[Misstee]

Scientists Just Discovered a ‘Strawberry-Like’ Antarctic Invertebrate With 20 Arms
The Antarctic strawberry feather star is one of four new related species believed to have been discovered by a team of marine scientists.
By
Ed Cara
Published 2 hours ago




A dorsal view of the Antarctic strawberry feather star (Promachocrinus fragarius)
Image: McLaughlin, Wilson, Rouse/Invertebrate Systematics

Another day, another terrifying sea creature for our fragile human minds to process. A team of marine scientists say they’ve confirmed the existence of a bevy of new species living around Antarctica. One of these apparent discoveries is an invertebrate that somewhat resembles a strawberry, albeit with 20 arms.

The scientists are all affiliated with the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, based at the University of California, San Diego. Their goal was to untangle the family tree of a particular genus of marine animals called Promachocrinus, or Antarctic feather stars. To do this, they analyzed relevant specimens first documented and collected during a series of expeditions to the Southern, or Antarctic, Ocean conducted between 2008 to 2017.




A lateral view of the Antarctic strawberry feather star.
Image: McLaughlin, Wilson, Rouse/Invertebrate Systematics

These animals are broadly related to starfish, sea cucumbers, and other echinoderms, but not too much is known about them. Until now, only one species had clearly been identified as belonging to this genus, called Promachocrinus kerguelensis. The specimens found in these earlier expeditions were long assumed but not confirmed to be examples of it. By analyzing the DNA and body shape of the creatures, the researchers say they were able to correctly categorize many more distinct members of the genus.

All told, they classified seven other species of Promachocrinus, including four species previously never named by scientists. Perhaps the most eye-catching newly discovered species is Promachocrinus fragarius, nicknamed the “Antarctic strawberry feather star.” The animal’s “strawberry-like” central body, as described by the scientists, has 20 arms that extend out from it, and its natural color can range from “purplish” to “dark reddish.” It’s believed to live somewhere between 215 feet to 3,840 feet underwater.

The team’s findings were published earlier this July in the journal Invertebrate Systematics.

Though the researchers may have solved one marine mystery, there’s plenty more unknown species left to discover out there. In the case of Promachocrinus, the authors note that their work wouldn’t be possible without viable DNA samples. And it will take much more extensive research to even begin to understand the life teeming in the waters of the Antarctic.


“The vast nature of the Antarctic and Southern Ocean ecosystem dictates large scale sampling to understand the full extent of the biodiversity,” they wrote.

[goldie0608]

Cherie the Surfing French Bulldog Ends Impressive Career Riding the Waves with a Big Win

The 11-year-old rescue canine recently competed in the Purina Pro Plan Incredible Dog Challenge & Surf Dog Competition in California



Cherie is the canine queen of the surf!

The rescue French bulldog recently won first place in the small dog surfing contest at the 26th Annual Purina Pro Plan Incredible Dog Challenge & Surf Dog Competition at Huntington Beach, California.

It was a back-to-back win for the 11-year-old canine, who placed first in the same competition in 2022, which made the success even sweeter. The win was significant for Cherie and her owner Dan Nykolayko because it will likely be the dog's last at the Incredible Dog Challenge.

"This is going to be the last year that we compete. So the win at the Incredible Dog Challenge was super special," Nykolayko tells PEOPLE.

Cherie has decided to step back from competitive canine surfing to focus on enjoying her golden years. However, the dog isn't getting out of the water altogether — the pup already has a surf party in the works for her 12th birthday in September.

After adopting Cherie from the French Bulldog Rescue Network in March 2012, Nykolayko "totally stumbled into" surfing with the pup.

The pet parent brought Cherie to a dog beach in California a year after welcoming the Frenchie home to see how the pup would react.

"She shot down the shore, and there were these two big dogs playing in the water, chasing a ball, and she just went straight in," Nykolayko says.



Cherie's early interest in the beach led her and Nykolayko to dog surfing lessons hosted by the Helen Woodward Animal Center at the Delmar Dog Beach.

Nykolayko admits he initially thought dog surfing sounded like "the dumbest idea I've ever heard" but quickly changed his mind after the first lesson with Cherie.

"We went down there, and it was so much fun that we ended up signing up for all the other classes that particular summer in 2013," he adds.

Over the next two years, Cherie and Nykolayko honed their surfing skills and formed a deep bond.

