Tag Archives: isolated

What Makes You Feel Isolated Even Amid the Celebrations?

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Feeling detached in social situations can happen to anyone at any time

Credit: Franckreporter/Getty Images

As the holiday season approaches, one reader is apprehensive about experiencing loneliness this Christmas. She notes it’s not about having a lack of friends or family, but rather the uncomfortable socializing at work parties and family gatherings that can feel isolating. “It feels like I’m the only one not enjoying myself,” she shares. “I’m not looking to be the life of the party, but when I’m grappling with my mental health, it becomes difficult to embrace the festive atmosphere. I end up feeling more alone than if I were just at home.”

The sensation of feeling disconnected, known in psychological terms as “Existential isolation,” can occur to anyone at any point in life. This concept is characterized by the sentiment that, even in a crowd, no one truly understands our feelings or perspectives. Individuals who exhibit high levels of existential isolation demonstrate an increased risk of developing conditions akin to depression and a slower response to treatment.

Interestingly, many individuals likely feel similarly, yet we perceive our struggles as isolating, often leading us to conceal our feelings and exacerbating our loneliness. This is why psychologists now advocate for cultivating a sense of “common humanity” during tough times. In essence, it’s the acknowledgment that others might share our struggles, allowing us to recognize we’re not alone in our challenges.

Building a sense of common humanity can clarify why “Peer support” groups, which bring together people facing similar challenges, are often effective in enhancing well-being. They can alleviate feelings of existential isolation and provide comfort, independent of the practical assistance they offer.

If you’re feeling alone this holiday season, simply reminding yourself that you’re not the only one experiencing this might help. It resonates with the essence of “Self-compassion.” Numerous online resources are available that can assist you through writing prompts and guided meditations.

Even better, consider breaking the silence and expressing how you feel, even if it feels uncomfortable. Research indicates you may find surprising responses from others. Studies examining the “Beautiful confusion effect” suggest that we often underestimate how people will react to sharing our issues. We fear being viewed as weak; however, individuals are often more inclined to open up about their own similar feelings.

What about those social events? There’s no obligation to attend every gathering—focus on those where you feel the most connected. A coffee chat with a trusted friend may provide more comfort than a large festive event. Christmas is a season of goodwill; start by channeling that kindness toward yourself.

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David Robson is an award-winning science writer and author of The Law of Connection: 13 Social Strategies That Will Change Your Life

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Source: www.newscientist.com

Tigers Seems to Be Making a Comeback in Sumatra’s Isolated Jungles

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Camera trap photo of a Sumatran tiger in the Leuser Ecosystem, Indonesia

Figel et al. 2025, BKSDA-Aceh, DLHK

Camera trap studies have discovered over double the count of endangered Sumatran tigers compared to those recorded on other Indonesian islands, signaling a positive outcome for conservation initiatives.

The Sumatran tiger represents the last surviving population of the subspecies panthera tigris sondaica, one of the two subspecies of tigers.

Collaborating with the Gayo indigenous community, researchers positioned 60 camera traps on trees within a previously unexplored area of the Leuser ecosystem on Sumatra, one of Southeast Asia’s largest remaining rainforests.

These traps captured images of 17 tigers over 90 days in 2023 and 18 in 2024, in stark contrast to earlier 90-day assessments in Sumatra, which reported an average of seven tigers. The survey documented 14 adult female tigers, 12 males, three cub pairs, and one tiger of unknown gender.

“This surpassed my expectations because previous research indicated that tigers wouldn’t be found in such densities,” stated Joe Figel from the conservation group Hutan Harimau. “This is a very promising finding and highlights the significant conservation efforts in this region.”

Sumatran tigers face threats such as poaching for trophies and traditional medicine, alongside logging activities depleting their vital dipterocarp tree habitats. Due to insufficient data, estimates for their population range from 173 to 883.

While a 90-day period was utilized for initial comparisons, researchers ultimately extended their study to 180 days in both 2023 and 2024, delivering a more comprehensive seasonal record, noted Deborah Marter from Flora and Fauna International, who was not a part of the study.

A mother grooming her large male cub. Eight months later, he was found safe and sound living independently.

Figel et al. 2025, BKSDA-Aceh, DLHK

The unexpectedly high tiger population in the Leuser Ecosystem indicates that the lowland forests are abundant in prey, particularly sambar deer, according to Figel. It also implies that monthly ranger patrols are effective in curbing poaching activities.

