Category: Science

Groundbreaking research examining the most ancient canine genetic material ever studied is providing fresh insights into humanity’s oldest friendship with dogs.

Researchers believe canines evolved from prehistoric gray wolf populations that lived in Europe or Asia. Over tens of thousands of years, these wolves adapted to human companionship and became less hostile. Through the domestication process, their genetic makeup changed alongside their temperament, eventually developing into today’s beloved pets.

However, the precise timing and location of this transformation continues to puzzle experts. Researchers are analyzing DNA fragments recovered from prehistoric dog and wolf bones to determine the appearance and origins of the earliest domesticated canines.

Two groundbreaking research papers released Wednesday in Nature journal have extended this historical timeline. The research teams developed innovative methods for examining ancient canine genetic material, which typically suffers from contamination and extraction difficulties, by focusing exclusively on dog-specific genetic sequences.

The investigation covered genetic material from more than 200 ancient dogs and wolves. The most ancient specimens traced back approximately 15,800 years, extending dog domestication history by a minimum of 5,000 years.

University of Michigan canine genetics specialist Jeffrey Kidd, who wasn’t part of this research, noted: “This unique relationship between people and dogs has existed for such a long time and is continuing on today.”

Genetic evidence revealed that domesticated dogs had already populated Western Europe and Asia by 14,200 years ago, during the pre-agricultural era. These canines coexisted with nomadic hunter-gatherer communities.

The agricultural revolution marked a significant transformation in human civilization, bringing new populations from southwest Asia into Europe. These groups integrated with existing European populations, creating diverse and lasting genetic influences.

However, the canine genetic material examined by researchers, spanning from Britain to Turkey, remained relatively stable. These dog populations were less affected by human migration during agricultural development and more influenced by earlier interactions between various hunter-gatherer communities and their canine companions.

This pattern differs from canines in Asia and the Americas, whose genetic profiles more closely mirror their human owners’ migration histories.

While the exact appearance of primitive dogs remains unknown, researchers have developed theories about their characteristics.

Study co-author Lachie Scarsbrook from Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich explained: “We’re suspecting they would have resembled smaller wolves.”

The specific role these prehistoric dogs played in human society also remains unclear. They may have served as sentries or hunting assistants, though they likely also interacted playfully with children.

Additional research is needed to determine the exact emergence of domestic dogs, representing the opening chapter of an enduring partnership that continues today.

“They are humanity’s best friend, alongside our societies for the last 16,000 years and will continue to in the future,” Scarsbrook stated.

DES MOINES, Iowa — A Dutch researcher whose groundbreaking work revolutionized global food safety standards has been selected as this year’s World Food Prize recipient, with officials crediting his innovations for preventing countless foodborne illnesses and cutting food waste worldwide.

Huub Lelieveld from the Netherlands received the prestigious recognition after spending 60 years developing improved food safety techniques and promoting international trade policies that help distribute safe food more efficiently across the globe, the organization revealed Wednesday.

“I just did what I thought was right,” Lelieveld told The Associated Press during an interview. “I want everybody to have enough food but … it should also be safe.”

When Lelieveld started his research career at Unilever, he found the existing food manufacturing safety protocols to be “illogical,” he explained.

At that time, food products underwent sterilization or chemical treatment only after being produced, and manufacturing equipment required shutdowns for cleaning one to two times daily — a process that was both challenging and lengthy. The processed products also depended heavily on preservatives, salt, sugar and acids to minimize contamination risks, which compromised both taste and nutritional value.

“I realized very soon that they did things in the wrong way, in my view,” Lelieveld explained. “From the beginning, I’ve been working on … convincing people that you should do it in a different way.”

Working alongside his team, Lelieveld created sanitary production techniques and machinery that made food manufacturing more streamlined and reduced dependence on chemical additives.

Once he had successfully implemented and validated these processes at Unilever, Lelieveld said the corporation allowed him to share his findings publicly for worldwide adoption.

“My philosophy was: You should not compete on food safety,” Lelieveld stated. “Spreading the technology, the hygienic technology, was very important.”

According to World Health Organization data, contaminated food results in 600 million cases of foodborne illness and 420,000 fatalities annually.

The World Food Prize, headquartered in Iowa, was established by Norman Borlaug, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1970 for his contributions to dramatically boosting agricultural production and combating hunger in numerous nations. This agricultural science recognition comes with a $500,000 prize.

Following 40 years with Unilever, Lelieveld established the Global Harmonization Initiative in 2004 to encourage unified food and trade standards worldwide. Using a network of several thousand scientists globally, this nonprofit also tackles major food security issues and supports food safety training programs.

The GHI “is extremely useful because it has this enormous pool of knowledge about food safety and food protection,” Lelieveld noted.

According to Lelieveld, obstacles to widespread access to safe food and water remain, and he envisions a future where communities can create safe food and water locally, even when international trade faces restrictions.

“You can’t stop the transport of water through the air, with the clouds,” he explained. “You can produce safe water everywhere, but we need to distribute this knowledge to the people that need it and that is the biggest challenge.”

No computers, no artificial intelligence chatbots, and no technology whatsoever. Students don’t even get pens or paper for this type of assessment.

Chris Schaffer requires his biomedical engineering students at Cornell University to face instructors directly for what he terms an “oral defense.” This ancient testing approach, dating back to Socrates, is experiencing a renaissance as universities grapple with AI-assisted cheating.

“You won’t be able to AI your way through an oral exam,” Schaffer explains. He began using oral defenses during the previous semester.

Faculty members have moved beyond wondering whether students will use artificial intelligence for assignments. The pressing concern now centers on measuring genuine student learning.

University instructors nationwide observe concerning patterns as AI technology advances. Students return flawless take-home essays and written work, yet struggle to discuss their submissions when questioned. While AI’s long-term effects on critical thinking remain unclear, educators fear students increasingly view intellectual effort as unnecessary.

Emily Hammer, who teaches Middle Eastern Languages and Cultures at the University of Pennsylvania, now combines oral testing with written papers in her seminar courses.

“It comes across as if we’re trying to prevent cheating,” Hammer explains. “That’s not why we’re doing this. We’re doing this because students are actually losing skills, losing cognitive capacity and creativity.”

While Hammer prohibits AI usage on writing assignments, she acknowledges enforcement challenges. She warns students that defending material they didn’t personally write will create “a very stressful situation.”

Bruce Lenthall, executive director of Penn’s Center for Teaching and Learning, describes Hammer’s approach as part of “a massive shift toward in-person assessments” at the Ivy League institution. Penn joins a growing group of universities offering faculty training on oral examination techniques.

American undergraduate education traditionally doesn’t emphasize oral testing, unlike European institutions. England’s Oxbridge tutorial system features weekly student-faculty discussions. Some U.S. colleges adopted oral exams during COVID-19 to address online cheating concerns, with interest surging after ChatGPT’s 2022 debut.

Engineering professor Huihui Qi at the University of California, San Diego launched a three-year oral exam research project during the pandemic. Multiple universities have since requested her expertise for faculty workshops.

New York University reports increased oral assessment usage. More instructors require office hours, assign presentations, and call on students during class. Faculty members express a need to “look my students in the eye and ask, ‘Do you know this material?’” according to Clay Shirky, vice provost for AI and technology in education.

Panos Ipeirotis, a professor at NYU’s Stern School of Business, created an AI-powered oral exam for his AI product management course final. He describes this approach as “fighting fire with fire.”

Students access the system from home at convenient times. A cloned professor’s voice greets them, saying “Hi there,” requesting identification, then announcing readiness to begin testing.

The chatbot questions students about group projects and explores details based on responses. When students struggle, the AI provides hints, criticism, and encouragement. Ipeirotis uses AI assistance for separate grading.

“We wanted to check: Do you know what your team did? Were you a free rider? Did you outsource everything to AI?” Ipeirotis explains. He developed this tool with ElevenLabs, a company creating AI voice agents for job interviews.

Current semester students are improving the AI agent, and Ipeirotis plans universal implementation in his courses.

“I want oral exams everywhere now. I want to pair it with every single written assignment,” Ipeirotis states. “I don’t trust written assignments anymore to be the result of actual thinking.”

Student reactions were mixed last semester. Business major Andrea Liu found the chatbot’s voice surprisingly realistic but noted choppy conversation flow with strange pauses. Multiple simultaneous questions created confusion, and the absence of visual human contact felt uncomfortable.

“It felt kind of awkward to be talking to what was pretty much a blank screen,” the 21-year-old Liu observes.

However, she agreed with concerned educators: “There is no perfect world where AI exists and kids are not abusing it.”

Educators across humanities and STEM fields, including computer science, worry that students avoiding necessary mental challenges won’t develop skills needed for advanced coursework and careers.

Schaffer’s Cornell biomedical engineering course requires 20-minute Socratic questioning sessions after written problem set submissions throughout the semester. With 70 students, Schaffer shares responsibilities with teaching assistants, who grade only oral defenses rather than written work. This approach “incentivizes” students to complete assignments or understand material sufficiently for explanation.

Cornell’s Center for Teaching Innovation features Schaffer’s class in its new “Oral Assessment Workshop.” Other Cornell examples include a religious studies professor conducting 30-minute “final conversations” instead of traditional exams, and an engineering course providing four-minute mock interviews for each student in a 180-person class.

Critics note oral exams may trouble shy students or those with severe anxiety. Carolyn Aslan, who leads Cornell’s oral exam training, suggests advance format clarification and gentle opening questions help address concerns.

“Sometimes it’s actually good to get that quiet student one-on-one, and you finally get to hear from them. Sometimes that is the breakthrough,” Aslan notes.

Several of Schaffer’s students initially felt nervous but ultimately preferred oral testing.

“I honestly liked it a lot,” says Cornell junior Olivia Piserchia, a biomedical engineering major. Despite initial anxiety about oral defenses, she valued individual instructor time. This prevented feeling lost in large classes and helped develop technical communication skills needed for employment.

“Having that live check-in holds you accountable,” Piserchia explains. “It’s a lot harder to look people in the eyes and say out loud, ‘I don’t know this.’ And, that makes you realize, ‘I should study this.’”

The artificial intelligence company OpenAI announced Tuesday it’s discontinuing its video-making application Sora, which became a sensation last autumn but triggered widespread anxiety about fake content creation.

In a short announcement posted on social media Tuesday, OpenAI revealed it was “saying goodbye to the Sora app” and promised to provide details later about helping users save their existing creations.

“What you made with Sora mattered, and we know this news is disappointing,” the company stated.

The creators of ChatGPT launched Sora in September, hoping to compete for the viewership and advertising revenue that short video platforms like TikTok, YouTube, and Meta’s Instagram and Facebook generate.

However, advocacy organizations, researchers, and technology experts increasingly voiced worries about allowing users to generate AI videos from simple text descriptions, warning this could lead to widespread creation of unauthorized intimate imagery and convincing fake videos mixed with less harmful artificial content.

The company had to take action against AI-generated content featuring celebrities and historical figures like Michael Jackson, Martin Luther King Jr., and Mister Rogers in bizarre scenarios, but only responded after family representatives and performers’ unions complained.

Disney, which partnered with OpenAI in 2023 to incorporate its characters into Sora, released a statement Tuesday saying it acknowledges “OpenAI’s decision to exit the video generation business and to shift its priorities elsewhere.”

“We appreciate the constructive collaboration between our teams and what we learned from it, and we will continue to engage with AI platforms to find new ways to meet fans where they are while responsibly embracing new technologies that respect IP and the rights of creators,” Disney’s statement continued.

Artificial intelligence company OpenAI plans to shut down its Sora video creation application, according to a Wall Street Journal report published Tuesday.

The decision represents part of OpenAI’s strategic shift toward concentrating on business and programming solutions as the company gears up for a potential initial public offering sometime this year, the Journal reported.

Reuters reached out to the AI company for comment but did not receive an immediate response.

The Sora application, which debuted as a standalone platform in September 2025, allowed users to generate and distribute AI-created videos using copyrighted material through social media-style feeds.

Earlier this month, The Information reported that OpenAI intends to integrate Sora’s capabilities into its widely-used ChatGPT platform.

The video platform garnered significant attention when it first launched but has since faded from the spotlight.

Creating the ultimate documentary about artificial intelligence proved to be an enormously challenging goal. The timeframe made it even more daunting.

Academy Award-winning creators from “Everything Everywhere All At Once” and “Navalny” began discussing a joint project during Oscar season, initially believing they could complete it within twelve months. Instead, “The AI Doc: Or How I Became an Apocaloptimist” required nearly three years before reaching viewers. Directors Daniel Roher and Charlie Tyrell, along with co-producer Daniel Kwan, worked to step back from daily news cycles and provide audiences with a lasting perspective on humanity’s stakes as artificial intelligence advances rapidly.

“The film is a journey of understanding that casts me as sort of a proxy for everyone, as a pea-brain regular person who’s trying to understand what the (expletive) is going on in the world,” Roher explained to The Associated Press in an earlier interview with Tyrell.

The team focused on basic inquiries: What is artificial intelligence? What makes it beneficial? What are its dangers? What essential information should people have?

“And that simple task,” Roher noted, “was (expletive) impossible. It was like making a film about outer space or China or the Bible. Like, fit that into 90 minutes.”

Producer Diane Becker echoed this difficulty when the documentary debuts in cinemas Friday, calling it her most demanding project ever – a never-ending challenge where “literally the minute we started making it, it was out of date.”

The team found motivation in the topic’s pressing nature and their belief that they were creating more than just an introduction to a complex subject, but rather an essential, unbiased appeal for action. “The AI Doc” addresses concerns beyond science fiction scenarios. Center for Humane Technology co-founder Tristan Harris sees it as battling against an “antihuman future.”

“The only thing that would give humanity a shot for not ending in a dystopian or antihuman future would be for us to have collective clarity that we are heading towards that future,” Harris explained. “My hope is that this film is kind of like ‘An Inconvenient Truth’ or ‘The Social Dilemma’ for AI.”

Harris joins numerous other contributors including OpenAI’s Sam Altman, Anthropic’s Daniela and Dario Amodei, and Google DeepMind’s Demis Hassabis. Ultimately, over 40 individuals representing diverse perspectives and expertise levels participated in filmed interviews, generating approximately 3,300 pages of transcripts.

Securing these participants required significant effort. Three weeks following the 2023 Oscar ceremonies, veteran producer Ted Tremper, known for his work on “The Daily Show,” sent more than 80 emails to industry leaders requesting interviews. Only six responded initially. Through patience, relationship-building, and numerous confidential discussions, those six contacts helped establish connections that eventually led to CEO participation. Tremper compared the process to John Nash’s paper-and-string-covered workspace in “A Beautiful Mind.”

“It turns out, it takes a lot of humans to talk about AI,” Becker observed.

Beyond the on-camera experts, a substantial team worked behind the scenes to process incoming information and determine how to present it visually. Tyrell explained their decision to use an anti-digital aesthetic, incorporating handcrafted elements – including Roher’s constantly-used notebook for sketching – and stop-motion animation.

Viewers seeking confirmation that artificial intelligence is entirely positive or negative won’t find that here. The documentary presents disturbing accounts of generative AI threatening its creators and catastrophic predictions involving warfare and widespread job loss. It also shares optimistic visions of a beneficial future featuring medical breakthroughs, enhanced creativity, and increased freedom, plus various middle-ground perspectives – including how sandwich preparation in New York faces more regulation than AI development and the current technological arms race.

The subtitle “or how I became” suggests the film will reach a clear conclusion. However, the term “apocaloptimist” hasn’t received official recognition from the AP Stylebook or definition from Merriam-Webster. For Roher, this concept represents the documentary’s core message.

“I am not an optimist and I do not believe this will be the apocalypse. I believe it is both at the same time and that’s critical,” Roher stated. “What I take solace in is the idea that we still have agency over steering this thing towards the good and away from the bad. If we can walk this narrow path between the two and be very thoughtful and discerning, I think it will be OK.”

Tremper emphasized that the documentary “assumes zero knowledge of the subject matter” from viewers. His 78-year-old father, “who’s never owned a laptop in his life, watched it and understood it,” he reported.

The production team hopes audiences will choose theatrical viewing, or at minimum, watch with others present.

“It is entertaining in a theater. It’s cinematic in its own way. It’s not just 40 talking heads. You have an emotional ride with it,” Becker said. “And the best part about it is, the lights go up and you want to have conversation.”

Harris also encourages people to view the film “with your friends, with your church group, with your business.” However, he has no financial interest in its commercial performance – his primary goal is public education.

“I honestly think if 99% of people on the planet were just to understand the basics of, like, what’s going on here, they would say, ‘That doesn’t sound good,’” Harris commented.

“The film is meant to be a catalyst for a broader conversation, and for a movement that’s the size of humanity,” Harris continued. “This one actually is a risk that we all face in the next single-digit number of years. It’s unlike climate change, it’s unlike specific political topics. This literally affects everyone, your well-being, your ability to put food on the table, your job, your livelihood, and I think everyone can get behind that.”

The nonprofit organization behind ChatGPT announced Tuesday it will distribute $1 billion in grants during the coming year while expanding its role as a major charitable funding source.

This announcement marks a significant expansion of OpenAI Foundation’s charitable work and provides clarity on how the organization plans to fulfill its original mission of developing artificial intelligence technology that serves all people worldwide.

“We aim to enable the use of AI to find solutions to humanity’s hardest problems, transform what people are capable of, and deliver real benefits in people’s lives — while working hard with partners to be ready for new challenges, and to help make society resilient, as AI advances,” OpenAI said in a statement Tuesday.

The organization plans to direct this new funding toward medical and life sciences research while addressing concerns about artificial intelligence’s effects on employment, economic stability, and psychological well-being, with particular attention to children’s mental health impacts.

This initiative builds upon a previous $25 billion commitment the foundation announced in October, though that earlier pledge did not specify a timeline for distribution.

The foundation also plans to hire a new executive director to manage its expanded grant distribution operations.

Originally established as a research nonprofit in 2015, OpenAI has worked to restructure its operations in recent years while developing commercial products like ChatGPT through its for-profit division, which has become one of the world’s most valuable startup companies.

Last October, OpenAI reached an agreement with government regulators that maintained the nonprofit board’s oversight of the commercial operations while creating more flexibility for investors and the company to generate profits. This arrangement also established the nonprofit’s ownership percentage in the company, which OpenAI valued at $130 billion, positioning it among the nation’s wealthiest nonprofit organizations.

Following the creation of its commercial arm in 2019, the nonprofit dramatically reduced its spending from $51 million in 2018 to just $3.3 million the next year, based on public tax documentation. According to the most recent filings with the Internal Revenue Service for 2024, the nonprofit received $4,433 in donations and awarded $7.6 million in grants.

Brian Mittendorf, an Ohio State University professor specializing in nonprofit accounting and public policy, warned that standard tax forms may not accurately reflect OpenAI’s activities or demonstrate how well the organization pursues its charitable goals.

“People tend to focus on the financial part of that,” said Mittendorf in an email. “Is the immense value creation being used to further a charitable objective? But an equally important piece is whether the product they are developing is serving humanity as they envisioned.”

During 2025, OpenAI worked to strengthen its nonprofit operations by establishing a temporary advisory board to provide non-binding recommendations on structuring its charitable activities while continuing discussions with regulators and investors about the nonprofit board’s continued control over business operations.

The advisory panel, which included labor activist Dolores Huerta, ultimately suggested that OpenAI substantially increase funding for its nonprofit activities and engage extensively with affected communities when developing its grant distribution strategy.

In December, the nonprofit announced $40.5 million in grants to community organizations focused on promoting AI education, strengthening civic engagement, and creating economic opportunities.

This expanded charitable vision emerges as communities nationwide express concerns about data centers driving up electricity prices, legal challenges claim AI chatbots worsen mental health problems, and organizations debate whether new AI technologies should be deployed in military applications.

Scientists in Japan have uncovered troubling evidence that animal cloning has serious biological limits after conducting a groundbreaking 20-year experiment with laboratory mice.

The research team created 1,206 cloned mice from a single female donor between 2005 and 2025, making new clones from each previous generation every three to four months. While the first 25 generations appeared normal and healthy, dangerous genetic defects began accumulating that eventually proved lethal.

By the 58th generation, the cloned mice—though appearing physically normal—died within days of being born due to the burden of accumulated genetic damage.

“No one has ever continued re-cloning for this long before. As a result, this is the first time we’ve discovered that repeated re-cloning eventually reaches its limits,” explained Teruhiko Wakayama, a developmental biologist at the University of Yamanashi who led the study published Tuesday in Nature Communications.

The findings challenge long-held assumptions about cloning technology and its potential applications. Scientists had previously believed that clones were perfect genetic copies of their donors.

“It was once believed that clones were identical to the original, but it has become clear through this study that mutations occur at a rate three times higher than in offspring born through natural mating,” Wakayama noted. “Because all these mutations continue to accumulate, mammals cannot sustain their species through cloning. This study has revealed one of the reasons why mammals, unlike plants and lower animals, cannot maintain their species through cloning.”

The researchers initially published promising results in 2013 covering the first 25 generations, concluding that indefinite cloning seemed possible. However, continued monitoring revealed a different story.

“At that time, we concluded that re-cloning could likely continue indefinitely. However, in that study, we did not examine the genetic sequences. We continued our research for 13 more years, and as a result, we discovered that our previous conclusion was incorrect—that is, there is a limit to re-cloning,” Wakayama said.

To understand what was happening at the molecular level, the team analyzed the complete genetic sequences of 10 clones from different generations. They discovered that serial cloning works like making photocopies of photocopies—each successive copy becomes more distorted than the last until the final result bears little resemblance to the original.

The deterioration became measurable in practical ways. Early-generation clones produced normal-sized litters of about 10 offspring when mated with regular male mice, matching typical reproduction rates. However, later generations had increasingly smaller litters as genetic damage mounted.

Starting with the 27th generation, researchers observed major chromosomal problems, including the loss of entire X chromosomes—critical genetic structures that females need two copies of for normal development.

The scientists used nuclear transfer technology, the same method that created Dolly the sheep in Scotland in 1996 and the first cloned mouse in Hawaii in 1998. This process involves transferring genetic material from a donor cell into an egg cell whose own nucleus has been removed.

“In cloning, all genes are passed on to the next generation, meaning that all defective genes are also passed on,” Wakayama explained, highlighting why sexual reproduction—which mixes genetic material from two parents—helps mammals avoid such problems.

The results have disappointed researchers who had hoped cloning technology could be refined for broader applications.

“We had believed that we could create an infinite number of clones. That is why these results are so disappointing. At this point, we have no ideas for overcoming this limitation. I believe we need to develop a new method that fundamentally improves nuclear transfer technology,” Wakayama concluded.

Countless Delaware households harbor a familiar secret: drawers and storage spaces crammed with forgotten smartphones, tablets, fitness bands, and other gadgets that have outlived their usefulness. The challenge lies in determining proper disposal methods, which often appear expensive or cumbersome.

Global electronic waste production reaches staggering levels annually. The United Nations’ latest data shows worldwide e-waste generation hit 137 billion pounds (62 million metric tons) during 2022, with proper recycling occurring for merely 22% of these discarded devices. The Environmental Protection Agency reports similar recycling rates for the United States, with less than one-quarter of electronic waste receiving appropriate processing each year.

Environmental protection requires keeping electronic waste away from landfills, as these devices harbor materials capable of causing ecological damage. Electronics also house precious metals and rare earth elements that prove difficult to obtain, making their recovery economically beneficial for companies.

“The way that we’re creating and using and disposing of these devices has generated this completely unsustainable waste stream,” said Rick Neitzel, an environmental health sciences professor at the University of Michigan. “And there’s no signs of that abating at all. In fact, the trend continues to accelerate.”

According to specialists, increased consumer participation in e-waste recycling could potentially reduce electronics pricing. Consider these recommendations.

Electronic waste recycling presents greater complexity compared to standard recyclables like plastic containers or cardboard packaging. Traditional materials can go into curbside bins or public collection points, but electronic devices require research to locate appropriate disposal facilities.

“Cardboard comes in many shapes and sizes, but at the end of the day, it’s still cardboard,” Neitzel said.

Electronic products span from tiny earpieces to massive refrigerators, each containing distinct internal materials, he explained. Processing facilities must extract individual components and materials with precision. This represents a complicated, energy-demanding, and costly operation.

However, these efforts provide significant returns. Materials including steel, aluminum, copper, gold, silver, plastics, and glass can be salvaged and repurposed, according to John Shegerian, founder of Electronic Recyclers International.

Preventing dangerous substances from reaching landfills offers additional motivation.

“These electronics — which could and have historically ended up in our landfills or in other inappropriate places — can leak all the stuff that’s contained there within: Mercury, lead, cadmium, beryllium, arsenic. All these things are horrible if they get into our environmental ecosystem,” Shegerian said.

Specialists emphasize that extracting valuable metals from devices benefits environmental conservation by reducing mining demands for these resources.

Personal information storage may discourage some consumers from recycling their devices. Specialists recommend beginning with complete factory restoration rather than simple file deletion for data protection.

Factory restoration returns devices to original configurations while thoroughly eliminating stored information. Following manufacturer guidelines proves essential, as each device requires specific procedures. Clearing Android devices involves different steps compared to iPhone data removal. The Cyber Security and Infrastructure Agency offers data protection guidance, including manufacturer instruction locations.