"Those first couple of years, we really learned, both her and I, how to read each other, and we got much closer. It's like I could tell when it was time to call it a day and just come back in and play in the sand," Nykolayko says.

Cherie competed in her first Incredible Dog Challenge in 2015, placing third in the small dog surfing competition. Since then, she has participated in numerous competitions, rode countless waves, and raised thousands for animal welfare charities.

And while Cherie is almost retired from competitive surfing, she and Nykolayko are still looking forward to all the beach days ahead.

"She and I have a great time playing out in the water together, and it brings smiles to people's faces when they get to see it, and we're doing our best to make a little difference in the world," Nykolayko says.

Brain Matter May Remain Higher in People Who Love to Take a Cat Nap

Aug 11, 2023


credit – Lauren BL on Unsplash

A study recently found a potentially-causal link between habitual daytime napping and total brain volume, which could carry implications for staving off the effects of aging.

The difference was not a small one, and it equated to the difference in brain volume between people with normal cognitive function and mild cognitive impairment, or between 2.6 and 6.5 years of brain volume loss due to aging.

The study was conducted via data on genetic polymorphisms recorded in the UK Biobank, a population-level database that combines health questionaries with gene-wide association studies to link various self-reported activities and choices with genetic variation and disease outcomes.

In this study, published in Sleep Health, the authors used a core group of 92 single-nucleotide polymorphisms to identify people who were genetically predisposed to daytime napping and separated those who had these SNPs into groups based on their answers to a question of how often they napped during the day, with the answers being never, rarely, sometimes, and often.

The genetic predisposition is important, as there are some people, the authors write, who simply never reach a point of daytime tiredness where they feel the need to nap, and studies have shown that these people may have higher brain volumes at baseline.

Sleep quality and duration are key factors in the speed of cognitive decline, of cognitive ability, and total brain mass. Sleep quality tends to diminish with age, as does cognitive ability and total brain mass. Furthermore, frequency of napping tends to increase with age after 60. For these reasons, the authors indicate that research on the effects of napping is paramount to understanding cognitive decline in later years.

With over 350,000 participants from the UK Biobank analyzed with a mean age of 57, the authors found a causal association between genetically-disposed daytime napping and 15.3 cubic centimeters of increased brain volume, or around a 1.6% difference.

Secondary outcomes were hippocampus volume, and two measures of cognitive performance, visual memory, and reaction time. None of these showed any associated increases with habitual daytime napping.

This was a surprise for the scientists. The hippocampus is where, among other things, short-term visual memory is processed into long-term memory storage.

“Our hypothesis was based on the fact that the hippocampus, as a brain structure that plays a crucial role in memory, could be a useful proxy of the variations in memory performance reported to be associated with daytime napping,” the authors wrote. “However, we did not find this association, nor an association between genetic liability to habitual daytime napping and visual memory performance.”

For the scientists, the takeaway was that more research is needed. For the layman, the findings may suggest that for those genetically predisposed to habitual daytime, i.e. for those who feel the urge to take a nap in the middle of the day, it could be a small natural defense against cognitive decline as they age.

A college football player knew his teammate donated plasma to afford school. So, he gave him his scholarship.

[url=]by[/https://www.cbsnews.com/news/eastern-michigan-university-football-player-gives-scholarship-to-teammate-zack-conti-brian-dooley/?intcid=CNI-00-10aaa3aurl] Caitlin O'Kane

After a college football player named Brian Dooley noticed his teammate was juggling multiple jobs, he made a selfless choice to help him.

"Zack Conti has had to pay his way to school for four years. And in the fall, the guy was selling his plasma to be able to pay the bills," Head Coach Chris Creighton told the Eastern Michigan University football team during a meeting on Aug. 3.

Unfortunately, the team couldn't give out any more scholarships. But financial help was still coming Conti's way.

Creighton explained to the players that the NCAA allows the team to provide 85 scholarships each year, and they've given them all out. Creighton asked for an 86th scholarship, but the answer was no.

"Until Brian Dooley comes into my office," Creighton said. "And he says, 'Coach, that guy has earned it. And I've talked this over with my family. And if there's a way to make this happen, I am willing to give up my scholarship as a gift to Zack Conti.' I've never heard, I've never seen anything like that ever before."

At that moment, Dooley walked over to Creighton and handed him an envelope that held his scholarship. The team broke out in cheers.