Located near Gunung Leuser National Park, the study area is overseen by rangers funded by the NGOs Forum Conservasi Roussel and Hutan Harimau, in partnership with the Environment and Forestry Department of the previously conflict-affected Aceh region.

However, research indicates a need for additional ranger support. Recently, tigers have vanished from Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos.

“Do we need any further warning signs?” asks Figel. “Tiger populations throughout Southeast Asia are facing a critical crisis.”

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Source: www.newscientist.com

5,000 Years Ago: Ancient Humans Introduced Wolves to Isolated Baltic Sea Islands.

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The wolf, the wild ancestor of dogs, stands as the sole large carnivore domesticated by humans. Nonetheless, the exact nature of this domestication remains a topic of debate—whether it was a result of direct human control over wild wolves or a gradual adaptation of wolf populations to human environments. Recent archaeological findings in the Stra Fjärväl cave on the Swedish island of Stra Karsø, located in the Baltic Sea, have revealed the remains of two canids with genetic ties to gray wolves. This island, measuring just 2.5 km2, possesses no native land mammals, similar to its neighboring Gotland, and thus any mammalian presence must have been human-introduced.

Canadian Eskimo Dog by John James Audubon and John Bachman.

“The discovery of wolves on such a remote island was entirely unexpected,” remarked Dr. Linus Gardland Frink, a researcher from the University of Aberdeen.

“They not only had genetic links indistinguishable from other Eurasian wolves but also seemed to coexist and feed alongside humans in areas that were only reachable by boat.”

“This paints a complex picture of the historical dynamics between humans and wolves.”

Genomic analysis of the canid remains indicates they are wolves, not dogs.

However, their traits suggest a level of coexistence with humans.

Isotope analysis of their bones indicates a diet high in marine proteins, such as seals and fish, mirroring the diet of the humans on the island, suggesting they were likely fed.

Furthermore, these wolves were smaller than typical mainland counterparts, and one individual demonstrated signs of low genetic diversity—a common outcome due to isolation or controlled breeding.

This findings challenge long-standing notions regarding the power dynamics between wolves and humans and the domestication of dogs.

While it is unclear if these wolves were domesticated, confined, or managed, their presence in human-occupied areas suggests deliberate and ongoing interactions.

“The fact that it was a wolf and not a dog was a complete surprise,” stated Dr. Pontus Skoglund from the Francis Crick Institute.

“This provocative case suggests that under certain conditions, humans may have kept wolves in their habitats and found them valuable.”

“The genetic findings are intriguing,” noted Dr. Anders Bergström from the University of East Anglia.

“We discovered that the wolf with the most complete genome showed less genetic diversity than any ancient wolf previously analyzed.”

“This resembles what is observed in isolated or bottlenecked populations, or in domesticated species.”

“Although we cannot completely dismiss the idea that low genetic diversity may occur naturally, it implies humans were likely interacting with and managing wolves in ways not previously considered.”

One Bronze Age wolf specimen also presented advanced pathology in its limb bones, which would have restricted its mobility.

This suggests care or adaptation to an environment where large prey hunting was unnecessary for survival.

Professor Jan Stroh of Stockholm University stated: “The combined data offers new and unexpected perspectives on human-animal interactions during the Stone and Bronze Ages, especially regarding wolves and dogs.”

“These findings imply that prehistoric interactions between humans and wolves were more intricate than previously understood, involving complex relationships that extend beyond simple hunting or avoidance, hinting at new aspects of domestication unrelated to modern dogs.”

A study detailing this research was published on November 24th in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

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Linus Gardland-Frink et al. 2025. A gray wolf in the anthropogenic setting of a small prehistoric Scandinavian island. PNAS 122 (48): e2421759122; doi: 10.1073/pnas.2421759122

Source: www.sci.news

Mystery Grows as Isolated Galaxies Create Stars with Unexplained Fuel Sources

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The galaxy NGC 6789 viewed through a 2-meter twin telescope

Ignacio Trujillo et al. 2025

Approximately 12 million light years from Earth lies an unusual galaxy. Its center has consistently formed new stars over the past 600 million years, yet the exact source of the fuel driving this star formation remains elusive.

The galaxy known as NGC 6789 was first identified in 1883, but it has only been in recent years that evidence of ongoing star formation has emerged. NGC 6789 is situated in a region dubbed the Local Void, located towards the Draco constellation, which is notably sparse in cosmic matter. It stands out as one of the few galaxies existing within this void, making it highly isolated compared to the majority of galaxies in the universe.

