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☆ Ancient preserved flamingo egg found in Mexico during airport construction
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

A view shows a part of an ancient flamingo fossil egg between 8,000 and 12,000 years old was uncovered at a busy construction at the new Felipe Angeles airport, in Zumpango, in the State of Mexico, Mexico, in this photo released and distributed on August 3, 2023 by Mexico's National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH)/Handout via... Read moreMEXICO CITY, Aug 3 (Reuters) - An ancient flamingo fossil egg between 8,000 and 12,000 years old was uncovered at a busy construction site for a new airport in Mexico, officials from the Latin American country said. The remarkably preserved egg from the Pleistocene period is incredibly rare. The Pleistocene geological epoch, the most recent Ice Age, began 2.6 million years ago and ended around 11,700 years ago. The flamingo egg fossil was found at a depth of 31 centimeters (1 foot) amid clay and shale during construction at the new Felipe Angeles airport in the State of Mexico, INAH said. The fossil egg implies that the area was the site of a shallow lake between 8,000 and 33,000 years ago, according to Mexican scientists, and that flamingos once thrived in central Mexico.

Persons: Felipe, INAH, Cassandra Garrison, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: Mexico's National Institute of Anthropology, Read, MEXICO CITY, Thomson Locations: Zumpango, State of Mexico, Mexico, MEXICO, Americas, South America, Caribbean, Yucatan, United States

☆ Ancient whale from Peru may be most massive animal ever on Earth
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-02 | by ( Will Dunham | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Giovanni Bianucci/Handout via REUTERSAug 2 (Reuters) - Move over, blue whale. The biggest-known blue whale weighed around 190 tons, though it was longer than Perucetus at 110 feet (33.5 meters). Its skeletal mass alone was estimated at between 5 and 8 tons, at least twice that of the blue whale. The researchers suspect Perucetus lived like sirenians - not an active predator but an animal that fed near the bottom of shallow coastal waters. The researchers said it was unlikely Perucetus was a filter-feeder like today's baleen whales including the blue whale.

Persons: Giovanni Bianucci, Perucetus, Bianucci, Olivier Lambert of, Will Dunham, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: REUTERS, University of Pisa, Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences, Thomson Locations: Peru, Handout, Italy, Argentina, sirenians, Brussels, hoofed, Washington

☆ Bank of Japan needs to move sooner to a new normal as current policy is 'very harmful', says strategist
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-31 | by ( Sumathi Bala | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Japan needs to transition sooner to a "new normal" as the country's current ultra low interest rate policy regime has been "inappropriate" and "very harmful" for the economy, according to a strategist. Central banks around the world have raised rates aggressively to rein in inflation, but Japan has kept its benchmark rate at -0.1% since 2016. On Friday, the Bank of Japan kept its ultra low interest rates unchanged but shocked financial markets by loosening its yield curve control — or YCC. "And when you have zero interest rates, it creates all sorts of distortions and dislocations that I think are very harmful." Moving away from negative interest rates would have far-reaching effects on the Japanese economy, from corporate investment to household savings.

Persons: Kevin Hebner, CNBC's, they've, Hebner, It's, Japan hasn't, hasn't Organizations: Bank of Japan Locations: Japan

☆ Japan's zero interest rate policy has been 'inappropriate' for the last 20 years, strategist says
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-31 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailJapan's zero interest rate policy has been 'inappropriate' for the last 20 years, strategist saysKevin Hebner, global investment strategist at TD Epoch, explains why the sooner it can move to a more "normal" structure, the better.

Persons: Kevin Hebner

☆ What do we have to lose if Starlink satellites and others like them take over the night sky? Studying dark matter, observing distant galaxies, and finding signs of extraterrestrial intelligence.
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-18 | by ( Hannah Getahun | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Experts who spoke to Insider say radio astronomy helps us study dark matter and look for alien life. The Starlink satellites — chosen for their abundance in the sky compared to other low-orbit satellites — were observed using the Low-Frequency Array telescope in the Netherlands. Using the telescope, scientists detected frequencies from the Starlink satellites at 110 to 188 megahertz — a unit of measure used for electromagnetic waves. "We are not saying that right now that radio astronomy is doomed, and that we will not be able to do astronomy anymore. There is also the financial loss: Millions of dollars go into planning and building these massive radio telescopes over decades.