After the now-viral moment, Conti said he was "so honored and so thankful." He said he knew the coach and Dooley were trying to help him get a scholarship, but didn't know Dooley's scholarship would be presented to him during that meeting.

"It feels like all of my hard work is finally being rewarded," he said.

The senior paid his way through school by working and donating plasma, which usually pays $50 to $100 a session.

"Sometimes asking for help's not easy. The team would usually see me coming back from work or going to work and they would know what was going on, and they were supportive. It wasn't really hard to be open to them about anything," he said. "They got my back."

Conti also said his mother has polycystic kidney disease and needs a transplant. He urged people to visit the Kidney to Save Karen Facebook page.

Dooley said Conti earned the scholarship and explained his motivation for helping his teammate.

"I did it because I've seen Conti grow over the years. Seeing him walk away from something that he loves did not sit well with me," he said. "He works hard and gets extra work with me all the time. In my eyes, he earned it 100%. Giving up my scholarship so he can stay and play means everything. I'm proud of what he has become and cannot wait to see what he does on the field."

Ancient Roman Bath with ‘Sophisticated Furnishings’ Uncovered in Cologne

An ancient Roman bath complex was uncovered during the construction of a new fountain in Cologne’s Neumark, the culturally and historically rich center of the German city, according to a report in Newsweek.

Gregor Wagner, an archaeologist with the Roman-Germanic Museum in Cologne and head of the excavations, told the local newspaper Kölnische Rundschau the baths were part of a large, private residential building that was equipped with “sophisticated furnishings.”

Among those amenities were painted plaster walls and heated floors in the bathing complex that allowed the inhabitants to enjoy hot, tepid, and cold baths. A boiler room was also uncovered, most likely used to heat air that would warm the floor of the baths from below, thereby controlling the temperature of the water. The floors themselves would have been elevated and supported by pillars in order to make room for the heating system.

This bath complex is the fourth to be discovered in Cologne, which was the site of a Roman colony founded in 50 CE known as Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium, and just one of the many Roman-era ruins in the city.

Ancient Roman baths are often found, or rediscovered, in Western Europe, almost all of which was under Roman rule from 27 CE through 476 CE. At the height of its power, the Roman Empire spread from what is now England to the coastal areas of Northern Africa, and from modern-day Portugal into the Middle East and Egypt.

Just last month a Roman bath in “excellent condition” was found in Mérida, Spain. In March an ancient Roman bathhouse was uncovered two miles northeast of Yenne, a village beside the Rhône river in Southern France, after plans for a new house warranted an archaeological assessment. And last year, a Roman bath was uncovered at the archaeological dig of the Temple of Khnum, near the Egyptian city of Esna.

Michigan Woman Shocked to Find Frog in Package of Store-Bought Spinach
Always double check your produce.



We're often told to wash our produce to remove any pesticides or harmful bacteria. One thing we aren't usually warned about is amphibians and other critters.

One Michigan woman had to confront that reality after a grocery store trip. Amber Worrick, who lives in suburban Detroit, went to a Meijer store earlier this week to pick up some produce, including a package of Earthbound Farm organic spinach. When she got home, her daughter found a live frog in the container and screamed. Worrick ran over and was shocked by what she saw.

“It was alive and moving,” Worrick told FOX 2 Detroit of the incident. “Just thank God I didn’t eat the frog.”

Needless to say, she wouldn't have picked up the package at the store in the first place if she knew it came with a slimy bonus inside. "I didn't see anything," she said. "It didn't feel heavy or anything. I didn't feel anything wiggling."

The animal is believed to be a Pacific tree frog native to California. Taylor Farms, the California-based parent company that owns Earthbound Farm, apologized for what happened in a statement.

"Our organic farming practices help promote biodiversity and healthy ecosystems on or around our farms. We will continue to work tirelessly to provide the freshest, finest quality veggies for consumers.”

Worrick immediately returned to the store and returned the package with the frog inside. She received a full refund, and workers released the frog to a new home outdoors. But that might not have been the best move. Jennifer Holton, a spokesperson with the Michigan Department of Agricultural and Rural Development, told the Detroit Free Press that the store shouldn’t have released the frog because it species has yet to be confirmed and could be non-native to the area.

