google from controlling app distribution on iOS and Android devices. This move follows the EU’s deadline for compliance set on Thursday.
EU industry chief Thierry Breton stated that regulators had warned Apple earlier in the week about blocking Epic’s potential return.
“We note with satisfaction that, following our communication, Apple has decided to reverse its decision regarding Epic’s exclusion. #DMA has already seen very concrete results from day 2. ” Breton said on Twitter.
Epic and Apple have been embroiled in a legal battle since 2020, with Epic alleging that Apple’s fees for in-app payments on iOS devices violate antitrust laws. Despite losing a legal battle with Apple, Epic deliberately violated Apple’s rules in protest.
Other Apple critics, like Spotify, have faced fines for anti-competitive behavior, but have not been banned from the App Store like Epic.
Developer accounts act as pawns in a larger battle
The recent dispute between Apple and Epic involves Apple’s developer accounts, a necessary step for developers before selling their apps on Apple devices.
Apple reinstated Epic Games’ developer account on Friday, allowing the company to bring the Epic Games Store and Fortnite back to iOS in Europe.
“This sends a strong signal to developers that the European Commission will enforce digital market laws and hold gatekeepers accountable,” Epic Games noted.
Apple suspended Epic’s account earlier in the week due to concerns about compliance with new rules set by Apple under DMA.
“As a result of discussions with Epic, Epic has committed to following the rules, including our DMA policy. As a result, Epic Sweden AB has been permitted to re-sign the developer agreement and participate in the Apple Developer Program,” Apple stated.
Archaeologists have dated ancient stone tools unearthed at the Korolevo site along the Tisza River in western Ukraine to 1.42 million years ago. Therefore, these artifacts are homo erectus — provides the earliest evidence of humans in Europe and supports the hypothesis that the continent was colonized from the east.
Stone tools from Korolevo I, Ukraine.Image credit: Garba other., doi: 10.1038/s41586-024-07151-3.
“To the east of Europe is the important site of Dmanisi, Georgia, where layers containing human skull remains and stone tools have been reliably dated to approximately 1.85 million to 1.78 million years ago.” said lead author and archaeologist Dr. Roman Garba. Institute of Archeology and Nuclear Physics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, and colleagues.
“The path from Africa to Dmanisi through the Levantine Corridor is consistent with Mode 1 stone artefacts recorded in Jordan's Zarqa Valley, dating back approximately 2.5 million years.”
“The earliest dated evidence of humans in Europe was found at two sites in the southwest: Atapuerca, Spain, the oldest hominin fossils at Sima del Elefante are dated to about 1.2 million years old. and 1.1 million years ago. And in the Valone Cave in southern France, stone artifacts are limited to about 1.2 to 1.1 million years ago.”
“However, the vast spatial and temporal gap separating the Caucasus from southwestern Europe leaves important aspects of the first human dispersal into Europe largely unresolved.”
The Korolebo website is first discovered It was discovered in 1974 by Ukrainian archaeologist Vladislav Gradylin.
It is located near where the Tisza River, a tributary of the Danube, emerges from the eastern Carpathians and spreads southwest across the Pannonian Plain.
“The layers of loess and paleosoil accumulated here are up to 14 meters deep and are known to contain thousands of stone artifacts. Korolevo is an important raw material for their production. ” said co-author Dr. Vitalij Usyk, an archaeologist at the Institute of Archeology of the Czech Academy of Sciences.
“We have identified seven epochs of human occupation in the stratigraphic strata, and at least nine different Paleolithic cultures have been recorded in the region. I lived here until a year ago.”
Selected stone tools from Korolevo I, Ukraine: (a) chopper core; (b) Flakes with double-sided treatment. (c) Multiplatform Core. (d) Combewa flakes. (e) Flakes with parallel scar patterns. Scale bar – 3 cm.Image credit: Garba other., doi: 10.1038/s41586-024-07151-3.
The stone tools of Korolevo are oldowan stylethe most primitive form of tool making.
“We applied two complementary dating methods to calculate ages from measured concentrations of beryllium-10 and aluminum-26 of cosmic origin,” said lead author, Czech Academy of Sciences Geophysical Research said Dr. John Jansen, a researcher at the institute.
“However, the most accurate age was obtained from our proprietary method based on mathematical modeling known as P-PINI.”