Persons: Elon, Vahe, Peroomian, Federico Di Vruno, Di Vruno, Jean, Luc Margot, we're, Margot, Musk Organizations: Elon Musk's, Service, Netherlands Institute of Radio Astronomy, Astrophysics, SpaceX, University of Southern, Federal Communications Commission, Iridium, Elon Musk Locations: Wall, Silicon, Netherlands, Europe, University of Southern California, Los Angeles

☆ A Canadian lake best charts humanity’s impact on Earth
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-15 | by ( Katie Hunt | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

Fossils embedded in rock reveal intriguing details about animals, plants and other life-forms that once called Earth home. ConsequencesCrawford Lake in Ontario is the geological site that best reflects a new epoch recognizing the impact of human activity on Earth, said geologists of the Anthropocene Working Group. The Anthropocene Working Group determined in 2016 that the epoch began around 1950 — the start of the era of nuclear testing. The international research group says that Crawford Lake in Ontario best charts humanity’s impact on Earth. Back then, it took 10 hours to relay a single image to Earth — incredibly slow by today’s standards.

Persons: Crawford, they’ve, Amenhotep III, didn’t, Philippe Martinez, Mona Lisa of Egypt, Thais Rabito Pansani, —, Webb, Ashley Strickland, Katie Hunt Organizations: CNN, Conservation, Scientists, MAFTO, Sorbonne University, NASA Mariner, Mariner, NASA Jet Propulsion, CNN Space, Science Locations: Ontario, Brazil, South America, Americas

☆ Saber-Tooth Cats and Dire Wolves Carried a Terrible Disease in Their Bones
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-12 | by ( Miriam Fauzia | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Some 50,000 to 10,000 years ago as ice sheets melted and the planet warmed, around 100 species of gigantic animals started to disappear without a trace. Paleontologists have sought to understand exactly how these animals died off, including iconic predators like the saber-tooth cat and the dire wolf. Some hypotheses suggest stiff competition for limited food aggravated by the arrival of humans and gray wolves. But new evidence suggests a bone disease that can debilitate modern cats and dogs, and even some of their humans, may have also played a role. In a paper published Wednesday in the journal PLoS One, researchers report that as the climate shifted, the bones of saber-tooth cats and dire wolves became riddled with defects associated with osteochondrosis dissecans, or OCD, a severe developmental disease where holes form in bone caused by developing tissue that never hardened.

Persons: osteochondrosis dissecans, Mairin Balisi, Raymond M, Alf Organizations: Alf Museum of Paleontology, Claremont , Calif Locations: Claremont ,

☆ Chinese intelligence hacked State Department emails in ‘significant’ breach
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-12 | by ( Rohan Goswami | In Rohangoswamicnbc | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

US National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby speaks during the daily briefing in the James S Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on June 5, 2023. Chinese intelligence hacked into Microsoft email accounts belonging to two dozen government agencies, including the State Department, in the United States and Western Europe in a "significant" breach, according to Microsoft and U.S. national security officials. "The Senate Intelligence Committee is closely monitoring what appears to be a significant cybersecurity breach by Chinese intelligence," Sen. Mark Warner, D-VA, and chair of the Select Committee on Intelligence said Wednesday. The compromise was "mitigated" by Microsoft cybersecurity teams after it was first reported to the company in mid-June 2023, Microsoft said in a pair of blog posts about the incidents. It's also a timely example of the kind of threat that U.S. national security officials have been warning about for months and years.

Persons: Strategic Communications John Kirby, James, Brady, Sen, Mark Warner, Mandiant, Charles Carmakal, Adam Hodge, Covington Organizations: National Security, Strategic Communications, White, Microsoft, State Department, Senate Intelligence, Intelligence, U.S, Warner, of State, CNBC, National Security Council, FBI, Infrastructure Security Agency, Security, Wall Street Locations: Washington ,, United States, Western Europe, China, Burling, Guam, It's, U.S

☆ Anthropocene: Scientists say they’ve found a site that marks a new chapter in Earth’s history
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-11 | by ( Katie Hunt | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

CNN —Scientists have identified the geological site that they say best reflects a proposed new epoch called the Anthropocene — a major step toward changing the official timeline of Earth’s history. “We’ve moved into this new Earth state and that should be defined by a new geological epoch,” Waters added. On Tuesday, the scientists announced the geological site — Crawford Lake in Ontario, Canada — that best captures the geological impact of the Anthropocene, according to their research. Annual sediment samples from the Crawford Lake site have revealed geochemical traces of nuclear bomb testing, researchers have confirmed. The alpha spectrometry output shown on the screen indicates the presence of plutonium in a Crawford Lake drill core sample.