It just goes to show; when buying produce, don't assume that just because something says it's been washed several times doesn't mean it'll be totally clean.

https://www.mensjournal.com/news/frog-store-bought-spinach-michigan

[HogwartsExpress]

Drivers in north Wales left confused as signs set road's speed limit at 20mph - and 30mph


Drivers through the village of Llannor were left confused after a sign on the right side of the road said the speed limit was 20mph while the sign on the left was marked 30mph.




Drivers on a road in North Wales have been left confused by contradictory speed limit signs depending on which direction they travel.

The sign on the right side of the road said it was a 20mph area while the one on the left was marked 30mph.

Visitors to Llannor, on the Llŷn Peninsula in the county of Gwynedd, were greeted by the differing signs upon entering the village.

The local council could not confirm the cause of the discrepancy but said the signs had now been rectified.

Several people shared their confusion on social media.

One said he "had to do a double take when [he] spotted it".

Another commented: "You'll have to change the village's name to 'ThirtyNoMore' instead of Llannor".

A spokesperson for Gwynedd Council said: "We can confirm the signs have now been rectified."

The default speed limit for built-up areas in Wales will decrease from 30mph to 20mph next month.

The Welsh government recently confirmed the fire service had been drafted in to help make people aware of the change which comes into effect on 17 September.

Lowering the speed limit has been criticised by the Senedd's largest opposition party, the Welsh Conservatives.

Shadow transport minister, Natasha Asghar, said it was a "foolish policy".

The Welsh government's climate change minister, Julie James, has previously said the policy would make streets and communities "safer".

src. https://news.sky.com/story/drivers-in-n ... h-12937378

[johngriffen]

I sometimes get REALLY DEPRESSED reviewing the news these days.
It's always about a global pandemic threatening life as we know it,
protests around the world, stupid politicians, natural disasters,
or some other really bad story.
ENOUGH IS ENOUGH

Welcome to The mobi weekly news magazine
IN OTHER NEWS
SATURDAY AUGUST 12
What is it?
Here is your chance to become an "ACE REPORTER" for our weekly news magazine.
It is your job to fine weird, funny or "good feel" stories from around the world and share them with our readers in our weekly magazine

How do you play?
Just post a story that you have come across that made you smile, laugh, feel good...
BUT NOTHING DEPRESSING

EXAMPLE POST

​Naked sunbather chases wild boar through park after it steals his laptop bag

A naked sunbather was seen chasing wild boar through a park after it stole his laptop bag.
Amusing photographs from Germany show the man running after the animal to try and claim the plastic bag back.
But the cheeky boar and its two piglets appear to be too quick for the sunbather, who can't keep up with their speedy little trotters.
As the incident unfolds, groups of friends and family sat on the grass watch on and laugh.
Heads are seen turning in surprise and amusement in the hilarious photographs.
The incident happened at Teufelssee Lake - a bathing spot in the Grunwell Forest in Berlin, Germany.

Rules:
Each Edition of IN OTHER NEWS will be open for 7 days...
You can post as many stories as you like, but you will only get paid for One Story in any 24 hour period
So in other words, you can only earn WRZ$ once a day.
Each news day will start when I post announcing it
OR at:
9:00 AM CHICAGO TIME (UTC -6)
3:00 PM GMT (UTC -0)
on those days I space out and forget to post or can't due to Real Life
Stories may be accompanied with images - but No big images, please! 800x800 pixels wide maximum
Videos are allowed, but please keep them short, and post a short summary for those that don't like to click on videos
No Duplicate stories - Where a post has been edited resulting in duplicates, then the last one in time gets disallowed.
And please limit this to reasonably family friendly stories

Reward:
Each news story posted that I feel is acceptable (must be a real story, too few words or simply a headline are not considered acceptable) will earn you 50 WRZ$
If you post multiple stories on any given day, you will only earn 50 WRZ$ for the first story of the Day
All payments will be made at THE END of the weekly news cycle.
Special Bonus - Each week I will award "The Pulitzer Prize" for the best story of the week
The weekly winner of the "The Pulitzer Prize" will receive a 100 WRZ$ bonus
It's just my personal opinion, so my judgement is final

So help bring GOOD news to the members of mobi, and join our reporting team...