“This study is the first time our new dating approach has been applied to archeology.”
“We expect our new dating approach to have a major impact on archaeology, as it can be applied to highly fragmented deposits – deposits with lots of erosional voids.”
“In archaeology, we almost always find a fragmentary record, whereas the traditional long-distance dating method, magnetostratigraphy, relies on a more continuous record.”
The First Peoples of Europe: (a) Ruins and dispersal routes mentioned in the text. The maximum extent of the Eurasian ice sheet is indicated by the gray dashed line. Blue arrows indicate possible early human dispersal routes. (b) Korolevo I, Gostly Verv, Ukraine, seen from Beyvar Hill with excavation XIII (red box).Image credit: Garba other., doi: 10.1038/s41586-024-07151-3.
According to the research team, Korolevo is the northernmost known archaeological site. homo erectus.
“The radiometric dating of the first human presence at the Korolevo site not only bridges the large spatial gap between the Dmanisi and Atapuerca sites, but also shows that the first dispersal pulse of humans into Europe came from the east or southeast. This also supports our hypothesis,'' Dr. Garba said.
“Based on climate models and field pollen data, we identified three possible interglacial warm periods during which the first humans most likely followed the Danube migratory corridor to reach Korolevo. .”
a paperThe survey results were published in a magazine Nature.
_____
R. Garba other. 1.4 million years ago, humans dispersed from east to west across Europe. Nature, published online March 6, 2024. doi: 10.1038/s41586-024-07151-3
Korolevo Quarry in Ukraine, one of the oldest human remains in Europe
Roman Galba
Molecular dating reveals that an area in Ukraine was occupied by humans 1.4 million years ago, making it one of the oldest human remains in Europe, and possibly the oldest.
The ruins, located in Korolevo in western Ukraine, have been studied since the 1970s. Numerous stone tools were found buried in layers of sediment next to outcrops of volcanic rock suitable for tool making.
“It was like a magnet that drew people to it, and they were camping nearby,” he says. Roman Galba At the Czech Academy of Sciences in Prague.
No bones have been found because the soil was too acidic to preserve bones, but hominins homo erectusa species that evolved about 2 million years ago and spread from Africa to Europe and Asia.
It is clear that early humans were present at the Korolevo sites repeatedly over hundreds of thousands of years, but we do not know exactly when they were present. But Garba's team has now used a technique called cosmogenic nuclide dating to date the oldest layer containing the tools to 1.4 million years ago.
This method relies on cosmic rays that are energetic enough to split atomic nuclei and create unusual isotopes. However, these cosmic rays do not penetrate deeply into solid objects, so these isotopes form only in exposed areas.
When an object is buried, the radioactive isotopes produced by cosmic rays decay into other isotopes, making it possible to determine when the object was buried.
Another early human site in Dmanisi, Georgia, is estimated to be 1.7 million years old, and other sites in France and Spain are about 1.2 million years old. This suggests that early humans migrated from Africa through Georgia into Ukraine and then west to other parts of Europe, Galba said, although some crossed the Bosphorus Strait in Turkey. There is a possibility that it was.
Some humans are crossed the Strait of Gibraltar It arrived in Spain when sea levels were lower than it is now, and then migrated east to other parts of Europe, but there is no evidence to support this, Galba said.
While parts of Georgia are geographically in Europe and the entire country is politically considered part of Europe, the Dmanisi site is geographically located in Asia, Garba said. As such, he and his team consider Korolevo to be the oldest reliably dated human site in Europe.
“Korolevo is, to our knowledge, the oldest confirmed human presence in Europe,” the paper says.
“I agree that the new age estimates are important, and they support the idea of an early east-west dispersal,” he says. chris stringer At the Natural History Museum in London.
Melting ice in Greenland could worsen extreme weather across Europe
REDA & CO srl/Alamy
Europe's 10 hottest and driest summers in the past 40 years have all come after a particularly large amount of fresh water was released from the Greenland ice sheet, meaning southern Europe will experience an especially hot summer this year. Maybe you are doing it.
They say this link occurs because the excess meltwater triggers a series of amplifying feedbacks that affect the strength and position of the atmospheric jet stream over Europe. Marilena Ortmans At the UK National Marine Centre.
“2018 and 2022 were the most recent examples,” she says. 2022 saw extreme heat and numerous bushfires across Europe, with high temperatures reaching 40°C (104°F) in parts of the UK for the first time.