Persons: ”, Colin Waters, “ We’ve, Waters, eon, James St, Andrew Knoll, “, ” Knoll, Crawford, AWG, Crawford Lake, Francine McCarthy, Andrew Cundy, Stan Finney, it’s, Paul Crutzen —, Finney, It’s, stratigraphers, ” Waters, they’re, Andrew Mathews, We’ve, ’ ” Organizations: CNN —, Environment School, University of Leicester, Geologists, Wales, Harvard University, University, Southampton, Brock University, UK’s University of Southampton, International, International Union of Geological Sciences, Geological Congress, California State University, University of Southampton “, University of California Locations: Crawford Lake, Ontario, Canada, Flinders, South Australia, Jura, Crawford, Southampton Crawford, Sudeten, Lake, California, Baltic, Japan, China, Australia, Gulf of Mexico, Busan, South Korea, Long, Santa Cruz

☆ Canadian lake sediments reveal start of Earth's Anthropocene age, scientists say
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-11 | by ( David Stanway | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Presence of plutonium and other evidence was found in core samples of the Crawford Lake sediments. The Anthropocene epoch is proposed as a chapter in Earth's history reflecting the transformation of the planet's climate and ecology as a result of human activity. The Anthropocene epoch has not yet been formally recognised by a scientific body called the International Commission on Stratigraphy. The scientists obtained core samples of sediment at Crawford Lake and sediments, soils, corals and ice samples at the other 11 sites. Crawford Lake sediments provided a record of accelerating changes that have unfolded in the past few decades, including traces of fly ash produced by burning fossil fuels.

Persons: Crawford, Colin Waters, we've, Waters, Francine McCarthy, Andrew Cundy, Bill Laurance, David Stanway, Will Dunham Organizations: University of Leicester, International, Crawford Lake, Brock University, Industrial, University of Southampton, James Cook University, Thomson Locations: Crawford, Canada's Ontario, Toronto, Britain, Canada, Australia, Singapore

☆ Generative AI tools are quickly 'running out of text' to train themselves on, UC Berkeley professor warns
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-11 | by ( Gabriel Rivera | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

A Berkeley professor said AI developers are "running out of text" to train chatbots at a UN summit. But Russell's insights point toward another potential vulnerability: the shortage of text to train these datasets. A study conducted last November by Epoch, a group of AI researchers, estimated that machine learning datasets will likely deplete all "high-quality language data" before 2026. Language data in "high-quality" sets comes from sources such as "books, news articles, scientific papers, Wikipedia, and filtered web content," according to the study. Russell added that while there are possible explanations for such a purchase, "the natural inference is that there isn't enough high-quality public data left."

Persons: Stuart Russell, Russell, OpenAI, Elon Musk, he's, Sarah Silverman, Mona Awad, Paul Tremblay, Sam Altman, Altman Organizations: UN, University of California, International Telecommunication Union, OpenAI Locations: Berkeley, UN, Abu Dhabi

☆ The Human Age Has a New Symbol. It’s a Record of Bomb Tests and Fossil Fuels.
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-11 | by ( Raymond Zhong | More About Raymond Zhong | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

For almost 15 years, a panel of scholars has been chewing over a big question: Has our species transformed the planet so much that we have plunged it into a new interval of geologic time? On Tuesday, the panel announced a key part of its case for declaring that we had. The group said it had chosen a secluded lake in Ontario to represent the start of Anthropocene epoch, a potential new chapter in Earth’s 4.6-billion-year history that could soon sit alongside the Cambrian, the Jurassic and the Cretaceous in marking periods of momentous planetary change. The scientists picked Crawford Lake over 11 other candidate sites because it contained the clearest and most pronounced evidence of humankind’s influence on the global geologic record, representatives for the group said at a news briefing in Lille, France. This evidence includes sharp changes in plutonium and radiocarbon from nuclear detonations, and in fly ash from accelerated burning of fossil fuels.