Factory restoration may still leave information traces, prompting some recycling facilities to completely destroy hard drives and verify their destruction. Remaining materials then undergo standard recycling procedures.

Functioning newer devices may receive manufacturer refurbishment for resale. Various charitable organizations and recycling centers can restore devices for distribution to individuals requiring technology access.

Major electronics and computer companies often provide return shipping for outdated equipment through buyback programs or partner drop-off locations. Apple provides purchase credits for sufficiently recent trade-ins while offering free recycling for older equipment.

Salvation Army and Goodwill Industries operate donation programs accepting certain used electronics, though consumers should verify specific store requirements. People should avoid overwhelming these organizations with items they cannot sell or properly dispose of.

Manufacturers remain the preferred destination even for non-refurbishable devices, according to experts.

“The manufacturers are where we want this stuff to end up because they know their products, they know best and most efficiently how to recycle them,” Neitzel said.

Retail chains including Best Buy and Staples accept various devices for recycling purposes. Best Buy offers television and large appliance removal services for fees when customers purchase replacements, then coordinates with electronics recycling companies.

Local governments typically exclude electronics from curbside recycling but frequently maintain drop-off sites listed on their websites.

“Typically, if you’re dropping them off at a government-run electronic waste collection station, you can be confident in that,” Neitzel said.

Recycle Nation enables consumers to search specific items and discover local facilities accepting those products by zip code.

Additional mail-in services include Amazon and Waste Management. Consumers can request shipping containers, fill them with unwanted electronics, and return them via mail.

Certain programs impose modest charges. Some return locations require small processing fees such as $5 per monitor, or establish costs based on return weight or carload quantities for personal drop-offs.

Recycling remains crucial for domestic mineral and rare earth supply chains even when devices cannot receive refurbishment, explained Terence Musho, an associate professor of engineering at West Virginia University.

Enhanced mineral recovery processes and improved recycling participation could benefit consumers in another way, he noted: “It can also potentially bring down the price of your future electronics.”

MOSCOW – Russian officials announced Tuesday they successfully deployed 16 satellites into low-Earth orbit as part of Moscow’s ambitious plan to compete with Elon Musk’s Starlink internet constellation.

The satellite deployment, which occurred Monday, represents Russia’s initial operational launch in their effort to challenge Starlink’s dominance. However, Moscow faces a significant gap, as Starlink has expanded to over 10,000 operational satellites since beginning service in 2019.

Bureau 1440, the Russian aerospace company behind the low-Earth orbit satellite project designed for worldwide broadband internet access, confirmed the successful launch of their inaugural operational satellite group.

“The launch of the first devices of the target group is a transition from experiment to the creation of a communication service,” the company stated.

Russia’s space program once dominated early space exploration achievements, including launching Sputnik 1 in 1957 and sending cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin as the first person to orbit Earth in 1961 during the Soviet era.

However, following the Soviet Union’s dissolution in 1991, Russia’s space initiatives have faced significant challenges including inadequate funding, corruption issues, and complaints from younger engineers regarding poor leadership.

A 2015 biography of Musk by author Ashlee Vance revealed that Russian officials rejected Musk as unreliable in 2002, which motivated him to develop alternatives to Russia’s space launch pricing.

Marine rescue specialists in northern Germany are battling against time to save a massive humpback whale that has become trapped in the shallow waters of the Baltic Sea.

The 30-foot marine mammal became stranded at Timmendorfer Strand beach, prompting rescue teams to gather Tuesday morning after overnight high tides failed to carry the whale back to safety, according to German news agency dpa.

Previous rescue attempts Monday afternoon involving police vessels, inflatable watercraft, and firefighter drones directing the operation were unsuccessful in freeing the distressed animal.

Marine conservation expert Carsten Mannheimer from Sea Shepherd reported to dpa that the whale remains conscious, continuing to breathe, vocalize, and occasionally raise its head.

Rescue operations have faced significant challenges throughout the effort.

Teams initially succeeded in repositioning the whale to face deeper waters, hoping the animal would navigate its way to safety independently, but the creature returned to its original beached position. Coast guard and fire department vessels attempted to generate large waves to dislodge the animal, but these efforts also failed, German broadcaster NDR reported.

Marine biologists explained that physically dragging the multi-ton animal back to deeper waters could cause severe injuries, making direct intervention impossible.

Sea Shepherd’s Sven Biertümpfel warned NDR that time is running out, stating: “If the whale can’t get off the beach, it’s a death sentence for the animal.” He emphasized that the whale’s health is declining each hour.

Marine experts believe the stranded animal is a juvenile male, since male humpbacks typically engage in migration patterns unlike females. The whale appears to match descriptions of the same animal observed multiple times recently in Wismar port in eastern Germany.

While the exact cause of the stranding remains unknown, rescue workers discovered fishing net fragments entangled around the whale’s body, which they successfully removed.

Local authorities have established barriers around the beach area to control large crowds of spectators gathering to observe the rescue efforts.

Police spokesperson Ulli Fritz Gerlach emphasized the importance of crowd control, explaining: “It is very important that the animal does not become even more stressed.”

GENEVA (AP) — European researchers conducted a groundbreaking experiment Tuesday, attempting the world’s first road transport of antimatter particles in what scientists call an extremely delicate operation.

The challenge involves moving approximately 100 antiprotons without allowing them to contact regular matter, which would cause instant destruction and energy release. Researchers at CERN, Europe’s premier nuclear research facility, spent four hours carefully preparing the particles for their unprecedented journey.

The antiprotons traveled inside a specialized container weighing 2,200 pounds, where they remained suspended in a vacuum using ultra-cold magnetic fields. Scientists then loaded this equipment onto a truck for a 30-minute test drive to determine whether such particles can survive road transportation.

Working with antimatter presents extraordinary challenges for researchers. Current scientific understanding indicates that every particle has a corresponding antiparticle with identical properties but opposite electrical charge.

When these opposing particles meet, they destroy each other completely, releasing significant energy based on their combined mass. Any unexpected jolts during the test journey that the specialized container couldn’t absorb would ruin the entire experiment.

Tuesday’s trial represents the initial phase of an ambitious plan to eventually transport CERN’s antiprotons to Heinrich Heine University in Düsseldorf, Germany, located roughly eight hours away by conventional driving.

Scientists enclosed the antiprotons within what they term a “transportable antiproton trap” – a device small enough to pass through standard laboratory doorways and fit aboard trucks. The system employs superconducting magnets chilled to -452 degrees Fahrenheit, keeping the antiprotons floating in vacuum without touching the container’s matter-based walls.

The quantity used in Tuesday’s experiment – equivalent to less than 100 hydrogen atoms – posed minimal risk, according to experts. Even complete failure would only result in losing the antiprotons, with any energy release so small that only specialized electrical detection equipment could measure it.

“The trap is supposed to contain these antiprotons no matter what: if the truck stops, if it starts again, if it has to slam on the brakes — all that,” explained CERN spokeswoman Sophie Tesauri. However, significant work remains since the containment system can only hold antiprotons independently for four hours, while the German destination requires double that travel time.

CERN gained worldwide recognition for its Large Hadron Collider, a massive magnetic system that propels particles through a 17-mile underground ring, crashing them together at nearly light speed while scientists analyze the collision results.

Yet the expansive research complex accomplishes far more than particle collisions – notably, British scientist Tim Berners-Lee created the World Wide Web there in 1989.

Heinrich Heine University offers superior conditions for detailed antiproton research because CERN’s numerous ongoing projects create substantial magnetic interference that can compromise antimatter studies.

However, successfully delivering antiprotons to Germany requires preventing any contact with matter during the entire journey.

CERN’s Antiproton Decelerator produces these particles by firing proton beams into metal blocks, creating collisions that generate various secondary particles including numerous antiprotons. Officials describe it as the world’s only machine capable of producing low-energy antiprotons for antimatter research.

Laboratory representatives say CERN’s “Antimatter Factory” stands as the planet’s sole facility where scientists can preserve and examine antiprotons.

The research center has conducted antimatter experiments for many years, achieving major advances in measuring, storing and understanding antimatter behavior. Two years earlier, the team successfully moved approximately 70 regular protons – not antiprotons – across CERN’s campus grounds.

This latest attempt follows similar procedures, though antiprotons demand much superior vacuum chambers, according to Christian Smorra, who leads the team that designed the antimatter storage and transport equipment.

Nervous research teams declined interviews before the experiment but planned to discuss results following Tuesday’s completion.

Chinese technology company Alibaba introduced its latest XuanTie C950 processor during a company conference on Tuesday, according to local media reports from Beijing.

The new 5-nanometer server processor operates at 3.2 GHz and utilizes open-source RISC-V chip architecture. During the presentation hosted by DAMO Academy, Alibaba’s research division, the company described the chip as “the highest performing RISC-V CPU in the world,” media outlets reported.

Performance testing shows the new processor operates more than three times faster compared to the previous XuanTie C920 model, according to the reports. Company officials did not disclose which manufacturing facility produced the chip.

Alibaba has not yet responded to requests for additional information about the processor.

The technology giant is expanding its internal chip development efforts through its T-Head semiconductor division. While the company primarily concentrates on its Zhenwu 810E chip line for AI training and processing, the XuanTie series targets high-performance cloud computing systems and advanced AI applications.

This processor announcement follows Alibaba’s recent launch of Wukong, an enterprise platform designed for AI agent workflows, as Chinese companies and organizations increasingly adopt OpenClaw technology. The company also released Accio Work on Monday, the international version of its AI platform that claims to independently manage complex business operations for small and medium-sized companies.

Earlier this month, Alibaba restructured several AI-focused teams under its newly established Alibaba Token Hub, which concentrates on developing AI workplace platforms for business customers.

This strategic direction reflects Alibaba’s efforts to maintain profitability as Chinese AI model pricing has significantly decreased due to intense competition within the domestic market.

A Chinese autonomous vehicle startup is making bold claims about its latest artificial intelligence technology, with the company’s leader stating the AI has become a more skilled driver than he is while navigating busy urban environments.

Shen Shaojie, the 39-year-old chief executive of ZYT, will showcase what his company terms a “mobility foundation model” during April’s Beijing auto show. This represents a significant shift from traditional autonomous driving development methods, according to Shen’s recent interview with Reuters.

Unlike conventional systems that use separate components to identify vehicles, pedestrians, and traffic signals while being trained for specific regions and traffic conditions, ZYT’s approach allows the AI to learn driving independently, Shen explained.

The company’s AI training involved more than just road footage. Shen revealed that engineers incorporated video content from aerial drones, robotic devices, household cleaning robots, motorcycles, and even handheld cameras carried by people walking.

This diverse training approach enables the system to function across different vehicle categories and locations in ways that traditional systems cannot match, he noted. The technology could potentially control future autonomous robots and other mobile devices as well.

This development emerges as China pushes to integrate AI throughout its economy, following Xi Jinping’s initiative to create “new productive forces” as a response to U.S. restrictions on dual-use technologies. The advancement highlights the intense competition in AI-powered driving between Tesla and various Chinese manufacturers and suppliers, including Xpeng.

ZYT originated as a spinoff from DJI, the drone manufacturer currently under U.S. sanctions due to national security concerns identified by American agencies. DJI maintains ownership in ZYT through an affiliated company.

The startup competes against Huawei’s smart driving division and Momenta in the rapidly expanding AI-powered driving sector, where Tesla and Xpeng also compete.

“If you can get six months of advantage, that’s already a huge thing,” Shen observed about the quickly evolving technology environment.

ZYT aims for a Hong Kong stock exchange listing potentially by 2027, Shen disclosed, as the company capitalizes on commercial partnerships in China’s trucking industry and a recent major investment from state-owned FAW Group. “The potential quickest is somewhere sometime 2027,” Shen told Reuters.

Regarding the AI’s driving capabilities, Shen confirmed it exceeds his own skills, particularly when maneuvering through tight spaces with approaching traffic and navigating school zones with children present in Shenzhen.

“It actually drives better than me,” he stated.

During a test drive, his engineering team highlighted a crucial difference in this advanced AI. “We don’t know what the car is thinking,” they informed him, demonstrating how sophisticated current AI versions have become.

“The model is thinking in its own internal brain,” Shen added.

The company has established partnerships with five of China’s six major truck manufacturers, representing over 98% of the domestic market. In January, ZYT announced plans to deploy highway truck driving systems with three Chinese manufacturers – XCMG, SHACMAN, and SINOTRUK – during the first half of this year.

Adapting ZYT’s passenger vehicle AI for commercial trucks required approximately six weeks, Shen said.

The trucking sector presents a stronger business case than passenger vehicles because advanced driving technology can provide immediate cost reductions, Shen explained. ZYT’s system can achieve “low single-digit (percentage) savings” in fuel consumption, he said.

Late last year, FAW Group acquired a 35.8% stake in ZYT from New Territory, a DJI-affiliated holding company that retains 34.85% ownership. Shen indicated this transaction would address compliance concerns for international customers, since DJI no longer holds majority control. FAW now represents ZYT’s largest shareholder.

Currently, ZYT’s foundation model operates on costly, high-performance computing equipment typically found in robotaxis and experimental vehicles, not consumer automobiles. The company is developing methods to adapt it for less expensive, mainstream processors, work that Shen described as “still ongoing.” The first consumer vehicle incorporating the system is anticipated in 2027.

Volkswagen, whose Chinese partner is FAW, became ZYT’s initial customer. Xpeng also partners with VW for driving systems through its VLA 2.0 technology.

ZYT has created an engineering and regulatory presence near Volkswagen’s Wolfsburg headquarters, where it has been evaluating a prototype from FAW’s Hongqi brand on European roadways.

The United States remains outside ZYT’s expansion plans. “We will keep ourselves away from the market at this moment,” Shen explained. “The rest of the world is already picking up.”

A Norwegian technology company with backing from Microsoft has secured $40 million in investment funding to advance revolutionary semiconductor manufacturing equipment, the firm announced Monday.

Lace, based in Bergen, Norway, is developing cutting-edge technology that could transform how computer chips are made and designed. The startup’s innovation centers on a new method for creating the intricate circuits that power today’s most advanced artificial intelligence processors.

Traditional semiconductor production relies on lithography processes that utilize light beams to etch complex circuit patterns onto silicon wafers. Major chip manufacturers like Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co and Intel depend on specialized lithography equipment from Netherlands-based ASML, which currently dominates this critical market segment.

However, Lace has pioneered a different methodology entirely. The company’s engineers have created a lithography system that employs helium atom beams rather than light-based technology. This breakthrough approach enables the creation of chip components that are ten times smaller than what existing methods can achieve, according to CEO Bodil Holst.

“Our technology is a way that can potentially expand the roadmap and be an enabler for doing things that would not have been possible otherwise,” Holst explained during a recent interview.

The helium atom beam technology offers remarkable precision advantages. John Petersen, Scientific Director of Lithography at industry research hub Imec, describes the potential for creating transistors and other chip elements at an “almost unimaginable” scale reduction.

The technical specifications highlight this dramatic difference in precision. Lace’s helium beam measures approximately 0.1 nanometers wide – roughly equivalent to a single hydrogen atom. By comparison, ASML’s current light-based systems operate with beams measuring 13.5 nanometers, while a human hair spans about 100,000 nanometers in width.

This enhanced miniaturization capability would allow semiconductor manufacturers to dramatically boost the performance of AI processors beyond current limitations. Holst noted that their technology could enable chip production at “ultimately atomic resolution.”

The Series A funding round received leadership from Atomico, with additional capital provided by Microsoft’s investment division M12, along with Linse Capital, Spain’s Society for Technological Transformation, and Nysnø. The company chose not to disclose its current valuation.

Lace has already developed prototype systems and projects having a testing system operational in a pilot semiconductor fabrication facility by approximately 2029. The company shared its research findings through an invited paper presentation at a scientific lithography conference in February.

This funding comes as investors and government entities show renewed interest in semiconductor manufacturing technology, particularly as new startups emerge seeking to challenge established industry leaders like ASML.

A congressional advisory panel issued a warning Monday that Chinese artificial intelligence companies are establishing a powerful competitive position through open-source technology, potentially undermining America’s leadership in the field despite ongoing restrictions on chip exports to China.

The U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission released findings showing that affordable Chinese language models from companies like Alibaba, Moonshot and MiniMax now lead global usage statistics on major platforms including HuggingFace and OpenRouter.

According to the commission’s analysis, China’s strategy of implementing AI across multiple industries – from manufacturing plants to logistics systems and robotics – is creating valuable real-world information that helps improve their models.

“This open ecosystem enables China to innovate close to the frontier despite significant compute constraints,” the commission stated in Monday’s report.

The panel added that “Chinese labs have narrowed performance gaps with top Western large language models.”

Since 2022, American legislators have implemented multiple waves of export controls targeting China, preventing the country from obtaining the most sophisticated AI processing chips. However, Washington did authorize sales of Nvidia’s second-tier chip technology in December.

Meanwhile, American firms such as OpenAI, which developed ChatGPT, and Anthropic, the company behind Claude, along with established technology corporations, have poured billions into maintaining their technological edge.

However, their market position may face challenges.

“Open model proliferation creates alternative pathways to AI leadership,” according to the report’s findings.

Research indicates that approximately 80 percent of American AI startup companies now utilize Chinese open-source artificial intelligence models.

DeepSeek’s innovative R1 model, released in the previous year, rapidly surpassed ChatGPT to become the top downloaded application on America’s App Store. Additionally, Alibaba’s Qwen model series has exceeded Meta’s Llama in worldwide download totals, based on HuggingFace data.

The report suggests that as artificial intelligence evolution moves beyond language models toward autonomous AI systems and physical robotics applications, China may be better positioned to leverage its extensive data gathering capabilities for developing humanoid robots, self-driving vehicle technology, and dual-use applications.

“There’s a bit of a deployment gap in the embodied AI space between the U.S. and China. That’s something that over time compounds itself … We’re starting to see that compounding now,” Michael Kuiken, the commission’s vice-chair, explained in a Reuters interview.

Kuiken noted that the commission is also monitoring China’s AI applications in biotechnology, quantum computing, and advanced materials sectors.

Chinese leadership has identified embodied AI as a critical strategic industry for the future, with numerous prominent Chinese robotics companies planning to go public this year.

Despite concerns raised by Western research institutions about potential security vulnerabilities and political biases in Chinese open-source AI systems that favor Beijing’s governmental positions, many corporations continue adopting these technologies.

Siemens CEO Roland Busch stated Monday that his company sees “no disadvantages” in using Chinese open-source AI for training their industrial automation models, highlighting cost benefits and flexible customization options.

GENEVA – A comprehensive climate assessment released Monday by the United Nations meteorological organization has documented unprecedented global warming, revealing that the span from 2015 to 2025 constitutes the warmest period since temperature monitoring commenced in 1850.

According to the World Meteorological Organization’s latest State of the Global Climate assessment, 2025 secured its position as either the second or third warmest year ever recorded, with global temperatures measuring approximately 1.43 degrees Celsius higher than pre-industrial baselines.

The findings validate previous WMO analyses that identified 2025 among the three warmest years in documented history. The organization’s data also established 2024 as the single hottest year on record, with temperatures soaring 1.55 degrees Celsius beyond pre-industrial measurements.

Ice loss emerged as another alarming indicator, with glacier retreat at monitored locations ranking among the five most severe on record. The report highlighted particularly dramatic ice losses across Iceland and North America.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres delivered stark warnings about the climate findings. “The state of the global climate is in a state of emergency. Planet Earth is being pushed beyond its limits. Every key climate indicator is flashing red,” Guterres stated.

These temperature increases carry significant implications for international climate commitments. Under the 2015 Paris Agreement, world governments established goals to prevent global warming from surpassing 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial temperatures.

Russian space officials achieved a significant milestone Sunday when they successfully launched a spacecraft from their newly repaired Baikonur facility in Kazakhstan, marking the first time since last year that the country could access the International Space Station from this critical launch site.

The Soyuz-2.1a rocket, carrying the Progress MS-33 cargo vessel, took flight at 1200 GMT and successfully reached orbit, according to Russia’s space agency. Officials expect the cargo spacecraft to arrive at the International Space Station on March 24.

The Baikonur launch facility had remained unusable since sustaining significant damage in November during the departure of Soyuz MS-28, which carried two Russian cosmonauts and one NASA astronaut. Although the crew members reached the space station without injury, the launch caused extensive damage that left Russia unable to transport personnel or supplies to the ISS for several months.

Despite Russia operating additional space facilities within its borders and Baikonur housing multiple launch sites, this particular damaged platform served as the exclusive launch point for Soyuz rockets that transport both crew capsules and Progress supply vehicles to the space station.

BEIJING, March 22 – Chinese technology giant Tencent unveiled a new feature Sunday that connects its massively popular WeChat messaging service to an artificial intelligence assistant, escalating competition in China’s rapidly evolving AI marketplace.

The new tool, dubbed ClawBot, appears as a regular contact within WeChat and enables the app’s more than one billion monthly users to communicate directly with the OpenClaw AI system. Through WeChat’s familiar messaging format, users can send instructions and receive responses from the artificial intelligence assistant.

This development arrives as OpenClaw, a publicly available AI system capable of handling tasks like file transfers and email management for users, has experienced growing popularity in recent weeks.

Chinese consumers have eagerly adopted and tested various AI assistant products, spurring technology companies to seek new revenue opportunities despite government warnings about potential security concerns.

Tencent’s WeChat partnership builds upon the company’s earlier March introduction of its comprehensive AI assistant collection, which includes QClaw for personal use, Lighthouse targeting software developers, and WorkBuddy designed for business customers.

Just last week, rival company Alibaba introduced Wukong, a business-focused artificial intelligence system that manages multiple AI assistants to tackle complicated workplace functions such as document creation and meeting transcription through one unified platform.

Competitor Baidu responded rapidly by releasing its own collection of OpenClaw-powered AI assistants across various platforms, including computer software, online services, mobile applications, and connected home devices.

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Environmental advocates are raising concerns that the Trump administration is dismantling air quality protections that have dramatically improved visibility at national parks and wilderness areas across the country.

The controversy centers around a dramatic policy shift involving West Virginia’s pollution control strategy. Twelve months ago, federal environmental officials rejected the state’s proposal to reduce sulfur emissions and smog over protected wilderness areas, citing inadequate analysis by a dozen coal-fired facilities regarding upgraded pollution controls.

However, six months after President Trump’s administration took control of the Environmental Protection Agency, those same officials approved the identical proposal. The agency now says technology assessments aren’t required if visibility improvements meet projected targets.

Environmental groups point to this reversal as evidence of a broader effort by the Trump EPA to weaken pollution restrictions that have successfully cleaned the air above treasured national parks and wilderness areas for more than two decades.

The federal regional haze regulation mandates that states develop comprehensive plans every decade to reduce emissions and track air pollution across more than 150 protected areas, including national parks, wilderness zones, wildlife refuges and tribal lands spanning 36 states.

Since implementation began in 1999, over 90% of protected parks and wilderness areas have experienced significant reductions in sulfur and smog emissions, with decreases totaling hundreds of thousands of tons each year. Visual range improvements have been substantial, with some Western parks seeing average visibility increase from 90 miles to 120 miles, according to Harvard Law School’s Environmental and Energy Law Program.

However, energy industry representatives contend these regulations have accomplished their intended purpose and now impose excessive financial burdens. EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin announced in March 2025 the agency’s intention to review and potentially eliminate 31 major environmental regulations, including the regional haze rule, to reduce regulatory constraints on fossil fuel companies.

While the EPA continues collecting public input on modifying the federal regulation, conservation groups argue the agency has already undermined standards by rejecting state proposals deemed too restrictive on polluters while approving weaker plans previously rejected under the Biden administration.

“They’re blessing states that haven’t done a good enough job and they’re dramatically changing course on states like West Virginia, like California, like Hawaii, like Colorado,” said Ulla Reeves, director of the National Parks Conservation Association’s clean air program. “They’re using these reversals and those changes to achieve their agenda of letting polluting facilities stay online.”

EPA spokesperson Brigit Hirsch responded in a statement that the agency remains committed to legal compliance and cannot approve state proposals that violate federal law.

The day following Trump’s January 2025 inauguration, the EPA indicated it would reject West Virginia’s submission. Agency officials noted that state authorities chose not to require eight coal-burning facilities to evaluate whether additional pollution-reduction technology was necessary to maintain progress toward natural visibility standards at multiple East Coast national parks and wilderness areas.

While the state requested evaluations from five facilities, only one complied. One plant cited existing federal emission restrictions, while others claimed they were already meeting visibility standards.

Six months later, the EPA reversed its position and approved the plan, implementing a new policy stating that state proposals are acceptable if visibility improvements surpass projections at affected national parks and wilderness areas. West Virginia had demonstrated such improvements.

The National Parks Conservation Association, Sierra Club, and environmental law firm Earthjustice have filed a lawsuit against the EPA, claiming the new policy enabled West Virginia to avoid implementing pollution reductions and threatens air quality at national parks including Shenandoah, Great Smoky Mountains, and Mammoth Cave, already among the nation’s haziest parks.

Environmental advocates warn the new policy creates broad implications. While visibility levels might achieve benchmarks due to plant closures or fuel switching, relying exclusively on those measurements allows still-polluting facilities to avoid taking action, explained Joshua Smith, a Sierra Club attorney.