These feedback effects, on top of the underlying warming trend from fossil fuel emissions, mean Europe will become even hotter and drier in coming decades as the melting of the Greenland ice sheet accelerates. Then Mr. Ortmans says:
“This is on top of the warming that is already happening due to increases in greenhouse gases,” she says.
Hotter heat waves and drier droughts are expected as the planet warms, but in some regions, such as Europe, recent heat waves and droughts have been even more extreme than climate modeling projects. Several studies have linked these extreme events to changes in the strength and position of the Arctic jet stream. The Arctic jet stream is a band of upper-level winds whose location and strength have a significant impact on weather.
But it's not clear what causes these changes, Ortmans says. Now, she and her colleagues are analyzing weather observations from the past 40 years, and the results show that extreme weather is ultimately the result of a period of increased ice melt in Greenland. It is said that there is.
“Observational statistical associations are very powerful,” she says.
The excess meltwater leads to a shallow layer of freshwater that extends south of the North Atlantic Ocean. This layer does not easily mix with the warm, salty ocean water below, causing the ocean surface to be colder than normal in winter.
This makes the gradient between this colder water and warmer water further south even more extreme, strengthening the weather front aloft. As a result, wind patterns strengthen, pushing warm water flowing northward, the North Atlantic Current, further north than usual. This further amplifies the temperature gradient.
“The front that forms between an area of cold fresh water and an area of warm ocean water is the main source of energy for storms,” she says.
Now, Oltmans' team suggests that these winter changes have lasting effects into the following summer. “Two years after the freshwater anomaly occurred, we are still seeing significant signs,” she says.
The researchers found that stronger temperature gradients lead to stronger jet streams across Europe, making the weather in southern Europe even hotter and drier. Then, as the unusually cold water recedes, the jet stream moves north, bringing hot, dry weather to northern Europe.
“We have discussed the individual links in this feedback chain before,” Ortmans says. “What we did in this study is bring these links together.”
Computer models miss this chain of feedback because they don't include factors such as large fluctuations in meltwater from year to year, she says.
“The association between Atlantic freshwater anomalies and subsequent European summer weather proposed in this study is interesting and relevant to current scientific research on long-term predictions of summer weather, especially “If that relationship holds true for future summers,” he says. adam scaife He works on long-term forecasts at the UK Met Office.
“I think this study is somewhat convincing,” he says. Fei Luo At the Singapore Climate Research Center. But when it comes to predicting summer weather, looking at the previous year's snowmelt isn't as helpful as looking at winter weather conditions, Luo said.
But Oltmans is confident enough to predict that Europe will experience more heatwaves and droughts in the coming years as Greenland's ice melts further in the summer of 2023. “I think southern Europe will experience strong heat anomalies this summer,” she says.
These are likely to become even more powerful in 2025, after which they will begin to impact Northern Europe. “We expect Northern Europe to experience another strong heatwave and drought, not this year, but in the next few years.”
homo sapiens is connected with Rinkombi Lanisia Yersmanovician Culture According to three papers published in , Neanderthals existed in central and northwestern Europe long before they became extinct in southwestern Europe. journal Nature And that journal natural ecology and evolution. The evidence is homo sapiens And the fact that Neanderthals lived side by side is consistent with genomic evidence that the two species occasionally interbred. Suspicions have also been raised that modern humans' invasion of Europe and Asia about 50,000 years ago may have driven Neanderthals to extinction.
Stratigraphy including location of homo sapiens Bones, a map of the LRJ site, and stone tools from the Ranis site in Germany. Image credit: Mylopotamitaki other., doi: 10.1038/s41586-023-06923-7.
The Paleolithic Rincombi-Lanisia-Jerzmanovician (LRJ) culture or technocomplex spread across northwestern and central Europe.
The Ranis Cave site in the Orla River Valley, Thuringia, Germany, is one of the eponymous LRJ sites based on its unique configuration of bifacial and monofacial points.
Previous dating had shown that the site was more than 40,000 years old, but there were no recognizable bones to show who made the tools, so it was unclear whether they were the product of Neanderthals. It was unclear whether it was a product of Neanderthals or not. homo sapiens.