This isolation contributes to the enigma surrounding its star creation. Galaxies typically require gas to produce new stars, yet local voids contain very little gas. Being at least a billion years old, NGC 6789 should have depleted its initial reserves of gas; however, it has managed to generate approximately 100 million solar masses, equating to about 4% of its total mass, over the last 600 million years.

Ignacio Trujillo and researchers from the Canary Islands Institute of Astrophysics utilized the 2-meter twin telescope at the Teide Observatory in Tenerife to capture deeper images of galaxies than previously possible, aiming to uncover signs of events that might have introduced gas. If a merger with another galaxy or a previously undetected gas flow had occurred, it might have distorted the shape of NGC 6789.

However, the new images did not reveal any distortions. It is possible that NGC 6789’s formation left behind a substantial amount of gas or that there exists a faint gas pocket nearby that did not alter the galaxy’s shape at all. For now, the mystery remains unsolved.

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Source: www.newscientist.com

Study finds Neanderthal populations were genetically and socially isolated for tens of thousands of years

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In 2015, archaeologists discovered Neanderthal fossils. Grotte Mandolin is located on the Mediterranean coast of France, in the shadow of a rock overhanging directly into the Rhône River valley. Nicknamed Thorin, the fossil is one of the most similar Neanderthal remains found in France since its discovery in Saint-Césaire in 1979. Globe Institute researcher Martin Sikora and his colleagues combined archaeological, chronostratigraphic, isotopic, and genomic analyses to reveal that Thorin belonged to a Neanderthal population that remained genetically isolated for 50,000 years. Apart from Thorin’s lineage, they found evidence of gene flow in the genome of the Les Côtés Neanderthal from another lineage that diverged from the ancestral lineage of European Neanderthals more than 80,000 years ago. The findings suggest the existence of multiple isolated Neanderthal communities in Europe close to the time of extinction and shed light on their social organization. Despite the close geographical proximity of these populations, there was limited, if any, interaction between the different Neanderthal populations during the last millennium.

Neanderthal. Image courtesy of Abel Grau, CSIC Communication.

“When we look at the Neanderthal genome, we see that they were quite inbred and didn’t have a lot of genetic diversity,” Dr Sikora said.

“They’ve lived in small groups for generations.”

“Inbreeding is known to reduce the genetic diversity of populations, which if continued over long periods of time can have negative effects on the viability of the population.”

“The newly discovered Neanderthal genome is from a different lineage to other late Neanderthals studied so far.”

“This supports the idea that Neanderthal social organization was different from that of early modern humans, who appear to have been more connected.”

“In other words, compared to Neanderthals, early modern humans were more likely to connect with other groups, which was advantageous for their survival.”

“This is purely speculation, but the concept of being able to communicate more and exchange knowledge is something humans can do that Neanderthals, who were organized in small groups and lived isolated lives, may not have been able to do to some extent.”

“And that’s an important skill,” noted Dr Tarshika Vimala, a population geneticist at the University of Copenhagen.

“We see evidence that early modern humans in Siberia, living in small communities, formed so-called mating networks to avoid problems with inbreeding, something that wasn’t seen in Neanderthals.”

Thorin’s fossils were first discovered in Mandolin Cave in 2015. Mandolin Cave is a cave that is thought to have been the site of an early Homo sapiens But not at the same time, and he is still being slowly unearthed.

Based on Thorin’s location in the cave deposits, archaeologists have speculated that he may have lived approximately 45,000 to 40,000 years ago.

To determine his age and relationships to other Neanderthals, the team extracted DNA from his teeth and jaw and compared his entire genome sequence to previously sequenced Neanderthal genomes.

Surprisingly, initial genome analysis suggested that Thorin’s genome was very different from other late Neanderthals and very similar to the genomes of Neanderthals who lived more than 100,000 years ago, suggesting that Thorin is much older than archaeological estimates.

To solve the mystery, the researchers analyzed isotopes from Thorin’s bones and teeth to gain insight into the type of climate he lived in. Late Neanderthals lived during the Ice Age, while early Neanderthals enjoyed a much warmer climate.

Isotopic analysis showed that Thorin lived in a very cold climate and was identified as a late Neanderthal.

Compared to previously sequenced Neanderthal genomes, Thorin’s genome is most similar to the individual from Gibraltar, leading the authors to speculate that Thorin’s population may have migrated from Gibraltar to France.