The Biden-era EPA had planned to reject California’s proposal as early as 2024 because state officials failed to consider pollutants beyond smog and didn’t justify their decision not to evaluate pollution levels at numerous refineries and airports. The Trump EPA approved the plan last summer partly because visibility was meeting benchmarks.

“We view this (new policy) as a backdoor way to kick the can down the road,” Smith said.

Both the EPA and West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection declined to comment on pending litigation.

This January, Trump’s EPA rejected Colorado’s plan primarily because it would have forced closure of a coal-burning facility near Pueblo without Colorado Springs Utilities’ consent, according to EPA documents. The agency highlighted the utility’s concerns about closure impacts on state electricity supply and potential legal issues with forced closure. Colorado has challenged the rejection in federal court in Denver.

“EPA’s action is not based on a failure to meet regional haze requirements or visibility protections, which Colorado continues to meet,” Michael Ogletree, senior director of state air quality programs, told The Associated Press.

Hawaii’s proposal includes closing six boilers at two power facilities on Hawaii and Maui islands, plus potentially shutting down several diesel generators on Maui. While the EPA hasn’t reached a final decision, it signaled in February its intention to reject those closures, citing similar concerns to Colorado about demonstrating legal authority for shutdowns.

The EPA has also cautioned that the Trump administration won’t support states pursuing plant closures to meet regional haze requirements and that states must consider how plant closure or pollution reduction technology affects electrical grid reliability.

“Coal-fired power plants are essential sources of baseload power necessary for addressing surging energy demand, increases in American manufacturing, national security interests, and turning the United States into the Artificial Intelligence capital of the world,” the agency stated in rejecting Colorado’s plan. “Ensuring affordable and reliable energy supplies is a top priority of the Trump administration.”

Neither the U.S. Energy Association, a consortium of utilities, engineers and government agencies promoting domestic energy access, nor the American Coal Council, which supports the coal industry, responded to requests for comment.

Jim Schaberl, former air and water quality manager at Shenandoah National Park in northern Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains, located less than 100 miles from West Virginia, witnessed firsthand the transformation in air quality.

When he began working at the park in 2008, a sooty, yellowish-brown haze from West Virginia coal facilities frequently blanketed the park. Today, he noted, visibility has improved so dramatically that hikers can distinguish the Washington Monument 75 miles eastward. Trump’s policies threaten to reverse all those gains, he warned.

“To try to resurrect coal is like digging up a grave, and this administration wants to dig up that grave,” Schaberl said. “It’s nonsensical and, I think, lawless.”

Six decades after Neil Armstrong’s brush with death during the Gemini 8 space mission, rare photographs documenting his dramatic return to Earth have surfaced at an Ohio museum dedicated to the legendary astronaut.

Armstrong and his crewmate David Scott were forced to cut their mission short following a life-threatening crisis that required an emergency landing in waters near Okinawa, Japan.

The remarkable images were captured by Ron McQueeney, a military veteran and skilled photographer who accompanied the astronauts during their recovery. His widow recently donated these historic photographs to the Armstrong Air and Space Museum.

Because the emergency landing was unexpected, very few reporters were present to document the event, though NASA and military photographers were on hand. Personnel like McQueeney, who were suddenly called in to assist with rescue efforts, became crucial witnesses to this dramatic chapter in space history.

“Sometimes, an incredible event can actually be documented by some of the most ordinary means,” said Dante Centuori, executive director of the Armstrong Air and Space Museum in Wapakoneta, Armstrong’s western Ohio hometown.

The donated photographs reveal Armstrong and Scott standing on a Navy ship’s deck and greeting military personnel on shore. Another striking image captures the Gemini 8 capsule being hoisted skyward for transportation.

The mission had aimed to achieve the first successful spacecraft docking in orbit. However, just moments after this historic accomplishment, both vehicles began spinning wildly out of control. The crew disconnected from the target spacecraft, but their dangerous rotation only intensified.

Armstrong took decisive action, firing the spacecraft’s control thrusters to halt the deadly spin. This maneuver consumed precious fuel reserves needed for their safe return, forcing mission controllers to abort the flight for safety reasons.

The astronauts touched down in the Pacific Ocean roughly 10 hours after their March 16, 1966 departure. A rescue vessel retrieved them and transported them to Naha Air Base in Japan.

Centuori noted that what stands out most in the photographs are the broad smiles on both astronauts’ faces, demonstrating their composure and professionalism even after surviving such a dangerous ordeal.

Space historian Robert Poole offered a different interpretation of their expressions.

“The obvious thing that sticks out to me is that they are very happy to be alive,” said Poole, of the University of Lancashire.

According to Poole, Armstrong’s calm response during this crisis became a deciding factor in his selection as commander for the historic Apollo 11 moon landing mission.

With NASA preparing for its upcoming Artemis lunar mission scheduled for April, these vintage images serve as a powerful reminder of space exploration’s inherent risks and challenges.

Current space travel frequency might make missions appear routine, but the reality remains far different.

“Seeing people launch to space frequently can suggest that it’s easy, but it’s very hard. And it requires a lot of resources and attention,” said Emily Margolis, a curator at the National Air and Space Museum.

The museum plans to use these newly acquired photographs to enhance their Gemini 8 exhibit, which already features the actual spacecraft capsule that carried Armstrong and Scott through their perilous journey.

PIKETON, Ohio — Federal officials on Friday revealed plans for a massive artificial intelligence data center at a shuttered nuclear facility in southern Ohio, marking a significant step in the administration’s push to expand AI infrastructure across the country.

The former Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant in Pike County will be transformed into what’s being called the “PORTS Technology Campus,” featuring 10 gigawatts of data processing capability alongside new power generation facilities totaling up to 10 gigawatts, including 9.2 gigawatts from natural gas plants, according to Department of Energy officials.

The decommissioned uranium enrichment facility was among 16 federal properties identified last year as potential locations where the energy department could invite technology firms to establish data management and storage operations.

President Trump recently met with technology executives at the White House, urging them to develop dedicated power sources for their energy-demanding facilities. The Ohio initiative incorporates both on-site power generation and grid connectivity, plus billions in transmission infrastructure improvements, officials stated.

Energy Secretary Chris Wright, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum traveled to Piketon Friday to announce the initiative, joined by representatives from SoftBank Group, a Japanese investment firm, and its subsidiary SB Energy.

Through SB Energy, SoftBank will collaborate with AEP Ohio to construct the power generation and transmission systems, including a $4.2 billion investment in grid improvements and new transmission infrastructure that won’t increase customer electricity bills, according to the companies.

The energy department described the project as part of the U.S.-Japan Strategic Trade and Investment Agreement that Trump announced previously. Officials said the plan involves $33.3 billion in Japanese financing connected to the natural gas power component.

Wright stated the project would “add power generation, create jobs, and ensure the United States wins the AI race,” while Lutnick characterized it as part of broader efforts to “reindustrialize the country” through major energy and infrastructure developments.

The announcement comes just days after rural Ohio residents submitted a petition seeking to place a constitutional prohibition on mega data centers on the state ballot, reflecting growing opposition over environmental, economic and social impacts of AI infrastructure.

Ohio currently holds the fifth position nationally for data center facilities, hosting approximately 200 locations, according to the Office of the Ohio Consumers’ Counsel, which advocates for utility customers. Major technology companies including Google, Amazon Web Services and Meta operate projects there.

SoftBank is working with OpenAI and Oracle on Stargate, an AI infrastructure program designed to expand large-scale U.S. data center capacity for artificial intelligence applications, potentially involving $500 billion in investment. Last autumn, the three companies indicated a Midwest location would be included in their collaboration.

Construction on the Portsmouth facility is scheduled to commence this year and will generate thousands of employment opportunities while supporting research in fusion energy, quantum computing and national security technologies, energy department officials said. They also noted that surplus power produced at the location would be returned to the electrical grid to help reduce regional electricity costs.

The artificial intelligence revolution that’s already creating shortages in specialized memory chips may soon trigger supply constraints for storage drives as well, according to a technology industry executive speaking at a major conference this week.

Greg Matson, a senior vice president at Solidigm, the American storage division of South Korean tech giant SK Hynix, warned that AI’s voracious appetite for data could strain storage supplies through the end of the decade. His comments came during Nvidia’s annual developer conference in San Jose, California, where industry leaders gathered to discuss the latest AI developments.

The storage supply concerns mirror existing problems with high-bandwidth memory chips, which work alongside processors in AI servers. Earlier this week, SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won predicted these memory chip shortages could persist until 2030 due to surging demand for AI technology.

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang highlighted the growing pressure on storage systems during his Monday keynote presentation. “The storage system is going to get pounded,” Huang told conference attendees, as the company unveiled new technologies designed to accelerate data transfer from storage devices to processing chips.

The challenge stems from AI software’s ability to extract valuable insights from massive datasets that were previously too complex for human analysis. This capability is driving unprecedented demand for solid state drives used in business applications, Matson explained.

According to Matson’s projections, AI systems launching later this year will require 35% more storage capacity compared to existing technology. “It’s going to be tight,” he said when discussing storage memory supplies between now and 2030.

While Solidigm plans to introduce higher-capacity drives and increase manufacturing capacity, Matson acknowledged the company cannot meet the surging demand. “We’ll be coming out with higher-density drives from a silicon perspective later this year, and even expanding our manufacturing output as well,” he explained. “But can we keep up? No, we can’t. I could sell twice as much as I am today.”

Spring fishing enthusiasts in Virginia are getting expert advice from state wildlife officials as the season kicks into gear, with walleye, yellow perch, and black crappie taking center stage.

The Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources is providing an inside look at current fishing conditions, featuring work by biologists in the southwestern part of the state. These experts are sharing exclusive details about walleye collection efforts currently underway on both the New and Clinch Rivers.

Along with the field updates, wildlife officials are offering specialized strategies for anglers hoping to land yellow perch and black crappie during the early spring period. The department is also featuring their monthly highlight of notable catches from across the state.

Anglers looking to improve their success rates are encouraged to review the department’s walleye fishing predictions and additional fishing reports available through their official resources.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — NASA has once again transported its lunar rocket from its assembly hangar to the launch pad on Friday, marking the second such move this year as the space agency prepares to send four astronauts on a moon mission next month.

The Space Launch System rocket could potentially launch as soon as April 1 from Kennedy Space Center in Florida, assuming recent repairs hold up and other conditions align favorably. The Artemis II astronaut crew entered quarantine protocols this week while stationed in Houston.

The towering 322-foot rocket started its gradual 4-mile journey during overnight hours, carried by one of the enormous crawler vehicles that have been in service since the Apollo program of the 1960s. The transport operation was scheduled to span 12 hours but encountered delays due to strong winds.

The mission will feature three American astronauts and one Canadian crew member who will travel around the moon inside their spacecraft before returning directly to Earth without landing. This mission was originally scheduled to be completed already, but technical problems including hydrogen fuel leaks and blocked helium lines caused a two-month postponement.

Engineers were able to address the fuel leak problems while the rocket remained at the launch site, but resolving the helium line blockages required returning the vehicle to the Vehicle Assembly Building, prompting NASA to move the rocket back in late February.

NASA’s last crewed lunar mission occurred during Apollo 17 in 1972. The current Artemis program has set a goal of achieving a two-person moon landing by 2028.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — NASA has once again transported its massive lunar rocket from its repair facility to the launch pad at Kennedy Space Center, marking the second such move this year as the agency prepares to send four astronauts on a journey around the moon next month.

The space agency is targeting April 1 as the earliest possible launch date for the Space Launch System rocket, provided recent repairs hold up and no additional problems arise. The four-person Artemis II crew entered quarantine protocols this week at their Houston training facility.

The towering 322-foot rocket started its careful 4-mile journey to the launch pad during overnight hours Friday, riding on the same massive crawler vehicle that has been in service since the Apollo missions of the 1960s. Officials anticipated the transport would require approximately 12 hours to complete, though strong winds caused several hours of additional delays.

The international crew, consisting of three American astronauts and one Canadian, will travel around the moon in their spacecraft before returning directly to Earth without landing. This mission was originally scheduled to occur months ago, but problems with hydrogen fuel systems and blocked helium lines resulted in a two-month postponement.

Repair crews were able to address the fuel leaks while the rocket remained at the launch pad, but the helium system problems required the specialized equipment available only in the Vehicle Assembly Building, necessitating the rocket’s return to the hangar in late February.

NASA has not launched astronauts to lunar orbit since the Apollo 17 mission concluded in 1972. The current Artemis program has set a goal of returning astronauts to the moon’s surface by 2028, with plans for a two-person landing mission.

TOKYO — Small unmanned aircraft have captured unprecedented footage from within a severely damaged nuclear reactor at Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi power plant, marking the first time officials have gotten a clear view of the pressure vessel’s bottom since the catastrophic meltdown occurred 15 years ago.

The remarkable video reveals a significant breach in the reactor’s heavy steel containment structure, with chunks of what appears to be solidified nuclear fuel material suspended from the opening like massive frozen drips.

These miniature flying devices — each measuring roughly 12 by 13 centimeters and weighing just 95 grams — conducted a two-week exploration mission inside Unit 3 to gather visual evidence, radiation readings, and other critical information. Officials made the footage public on Thursday.

The devastating earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan on March 11, 2011, knocked out power systems at Fukushima Daiichi, leading to core meltdowns in three separate reactors.

Those three units now contain approximately 880 tons of melted radioactive material, with radiation levels that remain extremely hazardous. Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings, the facility’s operator, managed to extract small samples of melted fuel from Unit 2 last year, though much about the internal conditions remains unknown.

The power company intends to conduct additional remote investigations and sampling operations to study the melted material and create robotic systems for eventual debris extraction — a process specialists estimate will require several more decades.

Getting the drones as near as possible to the pressure vessel’s base represented a key objective for this latest investigation, according to Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings officials.

Beginning March 5, the remote-controlled aircraft conducted several individual flights, navigating carefully around wreckage, damaged equipment, and other barriers to film the primary containment area, particularly around the pressure vessel’s lower section.

The recorded material displayed ruptured piping and other compromised structures that were once housed within the now-breached pressure vessel. The footage also captured brown and gray masses suspended in formations resembling enormous icicles.

Company representative Masaki Kuwajima confirmed that officials verified the existence of an opening at the vessel’s bottom, stating that the hanging formations, clumps, and deposits are thought to be solidified nuclear fuel debris.

The aircraft also gathered radiation data and measurements to create a comprehensive three-dimensional blueprint of Unit 3’s interior, Kuwajima explained. “We have obtained valuable data that can be used for our future internal investigations and to develop melted fuel debris removal strategy.”

This recent drone operation occurred almost ten years following a previous underwater robotic investigation that produced less detailed images of Unit 3’s internal conditions.

Three high school students from Tennessee have filed a legal action against Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence company xAI, alleging the firm’s image-creation technology was utilized to transform authentic photographs of them into sexually explicit content.

The students, requesting to remain anonymous in court documents, submitted their case in California where xAI maintains its corporate offices. They are pursuing class-action designation to represent what their legal filing describes as thousands of similar victims who were underage when explicit images were generated of them.

The legal documents reveal that Jane Doe 1 received an anonymous tip in December alerting her that sexually explicit images bearing her likeness were being shared on a social media platform.

“At least five of these files, one video and four images, depicted her actual face and body in settings with which she was familiar, but morphed into sexually explicit poses,” the lawsuit states. The filing alleges that the individual sharing these images was acquainted with Doe and employed xAI’s image-creation technology to transform legitimate photographs into sexually abusive material. One image originated from a homecoming photograph, while another came from her high school yearbook.

The individual responsible also generated explicit content featuring at least 18 additional girls, with two of them joining as co-plaintiffs in the case. Law enforcement officials apprehended the perpetrator in late December and seized his mobile device. Investigators discovered he had uploaded the images to multiple platforms where he exchanged them for sexually explicit content of other minors.

While competing AI companies have banned their image-creation tools from producing any sexually explicit material, including adult content, Musk viewed this as a market opportunity and advertised xAI’s Grok chatbot’s capability to generate “spicy” content, according to the lawsuit. The legal filing argues that current technology cannot prevent adult explicit image generation while simultaneously blocking all child imagery. It further alleges that xAI understood Grok could produce sexually explicit images of children but proceeded with its release regardless.

The lawsuit contends that the person who shared images of the plaintiffs utilized an application that had licensed xAI’s technology or “otherwise purchased its access to Grok, and was used as a cut-out or middleman.”

XAI has not responded to requests for comment from The Associated Press. However, a January 14th statement posted on social media platform X declared: “We remain committed to making X a safe platform for everyone and continue to have zero tolerance for any forms of child sexual exploitation, non-consensual nudity, and unwanted sexual content.

“We take action to remove high-priority violative content, including Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) and non-consensual nudity, taking appropriate action against accounts that violate our X Rules. We also report accounts seeking Child Sexual Exploitation materials to law enforcement authorities as necessary.”

The students involved in the legal action express concern that the fabricated images will remain permanently accessible online. They fear potential stalking since their actual first names and school identification are connected to the files. The students worry that peers and classmates may have viewed the realistic-appearing photos and videos, and they remain anxious about future viewers.

Jane Doe 1 reports experiencing anxiety, depression, and stress. “She has difficulty eating and sleeping and suffers from recurring nightmares,” the lawsuit states. Jane Doe 2 “has begun self-isolating and avoiding being on her school campus, and even dreads attending her own graduation.” Jane Doe 3 experiences persistent fear and anxiety that someone will discover the AI-created images and identify her face, according to the court filing.

The artificial intelligence company OpenAI is reportedly working on a comprehensive desktop application that would bring together multiple tools under one roof, according to a Wall Street Journal report published Thursday.

The proposed “superapp” would combine the company’s popular ChatGPT chatbot, its Codex programming platform, and web browsing capabilities into a single desktop program designed to streamline how users interact with these services.

When contacted by Reuters for verification, OpenAI had not provided a response as of the report’s publication. Reuters was unable to confirm the details independently.

MEDINA, Ohio — Treasure hunters are spreading across Ohio communities this week, searching for pieces of a massive 7-ton space rock that exploded over Earth after creating a spectacular light show visible from hundreds of miles away.

The space object disintegrated around 9 a.m. Tuesday above Valley City, located about 30 minutes south of Cleveland, traveling at approximately 45,000 miles per hour through Earth’s atmosphere. The explosion created powerful sound waves that shook buildings and alarmed residents who feared something had exploded nearby. The brilliant fireball was spotted from Wisconsin all the way to Maryland, with NASA verifying the meteoroid measured nearly 6 feet across.

One Medina resident, December Harris, didn’t need to search far — her cousin and housemate, Ambra Sinclair, discovered a small dark rock they believe came from space while heading to work. The pair had heard the thunderous boom Tuesday morning but assumed it came from aircraft activity at a local airport.

Harris explained that her roommate discovered the rock late Wednesday morning in a 4-foot space between their garage and home. She characterized it as triangular in shape, measuring under 2 inches across and described it as “very, very black,” featuring surface pits, grooves and an exterior with a melted appearance.

Space rocks travel at extremely high velocities when they suddenly encounter Earth’s atmospheric gases, creating enormous pressure as they compress the air ahead of them. This process heats the rock, causing it to melt and fragment.

The dark rock was clearly out of place at Harris’ property.

“I’ve got a cleaned-off driveway,” explained Harris, a 70-year-old retired business owner. “There’s nothing like this around.”

Having heard advice about not handling meteorites directly, they used a napkin to collect it and stored it in a jar. Harris is now seeking ways to verify its authenticity — though NASA’s phone line went unanswered despite seven attempts.

“To us, me and my cousin, we have a strong faith in God,” Harris explained. “We’re like, ‘God just dropped it out of heaven.’”

When meteorite collector and dealer Roberto Vargas learned about the meteor sightings, he immediately began a multi-hour drive from his Bristol, Connecticut home to Ohio.

He traveled through the night and began his hunt shortly after Wednesday’s sunrise. Although it took until nearly sunset, he eventually discovered a suspected meteorite. By Thursday noon, he had located a second fragment, which he described as “100% fusion crusted,” calling it a museum-quality specimen he intends to keep.

The discovery inspired the 40-year-old former mental health therapist to speak enthusiastically about the event.

“It was a massive event — the shock waves, the sonic booms,” he explained during a phone interview while taking a break from searching. “This is a beauty of a fall.”

Throughout nearly ten years of collecting, Vargas had discovered only about 20 meteorites in natural settings. He joins other hunters who theorize that a much larger fragment might still be out there — possibly weighing 20 pounds or more.

Vargas noted that several factors will determine how long he continues searching in the region.

“It depends on how many stones are found,” he said. “Do they continue to be found? And what the situation is like with huntable ground. There’s a lot of private property around here.”

Gabe Leidy initially thought something had struck his North Ridgeville home when he heard the explosion, then began searching for fragments after finishing work Wednesday afternoon.

The 39-year-old supply chain management professional went to the Sharon Center vicinity, reasoning that a dark space rock would be easily spotted. That’s where he found “something that looks very, very, very much like a meteorite.”

Although some people have already offered him hundreds or thousands of dollars for his find, Leidy prefers to keep it. Currently stored in a kitchen cabinet, he envisions it eventually being displayed in a museum.

“My goal here was just to find a memento that I can remember this probably once-in-a-lifetime event by,” he said.

A Chilean archaeological site that has served as cornerstone evidence for early human migration to the Americas is facing new scrutiny from researchers who believe it may be thousands of years younger than originally determined.

Monte Verde has long been considered the most compelling proof of human presence in the Americas dating back approximately 14,500 years. Archaeological teams discovered evidence including human footprints, wooden implements, structural foundations, and remnants of ancient hearths at the location, with sediment and artifact analysis supporting this timeframe.

However, fresh research published Thursday in Science journal questions these age estimates, proposing that Monte Verde could be significantly more recent than previously established. The controversial findings have sparked heated debate among archaeological experts.

Researchers examined sediment samples from nine locations along Chinchihuapi Creek near the site, studying how the terrain evolved across millennia. Their investigation revealed volcanic ash deposits from an eruption that occurred roughly 11,000 years ago.

Study co-author Claudio Latorre from Pontifical Catholic University of Chile explained that materials found above this ash layer, including Monte Verde’s wooden artifacts, must be more recent in origin.

“We basically reinterpreted the geology of the site. And we came to the conclusion that the Monte Verde site cannot be older than 8,200 years before present,” Latorre stated.

The research team believes geological processes, including stream erosion of rock formations, may have caused mixing of older and newer sediment layers, leading previous investigators to incorrectly date ancient wood as belonging to the Monte Verde settlement.

Multiple scientists, including those who participated in the original excavations, are challenging these conclusions.

“They have provided, at best, a working hypothesis that is not supported by the data they presented,” commented Michael Waters from Texas A&M University, who was not involved in either research effort.

Critics argue the study analyzed samples from areas surrounding Monte Verde where geological conditions differ from the actual site. They also contend there is insufficient proof that volcanic ash deposits once blanketed the entire region.

Additionally, skeptics point out the research fails to adequately address artifacts directly dated to 14,500 years ago, including a mastodon tusk converted into a tool, a wooden spear, and a digging implement with a charred end.

“This interpretation disregards a vast body of well-dated cultural evidence,” archaeologist Tom Dillehay of Vanderbilt University, who directed the site’s initial excavation, wrote in an email response.

The new study’s authors reject these criticisms, maintaining they collected samples from within the site as well as upstream and downstream locations. Co-author Todd Surovell from the University of Wyoming argues there is inadequate evidence confirming the dated artifacts are genuinely that ancient.

Monte Verde plays a crucial role in scientific theories about human arrival in the Americas. Researchers previously believed the first inhabitants were groups arriving 13,000 years ago who created distinctive stone implements called Clovis points. Monte Verde’s discovery and dating, though initially controversial, seemed to settle this debate.

The impact of a revised timeline for the site remains uncertain. Since Monte Verde’s recognition, archaeologists have identified North American locations predating Clovis peoples, including Cooper’s Ferry in Idaho and the Debra L. Friedkin site in Texas.

A major remaining question concerns how people traveled from Asia to the Americas, navigating around two enormous ice sheets covering Canada. Did humans arrive when the sheets separated, creating an ice-free passage? Did they journey along coastlines using boats, or traverse a combination of water and land routes?

Surovell suggested that updated dating for Monte Verde might restart discussions about the most probable paths taken by early humans. Additional independent studies of other ancient human sites could provide greater understanding.

“Given enough time and given the ability to do science, science is self-corrective,” Surovell observed. “It eventually reaches the truth.”

A Chilean archaeological site that transformed scientific understanding of early human migration to the Americas may be far younger than researchers initially determined, according to new findings published Thursday.

Monte Verde, uncovered in the 1970s in southern Chile, was previously dated to approximately 14,500 years old based on testing conducted in 1997. That age made the ancient hunter-gatherer settlement a cornerstone in debates about when people first populated the Western Hemisphere.

However, University of Wyoming archaeologist Todd Surovell and his research team now believe the Ice Age creek valley site actually dates between 4,200 and 8,200 years ago – making it significantly more recent.

“This finding suggests a later date of human arrival to the Americas than is widely believed,” Surovell stated in the study published in Science journal.

The research team employed three different scientific dating techniques on materials collected from Monte Verde and surrounding areas. The site sits roughly 36 miles inland from Chile’s Pacific coastline.