“The new discovery is homo sapiens Who created this technology homo sapiens At this time, 45,000 years ago, they were this far north,” said Dr. Elena Zavala, a researcher at the University of California, Berkeley.
“So these are some of the earliest.” homo sapiens In Europe. “
“The cave ruins of Ranis provide evidence of initial dispersal. homo sapiens It is widespread throughout the high latitudes of Europe,” said Professor Jean-Jacques Hubelin, a researcher at the Collège de France.
“It turns out that stone structures thought to have been made by Neanderthals were actually part of early Neanderthals.” homo sapiens toolkit. ”
“This fundamentally changes what we know about this period. homo sapiens Long before Neanderthals disappeared in southwestern Europe, they reached northwestern Europe. ”
Scientists carried out genetic analysis of hominid bone fragments from new deep excavations carried out at Ranis between 2016 and 2022, as well as from earlier excavations in the 1930s.
Because the DNA in ancient bones is highly fragmented, she used special techniques to isolate and sequence the DNA. All of it is mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), which is inherited only from the mother.
“We have confirmed that the bone fragments are: homo sapiens. Interestingly, some of the fragments shared the same mitochondrial DNA sequence, even if they were from different excavations,” Dr. Zavala said.
“This indicates that these fragments belong to the same person or his maternal relatives, and connects these new discoveries with discoveries from decades ago.”
The bone fragments were initially identified as human through analysis of bone proteins in a field called paleoproteomics.
The authors found that by comparing the Ranis mtDNA sequences with mtDNA obtained from human remains from other Paleolithic sites in Europe, they were able to construct an early Stone Age family tree. It's done. homo sapiens All over Europe.
All but one of the 13 Ranis fragments are very similar to each other and, surprisingly, to the mtDNA of a 43,000-year-old female skull discovered in the Zlaty Kush cave in the Czech Republic. Ta. The only standout player was in the same group as a player from Italy.
“That raises some questions: Was this a single population? What is the relationship here?” Dr. Zavala said.
“But when it comes to mtDNA, that's just one side of history. It's just the maternal side. We need nuclear DNA to investigate this.”
The researchers also found that Ranis Cave is primarily used by hibernating cave bears and denning hyenas, with only periodic human presence.
This low-density archaeological footprint is consistent with other LRJ sites and is best explained by short-term, opportunistic visits by small, mobile settler groups. homo sapiens.
“This means that even in these early groups, homo sapiens “Humans, dispersed across Eurasia, already had some ability to adapt to such harsh climatic conditions,” said Dr Sara Pederzani, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of La Laguna.
“Until recently, it was thought that resilience to cold climate conditions would not emerge until several thousand years later. So this is a fascinating and surprising result.”
The research team also carried out radiocarbon dating of human and animal bones taken from different layers of the site to reconstruct the site's age, focusing on bones with signs of human modification on their surfaces. They then correlated the age with the presence of humans in the cave.
“we, homo sapiens The Francis Crick Institute said Dr. Helen Furus, a postdoctoral researcher at .
“The evidence suggests that homo sapiens They occupied this site sporadically for 47,500 years. ”
Early European humans may have hunted mammoths in frozen landscapes
Dorling Kindersley/Getty Images
When modern humans first began to settle in Europe, they headed straight to the cold north. Challenging excavations in Germany have revealed that our species was in the region at least 45,000 years ago, confirming earlier claims that our ancestors were in Britain shortly thereafter.
“They came into a very hostile environment,” he says Jean-Jacques Hublin
At the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany. “It felt like northern Finland.” [today]”
Modern people(homo sapiens) were the most recent humans to permanently settle in Europe about 45,000 years ago. Previously, this continent was dominated for hundreds of thousands of years by Neanderthals, who disappeared from the fossil record about 40,000 years ago.Modern humans and Neanderthals may have overlapped in France and Spain Between 1400 and 2900.
“All the ancient humans, homo sapiens“This phenomenon occurred across Eurasia between 50,000 and 40,000 years ago,” Hublin said. This was a critical time, as multiple human species coexisted for millions of years, but only one survives today.
“This is the beginning of species invading every habitable crevice on Earth,” Hublin said. “I know it happened…but I don't know why or how it happened.”
of transitional period
is a mystery. There are several types of stone structures from the period that may have been made by Neanderthals or modern humans. One is found at several archaeological sites in northern Europe. Rincombians, Lanissians, Gerzmanovicians (LRJ) – Features a long leaf-shaped tip that may have been attached to a spear. These have never been found in association with confidently identified hominin bones. “I had no idea who made it,” Hublin said.