Persons: Crawford Organizations: Crawford Lake Locations: Ontario, Earth’s, Lille, France

☆ Africa Style: With Freedom Came Fashion Flair
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-29 | by ( Seph Rodney | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

Many years ago, I worked as a salesperson at Hugo Boss in the Beverly Center in Los Angeles. But what I most relished selling was men’s suits, because a good suit is often transformative. Walking into the new “Africa Fashion” exhibition at the Brooklyn Museum, I felt that I was witnessing something wondrous, something more surprising than just an individual’s restyling. On an adjacent wall are the flags of all 54 countries in Africa, their insignia and heraldry explained. “Fashion, music and the visual arts drew on formerly marginalized traditions, creating innovative forms that looked toward future self-rule.”

Persons: Hugo Boss, Christine Checinska, ”, ” Checinska Organizations: Beverly Center, Brooklyn Museum, Victoria, Albert Museum Locations: Los Angeles, Republic of Ghana, Africa, London, Tunisia, Morocco, France, Ghana, Britain

☆ DOJ launches cyber unit with national security focus as China, Russia threats mount
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-20 | by ( Rohan Goswami | In Rohangoswamicnbc | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The U.S. Department of Justice announced Tuesday a new unit within its National Security Division focused on pursuing cyber threats from nation-state and state-backed hackers, formalizing an increasingly significant part of the national security apparatus into the Justice Department's hierarchy. In a statement, Assistant Attorney General Matt Olsen said the new unit would allow the DOJ's national security team "to increase the scale and speed of disruption campaigns and prosecutions of nation-state threat actors, state-sponsored cybercriminals, associated money launderers, and other cyber-enabled threats to national security." National security officials outside the DOJ have also emphasized China as a top cybersecurity concern, including the U.S.' top cybersecurity official. The announcement made no mention of Chinese cyber efforts, which CISA Director Jen Easterly described last week as an "epoch-defining threat." Building cases against those groups can take years, and don't always result in an arrest, given the far-flung nature of the hacking groups.

Persons: Sue Gordon, Matt Olsen, Jen, Olsen Organizations: National Intelligence, National Counterterrorism Center, CNBC, U.S . Department of Justice, National Security Division, Justice, DOJ, U.S, Navy Locations: San Francisco, China, North Korea

☆ Saudi Arabia and China are part of a multipolar world order, and their mutual interests are 'strong and rising,' minister says
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-14 | by ( Natasha Turak | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

watch nowSaudi Arabia sees China as a key partner in a multipolar world — with the two countries expected to only come closer as their common interests grow, Saudi Minister of Investment Khalid Al-Falih told CNBC. "And we believe that economic cooperation between China and Saudi Arabia and the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council), and the entire Arab region, will be a significant part of that." The U.S. has military installments in Saudi Arabia, selling it advanced weaponry and providing training and joint operations with the Saudi military. Chinese President, Xi Jinping (L) is welcomed by Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud (R) at the Palace of Yamamah in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on December 8, 2022. But we would see, going forward, more global champions from Saudi Arabia going to China to access a growing market of 1.4 billion high-consumption individuals."

Persons: Investment Khalid Al, Falih, — it's, CNBC's Dan Murphy, it's, Biden, Xi Jinping, Crown Prince, Saudi Arabia Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Faisal bin Farhan, Antony Blinken, Fayez Nureldine Organizations: Saudi, Investment, CNBC, China Business Conference, GCC, Gulf Cooperation Council, U.S ., Anadolu Agency, Getty, Technology, Saudi Crown, Beijing, GCC Ministers, AFP Locations: Saudi Arabia, China, Riyadh, Africa, Central Asia, United States, Brazil, Russia, India, South Africa, U.S, Saudi, we're, Washington, Yamamah, Beijing

☆ 'Aggressive' China cyberattacks are the 'defining threat' of our time, top U.S. cyber official says
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-13 | by ( Rohan Goswami | In Rohangoswamicnbc | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Jen Easterly, director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, testifies before a House Homeland Security Subcommittee, at the Rayburn House Office Building in Washington, D.C., April 28, 2022. China's cyber-espionage and sabotage capacities are an "epoch-defining threat," the top U.S. cybersecurity official said, warning that in the event of open warfare "aggressive cyber operations" would threaten critical U.S. transportation infrastructure "to induce societal panic." "We, as an American people, need to understand not just cyber resilience but the imperative of operational resilience and the importance of societal resilience," the CISA director said. Chinese cyber infiltration and espionage have been an ongoing concern for American companies. A disruption of critical pipelines, communications infrastructure, or transportation services could cripple the U.S. economy in the case of conflict.