“We sampled in the site area. We also sampled the same landforms upstream and downstream of the site,” Surovell explained. “These landforms are continuous throughout the valley, and our dating of them was consistent in all locations. We placed these into stratigraphic (soil and rock layers) context, and the dating errors of the previous investigators were immediately apparent.”

The original 14,500-year dating would have made Monte Verde more than 1,500 years older than North America’s Clovis culture sites, which were previously considered the earliest evidence of human occupation south of continental ice sheets. The Clovis culture, named after a New Mexico location, is recognized for its distinctive stone tool craftsmanship.

Monte Verde’s supposed greater age and location thousands of miles south of Clovis sites led scientists to theorize that humans reached the Americas much earlier than Clovis evidence suggested. The prevailing theory holds that humans migrated from Siberia to Alaska via an Ice Age land bridge before traveling southward.

The current research analyzed wood fragments, creek-deposited sand, and ancient volcanic ash layers. Surovell emphasized the volcanic ash dating as particularly significant.

Testing revealed the ash was deposited approximately 11,000 years ago in a layer beneath human occupation evidence, indicating people arrived after that timeframe, according to Surovell.

Based on the new age range, Surovell estimates Monte Verde’s human occupation most likely occurred 6,000 to 8,000 years ago.

The earlier age calculation relied on radiocarbon dating of recovered wood. While Surovell confirmed the wood was indeed 14,500 years old, he argues it predated human presence and was simply mixed with older materials caught in creek banks.

“Imagine the stream undercutting the bank as it meanders in the valley. Materials in the bank then get transported and redeposited by the stream,” Surovell described.

Vanderbilt University anthropologist Tom Dillehay, who has researched Monte Verde extensively since the 1970s, strongly disputed the new study’s conclusions, citing “many methodological and empirical errors.”

Dillehay argued the wood interpretation “disregards a vast body of well-dated cultural evidence associated with Monte Verde, including stone tools, wooden and bone artifacts, edible plant remains including seaweed and potatoes, hearths, human footprints, and animal meat and hide remains.”

“These and other elements constitute a complex cultural context that has been extensively documented over five decades of interdisciplinary archaeological research,” Dillehay stated. “In turning to their data, it is a mixture of inventions and misunderstandings. They saw what they wanted to see, and came to the site with predetermined conclusions.”

The timing of human arrival in the Americas continues to spark scientific debate.

“Monte Verde is internationally recognized as one of the most significant archaeological sites on the American continent, having played a decisive role in replacing the longstanding ‘Clovis First’ paradigm,” Dillehay noted, referencing the theory that America’s first inhabitants arrived around 12,800 years ago.

Surovell maintained that the new findings place Monte Verde after Clovis sites chronologically.

“The Monte Verde site is still important for understanding the Holocene (geological epoch, beginning 11,700 years ago) human occupation of its region, but it no longer has much significance for understanding the initial peopling of the Americas,” Surovell concluded.

NEW YORK (AP) — Ryan Gosling needed companionship.

Filmmakers Phil Lord and Chris Miller were deep into production of their most expensive project to date, the $200 million sci-fi epic “Project Hail Mary.” During filming of early sequences where middle school science teacher Ryland Grace (Gosling) awakens aboard a spacecraft in the depths of space, the character becomes despondent and begins drinking after discovering he’s alone on the vessel.

“Ryan was like, ‘I just feel like I need a friend. I need a scene partner for this. I don’t know what to do in here,’” Miller recalls. “We were like: OK, let’s make a friend. So we scoured the set and found a mop and got a dress from the costume department. And we made a little mop friend for him to dance around with.

“We called it ‘Moppy Ringwald.’”

Throughout their 20-year partnership, Lord and Miller have demonstrated exceptional skill at bringing lifeless objects to life on screen. This talent was particularly evident in their 2014 hit “The Lego Movie,” though nearly every entry in their unconventional body of work, spanning from “21 Jump Street” to “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse,” has featured some form of creative reimagining.

“Project Hail Mary” presents perhaps their greatest test yet in animating an unlikely premise — and Moppy Ringwald is just the beginning. Based on Andy Weir’s popular novel, the movie features Gosling as a space traveler on a desperate mission to rescue Earth, leading to an encounter with a stone-like extraterrestrial being that Ryland calls “Rocky.”

“It did seem like a crazy idea to make a movie with the hunkiest actor of his generation and a rock puppet,” Lord said, chuckling, in an interview alongside Miller. “I guess we’re interested in difficult things.”

Productions with $200 million budgets typically belong to established franchises, yet “Project Hail Mary,” debuting in cinemas Thursday, aims to achieve blockbuster success through original storytelling. The humorous and touching film arrives with impressive credentials.

Weir’s 2011 novel “The Martian” was transformed into the Academy Award-nominated 2015 movie, which captured the book’s scientific enthusiasm and sense of amazement. Drew Goddard (“The Cabin in the Woods,” “Bad Times at the El Royale”), who wrote that earlier screenplay, also crafted the “Project Hail Mary” adaptation. Gosling committed to the role before Weir’s 2021 book reached shelves. Sandra Hüller, the acclaimed German actress from “Anatomy of a Fall,” appears as the head of a United Nations team working to protect Earth from a star-consuming organism called “astrophage.”

Lord and Miller have built their reputation transforming apparently poor concepts into successful films, though “Project Hail Mary,” approved by MGM prior to Amazon’s acquisition, began with obvious commercial appeal despite featuring an unusual alien character.

“We no longer get the benefit of low expectations,” Miller says, laughing. “So we sort of try to do things that maybe seem like a good idea from the beginning. It’s the evolution of our career.”

The finished product resembles a blend of “Interstellar” and “Deep Space Homer.” While the directors’ initial space venture (the “Star Wars” film “Solo”) was notoriously canceled, “Project Hail Mary” provides Lord and Miller with a cosmic adventure that fully embraces their irreverent approach. Though the movie adopts Weir’s combination of scientific accuracy and humor from “The Martian,” Lord and Miller represent essentially the complete opposite of Ridley Scott.

“In both cases, the directors were perfect for the task ahead of them. Ridley Scott is really good at conveying grandeur, really letting the setting hit and capturing the scale of things,” says Weir. “But ‘Project Hail Mary’ is a bromance. It’s like a buddy comedy.

“It’s much more fast-paced, there’s a lot of rapid dialogue, and that’s Phil and Chris’ bread and butter,” he adds. “You can give them any random thing off the shelves and they can make a movie such that you care about its emotions.”

What sets “Project Hail Mary” apart is how the directors maintained their comedic sensibilities despite the massive production scale, incorporating weightless improvisation and cosmic physical comedy. Large budgets and extensive visual effects typically stifle humor, yet “Project Hail Mary” allows Gosling, a naturally charismatic performer, space for spontaneous moments.

“What we’ve learned throughout our career is that spontaneous moments are magical,” says Miller. “Our job was to prepare and prepare and prepare, but make sure there was room to play and room to chase an idea that might be inconvenient.”

“No one ever walked out of a movie going: ‘Wow, that seemed so well planned,’” says Lord.

This approach included placing Gosling in a rotating apparatus that enabled free movement throughout the spacecraft, designed by Charles Wood. It also meant following creative instincts. During a karaoke bar scene, Gosling suggested Hüller’s character needed a musical moment after hearing her sing. Hüller selected Harry Styles’ “Sign of the Times,” prompting the filmmakers to secure licensing within two days.

Their most significant innovations centered on Rocky. Weir deliberately created the character to exceed typical humanoid creatures with amusing makeup. “I wanted my alien to be truly alien,” he says.

“The part of the book that made me go, ‘Oh, god, I don’t know how we’re going to realize this,’ was Rocky,” says Goddard. “He doesn’t have the usual crutches that you have for loveable aliens. He doesn’t have a face. He can’t even exist in our atmosphere. He speaks in whale songs. He looks like the kind of alien that would normally be eating everyone.”

Goddard, also a director, gladly left the creative challenges to Lord and Miller.

“I knew Chris and Phil could figure it out,” Goddard says. “I knew from their background with animation and creating delightful characters out of thin air, they could do it.”

To provide Gosling with a performing partner beyond a costumed cleaning tool, Lord and Miller hired a puppeteer to operate and voice Rocky. They conducted screen tests between potential puppeteers and Gosling to find the right chemistry. James Ortiz won the role, and “Project Hail Mary” thrives on his dynamic with Gosling.

“You never would have gotten that if you were like, ‘OK, there’s a tennis ball and a stick that’s an alien here. Now be delighted by it,’” Miller says.

Hollywood typically creates merchandise around adorable alien characters, usually featuring recognizable faces. However, the distinctive challenges of “Project Hail Mary” attracted Lord and Miller most. The connecting thread through their films, Lord explains, begins with thinking “It’s impossible,” followed by “unless …”

“Even ‘Spider-Verse’ was like: Oh, this is going to be the seventh ‘Spider-Man’ movie. Nobody wants this — unless …” says Lord. “Audiences want to watch a movie put itself in a box, and wiggle out of it like Houdini.”

The alien sequences proved successful enough that Steven Spielberg suggested incorporating a reference to his own science fiction masterpiece about first contact: “He was like: ‘You should have the alien do the “Close Encounters” theme,’” Miller says. “If you say so, Steven.”

This represents one of multiple references woven throughout (another nods to “Rocky”) by Lord and Miller, who have maintained their “Lego Movie” philosophy of deconstructing established elements and reassembling them in their unique style.

“It’s having it both ways,” Lord says, smiling. “Making an original thing out of unoriginal parts.”

A groundbreaking partnership between American Airlines and Google has demonstrated how artificial intelligence can dramatically reduce airplane contrails that contribute to global warming, the companies announced Thursday.

The collaboration used AI forecasting technology to predict where condensation trails would likely develop when aircraft travel through cold, humid atmospheric conditions. These contrails form when ice crystals develop around soot particles from jet engines, creating cloud formations that trap heat in the atmosphere.

Google’s artificial intelligence system identifies areas where contrails are most likely to occur, allowing American Airlines to incorporate this data into their flight planning software. Pilots can then make minor altitude adjustments or choose alternate routes to bypass these problem zones.

Both companies describe this approach as potentially one of aviation’s most practical and affordable climate solutions currently available.

The airline industry faces mounting demands to address its environmental impact. Despite appearing as thin white streaks across the sky, contrails account for approximately 1% to 2% of global warming, according to Contrails.org, a research nonprofit within Bill Gates’ Breakthrough Energy initiative that participated in this study.

While switching to sustainable aviation fuels offers significant emission reductions, making small route modifications presents a much less expensive alternative to cutting contrail formation.

Most contrails disappear quickly, but under extremely humid conditions, some can linger for hours or even days. Previous research indicated that minor flight path changes could eliminate much of this warming effect while using only minimal additional fuel – a hypothesis this trial set out to verify.

The experiment tracked 2,400 transatlantic flights between the United States and Europe. Google’s research, published in a Thursday blog post, revealed that half the flights received contrail-avoidance routing while the remaining flights served as a control group.

Among the 112 flights that used the alternative routing, contrail formation dropped by 62% compared to standard flights. Researchers calculated this reduction decreased the climate warming impact from those flights by approximately 69%.

The testing period ran from January through May 2025, with Flightkeys flight planning service joining American Airlines, Google, and Contrails.org in the research effort.

“We know that aviation is one of the hardest, most difficult sectors to decarbonize,” explained Dinesh Sanekommu, who oversees Google’s contrail research. “We think there’s a way that AI can help make that a reality. And the hope is, whether it’s these AI-based forecasts, whether it is doing these operational scientific demonstrations together, they all add a little bit of evidence and generate a bit of data that helps make the right decisions in the long run.”

This project expands on previous work between Google, American Airlines, and Breakthrough Energy that began in 2023. Their earlier contrail reduction efforts involved manually identifying flights rather than integrating the technology directly into flight planning systems.

Looking ahead, Sanekommu indicated plans for expanded testing and collaboration with additional flight planning software companies to incorporate contrail prediction and avoidance capabilities into their platforms.

Airlines often hesitate to modify routes due to concerns about increased fuel expenses, but the trial revealed no meaningful statistical difference in fuel consumption between the two flight groups.

International coordination among pilots and air traffic controllers across different airspace regions presents another obstacle, noted Thomas Walker, an aviation climate researcher at Boston’s Clean Air Task Force. Walker mentioned that discussions with other major airlines about contrail avoidance have encountered “a little bit of pushback.”

However, Jill Blickstein, American Airlines’ vice president of sustainability, reported that the trial demonstrated dispatchers and pilots had no difficulty implementing and executing alternative flight plans designed to avoid contrail formation.

Walker, who serves as CATF’s senior transportation technology manager, pointed out that the North Atlantic corridor represents a contrail hotspot, making avoidance efforts in that region particularly valuable.

According to Walker, while Europe has conducted route adjustment trials, this represents the largest such experiment he’s aware of in the United States, calling it “a pretty big step in the right direction.” He expressed hope that American Airlines’ successful results would motivate other carriers to participate in similar programs.

American Airlines has not yet incorporated contrail avoidance into its standard flight planning procedures. The airline indicated interest in continuing partnership research, potentially examining different routes and departure times to address additional scientific questions about contrail formation and climate impact.

ROME – A judicial panel in Rome has overturned a substantial 15-million-euro penalty ($17 million) that Italian privacy regulators had levied against OpenAI, the artificial intelligence company that created ChatGPT, according to court documents released Thursday.

The court has not yet provided detailed reasoning behind its decision to reverse the financial penalty.

In response to the favorable ruling, OpenAI expressed satisfaction with the outcome. “We welcome the decision by the Court of Rome. We’ve always been committed to respecting user privacy and look forward to helping more Italian people, businesses and society benefit from AI,” the company stated.

Italy’s data protection agency, called the Garante, chose not to provide any public response to the court’s decision.

The substantial monetary penalty had been levied in December 2024 following accusations that the AI chatbot improperly handled users’ personal information. OpenAI had criticized the punishment as excessive and announced plans to challenge it through the legal system.

Earlier in March 2025, the same Rome court had placed a temporary hold on the fine while considering the full legal challenge.

A National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration educational website is currently offline while staff perform system updates.

The webpage, which focuses on collaborative learning partnerships designed to boost educational effectiveness, displays a maintenance message indicating temporary unavailability.

NOAA officials have posted a notice stating the site is under construction and apologizing for any inconvenience caused by the downtime.

The agency has not provided a timeline for when the educational resource will be restored to full functionality.

A wave of artificial intelligence excitement is sweeping across China as millions embrace a new AI tool they’ve affectionately dubbed the ‘lobster.’

Fan Xinquan, a 60-year-old former electronics technician from Beijing, recently began nurturing his own digital ‘lobster’ – an AI agent called OpenClaw that he believes can organize his technical expertise more effectively than traditional chatbots like DeepSeek.

“OpenClaw can actually help you accomplish many practical things,” Fan explained during a training session hosted by AI company Zhipu, where participants learn to use and develop the viral technology that has earned its crustacean nickname throughout China.

Over the past month, OpenClaw has captivated Chinese users ranging from retired workers seeking additional income to major tech companies exploring fresh revenue opportunities. Unlike standard chatbots, this AI agent can link multiple hardware and software systems while learning from generated data with minimal human guidance.

Since its debut last November, the platform has achieved record-breaking growth on GitHub, the world’s leading AI development platform. The open-source agent, developed by Austrian programmer Peter Steinberger, demonstrates how emerging technologies can rapidly transform China’s economy through widespread public adoption.

“If DeepSeek marked a milestone for open-source large language models, then OpenClaw represents a similar turning point for open-source agents,” noted Wei Sun, Counterpoint Research’s chief AI analyst.

The technology gained additional momentum when Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang declared OpenClaw “the next ChatGPT” this week. Growing excitement has driven Chinese technology stocks up as much as 22% recently as companies launch OpenClaw-based products.

The phenomenon has reached unexpected corners of Chinese society. Huang Rongsheng, chief architect at Baidu’s smart device division Xiaodu, revealed that parent chat groups for his daughter’s elementary school have become flooded with OpenClaw conversations.

“My daughter came to me and asked: Dad, I see you raising a lobster every day,” Huang shared. “Can I have one too?”

Bai Yiyun, attending the Zhipu training event, expressed hopes of launching a retirement side business using the agent.

“Some people use it to buy lottery tickets or for stock picking, others use it to create money-making apps or open e-commerce shops, but I don’t know if it brings them any real profits,” she observed.

Beyond quick-money schemes, many users seek significant productivity improvements. Some regional governments now provide subsidies reaching 20 million yuan ($2.8 million) annually for qualifying single-person enterprises.

“The OpenClaw frenzy directly coincides with what the Chinese government wants when it comes to the AI Plus initiative,” explained Lian Jye Su, chief analyst at technology research firm Omdia, referencing a national strategy to integrate AI throughout the economy.

However, initial enthusiasm may diminish as operational costs mount and regulators highlight security vulnerabilities. Zhipu recently increased token prices for its OpenClaw-optimized AI model by 20%.

“Output is extremely low: ordinary people spend tens or hundreds of yuan, burning through a bunch of tokens and in the end, they might only get a pile of useless data,” complained one social media post titled “Goodbye OpenClaw” on the Rednote platform.

“This is not ’embracing the future,’ it’s ‘being harvested by the future,’” the post continued.

The widespread enthusiasm has also concerned Beijing authorities, with increasing numbers of Chinese organizations – including government departments, financial firms, and universities – prohibiting employees from installing OpenClaw following regulatory warnings.

The state-controlled People’s Daily, serving as the Communist Party’s official voice, published commentary last week urging officials to “firmly maintain the safety bottom line to ensure that innovation does not deviate or derail” regarding OpenClaw.

“Beijing clearly sees AI as strategically important and wants Chinese firms to commercialize quickly,” said Rui Ma, founder of the Tech Buzz China newsletter.

“But it also wants deployment to stay legible, secure and politically manageable … the concern is utterly uncontrolled and chaotic diffusion that could cause harm.”

Li Hongxue, a data security specialist at a financial company, described the tension between central government warnings and local government actions as “contradictory.”

“Its development is still unstoppable, but the security capabilities also need to keep up so in that sense, this may also be an opportunity for (my) field,” she added.

Technical challenges also persist regarding the agent’s ability to function seamlessly across applications and devices controlled by various, sometimes competing companies.

During Tuesday’s Baidu demonstration, an employee used voice commands through a Xiaodu smart device to order coffee via McDonald’s app, powered by an OpenClaw agent.

Nearly two minutes elapsed before the order reached the payment stage.

“As you can see, I only gave a simple command, but to complete the whole delivery there is actually a lot of work being done in the background by Xiaodu and the lobster,” the Baidu representative explained.

A prominent Chinese cryptography expert predicts the nation will establish national standards for advanced encryption technology within the next three years as Beijing increases investment in quantum research.

Nations across the globe are working rapidly to create new encryption methods that can withstand attacks from future quantum computers, which could be powerful enough to break today’s security systems.

Beijing’s latest five-year plan, unveiled recently, designated quantum technology as a key strategic industry for the future, placing it alongside artificial intelligence, nuclear fusion, and brain-computer interfaces. The plan also sets a target for building a scalable quantum computer.

The United States completed its initial post-quantum cryptography standards in 2024 and has set a target of complete industry transition by 2035. Meanwhile, China issued an international request for new standards proposals last year.

Wang Xiaoyun, a professor at Tsinghua University’s Institute for Advanced Study, identified finance and energy as the key sectors that should transition first to the new encryption methods due to their sensitive data requirements.

“I personally think that the next three-to-five-year period is potentially one of explosive growth for post-quantum cryptography industry migration (in China),” she stated during the National People’s Congress parliamentary sessions in Beijing, which wrapped up recently.

Chinese researchers have taken a different path than their international counterparts in the U.S. and other countries, focusing on “structureless lattice” algorithms such as S-Cloud+.

Wang explained that global standards built on algebraic lattices “have some degree of security degradation,” while “structureless cryptographic algorithms basically do not have this problem.”

State media reported last month that China released its first domestically-developed quantum computer operating system as open source software available for public download.

Technology giants including Google have called on governments to speed up the adoption of post-quantum cryptography. The Trump administration’s recently released cyber strategy commits to maintaining American leadership in both post-quantum cryptography and artificial intelligence.

South Korea has announced plans to deploy post-quantum cryptography across multiple industries by 2035, beginning with a pilot program from 2025-2028 that will focus on critical sectors including energy and healthcare.

What was supposed to be a major advancement in video game graphics has instead sparked a wave of internet mockery and player frustration directed at tech giant Nvidia.

During a Monday conference presentation, the company unveiled its newest artificial intelligence-powered graphics enhancement, promising developers the ability to create “photoreal computer graphics previously only achieved in Hollywood visual effects.”

The technology, called DLSS (Deep Learning Super Sampling), represents Nvidia’s fifth generation of image enhancement tools. Originally launched in 2018 for improving game resolution, the system has evolved to create completely new visual frames and now operates in more than 750 gaming titles.

While DLSS 5 won’t launch until this fall, Nvidia’s demonstration footage has already generated significant controversy among gaming enthusiasts.

The backlash centers on what internet users describe as characters being “yassified” – a term meaning overly beautified to an unrealistic degree.

Demonstration footage featuring Grace Ashcroft from Resident Evil Requiem shows dramatic changes when DLSS 5 activates. Though background details and textures appear sharper, the character’s appearance transforms noticeably – her lips become fuller, under-eye shadows lighten, and she appears to be wearing cosmetics.

Similar visual alterations appear in preview clips from popular games including Hogwarts Legacy, Starfield, and EA Sports FC.

“DLSS 5 is the GPT moment for graphics — blending handcrafted rendering with generative AI to deliver a dramatic leap in visual realism while preserving the control artists need for creative expression,” stated Nvidia founder and CEO Jensen Huang in Monday’s announcement.

Gaming community members have expressed strong opposition to these changes. One YouTube user commented, “The obsession with fidelity over art direction is reaching terminal levels.” Critics argue the technology overrides developers’ original creative vision by modifying lighting decisions and character features rather than simply improving image quality. Many also noted an unsettling artificial quality reminiscent of AI-generated content.

The controversy has spawned numerous internet memes mocking the technology’s effects.

One viral social media post features the iconic Depression-era “Migrant Mother” photograph alongside a heavily altered version showing the subject with bright makeup and a smile, captioned “Nvidia presents DLSS 5.”

This format has become a popular meme template, with users posting “DLSS 5 off vs. DLSS 5 on” comparisons using various images. One example shows actor Kevin James’s face dramatically altered, while others transform cartoon-style artwork into unnaturally realistic versions.

Responding to the criticism in a pinned YouTube comment, Nvidia emphasized that “game developers have full, detailed artistic control over DLSS 5’s effects to ensure they maintain their game’s unique aesthetic.”

During a Tuesday press conference, Huang directly addressed the backlash, telling critics they are “completely wrong.”

“The reason for that is because, as I have explained very carefully, DLSS 5 fuses controllability of the geometry and textures and everything about the game with generative AI,” he explained to Tom’s Hardware. He maintained that developers retain the ability to “fine-tune the generative AI” to match their artistic vision, insisting DLSS 5 “doesn’t change the artistic control.”

The company announced DLSS 5 integration for upcoming titles including Assassin’s Creed Shadows, Delta Force, Justice, Phantom Blade Zero, and Sea of Remnants, with availability planned for fall release.

NASA’s Perseverance rover has made a groundbreaking discovery on Mars, uncovering buried remnants of an ancient river delta that provides some of the most compelling evidence to date of water flowing on the Red Planet billions of years ago.

The six-wheeled robotic explorer used sophisticated ground-penetrating radar technology to peer beneath the Martian surface, revealing geological structures buried as deep as 115 feet below ground. These findings came as Perseverance traveled across 3.8 miles of terrain within Jezero Crater, located in Mars’ northern hemisphere and believed to have once contained an ancient lake.

Scientists discovered layered sedimentary deposits and weathered surfaces that point to an ancient delta formation – a fan-shaped accumulation of sediment that forms where rivers meet larger water bodies such as lakes. The research team determined this buried delta formation existed approximately 3.7 to 4.2 billion years ago, making it relatively early in Martian history since the planet formed around 4.5 billion years ago, similar to Earth.

This newly discovered delta actually predates another surface formation in the area known as the Western Delta, which scientists estimate to be about 3.5 to 3.7 billion years old.

The breakthrough came through Perseverance’s RIMFAX instrument, which transmits radar signals downward and captures the echoes that bounce back from underground structures, creating detailed three-dimensional maps of what lies beneath the surface. The latest findings represent the deepest subsurface data RIMFAX has collected, gathered between September 2023 and February 2024 across 250 Martian days.

The discovery holds particular significance because scientists consider water essential for the potential existence of past life on Mars. The Red Planet, now a cold and barren world, once had a denser atmosphere and warmer temperatures that would have supported liquid water on its surface.

“From the features mapped by RIMFAX, we believe that Jezero Crater hosted an ancient water-rich environment, capable of biosignature preservation that existed prior to the formation of Jezero’s Western Delta,” explained Emily Cardarelli, a UCLA planetary scientist who serves on the Perseverance science team and authored the study published Wednesday in Science Advances.

Biosignatures represent chemical or physical traces that indicate past or present life forms.

River deltas on Earth serve as natural collection points for sediments and provide environments where microscopic life can thrive.