IN OTHER NEWS

[ozswede]

Tourists stunned by €2 charge for cutting their toastie in half

A visitor to a trattoria on one of Italy’s most upmarket pleasure lakes was dumbfounded by a charge on his bill. There was a €2 charge for cutting his sandwich in half. The customer of the Bar Pace, in Gera Lario was scanning the receipt after it came back around $3.40 more than expected, when a something caught his eye:

There was an unexpected €2 charge for “diviso da meta” or “cutting in half”. The receipt lists the sandwich for 7.50 ($12.60), Coca Cola for 3.50 ($5.90), water for 1.50 ($2.50) and espresso for 1.20 ($2), along with the debated “diviso da meta”, or “cutting in half” fee, amounting to 2 euros, or $3.40.


The receipt listed “diviso da meta”, or “cutting in half” fee, for 2 euros.

The tourist who was visiting from the UK described it as “incredible but true…”

“There were two of us and we asked for a toasted sandwich to share at the table,” he wrote, sharing his receipt to TripAdvisor from the visit in June.

“We have to pay because the toast was cut in half?”

The cost of cutting the toasted sarnie was more than they paid for an espresso coffee. The bar even added 10 per cent consumer tax for the privilege.


Bar Pace in Lake Como has defended the charge

The sandwich cutting charge has became a divisive topic in Italian media.

“Additional requests have a cost” the bar’s owner Cristina Biacchi told La Repubblica.

“We had to use two plates instead of one and the time to wash them is doubled, and then two placemats”, he said, defending the fee.

“It wasn’t a simple toasted sandwich, there were also French fries inside. It took us time to cut it in two.”

The charge for the meal of a toasted vegetarian sandwich, cola, sparkling water and an espresso, on the 18 June, raised the cost from €7.50 to €9.50 - or around $17.20.

Biacchi said that neither customer had expressed any complaints at the time. La Repubblica was told the cafe would have been dropped the charge, if asked.

The practice is not unheard of in expensive cities and popular tourist destinations in the United States, where frugal eaters (and those with small appetites) are sometimes hit with a share charge, or a split plate charge, to make up for the lower check average at a table. Some New York City eateries even ban the practice of sharing, period.

Italian tourism’s long tradition of junk fees

Italian cafes have a long tradition of discretionary charges for tourists, particularly in scenic tourist hot spots.

In 2018, Venice’s Caffe Lavena near St Mark’s Square came under fire for charging €43 for two espresso coffees and two bottles of water.

The cheeky café said that they were charged an additional fee for sitting outside on the palazzo. The 1750s Caffe Laverna said coffee ‘without a view’ was available inside for €1.25, according to The Telegraph.


Italian tourism has a long tradition of 'junk fees'

The outrageous charges have returned in force with tourists, since the pandemic.

In Tuscany’s beachside resort of Versilia it’s more than the sun that is leaving visitors red faced.

On Wednesday The Times reported that the average rise of 20 per cent on last year at beaches, means that borrowing an umbrella and two sunbeds for a day now cost a minimum of €25 in Tuscany.

Although some travellers to La Scogliera in Amalfi have said that prices can vary wildly, depending on the day and who is asking to borrow a brolly.

“We watched him charge a group of young kids 20 euro when we decided to go after him and forced him to give us the same deal,” wrote one visitor from New York to TripAdvisor.

(Last time I was in Italy, everything was extra. Tablecloth, knives & forks, salt, pepper, all extra. Bread rolls, oil & vinegar for salad, menus, all extra. Waiter taking your order, extra. It was all billed under "coperta" and "servizio", and was neither discussed before hand nor pointed out.)

Archaeologists Discover Ancient Step Pyramid Dedicated to Horse Cult in Kazakhstan



Archaeologists in Kazakhstan’s Abai region have discovered a step pyramid dating back 4,000 years to the Bronze Age.

Archaeologists from the L.N. Gumilyov Eurasian National University (ENU) have been excavating the Kyrykungir complex monument near Toktamys village since 2014. There, they have found ancient graves from the Hun and Saka peoples, along with clay pots, food, and small bronze balls.

This year, the team uncovered a step pyramid dating to the early 2nd millennium BCE that differs from the typical Eurasian step pyramid.

Containing graves atop elaborate tunnels and labyrinths, step pyramids are usually similar in shape to a geometric pyramid. Egyptian architect Imhotep designed the step pyramid for Pharaoh Djoser in the 27th century BCE.

“The [step] pyramid is built with great precision,” Ulan Umitkaliyev, historian and head of ENU’s archaeology and ethnology department, said in a statement.

Hexagonal in form, “it is a very sophisticated complex structure with several circles in the middle,” Umitkaliyev said.