To find out, Hublin and his colleagues visited several locations where LRJ artifacts were obtained. Unfortunately, earlier archaeologists destroyed the ruins with shoddy excavation methods. The only exception was a cave called Ilsenhöhle near Ranis, Germany. Having collapsed several thousand years ago, initial excavations in the 1930s were difficult and some of the ruins were left in place. Havlin's team re-excavated and dug deep shafts into the relevant sediment layers.
So-called LRJ stone tools discovered in Germany's Ilsenhöhle Cave
Josephine Schubert, Burg Lanis Museum, (CC-BY-ND 4.0)
The excavation was said to have been “extremely difficult”. Marie Solessi from Leiden University in the Netherlands was not involved in the study.
Havlin's team found many bone fragments buried in the sediment. They also reexamined similar fragments from the original excavations. Analysis of bone collagen proteins revealed that 13 species belong to the hominin family. To identify them more precisely, the research team extracted mitochondrial DNA, which humans inherit only from their mothers, from her 11 fragments. “they are homo sapiens” says Hublin.
The technology used was “first-class,” Solessi said. She also wants to see nuclear DNA. This is because these individuals may be hybrids with their Neanderthal fathers. Because it's not shown in mitochondrial DNA. However, she says this is “very unlikely”.
timing of homo sapiens The occupation of Ilsenhöhle is consistent with existing evidence. Havlin's team previously showed that modern humans lived in the Bacho Kilo cave in Bulgaria about 45,000 years ago. However, Ilsenhöhle is further north.
In the second study, Hublin's colleagues used chemical evidence obtained from preserved horse teeth to determine whether this region of Germany existed at the time, specifically between 45,000 and 43,000 years ago. It showed that the climate was cold. Again, this is consistent with previous evidence. In 2014, Hublin's team showed that modern humans lived in a cold steppe-like environment in Willendorf, Austria, north of the Alps. 43,500 years ago.
A third study examined animal bones collected at Ilsenhelle and revealed that the cave was primarily inhabited by cave bears and hyenas. This means that modern humans only existed intermittently.
This indicates “rapid occupation by a small group of 'pioneers',” Solessi said.
Similar claims have been made for France's Mandolin Cave, which may have been briefly inhabited by modern humans 54,000 years ago, before Neanderthals reclaimed the site.
Since the Ilsenhöhle LRJ tool is associated with modern humans, it is reasonable to assume that other LRJ artifacts were also created by modern humans. homo sapienssays Hublin. This means that modern humans arrived in Britain at an early date. A partial jawbone found in Kents Cave in Devon, England, has been tentatively identified and dated to a modern human. Approximately 43,000 years ago – and was discovered along with the LRJ artifact.
These exquisite images show starlings swirling and swooping to create dramatic cloud-like flocks known as murmurs.Photographer Seiren SolcareBest known for his portraits of Björk and Paul McCartney, these are from his new photo collection.
As a child growing up in southern Denmark near the Wadden Sea, Solker was fascinated by the murmurs of starlings. Returning several years later, he witnessed large flocks of these birds being attacked by peregrine falcons. “The shapes and formations the flock created to ward off attacking birds of prey amazed me. They were beautiful and dramatic, like ink paintings or calligraphy,” he says.
Black Sun #50
Seiren Solcare
After three years of photographing the phenomenon known as the “black sun” in Denmark, he expanded the project to other parts of Europe. What is shown in the main image is Black Sun #145, photographed over Rome's Piazza Venezia from a nearby rooftop. Moving clockwise, Black Sun #50, The top photo was taken in Glastonbury, England, and the bottom photo was taken in Glastonbury, England. Black Sun #230taken early one morning on the Italian island of Sardinia, as the birds were leaving their roost.
Black Sun #230
Seiren Solcare
“I believe that patterns in nature speak to us as humans on a deep and universal level,” Solkar says. “Experiencing these pure forms creates joy and recognition. To me, they seem to form a kind of language that many people can relate to. We want to inspire a deeper connection with ourselves.”
These images are featured in his new book starlingIt is a sequel. black sun. Solkær's photo is National Nordic MuseumSeattle, through March 10.