Last year, researchers announced that a rock sample collected by Perseverance in Jezero Crater contained what might be a biosignature suggesting ancient microbial life, though the minerals found could also result from non-biological processes. That rock sample dated to roughly 3.2 to 3.8 billion years ago.

Perseverance has been investigating Jezero Crater since arriving in 2021. Researchers believe ancient river channels once flowed over the crater’s rim, filling it with water to create a lake.

“It’s very exciting that RIMFAX was able to provide such a detailed view of these deposits, and thus help solve the puzzle of their origin,” said David Paige, a UCLA planetary scientist and study co-author who also works with the Perseverance science team. “This further cements the notion that ground-penetrating radar is indeed an extremely valuable new tool for studying planetary geology.”

Chinese researchers made similar discoveries last year when their Zhurong rover used ground-penetrating radar to find subsurface evidence resembling sandy shorelines from what may have been an ocean in Mars’ northern plains.

“Over time, we’ve seen more and more evidence for liquid water on the Martian surface at various rover landing sites, areas we’ve traversed to, as well as from orbital imagery. We have seen channels where water may have flowed, crater lakes where water once ponded, and deltaic sediments deposited as rock outcrops and now as buried remnants, with this (research) paper,” Cardarelli noted.

“Mars is diverse, and each rover mission reveals another piece of its puzzling past and the early development of our rocky neighbor,” she added.

Our planet faces a continuous bombardment from outer space. Countless space rocks race toward Earth daily, crashing into our atmosphere and frequently bursting into brilliant fireballs that captivate and sometimes worry observers.

Fortunately, nearly all of these cosmic visitors pose no threat as they get crushed into tiny particles or small pieces during their atmospheric journey.

This week, a spectacular fireball blazed across Cleveland’s sky, created by what scientists believe was a space rock measuring approximately 6 feet (1.8 meters) wide and weighing 7 tons. Witnesses spotted the event from Wisconsin all the way to Maryland, the American Meteor Society reported.

The object journeyed over 34 miles (55 kilometers) through Earth’s upper atmosphere before fragmenting, NASA confirmed. Researchers have not yet located any remaining pieces.

While this event seemed extraordinary, such occurrences happen with remarkable frequency. Here’s what you should understand:

Space rocks called asteroids are remnants of ice, metal, and stone left behind when our solar system formed 4.6 billion years ago. Meteoroids are smaller pieces broken off from larger space objects like asteroids or comets. When these objects burn up in our atmosphere, they create the bright streaks we call meteors. When a meteor shines brighter than Venus appears in dawn or dusk skies, scientists classify it as a fireball. Any fragments that reach the ground become meteorites.

Bright streaks from meteoroids appear frequently overhead, and during special periods known as meteor showers, observers can spot them every few minutes on clear nights. NASA considers the Perseids meteor shower, occurring each year in mid-August, the finest display of all.

According to the meteor society, “several thousand” meteors bright enough to qualify as fireballs enter Earth’s atmosphere daily. The challenge is that most appear over oceans or uninhabited areas, or daylight makes them impossible to detect.

Nevertheless, many people do witness these events. The American Meteor Society and International Meteor Organization encourage observers to report sightings for scientific investigation. Through 2026 so far, 10 fireballs have generated over 100 witness reports each, averaging almost one weekly.

These space objects race through the vacuum at tremendous velocities, ranging from 25,000 mph (40,233 kph) up to 160,000 mph (257,495 kph). Upon suddenly encountering Earth’s atmospheric gases, they experience extreme stress while compressing air ahead of them, heating the objects until they begin melting and fragmenting.

NEW YORK — More than a year following Val Kilmer’s passing, the beloved actor will take on a new role through cutting-edge artificial intelligence technology in what represents one of Hollywood’s most ambitious AI projects yet.

First Line Films revealed Wednesday that Kilmer will appear digitally in the independent movie “As Deep as the Grave.” According to producers, the late actor had committed to the project before his passing but couldn’t complete filming due to declining health conditions.

The Kilmer family estate approved the digital recreation and will receive compensation for its use. Mercedes Kilmer, Val’s daughter, expressed that the character held special meaning for her father.

“He always looked at emerging technologies with optimism as a tool to expand the possibilities of storytelling,” she said in a statement. “This spirit is something that we are all honoring within this specific film, of which he was an integral part.”

The iconic actor passed away in April at 65 years old due to pneumonia complications. Following a 2014 throat cancer diagnosis that required two tracheotomy procedures, Kilmer lost his natural speaking ability and collaborated with an AI technology firm to digitally restore his voice. His final on-screen appearance in 2022’s “Top Gun: Maverick” featured digitally enhanced vocals.

Artificial intelligence applications in cinema have sparked heated debates throughout the entertainment industry recently. Some companies are pushing boundaries with AI-generated performances, including Xicoia’s launch of virtual performer “Tilly Norwood” last year and a recent music video debut.

The Screen Actors Guild-AFTRA has criticized Xicoia’s “AI actor” concept while establishing guidelines for other technological applications. Union regulations require performer consent for digital replica usage, stating “Consent not obtained before death must be obtained from an authorized representative or the union.”

SAG-AFTRA representatives did not respond to Wednesday inquiries.

Writer-director Coerte Voorhees and producer John Voorhees confirmed via email that SAG protocols were followed.

“We believe we are serving as a demonstrator for how to do it ethically and correctly, especially in the case of working with a deceased actor’s estate and family,” they stated.

The film, previously called “Canyon of the Dead,” completed principal photography years ago but remained in post-production. The story chronicles real-life archaeologists Ann and Earl Morris, whose Arizona discoveries revealed significant Native American historical artifacts. Kilmer’s AI recreation portrays Father Fintan, a Catholic priest with Native American spiritual connections. The ensemble includes Abigail Lawrie, Tom Felton, Wes Studi and Abigail Breslin.

Coerte Voorhees noted that Kilmer, who claimed Native American heritage, connected with the project five years earlier. Producers are currently pursuing distribution deals hoping for a 2024 release.

“It was very unfortunate that his health at the time prevented him from playing this role which spoke to him spiritually and culturally,” Voorhees explained. “We are honored to collaborate with his daughter Mercedes, who brings her own filmmaking experience, to bring this character to life in the way that we had all originally imagined it.”

Elon Musk’s social media platform X experienced service disruptions Wednesday morning, affecting thousands of users nationwide before operations returned to normal.

Outage tracking website Downdetector.com recorded a surge in user complaints that reached more than 34,500 reports at the height of the disruption. By 11:39 a.m. Eastern Time, those reports had dropped significantly to just 845.

The outage monitoring service compiles its data by gathering status reports from multiple sources, though the platform notes that actual user impact numbers may vary since individuals voluntarily submit the reports.

X representatives had not provided a response to media inquiries about the service interruption as of Wednesday morning.

Cybersecurity experts announced Wednesday they have identified malicious software that can break into Apple iPhones and extract sensitive information, potentially affecting hundreds of millions of devices worldwide.

The malware, which researchers have named “Darksword,” was found embedded on multiple Ukrainian websites in recent weeks. This represents the second major iPhone spyware discovery this month, indicating a growing market for sophisticated hacking tools designed to steal personal data and digital currency wallet information.

Three cybersecurity organizations – Lookout, iVerify, and Google – worked together to analyze the threat. Earlier this month on March 3, the same teams identified another iPhone spyware called “Coruna,” and investigators found both malicious programs operating from identical server infrastructure.

“There’s now a verified pipeline of recent exploits … that have ended up in the hands of potentially criminal entities with a financial focus,” stated Justin Albrecht, who serves as principal researcher at Lookout.

The malicious software specifically targets iPhones operating iOS versions 18.4 through 18.6.2, which Apple distributed between March and August of this year. Users became infected when they visited compromised Ukrainian websites.

While the exact number of vulnerable devices remains unknown, security experts estimate that between 220 million and 270 million iPhones could be at risk. Although Apple has issued security patches to address the underlying vulnerabilities, many users have not updated their devices to the latest software versions.

Apple has not provided a response to requests for comment regarding the discovery.

The identification of two separate powerful iPhone exploits within the same month suggests criminals now have access to hacking tools that were once exclusively available to government intelligence agencies, according to Rocky Cole, who co-founded and serves as chief operating officer of iVerify.

Security researchers were able to detect these threats because the attackers made careless operational mistakes that are uncommon in government-sponsored iPhone hacking operations.

“The fact that they don’t care if it gets burned, and that they’re using them in mass attacks with poor (operational security), that says a lot about how much they value these tools,” Cole explained. “They’re not overly precious about them being exposed.”

Investigators determined that Darksword was hosted on the same internet servers used by suspected Russian operators behind the Coruna spyware campaign.

PALATKA, Fla. — More than five decades after Florida abandoned an ambitious waterway project meant to rival the Panama Canal, environmental groups are pushing to undo the lasting damage left behind.

The Cross Florida Barge Canal was designed to create a shipping shortcut across the state, connecting the Atlantic Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico. Construction halted in 1971 due to environmental opposition, but not before builders completed a dam and reservoir in northeastern Florida.

The Kirkpatrick Dam and Rodman Reservoir have since flooded portions of the Ocala National Forest, submerged 20 natural springs, and blocked wildlife migration routes that manatees and other animals depend on.

Periodically, state officials drain the 9,500-acre reservoir for maintenance, temporarily revealing what lies beneath the surface. The most recent drawdown began in October and concluded in early March — the first such event in six years.

When the water recedes, buried springs resurface and young cypress trees start sprouting on the exposed lake bottom. For a few months, the landscape returns to something resembling its original condition.

Environmental advocates want to make this restoration permanent by dismantling the 7,200-foot dam and reconnecting the St. Johns and Ocklawaha rivers with Silver Springs, among America’s largest spring systems.

“By removing the dam, we would reunite the waters,” explained Nina Bhattacharyya, who leads Florida Defenders of the Environment. “We would have springs reemerge. Wildlife would be able to move back and forth — migratory fish, manatees and so much more. Removal of the dam would really fix a wrong that was created decades ago.”

Their latest attempt to secure funding hit a roadblock last week when Florida’s legislative session concluded without passing a bill that would have allocated $70 million for a four-year dam removal and river restoration project.

Despite the setback, restoration supporters remain hopeful after coming closer to success than in previous years. The House had approved the measure, which was awaiting a Senate vote when the session ended.

“While the bill did not receive a final vote in the Senate this session, the strong bipartisan support it earned reflects growing momentum for restoration,” Bhattacharyya said Monday.

The periodic reservoir drainings offer glimpses of what permanent restoration might accomplish. Wildlife tracks from bears and deer appear on the dried ground. Wild turkeys and sandhill cranes return to areas they cannot access when flooded. Thousands of dead trees — cypress, palm, and maple — emerge like monuments to the submerged ecosystem.

“It’s haunting, like a graveyard,” observed Karen Chadwick, a charter boat captain, as she navigated between the weathered tree trunks protruding from the water.

Safety concerns add urgency to the restoration debate. The aging dam has exceeded its expected lifespan, and advocates warn that structural failure could threaten hundreds of nearby residences.

“Something is going to happen, maybe next year, maybe in a couple of years,” warned Republican state Sen. Jason Brodeur, who sponsored the restoration legislation, during a committee hearing last month. “Something has to be done.”

Nature filmmaker Mark Emery recently testified to state lawmakers about the ecological damage caused by the dam. He explained that Silver Springs historically fed the Ocklawaha River, but the dam has reduced water flow and eliminated the large schools of mullet and catfish that once thrived in the springs.

“This system is a national treasure,” Emery told legislators. “Hundreds of millions of gallons of fresh water feed and cool the river. Before the dam, you had a direct waterway to the ocean with small springs all along the way.”

However, some fishing organizations oppose permanently draining the reservoir, arguing it has become a premier destination for largemouth bass fishing that supports the local economy in rural Putnam County, one of Florida’s most economically disadvantaged areas. The reservoir also attracts campers and birdwatchers.

Steve Miller, who heads Save Rodman Reservoir, told lawmakers in February that the reservoir helps filter nutrients from the water and could serve as an alternative water source as Florida’s population continues growing.

“There’s a bigger picture than what is being shown,” Miller argued during legislative hearings. “Don’t gamble away on speculative outcomes.”

Putnam County Commissioner Joshua Alexander acknowledged that while the dam’s construction was problematic, local residents have built tourism businesses around the reservoir.

“We have created chicken salad out of chicken,” Alexander told lawmakers. “We are not a rich economy, and I believe it would affect our economy.”

Restoring the Ocklawaha River would continue Florida’s pattern of repairing environmental damage from misguided infrastructure projects.

The Everglades had shrunk by half due to Army Corps of Engineers water management and flood control systems before a multi-billion-dollar restoration effort began this century. Similarly, the Corps straightened and channeled the Kissimmee River in the 1960s to prevent flooding, but disrupted the ecosystem that supported numerous bird and fish species. That river’s restoration took two decades to complete, finishing in 2021.

“Nature is very resilient,” Chadwick reflected, “if you just get out of the way and let it do its thing.”

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — After a male bullfinch crashed into Marcin Jarzębski’s apartment window, he knew the injured bird required professional care. The following day, he delivered it to Warsaw’s innovative 24-hour emergency center designed specifically for wounded wild birds.

Jarzębski carefully transported the small, round bird—featuring distinctive black head markings, gray back, and red chest plumage—in a shoebox to become among the initial cases at the new wildlife drop-off facility located at Warsaw Zoo’s entrance.

“The bird stayed with us overnight, but unfortunately it probably has a broken wing so we brought it to the bird hospital,” Jarzebski said.

The round-the-clock emergency facility in Poland’s capital operates through a network of automated metal units—similar to package lockers—equipped with heating systems to maintain warmth during winter months. These units immediately notify the nearby bird hospital when occupied, prompting veterinarians to retrieve the animals for examination and care.

After completing required paperwork, Jarzębski secured both the shoebox containing the bullfinch and the documentation form inside one of the units, confident the bird would receive optimal treatment opportunities.

The container system, developed using concepts from bird hospital staff, secures the animals safely until medical professionals can collect them. This drop-off facility, which began operations in February, has enhanced the effectiveness of the zoo’s bird hospital that has functioned since 1998 and currently provides care for roughly 9,000 patients yearly.

Zoo director and ornithologist Andrzej Kruszewicz conceived the project, emphasizing humanity’s obligation to assist wildlife affected by habitat modifications, including species like the bullfinch.

“This bird is a child of the forest who, during migration, didn’t understand the window,” Kruszewicz said.

“Humans often cause problems: car accidents, crashes into windows, electrocutions, tangled strings on storks’ legs,” he said. “All this is humans’ fault and they should feel responsible to give these birds a second chance.”

Regular patients arriving at Warsaw Zoo encompass familiar songbird varieties including tits, sparrows, thrushes and starlings, along with pigeons. Nevertheless, in an environmentally rich city like Warsaw, featuring the Vistula River flowing through its center, more uncommon species occasionally arrive for treatment.

Hospital manager Andżelika Gackowska explains that elevated winter temperatures from climate change have influenced birds that traditionally migrated southward, such as cranes and herons, to remain in Poland instead.

“Birds who stopped migrating because of warm winters were caught off guard by such a harsh winter as this year,” Gackowska said. Certain birds experienced anemia throughout the cold season due to challenging conditions and inadequate food sources, increasing their susceptibility to illness.

Funding for the emergency facility partially came from Warsaw’s citizen budget program, which selects projects through popularity rankings in online community surveys.

Warsaw Zoo staff report increased public awareness regarding assistance for sick birds, though they caution against excessive intervention, advising residents not to collect young, healthy birds mistakenly perceived as abandoned.

“In spring, we always make an information campaign warning people not to ‘kidnap’ birds,” Gackowska said. “Birds take care of their small ones differently than humans. If we see a baby bird on the grass alone, it is likely just training how to fly independently.”

Within the bird hospital, veterinary assistants remain continuously active, providing food and medications to diverse bird species housed in separate rooms based on type and severity of condition.

After birds regain strength, they move to spacious outdoor enclosures, allowing readjustment to natural conditions before release.

Returning recovered birds to their native environment represents the primary objective, according to veterinarian Ewelina Chudziak.

“We are fighting for freedom,” she said.

LAS VEGAS — At the Mandalay Bay Resort’s massive aquarium, lead aquarist Becky O’Brien holds herring above a tank filled with more than a dozen sharks, watching as a zebra shark quickly grabs the fish from her feeding tongs within moments.

O’Brien never imagined she’d become a shark nutritionist at a Las Vegas casino when she dreamed of working with ocean animals. Now she and her team provide meals for 15 different shark species three times weekly at the Shark Reef Aquarium, caring for more than 3,400 creatures in the resort’s centerpiece attraction.

“They eat, I would say, better than the tourists on the Strip,” O’Brien commented, comparing the sharks’ diet to the upscale dining options available throughout Las Vegas’ primary entertainment district.

Since opening its doors in 2000, the aquarium has become a premier destination, attracting more than 21 million guests to the resort and casino, Mandalay Bay reports.

According to Samantha Leigh, a California State University, Dominguez Hills professor specializing in marine animal nutrition, sharks require diets rich in proteins and fats to support their fatty livers, which enable them to control their depth in water.

Wild sharks consume an incredibly varied range of food sources throughout ocean ecosystems, from tiny zooplankton to large seals and even fellow sharks, Leigh explained. Captive sharks typically receive high-quality seafood comparable to what’s served in fine restaurants.

O’Brien’s team provides the Mandalay Bay sharks with a diverse menu including mackerel, herring, blue runner, and sardines to replicate the variety they would encounter in natural habitats. The fish comes from both wild-caught sources and environmentally responsible fisheries.

Weekly fish consumption at the facility exceeds 300 pounds, O’Brien noted.

Staff members insert vitamins into the fish, concealing the supplements to prevent the animals from rejecting them — similar to hiding a dog’s medication in peanut butter, O’Brien explained.

Like domestic pets, the sharks receive training and food rewards for desired behaviors. Zebra sharks learn to touch designated targets to earn their meals, while various species are conditioned to visit specific tank areas during feeding times.

Feeding sessions allow staff members to monitor the animals’ health closely. The team can assess shark conditions based on eating patterns — refusing food might indicate illness or breeding interest, O’Brien said.

While sharks become extremely hungry before mating season, many males barely eat during the actual breeding period from March through June.

“Once you get to work with these guys on a daily basis, you do learn little nuances of how each one feeds a little bit differently,” O’Brien observed. “Each species is a little bit different.”

Among the aquarium’s residents are zebra sharks, an endangered species whose numbers have dropped dramatically due to commercial fishing and coral reef destruction. The facility collaborates with international organizations to ship zebra shark eggs to Indonesia for release programs aimed at rebuilding wild populations.

O’Brien hopes visitors observing the feeding demonstrations will inspire future generations to “care about the ocean and then hopefully protect it, to love it as much as we do.”

General curator Jack Jewell noted that many aquarium sharks live significantly longer than their wild counterparts.

Jewell identified an elderly sand tiger shark moving at a leisurely pace, estimating its age between 33 and 36 years — approximately a decade beyond their typical maximum lifespan in nature.

Aging sharks struggle to hunt effectively in the wild, Jewell explained, comparing his team’s role to meal delivery services that bring food directly to customers’ homes.

During a recent visit, guests observed sharks, sea turtles, and lookdown fish — silver species named for their distinctive swimming posture — swimming around an ornamental shipwreck in the massive 1.3 million gallon habitat.

Bow mouth guitarfish, equipped with specialized mouths designed for crushing shellfish, approached the tank’s surface platform where aquarist Lukas Seoane offered fish from his feeding tongs. One dominant female guitarfish consumed more than 4 pounds of fish during a single feeding while a younger male patiently awaited his opportunity.

“Every time I’m done feeding these guys, I think I want to go out and get some sushi,” Seoane remarked. “If it’s good enough for them, it’s good enough for me.”

BEIJING – Tech developers are buzzing about an unidentified artificial intelligence system that emerged last week on a testing platform, with many wondering if Chinese company DeepSeek is secretly evaluating its upcoming advanced model.

The unnamed system, dubbed Hunter Alpha, materialized on the OpenRouter AI platform on March 11 without revealing who created it. The platform later labeled it a “stealth model.”

When Reuters tested the AI chatbot, it identified itself as “a Chinese AI model primarily trained in Chinese” with training information extending through May 2025 – the same cutoff date used by DeepSeek’s existing chatbot.

However, when questioned about its origins, the system refused to name its developer.

“I only know my name, my parameter scale and my context window length,” the chatbot responded.

Both DeepSeek and OpenRouter have remained silent about the model’s creator and did not respond to comment requests.

According to its profile information, Hunter Alpha operates with one trillion parameters – the adjustable values that guide how AI systems understand language and create responses. Systems with higher parameter counts typically demand substantially more computational resources.

The model also claims a context window reaching one million tokens, which measures how much text an AI can process or retain during one conversation session. Each token represents roughly a small text fragment, like part of a word.

“The combination that stood out was Hunter Alpha’s 1 million token context paired with reasoning capability and free access,” explained Nabil Haouam, an engineer who develops AI agent systems.

“Most frontier models with that context window come with real cost at scale,” he noted.

These features align with Chinese media expectations for DeepSeek’s anticipated V4 model, which local publications suggest could debut as soon as April. DeepSeek maintains strong funding despite its unconventional structure, with a quantitative hedge fund serving as its parent company rather than a traditional tech corporation.

Although these similarities don’t prove a direct link, they’ve fueled developer speculation that the anonymous system might be an early testing version of DeepSeek’s forthcoming release.

“The chain-of-thought pattern is probably the strongest signal,” observed Daniel Dewhurst, an AI engineer who examined the model following its appearance, describing how the AI conducts reasoning.

“Reasoning style is hard to disguise and tends to reflect how a model was trained.”

Dewhurst added that Hunter Alpha’s size and memory specifications match details circulating about DeepSeek V4 since early this year.

However, some developers urged caution about connecting the model to DeepSeek.

“My analysis suggests Hunter Alpha is likely not DeepSeek V4,” stated Umur Ozkul, who conducts independent AI performance evaluations, pointing to differences in token-handling behavior and structural patterns compared to DeepSeek’s current systems.

He acknowledged that speculation linking the model to DeepSeek made sense given the timing and advertised capabilities.

Anonymous model releases are common practice, as platforms like OpenRouter enable developers to test dozens of AI systems through one interface, making them popular venues for evaluating new technology.

A similar unnamed model called Pony Alpha surfaced on OpenRouter in February before Chinese company Zhipu AI acknowledged it as part of their GLM-5 system five days afterward.

Hunter Alpha’s profile page includes a notice stating that all user inputs and system responses “are logged by the provider and may be used to improve the model,” highlighting the widespread industry practice of using anonymous launches to gather unbiased user feedback.

The model gained quick adoption after its platform debut and has processed over 160 billion tokens through Sunday, based on OpenRouter data.

Most usage came from software development tools and AI agent frameworks like OpenClaw, which enable AI systems to independently plan tasks and communicate with external programs.

Emergency dispatchers across Ohio and Pennsylvania were flooded with 911 calls Tuesday morning after a spectacular meteor created a thunderous explosion and brilliant fireball streaking across the sky, according to meteorologists and space scientists.

The dramatic celestial display occurred around 9 a.m. Eastern Time and was witnessed as far away as Virginia and Canada, prompting confused local emergency officials to contact the National Weather Service for answers, said meteorologist Bill Modzelewski from the NWS Pittsburgh office.

“We’re receiving reports across western Pennsylvania and eastern Ohio of a loud boom and a fireball in the sky. Our satellite data suggest it was possibly a meteor entering the atmosphere,” the weather service announced on social media.

Scientists believe the space rock touched down in Medina, located approximately 40 miles southwest of Cleveland, according to Laurence Garvie, who serves as a research professor and curator at Arizona State University’s Buseck Center for Meteorite Studies. He expects meteorite hunters searching the area will discover numerous small black stone fragments.

The explosive sound occurred when the celestial object shattered the sound barrier while traveling at speeds ranging from 25,000 to 160,000 miles per hour, Garvie explained. The American Meteor Society documented over 100 witness reports of the fireball sighting, as reported by the astronomy website EarthSky.

“I’ve been getting calls and texts all morning. This is very exciting for us,” Garvie said. “They may just look like black stones on the ground, but you can actually hold something older than the Earth. Something from outer space. And we can learn new things from them.”

Rush out immediately or miss your chance! That’s usually the urgent call when birdwatchers pursue an unusual species visiting from distant lands.

However, one exceptionally rare bird classified as Code-4 by the American Birding Association – previously documented just once on the East Coast – has been leisurely residing at Virginia’s Great Falls Park, feasting on wintercreeper berries while overlooking the stunning Potomac River since the start of the year.

This female red-flanked bluetail (Tarsiger cyanurus), whose natural habitat spans the opposite side of the globe, was initially discovered by Phil Kenny, a birdwatcher from Fairfax County, Virginia. Following that sighting, hundreds of enthusiasts from as far as Florida and New York have journeyed to this national park located nine miles upstream from Washington D.C., bypassing the park’s photogenic waterfalls to observe this diminutive creature. The author made seven separate visits.