The exterior walls contain images of various animals such as camels, with a particular emphasis on horses. This, coupled with the discovery of horse bones around the building’s perimeter, led the team to believe that the complex was dedicated to a horse cult that would be typical of nomadic Eurasian cultures.

Archaeologists also found ceramics, gold women’s earrings, and other types of jewelry that, according to Umitkaliyev, “indicate that this Bronze Age [site] was the center of culture in ancient times.”

[goldie0608]

Red Lobster in Arkansas Discovers 'Extremely Rare' Orange Lobster — Which Now Lives at S.C. Aquarium

The seafood restaurant employee who discovered the marine crustacean named it Scarlett



A Red Lobster restaurant in Hot Springs, Arkansas, found an orange lobster in a recent shipment and has since donated it to an aquarium in South Carolina.

According to a press release obtained by PEOPLE, orange lobsters are "extremely rare" and their different coloring "makes them very attractive to predators."

So when Red Lobster employee Skarlett discovered the marine crustacean, she knew it was something special, and it has since been relocated to its new home at Ripley’s Aquarium of Myrtle Beach.

The employee even affectionately named the animal after herself, giving it the name Scarlett.

Skarlett added, per the release, that she had never seen an orange lobster before within her 28 years of working at the popular seafood-based restaurant chain.

Earlier this week, Ripley’s Aquarium shared a video on TikTok, in which they documented Scarlett's arrival at their establishment.

"Say 'shell-o' to Scarlett, our new, one-in-30-million, orange lobster!" the organization wrote in their caption.

In the clip, an aquarium employee can be seen carrying Scarlett in a container before placing her into a new tank.

Scarlett now joins Cheddar, another orange lobster who was rescued from a Red Lobster restaurant in Hollywood, Florida, a little over a year ago.

The sea creature — who recently had her first molt since arriving at Ripley’s Aquarium to reveal an even brighter orange shell — will soon join Cheddar in an exhibit that guests can visit.

[Fatima99]

After 17 Years, A Spacecraft Makes its First Visit Home Having Made History



A spacecraft that gave us our first multiple-perspective view of the Sun is set to flyby Earth for the first time since launch 17 years ago.

NASA’s STEREO-A spacecraft will pass between the Sun and Earth on Saturday, August 12th, with the agency exclaiming “our teenage spacecraft is visiting home.”

The twin STEREO (Solar TErrestrial RElations Observatory) spacecraft launched on October 25th, 2006 from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

Prior to the mission, we could only observe the Sun one side at a time. The two crafts’ flights enabled a stereoscopic three-dimensional view.

STEREO-A (for “Ahead”) advanced its lead on Earth as STEREO-B (for “Behind”) lagged behind, both charting Earth-like orbits around the Sun.

During the first years after launch, the dual-spacecraft mission achieved its landmark goal: providing the first stereoscopic, or multiple-perspective, view of our closest star.

“On Feb. 6, 2011, the mission achieved another landmark: STEREO-A and -B reached a 180-degree separation in their orbits. For the first time, humanity saw our Sun as a complete sphere,” wrote NASA.

“Prior to that we were ‘tethered’ to the Sun-Earth line—we only saw one side of the Sun at a time,” explained Lika Guhathakurta, STEREO program scientist at NASA. “STEREO broke that tether and gave us a view of the Sun as a three-dimensional object.”

On Saturday, STEREO-A’s lead on Earth will have grown to one full revolution as the spacecraft “laps” us in our orbit around the Sun.

“In the few weeks before and after STEREO-A’s flyby, scientists are seizing the opportunity to ask questions normally beyond the mission’s reach.”

NASA explains that when a plume of solar material known as a coronal mass ejection, or CME, arrives at Earth, it can disrupt satellite and radio signals, or even cause surges in our power grids. Or, it may have hardly any effect at all. It all depends on the magnetic field embedded within it, which can change dramatically in the 93 million miles between the Sun and Earth.

During the months before and after STEREO-A’s Earth flyby, any Earth-directed CMEs will pass over STEREO-A and other near-Earth spacecraft, giving scientists much-needed multipoint measurements from inside a CME.

“To understand how a CME’s magnetic field evolves on the way to Earth, scientists build computer models of these solar eruptions, updating them with each new spacecraft observation,” NASA writes.