Myrrhatia arcuata, a newly discovered moth species in Europe reveals gaps in our knowledge about European Lepidoptera. Its unique characteristics and the mysteries surrounding its habitat and adaptations highlight the need for continued research in this field. Above is an adult male Myrrhatia arcuata. Credit: Hausmann et al.
The order Lepidoptera, which consists of butterflies and moths, is known to number approximately 11,000 individuals. seed and is considered well researched. However, the discovery of new genera and species in the Geometrid family suggests there is still much to learn. The results of this study were recently published in the journal Zookey. What is the name of the moth? Myrrhatia arcuata The discovery, by a team of researchers from Germany, Austria, and the United Kingdom, is one of the most remarkable discoveries in Lepidoptera in recent decades.
Meta will offer ad-free subscription versions of Facebook and Instagram in the European Union, EEA (European Economic Area), and Switzerland, confirming the core of the WSJ report earlier this month. The new ad-free subscription will be available starting next month. meta blog post.
The move follows years of privacy litigation, enforcement, and court rulings in the EU, resulting in Meta having a contractual right (or legitimate interest) to track and profile users for ad targeting. The situation has reached a point where it is no longer possible to claim profits. (As of this writing, however, it’s still doing the latter, meaning it’s technically operating without a proper legal basis.) But this summer, Meta announced its intention to switch to consent. )
Under local data protection laws, the only available basis left for Meta’s tracking and profiling advertising business is to obtain freely given consent from users. But the ad tech giant’s interpretation of free consent in its “pay or be tracked” subscription proposal will understandably infuriate privacy advocates. This is because the options the company is offering here are, after all, “pay for it.” Or pay us for your privacy. ”
According to Meta’s blog post, the price they plan to charge users to avoid tracking and targeting (i.e. an ad-free subscription) is €9.99 per month on the web and on iOS for each linked Facebook and Instagram account. or 12.99 euros per month on Android. User Account Center. It also states that from March 1, 2024, an additional fee of €6 per month on web and €8 per month on iOS or Android will apply for each additional account listed in a user’s account center.
As such, the cost of using Meta’s services without being tracked or profiled can quickly become prohibitive for those with multiple accounts on Meta’s social network.
Even for users with just one account (either Facebook or Instagram), the cost to protect their privacy from Meta tracking and profiling is almost 120 euros (for web usage) or just over 155 euros (for web usage) per year. (for mobile).
As we reported earlier this month, Mehta relies on a single sentence in a judgment handed down by the bloc’s highest court, the CJEU, earlier this year – in which the judge acknowledged the possibility – that “necessary (another warning) that comparable alternative services (i.e., services that lack tracking and profiling) will be charged an “appropriate fee”. Therefore, the legal fight against Meta’s continued tracking and profiling of users comes down to what is necessary and appropriate in this situation.
in press release After WSJ reported earlier this month that Meta plans to charge users for their privacy, noyb founder and chairman emeritus Max Schrems wrote: “The CJEU said that advertising alternatives must be ‘necessary’ and the fees must be ‘adequate’. I doubt that €160 per year was what they had in mind. These six… The words are also “observances”, a non-binding element that goes beyond the core case before the CJEU. For Meta, this is not the most stable case law and we clearly oppose such an approach..”
Ireland’s Data Protection Commission (DPC), the lead regulator for General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) meta in the EU, has sent us a statement requesting our response to this development. “Meta informed the DPC on July 27 of its intention to introduce an alternative consent-based model that would allow users to choose between an ad-funded version of the platform and a subscription version in exchange for a monthly fee. , users are told they will not receive targeted advertising,” the Irish regulator wrote.
“Meta had originally identified February 2024 as the earliest date on which it could operate its consent model, but on direction from the DPC it has agreed to bring that date forward to November 2023. , we were concerned about ensuring that the changes were carried out.”Meta was unable to demonstrate its right to rely on the legal bases it relied on at the time when processing users’ data for behavioral advertising purposes. will be implemented on the platform as soon as possible, given previous findings to the effect that These include the decisions made by the Court of Justice of the European Union on 4 July 2023 in a case in which the court considered the legal basis on which Meta’s processing of user data for the purpose of behavioral advertising is based. Includes findings.