Wildlife experts remain puzzled about what drew this energetic bird to Virginia for its inaugural state visit. Red-flanked bluetails normally spend winter months in Japan, Korea, southern China, Thailand, and Myanmar, while their breeding territories extend across Japan, Siberia, and Finland. Although these birds have appeared in Alaska and western states, only one previous Eastern United States sighting occurred – along New Jersey’s coast in December 2023. Scientists theorize that wind patterns may have carried them eastward, or perhaps a genetic anomaly affected their migratory instincts.

This specific bird, bearing resemblance to a compact version of our familiar eastern bluebird, has clearly found adequate sustenance in Northern Virginia to survive even during this winter’s harsh, snowy conditions. Her diet consists of red wintercreeper euonymus seeds, oriental bittersweet berries, and additional treats that grow naturally in China, matching her typical winter habitat. These plants are considered invasive species in America, yet the bluetail thrives on them. “It’s like an American tourist going to Paris and eating at McDonalds. It’s something from back home,” the author explained to Washington Post reporter Dana Hedgpeth for her March 8 article about this displaced winter guest.

As both a former journalist and current Virginia Master Naturalist, the author enjoys educating others about remarkable wildlife discoveries. Despite preferring later hours, she agreed to accompany Dana and photographer John McDonnell to the park at dawn, searching for this needle-in-a-haystack bird. She had already observed it four times previously – typically with assistance from fellow birders who helped locate the 5.5-inch beauty.

On this solo mission during a fog-shrouded morning when the river remained invisible, spotting a small, light-brown bird featuring twin orange patches along its sides presented significant challenges. Fortunately, a dedicated birder joined their search party. Together they navigated the muddy pathway to the bird’s regular territory, and suddenly – within minutes – his keen eyesight located the creature perched prominently on a thick, fallen log within the compact winter range she appears to have claimed. She typically moves throughout approximately two-tenths of a mile along a narrow corridor between the river and granite cliffs. Cornell University ornithologist and migration specialist Andrew Farnsworth noted that some birds naturally prefer confined areas. Even within that limited space, this frequent flyer often vanishes among tangled vegetation and moss-covered rocks.

Without her characteristic blue tail movement, locating her challenges even seasoned birdwatchers. She regularly darts between the riverbank and ridge (displaying typical flycatcher behavior), venturing to the forest floor to hunt insects beneath decomposing leaves. During this misty morning, however, she remained unusually motionless for an extended period, almost as if aware that a Washington Post photographer would soon make her famous.

Following the newspaper’s publication, additional visitors flocked to observe her. Both amateur enthusiasts and professionals sometimes spotted her immediately, while others searched the trails for hours unsuccessfully. Some wondered how long the bluetail might remain, considering March 1 marked spring’s meteorological beginning and warmer temperatures had already arrived. New Jersey’s bluetail reportedly departed around late March. Perhaps this one will leave when her overwintering companions like kinglets, hermit thrushes, and white-throated sparrows head north for breeding season.

The author will miss this celebrity bird, wishing she could tell her: “Don’t hurry home! Back home you’re just an ordinary bird, but in Virginia, you’re a superstar.”

While bats typically don’t draw crowds when hanging on walls, over 350 attendees flocked to The Gallery at Main Street Station in Richmond, Virginia on March 6 to admire artistic interpretations of the Rafinesque’s big-eared bat (Corynorhinus rafinesquii) during the 2026 Restore the Wild Artwork Competition opening celebration.

The annual contest received more than 250 submissions from artists across Virginia and neighboring states, all focusing on this year’s featured species – the Rafinesque’s big-eared bat. This state-endangered mammal calls the Coastal Plain’s bottomland hardwood forests and swamplands home, and its distinctive oversized ears and prominent facial glands presented artists with a fascinating creative challenge that they tackled using diverse artistic techniques and styles.

Competition judges awarded prizes across multiple categories: Natural History Illustration, Artistic Expression, and two Youth divisions, plus selected pieces for promotional use throughout 2026. The winners received recognition at the March 6 opening event, which featured educational presentations, fundraising activities including a silent auction and raffle for Restore the Wild, and live bat demonstrations courtesy of Bat Conservation and Rescue of Virginia. Every single submission from the competition is displayed in the comprehensive exhibition.

Virginia Secretary of Natural and Historic Resources David Bulova addressed the packed reception, celebrating the intersection of art and conservation efforts.

Fairfax resident Michelle Gates claimed victory in the Natural History Illustration division with her painting titled “Echolocation,” which challenged artists to create authentic depictions of the species within its native environment. An avid outdoor enthusiast who enjoys underwater exploration, paddling, hiking, and wildlife photography, Gates also cultivates native plants in her garden to support local ecosystems.

“Winning the Natural History Illustration category feels validating as both a naturalist and as an artist. I put a lot of research into this,” Gates explained. “I wanted to show [the bat] hunting moths (~90 percent of its diet). I ultimately decided on the angle wing emerald [moth] because they’ll eat bald cypress as caterpillars. I was intrigued to find out that this [bat] species’ historical range seems to coincide with historical range for cypress swamps. Now that we’ve cut down and drained a lot of those areas, the bats have moved into human-made structures.”

The Artistic Expression category, which welcomed creative interpretations of the species and habitat, went to Cassandra Picard from Broadlands, Virginia, for her ink pen drawing “Happy Hunting.” “Being one of the winners in this competition is very exciting! Being able to contribute to conservation through a passion of mine is a dream come true,” Picard shared. “I was so excited to learn the focal species this year, as wings and winged creatures are some of my favorite things to draw. Bats have always been adorable to me, so this was a perfect opportunity!” Picard works professionally as a biologist specializing in threatened and endangered tortoise species. “I do my best to spread the word about protecting them and all threatened wildlife,” she added.

Young artists also shined in the competition’s youth categories. Emma Bridges from Brambleton, Virginia, earned top honors in the 11-17 age group, while Madison’s Ellie Chapman dominated the 10 and Under division. Both winners share a love for nature exploration and outdoor adventures. Bridges’ colored pencil creation “I’m All Ears” captivated the judging panel. “I completely fell in love with the Rafinesque’s big-eared bat as soon as I saw a picture,” Bridges said. “I’m happy I was able to do him justice. [This win] means so much to me because I put a lot of time and energy into my art, and I’m very passionate about every piece I make. I learned that the Rafinesque’s big-eared bat’s diet consisted mainly of moths and bugs, so I wanted to include that in the drawing. I had to read through research papers to find the type of moths they eat, so I could make it as realistic as possible and I chose the lettered sphinx moth.”

Chapman drew inspiration from the possibility that her graphite and colored pencil piece “In the Forest by the Creek” might help raise awareness about the Rafinesque’s big-eared bat. “I decided to draw the bat and enter the competition because when my mom showed me the bat online I thought he was really cute,” she explained. “When I learned that the bat is endangered, I thought maybe my picture might help more people like them and then that would help the bats be less endangered someday.”

Joyce Cornelius from Hurt, Virginia, saw her watercolor and acrylic creation “Twilight Trio” selected as the official 2026 Restore the Wild Fine Art Print. “It is gratifying to know that others admire something I’ve created. I hope this piece of art will be enjoyed by many,” Cornelius remarked.

“I was inspired by the subject matter as I’ve always been interested in bats. Since I usually try to incorporate trees into my painting, this combination was a great opportunity. Having never done a nighttime painting before I tried to make it a striking contrast of light and dark. One of the interesting things I learned about the Rafinesque’s big-eared bat was that they are distinguished from other big eared bats by the white hair on their belly, gray/brown back, and that the hair on their toes extends past the claws. This was the main reason I chose to paint three bats, so I could show the back, belly, and toes.” Cornelius actively participates in habitat restoration by cultivating native pollinator wildflowers and grasses for seed collection, which supports restoration projects aimed at reestablishing damaged ecosystems.

Richmond artist Grace Mae Huddleston’s vibrant “Rafinesquii in the Taxodium,” created using liquid ink and acrylic paint pen, was chosen from the Artistic Expression entries to become the 2026 Restore the Wild sticker. “As a lifelong lover of science and nature, it has been a joy to spend much of my art career exploring these topics from realistic and fantastical angles,” Huddleston said. “The Rafinesque’s big-eared bat is such a charismatic creature, and I had so much fun learning about its roosting and feeding habits. Knowing that the art piece I made about this bat will be used to draw attention to the species, to help spread knowledge, awareness, and joy is such a privilege. As for the inky style with fantastical colors—I am an avid reader of comics and sci fi, [and] those aesthetics naturally make their way into my art as a way to convey the fantastical sense of awe I feel for the special real-life creatures I depict.”

Virginia faces challenges with more than 900 wildlife species experiencing population declines, primarily due to habitat loss affecting their access to essential food, water, and shelter. The Department of Wildlife Resources serves as Virginia’s primary agency for wildlife and habitat conservation. Through the Restore the Wild initiative, DWR expands its efforts to preserve, establish, and maintain critical wildlife habitats while protecting Virginia’s natural areas. Contributions to Restore the Wild and purchases of related merchandise directly fund DWR habitat projects benefiting Virginia’s wildlife, including Species of Greatest Conservation Need.

The public can learn more about DWR’s Restore the Wild initiative and support habitat restoration through donations or merchandise purchases. The complete Restore the Wild Artwork Exhibition remains open at The Gallery at Main Street Station, located at 1500 E. Main St., Richmond, VA 23219, daily from 8:00 a.m. to 5 p.m. through Sunday, March 29.

CLEVELAND, Ohio — Residents across the Cleveland region experienced a startling wake-up call Tuesday morning when a meteor blazed through the sky, producing a thunderous sound that rattled windows and shook buildings throughout the area.

Despite occurring at 9 a.m. in broad daylight, the brilliant space object was spotted by observers across hundreds of miles, with sightings reported from as far as Wisconsin down to Maryland, according to the American Meteor Society.

Carl Hergenrother, executive director of the American Meteor Society, confirmed the celestial visitor’s authenticity. “This one really does look like it’s a fireball, which means it’s a meteorite — a small asteroid,” Hergenrother explained.

He distinguished this event from typical space debris, noting, “So much stuff is being launched that a lot of times what you see burning up is just reentering satellites. But usually those don’t get especially bright.”

According to Hergenrother’s assessment, the space rock likely measured somewhere between a softball and basketball in diameter, possibly even larger, and would have been traveling at “many tens of miles per second” when it entered Earth’s atmosphere.

Workers at Cleveland’s National Weather Service office personally experienced the phenomenon, both hearing the explosive sound and feeling the resulting vibrations. They also believe a meteor was responsible for the disturbance, though no debris has been recovered in the immediate aftermath.

“There could be some small fragments, but a lot of it would have burned up in the atmosphere,” stated NWS meteorologist Brian Mitchell.

Such cosmic events occur more frequently than many realize, with Hergenrother noting that meteors typically impact somewhere in the United States approximately once daily, while tiny space particles may fall as often as ten times each hour. While scientists monitor these phenomena through specialized camera networks designed to observe the night sky, increasing numbers of ordinary citizens are documenting them using mobile phones and personal security systems.

“Now we’re seeing them, and there’s dozens of videos popping up all the time,” Hergenrother observed.

A federal lawsuit filed Monday in California targets Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence company xAI, with three Tennessee residents claiming the company’s Grok image creation tool was intentionally built to produce sexually explicit content using actual photographs of real people.

The case, submitted to federal court in San Jose, California, seeks class-action designation for Americans who can be “reasonably identifiable” in sexual images or videos that Grok created from their actual photographs. Two of the three people bringing the lawsuit were underage at the time.

Reuters reached out to the AI company for a response but has not received a reply.

Following public criticism about sexually explicit material produced by its chatbot technology, xAI announced in January it had prevented all users from modifying images showing “real people in revealing clothing” and stopped generating such images of people in “jurisdictions where it’s illegal.”

The legal filing accuses xAI of failing to implement proper protections to stop its technology from creating sexual content featuring minors. According to the lawsuit, all three people filing suit were under 18 when the images were allegedly produced.

The plaintiffs claim their authentic photographs were digitally manipulated into explicit material and distributed across online platforms, resulting in emotional harm and creating what they call a public nuisance.

They want unspecified monetary compensation, coverage of attorney costs, and a court order forcing xAI to stop the alleged behavior.

“These are children whose school photographs and family pictures were turned into child sexual abuse material,” stated Annika Martin, the plaintiffs’ attorney from Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein. “Elon Musk and xAI deliberately designed Grok to produce sexually explicit content for financial gain, with no regard for the children and adults who would be harmed.”

Government officials and regulatory bodies worldwide have initiated investigations, implemented prohibitions, and required protective measures as part of an expanding effort to limit illegal and harmful content.

British Finance Minister Rachel Reeves announced Monday that the United Kingdom will invest as much as 1 billion pounds ($1.33 billion) in advanced quantum computing technology as part of efforts to strengthen the nation’s quantum industry and stimulate broader economic growth.

This new purchasing initiative represents half of a comprehensive 2 billion-pound strategy aimed at enhancing Britain’s quantum technology capabilities, which includes 1 billion pounds in previously committed funding, according to the finance ministry.

These advanced quantum computing systems have the ability to process multiple potential solutions at the same time, offering the potential to accelerate innovation across various fields including medical diagnosis, environmental monitoring of greenhouse gases, and secure communication systems.

Both Reeves and Prime Minister Keir Starmer had promised voters during the 2024 election campaign that they would work to jumpstart Britain’s sluggish economic performance. However, growth has continued to lag and faces potential challenges from ongoing Middle Eastern conflicts.

During a scheduled Tuesday address in London’s financial district, Reeves was expected to announce the April launch of a 500 million-pound “Sovereign AI Fund” that was previously announced last year to support British artificial intelligence companies.

The finance ministry indicated she would also emphasize that strengthening relationships with Europe and promoting regional economic development are key components of the government’s overall strategy, alongside their technology initiatives.

Prime Minister Starmer aims to minimize trade and cooperation obstacles with the European Union that emerged after Brexit. However, he has dismissed the possibility of rejoining the EU’s single market, focusing discussions instead on specific areas like business regulations and expanded mobility opportunities for young people.

BEER-SHEVA, Israel, March 16, 2026 – Archaeologists have uncovered a stunning 1,400-year-old church decorated with brilliantly preserved colorful mosaics at Nitzana National Park in Israel. The excavation, conducted by researchers from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev’s Archaeology Department, provides extraordinary insight into the wealth and architectural sophistication of the Byzantine and Early Islamic eras spanning the 5th through 7th centuries CE.

The church floors showcase elaborate geometric designs, botanical motifs, and circular medallions created from small, brightly colored mosaic tiles. Combined with a newly discovered hospice and bathing facility complex, these findings demonstrate that Nessana once functioned as a thriving, prestigious religious center catering to local inhabitants and international pilgrims by the thousands.

Positioned along the main pathway leading to Saint Catherine Monastery and Mount Sinai, Nessana served as an essential waystation for worldwide travelers. Historical graffiti discovered at the location provides evidence of pilgrims journeying from distant lands including Georgia and Armenia, underscoring the area’s significance as an international hub for religious devotion and trade.

“The magnitude of the building projects and the opulence of the ornamental details indicate a thriving and prosperous religious establishment,” explains Prof. Yana Tchekhanovets from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev’s Archaeology Department. “Each excavation season uncovers additional hidden treasures buried within Nessana’s ruins, confirming its importance as an essential destination along the historic pilgrimage pathway.”

The BGU research team seeks to link Nessana’s archaeological evidence with its renowned historical collection known as the “Nessana Papyri,” which was found at this location a century ago. This combination of ancient documents and fresh archaeological discoveries enables scholars to piece together everyday existence in the Negev desert more than a thousand years ago with remarkable precision. Notable findings from the ongoing dig include a substantial hospice containing a bathhouse equipped with marble-lined tubs, the mosaic flooring, and the rediscovery of a Greek inscription establishing the church’s construction date to the early 7th century CE.

“The papyri and additional inscriptions discovered here confirm that pilgrims traveled to this location from numerous regions,” states Prof. Tchekhanovets. “Our work will continue revealing Nessana’s captivating mysteries and uncovering additional information about ancient life and travel patterns throughout the Negev.”

This investigation, funded by the Gerda Henkel Foundation, brings together international volunteers and BGU students, reflecting the University’s commitment to advancing historical knowledge and development within the Negev region. The excavation also received support from the Israel Nature and Parks Authority.

Alaska wildlife officials are implementing a controversial strategy to protect the state’s dwindling caribou herds by eliminating their natural predators, including grizzly bears and wolves.

NPR’s Ailsa Chang recently discussed this contentious wildlife management approach with Max Graham, who writes for High Country News. The conversation focused on Alaska’s shrinking caribou numbers and the state’s decision to address the problem through targeted killing of predatory animals.

The predator control program represents Alaska’s latest effort to reverse the troubling decline in caribou populations across the state. Officials believe that reducing the number of bears and wolves will give caribou herds a better chance to recover and grow.

This approach to wildlife management has generated significant discussion among conservationists, hunters, and wildlife experts about the best methods for maintaining ecological balance in Alaska’s wilderness areas.

Fire departments across the nation may finally have a solution to a toxic problem that has plagued emergency responders for generations. A revolutionary device known as the ‘PFAS Annihilator’ has been developed to eliminate hazardous forever chemicals from firefighting foam.

Emergency responders have relied on foam containing PFAS chemicals for many years to combat fires. These so-called forever chemicals have been linked to cancer and numerous other serious health conditions, creating significant risks for firefighters and communities.

The innovative technology promises to neutralize these persistent toxic substances in the foam, potentially offering a safer alternative for fire suppression operations nationwide.

Whether Mother Nature will play along remains uncertain, but spring officially arrives this Friday according to the calendar.

Friday brings the vernal equinox, which signals spring’s beginning in the Northern Hemisphere while ushering in autumn south of the equator. During this astronomical event, the sun sits directly above the equator at midday. This marks one of only two times annually when sunlight simultaneously illuminates both polar regions.

Cultures worldwide have observed and honored equinoxes for thousands of years. Japan recognizes Vernal Equinox Day as an official holiday. Meanwhile, crowds flock to Mexico’s ancient Mayan ruins at Chichen Itza to witness how sunlight creates shadow formations resembling a snake sliding down the El Castillo pyramid.

But what celestial mechanics drive this phenomenon? The answer lies in our planet’s orbital path.

Throughout its journey around the sun, Earth maintains a tilted position that distributes solar energy unevenly between northern and southern regions during most months.

However, equinox conditions occur when Earth’s axis tilts neither toward nor away from our star, resulting in balanced sunlight distribution across both hemispheres. The sun appears almost precisely in the east at sunrise and sets nearly due west.

The term equinox derives from Latin words signifying equal and night. This reflects how daylight and darkness span nearly identical periods during the equinox, though slight variations may occur based on geographic location.

Northern Hemisphere autumn equinoxes fall between September 21-24, while spring equinoxes occur between March 19-21, depending on the specific year.

The precise equinox moment happens when solar rays strike the equator perpendicularly. For 2026, this occurs Friday, March 20, at exactly 10:46 a.m. Eastern Standard Time. Following this point, Northern Hemisphere days gradually lengthen while Southern Hemisphere daylight decreases until June’s solstice arrives.

Solstices represent periods when Earth’s tilt reaches maximum angles either toward or away from the sun. This creates dramatic differences in hemispheric sunlight exposure and produces the year’s most extreme day-night variations.

During the Northern Hemisphere’s summer solstice, our planet’s upper portion leans sunward, generating the year’s longest day and briefest night. Summer solstices occur between June 20-22, with this year’s falling on the 21st.

The reverse occurs during Northern Hemisphere winter solstice: Earth’s upper half tilts farthest from the sun, producing the year’s shortest day and longest night. Winter solstices happen between December 20-23.

These represent two distinct methods for dividing the calendar year.

Astronomical seasons follow Earth’s solar orbit patterns, while meteorological seasons align with weather patterns. Weather experts organize the year into three-month periods based on temperature trends. Using this system, spring begins March 1, summer starts June 1, fall commences September 1, and winter begins December 1.

Tech giant Apple introduced its long-awaited second-generation AirPods Max headphones on Monday, carrying a $549 price tag more than half a decade after the original model hit the market.

This represents the company’s first significant overhaul of its premium over-ear headphones since they initially launched in 2020, as Apple works to strengthen its position in the high-end audio market currently led by competitors like Sony Group from Japan, along with Bose and Sennheiser.

The refreshed headphones run on Apple’s proprietary H2 processor, the same chip that powers the company’s newest AirPods lineup. Customers can place orders starting March 25 across more than 30 nations worldwide, with products hitting store shelves in early April, according to the company’s announcement.

The second-generation AirPods Max brings several enhancements, including superior active noise cancellation technology, an upgraded microphone array, and fresh capabilities such as Adaptive Audio, Conversation Awareness, and Live Translation functionality.

The Live Translation feature, which Apple first rolled out with the AirPods Pro 3 last September, allows users to translate real-time conversations between different languages through Apple Intelligence, the company’s artificial intelligence system.

Apple also noted that the new AirPods Max 2 delivers high-resolution lossless audio quality when users connect via USB-C, specifically designed for music professionals and content creators who need superior sound fidelity.

Virginia’s Department of Wildlife Resources has launched an underwater camera system that provides real-time viewing of shad fish during their annual migration season.

The live streaming camera, positioned in Virginia waters, captures footage of American shad as they make their way upstream for spawning during the spring months. This technology allows wildlife enthusiasts and researchers to observe the natural behavior of these fish without disturbing their habitat.

The shad migration represents a critical time in the species’ life cycle, as adult fish return from ocean waters to freshwater rivers and streams to reproduce. Virginia wildlife officials use this monitoring system to better understand fish populations and migration patterns.

Viewers can access the live camera feed through the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources’ website, providing an educational opportunity to witness this natural phenomenon from home. The camera operates during daylight hours when fish activity is most visible.

This initiative supports ongoing conservation efforts for American shad, a species that has faced population challenges in recent decades due to various environmental factors including dam construction and water quality issues.

New data from the Pew Research Center reveals that roughly two-thirds of American teenagers between ages 13 and 17 are now using AI chatbots, raising concerns among experts about the implications for young people.

While teenagers report primarily using these artificial intelligence tools to assist with homework and school assignments, studies show many are also seeking guidance on significant personal matters through these digital platforms. Experts argue these serious life discussions should instead involve trusted adults like parents or religious leaders.

Adding to the concern, some chatbot platforms have been configured to deliver what researchers describe as “erotic content” to users, creating additional risks for young people accessing these services.

PORTLAND, Maine — Marine biologists working at Cape Cod’s Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution have uncovered what they believe to be the earliest known audio capture of whale vocalizations, a finding that could advance our understanding of marine mammal communication patterns.

The audio features the complex song of a humpback whale, documented in March 1949 during research operations near Bermuda waters. Scientists at the Falmouth, Massachusetts facility say this discovery holds significant value because it preserves whale communication from an era when ocean environments were considerably less noisy.

This remarkable find actually precedes scientist Roger Payne’s formal identification of whale song patterns by almost two decades. The original recording occurred when Woods Hole researchers aboard a research vessel were conducting sonar testing and acoustic studies in partnership with the U.S. Office of Naval Research.

The audio survived decades because researchers used basic recording technology but stored the sounds on a plastic disc rather than magnetic tape, allowing the material to endure through time.

Marine scientists note that over 90 different species of whales, dolphins and porpoises produce various sounds as part of their daily lives. These vocalizations are essential for survival, serving multiple purposes including social interaction and navigation.

The sounds these marine mammals create include clicking noises, whistling calls, and complex vocalizations. Researchers studying whale behavior explain that these audio communications help the animals locate food sources, navigate ocean waters, find other members of their species, and interpret their marine environment.

Ocean noise pollution has become a growing concern, with some marine areas now experiencing sound levels 10 times higher than those recorded in the 1960s. Studies conducted by the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in the mid-2000s revealed that underwater noise pollution off California’s southern coast had increased dramatically compared to 1960s levels.

The newly discovered recordings from Woods Hole capture whale songs from a much quieter ocean period. This baseline audio could help marine biologists better assess how modern human-generated sounds, particularly from commercial shipping, impact whale communication behaviors.

Humpback whales rank among the ocean’s most skilled vocalists, despite their massive size that can exceed 55,000 pounds. Their haunting, melancholic songs have been captured for human audiences over many years, with listeners often describing the sounds as deeply moving.

Roger Payne’s 1970 release “Songs of the Humpback Whale” became a cultural phenomenon, selling over 100,000 copies and earning recognition as the top-selling environmental album in history. The recording emerged during the early days of the environmental movement and played a crucial role in building public support for ending commercial whale hunting practices worldwide.

PORTLAND, Maine — Marine researchers believe they’ve uncovered the earliest known recording of whale song, a discovery that may shed new light on how these massive ocean creatures communicate with one another.

Scientists at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Falmouth, Massachusetts, found the ethereal humpback whale vocalizations on vintage audio equipment, with the sounds originally captured in March 1949 near Bermuda waters. These gentle giants, known for their acrobatic breaches and calm demeanor around whale watching boats, left behind what researchers describe as a haunting musical legacy.

What makes this discovery particularly valuable is not just the whale’s voice, but the acoustic environment surrounding it, explained Peter Tyack, a marine bioacoustician and emeritus research scholar at Woods Hole. The ocean soundscape of the late 1940s was significantly quieter than today’s seas, offering scientists a unique baseline for comparison.