Toni Galvin, a professor at the University of New Hampshire and principal investigator for one of STEREO-A’s instruments, compares our ability to gather data on CMEs with the parable about the blind men and the elephant.

“[One] feels the legs says ‘it’s like a tree trunk,’ and the one who feels the tail says ‘it’s like a snake,” says Galvin. “That’s what we’re stuck with right now with CMEs, because we typically only have one or two spacecraft right next to each other measuring it.”

Scientists are excited as the flyby comes at a time the Sun is fairly active as we approach the solar maximum predicted for 2025.

In this phase of the solar cycle, STEREO-A will be passing by a fundamentally different Sun. There is so much knowledge to be gained from that.

How photographing action figures healed my inner child

When I first saw Small Soldiers in 1998, I knew I wanted the life of Gregory Smith's character — sans the murderous, pint-sized action figures that terrorized his neighborhood. He was just a kid who worked at his father's toy store, propping up displays of Commando Elites and Gorgonites in heroic poses. Something about native advertising in the '90s made it impossible to escape the draw of toys.



Like all the stuff of our childhood, we're often taught to abandon them, to shove them away in the plastic tubs of our adult subconscious. But the toys and action figures of my youth remain an important part of my adulthood, enabling me to tap into my inner child and navigate unresolved traumas, overlooked passions, and the little things that remind me to be happy.

Toy photography is a robust hobby with a special kind of community, and I first encountered the art in 2016. Social media helped me discover the wildly imaginative work of Mitchel Wu, an LA-based photographer whose portfolio boasted some of the most dynamic images of toys and action figures I'd only seen for the first time. Using both the natural and artificial world around him, Wu arranges a tapestry of engaging subjects in startling detail.

From Ant-Man running atop leaves, to Hot Wheels cars jumping through actual donuts, Wu's work inspired me to explore the world of toy photography deeper. The first step? Understanding how cameras work. My sister was well-versed in which cameras were best and how to set up a subject, so I consulted with her since I couldn't even tell lenses apart.

I started off using blank printer paper taped to my wall and a small table for my earlier work. It was an experiment from the very start — iPhones have a portrait mode feature that I took advantage of but could never understand the way aperture worked. Snapping the first few shots on my old smartphone didn't come out as I hoped, because the lighting didn't complement my subjects. I had to reach out to my sister again.

I scoured eBay for an affordable Canon EOS Rebel T3i SLR camera — a product whose name was only matched by its complicated makeup. There were black knobs, red buttons, a display that popped out and could be flipped, and about a dozen other confusing features I constantly sought help understanding. There was still the issue of lighting, as well as photo editing.

The toy photography community on Instagram was especially helpful during this time. I was able to connect with hobbyists across the globe and foster a connection with people whose passions fueled their art. It also fueled my drive for collecting figures. It wasn't until taking up toy photography that I discovered a market teeming with high-quality — and high-priced (like, really high-priced) — merchandise of some of my favorite characters.

Online storefronts like Sideshow Collectibles and Big Bad Toy Store became my go-to for news on release dates and preorders. One brand in particular, Hot Toys, set the standard for which figures looked and worked best in shoots because all their products were hand-crafted by artists who tried to meet the demands of toy photography.



I started to pursue more creative set pieces, going from Miles Morales and Peter Parker playing basketball to Eleven levitating a red truck in front of Mike and Lucas. I wanted to deconstruct scenes and characters in new ways, even using a detailed Michael Jordan figure to capture the ineffable cool that is "His Airness."

After learning about which miniature studio lights worked best on darker figures and how to set up the lightbox I'd place them in, I decided to create a storyboard of images that relayed my journey as a Black kid navigating this pop culture landscape. I started with two figures: Rock Lee from the anime Naruto and Miles Morales from Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. I placed them in conversation with the head of a doll I made from clay. It was brown with dark hair and largely shaped to emphasize the space it took up.

The small project was my grappling with Black identity in anime shows, comics, and video games — spaces that don't frequently feature us. Whenever online conversations on representation in these areas arise, they often get flooded with racist responses.