“This means that a previously unknown Neanderthal population was present in the Mediterranean, stretching from the westernmost tip of Europe to the Rhône Valley in France,” said Dr Ludovic Slimac, researcher at Toulouse-Paul Sabatier University and CNRS.

Knowing that Neanderthal communities were small and isolated may hold the key to understanding their extinction, because isolation is generally thought to be detrimental to a population’s fitness.

“It’s always a good thing for one group to have contact with another,” Dr Vimala said.

“Prolonged isolation limits genetic diversity and reduces the ability to adapt to changes in climate and pathogens. It’s also socially limiting, as they don’t share knowledge or evolve as a group.”

But to truly understand how Neanderthal populations were structured and why they became extinct, researchers say many more Neanderthal genomes need to be sequenced.

“If we had had more genomes from other regions over the same time period, we probably would have found other deeply structured populations,” Dr Sikora said.

A paper on the results of this study was published today. journal Cell Genomics.

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Ludovic Slimak others2024. The long genetic and social isolation of Neanderthals before their extinction. Cell Genomics 4(9):100593;doi: 10.1016/j.xgen.2024.100593

Source: www.sci.news

Neanderthal fossil genome uncovers ancient tribe isolated for centuries

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The jawbone of a Neanderthal known as Thorin, thought to have belonged to an isolated group

Xavier Mus

Genetic analysis of Neanderthal fossils found in France has revealed that they are the remnants of a previously unknown lineage of ancient people that remained extremely isolated for more than 50,000 years, shedding new light on the final stages of the species' existence.

The fossil has been named Thorin, after a character from J.R.R. Tolkien's novels. The HobbitIt was discovered in 2015 in the Mandolin Cave in the Rhône Valley in southern France. Ludovic Slimak Researchers from the Centre for Human Biology and Genomics in Toulouse discovered a few teeth in the soil of the cave, and after nine years of painstaking excavation, they uncovered 31 teeth, a jawbone, part of a skull, and thousands of other bone fragments.

The discovery of so many fossils of Neanderthals, who lived in Eurasia from about 400,000 to 40,000 years ago and are now extinct, is extremely rare and a surprising find in itself.

Even more surprising, even though DNA doesn't normally preserve in warm climates, a fragment of Thorin's tooth yielded his genome, revealing that the fossil was male but solving a mystery that will take years to unravel.

Srimak and his colleagues compared Thorin's genome with those of other Neanderthals and estimated that he lived about 105,000 years ago, but archaeological evidence and isotope analysis of his bones clearly show that Thorin lived no more than 50,000 years ago, making him a “late Neanderthal” from the final stage of Neanderthal existence.

“We have been together for a long time [geneticists] “We were confident that Thorin was indeed an early Neanderthal precisely because his genetic lineage is very distantly related to modern Neanderthals from the same region,” the team said. Tarshika Vimala “On the one hand, archaeologists were convinced he was a late Neanderthal. It took years of work on both sides to arrive at the answer,” said a researcher from the University of Copenhagen.

Eventually, the researchers realized they must have discovered a previously unknown Neanderthal lineage: Thorin was part of a small group that lived between 42,000 and 50,000 years ago. This group was likely a remnant of a much older Neanderthal population that split off from the main Neanderthal population about 105,000 years ago and remained genetically isolated for more than 50,000 years afterwards.

Thorin's bones unearthed in the Mandolin Cave in France

Ludovic Slimak

Thorin's DNA showed no evidence of interbreeding between his lineage and the main Neanderthal population, despite their close proximity. “Thorin was completely different from other Neanderthals,” Slimak says.

This isolation may have made this population particularly vulnerable: “Prolonged isolation and inbreeding can reduce genetic diversity over time, which is detrimental to a population's survival, which in turn can negatively affect its ability to adapt to a changing environment,” Vimala says.

Srimak, Vimala and their colleagues then reanalyzed the genome of another Neanderthal who lived about 43,000 years ago at Les Côtés in France, and found traces in its DNA of a “ghost population” that interbred with another, previously unknown, Neanderthal group about 15,000 to 20,000 years ago.

“This means that there weren't just two populations among late Neanderthals, but possibly three,” says Slimak. Previously, it was thought that all Neanderthals before their extinction were part of a single genetically similar population.

“The evidence from Mandrin Cave is very exciting because it gives us fascinating insights into late Neanderthal populations and their movements.” Emma Pomeroy At Cambridge University.

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Source: www.newscientist.com