Persons: Jen Organizations: Infrastructure Security Agency, Homeland Security, Washington , D.C, China's, Infrastructure Security, Aspen Institute, Microsoft, U.S, Corporate, U.S ., Colonial Pipeline Locations: Rayburn, Washington ,, U.S, China, Asia, East

☆ This is about to be the summer of Tom Cruise — again
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-13 | by ( Madeline Berg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Tom Cruise looks like he's headed for another summer on top at the box office. A China opening could add millions of dollars to the film's gross — and to Cruise's pockets. Tom Cruise had a pretty great 2022, with a top-grossing film, a best picture nomination at the Oscars, and a slew of good press. But this isn't just good for "Mission Impossible" — it will also boost Cruise's payday, which is likely linked to the film's performance. But for Cruise, every dollar — or Yuan — that the films brings in means more money to his pocket.

Persons: Tom Cruise, Ethan Hunt, Strange, It's, Cruise, Yuan —, lister, Hunt Organizations: Epoch Times, Dominion, Variety, Cruise Locations: China, Middle Kingdom

The business conference will draw about 2,000 attendees from Greater China, in what will be one of the region's biggest-yet business delegation to Saudi Arabia, according to one person with direct knowledge of the matter. "From the perspective of both capital and new market, the Middle East, Saudi Arabia are really good new choices for Chinese companies and investors," said Henry Zhang, president of Hong Kong-based private equity firm Hermitage Capital. "Since late last year, a large number of Chinese funds have rushed to the Middle East looking for new investors. For the upcoming conference, Chinese entrepreneurs in attendance represent a range of industries -- from renewable energy and artificial intelligence to biotech, finance and tourism. "Previously, I had to actively pitch Chinese companies to consider Saudi Arabia as their destination of outbound investment and overseas expansion.

Persons: Xi Jinping's, Antony Blinken, Henry Zhang, Zhang, Robert Mogielnicki, Edison Gao, I've, Gao, Julie Zhu, Aziz El Yaakoubi, Sumeet Chatterjee, Michael Perry Organizations: China Business Conference, Hermitage Capital, Gulf States Institute, Ajlan, Brothers, Thomson Locations: HONG KONG, RIYADH, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Arab, Gulf, Beijing, Washington, U.S, Greater China, East, Hong Kong, Hermitage, China, Saudi, Rachna, Dubai

☆ New James Webb Space Telescope image shows 45,000 galaxies in unprecedented detail
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-09 | by ( Jessica Orwig | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The James Webb Space Telescope released a recent image that contains 45,000 galaxies. Scientists have been studying GOODS for years with various instruments, including the Hubble Space Telescope, Chandra X-ray Observatory, and Spitzer Space Telescope, to name just a few. James Webb Space Telescope discovers 100s of new galaxiesThe James Webb Space Telescope is studying the hearts of galaxies, like this one, to better understand star formation. With hundreds more galaxies to study in unprecedented detail, thanks to JWST, astronomers are learning that galaxies in our early universe were more turbulent than previously thought. In particular, by studying the light signatures of these young galaxies, astronomers spotted something they didn't expect: strong emission lines.

Persons: James Webb, —, Chandra X, Kevin Hainline, James Webb Space, Webb, Lee, Schmidt JWST, Endsley, Joyce Kang Organizations: James Webb Space, Service, Astronomers, Hubble, Spitzer, Webb, University of Arizona, James Webb Space Telescope, ESA, NASA, CSA, JWST, Telescope Science Institute

☆ Apple's Vision Pro an impressive headset with few likely buyers, analysts say
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-06 | by ( Aditya Soni | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

June 6 (Reuters) - Analysts lauded Apple's (AAPL.O) Vision Pro on Tuesday for its impressive technology, but warned that it will be a few years before the $3,499 augmented reality headset sees widespread adoption. That vision, analysts said, could take some time to materialize because the high price tag will likely dissuade most buyers and the product does not have any clear use beyond entertainment in a still nascent augmented reality (AR) market. "Apple proved they have a vision for the role AR technology could play for consumers ... and Vision Pro looked sleek/differentiated versus incumbents and performed with clear potential," Morgan Stanley analysts said. "However, the Vision Pro is not ready for mass consumption," they added, pointing to a bulky external battery pack and the lack of a "killer app", among other issues. The uncertainty regarding Vision Pro sales also drove a wide range of predictions on its expected shipments once the device goes on sale next year.