“The recovered recordings not only allow us to follow whale sounds, but they also tell us what the ocean soundscape was like in the late 1940s,” Tyack explained. “That’s very difficult to reconstruct otherwise.”

This historical audio could prove crucial for understanding how modern human activities, particularly increased maritime traffic and shipping noise, have altered the way whales communicate. According to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration research, these marine mammals adjust their calling patterns based on environmental noise levels.

The recording significantly predates Roger Payne’s groundbreaking whale song research by almost two decades. Woods Hole researchers aboard a vessel were conducting sonar testing and acoustic studies with the U.S. Office of Naval Research when they accidentally captured these sounds, according to Ashley Jester, who directs research data and library services at Woods Hole.

The original scientists had no idea what they were documenting, but their curiosity led them to preserve the mysterious sounds anyway, Jester noted.

“And they were curious. And so they kept this recorder running, and they even made time to make recordings where they weren’t making any noise from their ships on purpose just to hear as much as they could,” Jester said. “And they kept these recordings.”

The whale song came to light during Woods Hole’s digitization project for archived audio materials last year. Jester located the recording on a remarkably well-preserved disc made by a Gray Audograph, a dictation device common in the 1940s era.

Though the underwater recording technology would seem primitive compared to modern equipment, it represented the cutting edge of its time, Jester explained. The plastic disc format proved particularly fortunate, as most recordings from that period used tape that has since degraded beyond use.

Sound production serves as a vital survival tool for whales, enabling them to socialize and maintain contact across vast ocean distances. These vocalizations include clicks, whistles, and calls that help the animals locate food sources, navigate their environment, find companions, and interpret their surroundings, according to NOAA marine scientists.

Multiple whale species create repetitive sound patterns resembling songs. Humpback whales, which can exceed 55,000 pounds in weight, stand out as the ocean’s premier vocalists, producing intricate sounds that can seem otherworldly or deeply melancholic.

Hansen Johnson, a research scientist at the Anderson Cabot Center for Ocean Life at the New England Aquarium, believes this rediscovered recording from a quieter era could serve as a foundation for better understanding contemporary whale communication.

“And, you know, it’s just beautiful to listen to and has really inspired a lot of people to be curious about the ocean, and care about ocean life in general,” said Johnson, who wasn’t part of the research team. “It’s pretty special.”

SAN JOSE, California, March 16 – The head of tech powerhouse Nvidia will outline the company’s upcoming technology roadmap before thousands of attendees at their yearly developer gathering in San Jose, California this Monday.

Jensen Huang, the company’s chief executive, will deliver his presentation at a hockey venue that holds over 18,000 people, where he’s anticipated to explain how the leading artificial intelligence processor manufacturer plans to navigate the rapidly evolving AI industry.

The corporation, which holds the distinction of being the globe’s highest-valued publicly traded entity with a worth exceeding $4.3 trillion, will likely introduce their upcoming AI processor dubbed Feynman, honoring the late American scientist Richard Feynman, during the four-day event. Huang’s address will also cover server facilities, the company’s chip programming platform CUDA, digital helper technologies called AI agents, and physical artificial intelligence applications like robotics.

The presentation will also spotlight Groq, a processor startup that Nvidia acquired technology from for $17 billion last December. Groq focuses on rapid and cost-effective “inference” processing tasks, where AI systems apply their training to respond to queries or generate predictions instantly.

Following massive investments totaling hundreds of billions in recent years for AI model development chips, major companies including OpenAI, Anthropic, and Meta Platforms are now prioritizing service delivery to hundreds of millions of users accessing their AI platforms. The chip manufacturer encounters stronger rivalry in the inference-computing processor market compared to AI-training chips, with industry experts predicting the company will strengthen its position against competitors seeking to reclaim market territory lost to Nvidia recently.

Even with heightened competition, including from Nvidia’s own clients developing proprietary chips, the company maintains its pivotal role in the worldwide AI infrastructure.

Countries like Saudi Arabia are developing specialized AI frameworks for their citizens using Nvidia’s technology, and the company stands among the few major American corporations continuing to distribute open-source AI programs, representing a growing competitive arena between the United States and China.

Huang’s presentation begins at 11 a.m. Pacific Time (2 p.m. Eastern Time).

China’s second-largest semiconductor manufacturer, Hua Hong Group, has successfully created sophisticated chip production technology capable of manufacturing artificial intelligence processors, according to four sources with knowledge of the development.

The company’s contract manufacturing division, Huali Microelectronics, is preparing to launch 7-nanometer chip production at its Shanghai facility, sources revealed. This achievement would position Hua Hong as the second Chinese manufacturer to possess such cutting-edge capabilities.

Currently, SMIC stands as China’s only domestic producer with the ability to manufacture 7-nanometer chips, making this development particularly significant for Beijing’s technology independence goals.

This advancement follows Washington’s partial relaxation of technology export restrictions last year, which permitted Nvidia to market its second-tier AI processors to Chinese companies.

However, despite these regulatory changes, Beijing continues pushing domestic companies to choose locally-produced alternatives as part of its strategy to reduce dependence on international suppliers.

Reuters was unable to confirm the specific methods Hua Hong used to achieve this manufacturing breakthrough, the production efficiency levels, or which equipment suppliers participated in the development process.

Three sources indicated that Chinese technology leader Huawei Technologies has been working alongside the chipmaker on these 7-nanometer technologies. All sources requested anonymity due to the confidential nature of the information.

Neither Hua Hong Group, Huali, sister company Hua Hong Semiconductor, nor Huawei provided responses to comment requests.

Industry analysts note that while SMIC employs Dutch equipment manufacturer ASML’s immersion systems for 7-nanometer chip production, their manufacturing yields—the percentage of functional chips produced per silicon wafer—continue to underperform.

ASML declined to discuss delivery-related inquiries.

Development work on Huali’s 7-nanometer chips at the Hua Hong Fab 6 facility commenced last year, with assistance from Chinese equipment providers including SiCarrier, which has Huawei backing. SiCarrier conducted equipment trials at a Shenzhen location in 2023, according to an additional source. SiCarrier did not respond to comment requests.

This progress came after Hua Hong Semiconductor announced in December its intention to purchase a majority interest in Huali while securing an additional 7.56 billion yuan ($1.10 billion) for technology improvements and foundry research.

Two sources report that Huali expects to achieve initial 7-nanometer production capacity of several thousand wafers monthly by December, with plans for subsequent expansion.

Chinese graphics processing unit developer Biren is utilizing Huali’s 7-nanometer production line for tape-out procedures, where chip designs are converted into physical prototypes for testing prior to full-scale manufacturing, one source confirmed.

After being added to a U.S. trade restriction list in 2023, Biren lost manufacturing access to TSMC services. Biren did not provide comment responses.

The Hua Hong Fab 6 represents the most sophisticated of seven manufacturing facilities within the Hua Hong Group and currently produces logic chips using 22-nanometer and 28-nanometer processes, company information shows.

In comparison, the company’s Fab 5 facility creates chips using established technologies spanning 40-nanometer to 55-nanometer processes.

A major sewage pipeline that catastrophically failed and discharged millions of gallons of untreated waste into the Potomac River has returned to service following urgent repair work completed over the weekend.

The Washington-area utility DC Water announced Saturday that emergency fixes on the 72-inch diameter pipeline were finished and flow capacity testing had been successfully completed.

The Potomac Interceptor suffered a catastrophic failure on January 19, releasing approximately 250 million gallons of raw sewage into the waterway north of Washington D.C. during the initial five-day period.

DC Water collaborated with the Environmental Protection Agency and additional agencies to address the breach and track environmental damage to the river ecosystem. Additional pipeline and system maintenance work is expected to continue for several months.

While public drinking water supplies remained safe throughout the incident, authorities have maintained strict oversight of recreational activities including fishing and boating due to potential exposure to harmful bacteria through direct water contact.

Legal action emerged on March 6 when a class action suit was filed in U.S. District Court in Greenbelt, Maryland, alleging negligence by DC Water.

Virginia resident and recreational boater Nicholas Lailas filed the lawsuit seeking damages for individuals “whose property interests in and use and enjoyment of the Potomac River … have been impaired by Defendant’s conduct,” according to court documents. The filing did not specify monetary damages sought.

The environmental disaster occurred in Montgomery County, Maryland, near Clara Barton Parkway, which runs alongside the Potomac River adjacent to the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historic Park. The incident evolved into a significant environmental crisis and became entangled in political disputes between then-President Donald Trump and Maryland’s Democratic leadership.

“Full flow has been restored and the C&O Canal has been fully drained as part of site restoration,” DC Water announced on social media. “Since Jan 19, crews worked around the clock to stabilize the site and protect the Potomac River.”

Washington D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser issued an emergency declaration on February 18 and sought federal assistance from Trump, following his criticism of Democratic officials in Maryland, Washington and Virginia for delays in requesting aid. The president quickly approved emergency resources to help address the crisis.

Potomac Riverkeeper Network President Betsy Nicholas noted the situation “could have been so much worse given the vulnerability of our drinking water system” serving the District, Montgomery County and Virginia’s Arlington County.

Nicholas emphasized the incident underscores the importance of environmental evaluations and restoration initiatives, including natural remedies such as freshwater mussels and indigenous aquatic vegetation.

“We need assurances that this isn’t going to happen again, that there’s going to be full inspection of the entire remaining system,” Nicholas stated.

DC Water has scheduled multiple public information sessions to provide updates on repair progress and environmental recovery efforts, with meetings planned for next week in Bethesda, Maryland, and Alexandria, Virginia.

A significant offshore wind energy project off the Massachusetts coast has reached completion, becoming the first major installation to finish construction while President Donald Trump holds office.

The final turbine blades were installed Friday evening at the Vineyard Wind facility, according to project spokesman Craig Gilvarg, who announced the milestone Saturday.

The completion comes despite Trump’s well-documented opposition to wind energy development. The president has frequently expressed his disdain for wind power and has stated his intention to prevent any new “windmills” from being constructed. Just days before Christmas, the Trump administration ordered construction to stop on five major offshore wind projects along the East Coast, including Vineyard Wind, claiming national security threats. Project developers and state governments challenged these decisions in court, with federal judges permitting work to continue after determining the administration failed to demonstrate an immediate security risk warranting construction halts.

Among the five affected projects, Revolution Wind achieved another milestone Friday by delivering electricity to New England’s power grid for the first time. The facility will gradually increase output over the coming weeks until reaching full capacity.

While Revolution Wind is just beginning power delivery, Vineyard Wind has been supplying electricity for more than a year as individual turbines came online. The facility represents a partnership between Avangrid and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, positioned 15 miles south of Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket. Its 62 turbines will produce 800 megawatts of electricity, sufficient to supply approximately 400,000 households with clean energy.

Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell has emphasized that completing this project is crucial for the state to reduce energy costs, accommodate growing electricity demand, achieve environmental objectives, and maintain thousands of well-paying employment opportunities.

The Trump administration has particularly scrutinized Vineyard Wind following a blade malfunction incident. In July 2024, during peak tourism season, fiberglass pieces from a damaged blade broke off and washed ashore on Nantucket beaches. Turbine manufacturer GE Vernova agreed to a $10.5 million settlement to reimburse local businesses for their losses.

The Vineyard Wind project originated in 2017 when developers filed state and federal applications for the offshore installation. Massachusetts had already committed to wind energy by mandating its utilities seek proposals for up to 1,600 megawatts of offshore wind capacity by 2027. The project nearly faced termination when federal officials delayed approval by withholding a crucial environmental impact assessment in 2019. Democratic Representative William Keating of Massachusetts accused the Trump administration of deliberately obstructing the renewable energy initiative just as it neared approval.

The Biden administration approved the project in 2021 as part of its strategy to expand offshore wind development to address climate change. Ground-based construction commenced in Barnstable, Massachusetts.

The United States’ inaugural offshore wind installation began operating near Rhode Island’s Block Island in 2016 during President Barack Obama’s final year. However, with only five turbines, it did not qualify as a commercial-scale operation. The country’s first full-scale commercial offshore wind facility officially launched in March 2024 under President Joe Biden’s administration. Danish developer Orsted partnered with utility company Eversource to construct the 12-turbine South Fork Wind project, located 35 miles east of Montauk Point, New York.

On his first day back in office, Trump initiated a series of executive actions to reshape the nation’s energy strategy, prioritizing oil, natural gas, and coal development. White House spokesperson Taylor Rogers stated Friday evening that Trump “reversed course on Joe Biden’s costly green energy agenda that gave preferential treatment to intermittent, unreliable energy sources and instead is aggressively unleashing reliable and affordable energy sources to lower energy bills, improve our grid stability and protect our national security.”

NUEVA LOJA, Ecuador (AP) — Next to a waterway blackened by petroleum contamination in Ecuador’s northern Amazon rainforest, an Indigenous leader expressed dismay as she observed the dark film floating on the surface and damaged infrastructure cutting through the woodland. Gas flames blazed overhead beyond the forest canopy.

Seventy-six-year-old Julia Catalina Chumbi, a prominent figure from the Shuar people in Pastaza province’s southern Amazon region, had journeyed great distances to witness the destruction firsthand — the aftermath of many years of petroleum extraction in northeastern Sucumbios province.

“Everything is contaminated, even the air,” she remarked softly.

She had just discovered something that deeply disturbed her. In settlements surrounding the petroleum facilities in Sucumbios, local people cannot safely consume water from nearby waterways and must purchase bottled water due to pollution concerns and health risks.

“Seeing this makes me want to cry,” she expressed, noting that waterways in her homeland remain safe for drinking.

Chumbi joined approximately 30 Indigenous women from throughout Ecuador’s Amazon basin who journeyed to this region for what advocates term a toxitour, examining petroleum facilities, transport infrastructure and gas burning locations to observe environmental and health consequences of resource extraction directly. Event coordinators explained the expedition sought to connect women from regions threatened by potential petroleum developments with settlements that have coexisted with the industry for generations. Since numerous extraction zones overlap with Indigenous lands, these communities frequently experience initial contamination of waterways, forests and food supplies.

The participants — representing seven Indigenous settlements — convened for multiple days in Nueva Loja city for educational sessions to exchange experiences and address the expanding threat of petroleum development in their homelands.

Nueva Loja is commonly called Lago Agrio, a designation given by employees from American petroleum company Texaco during the 1960s, referencing the Texas petroleum town of Sour Lake. This settlement subsequently became the hub of Ecuador’s early Amazon petroleum expansion.

The group traveled by bus, observing countless petroleum pipelines threading alongside roadways. Their target was the Libertador petroleum facility, managed by Ecuador’s government oil corporation Petroecuador. Upon arrival, they created protest signs for their march, including one declaring: “Amazon free from oil and mining.” The Associated Press observed as they quietly accessed portions of the petroleum production zone to witness impacts directly. Contaminated waterways flowed near pipelines and drilling locations, plant life showed signs of pollution and animal life was conspicuously missing.

Standing before a thunderous gas flame, Salome Aranda, 43, from the Kichwa settlement of Morete Cocha in central Amazon Pastaza province, displayed traditional facial decorations across her face.

Aranda explained the visit enabled her to observe damage she rarely witnesses near petroleum operations in her own region.

“In our area we are not allowed to enter,” she stated.

Observing the contamination directly validated worries she already harbored regarding petroleum activity near her settlement.

“The animals are disappearing and the crops no longer grow the same,” she noted.

Following the expedition, the women returned to Nueva Loja, spending extensive time in educational sessions and group conversations reflecting on their observations and sharing experiences from their territories. By the conclusion of meetings, they had started developing strategies to strengthen opposition to potential new petroleum concessions in their regions.

“Women in the north have already lived through more than 50 years of oil exploitation,” Natalia Yepes, a legal adviser for Amazon Watch in Ecuador, told AP at the workshop. “The idea is that those experiences and lessons can be shared with women from the center and south who are now facing these new threats.”

Last year, Ecuador’s administration announced an extensive “hydrocarbon road map” proposing significant expansion of the nation’s petroleum and gas industry, valued at approximately $47 billion and new licensing opportunities for exploration zones in the Amazon and additional regions. Many are situated in Pastaza and Napo provinces, where Indigenous settlements exist.

Government representatives claim the strategy aims to modernize the industry, attract international investment and increase petroleum production.

However, environmental organizations and Indigenous leadership argue the developments could expose vast rainforest areas to drilling, pipelines and gas burning. They also caution that numerous communities have not provided the free, prior and informed consent mandated under Ecuador’s constitution and international human rights treaties.

Ecuador’s Ministry of Energy and Mines did not respond to a request for comment.

The discussion regarding fossil fuel expansion in the Amazon will likely be featured at an international conference in Santa Marta, Colombia, this April. The gathering will unite governments, Indigenous leadership and civil society organizations to explore pathways for transitioning away from oil, gas and coal following last year’s U.N. climate summit in Belem, Brazil.

For some participants in the expedition, the visit reinforced struggles they already face at home.

Dayuma Nango, 39, vice president of the Association of Waorani Women of Ecuador, said the contamination she observed strengthened her resolve to prevent petroleum companies from entering Waorani territory.

“Our forest is our mother,” said Nango, who has received death threats for her advocacy. “That’s why we protect it.”

The Waorani have previously battled major petroleum developments in Ecuador’s Amazon. In 2019, Indigenous leadership secured a significant court victory that prevented petroleum drilling in Block 22 in Pastaza after judges determined the government failed to properly consult communities as mandated under Ecuadorian law. In a separate 2023 decision, Ecuadorian voters approved a referendum to stop petroleum drilling in Block 43 within Yasuní National Park, an area that overlaps with Waorani ancestral territory.

After observing the pollution in Sucumbios, Nango said she worries her community could face similar consequences if new developments proceed.

“We don’t want to live the same story that our brothers and sisters are living here,” she stated.

Toa Alvarado, 30, a Kichwa leader from Pastaza province, said the visit also strengthened her determination to defend her territory. She remembered how her deceased father, a longtime community leader, once stood in a roadway holding a spear to prevent gold miners from accessing their land.

“He told me our generation may be the last with the chance to protect our territories from contamination,” she recalled.

The next day, many women who participated in the toxitour assembled in the Amazon city of Puyo for International Women’s Day demonstrations.

“Today is about reporting to the world about the violation of rights that us Indigenous women have to endure — specifically the rights of nature,” said Ruth Peñafiel, 59, from a Kichwa community in Ecuador’s northern Amazon.

“We want to live in a healthy environment and in harmony with the forest,” she stated.

For Chumbi, the visit to Sucumbios reinforced the message she plans to deliver to her Shuar community, located deep in the Amazon.

“What we are going to do is fight,” she declared, referring to the possibility of petroleum drilling in her territory. “Even if it costs us our lives.”

Mathematics enthusiasts and pie lovers come together each March 14th to honor Pi Day, marking the date that mirrors the opening three digits of the famous mathematical constant pi.

This fundamental number expresses the relationship between any circle’s circumference and its diameter, equaling roughly 3.14159 with decimal places that continue infinitely. Students typically encounter pi when computing circle areas or cylinder volumes, yet this constant appears throughout virtually every aspect of our modern world.

The annual observance began in 1988 when Larry Shaw, a physicist working at San Francisco’s Exploratorium science museum, established the tradition.

“He had a very open and expansive view of the world and saw an opportunity with this number, mathematical concept, to invite people into the joy of mathematical learning,” said Sam Sharkland, program director of public programs at the museum, who worked with Shaw before he died in 2017.

What started as a modest staff gathering featuring actual pie evolved into an elaborate ceremony where hundreds of participants march around the museum’s pi monument, each person holding a different digit. Visitors frequently arrive early to secure their preferred number for the procession. According to Sharkland, one dedicated attendee with the pi symbol tattooed on her neck returns annually to lead the march carrying a pi banner.

The festivities commence at 1:59 p.m., representing pi’s subsequent three digits.

Scientists are utilizing pi in groundbreaking research across multiple fields.

For Artur Davoyan, who works in mechanical and aerospace engineering, pi appears so universally that isolating a single application proves challenging.

Pi forms part of “literally every single formula that you would use to do any calculation, like for spacecraft motion, for materials and how they work, or propulsion systems,” said Davoyan, a professor at the University of California, Los Angeles.

Any circular object or phenomenon with cyclical patterns — including radio waves — requires pi for calculations. Even geometric shapes like squares or irregular forms can be analyzed by breaking them into increasingly smaller circles that utilize pi, Davoyan explained.

Davoyan’s current work focuses on developing advanced propulsion technologies to accelerate spacecraft journeys to distant solar system regions for data collection missions. He referenced NASA’s Voyager 1 and 2 missions, which launched in 1977 but didn’t achieve interstellar space until 2012 and 2018 respectively.

When NASA transmits signals to these distant probes, engineers must determine Earth’s precise orbital location around the sun and construct communication antennas using pi-based calculations. Scientists then employ pi again while receiving and analyzing the complex data streams transmitted back to Earth.

“Say aliens send something to us, something that we don’t know how to deal with,” Davoyan said. “So the very first thing that you would do, you would try to split it into simple functions… and turns out that when you do this operation, you will naturally have pis in it.”

Medical research also relies heavily on pi when examining microscopic fluid behavior.

Dino Di Carlo, who leads UCLA Samueli School of Engineering’s bioengineering department, conducts research involving polymer-based microscopic particles that function as miniature cellular laboratories. This technology serves as a crucial instrument for detailed cell analysis and understanding cellular composition and behavior.

Scientists apply the pi constant when calculating droplet formation, determining surface tension effects that control droplet separation, and managing the precise volumes of these microscopic containers, Di Carlo explained.

Di Carlo employs this methodology to identify antibodies — protective proteins that combat diseases — capable of interrupting communication signals from cancerous cells.

Pi calculations also prove essential when analyzing liquid movement through tubes and barriers, such as the sideways fluid flow in at-home COVID-19 testing kits.

Using these principles, Di Carlo developed a rapid Lyme disease test that produces results in 20 minutes, dramatically improving upon previous methods that required days or weeks.

“As an engineer and scientist, (pi) is just a part of life,” Di Carlo said. “Maybe I’ve taken it for granted.”

A major offshore wind development that faced federal opposition has started delivering electricity to New England’s power grid, according to an announcement Friday from the project’s developer.

Danish energy company Orsted announced that Revolution Wind has commenced power generation and will gradually increase output over the coming weeks until reaching full capacity. The project is a joint venture between Orsted and Skyborn Renewables, owned by Global Infrastructure Partners, designed to supply clean electricity to Rhode Island and Connecticut residents and businesses – sufficient to serve more than 350,000 properties.

Revolution Wind was among five major offshore wind developments along the East Coast that faced construction suspensions from the Trump administration just before Christmas, with officials citing national security issues. Project developers and affected states filed lawsuits challenging the decision, and federal courts permitted all five projects to continue building, determining that the government failed to demonstrate an urgent national security threat requiring immediate work stoppage.

The previous Biden administration had prioritized offshore wind development as part of its climate change mitigation strategy.

However, President Donald Trump, who frequently expresses opposition to wind energy, has stated his intention to prevent any new “windmills” from being constructed. He has issued multiple executive orders designed to promote oil, gas and coal production.

White House spokesperson Taylor Rogers stated Friday evening that Trump “reversed course on Joe Biden’s costly green energy agenda that gave preferential treatment to intermittent, unreliable energy sources and instead is aggressively unleashing reliable and affordable energy sources to lower energy bills, improve our grid stability and protect our national security.” Rogers added that the administration “looks forward to ultimate victory on this issue.”

Orsted emphasized that during a period of increasing energy needs, Revolution Wind will deliver cost predictability and grid stability, referencing preliminary Connecticut state analysis projecting wholesale energy cost reductions of approximately $500 million annually by 2028.

“Revolution Wind is adding affordable, reliable American-made energy to New England’s grid, helping to meet growing energy demand and lower consumer costs,” stated Amanda Dasch, Orsted’s chief development officer.

Chris Kearns, acting commissioner of Rhode Island’s Office of Energy Resources, described the initial power delivery as a “significant moment for the state’s clean energy landscape.”

Orsted launched construction in 2024 approximately 15 miles south of Rhode Island’s coastline. The facility features 65 Siemens Gamesa turbines rated at 11 megawatts each, with more than 1,000 workers involved in the project.

Connecticut Democratic Representative Joe Courtney noted that because this wind energy originates directly off New England’s coast, “its price will not be at the mercy of uncertain global energy markets.” He referenced how the Iran conflict is affecting worldwide energy supplies, economic stability and international transportation.

Courtney also stated that Friday’s achievement “never would have happened without talented Connecticut building trades workers, who persevered through the Trump administration’s illegal halt work orders.”

The December suspension marked the second time the current administration stopped Revolution Wind construction. Work had previously been paused on August 22 due to national security concerns, before a federal judge authorized project resumption one month later.

A recreational boater from Virginia has initiated a class-action lawsuit against DC Water following a catastrophic January incident that released massive amounts of untreated sewage into the Potomac River.

Dr. Nicholas Lailas filed the legal action Friday in federal court in Greenbelt, Maryland, several weeks after a sewage pipeline failure sent wastewater gushing from the ground into the river north of the nation’s capital. The environmental disaster sparked political tensions between former President Donald Trump and Maryland’s Democratic leadership in the area where the breach occurred.

Lailas, who uses the Potomac for recreational boating, is pursuing damages for individuals “whose property interests in and use and enjoyment of the Potomac River … have been impaired by Defendant’s conduct.”