Growing up, I didn't have Miles Morales or the same big screen T'Challa we know today. Navigating that culture through the years often felt awkward when communities weren't receptive or inviting. It was a cathartic experience putting the storyboard together, because it was a hobby that I learned from connecting with diverse creators. It reminds me to hold strong to the joys of my youth, no matter how old I get, and it also works to remind me that I belong in those spaces.

https://www.npr.org/2023/07/23/1159822206/toy-photography-marvel

[lush]

Scientist Claims to Have Performed Brain Surgery on Himself in His Living Room
071723*

A controversial Russian scientist claims to have implanted an electrode into his brain to control his dreams by performing brain surgery on himself, in the comfort of his living room.

Michael Raduga, a Russian researcher with no neurosurgery qualifications whatsoever, reportedly lost more than a ‘liter of blood’ while performing brain surgery on himself in his home in Kazahstan, in order to implant an electrode that one day has the potential to control lucid dreams. Raduga is not a doctor, but he is the founder of Phase Research Center, and organization that claims to provide beginner’s guidance on how one may experience sleep paralysis, out-of-body experiences, and ‘astral projection’. He has quite a cult following in Russia, and many of his followers have been praising him for his courage to push boundaries in order to achieve his goals, but neurosurgeons are warning that he is treading on extremely dangerous ground.


Photos: Michael Raduga/Twitter

“This is an extremely dangerous thing to do,” Alex Green, a Consultant Neurosurgeon at the University of Oxford, told Mail Online. “All sorts of complications could have happened. For example, if he had caused bleeding from a cortical vein or an intracerebral vessel he could have had a stroke with permanent deficit or death.”

Raduga himself admitted that about 30 minutes into his DIY surgery he was ready to give up because he had already lost a lot of blood, approximately one liter, and was afraid he might pass out. Still, he allegedly managed to complete the surgery, took a shower and worked for about 10 hours straight, without anyone realizing what he had done.

BRAIN IMPLANT FOR LUCID DREAMING

For the first time in history, we conducted direct electrical stimulation of the motor cortex of the brain during REM sleep, lucid dreams, and sleep paralysis. The results open up fantastic prospects for future dream control technologies. pic.twitter.com/qypqV6ntyV

— Michael Raduga (@MichaelRaduga) June 28, 2023
The controversial researcher told no one about his plan to operate on himself. Instead, he prepared by watching hours of brain surgery footage on YouTube and experimenting on a few sheep. He managed to implant a platinum and silicon electrode into his brain, which he claims can trigger certain actions in dreams. Raduga ended up having the implant removed in a hospital after about five weeks, but according to the Phase Research Center Telegram channel, he is already looking for people ‘willing to get a brain implant for more efficient lucid dreaming’.

While Michael Raduga has yet to report any side effects of the procedure, neurosurgery experts suggest that he could also be at risk of epilepsy in the long term if any scarring is caused to the cortex of his brain.



“I am glad I survived but I was ready to die,” Raduga said in an interview. “For many people, it will be some sort of entertainment. Now, imagine a paralysed person who cannot experience anything in this life and now we find a way to help him to get into a lucid dream where everything is possible. Have sex, eat something, do something interesting.”

[PennySerenade]

Former big league slugger Jose Bautista is signing a 1-day contract to retire with the Blue Jays



Former big league slugger Jose Bautista is signing a one-day contract so he can retire with the Toronto Blue Jays.

The Blue Jays announced the deal on Friday. The 42-year-old Bautista is going to be added to the team's level of excellence during a pregame ceremony on Saturday.

Bautista played for eight teams during 15 seasons in the majors, appearing in his last game in 2018 with Philadelphia. He hit .247 with 344 homers and 975 RBIs in 1,798 games.

Bautista was selected by Pittsburgh in the 20th round of the 2000 amateur draft and made his big league debut in 2004. He bounced around a bit before he was traded to Toronto in 2008.

Bautista turned into one of the game's most feared sluggers with the Blue Jays. The six-time All-Star swatted 288 homers during 10 years with Toronto, including a major league-leading 54 in 2010 and 43 in 2011.

He is perhaps best known for his emphatic bat flip after crushing a tiebreaking three-run homer in the seventh inning of Toronto's clinching 6-3 victory over Texas in Game 5 of their 2015 AL Division Series.



A Bautista bobblehead, capturing the memorable moment, will be presented to fans entering Rogers Centre on Saturday.

"It's been almost 10 years, surprisingly, and I've had a lot of conversations and done a lot of interviews and chatted with fans about it," Bautista said this week. "It's a great memory. It's a great moment, and ultimately, I think that's why we play the sport, to create great memories through the entertainment that we provide as a form of entertainment."