Persons: Tim Cook, Apple, Morgan Stanley, Harmeet Singh Walia, Walia, Christine Wang, James Cordwell, Aditya Soni, Shounak Dasgupta Organizations: Apple Watch, Vision, Meta, Apple, Facebook, Counterpoint Research, Vision Pro, KGI Securities, Credit Suisse, Thomson

☆ Chinese quants redouble AI bets amid ChatGPT frenzy
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

REUTERS/Thomas White/Illustration/File PhotoSHANGHAI/SINGAPORE, June 5 (Reuters) - Chinese quant hedge fund managers are rushing to explore ChatGPT-style tools, embracing the emerging AI technology that has sparked a global frenzy since the release of the widely popular Microsoft-backed OpenAI chatbot. His hedge fund already uses ChatGPT to better understand a company's fundamentals and avoid value traps, project earnings power, and identify investment opportunities and risks. A ChatGPT-like tool boosts quants' ability to process text-related data, said Feng Ji, chairman of Baiont Capital. Feng's hedge fund, backed by former Google China chief and AI veteran Kai-Fu Lee, has invested heavily in hardware to enhance computing power required for model-training. Regulators are looking for ways to tackle the impact of generative AI technology.

Persons: Thomas White, Steve Chen, Feng Ji, ChatGPT, Feng, Kai, Fu Lee, Feng's, Larry Cao, Cao, it's, Samuel Shen, Tom Westbrook, Himani Sarkar Organizations: Microsoft, Baiont, Google China, Flyer, Zhishan Investment, Wall, Regulators, HK, Baidu, CFA Institute, Thomson Locations: SHANGHAI, SINGAPORE, Shanghai, Beijing, Feng's Nanjing, China

☆ 2,500-year-old toilets reveal that the people of ancient Jerusalem were afflicted by painful stomach cramps and diarrhea
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-27 | by ( Isobel Van Hagen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Archeologists excavated the cesspits below two toilets from Iron Age Jerusalem. At the time, Jerusalem was the capital of Judah — a vassal state under the control of the Assyrian Empire. "Toilets with cesspits from this time are relatively rare and were usually made only for the elite," Mitchell said. The study suggests the "long-term presence" of the disease across the Near East. Indeed, medical texts from the first and second millennium BC describe diarrhea afflicting the Near and Middle East populations.

☆ Archaeologists discover a lost world of 417 ancient Mayans cities buried in remote jungle, connected by miles of 'superhighways,' WaPo reports
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-21 | by ( Bethany Dawson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Scientists in Guatemala have discovered "the first freeway system in the world," The Washington Post reports. Archaeologists have found ancient Mayans built 417 cities interconnected by 110 miles of "superhighways." Historians to rethink what they know of ancient Mayan civilization. The findings have unveiled "a whole volume of human history that we've never known," he told the Post. It allowed the scientists to see ancient dams, reservoirs, pyramids, platforms, causeway networks, and even ball courts, per the study.

☆ Zero Carbon Capital just reached third close on its $37 million fund dedicated to hardware and science-based companies. We got an exclusive look at the LP deck it used to raise from Isomer and Extanti
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( Tasmin Lockwood | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Zero Carbon Capital reached third close on its £30 million ($37 million) fund. We got an exclusive look at the 10-slide LP deck the climate tech firm used to raise the funds. UK-based Zero Carbon Capital has closed £13 million, around $16.2 million, of its £30 million, about $37.5 million, second fund. Zero Carbon Capital wants to be the first check to lead pre-seed and smaller seed rounds, with tickets ranging £100,000 to £1 million. Isomer has previously backed hardware funds but Zero Carbon Capital is its first dedicated climate fund.

☆ Oldest-known bat skeletons shed light on evolution of flying mammals
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( Will Dunham | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

A few other fossil species from around this time still have that claw, but it's been lost in most living bats," Jones added. This species was closely related to two other bat species whose fossils were previously found at the same locale - Icaronycteris index and Onychonycteris finneyi. This indicates there was a greater diversity of species early in the history of bats than previously appreciated. The fossils represent the oldest-known bat skeletons - both very complete and well-preserved. The only older bat fossils are isolated teeth and jaw fragments from places including Portugal and China, dating to about 55 to 56 million years ago.

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