Philadelphia Zoo’s 100-Year-old Galapagos Tortoises Hatch 4 Babies–to Help Ensure the Species’ Survival

Hatchlings of Western Santa Cruz Galapagos tortoise Credit: Philadelphia ZooThe Philadelphia Zoo is overjoyed to announce the hatching of four critically endangered Galapagos tortoises for the first time in the Zoo’s 150 year history.The parents, Western Santa Cruz tortoises, are the Zoo’s two oldest residents, each estimated to be around 100 years old.Additionally, the female named Mommy is considered one of the most genetically valuable of her species in the Survival Plan of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA). She is also the oldest first-time mom of her species.The hatchlings are currently eating and growing normally “behind-the-scenes” inside the Reptile and Amphibian House. The first one hatched on February 27 and the animal care team is still monitoring more eggs that could hatch in the coming weeks.They will make their public debut on April 23, which is the 93rd anniversary of Mommy’s arrival at the Zoo.The babies are part of the AZA breeding program to ensure the survival of this species, which are listed as “critically endangered”.The last clutch of Western Santa Cruz tortoises to hatch in an AZA accredited zoo was in 2019 at Riverbanks Zoo in South Carolina. Other zoos with breeding pairs of this species include San Diego Zoo, Zoo Miami and Honolulu Zoo.Galapagos tortoise egg hatched – Credit: Philadelphia Zoo“This...
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A century after its discovery, scientists capture first confirmed footage of a colossal squid in the deep

Kat Bolstad, Auckland University of TechnologyThe colossal squid was first described in 1925 based on specimens from the stomach of a commercially hunted sperm whale. A century later, an international voyage captured the first confirmed video of this species in its natural habitat – a 30-centimetre juvenile, at a depth of 600 metres near the South Sandwich Islands. Colossal squid can grow up to seven metres and weigh as much as 500 kilograms, making them the heaviest invertebrate on the planet. But little is known about their life cycle. The first sighting of a juvenile colossal squid in its natural environment. Credit: Schmidt Ocean Institute. The footage of a young colossal squid in the water column was a serendipitous sighting, as many deep-sea squid observations are. It was seen during the live “divestream” feed of a remotely operated vehicle during the Schmidt Ocean Institute and Ocean Census partner expedition searching for new deep-sea species and habitats in the far south Atlantic, mostly focusing on the seafloor. Those tuned into the stream had the remarkable experience of seeing a live colossal squid in its deep-sea home, although its identity was not confirmed until the high-definition footage could be reviewed later. Predators such as whales and seabirds are still one of...
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Those Who Got Shingles Vaccine Were 20% Less Likely to Get Dementia in Study of 280,000 Seniors

CDC library – public domainOlder people who received the vaccine for shingles had a 20% lower risk of dementia, according to researchers who called the results “remarkable”.The study looked into the health records of seniors in Wales and revealed that those who received the shingles vaccine were 20% less likely to develop dementia over the next seven years than those who didn’t receive the jab.Scientists say the findings support an emerging theory that viruses which affect the nervous system can increase the risk of dementia.The new findings suggest that a preventive intervention for dementia is already close at hand.Shingles is a viral infection that produces a painful rash, and is caused by the same virus that causes chicken pox, varicella-zoster. After people contract chicken pox, usually in childhood, the virus remains dormant in the nerve cells for life. In people who are older or have weakened immune systems, the dormant virus can reactivate and cause shingles.Previous studies based on health records have linked the shingles vaccine with lower dementia rates, but the research could not account for one major source of bias: people who are vaccinated also tend to be more health conscious.The study’s senior author, Dr. Pascal Geldsetzer of Stanford Medicine, said that most studies suffered from the basic problem. “In general,...
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Antarctica’s hidden threat: meltwater under the ice sheet amplifies sea-level rise

LouieLea, Shutterstock Chen Zhao, University of Tasmania and Ben Galton-Fenzi, Australian Antarctic DivisionOne of the biggest challenges in predicting Antarctica’s deeply uncertain future is understanding exactly what’s driving its ice loss. A vast network of lakes and streams lies beneath the thick ice sheet. This water can lubricate the ice, allowing it to slide more rapidly toward the ocean. Our new research shows “subglacial water” plays a far larger role in Antarctic ice loss than previously thought. If it’s not properly accounted for, future sea-level rise may be vastly underestimated. Including the effects of evolving subglacial water in ice sheet models can triple the amount of ice flowing to the ocean. This adds more than two metres to global sea levels by 2300, with potentially enormous consequences for coastal communities worldwide. How hidden lakes threaten Antarctic Ice Sheet stability. (European Space Agency) Understanding the role of subglacial water Subglacial water forms when the base of the ice sheet melts. This occurs either due to friction from the movement of the ice, or geothermal heat from the bedrock below. The presence of subglacial water enables ice to slide over the bedrock more easily. It can also cause further melting under ice shelves, leading to...
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World’s Smallest Pacemaker is Made for Newborns, Activated by Light, and Requires No Surgery