The legal filing contends that DC Water, which owns and operates the failed pipeline called the Potomac Interceptor, had a duty to keep the infrastructure in “reasonably safe condition and to prevent foreseeable harm to persons and property.”

Initial estimates suggest thousands of individuals own property or watercraft in the impacted sections of the Potomac, according to the lawsuit.

Plaintiff attorney Andrew Levetown explained Monday that determining the complete scope of the affected class will require time, as property owners, business operators, and recreational users all face potential losses from the January 19 infrastructure failure. “You’re going to have businesses who lose business because instead of sitting next to the Potomac, their clients are sitting next to the open sewer,” he said.

The legal action does not specify monetary damages sought. DC Water has not yet provided a response to requests for comment.

Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser issued an emergency declaration on February 18 and asked former President Trump for federal assistance to combat the leak that discharged 250 million gallons of raw sewage into the Potomac during the initial phase. The president granted the emergency aid request several days later to support the city’s response efforts.

DC Water acknowledged awareness that the pipeline, originally constructed during the 1960s, was degrading. Rehabilitation efforts on a section approximately 400 meters from the rupture point started in September and concluded recently. The section that ultimately failed had been scheduled for repairs during the upcoming summer months.

Current DC Water reports indicate emergency repair work has passed the midpoint and no additional discharge is flowing into the river.

During a public briefing last week, utility representatives said they are investigating what caused the rupture, including whether the original construction methods played a role in the emergency. DC Water CEO David Gadis stated during that briefing that while conclusions remain premature, “we are seeing indication that this incident may have been highly unusual.”

The Ig Nobel Awards, known for celebrating unusual scientific research with humor, are departing the United States for the first time in their 35-year history due to visa-related safety concerns for international participants, organizers revealed Monday.

The satirical science ceremony, sponsored by the Annals of Improbable Research publication, will hold its 36th annual event in Zurich rather than its traditional September location in the US, just ahead of the genuine Nobel Prize announcements.

“During the past year, it has become unsafe for our guests to visit the country,” said Marc Abrahams, the event’s host and magazine editor, in correspondence with The Associated Press. “We cannot in good conscience ask the new winners, or the international journalists who cover the event, to travel to the USA this year.”

The relocation follows President Donald Trump’s extensive immigration enforcement measures, which target both undocumented immigrants and individuals holding student or visitor exchange documentation.

For more than three decades, research winners have journeyed to America to accept their awards amid a shower of paper airplanes. Previous year’s honorees included Japanese scientists investigating whether zebra-stripe paint on cattle deters fly bites, and researchers from Africa and Europe examining lizards’ pizza preferences.

The current year’s recipients, recognized across ten categories, feature European scientists who discovered alcohol consumption can enhance foreign language speaking abilities, plus a researcher who monitored fingernail growth patterns for decades.

However, four out of ten winners declined to attend last year’s Boston ceremony. Past events have taken place at prestigious venues including Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Boston University.

This year’s celebration is being coordinated with ETH Domain institutions, part of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology network, along with the University of Zurich, according to Abrahams.

“Switzerland has nurtured many unexpected good things — Albert Einstein’s physics, the world economy, and the cuckoo clock leap to mind — and is again helping the world appreciate improbable people and ideas,” he noted.

Milo Puhan, a University of Zurich epidemiologist and 2017 Swiss Ig Nobel recipient, expressed enthusiasm for hosting the ceremony. “The Ig Nobel Prize makes research visible, and does so with a wink,” Puhan stated, referencing his award-winning work that “showed that playing the didgeridoo trains the muscles and structures that keep the upper airways open, thereby reducing nighttime snoring and the severity of sleep apnea syndrome.”

Abrahams announced the ceremony will alternate between Zurich every other year and various European cities in between years.

No current plans exist for returning the awards ceremony to American soil.

LONDON (AP) — Throughout more than 60 years of “Doctor Who,” the time-traveling protagonist has battled countless foes including mechanical monsters, fierce Yeti creatures — and surprisingly, the BBC itself, which destroyed numerous early episodes of what would become a legendary science fiction series.

A film preservation organization revealed Friday that it discovered two missing episodes from the 1960s within the estate of a collector who had passed away. BBC restoration specialists have refurbished the episodes, making them available next month through the network’s digital streaming platform.

This find reduces the number of missing episodes to 95 from the space-and-time traveling alien’s adventures that first premiered in 1963.

“Doctor Who” — where the “who” serves as a philosophical inquiry rather than the character’s actual name — has evolved into a broadcasting phenomenon with devoted followers worldwide. However, the BBC’s early treatment of the program was negligent. Numerous episodes disappeared because the network erased the recordings to reuse the tapes.

“The attitudes to archiving back in the 60s in television was really very different from today, and lots of material was junked,” said Justin Smith, a cinema professor at England’s De Montfort University and chair of trustees of Film is Fabulous!, which works to preserve cinema and television history.

Smith informed the BBC that the organization discovered film containers holding the two recovered black-and-white episodes, “The Nightmare Begins” and “Devil’s Planet,” within the collection of a deceased film enthusiast. The collector’s family prefers to maintain their privacy.

These episodes originally broadcast during the program’s third season in 1965 and showcase William Hartnell, the initial actor among more than twelve performers to portray the Doctor, in an adventure featuring the notorious Daleks — salt-shaker-shaped metallic enemies whose signature phrase is “Exterminate!”

This marks the first such discovery since 2013, when nine missing episodes were located in storage at a television transmission facility in Nigeria.

The recovered episodes star Peter Purves, who portrayed the Doctor’s companion Steven Taylor across 46 episodes of the series.

“Twenty-seven of mine still are missing, but I’m delighted that two have been found,” 87-year-old Purves told the BBC. “It’s rather sad, but it’s great when some turn up.”

“Doctor Who” aired from 1963 through 1989 before returning in 2005. The show’s endurance stems partially from its adaptable concept. The Doctor, a Time Lord from Gallifrey, can journey to any location in space or time and can transform into new forms, enabling the character to survive beyond any single performer.

The latest season, featuring Ncuti Gatwa as the Doctor, aired in 2025. The series is scheduled to continue with a yet-to-be-announced actor taking over the role.

ABBEVILLE, La. — At Vermilion Gator Farm, Jacob Sagrera spreads out an alligator hide across a steel table, carefully removing salt crystals. He examines the skin under bright lighting, searching for any imperfections before assigning it a quality rating. This assessment will guide a distant tannery in preparing the hide for luxury fashion houses that create high-end boots, watch straps, and purses for upscale boutiques and fashion shows.

After evaluation, Sagrera places the hide onto a stack of similar skins, each marked with a yellow identification tag that enables officials to monitor legitimate trade practices.

Supporters claim that commercial alligator breeding has helped protect a species many people view as frightening, troublesome, or valuable only for their hides. While not every conservationist supports this approach, farmers and luxury companies promoting sustainable products have found success in connecting environmental protection with economic opportunity.

Several researchers who study these reptiles support this viewpoint.

“These wetlands, these alligators … it has to have some kind of monetary value,” said George Melancon, alligator research biologist for the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries. “Otherwise, people just forget about them.”

The hide evaluation process at Sagrera’s family business represents just one component of a system that has operated for decades.

American alligators faced potential extinction from hunting pressure and were added to the Endangered Species List years ago. According to experts like Grahame Webb, director of Wildlife Management International and an adjunct professor at Charles Darwin University in Australia who has focused on reptile and crocodilian conservation since the 1960s, their population levels weren’t too severely reduced to recover naturally if their environment remained protected.

However, Louisiana scientists developed an alternative approach to increase alligator numbers: farmers would compensate landowners for eggs, raise the reptiles to sell their meat domestically and their skins to luxury markets, then return a portion to natural habitats annually.

Today, Louisiana generates approximately 400,000 farm-raised alligators each year, according to the state’s wildlife and fisheries department, which estimated farmed hide values exceeded $56 million in 2024. State officials determine annual release numbers based on nest survey data and hunting permit information, estimating roughly 3 million wild alligators currently inhabit Louisiana. As wild populations have increased, officials have reduced the percentage of farm-raised gators returned yearly, dropping from nearly 20% in the early 2000s to approximately 5% currently.

American alligators were removed from endangered status in 1987 and now hold “Least Concern” classification on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, though their trade remains regulated due to their resemblance to other vulnerable crocodilian species. While alligators exist throughout the Southern United States, Louisiana dominates production, with additional farms operating in Georgia, Florida and Texas.

Farmers and state representatives say the tracking system ensures all products originate from authorized operations. Col. Littleton, an alligator leather goods company in Lynnville, Tennessee, maintains records of all tracking tags, according to Hayley Holt, their director of corporate and specialty sales. While they primarily sell domestically, many retailers document their material sources for potential international shipping, Holt explained.

Alligator farming succeeds due to substantial legal markets and robust oversight, said Oliver Tallowin, senior program officer on wildlife use and trade for the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources.

Animal rights advocates challenge the ethics of raising alligators commercially. Beyond welfare issues, some believe the practice maintains demand for skins that could encourage poaching.

“That shadow trafficking industry is going to be there because you’ve rooted your system in profit,” said Sarah Veatch, principal for wildlife policy for the nonprofit Humane World for Animals, formerly the Humane Society of the United States. “Trade not only meets the existing demand, but it normalizes it, it legitimizes it and it grows that demand for wild animal skins.”

Sustainability frequently features in luxury brand marketing campaigns.

Companies have become more involved in alligator leather sourcing by purchasing stakes in or acquiring family-run farms, tanneries and manufacturers, said Christy Gilmore, a consultant who facilitates communication between Louisiana alligator officials and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), a trade agreement among global governments.

“The brands started asking questions and digging deeper and quite honestly, just doing things that those of us who were small family businesses didn’t think about,” said Gilmore, whose family has operated in the hide industry for over a century and owns an alligator and crocodile tannery in Georgia. “We’re not sitting around thinking about what our carbon footprint has been.”

The state wildlife and fisheries agency has expanded its marketing budget over time, increasing from a $300,000 limit to $500,000. This funding comes from industry sources, including annual hunting tag sales, and supports a fund dedicated to alligator programs.

The budget has grown as available funds increased and due to competition from hides of other crocodilian species entering the market, said Jeb Linscombe, alligator program manager for Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries. However, concerns exist that animal rights organizations could influence the luxury market away from alligator hides, Linscombe noted.

The related fur industry has experienced significant declines recently. Last year, Poland enacted legislation to end fur farming by 2033’s conclusion, and New York Fashion Week announced a fur ban for its fall 2026 presentations.

Some animal rights organizations believe hides like alligator and python could become the next focus. Smaller venues such as London Fashion Week have already prohibited exotic skins.

The alligator program also supports research on a species that has remained largely mysterious.

Melancon, the alligator biologist, seeks to better understand their biology to assist ranchers — for example, creating a West Nile virus vaccine, since the disease can cause skin lesions that damage valuable hides.

Other scientists want to explore whether alligators benefit climate conditions. A study published in Scientific Reports last year discovered a strong relationship between alligator abundance in wetlands and the amount of carbon those wetlands store. This matters because when carbon dioxide enters the atmosphere, it becomes a primary cause of global warming. The research team is preparing another study to determine whether alligators directly contribute to carbon storage, possibly by consuming animals that eat carbon-storing plants, said lead author Chris Murray, an adjunct professor of biology at Southeastern Louisiana University.

“Alligators can’t stop climate change,” Murray said, but “there’s the chance they are participating in the global challenge of climate change for the good and not the bad.”

Murray explained he’s not conducting the research to benefit the industry, but for general conservation purposes. He recognizes alligator value beyond luxury accessories and wants others to understand it as well.

“It’s more than just this cool thing for kids to look at,” Murray said. “It’s, ‘hey, they have an important role in the functionality of the earth that you live in.’”

KLEINFELTERSVILLE, Pa. — Each spring, nature enthusiasts arrive in the pre-dawn darkness at Middle Creek in Pennsylvania to experience one of nature’s most spectacular shows. Thousands upon thousands of snow geese create a breathtaking spectacle as they take to the skies from the water’s surface in a magnificent whirling cloud.

The incredible aerial performance is brief, lasting just a few minutes as the massive flocks disperse across surrounding agricultural areas to search for food during their yearly journey northward to destinations in New York and Quebec. This remarkable migration phenomenon occurs for only a limited period each spring, attracting large numbers of wildlife enthusiasts to the sanctuary.

The wildlife refuge, established many years ago specifically to draw waterfowl to the area, has become a major destination that hosts approximately 150,000 visitors each year who come to witness this natural wonder.

Bird enthusiasts across Virginia have another opportunity to participate in the state’s premier birding competition as the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources announces the return of their annual Birding Classic for its third year.

The statewide event invites participants to explore Virginia’s diverse habitats while documenting the various bird species they encounter. Organizers designed the competition to promote wildlife observation and conservation awareness throughout the commonwealth.

The Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources created this annual tradition to engage both experienced birders and newcomers to the hobby. Participants can explore different regions of Virginia while contributing to citizen science efforts that help track bird populations and migration patterns.

Registration details and specific event dates are available through the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources. The competition format allows flexibility for participants to bird-watch at their own pace while competing for recognition in various categories.

VIENNA (AP) — Austrian researchers have documented a striking pattern of glacier loss across the Alpine nation, with 94 of the country’s 96 glaciers shrinking over the past two years, according to findings released Friday by monitoring organizations.

Data from the Austrian Alpine Club reveals that two glaciers experienced the most severe losses: the Alpeiner Ferner located in western Tyrol and the Stubacher Sonnblickkees in Salzburg province to the east, both pulling back more than 100 meters (approximately 330 feet). Across all measured glaciers, the typical withdrawal exceeded 20 meters (65 feet).

Austria’s most massive glacier, the Pasterze, continues to show signs of deterioration as well. “The disintegration of the glacier tongue is also progressing at the Pasterze, Austria’s largest glacier, making the consequences of climate change visible,” researchers noted in their 2024-2025 assessment.

The findings “confirms once again the long-term trend: Glaciers in Austria continue to shrink significantly in length, area, and volume,” according to the study.

The shrinking of European glaciers carries significant consequences for water supplies, electricity production, farming operations, infrastructure systems, tourism activities, and the overall Alpine environment.

Switzerland, which contains Europe’s largest collection of glaciers, has documented comparable glacier losses in recent years, reflecting a global pattern of ice retreat.

Weather patterns including insufficient snowfall and elevated temperatures — particularly an unusually warm June that registered nearly 5 degrees Celsius (9 degrees Fahrenheit) higher than normal — have accelerated the glacier retreat, researchers explained.

“The glaciers are melting — and with every new report, the urgency grows,” stated club vice president Nicole Slupetzky. “It’s no longer a question of whether we can still save the glaciers in their old form; it’s about mitigating the consequences for ourselves.”

The organization emphasized that these Alpine transformations should function as a “wake-up call” for government leaders and citizens to modify their actions.

While the current measurements show less retreat than the previous two-year period, the glacier loss still represents the eighth-most significant withdrawal recorded in 135 years of scientific observation.

Chinese medical regulators made history Friday by becoming the first in the world to authorize commercial sales of a brain-computer interface system designed to help paralyzed individuals regain hand function.

The groundbreaking device, developed by Shanghai-based Borui Kang Medical Technology, represents a major milestone in neurotechnology aimed at restoring movement and communication capabilities for people living with various forms of paralysis.

Specifically engineered for individuals with quadriplegia resulting from cervical spinal cord damage, the system enables patients to regain their ability to grasp objects through the use of a specialized glove.

The technology operates as an invasive brain-computer interface, meaning electrodes are surgically placed directly into brain tissue rather than positioned on the brain’s surface. The system utilizes minimally invasive surgical techniques for electrode placement outside the brain’s protective covering and relies on wireless communication technology.

According to China’s National Medical Products Administration, brain-computer interface technologies like this newly approved device have received priority status from the government. Officials noted that Beijing has classified this sector as a “future industry” in the country’s most recent five-year development plan announced last week.

A prominent expert in brain-computer interface technology told Reuters recently that China could witness these systems entering widespread public application within the next three to five years as the technology advances. This development comes as Beijing works to compete with American companies in the field, including Elon Musk’s Neuralink venture.

The approved device has specific patient requirements for eligibility. Candidates must be between 18 and 60 years old and have sustained a particular type of spinal cord injury. Their medical diagnosis must be at least one year old, and they must maintain stable health for six months after receiving standard medical treatment. Qualifying patients cannot grasp with their hands but must still have some functioning in their upper arms.

Regulatory officials reported that clinical testing demonstrated notable improvements in participants’ hand-grasping capabilities. The agency stated these enhancements contributed to better overall quality of life for patients involved in the trials.

Subway passengers who vent their frustrations about sweltering underground conditions on social media platforms have scientific backing for their grievances, according to new research published Tuesday.

A Northwestern University study examining more than 85,000 social media posts and Google Maps reviews from 2008 to 2024 reveals a direct correlation between rising surface temperatures and increased complaints about underground heat in New York, Boston, and London transit systems. The findings appeared in the journal Nature Cities.

Researchers scoured posts on platform X and review sites, searching for temperature-related keywords like “hot” and “warm” while excluding unrelated terms such as “hot dog.” They focused on these three metropolitan areas because they operate some of the world’s most established and heavily trafficked subway networks.

The data showed striking patterns: when outdoor temperatures increased by just 1 degree Fahrenheit, heat-related complaints jumped 10% in Boston, 12% in New York, and 27% in London. This correlation becomes more concerning when considering that Earth’s average temperature has risen 1 degree Fahrenheit between 2008 and 2024, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

“Interestingly, over the weekend, people complained less,” noted Giorgia Chinazzo, assistant professor in Northwestern’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, who co-authored the study with associate professor Alessandro Rotta Loria. Chinazzo suggested that weekend clothing choices might contribute to this difference compared to workday attire.

The research team examined posts across different seasons, times of day, and days of the week to identify these patterns.

Flavio Lehner, an assistant professor of Earth and atmospheric sciences at Cornell University who wasn’t part of the research team, explained that the study “follows the template of previous studies that link environmental conditions to human behavior using social media data.” Lehner has conducted similar research on how warmer conditions trigger stronger online responses.

However, Lehner pointed out research limitations, including the focus on only three transit systems and challenges in controlling for other factors that might influence social media activity.

Kris Ebi, a University of Washington professor specializing in public health and climate who also wasn’t involved in the study, believes the actual effects of subway heat exceed what researchers documented because vulnerable populations have limited social media representation.

Ebi emphasized that the study’s scope “provides compelling evidence that cities should be planning for measures to keep people safe during hot weather.”

This type of research could influence how transit authorities and policymakers address extreme heat conditions in the future.

“We’re all experiencing rising temperatures. So those above will be reflected underground, and this will be reflected in people complaining more and more,” Chinazzo explained. “Mitigation and adaptation strategies are things that will be much more implemented in the future.”

Potential solutions could include installing ventilation systems, operating cooling systems during peak heat hours, or providing water stations at strategic times.

“We need new technologies and tools, new methodologies that people can use to face these changes in temperatures that everyone is aware of and experiencing nowadays,” she concluded. “And it will be worse in the future.”

WASHINGTON — When a massive pipe collapsed this past January, it released an unprecedented 244 million gallons of raw sewage into the Potomac River, creating a public health emergency that lasted for weeks as dangerous bacteria levels were monitored downstream past the nation’s capital.

While this catastrophic failure made headlines, it represents just the tip of a much larger national crisis. Thousands of smaller sewage overflows happen annually throughout the United States, contaminating waterways, flooding neighborhoods, and sometimes backing up into people’s homes with serious health risks.

“It’s really one of those out of sight, out of mind problems that doesn’t rise to the top until it becomes a crisis,” explained Alice Volpitta, who serves as Baltimore Harbor waterkeeper for the environmental group Blue Water Baltimore.

Federal data analysis reveals that approximately 18.7 million Americans depend on water systems operated by nearly 1,000 utilities currently violating pollution standards. Even more concerning, about 2.7 million people rely on systems that have consistently broken federal clean water regulations for three consecutive years.

Maryland’s largest city has experienced hundreds of sewer failures recently, often triggered by deteriorating pipes, invasive tree roots, or intense storms. Similar struggles plague Houston, Memphis, and Cahokia Heights, Illinois, which have all entered court settlements to address their infrastructure problems. Climate change is making the situation worse in areas where stormwater and sewage share the same pipes, as heavier rainfall increases the frequency and severity of overflows.

While President Trump criticized local officials as “incompetent” following the Potomac incident, infrastructure experts point to federal funding reductions as part of the broader challenge. Many water utilities simply cannot afford necessary upgrades, with the Environmental Protection Agency estimating hundreds of billions in investment needs over the coming twenty years.

“We’re going to see probably more incidents like we saw with the Potomac sewage spill,” warned Becky Hammer, a senior attorney with the Natural Resources Defense Council.

Baltimore resident Teddy Bloomquist discovered the harsh reality of failing infrastructure when a neighbor’s warning led him to his basement, where murky brown water mixed with human waste was bubbling up through his shower drain. This marked his third sewage backup that winter season, each incident potentially exposing his family to harmful bacteria.

“We’re taking buckets and it turns out every time someone’s flushing their toilet, it’s coming up,” Bloomquist described. “It’s just coming so fast.”

Baltimore operates on a sewer network that dates back more than 100 years, with portions of the complex pipe system only recently mapped. Decades of deterioration have created cracks and leaks that allow rainwater infiltration, worsening backups that surge through manholes, contaminate local rivers, and flood into basements.

“A spill that happens in a community, in somebody’s house, or right next to their house — that will be a memory for them forever,” noted Sri Vedachalam, a water and climate specialist with Corvias Infrastructure Solutions.

Baltimore has recorded approximately 15 million gallons of sewage spills since early last year, with incident locations spread throughout the city like spots on a map.

One resident found toilet paper fragments frozen in his backyard snow and spent an entire day removing sewage from his bathtub and toilet. Repair costs reached thousands of dollars, including complete bathroom floor replacement. A neighboring resident used a wet vacuum to extract roughly 120 gallons of sewage from her property.

The city has invested nearly $2 billion over more than twenty years under a federal and state regulatory agreement. Improvements include new water main installations, closing overflow outlets, and eliminating sewage blockages in pipes serving treatment facilities.

According to Baltimore’s Department of Public Works, their infrastructure improvements are reducing overflows, though the work requires time and cost considerations. The city has made significant progress — current overflow volumes are substantially lower than the severe 2018 rainy season that produced spill amounts comparable to the Potomac incident — but officials have requested extending their completion deadline to 2046.

The city provides up to $5,000 assistance for residents cleaning up sewage backups following certain storms, though community advocates argue more support is necessary. City officials state the program operates under specific qualification requirements.

Maryland’s situation is well-documented because it ranks among states that publicly report overflow incidents. However, approximately half of all states do not provide such transparency, according to reporting practice reviews. The EPA recently extended federal electronic reporting requirements for most states from 2025 to 2028, citing the need for smoother transitions.

Water infrastructure needs nationwide have grown to at least $630 billion over the next two decades, according to 2024 EPA estimates. Local communities will bear most of these costs. Federal involvement has increased recently but may face reductions ahead.

The 2021 infrastructure legislation allocated billions for water projects, but this marks the final year for state loan distributions to local initiatives. The Trump administration previously proposed significant cuts to these programs and grants supporting state environmental oversight, including water monitoring and protection. Congress blocked those reductions, maintaining funding access for Baltimore and similar communities, according to Maryland Senator Chris Van Hollen.

However, environmental justice initiatives targeting low-income and predominantly minority communities were eliminated as part of the administration’s opposition to what it termed radical diversity and inclusion programs.

Several smaller grants were cancelled, including $14 million for septic system installations in majority-Black Alabama counties where residents deal with sewage piped onto their properties. Regional assistance centers designed to help small communities plan complex projects and compete for new funding were also discontinued.

One such center serving six Midwest states was preparing to test drinking water and address mold problems in the East St. Louis, Illinois area, according to former center director Bonnie Keeler. This represented just one of dozens of planned projects before the program’s termination.

Major funding sources remain available. The EPA announced $6.5 billion for wastewater and drinking water projects through loan programs in November, plus an additional $550 million for state distribution. The state loan program has operated for nearly four decades, providing over $180 billion through more than 50,000 low-cost loans, according to agency records. The EPA also offers technical assistance services.

“EPA helps invest in our nation’s water infrastructure by identifying needs, funding infrastructure projects through multiple programs, and providing technical assistance to connect communities and tribes to federal funding,” the agency stated.

Bloomquist wants Baltimore to cover his damages and prevent future incidents. He missed several work days following the January backup and must replace his basement flooring.

“It’s been a saga and now everyone’s on edge. You know, we’re on our group texts, people are like, ‘Oh no, it is raining,’” Bloomquist said.

Facebook’s parent company Meta has pushed back the launch of its newest artificial intelligence technology by at least two months, according to a Thursday report from The New York Times.

The social media giant had originally planned to release its latest AI system, which goes by the internal name “Avocado,” sometime in March. However, three sources familiar with the company’s plans told the Times that the launch has now been moved to May at the earliest.

The report provides few details about what caused the delay or what capabilities the new AI model will offer when it eventually launches.

Reuters was unable to independently confirm the information about Meta’s revised timeline for the AI rollout.