“Since Meta’s first proposal in July, the DPC has been working on a detailed regulatory assessment of the consent-based model in consultation with other European supervisory authorities. It is being led by the DPC, reflecting its position as a supervisory authority. The exercise is not yet concluded and no findings have been made to date. It is expected to be completed soon, at which point the DPC will If we determine that the way we implement new user services is compatible with Meta’s obligations under the GDPR, we will notify Meta.”
It is therefore clear that Meta’s move to offer users subscriptions and tracking has not yet been approved by data protection authorities and may lead to further regulatory intervention in the future.
You just need to comply with the GDPR, which sets out the conditions necessary for consent to be lawful (e.g., it must be specific, informed, and freely given). Meta is currently subject to the pan-EU Digital Services Act (DSA). This also sets conditions on large platforms when it comes to tracking and profiling people seeking advertising. Therefore, it is not solely up to data protection authorities to decide whether a Meta subscription or tracking offer applies. The European Commission is responsible for overseeing the DSA compliance of very large online platforms.
Meta is also designated as a so-called gatekeeper under the Digital Markets Act (DMA), a sister regulation of the DSA. The law also places certain restrictions on the use of people’s data for advertising. The Commission is the sole executive body of his DMA.
Meta is already under scrutiny by the European Commission over its approach to the DSA, and EU executives have in recent days sought further information from the tech giants regarding content threats arising from the Israel-Hamas war and their approach to elections. ing. security issue. But it remains to be seen whether the EU will apply similar scrutiny to Meta’s ad tracking proposals.
In a blog post, Meta said that by offering people the choice of paying for privacy or otherwise agreeing to be tracked, Meta is “giving users a choice and It allows us to balance the requirements of European regulators while allowing us to continue to serve everyone in the EU, EEA and Switzerland.” . But hey, I guess you could say that.
Additionally, this subscription is only available to people over 18, which raises the question of how it will comply with DSA and DMA requirements not to process children’s data for ad targeting.
“Given this evolving regulatory landscape, we continue to explore ways to provide teens with a helpful and responsible advertising experience,” the magazine said.
side has secured $8 million in Series A capital to build an API for automated wealth management services and democratize access to wealth management across Europe.
Earlybird Venture Capital led the round, with participation from existing investors JME Ventures and 4Founders Capital. Scalapay co-founder Raffaele Terrone and Upvest co-founder and CEO Martin Kassing supported the round as angel investors.
The Barcelona-based company was founded in 2019 by software engineers Joaquín de la Cruz and Sergi Rao, and private banking executive Alvaro Morales. Their vision is to digitize global asset data across custodians and bring it under one API so that customers can get a complete picture of their investment portfolios in real time and make more intelligent investment decisions. was to be collected.
Franks, whose clients range from major financial institutions to family offices and independent financial advisors, is taking advantage of ongoing regulatory changes in Europe, especially around open banking. Additionally, recently proposed legislation includes Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID III) focuses on open finance, establishing rights and obligations governing access to financial data beyond payment accounts.
Dela Cruz explained that with open banking, there was previously no way to share financial data with third parties or for financial advisors to understand their clients’ global asset allocation. That’s why the company created its “Open Wealth” software.
“Open wealth refers to a movement in the industry that allows customers to share their data with third parties,” Delacruz told TechCrunch. “Financial advisors can connect their clients’ information with just two clicks on the platform, allowing them to get all their client’s financial information (360-degree view) in a single source of truth. It will be.”
Flanks operates in Spain, France and eight other countries. We connect with over 300 banks around the world and aggregate over 500,000 investment portfolios every month. Over the past year he has doubled the number of clients to 100, focusing on large clients that could potentially bring his Flanks to millions of end users.
Meanwhile, the company has grown its revenue more than 4x over the past 12 months.
The Series A funding will help the team continue to expand its footprint internationally and strengthen its product pipeline. Last year, Flanks created a product based on data. For example, a no-code process that allows financial advisors to use and analyze data. Another is that if a customer moves to a new bank, her financial advisor can change banks with her two clicks.
“This is the best opportunity for data in years because data can be combined with AI to create many vertical products,” Dela Cruz said. “We now want to continue building end-to-end use cases, using OpenAI to connect data so that financial advisors can actually manipulate the data and help their clients grow their portfolios. We are currently developing a use case for this.”
This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.
Strictly Necessary Cookies
Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings.