World’s smallest pacemaker next to a grain of rice – Credit: John Rogers / Northwestern University press releaseNorthwestern University engineers have developed a pacemaker so small that it can fit inside the tip of a syringe and be non-invasively injected into the body, according to a new study published in Nature.Although it can work with hearts of all sizes, the pacemaker is particularly well-suited to the tiny, fragile hearts of newborn babies with congenital heart defects.A pacemaker is an implantable device that helps maintain an even heart rate, either because the heart’s natural cardiac pacemaker provides an inadequate or irregular heartbeat, or because there is a block in the heart’s electrical conduction system.Smaller than a single grain of rice, the pacemaker is paired with a small, soft, flexible, wireless, wearable device that mounts onto a patient’s chest to control pacing. When the wearable device detects an irregular heartbeat, it automatically shines a light to activate the pacemaker.These short light pulses, which penetrate through the patient’s skin, breastbone, and muscles, control the pacing.Designed for patients who only need temporary pacing, the pacemaker simply dissolves after it’s no longer needed. All the pacemaker’s components are biocompatible, so they naturally dissolve into the body’s biofluids, bypassing...
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Ants in your house? Here’s how they get everywhere – even high up in tall buildings

Windy Soemara/Shutterstock Tanya Latty, University of SydneyAnts are among nature’s greatest success stories, with an estimated 22,000 species worldwide. Tropical Australia in particular is a global hotspot for ant diversity. Some researchers believe it could hold some of the richest ant biodiversity on the planet, with an estimated 5,000 species in the tropics alone. But if ants are so successful out in nature, why do they so often turn up in our homes and even upper-level apartments? And what can we do to keep them out? There’s probably an ant near you right now Ants dominate the planet in terms of sheer abundance. At any given moment, there are an estimated 20 quadrillion ants alive — that’s 20 followed by 15 zeros. In fact, for every human being, there are roughly 2.5 million ants. There are about 22,000 ant species worldwide. This one is called the Green tree ant (Oecophylla smaragdina). Tanya LattySo the short answer to “Why are there ants in my house?” is simply this: there are a lot of ants. We live on a planet where ants outnumber us by an almost unimaginable margin. The fact that a few occasionally wander into our homes shouldn’t come as a surprise. Ants work from home (yours, that is) Ants owe much of their success to their highly social nature. Within the colony, some individuals (female queens...
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Curious Kids: what was the biggest dinosaur that ever lived?

Getty Images Nic Rawlence, University of OtagoWhat actually was the biggest dinosaur? – Zavier, 14, Tauranga, New Zealand. Great question Zavier, and one that palaeontologists (scientists who study fossil animals and plants) are interested in all around the world. And let’s face it, kids of all ages (and I include adults here) are fascinated by dinosaurs that break records for the biggest, the longest, the scariest or the fastest. It’s why, to this day, one of most famous dinosaurs is still Tyranosaurus rex, the tyrant king. These record-breaking dinosaurs are part of the reason why the Jurassic Park movie franchise has been so successful. Just think of the scene where Dr Alan Grant (played by New Zealand actor Sam Neill) is stunned by the giant sauropod dinosaur rearing up to reach the highest leaves in the tree with its long neck. But how do scientists work out how big and heavy a dinosaur was? And what were the biggest dinosaurs that ever lived? Calculating dinosaur size In an ideal world, calculating how big a dinosaur was would be easy – with a nearly complete skeleton. Standing next to the remarkable Triceratops skeleton on permanent display at Melbourne Museum makes you realise how gigantic and formidable these creatures were. By measuring bone proportions (such as length,...
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Melting Antarctic ice will slow the world’s strongest ocean current – and the global consequences are profound

Mongkolchon Akesin, Shutterstock Taimoor Sohail, The University of Melbourne and Bishakhdatta Gayen, The University of MelbourneFlowing clockwise around Antarctica, the Antarctic Circumpolar Current is the strongest ocean current on the planet. It’s five times stronger than the Gulf Stream and more than 100 times stronger than the Amazon River. It forms part of the global ocean “conveyor belt” connecting the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian oceans. The system regulates Earth’s climate and pumps water, heat and nutrients around the globe. But fresh, cool water from melting Antarctic ice is diluting the salty water of the ocean, potentially disrupting the vital ocean current. Our new research suggests the Antarctic Circumpolar Current will be 20% slower by 2050 as the world warms, with far-reaching consequences for life on Earth. The Antarctic Circumpolar Current keeps Antarctica isolated from the rest of the global ocean, and connects the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian oceans. Sohail, T., et al (2025), Environmental Research Letters., CC BYWhy should we care? The Antarctic Circumpolar Current is like a moat around the icy continent. The current helps to keep warm water at bay, protecting vulnerable ice sheets. It also acts as a barrier to invasive species such as southern bull kelp and any animals hitching a ride on these...
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2025 will see huge advances in quantum computing. So what is a quantum chip and how does it work?

Motion Loop/Shutterstock Muhammad Usman, CSIROIn recent years, the field of quantum computing has been experiencing fast growth, with technological advances and large-scale investments regularly making the news. The United Nations has designated 2025 as the International Year of Quantum Science and Technology. The stakes are high – having quantum computers would mean access to tremendous data processing power compared to what we have today. They won’t replace your normal computer, but having this kind of awesome computing power will provide advances in medicine, chemistry, materials science and other fields. So it’s no surprise that quantum computing is rapidly becoming a global race, and private industry and governments around the world are rushing to build the world’s first full-scale quantum computer. To achieve this, first we need to have stable and scalable quantum processors, or chips. What is a quantum chip? Everyday computers – like your laptop – are classical computers. They store and process information in the form of binary numbers or bits. A single bit can represent either 0 or 1. By contrast, the basic unit of a quantum chip is a qubit. A quantum chip is made up of many qubits. These are typically subatomic particles such as electrons or photons, controlled and manipulated by specially designed electric and...
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It’s official: Australia’s ocean surface was the hottest on record in 2024

Moninya Roughan, UNSW SydneyAustralia’s sea surface temperatures were the warmest on record last year, according to a snapshot of the nation’s climate which underscores the perilous state of the world’s oceans. The Bureau of Meteorology on Thursday released its annual climate statement for 2024 – the official record of temperature, rainfall, water resources, oceans, atmosphere and notable weather. Among its many alarming findings were that sea surface temperatures were hotter than ever around the continent last year: a whopping 0.89°C above average. Oceans cover more than 70% of Earth’s surface, and their warming is gravely concerning. It causes sea levels to rise, coral to bleach and Earth’s ice sheets to melt faster. Hotter oceans also makes weather on land more extreme and damages the marine life which underpins vital ocean ecosystems. What the snapshot showed Australia’s climate varies from year to year. That’s due to natural phenomena such as the El Niño and La Niña climate drivers, as well as human-induced climate change. The bureau confirmed 2024 was Australia’s second-warmest year since national records began in 1910. The national annual average temperature was 1.46°C warmer than the long-term average (1961–90). Heatwaves struck large parts of Australia early in the year, and...
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Scientists Drill Ice Core–2 Miles Down–Extracting 1.2 Million Years of Climate Record On Earth

Antarctica ice core – PNRA / IPEV via SWNSAn international team of scientists in the Antarctic has successfully extracted what is believed to be the world’s oldest ice—a historic milestone for climate science.They drilled down almost two miles to extract 2.8-km of ice core, reaching the actual bedrock beneath the Antarctic ice sheet.The air bubbles trapped inside the ice are “like tiny time capsules of Earth’s atmospheric past”. The samples equate to a continuous record of climate history dating back to 1.2 million years ago, which could illuminate the mysteries of glacial climate cycles.This was the fourth Antarctic field mission for the Europeans behind the ‘Beyond EPICA – Oldest Ice’ project, funded by the European Commission.They achieved more than 200 days of successful drilling and ice core processing operations across four seasons in the harsh environment of the central Antarctic plateau, working at an altitude of 3,200 meters above sea level with an average summer temperature of -35°C.The ice core from Beyond EPICA will offer unprecedented insights into the Mid-Pleistocene Transition, a remarkable period between 900,000 and 1.2 million years ago when glacial cycles slowed down from 41,000-years to 100,000-year intervals.The reasons behind this shift remain one of climate science’s enduring mysteries, one which this project...
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Supersonic jets are making a comeback – but despite the hype, don’t expect to book yet

Rendering of Boom Supersonic’s proposed Overture supersonic airliner. Boom Supersonic Chris James, The University of QueenslandLate last week, American company Boom Supersonic flew faster than the speed of sound with its XB-1 supersonic demonstrator aircraft. It’s now the first piloted non-military aircraft to break the sound barrier since the Concorde was retired from service in 2003. It’s the first step in Boom’s ambitious goal to have supersonic airliners carry passengers by 2029. But what exactly is supersonic travel? There are good reasons why it’s not more common, despite the hype. Boom Supersonic’s XB-1 supersonic demonstrator aircraft during its 11th test flight where it became the first civilian aircraft to fly supersonically since the Concorde. Boom SupersonicWhat is supersonic flight? The Mach number is defined as a plane’s speed divided by the speed that sound waves move through the air. To “break the sound barrier” means to fly faster than the speed of sound, with Mach numbers greater than 1. The Mach number is an important ratio: as a plane flies, it disturbs the air in front of it. These disturbances move at the speed of sound. In supersonic flight these disturbances combine to form shock waves around the vehicle. When people say you can see a fighter jet before you hear it, they’re referring to supersonic...
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